Chapter 4 - The Men in Red

Nausico heard a loud crash echo down the side-street.  Something was going on a few buildings away, but he had to remain out of sight.  He pulled the hood of his tunic over his head and tried to relax.  No one had past by yet.  There was time to recuperate and plan his escape.  The shadows of the alley were tense as the air suddenly grew quiet.  There wasn't much time left.

The blast of a second crash filled the alleyway.  There was some shouting and the sound of hurried footsteps approaching.  Nausico quickly began to walk in the opposite direction.  A few figures hurried past Nausico in the alley.  He caught a glimpse of two men, skinny and pale.  They were laughing.  Neither bothered looking twice at Nausico as he past in the dark.

Maybe I have a chance with all this commotion...

At the end of the alley was a few small store houses, and beyond the wood where he'd spent the night.  With a long sprint he'd be out of the town and back into the wild.  He could find a better place to hide there.  Nausico waited a moment to be sure no one was looking, and started to run for the store houses.

Half-way across the street he froze.  Standing just beyond the edge of the wood, barely visible, was a yellow robed man wating for him.  Without thinking, Nausico turned right and bolted up the street.

"THERE HE IS!"

Within seconds, Nausico was surrounded by a large group of men in dark stained, yellow robes.  They were the Men in Red.  He didn't even have time to react.  They grabbed him by the arms and legs and carried him down the street.  Before he knew what was going on, Nausico was thrown to the ground with the sound of people all around him.  He was in a clearing of a large crowd.  They were jeering and yelling at him while some of the Men in Red held the rioters back.

"Here's the demon!", someone shouted.

Nausico heard a cacophony of voices.
"Let me go!""
"Put the farmer down!"
"Whoever you're looking for isn't here!"
"Out of our way!"
"Get away from me!"
"Bring out his accomplices!", commanded one of the Men in Red.

Two people were shoved into the circle of townsfolk and Men in Red.  Nausico recognized the red-haired girl from earlier and a man who seemed to look more like an animal in a tight corner.  Saffron looked anxious while the wild man bared his teeth agressively at the crowd.

The man turned and grabbed Nausico by the scruff of his collar.

He barked, "What did you get us into?!"

Nausico's face went ghost white.  He didn't understand what was going on.

"I... I don't know..." Nausico stuttered back.

Saffron touched the man on the shoulder and said, "Ysbry, let the boy down."

Ysbry relinquished his hold on Nausico and returned his attention to the crowd.  Fenwick seemed to appear out of thin air on Saffron's shoulders and continued to monitor the crowd nervously while Saffron approached Nausico.

"Nausico," said Saffron sternly, staring him directly in the face, "What do these men want?"

"I... They..."

But before he could answer a loud cry erupted from the crowd and they began to part.  A large man in a particularly worn yellow cape with terribly rusted pauldrons wielding a large, double-sided axe loomed before the trio.

He spoke deep and heavy.

"The penalty for evading the Men in Red is," he raised his double-sided axe and took his stance, "DEATH!"

Saffron looked uneasy, taking her tambourine in hand.

"Nausico," she said, "Be ready!"

Suddenly, Ysbry let out a bloody roar as he launched himself at the large man.  A heavy swing of the axe whistled through the air barely missing its' mark.  Ysbry's smaller axe tore through the man's arm, causing it to droop slightly.  He yelled and batted Ysbry away with the blunt side of the axe, sending Ysbry flying through the air.  He crashed through the crowd, sending the people into a panic.  The Men in Red advanced forward quickly.  Chaos filled the air as screaming townsfolk rushed in panic into their dwellings.

None of this seemed to phase Saffron.  She weaved her way as though in a trance through the jumbled mess of people, batting helmets and slicing limbs with her razor tambourine.  It was a cold, but beautiful scene.

Nausico was suddenly surrounded by Men in Red.  He reached out, sending a wave of frost that covered the nearest soldiers.  They froze for a moment.  It gave Nausico nearly enough time to evade a leathal strike from behind.  He sent another wave of frost, saving him another moment of time.  He had to get out of here.  He had to escape.

Then, he heard a terrible cry.  He turned to see the nearest soldiers break free of their icy prison and charge him.  There was no time to react.  Within moments he would be pinned to the ground. 

"NAUSICO!" called Saffron, just a few steps away.  She reached out with her tambourine, which transformed in mid-air into a giant, circular blade.  The war hoop sliced into the knees of the soldiers.  Saffron twirled the giant weapon with her arm, shouting, "Nausico!  Get behind me!"

Nausico managed to get back to back with Safforn.  Nearby, Nausico could see Ysbry twirling wildly with bodies surrounding him.  The area was beginning to clear, and Nausico saw they were standing in the center of town.  Then, Nausico saw the endless number of soldiers pouring into the center of town.

Ysbry hurried to join Saffron and Nausico.  He looked uneasy to see so many soldiers approaching.

"Your magic- got any kind of large blasts, Red Eyes?" Ysbry said gruffly, spiting some blood from his mouth, "We sure could use a bit more force."


Nausico nodded.

He began to focus all of his power, concentrating it into a large bubble of icy wind above them.  The soldiers paused as the bubble grew larger and larger.  They gathered around in awe as the sky began to darken.  The air grew frigid and the wind bellowed.  Nausico adjusted his stance and struggled against the growing orb.

"Get ready," Nausico shouted above the wind, "This is going to be big."

Saffron and Ysbry braced themselves.