“Where I come from,” Darci said as she brushed down Lief’s horse, “women can do and be whatever they want.” Darci smiled softly as she realised she too had to hide her sadness. Half of Tallen’s family was away for what could be a long time, and she was a long time away from her own family.
Tallen was about to say something else, but quickly stopped when she realised that someone was coming. Something in her face changed as the young girl let the horse brush fall to the ground with a dull thud, her eyes open wide as she took a step towards the door. The look in Tallen’s eyes caused a lump of fear to form in Darci’s stomach. She turned to the barn door hoping to see Taslessian or Lief. Instead, the second half of the door swung open, banging against the wall to reveal a strange man standing in the doorway. Both girls gasped as they saw the dagger that he held in his hand.
* * *
The stranger blocked their exit from the barn. His hair was unwashed and knotted, and his face was covered in uneven stubble. He had obviously not bathed for a couple of days, as the smell of old sweat reached their nostrils with a vengeance. His mouth was slightly open, showing that what teeth he did have, were dark yellow and jagged. His dull brown eyes glazed over, and Darci’s heart sank when she heard him speak.
“So we meet again, Offworlder. Only this time your pitiful friends are not here to save you.” The man’s face broke into a malicious grin.
“Why is it that you never come in person, Domati?” Darci asked with a tremble in her voice. “Can’t you handle a defenceless teenage girl by yourself?” If she could direct his attention to her, maybe Tallen could sneak out behind him, escaping so she could go and get help.
“I would easily be able to handle you, mortal. The problem is, I am not as impatient as Fritrence. If I attempted to take that talisman from around your neck by hand, it would cause me great pain. Even if I used another body to take the medallion, that vessel would die. However, when I release my hold of this mortal, I am sure he will gladly relieve you of such a heavy burden… and other things too, you would shudder to think of the things in this man’s mind; alone in a secluded barn with two young women… Don’t worry though, I won’t let him… kill you.”
The man turned his head to face Tallen who had been edging her way around the wall to get behind him and out of the door. He made a move to grab her, but she jumped out of his reach, running back to Darci. Laughing, the possessed man shut the doors, barring them with a heavy length of wood before slowly turning around.
The Offworlder took a step forward to stand protectively in front of the startled girl, frantically trying to think of what she could do. If it had not been for her, Tallen would have never have been in this situation. Looking around quickly for something, anything, Darci noticed a piece of wood the size of a baseball bat.
With a small flash in his expression, the man’s body suddenly shuddered and his eyes lost their glaze. He stepped back to lean against the closed barn door, hand raised to his head to scratch while he looked around as if for the first time. His eyes fell on the two young girls, frozen still, staring at him. “I don’t know how I got here, but that’s no excuse not to have a little fun.” The derelict man scratched his crotch suggestively as he twirled the knife around his fingers.
Darci dived off to the side to grab the piece of wood, returning to her protective stance, weapon raised ready to strike. The man laughed at the seemingly futile gesture.
“Help!” Darci shouted. She knew that they were too far from the house, but she could think of nothing else.
The man paused to listen, unsure if anyone could hear the young girl. Silence reigned. There were no urgent footsteps, no shouted response, not even the wind could be heard from outside. So when no one came bursting through the great wooden doorway, he advanced towards the girls, cornering them in the back of the barn.
Sahik, Defyance’s horse, was becoming more and more agitated, pulling on its tether, snorting in frustration. It was as if the horse knew there was danger. As the man walked past the agitated animal, it kicked out at him. One hoof missed him all together, but the other hit his wrist, making him drop his knife. The horse tried to buck, causing the pole to shudder, but it held.
Darci threw the piece of wood at the man as she dived desperately for the knife that lay only two steps away. The man was shocked at the horse’s outburst, but he quickly recovered to duck the incoming missile. With a vicious step, he lunged forward to stomp down on her wrist with his booted foot just as her fingertips touched the knife handle. He smiled as his victim refused to cry out while he ground his boot down on her arm. Darci tried to get away but he reached down to grab her, wrenching the dagger painfully from her grasp. He waved it slowly in front of her eyes before sheathing it.
