The Nomad had anchored a few hours ago at the port of Sarania, where the crew had planned on taking a few days off. Their latest journey had consisted of 5 weeks on sea, so everybody felt relieved when they could finally stand on ground and hopefully, enjoy themselves with good food, wine and of course, women. Only Bryn protested when she heard of their vacations’ destination. She had had nightmares several times and had a bad feeling about this place. As the crew reached the land, pushing the longboat further away on the beach, Dermott grew agitated, and Bryn felt something she couldn’t identify. Black magic ? It was different from what she usually felt when facing dark energies.
‘’Should
we look for supplies first ?’’ asked Firouz.
‘’Can’t we just relax and enjoy our day ?’’ sighed Doubar. ‘’Plus, I’m thirsty’’, he added, and Rongar nodded in approval.
‘’I agree with you, big brother. Some refreshments would be most appreciated’’ Sinbad said as he tapped Doubar’s shoulder. ‘’Bryn ?’’
He noticed her discomfort.
‘’I’m sorry to ruin the mood guys, but I really feel there’s something weird here. And look at Dermott’’.
The hawk seemed panicked.
‘’Keep him with you’’ Firouz told Bryn. ‘’Hopefully, he will feel better once he eats fresh meat’’.
As the crew reached the village of Sarania, they they heard a commotion coming from what looked like the market place. A crowd of about forty villagers had gathered. As the crew ran toward the crowd to see what was happening, they saw five men, sailors apparently, tied to gallows poles, and the crowd furiously injuriated them.
‘’Bastards !’’
‘’Burn in hell !’’
The prisoners were guarded by four soldiers. Before the crew had the time to react, Jaim, the villager’s chief, ran to Sinbad and his crew to welcome them, for the rumors of their arrival had traveled fast in the region. He looked anxious.
‘’Sinbad ! I’m happy to have you here in Sarania. I regret this is not the best time for welcoming you properly. I wished we had time to prepare a feast for you and your crew, but as you can tell, we’re having some … events that are temporarily disturbing our plans.’’
‘’Events. Of what kind, exactly ?’’ asked Sinbad.
‘’Looks like an execution to me’’, suggested Firouz.
‘’You could say so. The villagers don’t trust strangers very much. We are waiting for them to be taken away’’, explained Jaim.
‘’Taken away ? By who ?’’ asked Doubar.
‘’Their hunter. If we hand these men over to them, there will be no harm done to the villagers’’.
The crew stared at him as they waited for more explanations, but Jaim kept looking behind them, screening the horizon and anxiously staring at the forest behind them, as if he was expecting a monster of some sort to crawl out of the bushes at any moment.
‘’ What have these men done to be condamned ?’’ asked Bryn.
‘’I’m not sure, but the villagers seem to think they are well deserving of the fate they soon will be facing,’’ answered Jaim. ‘’Death’’.
‘’You’re about to send five men to their death, not even knowing what crime they committed ?’’ Sinbad exclaimed angrily. ‘’For what you know, they might as well be innocent’’.
‘’Maybe …’’ Jaim answered, not really listening to Sinbad.
‘’Little brother, we can’t let these men get killed arbitrarily !’’ Doubar muttered.
‘’I agree. This is not a civilized way of justice. It’s barbarian !’’ exclaimed Firouz.
‘’I guess whoever planned on coming here to take them away will be surprised when they see they have gone’’ Sinbad announced as he drew his sword.
The crew engaged in a fight with the soldiers guarding the prisoners. Surprisingly, they soldiers easily admitted defeat after a few minutes and ran away.
‘’What kind of soldiers are those ?’’ asked Doubar, almost disappointed at how short the brawl lasted.
But the soldiers were not the only one who fled. Soon, the villagers started screaming and running away, as they went hiding into their homes. All the crew could hear from their screaming was ‘’The hunter !’’ as the panicked villagers fled to find shelter.
‘’Quick, free those men !’’ Sinbad ordered Rongar and Firouz as he, Doubar and Bryn raised their swords, facing the road. They were now hearing distinctly the sound of horses galloping in the forest, toward the village. A few seconds later, they saw four horsemen, all dressed in black, racing toward them. They drew their swords and jumped off their horse when they saw their hostages were gone.
