Jason's fight against the rogues Ch 5

    Jason and Candii left Ralph to Joey, seeing that he was quite capable of taking on the brute. As the two of them continued to search for Jackie and his lackeys, they had difficulty staying on track. The rogues hid their trail quite well, but Candii and Jason couldn't be fooled. Especially Jason since he had learned to spot hidden details during his training session with the river. Now he was searching for any signs of movement along the way.

    "They couldn't have gotten far. They have to be around here somewhere." Jason said as they continued their search.

    "We might have been better off if we stayed to help Joey. We're not getting anywhere chasing down these other rogues." Candii said as they seemed to be getting nowhere with their search.

    "They have to be around here somewhere. They just gotta be!" Jason said with optimism. Fortunately, it took just a little bit more searching to finally find them. Candii and Jason hid from view as they approached the unsuspecting rogues.

    "Hm?" Jackie must have sensed that they were there because as soon as Candii and Jason hid, he looked in their direction.

    "What's the matter, boss?" One of the henchmen asked.

    "Ya'll continue lookin' fer a new place ta hide. I'm gonna check somethin' out." Jackie walked in their direction and the two of them knew they should run for it. Jackie spotted them running and chased after them. He was fast too. He easily caught up to Candii and Jason and blocked their way. "You! Why'd ya come back, partna?" Jason didn't feel obliged to answer him since Jackie had attempted to harm him.

    "I came back to get my payback for what you did to me and what you rogues are doing to the village."

    "So, you got yerself a girlie to help fight me? What happened to that other fella who done helped ya escape me once?" Candii looked angrily at Jackie.

    "He's busy dealing with your friend." Jackie smirked.

    "Except, I reckon he's not worth the trouble. I suppose yer not informed enough to know that I'm the one who's the skilled fighter 'round these parts."

    "Candii and I may not be the best fighters in the village, but one thing's for sure. You aren't either!" Jackie just chuckled at Jason's words as he prepared his whip.

    "You don't think so, eh? I reckon I could change yer mind!" He slung it at Jason and Candii stepped in the way. Suddenly, the whip was jerked to the side. Jackie pulled it from hitting Candii... but why? "Outa the way, little lady! My fight is with the one behind ya!" This was strange. Why was Jackie refusing to attack while Candii's blocking the way?

    "I'm not letting you hurt Jason. If you want to get to him, you'll have to get through me." Candii said with utter seriousness. Jackie only sighed.

    "Very well. Till next time. Although, I can't garuntee I'll be holdin' back the next time. Consider yerself lucky." With that, Jackie simply left. Jason was about to chase after him when Candii stopped him from persuing.

    "We're not strong enough to take him down yet. Like he said, next time for sure." Jason didn't argue. He had to admit, where he stands now wasn't enough to beat Jackie. Moments later, after Jason and Candii began to walk back to the village, Joey met up with them.

    "Did you manage to find Jackie?" He asked holding his arm. Apparently, he had a rough time with Ralph, but he seemed to have won the fight anyway. Candii and Jason looked at each other and Jason responded.

    "Yeah, but he got away." Sure, it was mostly true, but he couldn't find the right words for the whole truth. For now, Jason could only train for when his next encounter with the rogues comes.