by R. C. Rutter
Robald looked at him. “Like hitting me in the family jewels is a pleasure?”
Thorgon retorted “You always have your armor on. I knew it would only stun you. You don’t need them anyhow. Who would want to have your kid?” They pointed their swords at each other. Standing about ten feet apart, they started hurling insults at each other. “Buffoon.” “Ignoramus.” “Jackal.” “Half-wit.” “Nit-wit.” They were now circling each other. “Cow dung” “Rodent” “Coward” “Cheater” “Liar” “Biscuit-eater” “Cookie-smasher”
After each insult, Thorgon and Robald started laughing louder and louder until they had tears coming out of their eyes. They stopped circling and put away their swords. Sheathing them, they hugged and slapped each other on the back.
“Here” said Thorgon, “Let me introduce you to everyone. This is Gweneviere, sister of Seth and Malcolm. It is for her safety that we are traveling. Malcolm is sitting over there talking to a tree, and of course, you have met Seth, youngest of the brothers and some say the bravest and strongest.” When Seth heard that, he just beamed. Then he remembered Geoff being thrown like a rag doll and thought better of calling himself strong.
They sat down at the fire. “So” inquired Thorgon “tell me about your trials and tribulations? Where have you been? How is Lydia? One of these days you are going to have to introduce us.”
Robald stared at the fire for a few minutes. “I have been wasting away. Lydia left me. Said all I wanted to do was fight. She has a strong spirit, that one. I have spent some time as a soldier of fortune.” Robald groaned. “I mean, I tried other lines of work. Blacksmithing was good for a while. That is until I tried to put horseshoes on the cat. I mean I was just kidding. Some people can’t take a joke. It was too cute. I made these really small horseshoes, cat size, you know, and was using horse glue to attach them. I didn’t hurt the little kitty but it still screamed. Then the blacksmith’s wife screamed, and then the dogs howled.”
“Then your employment was terminated?” interjected Thorgon.
“Nope” replied Robald. “Seems the dogs spooked the horses, the horses bolted even though they were tied up, which pulled the ropes, which pulled the timbers from the barn, which caused the mouse that was on the rafters to fall down the front of the wife’s dress. Oh, now that was a sight, her jumping around and all.”
“And you were fired then?” asked Thorgon.
“Had I just stayed where I was, I probably would have been okay. Well, since she was already dancing, I started doing a jig in front of her. Apparently, she was not amused. THAT is when I was fired.”
Gweneviere abruptly took a step back. Thorgon was laughing so hard he fell over, kicking some of the logs around the fire. One passed in front of Gweneviere where she was just standing. If she had not moved…… Robald noticed what she did but said nothing.
Finally, Gweneviere had listened to enough. “Okay, that was funny, NOT. Who are you and why are you here? I don’t know you and I don’t trust you. For all I know, you could be a spy!”
The mood drastically changed. All the laughter was gone. Robald’s face was turning red.
Thorgon turned to him. “She is a feisty one, she is. She means no disrespect. Thorgon then looked at Gweneviere “Robald is my cousin. Until a few years ago, he was the Captain of the Guards for King William. When William was imprisoned, Robald was thrown into the lion pit. Luckily for him, he took it upon himself years ago to feed the lions every day. The big cats recognized him, let him live, and he was able to escape. I have not seen him since. I trust him with my life and so shall all of you. Any questions?”
Thorgon looked at everyone and heard nothing in response. “Very well then, it is time to make our departure. Thorgon started barking orders “Seth, douse the fire, Gweneviere, harness the horses, Malcolm, gather everyone’s belongings. Time is of the essence.”
Gweneviere was leading the horses to the remnants of the camp when she happened to gaze at the edge of the forest. For just a moment, a very brief moment, she thought she saw pairs of eyes watching her. She blinked and looked back but they were gone. She told Robald and Thorgon. Without saying a word to each other, they both drew swords. Thorgon stood at the campsite while Robald raced to the edge of the woods. ‘Just like old times’ thought Thorgon, ‘the warrior and the tracker, it was good to be alive.’
Robald returned a few minutes later. “Time to go.” No one moved. “NOW!” All the belongings were quickly gathered and they were soon on their way. Circling the town was the best choice. Robald led the way avoiding the town but also staying away from the edge of the woods. Thorgon kept guard in the rear.
Gweneviere was the first to speak “What did you see, Robald?”
Without looking at her “Keep moving everyone” was all he whispered. Darkness enveloped them as they moved away from the town. Thorgon kept the pace steady, glaring at anyone who made an unnecessary noise. They kept on moving through the night like this. Gweneviere wondered what Robald saw in the woods but could not ask again. His behavior was enough to convince everyone to take this very seriously.
Gweneviere turned her thoughts instead to finding the King’s Daughter. ‘Once I give her the locket, I am free to go home again. This was all getting to be a bit much for a farm girl. I want my old life back. How will I even recognize the daughter? No one told me what to look for. What she would be wearing?. Maybe a secret word that only she would know? All I know is that I would recognize her. Stupid men and their plans. If a woman had planned this, they would have at least described her attire.’