‘’You will come with us’’ the man who seemed to be their chief vociferated at Sinbad.
‘’I don’t think we wish to go with you’’ the young captain answered in the same manner.
‘’You shouldn’t have freed these criminals. You fools. You chose to trade their lives with yours’’ another one roared.
The crew fought the horsemen as he could, but these men were more talented at swordfighting and much stronger that the soldiers they had just defeated. The horsemen quickly caught Bryn and Firouz and tied their hands around the wooden poles. One man knocked Doubar on the head, and the giant withdrew from the fight from his dizziness. The chief horseman ordered to Rongar and Sinbad to drop their weapons, for the three other crewmembers now each had a sharp blade held against their throat. Sinbad and Rongar had no choice and angrily threw their swords to the ground. One of the horsemen tied Rongar’s hands, while the chief reached for Sinbad, threatening him with his sword. He kneed the captain in the stomach, making Sinbad suddenly breathless. The horseman harshly grabbed Sinbad by the hair and threw his head back, exposing his throat. He rose a dagger over his head, ready to stab him.
‘’ENOUGH !’’ a powerful, female voice screamed. It echoed through the now deserted village.
The horsemen’s chief looked mad. He reluctantly let go of Sinbad. The four horsemen turned to salute her as she walked her white horse closer to them. She was wearing a purple hooded cloak. The shadow it sent over her face prevented them from clearly seeing her features. Under her cloak, she was wearing a burgundy, corseted riding dress that hugged her upper body tightly, revealing her thin figure. No cleavage was shown, for the bodice buttoned up to her neck, but the crewmen couldn’t help but notice that her corset did its job wonderfully. Her outfit was made out of the finest fabrics, and she was wearing luxuous jewelry. Even her horse’s handles were encrusted with sapphires. They could see she carried a bow and arrows.
‘’Is she the hunter the villagers were so scared about ?’’ whispered Doubar, in disbelief, as he realized their enemy was a young woman. Rongar shrugged.
‘’These are not the men the villagers promised me’’ the lady snapped at them with a soft, yet authoritative voice.
‘’Five prisoners still, for you to leave with’’, one horseman protested weakly.
‘’We won’t be taken as prisoners,’’ Sinbad adressed her. ‘’And the ones you came here to claim didn’t have a fair trial, so we allowed ourselves set them free’’, he added daringly.
His audacy didn’t seem to bother her. Adressing the horsemen, she simply said :
‘’I don’t want them’’.
She made some hand gesture, and the horsemen walked back to the crew to untie them from the gallows poles. Their chief was outraged, but he surrendered to her orders. Then the men took their horses and galloped back to the forest.
‘’We are really thankful for your help, madam’’ Sinbad bowed, using his most charming smile. ‘’I am Sinbad ...’’
‘’I know who you are’’, she interrupted him.
‘’Oh …’’ he smirked, flattered at the thought she might have been impressed by his reputation, like many other female admirers. ‘’But I’m afraid we haven’t had the honor of yet being introduced to our lovely savior’’.
They heard the woman chuckle softly. She removed her hood. Her hair was tied in a loose bun, but the red curls were what they saw first. The crewmen’s jaw dropped.
‘’MAEVE !!!!’’ they exclaimed, shocked.
Dermott, perched on a roof, chirped and flew back to perch on Bryn’s forearm.
Sinbad felt like he was suddenly paralyzed. He stood before the beautiful sorceress he thought he had lost forever. Her beauty overthrew him.
She got off her horse and the crew welcomed her warmly, cheering and hugging her. Doubar lifted her up in his arms happily repeating ‘’My Lass !’’, making Maeve giggle like a little girl. She then turned to Bryn and petted Dermott. Once Maeve was done reuniting with the crew and after being introduced to Bryn, she walked toward her captain, who was still in shock. It seemed so unreal. So often he had thought and fantasized about how he would react if he ever found her. He would have ran to her and hugged her tightly, never letting go of her warm embrace. Or he would have grabbed her and kissed her passionately. Sometimes he even thought about telling her how much he loved her as soon as they would reunite. But reality had obviously decided otherwise : he froze, unable to speak or to move as she got closer. She stood a few inches from him, grinning and amused as she noticed his confusion. Her smile. He could have melt.
