Post by anyaofpiratesswoop on Mar 3, 2016 13:19:21 GMT 10
Well hello...-shuffle shuffle-...I am a little nervous about posting thing, but I wrote a fic involving Alanna, some familiar characters, and some OC's. I hope it's all right. It's only the first chapter, so it might be boring, but I hope you enjoy it.
Title:Song of the Lioness: The Call of the Storm
Summary:It is only Alanna and George at Pirate's Swoop now. Thom is working at the Royal University, Aly is with her family on the Copper Isles, and Allen is off doing knight work. Alanna still loves her adventures, but is slowing down on taking them as much as she used to. On her way back from helping out in Corus, she comes upon another town. Originally, she plans on helping them with a bandit problem, but she meets someone she was not expecting, that someone being a young, stubborn girl named Arianna. This girl has a quick tongue and a quick temper to go with it, and the one thing she hates is the idea of family. Although they had a rough start, Arianna, and Alanna become good friends, which leads them to more great adventures...adventures neither one of them saw coming, and adventures that could lead Pirate's Swoop into trouble. Alanna is even able to teach her magic. Although very resistant to at first, Arianna learns that Alanna is not out there to hurt her...something she thought all people wanted to do. Can Ari learn what it means to truly be a family, and can she control her magic enough to fulfill her destiny?
Rating: PG
Warnings
Violet colored eyes stared off into the distance as a woman trotted down a dirt road with her good friend Darkmoon. Though her gaze was constantly moving all around the passing scenery, the sunny weather making traveling kind, her mind was elsewhere, her thoughts trailing on how good it would be to get home.
“I stayed in Corus longer than I planned.” The woman thought to herself as a gentle, April breeze blew through her long, fiery red hair. The great King Johnathan and his wife, Queen Thayet, were in the in the process of making a few changes to the Tortallean kingdom, and Alanna, who was close friends with both and the King’s Champion, was required to be there.
“Not that I really minded, but still, I ready to go home for a little while.”
She missed George, and as much as she loved a good adventure, a good rest at home seemed to be what she was craving.
Fate, however, had another path set before her, and a path she did not see coming.
“I should write the children when I return, too. At least Aly and Thom since I’ve already seen-“
At that moment, her thoughts cut off, a strange sight in the distance catching her off guard.
“What the…what is that?”
She squinted her eyes to get a better look. At first, she couldn’t quite make it out, but after a few moments, she realized what it was, her eyes widening as she gently nudged her horse to run faster.
“Come on boy.”
With the faster pace, she reached a nearby tree, and there in front of her was a woman with an arrow in her shoulder, blood drenching the white sleeve that covered it.
“What happened here?”
Alanna quickly jumped down, grabbing her bag full of some herbs, bandages, and other healing goods before heading over.
“It was two bandits…I was riding back from Corus when they attacked me. They took the few goods I had and my horse.”
The blonde woman, who looked to be in her thirties, was pale and sweating, wincing every so often from the pain that she was in.
“That was about fifteen minutes ago, maybe a bit longer. I tried walking back to my town after they took off, but it hurts too much.”
Without a word, Alanna quickly placed her hands over the wound, a violet light soon emanating from them. A sigh of relief came from the woman’s mouth almost seconds after it happened. Knowing it was working, Alanna then quickly and carefully pulled the arrow out, hoping that the dulling of the pain would make that task less painful for the stranger.
“Is it bad?”
The knight could see the worry on her face.
“Not as bad as you think.” Alanna replied calmly, even smiling a little to help ease the other. “Nothing a healing, some bandages, and some rest won’t help.”
She continued to work quietly, eyes scanning around the area every few minutes. If the woman was attacked not too long ago, then there was a chance that the bandits might come back, or even still be watching. She did not want her or the woman to be there if they decided to return.
“Where’s your town?” Alanna asked.
“Quite a ways down the road behind me…maybe about half an hour off.”
She peeked behind the tree to see that a road, branching off from the main one, was indeed behind there.
“I never knew there was a town down there.”
“It’s new, only about five years old.” The other replied. “Called Wedgemore.”
“Wedgemore…oh yes, I’m sorry. I do recall that name coming up a few times.” It was so new that she had forgotten about it. “Though I have yet to visit.”
As Alanna bandaged the woman up, the green eyed female looked past her, spotting the shield that was hanging on the saddle.
“Wait…I know that mark. Are you…the King’s Champion?”
Alanna looked up, following the gaze to see where she was staring, instantly turning around after with a small but humble smile.
“Yes, that would be me.”
“You’re the Lady Alanna?”
“I am.” Alanna replied, her smile widening a bit at the woman’s shock.
“Well I’ll be…the Goddess must be watching over me today then to send you. I’ve heard all about your greatness. My name is Sasha.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Sasha.” Alanna replied. “As for my greatness, the stories make me sound better than I really am.”
“Oh I don’t believe that.” The blonde replied with a smile. She then looked at her thoughtfully. “Wait…if you’re the King’s Champion, does that mean you might be able to help us?”
Alanna had just finished with the bandaging when this question came about.
“Help?”
“Yes, help myself and the town from these bandits.”
Alanna’s heart dropped a little. She had desperately wanted to return home, yet at the same time, she was a knight of the realm. She couldn’t just leave someone in need helpless.
“I…am not sure if I’d be much help or anything…”
“Oh you would!” Sasha slowly stood, Alanna helping her keep her balance. When she could stand on her own, she wiped the dirt from her dress. “You see, our town has strong men in it, but not enough to take these bandits down. If you’re on our side, we might have a better chance to take them down. We figure that if we get the leader, then we’ll be all right.”
“How many are there?”
