Early the next morning, we came upon another town...we meant to only pass through...however...the place was crawling with Efruigron soldiers, and a squad stopped us. "You're an awfully well armed bunch."
"We're a group of mercenaries." Aodh answered.
"Out of the way!" Another group of Efruigron soldiers shoved their way to us, this one had a captain at the center.
"A group of mercenaries huh? Perfect, we're bored. Won't you have a duel with us?"
Aodh glanced at us before a chilly smirk worked it's way onto his perfect features. He shrugged, "Sure, why not?" All of us dismounted. Gaetano, after a scolding from Beatrix, held our mounts. Both sides lined up against each other. The Efruigron side shouted as they drew and we met their blades...the fight was a bit disappointing. Over in a moment. And Gaetano pouted for the rest of the day for not being able to join, which Perce found hilarious.
*'I have something for you.' He lifted my hips up, licking my nipple. My arms were tied behind my back, wrists to upper arms and forearms together. He brought my hips down and I cried out, panting for breath, sweat sliding down my naked form. He cupped my cheek and I bit him, earning a backslap to the face as he pounded his thick member up into me, causing me to shout out and start to cry as he thrusted. Shouting in effort I put all my strength into my legs and jerked away from him, landing near the wall....his broadsword behind me. Fear surged through me as he looked at me with those hate-filled yet lustful eyes. I shook in terror and frantically used the sword's sharp edge to cut my bindings, also slicing my arms up, but I didn't care. I had to get away from him. He yelled out in rage and lunged for me...and I broke free and grabbed the broadsword, swinging with everything I had...jerking when I felt his warm blood splatter everywhere, soaking me.* I woke up sweating and sighed, resting an arm on my forehead, missing the already familiar warmth by my side. I wondered where Aodh was. I changed cloths into the long sleeved black shirt and pants before stepping outside. Aodh was helping Perce with a breakfast of another quiche. Sultan was making arrows. And Beatrix and Gaetano were sparring. Aodh looked up with a smile I couldn't help but return as I came over to them, sitting out of the way but next to the fire.
Aodh handed me a cup of coffee. "Ready to change your bandages?" I smirked and started taking off my shirt as he went back to the tent to retrieve the salve and fresh bandages from my saddlebag. I let Aodh fret over my wounds, enjoying his touch before redressing, and by then the food was ready. We gathered around to eat by the fire as a group. After that we broke camp and tended to the horses before setting out. We came back to the fast flowing river and started following it North. For most of the day, we followed the river, stopping for lunch of avocados, asparagus, tomatoes, and chicken with a light sauce that reminded me of ranch and guacamole. Perce sure knew how to buy supplies. It was delicious. Near dusk, we heard horses' hooves and glanced up to see a squadron of Efruigron Knights on the plateau above us. These ones however had a white diagram of something on their breastplates... ~Impossible.~ Although I was too far away to see what the diagram was clearly, I knew what it was. A white serpent. The King's Knights...Which meant the King of Efruigro was here...close by. "Over here!" Aodh ordered, sending Jack galloping for a large tree that had fallen mostly into the fast moving river. Everyone dismounted, grabbing our saddlebags and clambered onto the tree. Aodh and I pushed off, before jumping on. Bolts came flying but the swift river tore us away and the arrows shot harmlessly into the water where we once were. We careened in the river, the tree keeping us afloat. A fish with long teeth came jumping out at Gaetano's face and I threw one of my dirks from my wrist guard, getting the fish right before he hit the youth's face, the impact jerking it away and back into the river.
"Piranhas! Get as far from the water as you can!" We all climbed higher onto the tree which eventually bumped into the opposite bank and Perce and Beatrix were able to stop us. We quickly sought dry land while we could.
"That was pure luck that that worked." Sultan said, holding her sapping arms away from her soaked body.
Aodh grinned, "Yeah, but it did work."
"Except for all the ground we lost." Gaetano groaned.
Aodh ruffled his hair so it stuck up every which way. "Well enough traveling for one day. Let's find a place to camp and Fox can cook us up something." We found a bare, fairly even ground near a large dead tree to set up camp.
"I can't believe we lost the horses again." I griped as Aodh and I changed cloths in our tent.
"It's like we're meant to walk this journey." Aodh agreed. There was silence for a second. "Did you see the emblem on their chests?"
"The white serpent of Efruigro. The King's Knights."
Aodh sighed. "I was hoping to retake Adroso before the King of Efruigro came personally."
I shrugged. "Nothing is set in stone. We don't know enough. It could've even been the very politically active Princess of Efruigro instead of the King. And it could just be an inspection. We'll deal with just who exactly we are facing after gathering a fighting force."
"You're right. Though I don't know who would be worse: the King or the Princess." I nodded agreement. The King was headstrong and held more influence, but his daughter was well-versed in battle strategies and very involved with the Efruigon Army.
I shook my head, "Well, enough thinking about things we cannot at the moment change." I grabbed Aodh's arm. "Let's go see what Fox is whipping up." Dinner that night ended up being baked spaghetti. Man, were we spoiled. I thanked my lucky stars I was in Perce's group.
Toward evening the next day, we came to another town and decided to stay the night and attempt to once more get horses. Aodh got a beautiful chestnut overo named Beau. A buckskin with a blaze and a hind and front low sock for me named Biscuit. Lil' Bit, a bey with one low sock for Sultan. Another bey named Cody for Perce. A chestnut with a star named Elvis for Beatrix and a bey with a star named Hank for Gaetano. I preyed these mounts lasted more than a few days. As we were about to leave, I noticed Beatrix come up and whisper urgently with Perce. I looked around, wondering what was wrong and noticed Gaetano was no where in sight. Aodh seemed to have noticed something was wrong and I joined him in approaching the couple. "Something wrong?"
