Anger Issues

Chapter 5

Anger Issues

 

There weren’t a lot of places I could run to, so I decided to backtrack from the direction we had come from.  I didn’t dwell on whether this was a bad idea or not, but instead walked briskly along the dirt path.  I could hear shouts from behind, but they were slowly growing distant, as was the light from the fire.  Smoke blotted out the moon and stars, leaving everything in front of me virtually black, and impossible to see.  It didn’t really scare me not knowing what was right in front of me, because the biggest threat was far behind me.  Maybe a rabid animal was lurking in a bush nearby, but I was happy to take my chances against that rather than stay inside the abandoned village.

I travelled in silence for an hour on end, occasionally losing the path and having to backtrack until I found my way again.  Eventually I stopped and looked back in the direction of the village, but it was too far away and completely gone from view.  I nodded to myself, deciding this was far enough to stop.  I glanced around, making out grassland on either side of the path.  It was tall enough that I could easily get lost inside of it, so I tentatively stepped inside.  My mind flashed through a list of vicious animals and venomous reptiles that could be waiting for me, but I ignored the thoughts.

I waded deeper into the grass, using my hands to block the grass from slapping my face.  When it felt far enough from the path, I ripped the nearby grass down and formed it into a shabby bedspread, where I decided to spend the night.  It wasn’t uncomfortable, except for the occasional bug that crawled on me from time to time.

I couldn’t immediately go to sleep, even though I was incredibly tired from all the running I did today, so I decided to plan what I would do tomorrow.  Originally, I just assumed that Alistar would magically appear out of nowhere, and everything would be okay from there, but reality would have nothing to do with that.  My best bet would be to travel to a main road where I could find a travelling merchant or caravan to tag along with while I travelled north.  I was still intent on finding those mages, but I was also hoping that I would find Alistar still heading that direction.

Where was he now exactly?  Did he follow the soldiers from a safe distance, or did he decide to go back home?  If he did follow behind, then he would have seen the fire, and assumed I got away.  That would mean he was looking for me now, which would be next to impossible in this darkness.  That made me reconsider my plan of action.  If I gave away where I was, I would attract more than just Alistar’s attention, which was a bad idea.  Instead, I considered where I would search if I were looking for someone.  I would probably check the nearby inns, but that wouldn’t work because Alistar knew I wouldn’t have any money.  Next, I would check the closest town.  That would be the best chance of finding someone, so I decided I would do just that so I could be found easier.

Now that I had a plan, I felt like I could sleep easier.  I rolled over in my grass bed, and listened to the chirping of wildlife as I waited to grow sleepy.  It almost worked, until I heard the crunch of dirt coming from the path.  Any trace of sleepiness I had evaporated, and I sat up to hear better.  It was definitely a single pair of feet, and I immediately thought Alistar was close to finding me after all.  I almost decided to climb out and onto the path, but my judgment clarified and I considered other options.  The soldiers could be looking for me, or it could be someone else entirely.

Waiting was my best option, but I crawled a little closer to the road, even if it was a dangerous decision.  The footsteps walked slowly, and deliberately, but that didn’t mean much to me except that it couldn’t be a simple drunk wandering around at night.  The footsteps walked right past where I was hiding, and I was getting scared I might miss my chance to see who it was.  I had just decided I would stick my head out of the grass, but then the footsteps stopped.  There was complete silence, as if we were both waiting for the other person to make the first move, but then I heard a bird call.  I knew it couldn’t have been an actual bird, this whole night I hadn’t heard a single bird, so I assumed this was a signal.  I remained rooted to the spot, but I started to hope that it was Alistar trying to get my attention.  Instead, I heard the footsteps of other people start clambering down the path.  I couldn’t tell how many people there were, but I certainly knew it was more than one, and they certainly weren’t being as careful as the first person.  My hopes dropped immediately, it wasn’t Alistar.

