Bandit's Revenge Read online

  "There are some fishing rods in the storage room, right?" he asked.

  "Yeah," confirmed Nem, "You wanna fish?"

  "Is something wrong with the rations we have?" asked Ka.

  "No, not really," replied Bandit as he scratched the back of his head, "but what could be better than eating freshly caught fish?"

  "Sounds good to me," said Eul with a smirk, "Whatever you make, it'll probably taste far better than the slop Ka has been making."

  "You ungrateful bastard," said Ka as Bandit walked towards the door.

  Bandit smiled as he opened the door, and looked at his Vast Expanse friends, who were laughing at Ka, from the corner of his eye.

  I'm gonna miss these guys, he thought as he closed the door, I've been around them for quite some time…but…I have to get back. It's about time I saw my other friends again… It's about time I saw my mother again…

  He brought out his lighter, his double guillotine-style cutter, and a Corona cigar from his pockets, used the cutter to cut the cap, lit the other end, and placed the unlit end of the cigar in his mouth. After putting his lighter and cutter back in his pocket, he swirled the smoke around in his mouth before exhaling it.

  I wonder how they've been…he thought as he smiled, Well…no matter what they've been through, I think I know one thing at least…

  His smile grew wider as he looked up at the sky.

  They probably haven't changed a bit.

  July 29, 1854

  The Ice Lands were an arctic expanse located in the southernmost region of the world, and were one of the coldest and most unforgiving places on Earth. Winters were long and cold, so the inhabitants, the Icelanders, had to live with snow for the majority of the year. The summers were short, which was unfortunate because that was the only time plants had the ability to grow on the grassy plains that lied underneath the snow.

  The natives of the Ice Lands lived in huts and metal houses, as opposed to the natives of Vast Expanse, who had wooden huts as their only option for shelter, besides the outdoors. Icicles could often be found hanging from the ceilings of the buildings, and the cold weather limited the amount of wildlife in the area that could be used for food, but luckily, the Icelanders were used to the challenges of the Ice Lands- for example, they depended on the ocean for most of their natural resources- and despite the challenges, the Ice Lands were still one of the most advanced realms in the world, for it possessed communications radios, televisions, and other technological advancements that most other realms did not possess.

  Somewhere near the edge of the land, a tall, muscular man wearing a long, red winter coat and orange earmuffs jumped off a small caravel he had piloted all by himself, and safely landed on the ground. He took in a deep breath as he looked up ahead, and crossed his arms as he exhaled.

  It's good to be back, he thought as he looked around.

  He noticed a few fishermen positioned about a quarter of a mile away from him, and when they noticed him, he greeted them by waving his hand at them. The fishermen looked at him in surprise, and spoke amongst themselves for a few moments.

  The man took a step forward and began to make his way towards the city, but noticed from the corner of his eye that the fishermen had gotten up, and were walking towards him. He raised an eyebrow in surprise as he looked directly at the men, and his eyes widened when he saw that the men were now holding swords. Realizing what the men were about to try to do, the man stopped walking, and cracked both of his knuckles and his neck as he turned to look at them.

  Damn, he thought as he sighed, Why do I get the feeling things in the Ice Lands aren't the same as they used to be?

  "What do you think you're doing?" asked Arrok, one of the swordsmen, as they came within speaking distance of the man, "Who are you?"

  "Relax," responded the man as he put his hand up, "There's no need to be hostile. I live here. I just came back from a long trip."

  "I don't care if you just came back from the afterlife," said Nom, another one of the men, "We don't allow trespassers in this land…and don't think for a second I missed the fact that you still haven't told us your name."

  "Didn't you hear what I just said?" asked the man, ignoring the matter of his name, "I live here. I'm not a trespasser."

  "I don't care," said Arrok man, ignoring the man's explanation of the situation, "You're coming with us."

  The man put his hands down as the swordsmen surrounded him, and looked up at the sky.

  "We can do this the easy way," began Nom, "or we can do this the hard way. What's it gonna be?"

  The man did not respond to the ultimatum, however, and simply sighed as he put his hands in his pockets.

  "Well?" asked Arrok, "What's it gonna be?"

  The man continued to remain silent, and Arrok grunted in irritation as he and his allies closed in on him.

  "Fine!" he exclaimed, "Have it your way!"

  The men were about to pierce him with their swords from multiple different angles and all at once, but right when the tips of the swords were inches away from penetrating the man's body, the man discharged electricity from his body, and the swordsmen screamed as they were electrocuted.

  After fifteen seconds of continuous electrocution, the barely conscious men dropped their weapons, and fell to the ground.

  "Y… You…" mumbled Nom right before he lost consciousness.

  After looking around to make sure the men were not going to get up anytime soon, the man proceeded to step out of the ring formation they had created to surround him, and made his way to the city.