“About thirty five or so. We know where their camp is. And there’s only about twenty five men in our town. About fifty of us in all, but the rest are women and children. We have young boys, but they are as I say, young. We don’t want to lose any.”
“Have they been attacking other towns?”
“Not that we know of. They started attacking us a few weeks back, but we have held them off well enough so far, only losing a few in the process. We lose any more and we will be done for. It’s only because we are fairly new. They probably thought we’d be easy targets, but we’re doing our best to fight back.”
Alanna thought on this for a moment. From the sounds of it, the town sounded like they were holding well so far, but she even knew that could only last so long unless the bandits were stopped immediately.
“I know it’s a lot to ask seeing as we just met, and I can understand if you don’t want to get involved. I can only imagine what work you have, some even being more important than us, but if it were possible…”
Alanna stopped her immediately, kindly placing her hand on the shoulder that was good.
“As it is, my previous work is finished. I was only heading home, so helping you is not an issue or any kind of inconvenience. Every town is Tortall is important, so please don’t think of yours any less.”
“You’ll…really help us?”
“Of course.” George and home would just have to wait a little longer. “Now come on. You need to rest after that healing. I’ll help you up on Darkmoon, and then you can show me the way.
Thankfully, the two women made it to the town without any issues. Alanna’s hand was on Lightning’s hilt the whole time, just in case. Upon their arrival, they were greeted instantly by two men and three women, the men helping Sasha down from the saddle.
“I took care of her wound. The rest should heal just fine.” Alanna told them, the women now taking hold of their friend once she was on the ground. “With that healing though, she’ll need rest.”
“Thank you again, Lady Knight.” Sasha told her. “I promise I will repay you for your kindness.”
“There’s no need for that.” She replied, trying to hide her growing blush. She didn’t entirely enjoy being fawned on just for doing her job. She was a knight. She was supposed to help those who needed it.
“Lady Knight?” one of the men suddenly asked.
“She’s Lady Alanna.” Sasha told him. “The King’s Champion!”
Whispers broke out among those present, more and more from the town joining to get a look at what was going on. This only made her feel even more awkward.
“King’s Champion, eh?” said a burly man with hazel eyes. “You’re smaller than I expected.”
“Oh shush.” Another woman with brown hair told him. “Small or not, she’s done a lot more than you have.”
“And she’s agreed to help us fight off the bandits.” Sasha added.
The disagreeing man raised an eyebrow.
“Help us? We don’t need outside help.”
“Outside help would be more than welcomed, especially of a knight.”
This voice came from behind Alanna, another male joining her presence. Turning, she found a very tall and lean man standing behind her. His dark brown eyes were as dark as his hair, a thin beard covering the bottom half of his face. On him he wore a simple white tunic and tan breeches, brown leather shoes covering his feet.
“Lady Alanna.” He said is a tenor voice, bowing to the other. “It’s an honor to meet you, and I must thank you as well for saving my sister-in-law. Needless to say we’d all be devastated if we lost someone else to the bandits.”
Alanna bowed in return.
“No thanks needed, sir. I am glad I could be of help.”
The man smirked slightly at her remark.
“No need for sir. That makes me feel older than I want to be. I am Kayden, my Lady.”
“Very well, Kayden. Alanna is just fine in return. Now, Sasha says you’ve been having bandit trouble?”
He nodded.
“We have indeed. And if I heard Sasha right, you’d said you help?”
“Yes, of course. Wedgemore may be new but it is still a town of Tortall, and as a knight, I am sworn to protect our realm.”
“We would much appreciate it. Perhaps with you on our side we could relinquish them for good.”
“What do you know about these bandits?”
At this point, most of the town had returned to their daily work, so the two continued their conversation on a nearby wooden bench, Darkmoon still beside her.
“Well, after some scouting, we found their camp is about eight miles from here. If you head east from our river, you’ll reach it. It has about thirty five to forty men, most armed with axes and a few with bows. They have horses as well, some of them ours. We could launch an all our attack with our men, but only half are trained to fight. We wouldn’t make it out, and then what would happen to our women and children?”
Alanna nodded. She could see their predicament. If all went in, who would be here to protect the town if something happened? They needed a good plan.
“What can I do to help?”
“Maybe you could train some of the men to fight? And we have one or two mages here that could probably learn a little more magic from you. And if they decide to attack again, perhaps having you here while they do will get rid of more.”
“I could do that. If you round me up those who need training, I will teach them what I can. What magic do the mages have?”
“The boys? Healing. They learned it from one of the elder mages that used to reside here, but she passed two years back.”
“Well I can definitely help them with that.”
She had no issues with teaching magic. She had done it before back when she was with the Bahzir Tribes, and with her past squire. Those who were gifted had to be trained or they would be a danger to themselves and to those around them simply from the inability to control it. And to think, she used to be scared of the Gift.
“Very well. I will help train both the men and the boy mages, and will help you fight the bandits when the time comes. I also feel that the women should learn a few things as well. In the event of an attack, wouldn’t it be best to not leave them completely helpless?”
She wondered if he would disagree with that at first, but he merely nodded in reply.
“I agree. I think it has been proven many times over than a woman has the capability to fight as well as a man.”
Alanna smiled inwardly at this. It was nice to see someone who wasn’t completely against the idea. People were slowly accepting the whole women fighting affair, but there were still those who hated it completely.
“Do you know who the leader is?” she now asked. “Sasha mentioned that if the leader was killed, they would most likely back off.”
“His name is Redrick. Got that name off of one of the bandits we captured once. He’s the biggest of all of them and is responsible for most of the deaths that have happened here.”
“How often do they come?”