“I won’t need a knife for what I plan to do to you,” he said with an evil glint in his eye. His other hand grabbed her by the throat, forcing Darci to hold onto his wrist for fear of choking as she struggled to draw breath.
Tallen had begun to slowly creep around behind Darci and their attacker. Her back was flat against the wall as she silently inched along, almost out of reach.
“No you don’t,” the man said. He took one step towards the girl, dragging Darci with him, and then grabbed Tallen her by the shirt with his free hand. Looking from one victim to the other, he smiled at his good fortune.
With an almighty effort, Darci managed to gain scant control of her fear, kicking the attacker in the shin. He laughed in response to her feeble attack.
“I guess I choose you first, my little hell cat.”
The thug pulled Tallen close to his face. “I’ll be with you in a minute.” He kissed her on the forehead before throwing her back against the wall with great force. Her body hit the wood like a rag doll before she fell to the ground unconscious.
Taking advantage of the distraction, Darci kneed the man as hard as she could. He doubled over in pain, but his grip on her throat was not relinquished, instead, squeezing harder to cope with the agony she had inflicted. Her eyes widened in panic as she struggled to breathe, lungs burning until his grip lessened, allowing the air to rush back into her body.
The man slowly stood up, chest expanding while his grin was momentarily replaced by a dirty look. He slapped her across the face, leaving a bright red mark that stung painfully.
“Bitch, that’s going to cost you,” he half wheezed the words at her. He pressed his body against hers. He pushed her against the wall, physically pinning her so she could not attack him again.
“Clean your teeth!” Darci told him. “Well, what teeth you have left.” She was not going to give in to this man. No matter what he did to her, she was not going to give him the satisfaction. Terror began to clutch at her stomach as she tried to claw her fingernails into his arm. He grimaced slightly as she began to draw blood. Slowly he tightened his grip around her throat until she could barely swallow, forcing her to let go or be strangled.
He held her steadfastly against the wall, finally managing to grab both of her hands, pinning them above her head. Her arm muscles burned as she tried to bring her arms down again. Strength born of fear coursed through her body, but there was nothing she could do. He was just too strong.
The man slid a filthy hand down the side of Darci’s neck, leaving a slimy trail. With a violent jerk, he began to rip at the top of her shirt, tearing it enough to reveal the pendant resting between her breasts. He picked up the medallion, fingers lingering on her chest as he lifted it closer to his eyes.
“Well, well, well,” he said. “I think that I might keep this as a memento. Darci began to struggle with a renewed vigour, stomping on his feet, but to no avail. He pressed his dirty body harder against hers, grinding his hips into her and making his intentions clear. She was helpless to stop him. He was going to take the talisman from her and then Domati would be victorious.
A resounding “thock” echoed around the barn, and the pressure against her body suddenly ceased. Darci’s attacker collapsed unconscious to
the floor. Standing behind him as he fell, was an angry-faced Tallen. The young girl had woken up and retrieved Darci’s previous weapon, using it to strike the back of his head.
Darci quickly grabbed the man’s blade before helping Tallen unlock the doors. Despite wanting to run back to the protection of her friends, she was not prepared to let this criminal get away with what he had planned to do. She walked back over to Sahik and gave give him a pat.
“Can you guard him?” she felt silly talking to a horse in this way, but Sahik was very different from any animal Darci had known or heard of. The creature snorted, stomping on the ground as he nodded his head. Once untied, the horse moved to stand over the man, hooves again pounding the ground as if daring the captive to try to escape.
“Are you okay?” Darci asked Tallen. The anger in her eyes seemed to melt away, and in reply, the young girl gave her a grateful grin. Darci motioned the girl to bend down so that she could inspect her head wound, but to her relief, there was only an angry bump under the tousled hair. Tallen shrugged before heading towards the door, Darci hot on her heels.