“I smell smoke.”  A soft, feminine voice said.  It wasn’t a whisper, so I could tell they thought they were alone.

“Any idea what that could mean?”  A voice of a man asked.

“Trouble.”  The female said.  “We’ll have to turn around.”

“We’ve been walking this was all day!”  A third voice spoke up exasperatedly.  This one sounded like a woman, slightly younger than the other one.

“Besides, there isn’t even a fire anywhere around.”  The man said.

“That’s what worries me, it might have been smothered when they saw us coming.  We’re turning around, or at least I am.”  The first female said.  A thought popped into my head, and I sniffed my clothes warily.  I smelled heavily of smoke.  Whoever it was, they sounded like they were avoiding something, and the only thing that people avoided were soldiers.  I decided I should trust them, and debated whether I should reveal myself.

“This is the only road that goes east, it’s pointless to go back!” The man said, getting desperate.

“There are three roads in this area that go east.  It shocks me that the two of you only know of this one.”

“There is supposed to be a city just up ahead, I saw it on your map.”  The second woman said.

“So?  You want to risk our necks just to go to a city that may or may not be occupied.  If that’s what you want to do, then fine, I won’t argue.”  The first woman said.  They were headed toward an angry group of soldiers, I had to warn them.

“Don’t g-“  Something whistled straight at me, and I dived flat on my stomach to avoid it.  Something heavy slammed onto my back and I felt a knife edge rest lightly beneath my ear.  There are few times when I choose silence over saying something, but this was one of those moments.

“She’s by herself, and looks unarmed.”  The first woman said, apparently she was sitting on top of me.  I tried to agree that I was unarmed, but the weight on my stomach prevented me from breathing.

“Angels light, get off of her then.”  The man said.  I felt the woman roll off me, and I sucked in a breath automatically.

“Speak quickly.”  The woman said, still holding the knife right beneath my ear.

“I just came from the direction your heading, there’s a bunch of soldiers holed up in an abandoned village.”  I said, slightly muffled because my face was in the dirt.

“And you? Are you with those soldiers?”

“No, I ran away.  I set the house on fire in the process.”

“A likely story.” Came the curt reply.  It must be a trend to not believe anything I say.

“Oh let her be, she doesn’t look to be a danger to us.”  The second woman said.

“Fine, but if she turns out to be a mage and sets you to flames, it isn’t my fault.”  The first woman said.  I felt the knife pull away, and I took the opportunity to pry my face out of the ground.  I glanced up at the others, but it was too dark to make out any detail.  The man appeared to be slim and tall, while the second woman was shorter, with long hair that covered her thin frame.  I glanced behind me, and saw the other woman, who had jumped on me, was swathed in garments and hooded, making it impossible to get any information on her.

“I’m so sorry for the rude welcome!  I’m Evelynn, and this is my husband, Varris.”  She grasped my hand and squeezed it reassuringly, and then gestured to the other woman.  “Oh, and this is-“

“You may call me Kat.”  The hooded figure interrupted.

“Thank you, Evelynn, I was worried I would be killed on the spot.  No offence, Kat.”  I said, glancing nervously in her direction.  “My name is Vorasi.”

“Oh, Vorasi, you simply must tell about your troubles.  You said you escaped from the soldiers?”  Evelynn squeezed her hands together in worry.

“Now Lynn, this isn’t exactly the best time or place to play catch up.”  Varris said, placing a hand gently on her shoulder.  He then looked at me, “So the village ahead is abandoned and filled with soldiers, eh?  I guess Kat was right.”

“Then we’ll head back the way we came.  What do you want to do with the stranger, Evelynn?”

“She has a name you know.  Is there somewhere nearby that you have to go, Vorasi?”  Evelynn asked.

“I, well, don’t as it seems.  I was actually separated from someone, and I had plans of going to the nearest city and searching for him there.”