“About twice a month it seems. Started back about four months ago. We’ve held them off for this long, but I know we won’t be able to if they keep coming. You really don’t mind helping us out?”
“Of course not.”
“The men might give a hard time, especially those who don’t believe in girls fighting. If I tell them to lay off though, they will listen.”
“It doesn’t matter to me.” She replied. “I’m used to it at this point.”
“Well then, as I said, your help is welcomed. I will be sure to pay you for it.”
She instantly shook her head at this.
“I don’t need payment, but thank you. I want to do this. It doesn’t sit well with me that a town is near helpless. I insist.”
He thought for a moment, but the nodded his head.
“Then please take a room for free at our in. Both my wife and I live in it and own it. Meals and such will always be free. Please, with that, I insist. If I can’t pay you, then you must let me do something.”
She really didn’t want to take anything for the help as, despite the craving for home, she really did want to help them out, but the look on his gruff face told her that he would not give in, so in the end, she merely nodded.
“Very well, I accept. Thank you.”
He then stood up.
“We will be more than glad to offer you a place. Now, if I may be so frank, perhaps you should bathe and rest now before dinner tonight. You look like you need it.”
Looking down, she found that her tunic and breeches were covered in dirt from being on the ground with Sasha, not to mention some of the woman’s blood was on her. She then looked back at Kayden with a grin.
“I think you might be right.”
After a long, warm bath, which was connected to her small but comfortable room, she brushed out her shoulder length hair and changed into fresh clothing, the woman now donning a white tunic and dark brown breeches. While ignoring some of the looks she got as she entered the lively part of the inn, the looks mostly from men, she walked out of the main door and stepped outside.
“Dammit…” she said to herself as she stretched, her bones cracking. “I’m really not as young as I used to be. Some knights my age look like they aren’t bothered at all, but I sure as hell feel like I am in my forties.”
Oh the joys of aging.
Stepping out more, she let herself explore her new surroundings.
“I’m impressed. For being a new town, they are doing fairly well for themselves.”
No, it wasn’t as big as a city, but it was still a decent size. They had their own fields growing the crops they needed, shops selling clothing and other goodies, a bakery, many sturdy stone and wooden houses, and, from hearing the people talk, they did some trading with Corus as well.
“Not bad. Not bad at all.”
As she continued on more, she began to notice something was a little off.
“That’s odd…”
She looked up towards the sky.
“There wasn’t a single cloud up there when I was riding.”
Now, it could have been possible for a storm of some sort to sneak up unnoticed, but for the entire skies surrounding her to turn grey when it was blue not even an hour ago…was something like that possible?
“I didn’t even see signs of an impending storm, so how…”
“It’s not polite to ignore someone who is talking to you.”
A young, male voice broke Alanna from her thoughts. She looked around for the speaker, but found no one.
“Hmm…maybe I was just hearing things…”
“You forget, she’s too stupid to speak.”
Nope. She definitely wasn’t hearing things. Walking around a nearby corner, she peeked and found three children behind a building. Two of them were boys, brothers from the looks of it as they both had the same dirty blonde hair, blue eyes, and similar facial features. The only real difference was height as one was taller than the other. The third child, who was a girl, looked very different. While the boys looked to be eleven or twelve years old, the girl didn’t look a day over nine. Maybe ten. She saw that she had shoulder length dark brown hair, but was unable to see her face very well.
“Well, come on Arianna. Speak. We’re older. You’re supposed to do what we tell you.”
The girl continued to stay silent, clinging to a small basket of bread. While most would think this little child to be scared of the older boys, it was actually quite the opposite, an angry, defiant looked on her face instead.
“Oi! Stupid! Answer us!”
She was silent still at first, but after a few moments, she opened her mouth to speak, her voice cool and collective.
“I would, but I really shouldn’t. If I speak to you long, I’ll catch the stupid that you two both carry.”
The following actions after those words happened all too quickly. One of the boys, the taller of the two, swung at the girl with a scowl. The child dropped her bread and ducked just in time, punching her attacker in the gut. While she was doing that though, the second boy came from behind, turned her around, and punched her right in the mouth.
“Hey! Stop it!”
As soon as Alanna made her presence known, the boys took off, the young female slowly picking herself up off the ground.
“Are you all right?”
She ran to her side and reached out to her.
“Here, let me-"
“No!”
The girl pushed Alanna away and stood up fully.
“Why’d you get involved!? I had it under control!”
Alanna was a little taken aback by this response that she wasn’t even sure what to say back. That split silent moment did give her a better view of the girl however, and the first thing she noticed was how she was dressed like a boy. She had seen other young girls wearing dresses and such around here, but not this one. She was in a slightly raggedy tan long-sleeved shirt, her black breeches just as worn out. She was also quite small and skinny. It was almost amazing to have seen her punch the boy the way she did.
The last thing she noticed, which was the feature that stuck out the most, was the young one’s eyes. Instead of the typical brown, green, blue, or hazel eyes one saw, this child had greyish, silvery eyes, her orbs almost the same exact color of the stormy sky.
“Wow…” she thought, an unknown, almost magical tugging emotion running through her. “They’re…”
Wiping herself off, the girl picked up her bread and looked them through. She was pleased to see none had gotten ruined. After, she turned back on the other.
“Idiot. You didn’t need to step in.” she scowled.
Alanna finally snapped back into reality, her brows now furrowing at the remark.
“What? I was trying to help you!”
“I didn’t need it!”
“Oh really? So you getting punched in the face was supposed to happen?”
“Shut up!” she said hotly, a sound of thunder rumbling as she did. “You shouldn’t have interfered period! Now they’re going to think I need other people to solve my problems!”
