Fan Fiction ❯ Roam ❯ Of Birds and Prey ( Chapter 4 )

Of Birds and Prey

I needed to think, and the tower wouldn't seem right, not after the mutiny. Huasu was dead. I couldn't help feeling sadness for him, but never guilt for what I did. He deserved it. I took a spot in the center of the green. The center of the village, by the weathervane. If he was performing mutiny, it must have been in another ruler's interest. But who in the kingdom would act for the position. "We all trust the king." I thought out loud. "We've trusted him for years. But," My mind was leagues beyond my speech, "The prophet just got here. The Sage? Yeah, right."

I felt a chill rise on my neck. How odd, I could always feel safe here. The town was a sanctuary by its own accord. I felt the instinctive idea to look toward the castle, and I noticed something disturbing. A heavy, black cloud was ascending over the high towers. Looming and casting a shadow.

The chill came back, more severe than before, and my left hand gripped over my sheath. I looked slowly around at the soldiers around me. Do they feel this evil? One of the Tridents had his back to me, and just then turned his head so I could catch a glimpse of the side of his helmet. The inside of the visor was black as night. Then I saw the eyes… They were…Red. Like gems, but wispy like a river. River of blood…

I pulled my gaze away from the knight. I saw another, farther off. He wasn't looking to me, but I had a full frontal view of his helmet. Once again, the inside was pitch black. And once again, those blood-red gems for eyes. My right hand found my hilt.

Suddenly, there was a presence behind me, and I heard that deep voice. "No. Roam." The Captain. He wasn't looking down on me, I suppose it would look suspicious, and he was barely moving his lips. "Go to the south woods," he whispered, "Draw them to you when you know the time is right." When I flinched with defiance, he gave a firm incentive, "That is a DIRECT order." My hand waved off of my hilt. "Go, now." I started move off, "Slowly."

I had it then. They were watching us. The Captain had noticed it long before I did. I wondered if Charles knew. I trod quietly to the edge of town. A Trident turned at me. "Sergeant." I nodded quickly to him. That convinced him I didn't notice anything, well, weird about him. He didn't stop me.

I kept my pace steady till I reached the edge of the brush. Then glancing around me, I leapt in, finding refuge behind one of the long oaks. I remained camouflaged by the strewn bushes and twigs. I sat there, and waited.

A steady wave of thunder echoed over the sky. As if by signal, one of the Sergeants, a swordsman, began making his way toward the Captain. Oh, crap. Now was the time, I knew this, I hope he did.

Dodging out from behind my brown pillar, I took aim and fired. My arrow sang into the back of one of those Dark Knight's helmets. He fell with a heavy thud. His partner, a Trident, didn't catch me as I ducked behind the tree again and reloaded. I hopped out to the other side this time and struck him between the eyes, but the arrow went through the helmet, yeah, out the other end. Like it went through smoke.

Anyway, the commotion was set. They appointed two archers to try and find me. I picked a larger tree and lowered myself by its base. I arched around and saw, and miraculously heard an even lower voice speak to the Captain. The swordsman put his hand on the Cap's shoulder, "I think you might want to come with me Captain." He said.

I never saw Cap act so fast. He ducked under the swordsman's arm, whirled to face him, and swung with both hands. The broad side of the blade struck just under the left elbow. All armor under that elbow flew twenty feet from its owner, emitting an odd spiral of mist as it disconnected. It was a split-second action. Cap followed through with another two-handed swing higher, and all I saw was the head disconnected from the field plate. Cap shouldered the headless, one-armed, armor to the ground.

The Trident nearest to Cap didn't have a chance to react, feeling the blade sink through his gut. When Cap yanked out his sword, instead of blood, mist leaked out. And as quickly as it came, it vanished from existence.

Sssllrkt! Sssllrkt! Two arrows nailed the tree two inches to my lower right. The archer stepped back and began to reload as his partner stepped up a bit. I rolled low across the brush, and fired in the roll. The arrow struck the first archer's shoulder, making him buckle back.

A new flurry of arrows filled my space, and a few followed my movement. The last of the flurry shaved a piece of bark from the tree I was behind. It struck near my feet. It had hit the piece through the center. The bark was still rotating slowly…

Damn it! I let my mind wander again.

My back against the tree, I rose. Then stepped out and took aim fast and high. The second archer was hurled back from the arrow to his chest. The other I could see drawing his sword and I guess cursing, but I couldn't tell, it sounded more like grumbled vocals under metal.

I heard the swing from the rustling of bushes it past, and slid down, my back against the ground. A blade struck above me, going in near to halfway through the tree. I saw both mine and his reflection on either side of the crease of the sword. The move was mine.

I rolled out from the leaves, took aim, higher, little higher, for the eyes. He looked down at me, noticing the presence of his executioner. I fired. He made no sound.

Thwink! The thin, sharp arrow pierced one of those liquid red gems. The top half of his body hung back, but his hand was still clutching to his hilt. Then his weight came on it, the sword came a little out, but finally the hand let go. The gauntlet itself fell to the ground, as if it never gloved a hand in the first place. The body clanged on the hard grass. I stood, then looked to the sword, then to the battlefield.

I clutched the hilt, and picked up the gauntlet.

Charles had now rushed the battlefield, encased in his massive, light-weight and maneuverable armor. Hell, I almost mistook him for one of the Tridents or others like them. He came rushing in from the north wood, and split the first swordsman in his way in half. They planned this. I take the fall, they get the action. Damn it. I'd show them.

The gauntlet fit for the most part, but the broad sword was quite heavy. I lifted it with two hands and rushed out of the brush. A weary Swordsman lay in my path, his back to me. The sword being as colossal as it was, I tipped it and let its weight and gravity do the rest. The armor split down from head to toe, then fell to ruin. The grass underneath it was painted black, then burned and wilted away into ash.

"Sniper!" I heard a light voice. I turned to see a young maiden protruding from her small house. She pointed behind me. A glint of steel caught my eye and I whirled, shielding with the massive sword. A Swordsman's blade crashed down upon it. I sank from the weight. However, I still think I sank from my own sword's weight than his.

"YeeeeeeeHaaaaaaaw!" My opposition fell in several clunks, split into more than two pieces. Charles. I rose and noticed the sunlight was diminishing. The dark clouds had nearly descended over the town. "Thanks."

Charles grinned down at me. "I had my own score to settle." I grinned back.

All three of us did a 360, checking our Sights for any other opposition. I, with my huge broadsword, Charles and Cap, each with a broadsword and shield. Shattered armor littered the grass and all grass around that armor had been eradicated. I wasn't sure if those patches of land would ever have grass again.

A sound. Hoofs? No, boots. Chain links. Then we saw them. Two Swordsmen and two Tridents, flanking someone we couldn't see. They came charging in, straight at us. I emulated Cap's ready fighting stance. But they turned abruptly away, and forced themselves into one of the houses. The three of us stood perplexed, but Cap acted first, making his way toward the house. I hung back, noticing our encasement in ultimate darkness. The sun was gone from Hyrule.

Thunder sounded and I saw lightning cast over the castle…