“Oh, that works out then!  We’ll head back to the last village we passed and stay the night there.  Is that all right with you, Kat?”  Evelynn turned toward Kat and gave a pleading expression.

“If that’s what you want.”  She said.

“Then it’s settled, we’ll go to Ringvale.” Evelynn stated.  Kat held up a hand, and walked a large distance ahead of us before she motioned for us to follow.  She maintained a set distance ahead of us the rest of the journey, and I used this time to learn about Varris and Evelynn.  It turned out that Evelynn was a healer, and Kat was her bodyguard.

“I don’t understand, healers need bodyguards where you’re from?”  I asked, dumfounded.

“Of course, we’re valued just as highly as mages by the king.  We hide the fact that we’re healers, and if word gets out, our bodyguard safely guides us to a new place to live.”

“Wait, who would rat out a healer?”

“Anyone that is bribed enough by the soldiers, or threatened enough.  I don’t really live in a place for long, and having a family with Varris would just be too stressful as it is.”

“I’ve never heard of this.  Where I’m from, the healers go to the infirmary, where the king doesn’t bother with them.  Why don’t you just go to a city with one of those?”

“We’ve never even heard of an infirmary.  Where are you from, exactly?”

“Karongar.  Does it sound familiar?”  I asked.

“I’m afraid not.  You’ll have to explain this infirmary idea to me, it sounds like a much better place than I’m used to.”

The rest of the travel consisted of me explaining the infirmary system to Evelynn.  We were still talking about it when Ringvale came into view and we passed inside of its walls.

“I’ll get our rooms.”  Varris said before he slipped inside of the wall to speak with the guards.  At least that part was consistent with both towns I had been inside.  Varris returned shortly, and waved us inside.  Kat rushed in before Evelynn even moved, and then we were the last two inside.

“She takes her job very seriously, if you hadn’t noticed.  I don’t know what I would do without her.”  I watched her as she briskly walked beside a guard, talking quietly with him.  We ended up in a dining area that was similar to the last one I was inside, and they eagerly set out food for us.  It wasn’t until I saw the food that I realized how starved I was.  I voraciously tore into the food, not caring about my manners.  Evelynn made comment to Varris, calling me a “poor dear” while I finished my meal.

Kat sat to the side, removing her hood to eat.  She had strikingly dark red hair, and her skin was pale from never being exposed to the sun.  She ate in silence, glancing up often when someone walked in or left.  It shocked me how attentive she was to her surroundings.  When we had all finished eating, I crawled into the bed that was given to me for the night, and I fell asleep instantly, without a single dream to haunt me.

 

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My eyes fluttered open, and I was confused by my surroundings.  This isn’t my house, that’s for sure.

“Good morning.”  Kat said.  I looked over to find her awake and sitting in a chair, facing where Evelynn was sleeping.  That certainly is protective, if not a little creepy.

“Good morning.  Did you even sleep last night?”  I asked, stretching.  My brain was now fully caught up and together.

“I slept enough to keep me going.  You said you had a someone to find?  Sooner would be better.”  She said nonchalantly.

“Oh, that was to the point.  Hurt a little, but I get where you’re coming from.”  I sat up, and was about to open the trunk to get me things, when I realized I didn’t have anything to take.  “I’ll just have breakfast and be on my way.  Thank you for the escort here, even if it wasn’t your choice, I appreciate it all the same.  And thank Evelynn and Varris for me when they wake.”  I stepped off the bed and walked off, clearly Kat wasn’t going to grace me with a response.  I knew she wanted me to leave before Evelynn woke up, so I wasn’t going to do anything to mess up her plan, but I certainly wasn’t going to pass up a free meal.

Guards were hustling everywhere in the dining area, and when I sat down at an empty table, it wasn’t long before I was joined by a group of guards.  All of them were cheery, and eager to chat with a new face, but I kept the conversation as light as possible, avoiding any questions aimed at who I was or where I was from.  I was almost able to finish all my food and make my quick escape when I heard a familiar voice.