While speaking, she suddenly winced, a painful sting shooting through her bottom lip. Reaching up, she found it was bleeding. This is what made the girl panic slightly.
“Great…she’s going to kill me if she sees this…”
“What? Who is?”
“None of your business.”
“But I don’t get it…no one would kill you for this. You didn’t even start it.”
“I was fighting regardless!” the child snapped. “I’ll be in trouble.”
“But-“
“Just shut up! You don’t understand!”
And before Alanna could say anything else, the young one turned and ran away.
“Woah, hey! Wait!”
There was an odd little feeling in her chest when she saw the girl. She wasn’t sure what it was, but it was there, and it was that feeling that prompted the woman to follow.
“Wait up!”
It took a few minutes, but eventually, she caught up to the other, the child kneeling by a river, using some of the water there to wipe away the blood.
“Hey…I was calling for you…”
“And I am supposed to listen to you why?”
Alanna sighed and crossed her arms over her chest.
“You know…you’re awfully rude to someone who helped you.”
“I told you I didn’t need it. Not my fault you stepped in. Ouch!”
She winced again at the pain, the bleeding starting up again. It was in this moment Alanna stepped in closer.
“Let me see that.”
“No! Get away!”
“Oh quit your fighting. Just let me see!”
Ignoring the arguing, Alanna got in close enough to place a single finger on the girl’s cut, and almost instantly, she felt a cool sensation on her lip, the pain lessening greatly. When the child seemed to calm down, Alanna pulled back.
“There…now was that so bad?”
The young one looked down at her reflection in the river, touching the now pain free area. There was still a small mark there, but it didn’t hurt nor did it look as bad as it did.
“Hmph…she’ll still notice it…”
Alanna sighed. She wasn’t exactly expecting a thank you, but some sort of gratitude would have been nice.
Seeing that the girl was a little calmer, she decided to pry with a few questions.
“Arianna…was it?” she asked, her voice soft. “That’s what I heard one of the boys say.”
Arianna looked up, and although there was still a coldness, even anger, in her eyes, she didn’t snap, replying in a semi-cool tone.
“Yeah…what of it?”
“Nothing. I was just curious. It’s a pretty name.”
Arianna could only look away at this.
“How old are you?”
“Nine.”
“Right on the mark.” She thought.
“Really? Well, for a nine year old, you sure have a good punch.”
The girl was secretly amused by this, but made no face to show it, her angry eyes still locked on the river below.
“Why were they picking on you?”
“Why does it matter? They always pick on me. Most of the kids do.”
“But there has to be some reason. It isn’t right.”
“Right or not, it’s none of your business.”
After this, the two sat in silence, each lost in their own thoughts. That tug like feeling was still surging through the knight, and no matter how much she searched her mind for the why, she couldn’t find an answer.
“I need to go.”
It was Arianna who broke the silence.
“I’m in enough trouble already.”
“Well, wait a minute. Let me walk to where you’re going with you. Assuming you are talking about your parents, I can tell them that it wasn’t your fault and-“
“No!”
The girl’s anger was apparent again, the nine-year-old now standing up.
“You won’t say a thing.”
“But why? Let me go and-“
“I said no!”
Another rumble, a louder one at that, filled the air, startling Alanna enough to look up.
“Well…at least let me walk you back then. I promise I won’t say anything, even though I really think I should.”
“No.” she said again. “You stay away. I don’t need your help. Mind your own business and leave me alone!”
And with that, the girl ran out of sight. Alanna wanted to chase after her again, but thought better of it. That didn’t fix her curiosity though. What was wrong with Arianna? Why was she so angry, and why was she so against Alanna helping her out?
“I don’t know…maybe I am over thinking. She’ll be okay. Her parents wouldn’t really get mad if she explained that the other boys started the fight…right?”
After that whole event, she returned to the inn for dinner. Even though she spoke to many different people that night, taking care to get to know those she was going to teach, she couldn’t get the girl off her mind. Even as she slept, the last thing she thought about was Arianna, questions forming in her mind. She thought about her so much that…
The skies were a dark grey color, clouds covering every corner of the visible sky. In front of her was her home, Pirate’s Swoop. She was not in her castle though, but on the shore, facing the docks and the Emerald Sea. On those shores and docks were her people, husband included, fighting pirates, and not just a few, but many. There were three ships on their waters full of them, and it seemed as if an endless amount came pouring through. It was then the waters began to move, the sea raging with waves as rain poured from the sky. As the water rolled and crashed with anger, the ships full of pirates began to capsize, the vessels failing to serve their masters and drifting away with the wild sea. Her people were safe, and the remaining pirate’s helpless. In that moment, Alanna turned and found Arianna standing behind her, a silver light surrounding the child, and as the two locked gazes, a loud and terrifying thunder rang throughout the sky.
-Gasp-
Alanna awoke with a start, a few beads of sweat running down her forehead. It had been awhile since she had a dream that detailed. Everything seemed so real.
“I’ll contact George through the fire tomorrow…” she thought to herself, lying back down on her pillow. She knew it was just a silly dream, but part of her still wanted to check.
“It was just a dream…it had to be…”
No pirate would dare attack her home.
“But then…if it was a dream…then why did I feel like I was really there? Why did it feel as if it were really happened? And why…why Arianna?”
That was the most confusing part of her dream. Sure she missed home, and sure she had thought about the girl, but was that enough to cause the dream she had? Or was it more than a dream? It wouldn’t be the first time she had dreamt of something that came true. If so, was her town really safe? Would other pirates truly attack that area?
And what of Arianna?
“There was a light around her…like…light as if she had the gift…light that matched her eyes. Could she have it? Was she the cause of those storms in my dream?”
