It was quiet for some time, before they all decided to sit down and chat.

At first, Joss was informed of how things had been at home. During this summary, William had to confess to Joss that he had lost his patience. With some restraint he explained, “I’ve already attained my sword, Joss... It was simply impossible for me to wait that long… But I have some time tomorrow to accompany you to the blacksmith... There, I’ll buy you the sword that I promised you… Yes, even if you didn’t uphold your part of the bargain. I still think that you deserve it… Just take it as a present and don’t you dare complain”.

It was as William predicted. His brother was going to protest but felt reluctant to do so, because of William’s warning.

Joss squirmed around on his seat. He tried to find a way around this topic, for he didn’t at all feel deserving of such an expensive gift. William clapped his brother on the knee and said with determination, “You can’t escape it! Either you take the sword or I’ll permanently make you take it, by stabbing you with it in the back!”.

Joss coughed and said, “Fine, fine! I’ll take it!”. Remony giggled to herself at these siblings stubbornness. Then she asked the question, they had all been longing to hear; “Joss, why exactly are you back now? Are the bandits finally gone?”.

The mood suddenly shifted from merry buffoonery to a tense silence. Joss felt his gaze fall onto his feet, as he mumbled, “They kind of are… We did manage to confront them at some point… However, most of them escaped… We only got to kill two of them. The rest fled like rats... I didn’t even get a clear glimpse of their numbers, but there are more of them than we thought… And I also found out that they have murdered… They dared to murder one of my friends”. Both Remony and William asked in horror, “Who?”.

Joss shook his head in defeat. It was hard for him to recall these cold facts, when they hit so close to home.

Slowly he asked the girls, “Do you remember the name of the latest kidnapped victim? Well, his name was Wischard… His dead now…”. Remony didn’t know who it was, because news seldom spread themselves equally among the people.

William however, knew who it was. He had seen the little boy play around with Joss and the other kids from the island. That little boy amongst a flock of naughty ones, was considered the runt. Or perhaps, the slow and dorky one. And yet, even though he was the runt of the litter, the other boys enjoyed having him around on their little adventures.

This little boys death, tormented Joss. Probably because he didn’t get to suffer lightly… Everybody knew, that those awful bandits did horrible things towards their victims.

Remony took the initiative to caress Joss on the back. He looked up a bit startled at the feminine touch but it was nice nonetheless…

Remony soothed Joss; “Were you allowed to bury him?”. There was a wet look to Joss’ eyes, as he replied, “Yes… Although there wasn’t much to bury…”. Joss seemed to reminisce about a certain scene, because his skin complexion went from pale to flaming red.

Joss growled, with deep seeded hatred, “Those bastards!.. When we came upon the scene, Wischard’s body was spotted hung from a tree and his lower body was completely gone!.. Underneath it, my father could distinguish some dinosaur tracks… Along with other animals’... He speculates that they either used him for another godforsaken game of theirs or as a lure... For dinosaurs and that which is carnivorous… Although, father couldn’t find the exact purpose to his hanging, one thing was for certain... That… Wischard died while it happened”.

Hearing of this awful scene, Remony had to clasp her mouth shut with both hands. It was simply too cruel to bear. William on the other hand, had a strong urge to vent his outrage. For if there was one thing he couldn’t accept, it was that these bandits had so many options to choose from but actually chose the most abhorrent one to follow!

This he complained out loud for his friends to hear; “These bandits can fricking camouflage themselves!.. That’s a great ability, isn’t it? Which they could easily use to attain high paying jobs, like becoming spies for the rich, or they could even make an entertainment troupe, if they so desired, but no!? Instead, they choose to be monsters; hunting down children for fun and pushing them into slavery, just for some coins!? That’s beyond messed up!”.

Joss completely agreed. The Ravaging Shades were wasting their talents for evil: Pure evil…

Remony gulped some of her fright down, before asking, “So then what? Are they still in Talcan? Or perhaps, they have moved their main group back, to settle near the island once again!?”. Her heart beated so hard, that the others could visibly see her chest struggle.

Joss didn’t know whether to be happy or frustrated. He said, “Neither… They have escaped further away into Abkill’s and Iredale’s territory. The task we set out to accomplish has gone beyond our means… But not all was in vain”. William tried to make a guess, as to what he meant and so he inquired, “Is it because you managed to kill two of them and catch them, while they were still at their camp?”.

Joss shook his head with a small smile on his lips; “No… It’s because these events have created a chance for us to reconnect a long lost alliance. One the Blaises once had with the Talcans”.

Both girls blinked at him. They didn’t know what he was rambling on about. Joss sighed as if it was a bother. He was lucky that these girls didn’t know, that he had been just as blank as they were before he set out on the expedition. If they knew, these girls would have eaten him alive for pretending to be so wise...

He told the girls, “They were actually allies for a good while. Dating all the way back to the Blaise family’s first generation. Lord Blaise even got his first wife from the Talcans... However, one day between their borders, a valuable resource was discovered: Spirit stones... Stones that are practically made out of spirit!”.

Remony frowned. She could already get the jist of why their old friendship was ruined.

William on the other hand, was very interested in hearing more about these spirit stones… Who knows? Maybe he could get a hint to where they were and collect some for himself?