“Oh there you are!  Kat said you took off, trying to catch an early start.  I’m so glad we caught you before you left.”  Evelynn said, finding a place to sit beside me.  I glanced up at Kat, but she didn’t show any emotion. 

“Evelynn, sorry I left before you woke.  I just thought it would be for the best.”  I smiled weakly, unsure how to act.

“Well, it’s good we met you.  Ever since Evelynn heard about this healer’s infirmary, that’s all she’s been talking about since she woke up.”  Varris spoke up, settling down on the other side of Evelynn.

“That so?”  I asked, staring at my empty plate.

“Yes!  I’ve made up my mind to go to Karongar myself, and see if they’ll let me inside this infirmary.  I’m already an experience healer, so maybe I could offer my services.”   Evelynn said as Kat laid a plate of food in front of her.  I had watched her make her own plate first, and quickly taste everything before deciding it was safe for Evelynn.  Efficient, if not a little creepy.

“I think that’s a great idea.  If you want to settle down and stop travelling that is.  Is that where the three of you are going now?”

“Actually, Kat has never heard of Karongar, and it isn’t marked on her map.  So we were hoping you could take us there.  I hope it’s close, I’m really tired of walking.”  Evelynn looked at me with hope in her eyes.

“Oh… I would definitely do that, but I really need to find my friend.  I could mark it on the map for you?  I’m sure you won’t have a problem finding it if you stick to the roads.”  I stammered.

“Hmm, how about we help you find your friend, and then we could all go to Karongar?  I’m sure you would love to go back home after this horrible ordeal with the soldiers.”  She persisted.  I had no choice but to explain my predicament to her.

“Well…  I can’t go back home.  That’s kind of why the soldiers abducted me, because of what I did there.”

“How selfish of me.  I spent all this time talking about myself, I know so little about you.  Well, my offer still stands on helping you find your friend, but you simply must tell me everything that happened.”

“I wouldn’t even know where to start. Well, I guess I do.  It all started when I was late getting home one day, and as it was getting dark, I was about to be arrested by the soldiers, until a kind soul by the name of Alistar let me into his home…”  I explained everything in earnest.  That is, I explained everything except the part about me being a mage.

Evelynn listened attentively, getting really animated, nodding often and making soothing sounds periodically.  She even gasped when I told her how Alistar and I were separated.  By the time I was finished, she was absolutely flustered, and Varris was looking at me sympathetically.  Meanwhile, Kat was busy eyeballing a guard that sat at the table behind Evelynn.  Fitting.

“Okay, Varris, what should we do?”  Evelynn asked.

“Kat, check all the closest cities to this village we were supposed to go to.  If he did see the fire, and decided to look for you at one of the nearby cities, he’ll certainly be in one of them.  Or he could be lingering around that village, thinking you’ll come back when the soldiers leave.  It’s hard to say for sure.”  He mused aloud. 

Without even pulling out her map, Kat immediately replied, “There are two cities close to that one, on either side of it.  It would be in our best interest to get her dressed up differently, and then methodically check for this man here in Ringvale, then around the abandoned village, and lastly at the other city.”

“Then it’s settled!  I’ll go and buy some clothes for you right away.  Don’t go anywhere until we’ve got you covered up, okay?”  Evelynn excitedly took off, with Kat taking the lead.

“Is she always so… dramatic?”  I asked Varris, the only other person left in the dust with me.

“All the time.”  He chuckled, finishing his breakfast.

 

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By the time Evelynn deemed it acceptable for me to go out in public, I was swathed in so many garments I resembled an exotic princess being offered to a local warlord in return for a trade treaty.  I even put Kat’s attire to shame. 

“Let’s get started then, shall we?”  Evelynn said, letting Kat lead us out and into the city.  We travelled from street to street, asking people if they’d seen a stranger with blonde hair in the city recently.  After a continuous stream of unhelpful answers, we split up, the exception being Kat stayed with Evelynn, so that we could work three times as fast.  The sun made its journey to the top of the sky, signaling noon had come, before we met back up.