She wasn’t sure, but she knew one thing…and this was confirmed by both her intuition and her dream.
She needed to learn more about that young Arianna.
Song of the Lioness Link
Title:Song of the Lioness: The Call of the Storm
Summary:It is only Alanna and George at Pirate's Swoop now. Thom is working at the Royal University, Aly is with her family on the Copper Isles, and Allen is off doing knight work. Alanna still loves her adventures, but is slowing down on taking them as much as she used to. On her way back from helping out in Corus, she comes upon another town. Originally, she plans on helping them with a bandit problem, but she meets someone she was not expecting, that someone being a young, stubborn girl named Arianna. This girl has a quick tongue and a quick temper to go with it, and the one thing she hates is the idea of family. Although they had a rough start, Arianna, and Alanna become good friends, which leads them to more great adventures...adventures neither one of them saw coming, and adventures that could lead Pirate's Swoop into trouble. Alanna is even able to teach her magic. Although very resistant to at first, Arianna learns that Alanna is not out there to hurt her...something she thought all people wanted to do. Can Ari learn what it means to truly be a family, and can she control her magic enough to fulfill her destiny?
Rating: PG
Warnings
Chapter One
Violet colored eyes stared off into the distance as a woman trotted down a dirt road with her good friend Darkmoon. Though her gaze was constantly moving all around the passing scenery, the sunny weather making traveling kind, her mind was elsewhere, her thoughts trailing on how good it would be to get home.
“I stayed in Corus longer than I planned.” The woman thought to herself as a gentle, April breeze blew through her long, fiery red hair. The great King Johnathan and his wife, Queen Thayet, were in the in the process of making a few changes to the Tortallean kingdom, and Alanna, who was close friends with both and the King’s Champion, was required to be there.
“Not that I really minded, but still, I ready to go home for a little while.”
She missed George, and as much as she loved a good adventure, a good rest at home seemed to be what she was craving.
Fate, however, had another path set before her, and a path she did not see coming.
“I should write the children when I return, too. At least Aly and Thom since I’ve already seen-“
At that moment, her thoughts cut off, a strange sight in the distance catching her off guard.
“What the…what is that?”
She squinted her eyes to get a better look. At first, she couldn’t quite make it out, but after a few moments, she realized what it was, her eyes widening as she gently nudged her horse to run faster.
“Come on boy.”
With the faster pace, she reached a nearby tree, and there in front of her was a woman with an arrow in her shoulder, blood drenching the white sleeve that covered it.
“What happened here?”
Alanna quickly jumped down, grabbing her bag full of some herbs, bandages, and other healing goods before heading over.
“It was two bandits…I was riding back from Corus when they attacked me. They took the few goods I had and my horse.”
The blonde woman, who looked to be in her thirties, was pale and sweating, wincing every so often from the pain that she was in.
“That was about fifteen minutes ago, maybe a bit longer. I tried walking back to my town after they took off, but it hurts too much.”
Without a word, Alanna quickly placed her hands over the wound, a violet light soon emanating from them. A sigh of relief came from the woman’s mouth almost seconds after it happened. Knowing it was working, Alanna then quickly and carefully pulled the arrow out, hoping that the dulling of the pain would make that task less painful for the stranger.
“Is it bad?”
The knight could see the worry on her face.
“Not as bad as you think.” Alanna replied calmly, even smiling a little to help ease the other. “Nothing a healing, some bandages, and some rest won’t help.”
She continued to work quietly, eyes scanning around the area every few minutes. If the woman was attacked not too long ago, then there was a chance that the bandits might come back, or even still be watching. She did not want her or the woman to be there if they decided to return.
“Where’s your town?” Alanna asked.
“Quite a ways down the road behind me…maybe about half an hour off.”
She peeked behind the tree to see that a road, branching off from the main one, was indeed behind there.
“I never knew there was a town down there.”
“It’s new, only about five years old.” The other replied. “Called Wedgemore.”
“Wedgemore…oh yes, I’m sorry. I do recall that name coming up a few times.” It was so new that she had forgotten about it. “Though I have yet to visit.”
As Alanna bandaged the woman up, the green eyed female looked past her, spotting the shield that was hanging on the saddle.
“Wait…I know that mark. Are you…the King’s Champion?”
Alanna looked up, following the gaze to see where she was staring, instantly turning around after with a small but humble smile.
“Yes, that would be me.”
“You’re the Lady Alanna?”
“I am.” Alanna replied, her smile widening a bit at the woman’s shock.
“Well I’ll be…the Goddess must be watching over me today then to send you. I’ve heard all about your greatness. My name is Sasha.”
“It’s nice to meet you, Sasha.” Alanna replied. “As for my greatness, the stories make me sound better than I really am.”
“Oh I don’t believe that.” The blonde replied with a smile. She then looked at her thoughtfully. “Wait…if you’re the King’s Champion, does that mean you might be able to help us?”
Alanna had just finished with the bandaging when this question came about.
“Help?”
“Yes, help myself and the town from these bandits.”
Alanna’s heart dropped a little. She had desperately wanted to return home, yet at the same time, she was a knight of the realm. She couldn’t just leave someone in need helpless.
“I…am not sure if I’d be much help or anything…”
“Oh you would!” Sasha slowly stood, Alanna helping her keep her balance. When she could stand on her own, she wiped the dirt from her dress. “You see, our town has strong men in it, but not enough to take these bandits down. If you’re on our side, we might have a better chance to take them down. We figure that if we get the leader, then we’ll be all right.”
“How many are there?”
“About thirty five or so. We know where their camp is. And there’s only about twenty five men in our town. About fifty of us in all, but the rest are women and children. We have young boys, but they are as I say, young. We don’t want to lose any.”