  I just got back from helping save the people of Vast Expanse, and yet it seems like there's another threat afoot, and in my own home…

  …What a pain in the ass…

  The Man in the Duckbill Cap

  August 8, 1854

  On the south side of the Ice Lands, Bandit walked onto the deck of the caravel, and met up with Ka, Eul, and the rest of his Vast Expanse friends.

  "So these are the Ice Lands?" observed Ka as he rubbed his hands together, "It's even colder than I thought it would be!"

  "H-How do you guys l-live here anyway?" asked Eul as he shivered a bit.

  Bandit looked at Ka and Eul in genuine surprise.

  "Is it really that much colder here compared to winters in Vast Expanse?"

  "Yes, it is!" the two responded, shocked that Bandit was not affected by the cold in the slightest.

  Bandit laughed as Nem walked up to him with a pair of sunglasses and a black sun cap in his hands.

  "Sorry we can't stick around for a while," he began, his eyebrows furrowed, "but I don't think we'll last too long in this weather with the clothes we have. Winters in Vast Expanse aren't really that cold, so we don't have the clothing or the immune system needed to protect ourselves here. Also…as much as we'd like to stick around…we…well, we kinda miss home."

  "It's no problem," said Bandit with a smile as he crossed his arms, "I know how it feels to miss one's home."

  Ka, Eul, and the others smiled as they each walked up to Bandit and shook his hand.

  "I've never met anyone like you, Bandit," said Eul with a small grin as he shook Bandit's hand, "It sure was great meeting you."

  "I feel the same way," Bandit responded.

  "Try to find a nice girl to hook up with!" exclaimed Otu with a smile as he shook Bandit's hand, making the others laugh, "You're a handsome enough guy! Use it or lose it!"

  Bandit shook his head as he chuckled.

  "We'll see."

  When Ka came to face Bandit, he was about to shake his hand, but he hesitated. He closed his eyes and gritted his teeth, causing Bandit to look at him with concern.

  "You okay?" he asked with raised eyebrows.

  To his surprise, Ka gave him a manly hug, and though it caught Bandit off guard, he understood how Ka felt, and returned the embrace.

  "I'm…gonna miss you, man," stammered Ka as his eyes watered a bit.

  Bandit smiled as his own eyes watered a bit as well.

/>   "I'm gonna miss you, too, Ka… You've…been a great friend…in spite of your below average cooking."

  Both Bandit and Ka laughed at his remark, and Ka smiled as he let go of his friend and put his hand on his shoulder.

  "Take care of yourself," he said.

  "I will."

  Nem smiled as he walked up to Bandit.

  "We… We haven't known each other very long," he began, "But…I'm glad I got to meet a guy like you. You are an inspiration to everyone in Vast Expanse now, you know? I can't tell you how many of the kids have been talking about trying to dye their hair so it's as red as yours."

  Bandit's eyes widened in surprise, and he blushed a bit as he rubbed the back of his head.

  "Really…? Wow… I…didn't know I was so…popular…"

  Nem raised his hands to give Bandit the sunglasses and sun cap he had been holding, and Bandit closed his eyes as he took them.

  "You should wear these," he said matter of factly.

  "I see…" responded Bandit as he put the sun cap on his head and the sunglasses on his face, "So you sensed it, too."

  "Indeed… I don't know why…but…even though I've never been here before…I feel like something's…off…"

  "Yeah…" concurred Bandit, "Well…I'll see what's up when I head into the city. At the very least, if something is up, this disguise will keep people from recognizing me too easily. I guess that's the price I pay for having red hair so dark anyone who has an idea of what I look like could recognize me. Although…it has been three years…"

  "You never know," said Nem as he put his hand on Bandit's shoulder, "Anyway, just be careful. Believe me; none of us want anything bad to happen to the hero who saved Vast Expanse."

  "Don't worry," said Bandit with a smirk, "If anyone tries to come for me, I'll give them hell."

  He and Nem smiled as they shook hands, and afterwards, Bandit jumped off the caravel and landed on the ground of the Ice Lands. He looked back at the ship and watched as his Vast Expanse friends walked towards the edge of the ship to see him off.

  "Bye, Bandit!"

  "See ya, man!"

  "Take care!"

  "Be safe!"

  "Good luck!" exclaimed Eul.

  "Take care of yourself!" exclaimed Otu.

  "I hope your friends got here safely!" exclaimed Ka with a smile.

  "I'm sure they did," responded Bandit, "Thank you for bringing me back, guys!"

  "Bandit," called Nem with a smile, "I know I can't tell you what to do, but try and do me a favor: don't do anything outrageous!"

  Bandit laughed as he rubbed the back of his head.

  "Me…outrageous?" he joked with a smile, "I would never!"