“I am so glad that I hadn’t been alone when that man came. I hate to think what would have happened if you hadn’t been there with me.” Tallen looked at the ground in thought as they jogged back to the house. The pale expression on her face spoke volumes of how close they had been to such an undesirable fate.
“Don’t be silly, you were marvellous! If you hadn’t been there I’m not sure what that guy would have done to me,” replied Darci. “Are you sure you are okay though? I thought that he had knocked you out and I was done for.” Darci was pleasantly surprised with how Tallen had acted. From all accounts from Maledorian, warriors such as Defyance were extremely rare. A girl her age would never be expected to do anything but what her family told her to do, yet she had possessed a spark somewhere inside that had given her the strength to fight back.
Tallen smiled. “It looked like I was out didn’t it.” Darci nodded. “I thought that if the man suspected I was unconscious he wouldn’t bother looking at me.” Tallen was a very crafty girl it seemed.
The two of them finally reached the house, bursting through the door forcing everyone to stop what they were doing to look at them. The wide-eyed expressions on everyone’s faces showed shock at their dishevelled appearance.
“What happened?” asked Lief, his look of concern mirroring those of the others present.
Quickly, Darci and Tallen told them what had happened, motioning for them to go back to the barn straight away to deal with the criminal. Darci managed to exclude all references to Domati and thankfully, Tallen did not seem to remember. She did not know if her friends would appreciate her telling Lisette anything about their impending quest.
Lisette hugged her daughter tightly. “Are you okay?” she asked. She had tears in her eyes again, this time not bothering to hide them. Taslessian and Lief walked over to Darci so that they could comfort her. The apprentice wizard tentatively gave her a hug, surprised at how tightly his friend returned his embrace, while Lief ran his fingers through her dishevelled hair.
In that moment, Darci noticed again how handsome her young friend was. She looked into his deep green eyes, loving the feeling of his arms around her, holding her now as if they would never let go. But the moment was abruptly broken by Tallen shaking out of her mother’s embrace.
“I’m okay, Mother, but the man is still up there.” Tallen flashed a quick smile at Darci. It was most likely that the man was still on the floor with a headache.
A slow, deliberate scrape of wood on floor turned all eyes towards Maledorian, who had risen from his seat, his face a hard mask of rage. His knuckles had turned white as his nostrils flared. He was the Knight Protector on his first quest. In defeating Trolog, he had felt equal to the task set before him, yet only a few days into the quest, he had almost allowed the unthinkable to happen. Inside, his blood seemed to boil, not only at the man who had threatened the life of his charge, but at the man who had allowed it to happen. Himself.
“Was I being silly in telling Sahik to guard the man?” Darci asked Defyance. Taslessian had stopped hugging her now, but still had his hand awkwardly on her shoulder. Maledorian made a move to leave, his wicked-looking dirk drawn and ready, but he was stopped by Defyance’s firm hand on his shoulder.
“Let us finish our lunch first,” she said. “Sahik will be able to handle such a person.” Maledorian gave her a questioning look that was stifled by the murderous glint in the warrior woman’s eyes. Her words and tone of voice were light, but her facial expression this time left no doubt as to her opinion of what had occurred.
Lisette ushered Darci and Tallen into another room. There, Tallen got changed into some fresh clothes whilst her mother looked for something that would fit Darci. It would not do to go outside with a shirt that was now little more than a revealing rag.
“What did that man want from you?” Lisette asked. Everyone knew what a man like that usually wanted to take from a girl, yet Lisette was very perceptive, not quite believing that a city degenerate could be found in their barn.
Darci was not quite sure what to tell her. The way the woman had looked after her, it was hard to lie to her face, especially when she was not sure her lie would even be believed.
“He wanted this I guess.” Darci pulled out her medallion.
Lisette looked at it with surprise, wondering how such an ordinary looking girl could come across such a valuable and obviously magic talisman. “It must be worth a great deal,” she said finally. “Where did you get such a valuable charm?” In the fleeting moment she had touched the medallion, the older woman had glimpsed something of great import, yet she could not figure out what.