“Have they been attacking other towns?”
“Not that we know of. They started attacking us a few weeks back, but we have held them off well enough so far, only losing a few in the process. We lose any more and we will be done for. It’s only because we are fairly new. They probably thought we’d be easy targets, but we’re doing our best to fight back.”
Alanna thought on this for a moment. From the sounds of it, the town sounded like they were holding well so far, but she even knew that could only last so long unless the bandits were stopped immediately.
“I know it’s a lot to ask seeing as we just met, and I can understand if you don’t want to get involved. I can only imagine what work you have, some even being more important than us, but if it were possible…”
Alanna stopped her immediately, kindly placing her hand on the shoulder that was good.
“As it is, my previous work is finished. I was only heading home, so helping you is not an issue or any kind of inconvenience. Every town is Tortall is important, so please don’t think of yours any less.”
“You’ll…really help us?”
“Of course.” George and home would just have to wait a little longer. “Now come on. You need to rest after that healing. I’ll help you up on Darkmoon, and then you can show me the way.
Thankfully, the two women made it to the town without any issues. Alanna’s hand was on Lightning’s hilt the whole time, just in case. Upon their arrival, they were greeted instantly by two men and three women, the men helping Sasha down from the saddle.
“I took care of her wound. The rest should heal just fine.” Alanna told them, the women now taking hold of their friend once she was on the ground. “With that healing though, she’ll need rest.”
“Thank you again, Lady Knight.” Sasha told her. “I promise I will repay you for your kindness.”
“There’s no need for that.” She replied, trying to hide her growing blush. She didn’t entirely enjoy being fawned on just for doing her job. She was a knight. She was supposed to help those who needed it.
“Lady Knight?” one of the men suddenly asked.
“She’s Lady Alanna.” Sasha told him. “The King’s Champion!”
Whispers broke out among those present, more and more from the town joining to get a look at what was going on. This only made her feel even more awkward.
“King’s Champion, eh?” said a burly man with hazel eyes. “You’re smaller than I expected.”
“Oh shush.” Another woman with brown hair told him. “Small or not, she’s done a lot more than you have.”
“And she’s agreed to help us fight off the bandits.” Sasha added.
The disagreeing man raised an eyebrow.
“Help us? We don’t need outside help.”
“Outside help would be more than welcomed, especially of a knight.”
This voice came from behind Alanna, another male joining her presence. Turning, she found a very tall and lean man standing behind her. His dark brown eyes were as dark as his hair, a thin beard covering the bottom half of his face. On him he wore a simple white tunic and tan breeches, brown leather shoes covering his feet.
“Lady Alanna.” He said is a tenor voice, bowing to the other. “It’s an honor to meet you, and I must thank you as well for saving my sister-in-law. Needless to say we’d all be devastated if we lost someone else to the bandits.”
Alanna bowed in return.
“No thanks needed, sir. I am glad I could be of help.”
The man smirked slightly at her remark.
“No need for sir. That makes me feel older than I want to be. I am Kayden, my Lady.”
“Very well, Kayden. Alanna is just fine in return. Now, Sasha says you’ve been having bandit trouble?”
He nodded.
“We have indeed. And if I heard Sasha right, you’d said you help?”
“Yes, of course. Wedgemore may be new but it is still a town of Tortall, and as a knight, I am sworn to protect our realm.”
“We would much appreciate it. Perhaps with you on our side we could relinquish them for good.”
“What do you know about these bandits?”
At this point, most of the town had returned to their daily work, so the two continued their conversation on a nearby wooden bench, Darkmoon still beside her.
“Well, after some scouting, we found their camp is about eight miles from here. If you head east from our river, you’ll reach it. It has about thirty five to forty men, most armed with axes and a few with bows. They have horses as well, some of them ours. We could launch an all our attack with our men, but only half are trained to fight. We wouldn’t make it out, and then what would happen to our women and children?”
Alanna nodded. She could see their predicament. If all went in, who would be here to protect the town if something happened? They needed a good plan.
“What can I do to help?”
“Maybe you could train some of the men to fight? And we have one or two mages here that could probably learn a little more magic from you. And if they decide to attack again, perhaps having you here while they do will get rid of more.”
“I could do that. If you round me up those who need training, I will teach them what I can. What magic do the mages have?”
“The boys? Healing. They learned it from one of the elder mages that used to reside here, but she passed two years back.”
“Well I can definitely help them with that.”
She had no issues with teaching magic. She had done it before back when she was with the Bahzir Tribes, and with her past squire. Those who were gifted had to be trained or they would be a danger to themselves and to those around them simply from the inability to control it. And to think, she used to be scared of the Gift.
“Very well. I will help train both the men and the boy mages, and will help you fight the bandits when the time comes. I also feel that the women should learn a few things as well. In the event of an attack, wouldn’t it be best to not leave them completely helpless?”
She wondered if he would disagree with that at first, but he merely nodded in reply.
“I agree. I think it has been proven many times over than a woman has the capability to fight as well as a man.”
Alanna smiled inwardly at this. It was nice to see someone who wasn’t completely against the idea. People were slowly accepting the whole women fighting affair, but there were still those who hated it completely.
“Do you know who the leader is?” she now asked. “Sasha mentioned that if the leader was killed, they would most likely back off.”
“His name is Redrick. Got that name off of one of the bandits we captured once. He’s the biggest of all of them and is responsible for most of the deaths that have happened here.”
“How often do they come?”
“About twice a month it seems. Started back about four months ago. We’ve held them off for this long, but I know we won’t be able to if they keep coming. You really don’t mind helping us out?”
“Of course not.”