‘’It’s good to see you again’’, was all he managed to say. Again, she chuckled softly. How he had missed her laughter. Her voice. Her. She was beautiful. No … magnificent.
‘’I’m happy to see you too’’, she smiled.
He finally gathered some composure. He raised his hand to her face, reaching for her cheek and caressing it gently. Her skin was silky smooth.
‘’How you’ve changed’’, he whispered softly, staring in her eyes. She chuckled.
‘’How YOU’VE changed’’, she answered back, raising her eyebrow as she visually detailed his new look and clothings. She stepped back from him and turned around to face the crew.
‘’I’m sorry about those horsemen’’, she apologized. ‘’They are supposed to help me with my task, but most of the time they’re a real a pain in the ass’’, she sighed.
‘’What would that task be ?’’ Doubar asked. ‘’Are you the hunter we’ve heard about ?’’
‘’That’s how they call me…’’, she admitted.
‘’What exactly are you hunting ?’’ Bryn asked, as the bad feelings she had felt wouldn’t fade away.
Maeve glanced at her, then answered : ‘’Criminals. My task is to bring them to … the castle.’’
‘’So they would get killed ?’’ Firouz snarled. ‘’The men we freed were arrested only because they were strangers.’’
‘’Who told you that ?’’ Maeve asked skeptically. ‘’Jaim ?’’
‘’Yes’’, Sinbad answered. ‘’We couldn’t let them getting executed arbitrarily.’’
Maeve shook her head. Staring at him, she explained :
‘’The men you freed were strangers, yes. They are in fact pirates. They’ve been slaughtering children and assaulting women in many villages along the shore before they arrived here, in Sarania. My task consisted on taking them to the castle, so they could be punished for their crimes’’. The sharp tone of her voice in the last sentence meant she was done talking about this subject.
‘’Lass, what if we grabbed something to eat and install our campment ?’’ Doubar suggested gently. She smiled as she playfully punched his belly. ‘’Hungry, as always’’, she teased him.
‘’Aye. Now, let’s rest and enjoy the day’’ Doubar winked at her.
‘’Can’t we just relax and enjoy our day ?’’ sighed Doubar. ‘’Plus, I’m thirsty’’, he added, and Rongar nodded in approval.
‘’I agree with you, big brother. Some refreshments would be most appreciated’’ Sinbad said as he tapped Doubar’s shoulder. ‘’Bryn ?’’
He noticed her discomfort.
‘’I’m sorry to ruin the mood guys, but I really feel there’s something weird here. And look at Dermott’’.
The hawk seemed panicked.
‘’Keep him with you’’ Firouz told Bryn. ‘’Hopefully, he will feel better once he eats fresh meat’’.
As the crew reached the village of Sarania, they they heard a commotion coming from what looked like the market place. A crowd of about forty villagers had gathered. As the crew ran toward the crowd to see what was happening, they saw five men, sailors apparently, tied to gallows poles, and the crowd furiously injuriated them.
‘’Bastards !’’
‘’Burn in hell !’’
The prisoners were guarded by four soldiers. Before the crew had the time to react, Jaim, the villager’s chief, ran to Sinbad and his crew to welcome them, for the rumors of their arrival had traveled fast in the region. He looked anxious.
‘’Sinbad ! I’m happy to have you here in Sarania. I regret this is not the best time for welcoming you properly. I wished we had time to prepare a feast for you and your crew, but as you can tell, we’re having some … events that are temporarily disturbing our plans.’’
‘’Events. Of what kind, exactly ?’’ asked Sinbad.
‘’Looks like an execution to me’’, suggested Firouz.
‘’You could say so. The villagers don’t trust strangers very much. We are waiting for them to be taken away’’, explained Jaim.
‘’Taken away ? By who ?’’ asked Doubar.