  Meanwhile, in a coffee shop in the city of Liat, the female barista engaged in an informative conversation with a raven-haired, female customer about the status of the Ice Lands as she prepared a cup of iced tea for her.

  "How long did you say these people have been here?" asked the raven-haired woman with raised eyebrows and a serious tone.

  "I think it has been about three months now," answered the barista as she handed the woman her cup of iced tea.

  The raven-haired woman frowned as she looked down at her iced tea, so the barista attempted to make her feel better.

  "I understand how hard it must be for you to see the Ice Lands like this after having grown up here… Believe me, I feel the same way… These people from the Land of Power should never have done something like this… They had no right… But…to be honest…it's not so bad here… I mean, yes, the realm has become more lawless because of them, but…at least…everyone is still allowed to go about their daily routines…and live their lives… We just have to allow these people to do whatever they want…and…try not to get in their way… We don't have much of a choice anyway, considering that the Icelandic rebellion didn't stand much of a chance against them."

  The barista gave the woman a comforting smile as she placed her hand on her shoulder.

  "You'll get used to the change," she said in the most comforting way possible, "I promise… "

  "Yeah," said the raven-haired woman sarcastically, unconvinced by the barista's words and unaffected by her attempt to make her feel better, "I'm sure."

  Damn, she thought as she picked up her cup of iced tea and took a sip of it, Things are certainly not the way they were three years ago. I can't believe the rebellion didn't succeed in dealing with these lawless fiends… I understand that the Ice Lands only possess around thirty people with the power gene, but still… The leader of these Landians must be pretty powerful. Well…if no one else stands a chance against them…then it looks like me and my friends are the only hope the Ice Lands have of going back to the way things used to be…

  The front door of the coffee shop opened up, and while the raven-haired woman did not look to see who it was, the deep, excited voices in the shop told her that a beautiful woman had just arrived, and had captured the attention of a number of men who had no idea how to behave in her presence.

  "Hey!" exclaimed one of the men near the back of the coffee shop in surprise, "Look at her!"

  "I know, right?" said his friend with a wide smile, "She's gorgeous!"

  "I can't believe such a beautiful woman exists in this world!"

  "I can't believe she's here!"

  "This is perfect! Step aside, guys! I'm gonna ask her out!"

  "Yeah, right! Why would a girl that pretty go out with a guy like you? A girl like that needs a real man, like me!"

  "Yeah? And what makes you a real man anyway? Your really ugly mug?"

  "Watch it, you son of a bitch!"

  As the men argued with each other over which of them would be the one to ask the beautiful woman out, the woman walked over to the barista, and took a seat next to the raven-haired woman as she ordered a drink.

  "Hello," she greeted, "Could I have a muffin and a cup of iced coffee, please?"

  Rachel's eyes widened upon hearing the woman's voice.

  "Sure," said the barista with a smile, "Coming right up."

  That voice, thought the raven-woman in surprise, Could it be…?

  The raven-haired woman looked at the beautiful woman from the corner of her eye, and her eyes widened in surprise when she saw the red-haired, blue-eyed woman with a large bosom and a curvaceous body.

  "Mary…?" she asked the woman, nearly speechless.

  The red-haired woman turned to face the raven-haired woman, who, like her, had blue eyes, a slender figure and a large bosom, and as soon she saw her, she gasped, and her eyes widened in shock, for as soon as she saw the raven-haired woman's face, she knew who she was.

  "…Rachel…?" she asked as tears filled her eyes, "Is it really…you…?"

  She was speechless, and understandably so, for she had not seen her old friend in quite some time, but when she realized that the raven-haired woman next to her truly was her beloved old friend, a wide smile grew on her face.

  Both women jumped up from their seats, and squealed as they hugged each other.

  "Rachel!" exclaimed the red-haired woman, "It really is you!"

  "Mary…" said Rachel as tears filled her eyes, "It has been far too long…"

  Meanwhile, in another part of the city, people watched as a small group of men dragged a number of beautiful women through the streets.

  Oh no, thought Wei, one of the men who observed the scene, Not again…

  Another group of men did this yesterday too! thought another man named Bruce angrily, Where do they get off doing this to our women?

  Why do they have to be so cruel? thought Amanda, an elderly woman, as tears filled her eyes, How can anyone be this cruel to people they don't know, let alone innocent women?

  "Someone, help us!" screamed the women in terror.

  "Please save us!"

  "Do something!"

  "Save us!"

  "We're begging you! Stop them, please!"

  "Don't let them take us! Please!"

  "Why won't anyone save u
s?"

  Of course, the women who were screaming in terror knew very well why the people who watched them get dragged through the streets were doing nothing to save them. Everyone knew what these men from the Land of Power were planning on doing to the women, but they knew from prior exposure to their actions that no matter what the men did, they did not have the power to save them without getting themselves killed in the process, so they regretfully allowed the men to do as they wished.