“Any luck with you guys?”  I asked, slightly frustrated at what little fruit I was able to bear.

“One young lady did mention seeing a blonde haired stranger, but she also insisted he was exceptionally fat… so I assumed we had the wrong person.”  Varris said weakly.

“It’s been so long since I’ve seen a plump person, I’d almost forgotten it was possible.”  I laughed, a little forced, considering how upset I was getting.  I couldn’t even breathe through this swath of cloth all over my face.

“In any event I think it’s time we move on to the next village, the abandoned one.  Unless I could convince you guys that it’s too dangerous?”  Kat said.

“Dangerous or not, I’m sure you’ll keep us safe.  Shall we eat first?”  Evelynn said, disregarding Kat’s warning.

Varris took us to an inn that he found during his investigation, and we helped ourselves to lamb stew.  Evelynn insisted on paying for my meal, knowing I didn’t have a single bronze piece to my name.  While eating, a group of soldiers hustled in, clearly looking for someone.  I dipped my head over my bowl of stew, trying to look normal, which is hard when you look like a tropical fruit sitting in a desert.  They harassed the innkeeper, forcing the poor soul to hand over a master key so they could investigate each and every room.  When they walked out of view, Kat calmly got up and followed them.

“What’s she doing?”  I asked.

“Kat does that whenever she sees soldiers looking for someone.  She eavesdrops until she finds out who they’re looking for.  If it turns out to be me, well, we’ll be out of town within the hour.  I guess she’s got to keep up with two wanted people now.”  Evelynn laughed, as if we were convicts or something.

“You know, I really get the vibe that she hates me.”  I say.

“You don’t even know the half of it.  When I decided to court Evelynn, Kat gave me the evil eye for months on end.  Months!  She wouldn’t let off until she interviewed half the town about me, determined to make sure everything I said could be verified by someone.”  Varris said.  “Don’t mind her, she won’t do anything to hurt you, just forgive her for being a little curt with you.”

“Hurt me?  Just how deadly is she?”  I asked.

“You think she does her job well now?  Wait until you see her in a serious situation.  I once saw her single handedly take out an entire squad of soldiers!  That woman has divine talent, that’s for sure.” He said, gesturing the direction she had left.

Eventually, Kat came back, she motioned for us to leave, and Evelynn and Varris got up without question.  I quickly followed them outside, assuming this was normal for them.  Once outside, Kat headed for the closest exit to the village.

“The thugs were after the new girl.  Called her a witch.  Something doesn’t add up about that.”  She stared at me hard, waiting for an answer.

“When I escaped, I set the house on fire that the soldiers were in.  The one that was making sure I didn’t go anywhere, well, helped me escape sort of.  He looked the other way while I slipped out.  I knew he would be punished for that, so I pretended to be a witch and set the house on fire.  Hopefully it eased his punishment, I don’t know for sure if it worked.”  I said, staying as close to the truth as possible.  “I don’t even know what a witch is.”

“A witch is a female mage, and you’d do best to avoid being labelled as one.  Bounty hunters love to target witches.”  Kat said, I suppose that means she accepted the story.  If only she knew the truth.

“Wait a minute.  You used to be a bounty hunter, didn’t you?”  I exclaimed, excited with the feeling of completing a puzzle.  It’s the only way she could be trained to act the way she does.

“Good observation, but those days are behind me.  I help people now, so you can rest assured.”  She said, turning away and leading us away from the inn. 

We travelled in silence for a good portion of the journey, up until the abandoned village came into view.  I felt uneasy going back to the place where I was held hostage, but it was for good reason that I did.

“Okay, my advice is to skirt the edges, but I strongly recommend that we don’t get to close.  Poking our noses around a nest of soldiers is not a good idea.”  Kat said.