Gweneviere trudged along with the group. She was thinking this was not fun at all. “I hope tomorrow will be a better day” she said quietly.
* * *
The Freedom Fighters made their way to town. In silence they marched with Captain Artemus leading the way. As they neared the edge of town, he began announcing their arrival. Not one soldier noticed the eyes peering from the edge of the woods. Nor did they see the small figure emerge from the woods and enter the town in front of them. One by one, the eyes disappeared from the edge of the woods quickly followed by a tall figure emerging from the woods along the same of the small figure.
The soldiers were greeted in the center of the town by the balding and portly mayor himself, Archibald E. Creed. “What news have you”? He asked. Captain Artemus saluted and told of their journey and attack. The townspeople gasped as they heard this. The mayor looked around at the townspeople and stated “Perhaps we should continue this conversation in my office. Please bring your next command officer with you as well.” He turned his back to the soldiers and started walking away. Captain Artemus and his lieutenant quickly followed. Several townspeople walked alongside hoping to hear some more. Among them was a girl, draped in a hooded cloak. Her face was not visible but no one seemed to pay any attention to her presence.
They entered the office and firmly closed the door. The thick door shut tight and it was impossible to hear anything. The girl slipped quickly to the alleyway and climbed up the side of the building without making a sound. She drew herself closer to the window and listened.
* * *
Robald finally stopped walking. He lifted his right arm in the air and closed his fist, and then he swept his arms to his sides. Seth, Malcolm, and Thorgon immediately moved to the sides of the path.
Gweneviere stood motionless wondering what to do when Seth grabbed her arm “Rest time it is. That was the signal for all halt, listen, and then move to the side. Best rest while you can. No telling how long we have”. Seth moved next to Thorgon. “Hey, I have so many questions. How come you can all of a sudden talk? What was in those woods? What do you know about the wolves? Who is that girl traveling with the wolves? You know a lot more than you are telling us. Who is the wizard named Eric?”
“Eric?” Thorgon shot Seth a puzzled look. “No one said anything about Eric. Where did you see him? Did you talk to him? Did he talk with you or did he just slap you?” Thorgon laughed. “What did he say?”<
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Seth explained what happened in the pub. Thorgon listened attentively, then got up and walked over to Robald. “Why did you go to the pub? Were you looking for Seth? Eric?”
“Negative” replied Robald. “All I heard was that there were strangers in town. I wanted to see for myself. Opened the door and saw Eric, that wimp Geoff, and this guy, Seth. Saw no threats there. No threats, at least, not to me so I turned and left. Some idiot was stupid enough to try to follow me. I saw that Geoff was with Eric so I did not kill him, lucky him. Eric then told me about Lydia and here I am.”
Thorgon pondered this for a few minutes. “What about the wolves? What do you know about the wolves?” Thorgon told Robald about their meeting in the clearing and how Lydia must have figured out who he was but did not say anything, just disappeared.
“It is not like her” replied Robald. “She certainly knows enough about you to know who you are. I wonder….” His voice trailed off.
A twig snapped in the distance. Robald and Thorgon both jumped to their feet. Robald took a bow and arrow out of his sack, quickly notching the arrow, and aimed at the sound. A twig snapped again and Robald fired.
“Stupid idiot, what are you trying to do, kill me? Can’t a woman have privacy?” Gweneviere was buttoning her garment as she came out of the woods. “What do you expect me to do? My business here in front of everyone?” She glared at the two of them. “Which one of you fired the arrow?”
Thorgon pointed at Robald and backed away. He did not want to get hit. The surprise was in his voice “Why are you not dead? He shot the arrow and he never misses. Are you at least bleeding somewhere? Maybe a scratch?”
Robald looked at the group. “Anyone says a word about me missing and it will be the last thing you say.” He turned back to Gweneviere. “How?” was all he said.
“I knew an arrow would come flying past me so I got out of the way” Gweneviere explained nonchalantly.” Robald’s jaw dropped. “Don’t look at me like that, I just know these things.”
“Well” interjected Thorgon, “we had best be on our way.”
The group gathered again with Robald in the front on point and Thorgon in the rear. They were entering a clearing. With no woods nearby for anyone to easily hide in, everyone relaxed their guard a little. Seth held back and walked beside Thorgon. “So tell me” Seth began. “When did you learn to talk?” Thorgon smiled. “I have always have maintained the gift of speech. People often misjudge me because of my size. It is easier to acquiesce to their beliefs than to try to change their thought process. So I have fun with it. Plus it does have a benefit. People will say things in front of me that they would not ordinarily say in front of anyone else. Since it is impossible for me to comprehend, they feel safe. It has served me well. I have learned a secret or two that sometimes works to my advantage. Does that answer your question?”