‘’Their hunter. If we hand these men over to them, there will be no harm done to the villagers’’.
The crew stared at him as they waited for more explanations, but Jaim kept looking behind them, screening the horizon and anxiously staring at the forest behind them, as if he was expecting a monster of some sort to crawl out of the bushes at any moment.
‘’ What have these men done to be condamned ?’’ asked Bryn.
‘’I’m not sure, but the villagers seem to think they are well deserving of the fate they soon will be facing,’’ answered Jaim. ‘’Death’’.
‘’You’re about to send five men to their death, not even knowing what crime they committed ?’’ Sinbad exclaimed angrily. ‘’For what you know, they might as well be innocent’’.
‘’Maybe …’’ Jaim answered, not really listening to Sinbad.
‘’Little brother, we can’t let these men get killed arbitrarily !’’ Doubar muttered.
‘’I agree. This is not a civilized way of justice. It’s barbarian !’’ exclaimed Firouz.
‘’I guess whoever planned on coming here to take them away will be surprised when they see they have gone’’ Sinbad announced as he drew his sword.
The crew engaged in a fight with the soldiers guarding the prisoners. Surprisingly, they soldiers easily admitted defeat after a few minutes and ran away.
‘’What kind of soldiers are those ?’’ asked Doubar, almost disappointed at how short the brawl lasted.
But the soldiers were not the only one who fled. Soon, the villagers started screaming and running away, as they went hiding into their homes. All the crew could hear from their screaming was ‘’The hunter !’’ as the panicked villagers fled to find shelter.
‘’Quick, free those men !’’ Sinbad ordered Rongar and Firouz as he, Doubar and Bryn raised their swords, facing the road. They were now hearing distinctly the sound of horses galloping in the forest, toward the village. A few seconds later, they saw four horsemen, all dressed in black, racing toward them. They drew their swords and jumped off their horse when they saw their hostages were gone.
‘’You will come with us’’ the man who seemed to be their chief vociferated at Sinbad.
‘’I don’t think we wish to go with you’’ the young captain answered in the same manner.
‘’You shouldn’t have freed these criminals. You fools. You chose to trade their lives with yours’’ another one roared.
The crew fought the horsemen as he could, but these men were more talented at swordfighting and much stronger that the soldiers they had just defeated. The horsemen quickly caught Bryn and Firouz and tied their hands around the wooden poles. One man knocked Doubar on the head, and the giant withdrew from the fight from his dizziness. The chief horseman ordered to Rongar and Sinbad to drop their weapons, for the three other crewmembers now each had a sharp blade held against their throat. Sinbad and Rongar had no choice and angrily threw their swords to the ground. One of the horsemen tied Rongar’s hands, while the chief reached for Sinbad, threatening him with his sword. He kneed the captain in the stomach, making Sinbad suddenly breathless. The horseman harshly grabbed Sinbad by the hair and threw his head back, exposing his throat. He rose a dagger over his head, ready to stab him.
‘’ENOUGH !’’ a powerful, female voice screamed. It echoed through the now deserted village.
The horsemen’s chief looked mad. He reluctantly let go of Sinbad. The four horsemen turned to salute her as she walked her white horse closer to them. She was wearing a purple hooded cloak. The shadow it sent over her face prevented them from clearly seeing her features. Under her cloak, she was wearing a burgundy, corseted riding dress that hugged her upper body tightly, revealing her thin figure. No cleavage was shown, for the bodice buttoned up to her neck, but the crewmen couldn’t help but notice that her corset did its job wonderfully. Her outfit was made out of the finest fabrics, and she was wearing luxuous jewelry. Even her horse’s handles were encrusted with sapphires. They could see she carried a bow and arrows.
‘’Is she the hunter the villagers were so scared about ?’’ whispered Doubar, in disbelief, as he realized their enemy was a young woman. Rongar shrugged.
‘’These are not the men the villagers promised me’’ the lady snapped at them with a soft, yet authoritative voice.
‘’Five prisoners still, for you to leave with’’, one horseman protested weakly.
‘’We won’t be taken as prisoners,’’ Sinbad adressed her. ‘’And the ones you came here to claim didn’t have a fair trial, so we allowed ourselves set them free’’, he added daringly.