“Fair enough, we’ll split and go around either side.”  Varris said.  Without needing to decide who went with who, I walked with Varris along the right side, stepping off of the path for the first time.  Varris was courteous, and held branches aside while I walked by, and swatted down spider webs along the path, but our progress was incredibly slow.  Afternoon had crept up, and the sun was sitting just above the horizon.  Eventually, we made it back onto the path, where Kat and Evelynn were already waiting. No luck.

“I know what Kat said, but I have to check.  You guys can wait here while I just take a quick look inside, okay?”  I said.

“That’s a terrible idea, it’ll be nightfall by the time we get to the next city, and I don’t know if they have guards or not.”  Kat objected instantly.

“Okay, well you guys get a head start, I’ll catch up as soon as I rule out that Alistar isn’t in there.”  I insisted.

“Nonsense, we’ll wait here for you.  Call out if you need us, okay?”  Evelynn said, and Kat never argued with Evelynn.  I smiled at her before I tentatively approached the walls.  The gate was left ajar, and I slipped inside, ears alert for any sound out of the ordinary.  Secretly, I wanted to see if Shiloh was still here, and if he was okay.  I found the building where they had kept me, and it was burned down, sticking out from the buildings around it.  Apart from the make-over, nothing was worth looking into it.

I had just decided that this whole place was deserted when I heard something a few houses over.  My heartbeat started to race, and I had to keep telling myself not to run like a scared deer.  I walked as quietly as I could toward the sound, and started to hear voices.  I stopped at a house, touching the wall, and assumed they were just on the other side.  I walked around a little, and saw I back door that I could use to slip inside.  I tried the door handle, and found it unlocked.

I peeked my head inside, listening to make sure no one was inside.  I stayed like that for an entire minute before I stepped inside, leaving the door open behind me in case I needed to run.  It was completely bare, so I had no issues navigating to the front of the building so I could peek out of a window.  I immediately saw soldiers walking around in a clearing, but I didn’t recognize any of them.  I lifted my head a little further, so I could get a full view of the clearing.  Most of the soldiers were gathered around something, and based on the angry chatter, it was probably important.

Was it Shiloh?  Did they beat him up because he lost a hefty bag of gold?  I needed to see what was going on.  I waited for someone to speak so I could try to figure out the details.

“Just tell us what you know, it isn’t that hard.”  Someone said.  A brief silence followed, and then more angry chatter, “Keeping silent isn’t helping your case here.  I’ll give you five seconds for you to tell me something, or I’m cutting off your finger.”  Ouch, that’s serious.  The seconds started to tick by, and I felt my heart jump up when I finally heard a voice.

“For f**k’s sake, I told you.  I don’t know her, or where she’s going.  She’s probably long gone by now, and far away from this s**t hole.”  The new voice said.  There was almost no mistake, it was Alistar.

“Give me a name!”

“She called herself Mary!”

“That name couldn’t sound more fake if you’d tried!  What’s her real name?”

“Mary!”

“Finger time, hold out your hand!”  I couldn’t handle this. I don’t know what I was going to do, but I know I couldn’t let him lose a finger.  I pulled off a layer of clothing from my head and wrapped it around my hand, and then punched the glass.  It gave way with a satisfactory shatter, and I immediately had the attention of everyone in the clearing.

“I’m right here!  Catch me if you can!”  I scream at the top of my lungs.  Before I could see their reaction, I turned and sprinted out of the house, screaming bloody murder the entire time so they knew where I was.  It didn’t take long before I heard running behind me, but this time I was ready for them.  I cut corners erratically, trying to the best of my ability to keep up with what direction the exit was.  While this strategy definitely kept them from throwing stuff at me, it was making it really hard to get to the exit.  My breathing was getting heavy, and my legs started to burn when I rounded the last house and saw the gate.  Before I could make the final sprint, however, a soldier darted around the side of the building behind me and snatched at my garments.  I jerked backwards and fell on my back, feeling the breath knocked out of me.  I moaned weakly as he stood over me, grabbing my arms and dragging me away from the exit.  I struggled to suck in a breath of air, but as soon as I did, I screamed once more.

