[B]Kristoph[/B]

The fighting got off to, more or less, the kind of start Kristoph had expected. His explosive trap took a chunk of their numbers while simultaneously alerting the entire town (and more specifically, Simon) to the bandit raid, effectively killing two birds with a single stone, or bomb as the case may be. He didn't stick around to admire his handiwork, though, Kristoph instead choosing to duck into a nearby alley and using it for cover. His greatest strength was his ability to analyze enemy movements to predict their attacks, but no matter how sharp his eyes were they would do him no good if his head ended up rolling on the ground. This allowed him to observe both the bandits and the mercenaries, which of course would allow him to more properly assess the battle and formulate a plan accordingly. The first thing he would need to do was rendezvous with Simon, who he had no doubt would join the battle upon hearing the signal of the explosion.

But before he did that, Kristoph made one more observation. From within the mercenary camp, a man emerged and began giving orders to the others. This, Kristoph presumed, had to be the leader of this town's defense. What he didn't understand was the appearance of a nearby knight in Vinsenian armor closer to the entrance. Surely the town hadn't already been captured before Kristoph's arrival, because if it were then there would have been no need for the bandits. Kristoph knew he specifically heard the mention of a general's orders, meaning that this raid had to have been on the orders of the Vinsenian army, and yet one of theirs was here fighting in the town's defense? Either this man was a deserter of some kind or there was a more complex plan at work here. Either way, Kristoph was determined to get to the bottom of it. But finding Simon had to come first.

It wasn't overly difficult to avoid the bandits. After all, their targets were the mercenaries in front of them, and as such sneaking around them proved simple enough so long as Kristoph stuck to the alleys. In doing so, he witnessed a mage slay a bandit with what Kristoph recognized as a dark spell tome. Unfortunately the mage seemed to pass out after that, and was essentially carried off to safety by someone else. Kristoph didn't stay to witness anything else, instead pressing on, specifically in the direction of the tavern in the hopes of encountering Simon. Finally, he heard his son's voice, sounding as if he were offering someone a chance to leave with their lives. One had to admire his insistence of such honorable behavior, even if it was naive at times. Kristoph turned a corner, spotting a bandit holding a girl hostage with Simon further back with his sword in hand, even further still were the corpses of the men he had only just slew.

[I]"You could have walked away, but instead you choose a miserable death. I pray your gods show you pity. Because my [b]father[/b] and I will not."[/I]

[i]Good[/i], Kristoph thought. His son's choice of words had contained a hidden meaning, one that signaled Kristoph that Simon had spotted him. Kristoph nodded in silence, about to grab his sword but held his position when another man crept past him and toward the bandit, apparently having the same idea.

"Really, now? 'Cause it looks ta me like yer all alone, boyo!" he said no more, the stranger attacking him from behind in a rather gruesome show. Kristoph approached silently, listening the other man introduce himself as Helath and simply letting Simon do the talking.

"Thank you." said Simon to the man who had aided him. He had no doubt in his own ability to slay the bandit, but doing so without harming the girl in the process was a different story, "My name is Simon Thane. The man standing behind you is my father, Kristoph."

Kristoph chose that moment to speak, "We may be in trouble, Simon."

"Trouble? Why? What's happened?" Simon asked, questioning his father's greeting.

"I overheard one of these bandits mentioning the orders of a general. Take a wild guess who he was talking about," said Kristoph as he took a cautious glance at their new... friend, "but that's not all, I caught glimpse of a Vinsenian Knight defending the gate."

"But that makes no sense! Why would the Vinsenians attack a town defended by one of their own?" asked Simon, now thoroughly confused.

"I don't know," said Kristoph, "but I intend to find out."