"I can't find Mutt." Beatrix said anxiously.
"It's okay, let's search the property one more time." I tried to comfort them. We all searched, but came up empty. The kid wasn't here.
"Alright, let's split up and search town." Aodh said grimly. I found nothing in town so I widened my search to the outskirts. What I found near the stream that ran into town sent my blood to boil. Two grown men were beating up on Gaetano. One had the kid's practice sword. I set Biscuit galloping toward them, drawing my short-staff. One of the men heart Biscuit and turned, right into the swing to his gut, lifting him off his feet a good ways. I leaped down and smashed the man with Gaetano's wooden sword away from the lad on the ground. I was too furious to speak and slammed my staff into his elbow, making him scream and drop the wooden blade. I lost myself as I continued to beat the man bloody. When I finally gained control of myself, the man was curled up in a ball crying past a busted face. Breathing heavily as I tried to remain in control of myself and think clearly, shaking from the effort to not kill the men, I picked up Gaetano's wooden sword before returning to Biscuit whom had wandered over to where Gaetano was on his hands and knees, trying to get up. I hauled the youth up into the saddle before leaping on and setting off for town. I went straight to a healers. Nothing was broken, and the blood was more than usual because they were head abrasions. And still, my blood was boiling. The whole time, Gaetano avoided eye contact and said nothing. Aodh was the first to find us. "What the hell happened?" Gaetano wasn't answering.
I took a breath to try and calm down. "Perhaps we can wait for explanations until later?"
Aodh studied me before nodding and looking back at Gaetano. "I'll go find Fox and Foxy." He said before heading for the door.
"I'll take him back to the inn." Aodh raised a hand to signal he'd heard and left. I went over to the silent Gaetano. "Come on Kid." Gaetano hopped off the bench and I paid the healer before we made our slow way to the local inn, The Bridge Tavern and Inn.
Perce ran into us, leading Hank behind him, along the way. "What happened?"
"Badgers." Gaetano said, barely loud enough for Perce to hear...but he did, and that glint once again entered the man's green gaze, making even a skilled mercenary like me shiver. The Ex-spy Master was no pushover, no matter how gentle he seemed. I didn't know what Badgers meant, but Perce sure seemed to.
"Where?" Gaetano didn't answer.
"I found him by the stream just out of town to the south." I said, wondering if that helped. It seemed to because Perce tossed me Hank's reins and spun Cody around, disappearing south of us. I continued us down the path to the inn. Once there, I helped Gaetano down and took our saddlebags, handing the horses over to a stable boy, tipping him and guiding Gaetano inside where I ordered us drinks which Gaetano did sip on so I was glad of that fact. Beatrix burst into the inn, panicked blue-green eyes searching for her son before she found us, Sultan soon following as they rushed over.
Beatrix was in tears by the time she'd reached us and thrown her arms around him, kneeling before his chair near the fire. "What happened?"
"Let's go up to one of our rooms." Aodh said, appearing behind Sultan. They followed me up to the family's room and I set Gaetano's saddlebag and sword down on the table before leaning against the wall, my own saddlebag still over my shoulder. I crossed my arms and waited to find out just what was going on.
"Do I really have to say?" Geatano said after a moment of silence.
"Yes Baby, I need to know how you got hurt." Beatrix coaxed.
"Badgers." Geatano said again.
Beatrix stiffened and her eyes went ice cold. She grasped the hilt of her sword, her knuckled white. "Those son of a bitches!" She bolted for the door but I caught her arm only to have her turn on me with a snarl.
~Shit man. Never make a mom angry.~ "Fox already went to find them." ~Whatever these 'Badgers' were.~
Beatrix took a deep breath and turned to her son. "It's up to you what you tell them Honey. I'm going to find Fox." Gaetano nodded, meeting his mother's gaze before looking back down at his hands in his lap. She went to him and hugged him gently. "I love you, you mutt."
"Love you too Ugly." Beatrix smirked, tears in her eyes which she banished as she stormed out. I would NOT want to be these Badgers right now. Not with two swordmaster, enraged parents after them. "I'm adopted, though everyone can probably tell that..." Gaetano started haltingly. "My real mother became indebted to a gang after my father died in the war 7 years ago. She became indebted to them because she was trying to raise me all alone, we had no one else to turn too." Tears started down his little face, landing a blow to my heart. Sultan moved before me, shifting Gaetano onto her lap so she could hug him. "She worked for them as a prostitute to pay them back, got sick, and died. The debt moved to me and I had to steal to pay it back. Then I picked Fox's pocket. Foxy was so mad." He tried to smile. "After that, they found out how I was connected to the Badgers Gang and got me out, running them out of town." My blood ran cold at the name of the gang and pieces fell into place. "And they adopted me as their own. The Badger Gang seem to have set up in this town. I was spotted and snatched." Aodh was furious and left the room with his helm.
I huffed. "Hot heads." I looked back at Sultan and Gaetano. "Come on." I ruffled Sultan's short hair. "Let's go get something to eat." Sultan nodded and helped Gaetano up, holding his hand as we went back downstairs. Dinner that night was chicken curry. After which we went back to the family's room and pushed the beds together before climbing on and shared stories of past fights that seemed to enthrall Gaetano. Eventually the three of us fell asleep.
ns 18.68.41.175da2