“Help! Kat!”  Before I could say much more, I was met with an elbow to the stomach.  What little air I had in my lungs made a swift exit, and waves of pain radiated outward, causing me to roll from side to side slightly.  More soldiers were here, and I heard chains rattle, meaning I was about to be taken hostage, again.  I make the worst decisions in history, that’s for sure.  Someone forced me into a sitting position, and I felt the chain get wrapped around me, forcing my hands to my sides and squeezing my chest uncomfortably.

“Knock her out, we don’t need her awake.”  A voice said nearby.  One soldier in front of my raised his sword, aiming the hilt at my forehead.  I closed my eyes tightly, bracing for the worst, but it never came.  A soft sigh came from in front of me, followed by a thud and an immediate eruption of shouts.  I opened my eyes to see the man in front of me had collapsed, a tiny knife sticking out of his neck, causing blood to pool around him.  Apparently, whoever did it hasn’t been found yet, because most of the soldiers were gawking in every which direction.  Two more quietly slumped to the ground, each with the exact same knife wedged just below the helmet.

“Over there!” One of them shouted, and over half of the soldiers sprinted for a nearby building.  Only about four were left beside me, and one of them grabbed me by the chains and started dragging me back to the direction I had ran from.

“You three, help me get this b***h back to the others.  If it’s her magic doing this, we’re going to put a stop to that.”  He slammed his knee into the back of my head, and I think I yelled, but my mind slipped away before I could tell.

 

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“Okay, she should be able to wake up now.”  A soft voice said above me.

“Get up, we’re not safe here.”  Another voice said, and someone shook me briskly.  I vision snapped into focus, and I was staring up at Evelynn and Kat.  I was never this happy to see Kat, but today was definitely an exception.

“They have Alistar.  I got to get him.  Where did the soldiers go?”  I mumbled, climbing to my feet a little unsteadily.

“The ones that were holding you are all dead, but marching straight back into the thick of them is only going to get us killed.”  Kat said, moving around to stand in front of me.

“I don’t care, they’re going to torture him!  I’d sooner turn myself in than let that happen.”  I marched around her, but something caught my feet, and I found myself lying on the floor with Kat putting her weight on top of me.

“If you go back, Evelynn will want to help you, which puts her life in danger, and I can’t accept that.”  She hissed into my ear.

“Fine, you guys go.  Get somewhere far away from here.  But I am not leaving him!  I can save him, I just have to figure out how.”  I squirmed, but it was useless.  She was putting the pressure perfectly on my chest, and I couldn’t shake her balance off.

“Kat, please.  Let her up, surely we can talk this through without her being on the ground.”  Evelynn said.  “I’d do the same thing if they had Varric, in a heartbeat.”  Kat stepped away from me, and even offered her hand for me to pull myself up.

“Look.  I know I’ve only known Alistar for three days or so, but I don’t know where I would be without him.  So I’m not going to lose this opportunity to return the favor.”  I said, glancing in the direction I thought he would be.

“Then think it through.  Right now they know there’s trouble nearby, so they are going to be extra cautious.  You’d be better off waiting at least until night, maybe you could steal him away while they sleep.  That’s doubtful too, considering  I just killed a handful of their men that went after you.”  She reasoned.  I wanted to listen to her, knowing she had the sounder mind between the two of us, but I was getting so angry at the thought of me not being able to do anything.  The strange part, was that with each moment of feeling angry, I was getting more and more desperate to go back and do something.  It was an off feeling, like my anger was literally pulling me toward the soldiers.

