Udan had seconds earlier cut the ropes binding Ghelfunn to the tree near the horses. Now free, Ghelfunn had then retrieved his whip and knives from one of the pack horses, preparing for a fight. Three men now looked at him and Udan in disbelief, frozen for a moment like statues to clear their shocked minds. Silence filled the camp but for a faint whistle in the trees. No one moved for what seemed to be a very long time. Udan sheathed his knife, then withdrew his longblade and was holding it shoulder high with both hands. Ghelfunn held his whip in his right hand. He slowly let the throng slide down his right thigh, allowing the fall and cracker to uncoil at his feet.
"I'll take the one on the right," Udan said. "Think you can handle the other two?"
"Well, I am still a little woozy," Ghelfunn said, smiling. " I was hit in the head, you know. But I'll give it a try. You'll watch my back."
"That's all I live for," Udan replied sarcastically. "I've spent my life watching your back."
The three men standing before Udan and Ghelfunn separated, forming a circle around the two Taalzanni warriors. Ghelfunn was the first to act. He withdrew a knife from his vest and tossed it straight at the guard directly in front of him, just missing his neck but leaving behind a nice gash on the right side of the guard's upper shoulder. Ghelfunn then lifted the whip in his right hand, slashing it forward toward the guard to his immediate right. The cracker snapped at the guard's right cheek, leaving a bloody scar. The guard yelled in pain but stood his ground.
The guard facing Udan rushed him with his sword punching the air, then swiping from left to right at Udan's waist. Udan blocked the move with his sword and kicked the lunging guard in the chest, knocking him backward. With a quick thrust of his sword, Udan wounded his foe easily. The bleeding guard looked up at Udan and help up both hands, giving the sign he was finished.
The guard facing Ghelfunn reached up with is left hand and felt the bleeding scar on his cheek, giving Ghelfunn a grin. Ghelfunn retrieved a knife from his vest using his left hand and threw it toward the guard's right arm, slashing it just above the elbow. The guard dropped his sword, and the smile on his face disappeared. His expression now showed rage. The seething guard rushed headfirst into Ghelfunn, trying to tackle him. Ghelfunn stepped to his left and tripped the guard's right foot, making him stumble to the ground. At that point, Udan slammed the butt of his sword onto the top of the guard's head, knocking him unconscious.
"Glad you could help," Ghelfunn said.
"My guy didn't have much fight in him," Udan responded. "These men are not exactly the best we've seen in a fight. I killed the young one."
"Why?"
"I don't know," Udan said. "Old habit, I guess. We are at war, after all."
Ghelfunn and Udan gathered the three guards and bound their hands and feet. Udan retrieved a piece of cloth from a pack animal and ripped it into strips. He then tied a strip around each guard's mouth, muzzling him. He used the remaining cloth to dress the wounds he and Ghelfunn had inflicted upon the guards, preventing any of them from bleeding out.
"We need to get out of here, now." Ghelfunn was worried the other two guards chasing their horses would return soon. "We don't have time to waste."
"Where to do we go?" Udan asked. "Just what are we supposed to do now? I don't even know what in hell's gate we are doing here."
