Climbing back to the hill where he dropped his extra goods to hunt the bear, he scans the trees and sees movement... yes, it's a bear. Mik decides to give this hunt another try, but can not find the bear after going back into the woods. Back on the hilltop, he gathers his gear and watches until late morning and gives up.
The extra weight of his lamellar is a burden on long journeys but he shudders to think what that bear's paw and teeth would have done to him without it.
He continues traveling north-west and he's pretty sure to be in unexplored territory. The sun is going lower and he heads back east to one of the villages he has visited. It's a small family with only one kota, and Mik trades a squirrel fur for 8 roasted deer cuts, then sleeps until the small hours of the night.
In the early hours, Mik wakes and heads north-east. The morning is briskly cold and the snow is less than knee-deep. Just as he was stopping for a short rest, there is a man who looks dressed as an owl tribesman ahead among the spruces.
The man doesn't see Mik as he puts down some of his items and readies his longbow to be safe. Stealthily turning to his left, Mik sees another man with a bow and takes a few steps back toward trees. Then another bow-armed man comes in view... these must be renegades!
So far Mik has not been seen. Heart pounding, he backs away and moves behind trees, checking in all directions. Then disaster! He can not find a way through the trees and the robbers are just out of sight.
The renegade chases after the arctic fox. Then Mik tries to crawl south out of the dead-end, but is spotted and the robber demand his possessions. Mik refuses and a fight ensues against the first robber wielding a northern spear. A second robber joins the fight with a big axe and things start going bad for Mik when he takes a nasty cut to his knee!
Then Mik hears the skull crack as he downs the second robber with a mace blow to the eye.
His mace and shield are damaged now from blocking so many attacks.
Mik drops his shield and his mace breaks!
The 3rd robber comes into the fight with a staff and hits Mik several times, but inflicts little if any injury. Mik disables the spear wielding man with two axe blows to his hip and begins backing away, blocking with his shield as robber #3 drops his staff and wields first an axe, then a knife.
Mik manages to stumble backward between two trees and continues to fight but isn't landing any blows with his axe... he's too injured and fatigued.
The injuries he has sustained become too much and Mik falls, unable to do anything but feebly defend himself against the two renegades.
The fight ends and Mik wakes... where is he?
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