Rauher dodged to the side just in time as a bullet rushed past his cheek. There were three men in total. One carried a large automatic rifle, the other, a revolver which seemed to be of a similar design to his own. The third man wielded a combat knife and wore a belt of grenades around his waist. They stood on top of a moving train, comprised of several carriages which seemed to be transporting goods of some kind.
Rauher waited for his chance. Eventually, one of the attackers was forced to reload and Rauher took the opportunity to draw his revolver. Raising the hammer, he aimed towards the attacker and squeezed the trigger with his index finger. The bullet followed a straight line and hit the man squarely in the forehead, causing him to slip from the train and crash into the ground as if he were a ragdoll. Unfazed, the attacker who wielded the automatic rifle fired several shots. Rauher anticipated them just in time and dropped to the floor. He quickly checked the cylinder while the attacker reloaded. Two shots left, he would have to make them count.
Rauher remained cool, you would not be able to notice any sign of emotion in his features and he did well to hide them. He knew how easy it was to predict an opponent's actions merely by watching their expression, and he did not wish to give his attackers any advantage. Another bullet whizzed past, yet he paid it no heed. The movement of the train made it difficult to aim, but not impossible. He used both hands to support the gun and fired another shot. The bullet hit directly on target and pierced the mans heart, before exiting through the other side of his body. He fell to a slump on the floor and soon rolled off the edge of the train.
One more, he thought to himself.
Not wishing to draw out the fight any longer, he soon aimed towards the last man and fired again. The bullet missed this time, and Rauher cursed under his breath as he quickly reached into a pouch full of ammo at his side. He was too slow, and the attacker dashed forwads and attempted to plunge the knife into him from above. Rauher rolled back and blocked the knife using the butt of his revolver, then used his other hand to pull the pin from one of the grenades around his belt. The attacker swore as Rauher swept the back of his leg and sent him tumbling from the train. He could hear the sound of an explosion in the distance as the train raced onward.
As Rauher climbed down the ladder into the main carriage, he was greeted by a young girl. She couldn't have been any older than twelve. She wore a long, light pink dress with frills at the hem.
"Thank you mister, you protected us!"
Rauher was hesitant to reply at first, but he patted her head and knelt down to her level.
"Don't worry about it. I'm getting paid for it after all."
It was evening by the time the train finally stopped, they appeared to have ended up at a small village in the middle of nowhere. Rauher jumped off the carriage and walked along the side of the train when he was stopped by the same young girl accompanied by an elderly man.
"Grandpa!" she exclaimed to the old man, "he protected us all!"
"Yes, that's right," he replied, before turning to Rauher, "looks like it was a good idea to hire you after all. Here's your reward as promised."
The elderly man handed Rauher the payment. He graciously accepted.
"It seems as if the goods are unharmed as well."
The elderly man lead Rauher to the back of one of the carriages and opened it up. Several guards appeared from the direction of the town and aimed at the carriage with their rifles. A man poked his head from inside, then solemnly stepped forward. His arms were bound in chains and his skin was a deathly pale. Several other men from inside the carriage followed him, along with a few women and children.
"Let's see," the elderly man spoke, "these should make excellent slaves."
One by one the slaves left the carriage. The elder stopped the last one and poked at him with his cane. He was a young, scrawny boy who's muscles were barely visible.
"This one won't be much good for anything. Please deal with him."
Two guards grabbed the man and dragged him away. He was too weak to resist and made no attempt to escape. Several minutes later, a gunshot was heard.
The elderly man thanked Rauher and explained that they should be leaving soon because their next stop was home. He asked if Rauher would like a ride but he politely refused, explaining that he was traveling in the opposite direction.
"Out of curiosity," Rauher said, "would you mind telling me the route to your hometown? If I'm ever traveling this way again, perhaps I could do some more work for you."
The elderly man seemed delighted by Rauher's request and soon told him the exact directions to their hometown. Rauher said goodbye to the young girl by his side, and left.
Later that day, Rauher arrived small encampment hidden in the depths of a nearby forest. It belonged to a group of bandits — the same group that had attacked the train the other day. They did not draw on Rauher as he entered, instead, the leader of the group approached him unarmed.
"I sure hope you were able to find out where they were heading. You killed a lot of good men."
"It was necessary," Rauher replied bluntly, "you asked me to act as a bodyguard for that group. What kind of bodyguard would just sit back while they're being attacked?"
"One of those men was my brother."
"You should have made sure he was aware of the plan. If he hadn't attacked the train last night he'd still be alive."
"Why you..." The leader took a step forward but immediately stopped as Rauher put a hand on his revolver. When the leader had calmed down, Rauher explained in detail the route the train was taking, and added that it was headed straight for their hometown.
"Hmph. I feel as though I shouldn't give you this after what you did. Take it and leave."
The leader handed Rauher his payment reluctantly.
Rauher thanked the leader, then spoke in a solemn tone.
"What are you going to do when you find them?"
"We'll kill them all," the leader replied without hesitation, "you've seen exactly what kind of 'goods' they've been transporting. We were a peaceful town, yet they attacked us and took us as slaves. We're all that's left. It's up to us to avenge everyone."
"I see. I couldn't really say which one of you is in the wrong. I'm not sure who's wrong and who's right, but nevertheless, thank you for the reward."
The leader shrugged as Rauher turned around and left the forest.
Two days later, Rauher followed the route to the town out of curiosity. He wished he hadn't. A large plume of smoke rose up from its center, and its walls had gruesomely been decorated by rows of heads which had been impaled by spears sticking out from the ground. It seemed as if no-one was spared. Towards the entrance to the town there lay a large pile of burned corpses. The faces were unrecognizable and Rauher had reached the extent of his curiosity. Averting his eyes he continued to walk along the tracks, to wherever they may lead.
