[h3]Sir Yanin Glade[/h3]

	Quintin confirmed that a patrol consisting of two individuals should be manageable. The human knight didn't entirely miss the ranger looking at Jaelnec and Jordan in turn as he mentioned three could be a problem. 
	[color=f7976a]"He could, but I reckon you two are best suited."[/color] He had Freagon's word that 'the boy' could fight, but nothing about whether he could be covert, so he skipped having an opinion on Jaelnec's suitability. [color=f7976a]"Best to not bring more people than needed. Less chance of alerting the patrol prematurely. We'll be ready to intervene if need be."[/color] By arrow and bolt, or by sending someone third. He guessed they'd be improvising by that point. 
	Quintin, Jaelnec and Nabi made their preparations; Lady Bor and Madara took position up in a tree each. Kinder specified that it'd probably be able to move around for fifteen, twenty minutes, and be ... present, he guessed, for up to an hour. "Not that long, then. May this endeavor be swift, then, and no more inconvenient to you to wait than need be." He knew not that much about divines outside of what Dei'iel had to say about [i]handling[/i] them. Ghouls and wraiths didn't [i]seem[/i] in pain or discomforted, but he was also bad at reading people, let alone mobile bunches of sticks with glowing dots for eyes. As a human, inhabiting a form that didn't belong to you seemed strange. [i]Wrong. [/i]

	[i]Time was running out. [/i]An hourglass upon hourglass upon hourglass, each running dry at one's own rate. 

	Quietly, Yanin took position amid trees, glaive set aside, bow and one of the arrows held between his fingers. For the time being, he stuck with the bodkins rather than the broadheads. Not quite as lethal, but better able to pierce armor. There was a fair chance he'd end up using both; there were only so many of each. 
	Quintin and Nabi went ahead, Jordan and the nightwalker stayed to the side, the former likewise preparing to shoot if need be, crossbow armed with a bolt, but for now still lowered. For now, they watched. 
	[i]Two people.[/i] Not a challenge. The patrol didn't stand a chance.  Less than quarter of a moment, and it was over; Quentin motiobned them forward, and they advanced, this time taking position six, five dozen meters from the barn, about as close as they could get before the trees gave way fully. 
	[color=f7976a]"Let Caleb know we're ready,"[/color] the human knight quietly noted to Kinder. [color=f7976a]"He can block the further barn door and tell the others to advance." [/color]

	[i]Find a target, preferably one with a ranged weapon further from where Deo'Irah's group would be emerging. Raise the bow, ready to draw, but wait. Not yet.[/i]
	A singular bandit detached from the rest, wandering closer to them, not quite alert until he spotted the dead patrol. He didn't have the time to alert anyone, Lady Bor took care of that. 
	[i]Now.[/i]
	One of the bandits shouted. Another jumped up to go for a bow of his own, looking at the forest, but not quite in the direction of any of them. Maybe a good fifteen degrees off of Lady Bor's position, side towards Yanin. This one was wearing mostly mail; maybe seventy meters away. His bow was good for about a hundred and fifty, and the guy fumbled a moment too long, not moving. A bodkin arrow pierced deep between his ribs. 
	Didn't go down immediately, but he paused and let his weapon slip, knocked breathless, reaching for the arrow before trying to draw a breath again. And immediately started coughing. Another, though unfortunately one who only seemed to have a spear and hence was not a likely immediate threat to the other half of their party, took a crossbow bolt to his abdomen. 
	Still a threat, but not the most imminent one. It took half a dozen seconds for the human knight to prepare another arrow. It would take maybe twice as long for Joran to manage to rearm his weapon, and the action was somewhat more conspicious. More bandits were now emerging to join the few that had been dallying outside. Another received an arrow in his upper thigh, which was technically nearly half a meter off where Yanin had been aiming, but for hitting a running target fifty meters off, it was well enough. 
	They didn't immediately seem to be in hurry to take cover, perhaps not orienting in what was attacking them, perhaps distracted by the other team's advance. They had, after all, the entire broad arc of the forest's edge and Caleb's position to contend with. Yanin's instructions to his side had been clear enough - whoever might take aim at them from afar took priority. And they were two crossbows and three bows strong. He and Jordan were not the only ones.  
	Some of the bandits were getting close now. For now, he decided to take a risk - none of those nearly upon them were ranged. Some of those back there [i]were.[/i] The human knight seemed alert and focused, and little else. There was none of the casual indifference Sir Freagon seemed to display, rather, it was all a grim job, all calculated, all [i]ready.[/i]
	Yanin's third arrow practically impaled a guy's neck. That one didn't get far. 

	Jaelnec didn't quite wait until that moment, but rather took it upon himself to engage the nearest - or rather, the nearest [i]three[/i] bandits. Jordan's crossbow, now armed again, briefly tracked the other two, but as quickly as the first one was dispatched, moved on to the ones further away. 
	It would appear that Sir Freagon had fairly high standards for "can fight", even if his newly appointed squire was more of a pusher than a tactician. Not necessarily a bad thing, just riskier. 
	The fourth arrow cut through a shoulder - perhaps an upper arm. If it didn't nick an artery, then it'd be more of an annoyance than immediately disabling in a survival situation. A crossbow bolt followed but a second later, embedding itself in the left lung, if not heart. [i]Well, that worked.[/i]

	And with Jaelnec perhaps inadvertently leading the charge by mirroring the other team, they were running out of this stage; it was time to discard the bow and finish this.