I smelt the blood before i entered. The best man had forgotten the rings and i offered to go get them. Stepping up to the chapel door i pocketed the rings (and was glad i insisted on a dresses) with pockets and reached under my dress for one of my knives. 12 inches of balanced steel, I felt prepared when i opened the door.
Carnage. Of the 12 attendies i saw 11 bodies. Groom best man, mother of the groom and the bride, as well as a few more extended family members. But her body was missing. "Thank the goddess" i whispered under my breath. Hopefully she was safely kidnapped and not lying out of view. I went looking for clues.
The group had been slashed to peices, it looked like a large weapon swung in arcs. The chainmail of the four guards hadn't stood up to whatever weapon it was they used. They had been massacred, their bodies literally in peices. If Catherine was here she would probably be vomiting. She always has such a delicate... But she had been here. I kept looking for clues, i had to find out where she was.
By the alter I found the body of the priest. Archbishop mcGable. He was a likeable sort, always kind to the needy, never buggering kids, I always sort of liked him. I barely felt a thing looking down at his body. I had learned through my life that people come and people go. And when you have a job to do, it is better to focus on the facts and get it done.
As i checked him over i heard ragged breathing from the brides mother. I finally yelled for help, now someone might survive. Rushing over to her I checked her wounds, having taken her for dead a moment ago. She was missing an arm and a leg, and had a nasty looking puncture wound that looked suspiciously close to a lung. I screamed even louder for help before tearing off scraps from my beautiful dress to tie off her arm and leg stumps. She could barely talk, so I gently lifted her head onto my lap and stroked her hair and spoke to her softly. "Mary its alright, I'm here, I'm here now. Can you tell me what happened? Where is Catherine? Did somebody take her?"
Mary rasped out a few syllbles before coughing. Finally she spoke. "It was the Rantan Raiders. Snuck in via one of the secret passages. I bet they where paid by the Kindom of Thal to stop this union. Cassie." She grabbed my hand tightly with her one remaining hand. "You have always protected my daughter. Find her now. And make them pay. "
...
Two of the palace servants came in a moment after. One turned and vomited immediately, the other went pale and then rushed to me. "My lady what happened?" She said looking down at the ruins of the queen.
"Bandits raided the wedding and took the princess. The queen will be dead in minutes if a proper physician doesn't treat her, and I have to go chasing after the princess. You take over here. You!" I yelled at the vomiting porter " run for a physician. Now!"
I slid myself out from under the Queen, handing her gently to the maid, and stalked to the alter. I knew the passage they must have taken, Cattie and I had played in it as children before the King had it blocked for fear of exactly this. They must have either spent weeks quietly unblocking it, or more troublingly... Bribed a servant to do so.
But that was a problem for later. For now I had to find my Princess. The passage was accessed via the small alcove for the priest to don his vestments. Push on the tile with the fish whilst pulling the cherubs foot and.... The passage slid open. It troubled me it was closed, why would they close it after them? But then very few people knew this passage existed and a number of those had just died in the chapel.
Entering the passage I had to duck. It had deeply set stairs leading down, which i knew lead out of the castle under the outer wall. I crept along as quickly and quietly as possible. I must be minutes behind whoever did this and had no idea of their number. Surprise would be my biggest advantage in a fight.
It took a few minutes and I came out of the tunnel. It opened at a hollowed out log, which had been left open in their hurry. Obviously they cared more for speed than subterfuge at this point, and so I had to hurry up.
There was the signs of horses all around the area. A group of 6 riders with 8 horses. Perhaps they meant to take 2 victims instead of just one. I didn't see one of their number among the fallen.
I would never catch them on foot. Looking at the direction they where galloping, I had to risk it and go back for a horse.
More minutes wasted and the further ahead they galloped. I mounted my horse, told the stablehand to send the kings guard after me and galloped off. It must have confused him, me wearing a torn up lacey gown, covered in blood. But he knew me and understood my job. It was one of the nice things about being the Princesses head guard. I could order others to do what I needed them to do.
One of the worst things being the crippling fear I felt gnawing at my stomach at the thought she might be d.... No. No I wouldn't let myself think it. Stay calm and focus on the job.
I brought my horse to a gallop and set off after the group.
...
My horse was young and ready to run, so I let it take its own pace. I didn't intend it to be a journey of hours, so wearing him out wasn't a problem.
Half an hour down the road their tracks stopped and milled about, before continuing. I stopped for a minute to read the road. It looked like they had continued down the road, but the horses going in that direction where suddenly a lot lighter. A diversion?
Scouting around in the nearby trees, I found very little sign of disturbence until a good few metres from the road. They had covered their tracks well. It looked like they sent the horses on down the road with one man guiding them, and took off through the forest seeking a place to hide.