“Yes” acknowledged Seth. “It will just take a little time to get used to. Now what about Eric? And the wolves? And the girl? And…”
“Enough already” replied Thorgon. “I shall answer some for now. Eric is a wizard. He has always been a true and honorabl e friend. Rumor was he died several years ago. Robald slew him in a fight.” Seth shot him an astonished look. “No, he didn’t but it makes a great story. With Robald’s reputation, it all made sense. It allowed Eric to lead a normal life for a change. He would have stayed hidden were it not for the rumors of the demons and the kingdom in trouble. Takes a powerful wizard to kill a demon, the same demon that attacked you. That is how Eric knows about you. What everyone does not know is what effect the demon had on you. So far you seem to have your wits about you, but you are being watched by all of us. Any strange behavior and we shall send you packing.”
“Now, what was your second question? Oh yes, the wolves. I don’t know” sighed Thorgon. “Never seen anything like them. And with Lydia? Makes no sense at all. Lydia is a warrior. A formidable warrior.” Thorgon looked at Seth. “A very formidable warrior. Put her against twelve wolves and there would be twelve dead wolves. She fought Robald once over a spilled drink in the pub. It was an accident. Robald did not see her and bumped into her. That is how they met. Wow, did she ever let him have it. The only woman or man for that matter, to have beaten Robald in a fight. He immediately fell in love with her. It was quite a romance to see him carrying flowers to her every week in town. He even bathed once a week too.” Thorgon sniffed the air. “Ah, the good old days.” Thorgon paused and looked at Robald who was scratching his chest. “Imagine, him being in love. Gives hope to the rest of us.” Thorgon snickered. “Anyhow, Robald found it hard to quit fighting and Lydia left him. He has not been the same since.”
Seth started to open his mouth but Thorgon quickly cut him off. “Enough of the questions, time to pay attention to our present situation.” The end of the clearing was soon upon them and the woods were closing in. “I think it is best that we focus on current matters.”
* * *
Lydia struggled to hear the words being said in the mayor’s office.
“Yes, yes, I know. There are reports that wolves are about. But what does it mean?” inquired the mayor.
“That is not all” replied Captain Artemus. “A demon attacked our troops, a man resembling Eric has been spotted in the area, there is a girl traveling with wolves, and another small group of strangers that somehow seems to be connected with all of this is in the area as well.”
The mayor sat back and stroked his beard. “These are perilous times indeed. Demons, wolves, a dead wizard, and strangers. Tell me, what of your troops? Who attacked you?”
The captain relayed facts about the capture of him and his troops, how the Royal Army surprised them and then how the army was wiped out by the little girl and wolves.
“Is that it?” inquired the mayor.
The caption pondered the question carefully “She did ask us several questions all related to another girl. She wanted to know the location of the King’s Daughter.”
As soon as the mayor heard about the King’s Daughter, he spit out the glass of water he was drinking nearly falling out of his chair. He quickly got down underneath his desk and said in a panic “Where? Did you see her? What do you know about the King’s Daughter? It is only a myth mind you. Not real at all.” The mayor popped his head above the desk. He was sweating profusely. “Saying things like that could get you killed. You will speak of this to no one. Do you hear me? No one. Where are your guards? Post them immediately.” The mayor crawled out from under his desk with beads of sweat on his forehead and walked over to the window to make sure it was locked. He looked out and was met by a pair of eyes looking back at him. He grabbed his chest and stumbled backwards, falling over the chair. “Great Glover’s Ghost, she is here.”
“Who?” asked the captain as he drew his sword and ran to the window. “Who is here? Was there someone at the window?” He unlocked the window and leaned out but saw nothing. He stood back up, closing and locking the window. Turning, he looked for the mayor but the mayor was gone. He ran downstairs and out of the building, through the door and into the road. He began yelling for his men. “Post duty. Now. You three, take the east. You three, west. One here for the mayor’s office. The rest fan out and patrol. Report anything unusual.” The men spread out. At least the town would be safe.
Lydia had crawled above the window to avoid being detected. She leaned down and peered through the top. The room was now empty. She waited a few minutes until the guards had left the area and then quietly snuck out of the alleyway. She walked in the shadows until she came to the edge of town. It was easy to avoid the soldiers. They were looking for a threat from the outside of town never thinking the threat was already here.
As she turned into the last alleyway she was met by several tall men. Tall and lanky, they all looked the same, dark complexion and dark hair, brown eyes. “They know we are here but they don’t know why. The word is spreading about the King’s Daughter and about strangers appearing in town. We are not alone in our ques
t. Nothing was said about their location. That is all.” The men stood silently. Then the first one took out a vial and gave it to Lydia. She drank it all. When she looked back, they were all gone. She put the vial in her pocket and followed them, making not a sound.
* * *
Robald raised his right arm then closed his fist. All stopped. This was not a break. Robald kept his arm in the air. He was looking at a large rock in the road. He walked slowly, then pulled out his sword and poked the rock. To everyone’s surprise, the rock yelled “Ouch.” Robald started laughing then picked up the rock and rolled it down the hill. It tumbled until it smashed into two trees. With a puff of smoke, the rock exploded leaving behind a visibly shaken man.
“Now, that was unkind” was all that Eric could manage to say. He tried to stand and it took several attempts before he could be steady on his feet. “It is far easier to be a tree than a rock but I knew a strange tree would alarm Malcolm since he would sense something was wrong. I thought the rock was a great choice. What gave me away?”