“Kat, I need to go.  You don’t understand.  I don’t even understand.  Let me go back, maybe make a trade-off, me for him.”  I danced from foot to foot, trying not to take of running again.  Kat sighed audibly, and looked at Evelynn with exasperation.

“Why, I wouldn’t know what to do in this situation, but surely what Kat says makes sense to you?  Doesn’t it?”  Evelynn tried, saying the words carefully as if I would explode if pushed too hard.

“They do, they make perfect sense.  But I’m not going to sit around and let them chop off a finger just because Alistar won’t rat me out.”  I shook my head and took off running.  Kat was still looking at Evelynn, so when her hands jerked toward me, I was already out of reach.  She broke into full sprint in pursuit of me, and I heard Evelynn call out to me.  There was just too much anger inside of me right now, it was the most frustrating sensation ever, knowing that what I was doing was completely wrong, but I had such a craving to let the anger out, even if I didn’t know how.

Kat was gaining on me at a much faster rate than I expected, but I was getting close to the clearing, she’d have to turn back or risk being seen.  That’s what I thought, but then she pulled a rope out from under her garments, where in the world did that even come from.  I was so close to get to Alistar, I wasn’t about to be lassoed away at the last moment.  I looked forward, and felt a tiny surge of warmth come to me, I held it, savoring it, and then glanced back at Kat, seeing how close she was.  When my eyes made contact with her, I felt the spark of warmth I had flee to my fingertips, which reflexively jerked up as if to block Kat from me.  She immediately stopped running, as if a ghost had slapped her.

“What did you just do?”  She called out in anger.  She stepped back, and then fled altogether.  “Evelynn, we need to leave, now!”  I wasn’t entirely sure of what had happened, but nothing was holding me back now.  Looking forward, I rounded the last house and rushed into the clearing.

I quickly found myself staring at a wall of soldiers, bows trained straight at me.  On the other side, a soldier had a knife to Alistar’s throat.  This was not good.

“Alright witch.  Whatever you did to the rest of my men, you’re not going to do here, or lover boy drops dead.  Got it?”  The man standing behind Alistar said, grinning spitefully.  Just looking at him filled me with complete rage, and that rage was followed by a surge of warmth.  “Nothing to say?  We’re gonna’ toss some rope at you.  So you just stand there and let us do our job, and nobody dies, got it?”

I blinked.  What happened immediately after was completely beyond my understanding.  I found myself right beside Alistar, completely behind all of the other soldiers.  My hand shot forward and came to rest on the evil man’s arm, who was too shocked to react immediately.  When my hand touched him, he crumbled to the ground.  I don’t even know what happened to him, but I felt myself turn around, as if it was completely out of my control, and I watched as the rest of the soldiers, most of which were looking around frantically.  One of them caught sight of me, and started to call out in warning.  I felt all the warmth inside vanish, and I watched in horror as they flew backwards, bows and arrows flying every which direction.  Some of them were even shot by their allies in the process.  Instead of falling, though, they just kept flying backwards, farther and farther away until they either slammed into something, or disappeared from view.  After that, I felt the anger disappear, and I was able to think for myself again.  Alistar took an unsteady step, and then slid to the ground, shaking.

“Are you okay?”  I asked, moving toward him, but stopping, terrified to touch him.

“I’m so cold.  What did you do?”  He mumbled.  It was unnerving, watching him tremble right beside a man I killed moments before.  I took a deep breath, and slowly pulled out the gloves I had been keeping with me the whole time, from the last time I was taken hostage.  I slipped them on and then helped Alistar get back onto his feet.

“Do you know where all of our stuff is?  We’re going to need anything we can get before some of these soldiers come to their senses.”  I whisper, ignoring him.

“I-I don’t know.  I can’t think right now.”  He stuttered, I could feel his shivering body, and I felt a surge of sympathy, or was it guilt?

Author's Note

Big gap between this chapter and the earlier ones... oops. Kind of started working on other things, but here is another release for anyone interested!