I tied my horse to a tree, hoping one of the guards who should be following me would see it and take it as a clue I headed into the forest this direction. Then I set off.
I ran at first, but then found myself slowing. At least 6 of them meant I was heavily out numbered. I only had three knives, my two long knives and a shorter knife I kept in my boot. I would have to take care not to alert them, but hurry.
As I quietly hurried, more of a careful footed jog, I left marks on the trees to show my path. Tracking them was easy now, 7 bodies, one being carried, do not move gracefully through a forest.
It took me longer than expected to catch them. They where a few hundred metres ahead, and so I slowed to their pace. At this point they seemed confident, joking between each other and discussing what they would do with the reward. Catty was thrown over the shoulder of a larger man with an unpleasant looking two handed scimitar on his hip.
At this point I had two options. Creep up on them, attack them, and die in a hopeless attempt to save Catherine. Or just follow them and wait for an opportunity. Everything I had ever learned about combat suggested the latter was a good idea.
I followed them, a few hundred metres behind, staying carefully out of sight and earshot, for another few hours before they got to some sort of pre-prepared campsite. It had a campfire, that had obviously been used before.
I crept as quickly as I could closer. One of the raiders, a girl in leather with brown riding boots, called a short rest before they packed up this camp properly to continue. It was then I saw there was a group of horses tied up on the other side of the site. As soon as they got back on horseback, I would lose them, and never see my Catherine again.
A deep breath. Calm. A blade in either hand. I retreated a few hundred metres and prepared myself. Luckily my dress was black lace on green, so it shine out in the forest like Catty's white bridal dress. White for a Virgin. Yeah sure, as if.
I carefully shortened my dress above the knee with a knife, and then used mud to darken my skin. Sticking branches and twigs into my beautifully plaited hair I hoped it would disguise my outline somewhat. If I could have waited for darkness this would have been much easier, but no, a beautiful afternoon sun shone down. Luckily the woods where heavy and the trees gave me at least some darkness to hide in.
As I worked on my outfit, I watched them. They where a professional unit, 3 of them on watch, 3 rested, with one cooking. The sentries watched the perimeter in a triangular formation.
I waited until the cook had food ready. Food is the perfect thing to distract a watchful eye. My time in the army had taught me enough about guard duty to know that a hungry watchman, or an eating watchman, never has their full eye on duty.
...
The next step was simple. Not easy, but simple. As the watchmen grabbed bowls of food I crawled through the undergrowth as slowly as I could, approaching one of the watchman's position, and I waited. Buried in the undergrowth, and hidden by the shadows of the trees I was practically invisible. I waited, and watched. I saw him get a bowl of food, and return to his seat on a stump. I saw him eat his food, eyes on the food, not on the forest. My drill sergeant would have beaten him for that. I saw him pick his nose, and scratch an itch. And then finally, he got up and wandered in to the forest to relieve himself.
It is impossible not to make a sound as you move through a forest, but I did the best I could. He didn't hear my behind him as he released his member and started peeing.
One swift movement across the neck, making the cut deep enough to paralyse the vocal chords. It wasn't a silent death, as his blood sprayed over the forest. But his muffled gasping was the best I could do. I helped him fall quietly to the floor and then moved quickly to another place to watch the group. 5 remained.
I returned to my hiding spot.
Minutes passed before they started suspecting something was wrong. One of the guards moved off post to see where he went, and the cook joined him. This I could do, but not quietly. They where prepared, swords drawn, but I was quicker. I popped up from my hide as they passed and attacked with a flurry of slices.
Whilst swords are quick and useful, I always found my daggers more suitable in a fight. One swung for me, and the other held back, an attempt to pin me when I blocked the first blow. I didn't block, a quick step and I was inside the watchman's reach. My shoulder blocked their sword arm, and my knife was in his guts.
The chef thrust under his friends arm to move me off him, but I moved my shoulder forcing the watchman to take the blow on his sword arm. The chef was surprised, I doubt he was expecting to be facing a trained killer. I could tell I had my passive face on at the time, emotionless. I had the same expression a moment later, when I stabbed my dagger through his forearm, dis-arming him of his sword.
This was when he cried out. The guard crumpled to the floor. It had all happened in a moment, and so their friends hadn't been alerted until then. I stabbed my other dagger through the chefs eye, pulled it out and ran off into the woods.
One dagger was still in the chefs arm. I was down to a dagger and a small knife. But they where down to three men.
Two of them, the woman in the boots and a second skinny man who had been on watch duty, pulled their swords and joined the taller man who held the princes in the centre of the camp.
They where smart enough not to run to where their comrades had fallen. It was the boot lady who nodded to the tall man and started speaking. He drew his sword as she spoke and held it to Catherine's throat.