“The men might give a hard time, especially those who don’t believe in girls fighting. If I tell them to lay off though, they will listen.”
“It doesn’t matter to me.” She replied. “I’m used to it at this point.”
“Well then, as I said, your help is welcomed. I will be sure to pay you for it.”
She instantly shook her head at this.
“I don’t need payment, but thank you. I want to do this. It doesn’t sit well with me that a town is near helpless. I insist.”
He thought for a moment, but the nodded his head.
“Then please take a room for free at our in. Both my wife and I live in it and own it. Meals and such will always be free. Please, with that, I insist. If I can’t pay you, then you must let me do something.”
She really didn’t want to take anything for the help as, despite the craving for home, she really did want to help them out, but the look on his gruff face told her that he would not give in, so in the end, she merely nodded.
“Very well, I accept. Thank you.”
He then stood up.
“We will be more than glad to offer you a place. Now, if I may be so frank, perhaps you should bathe and rest now before dinner tonight. You look like you need it.”
Looking down, she found that her tunic and breeches were covered in dirt from being on the ground with Sasha, not to mention some of the woman’s blood was on her. She then looked back at Kayden with a grin.
“I think you might be right.”
After a long, warm bath, which was connected to her small but comfortable room, she brushed out her shoulder length hair and changed into fresh clothing, the woman now donning a white tunic and dark brown breeches. While ignoring some of the looks she got as she entered the lively part of the inn, the looks mostly from men, she walked out of the main door and stepped outside.
“Dammit…” she said to herself as she stretched, her bones cracking. “I’m really not as young as I used to be. Some knights my age look like they aren’t bothered at all, but I sure as hell feel like I am in my forties.”
Oh the joys of aging.
Stepping out more, she let herself explore her new surroundings.
“I’m impressed. For being a new town, they are doing fairly well for themselves.”
No, it wasn’t as big as a city, but it was still a decent size. They had their own fields growing the crops they needed, shops selling clothing and other goodies, a bakery, many sturdy stone and wooden houses, and, from hearing the people talk, they did some trading with Corus as well.
“Not bad. Not bad at all.”
As she continued on more, she began to notice something was a little off.
“That’s odd…”
She looked up towards the sky.
“There wasn’t a single cloud up there when I was riding.”
Now, it could have been possible for a storm of some sort to sneak up unnoticed, but for the entire skies surrounding her to turn grey when it was blue not even an hour ago…was something like that possible?
“I didn’t even see signs of an impending storm, so how…”
“It’s not polite to ignore someone who is talking to you.”
A young, male voice broke Alanna from her thoughts. She looked around for the speaker, but found no one.
“Hmm…maybe I was just hearing things…”
“You forget, she’s too stupid to speak.”
Nope. She definitely wasn’t hearing things. Walking around a nearby corner, she peeked and found three children behind a building. Two of them were boys, brothers from the looks of it as they both had the same dirty blonde hair, blue eyes, and similar facial features. The only real difference was height as one was taller than the other. The third child, who was a girl, looked very different. While the boys looked to be eleven or twelve years old, the girl didn’t look a day over nine. Maybe ten. She saw that she had shoulder length dark brown hair, but was unable to see her face very well.
“Well, come on Arianna. Speak. We’re older. You’re supposed to do what we tell you.”
The girl continued to stay silent, clinging to a small basket of bread. While most would think this little child to be scared of the older boys, it was actually quite the opposite, an angry, defiant looked on her face instead.
“Oi! Stupid! Answer us!”
She was silent still at first, but after a few moments, she opened her mouth to speak, her voice cool and collective.
“I would, but I really shouldn’t. If I speak to you long, I’ll catch the stupid that you two both carry.”
The following actions after those words happened all too quickly. One of the boys, the taller of the two, swung at the girl with a scowl. The child dropped her bread and ducked just in time, punching her attacker in the gut. While she was doing that though, the second boy came from behind, turned her around, and punched her right in the mouth.
“Hey! Stop it!”
As soon as Alanna made her presence known, the boys took off, the young female slowly picking herself up off the ground.
“Are you all right?”
She ran to her side and reached out to her.
“Here, let me-"
“No!”
The girl pushed Alanna away and stood up fully.
“Why’d you get involved!? I had it under control!”
Alanna was a little taken aback by this response that she wasn’t even sure what to say back. That split silent moment did give her a better view of the girl however, and the first thing she noticed was how she was dressed like a boy. She had seen other young girls wearing dresses and such around here, but not this one. She was in a slightly raggedy tan long-sleeved shirt, her black breeches just as worn out. She was also quite small and skinny. It was almost amazing to have seen her punch the boy the way she did.
The last thing she noticed, which was the feature that stuck out the most, was the young one’s eyes. Instead of the typical brown, green, blue, or hazel eyes one saw, this child had greyish, silvery eyes, her orbs almost the same exact color of the stormy sky.
“Wow…” she thought, an unknown, almost magical tugging emotion running through her. “They’re…”
Wiping herself off, the girl picked up her bread and looked them through. She was pleased to see none had gotten ruined. After, she turned back on the other.
“Idiot. You didn’t need to step in.” she scowled.
Alanna finally snapped back into reality, her brows now furrowing at the remark.
“What? I was trying to help you!”
“I didn’t need it!”
“Oh really? So you getting punched in the face was supposed to happen?”
“Shut up!” she said hotly, a sound of thunder rumbling as she did. “You shouldn’t have interfered period! Now they’re going to think I need other people to solve my problems!”
While speaking, she suddenly winced, a painful sting shooting through her bottom lip. Reaching up, she found it was bleeding. This is what made the girl panic slightly.
“Great…she’s going to kill me if she sees this…”
“What? Who is?”