Darci paused thoughtfully before answering; it had been an inheritance from a distant relative.
Lisette took one last look at it before handing Darci some of her son’s old clothes. She thought the hasty explanation over in her head, not believing Darci’s story at all, but deciding to let it be if the girl did not want the truth to be known.
Once the girls had changed, Darci, Lisette and Tallen returned to the dining room. Everybody had finished their lunch and they were all ready to go face the girls’ attacker.
Nearing the barn, a loud commotion could be heard. Someone was yelling hysterically, and through the short pauses for breath, it sounded like a horse was snorting. Defyance pushed past Maledorian so that she could enter the barn first. It was an interesting sight to see such an intimidating man being pushed around by the slender form of a woman, no matter how many daggers she bore.
Light shone through the open doors showing the dust that had been kicked up inside. The irate horse was standing over a cowering heap of rags. The man had curled up into a ball, whimpering like a beaten child. A rank smell wafted through the air, making the warrior woman’s nose twitch. At the sound of intruders, the man looked up with hope in his eyes. Then he noticed Defyance.
“Please let me out! Don’t let this horse kill me! I wasn’t really going to do anything to the girls.” He lifted his hands heavenward, as if praying for forgiveness; his once threatening demeanour replaced by the cowardly man that he truly was.
Defyance calmly tethered Sahik, producing a carrot to give him as she stroked him behind the ears. She shook her leg as the degenerate crawled over to her, pawing at her armour. Maledorian entered with dirk drawn. It was a nasty weapon that looked so sharp that it almost shined. This sent the man into another burst of hysteric whimpering.
“I don’t see why I shouldn’t let him kill you,” Defyance said, kicking away the man’s hands. Despite the tough treatment he continued to grab at her clothes, pleading and begging to be spared from the knight, but she was not listening.
The man began to cry then, burying his face in his hands. She had called off the demon horse; maybe she could save him from the knight, the one who had just cut his thumb testing the sharpness of his blade.
Defyance placed a hand on the man’s should
ers, who squealed in pain as she dug her fingers into his flesh. Drawing back her fist, she fired it at his head, punching him solidly. Blood streamed down his terrified face from his now broken nose. He then coughed and spluttered, spitting something on the hay-covered ground. It was one of his teeth.
“Go now,” Defyance said coldly. “If I ever see your face again, I’ll kill you.” She grabbed him by the hair, lifting his face close to hers to make sure that there was no room for misinterpretation. The man’s eyes widened in fear; the pain in his broken face suddenly forgotten.
“If I ever hear of someone of your description hurting or attempting to hurt anyone else, I’ll hunt you down like the animal you are and kill you, slowly.”
There was such steel in Defyance’s voice that Maledorian had to do a double take. He had never heard or seen a woman such as her.
The man took one look at Maledorian. When it was clear that the knight was not going to stop him, he quickly fled barn, pushing through the rest of the group who were gathered around the door. Someone conveniently left their foot out as he rushed by, causing the outlaw to fall face first onto the ground, crushing his nose again. He did not stop though. Looking back over his shoulder as he scrambled away, he saw Defyance walking out of the barn. He then doubled his pace, leaving only a trail of blood as a reminder of his presence.
* * *
It was time for the group to move on to the city of Chinta. Tallen and Darci saddled the horses together in silence while the others went to get their baggage from the homestead. Lief had gone for a quick wander in the jungle to make sure that they were safe from any foe. He also made sure that the man had truly gone, knowing that as a country woman, Lisette would be able to fight off a single attacker, but he wanted to spare her the trouble.
Giving the horses one last brush down, Tallen started talking to Sahik. “If it wasn’t for this stupid war, things like this would never happen.” She looked up at Darci with sad eyes. “I don’t know how far away you come from, or if you know anything about this, but another war is starting,” Tallen threw down the horse brush. “Most families don’t even know why they fight.”