"Whoever is out there, show yourself! Do it now, or we'll slit your princesses throat and leave right now!"
Catherine was squirming in the tall mans grip, a cloth had been shoved in her mouth with a second tied around to gag her. Her hands where tied in front of her, with a rope joining her bound hands to her bound feet.
A moment passed as I hid in the shadows of the trees and assesed the situation. Brown boots got impatient and nodded to the tall man. He let go of the princess and took a two handed grip on his scimitar, readying to swing. He was really going to do it, I could see by his pose.
"Wait" I said, stepped out of the tree into view, maybe 10 metres from the small group. I was holding my dagger in my left hand and the smaller knife in my right hand, both hands in the air in a pose of submission. "I'm here, don't kill her"
Catherine goggled when she saw me and tried to scream and squirm, promptly falling over as she could barely move.
"Drop your weapons and the girl gets to live" Brown boots said. Her voice was husky and deep. It would have been quite sexy if I hadn't set my mind on killing her.
"And me?" I asked, guessing the answer before they said anything.
"We'll make it quick."
I took a moment, looking like I was thinking, and then promptly dropped my hands. Both the dagger and knife flew from my hands, the dagger burying itself in the skinny watchman's chest. The knife flew wide, burying itself in the ground next to the taller man.
Two opponents, zero weapons.
The look on Brown boots face was clear 'And now you are disarmed'. She didn't speak, she just charged at me swinging deftly with her sword. Unlike the earlier men, she was far better trained. I couldn't possibly step under he blow and block the arm, I didn't have anything to parry the blows with, so I dodged, and ducked, and dived. I came up with a tree branch that blocked two blows before snapping, but it was clear she was just keeping me busy for...
The woosh of the scimitar in the air, and the thunk it made as it hit the tree next to me, made me shiver. With his height and the reach of the long blade, he could attack me around his partner. The two of them set about fencing me in with their attacks, hounding me towards another tree to stop me dodging altogether. And the excersion was taking it toll. I was slowing. But I knew something they didn't know.
I was a step away from tripping in some roots when the big man screamed and started clutching at his back with one hand, swinging the scimitar wildly with the other. Catherine was retreating behind a tree, from where she had stabbed him in the back with my dagger.
It was clear to me she had used my knife to cut herself free, just as I hoped. And I hoped she would run away and be safe...but I knew she would rescue me. She looked stunning, covered in mud and leaves, wearing a filmy, lacy white dress that hugged her in all the right places. I took all this in at a glance, as the big man swung around in vain, and brown boots finally stepped back from her attack.
I saw the glint of steel in the air above the head of brown boots, and somehow managed to catch the knife arcing through the air by its handle. My knife. A gift from Catherine.
It wasn't much but Brown boots was now on the back foot. Her henchman was occupied by the dagger still stuck in his back, and now I was armed.
One weapon, one enemy.
I stepped in quickly and flashed the knife before jumping to the side. A faint. She anticipated and swung the sword after me. I barely dodged and sliced at her hand, missing as she brought the sword tip back around towards my side. Unable to dodge I did the one thing I could. I parried the blow, flat of the knife in the palm of my free hand, giving me enough grip to take the blow.
The move was unexpected enough Brown boots didn't see my foot whip out and take her in the knee. It cracked sideways, making an audible crunch in the quiet of the forest. And the fight was effectively over. I stepped back out of reach as she went down to her one good knee. She couldn't run, but she had 2 good hands and a sword.
The tall man was on his knees breathing in a heavy rasp, coughing what looked to be blood. I could see now the dagger had caught him in a lung. Brown boots cried out a warning to him as I approached at a sprint, but he didn't react in time. Knife through the eye, and it was over.
I retreived my dagger from his back at a leasurely pace, and put it straight back into the sheath. I picked up his sword and was suddenly in awe that he could swing the thing one handed, it weighed a ton. No. No I went and fetched the sword of one of the other fallen men, the skinny man. I could see brown boots half crawling, half limping towards the tied up horses. She was determined but would never make it.
With the sword in hand I walked back over to her. She was back on one foot, sword in hand. It took but a moment to attack her weak side, make her use her bad leg and fall over.
Now would have been the time to say something. 'You shouldn't have taken my princess' or 'you called the living death to walk among you'. I was tired. I stabbed her through the chest, made sure she died and walked towards the centre of the camp.
Catherine had fetched two horses, and was waiting for me. We stood a few feet apart looking each other over. I spoke first. "I came for you".
"I knew you would." she said with a nod.
"You stabbed a man without vomiting and crying. Perhaps my self defense training is taking hold."
"You needed saving. And I only vomited a little.
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