“None of your business.”
“But I don’t get it…no one would kill you for this. You didn’t even start it.”
“I was fighting regardless!” the child snapped. “I’ll be in trouble.”
“But-“
“Just shut up! You don’t understand!”
And before Alanna could say anything else, the young one turned and ran away.
“Woah, hey! Wait!”
There was an odd little feeling in her chest when she saw the girl. She wasn’t sure what it was, but it was there, and it was that feeling that prompted the woman to follow.
“Wait up!”
It took a few minutes, but eventually, she caught up to the other, the child kneeling by a river, using some of the water there to wipe away the blood.
“Hey…I was calling for you…”
“And I am supposed to listen to you why?”
Alanna sighed and crossed her arms over her chest.
“You know…you’re awfully rude to someone who helped you.”
“I told you I didn’t need it. Not my fault you stepped in. Ouch!”
She winced again at the pain, the bleeding starting up again. It was in this moment Alanna stepped in closer.
“Let me see that.”
“No! Get away!”
“Oh quit your fighting. Just let me see!”
Ignoring the arguing, Alanna got in close enough to place a single finger on the girl’s cut, and almost instantly, she felt a cool sensation on her lip, the pain lessening greatly. When the child seemed to calm down, Alanna pulled back.
“There…now was that so bad?”
The young one looked down at her reflection in the river, touching the now pain free area. There was still a small mark there, but it didn’t hurt nor did it look as bad as it did.
“Hmph…she’ll still notice it…”
Alanna sighed. She wasn’t exactly expecting a thank you, but some sort of gratitude would have been nice.
Seeing that the girl was a little calmer, she decided to pry with a few questions.
“Arianna…was it?” she asked, her voice soft. “That’s what I heard one of the boys say.”
Arianna looked up, and although there was still a coldness, even anger, in her eyes, she didn’t snap, replying in a semi-cool tone.
“Yeah…what of it?”
“Nothing. I was just curious. It’s a pretty name.”
Arianna could only look away at this.
“How old are you?”
“Nine.”
“Right on the mark.” She thought.
“Really? Well, for a nine year old, you sure have a good punch.”
The girl was secretly amused by this, but made no face to show it, her angry eyes still locked on the river below.
“Why were they picking on you?”
“Why does it matter? They always pick on me. Most of the kids do.”
“But there has to be some reason. It isn’t right.”
“Right or not, it’s none of your business.”
After this, the two sat in silence, each lost in their own thoughts. That tug like feeling was still surging through the knight, and no matter how much she searched her mind for the why, she couldn’t find an answer.
“I need to go.”
It was Arianna who broke the silence.
“I’m in enough trouble already.”
“Well, wait a minute. Let me walk to where you’re going with you. Assuming you are talking about your parents, I can tell them that it wasn’t your fault and-“
“No!”
The girl’s anger was apparent again, the nine-year-old now standing up.
“You won’t say a thing.”
“But why? Let me go and-“
“I said no!”
Another rumble, a louder one at that, filled the air, startling Alanna enough to look up.
“Well…at least let me walk you back then. I promise I won’t say anything, even though I really think I should.”
“No.” she said again. “You stay away. I don’t need your help. Mind your own business and leave me alone!”
And with that, the girl ran out of sight. Alanna wanted to chase after her again, but thought better of it. That didn’t fix her curiosity though. What was wrong with Arianna? Why was she so angry, and why was she so against Alanna helping her out?
“I don’t know…maybe I am over thinking. She’ll be okay. Her parents wouldn’t really get mad if she explained that the other boys started the fight…right?”
After that whole event, she returned to the inn for dinner. Even though she spoke to many different people that night, taking care to get to know those she was going to teach, she couldn’t get the girl off her mind. Even as she slept, the last thing she thought about was Arianna, questions forming in her mind. She thought about her so much that…
The skies were a dark grey color, clouds covering every corner of the visible sky. In front of her was her home, Pirate’s Swoop. She was not in her castle though, but on the shore, facing the docks and the Emerald Sea. On those shores and docks were her people, husband included, fighting pirates, and not just a few, but many. There were three ships on their waters full of them, and it seemed as if an endless amount came pouring through. It was then the waters began to move, the sea raging with waves as rain poured from the sky. As the water rolled and crashed with anger, the ships full of pirates began to capsize, the vessels failing to serve their masters and drifting away with the wild sea. Her people were safe, and the remaining pirate’s helpless. In that moment, Alanna turned and found Arianna standing behind her, a silver light surrounding the child, and as the two locked gazes, a loud and terrifying thunder rang throughout the sky.
-Gasp-
Alanna awoke with a start, a few beads of sweat running down her forehead. It had been awhile since she had a dream that detailed. Everything seemed so real.
“I’ll contact George through the fire tomorrow…” she thought to herself, lying back down on her pillow. She knew it was just a silly dream, but part of her still wanted to check.
“It was just a dream…it had to be…”
No pirate would dare attack her home.
“But then…if it was a dream…then why did I feel like I was really there? Why did it feel as if it were really happened? And why…why Arianna?”
That was the most confusing part of her dream. Sure she missed home, and sure she had thought about the girl, but was that enough to cause the dream she had? Or was it more than a dream? It wouldn’t be the first time she had dreamt of something that came true. If so, was her town really safe? Would other pirates truly attack that area?
And what of Arianna?
“There was a light around her…like…light as if she had the gift…light that matched her eyes. Could she have it? Was she the cause of those storms in my dream?”
She wasn’t sure, but she knew one thing…and this was confirmed by both her intuition and her dream.
She needed to learn more about that young Arianna.
Song of the Lioness Link
Maybe once we'd have seen it during Smackdown!