His audacy didn’t seem to bother her. Adressing the horsemen, she simply said :
‘’I don’t want them’’.
She made some hand gesture, and the horsemen walked back to the crew to untie them from the gallows poles. Their chief was outraged, but he surrendered to her orders. Then the men took their horses and galloped back to the forest.
‘’We are really thankful for your help, madam’’ Sinbad bowed, using his most charming smile. ‘’I am Sinbad ...’’
‘’I know who you are’’, she interrupted him.
‘’Oh …’’ he smirked, flattered at the thought she might have been impressed by his reputation, like many other female admirers. ‘’But I’m afraid we haven’t had the honor of yet being introduced to our lovely savior’’.
They heard the woman chuckle softly. She removed her hood. Her hair was tied in a loose bun, but the red curls were what they saw first. The crewmen’s jaw dropped.
‘’MAEVE !!!!’’ they exclaimed, shocked.
Dermott, perched on a roof, chirped and flew back to perch on Bryn’s forearm.
Sinbad felt like he was suddenly paralyzed. He stood before the beautiful sorceress he thought he had lost forever. Her beauty overthrew him.
She got off her horse and the crew welcomed her warmly, cheering and hugging her. Doubar lifted her up in his arms happily repeating ‘’My Lass !’’, making Maeve giggle like a little girl. She then turned to Bryn and petted Dermott. Once Maeve was done reuniting with the crew and after being introduced to Bryn, she walked toward her captain, who was still in shock. It seemed so unreal. So often he had thought and fantasized about how he would react if he ever found her. He would have ran to her and hugged her tightly, never letting go of her warm embrace. Or he would have grabbed her and kissed her passionately. Sometimes he even thought about telling her how much he loved her as soon as they would reunite. But reality had obviously decided otherwise : he froze, unable to speak or to move as she got closer. She stood a few inches from him, grinning and amused as she noticed his confusion. Her smile. He could have melt.
‘’It’s good to see you again’’, was all he managed to say. Again, she chuckled softly. How he had missed her laughter. Her voice. Her. She was beautiful. No … magnificent.
‘’I’m happy to see you too’’, she smiled.
He finally gathered some composure. He raised his hand to her face, reaching for her cheek and caressing it gently. Her skin was silky smooth.
‘’How you’ve changed’’, he whispered softly, staring in her eyes. She chuckled.
‘’How YOU’VE changed’’, she answered back, raising her eyebrow as she visually detailed his new look and clothings. She stepped back from him and turned around to face the crew.
‘’I’m sorry about those horsemen’’, she apologized. ‘’They are supposed to help me with my task, but most of the time they’re a real a pain in the ass’’, she sighed.
‘’What would that task be ?’’ Doubar asked. ‘’Are you the hunter we’ve heard about ?’’
‘’That’s how they call me…’’, she admitted.
‘’What exactly are you hunting ?’’ Bryn asked, as the bad feelings she had felt wouldn’t fade away.
Maeve glanced at her, then answered : ‘’Criminals. My task is to bring them to … the castle.’’
‘’So they would get killed ?’’ Firouz snarled. ‘’The men we freed were arrested only because they were strangers.’’
‘’Who told you that ?’’ Maeve asked skeptically. ‘’Jaim ?’’
‘’Yes’’, Sinbad answered. ‘’We couldn’t let them getting executed arbitrarily.’’
Maeve shook her head. Staring at him, she explained :
‘’The men you freed were strangers, yes. They are in fact pirates. They’ve been slaughtering children and assaulting women in many villages along the shore before they arrived here, in Sarania. My task consisted on taking them to the castle, so they could be punished for their crimes’’. The sharp tone of her voice in the last sentence meant she was done talking about this subject.
‘’Lass, what if we grabbed something to eat and install our campment ?’’ Doubar suggested gently. She smiled as she playfully punched his belly. ‘’Hungry, as always’’, she teased him.
‘’Aye. Now, let’s rest and enjoy the day’’ Doubar winked at her.
No comments:
Post a Comment