They were on the other side of the river and there they briefly stopped to take-in the beauty of their surroundings.
Suddenly, the horses beneath them were frightened and they bucked, without warning, and several men came out of nowhere, and proceeded to beat on Lloyd and Boyce.
In a nearby tree, was a crow, as dark as midnight, and it squawked and cawed when the men got to the other side of the river, and it watched the other men attack.
In frenzied excitement it eyed the struggle that took place at the river's edge, and its shrieks were echoing throughout the entire forest.
Caught unawares, and while weakened by their journey, the ambushers knocked both men unconscious and took all of their possessions, including their two horses, and their clothes. The left them both naked, lying unconscious and bleeding, half in the water and half on the river's bank.
The crow left the tree and went to where the two men were sprawled. It crowed and flapped its wings around Boyce's head, and began to tug at his hair with its shiny beak. Some bloodied hair hung from the crow's beak, but there was no movement from Boyce.
They lay in the water for some time until several women came walking along the river from Pomperaque, leading a cow.
The women were members of the Abbey. Three were abbey sisters, the full nuns, and with them walked two novices.
They were discussing the good fortune of their being gifted a cow by the Prominent, Miel, in the market that very morning. Then they heard the frantic crowing and one of the novices looked for the origin of the noise and saw Lloyd and Boyce, motionless at the river's edge.
She ran to the bodies and turned one over onto its back. Her eyes opened wide and she could not believe the beauty of this young, but badly injured man. She checked his body for broken bones and severe cuts. She did the same with the other body, taking the same care inspecting it until the other novice and the three nuns came to help her.