((Author's Note: The Leia of this story is not Princess Leia from the Original Trilogy. Figured I better say that to avoid any confusion, hehe. Also, I'm sorry it's taking me so long to get these chapters out--between being a slow writer, writing another story right now, and being rather busy with life, it's taking way longer than I want it to. _ Anyway, hope you enjoy the story, and please comment or criticize the story as you deem fit.))
Leia gritted her teeth and pushed herself to run faster. They couldn't be far ahead. The eighth quarter was a deathtrap, and everyone knew it. If the kidnappers got to the rest of their gang with the boy, she wouldn't be able to get him out alive.
Her eyes darted down to the dusty, unpaved street, immediately taking in the tracks of the abductors; they had gone left. She rounded the corner without breaking stride. There—she could hear them talking. More people had joined them…three more? Four? They'd stopped running now—obviously, they thought no one was stupid enough to come after them.
Leia slowed down and silently crept closer to another corner. She pressed herself against the hot, dark stones of a decrepit wall forming the edge of the street; carefully, she edged towards the corner and peeked down the narrow alley. She was right—they had stopped—but there were five of them now. One of them, the teenager she'd seen during the attack, was holding the crying child by the forearm.
Leia pulled back out of sight. One girl against five men—she didn't like those odds. All of them were carrying knives similar to her own, and they were all a lot stronger than she was. She'd have to be extremely careful. She couldn't charge right down the narrow alley into them; they'd see her, and she'd be at a massive disadvantage. The girl glanced up. The wall she was standing by was only about ten feet tall…perfect.
Carefully, Leia dug her gloved fingers into the small grooves between the stones and started climbing. A few moments later, she was on top of the wall. It was only about a foot wide, but it would serve her purpose. She pressed herself against the top of the wall and carefully crept forward, keeping her knife under her dark cloak so the sun wouldn't shine on the blade and give her away.
A minute later, she stopped. She was close to them now; they weren't looking up. The girl silently pushed herself up and crouched on the top of the wall. She licked her dry lips. They were about to move. It was now or never. She closed her eyes and leaped off of the wall.
Her eyes snapped open as her feet touched the ground; instantly, she plunged her knife into the back of the man in front of her. He screamed and started to fall. Leia darted to the side. Her blade slashed at the nearest thug at chest level. The razor-sharp knife sliced deeply into the flesh between two ribs, cutting through the delicate tissue and tough muscle above it. She ripped the dagger out after a scant moment; the tip scraped across the sternum as it exited the thug's torso.
Blood sprayed into Leia's face, half-blinding her. Left…another knife coming. She whirled to the side, narrowly avoiding the knife from the left. Her bloody blade flashed up and caught the knife as it viciously slashed back at her; she kneed him in the groin. He shrieked out an unintelligible curse and instinctively clutched at the pained area, allowing Leia just enough time to slam the pommel of her dagger into the side of his head, stunning him.
A muffled sob broke into the brief, mindless fight. Leia spun to face the sound, taking the time to swipe the back of her hand across her eyes and clean a little of the blood away. She froze.
One of the two remaining men—the teenager who'd tried to kill the old woman—was holding his dagger against the crying toddler's throat. The child was under the man's arm again—no way to take the boy from him safely.
He smiled thinly. "Drop the knife, or I kill him."
Leia's mouth pressed together with silent anger—angry at herself for not attacking the one holding the child first. Her entire purpose in coming into the eighth quarter was to save the boy; she couldn't allow him to die. Slowly, she lifted her hands and dropped the knife. It thudded dully on the dusty ground, like a death knell sounded from a rusty bell in the distance.
The other thug, a tall, heavily muscled man, reached her in two strides. He roughly pinned her arms behind her and placed his sharp blade against her neck.
Leia forced herself to breath evenly as the knife scraped against her skin, threatening to end her life with one swift stroke. The teenage boy strolled closer, seemingly unconcerned by his wounded companion or the bloodied corpses on the ground. He removed his dagger from the toddler's neck and placed its tip under her chin, forcing her to lift her head higher. The thug cast her a smile that would've almost been pleasant, had he not been holding a knife at her throat.
"What's a pretty little girl like you doing here?" He glanced at the corpse for an instant. "Someone hire you?"
Leia started to shake her head, only to have the man holding her press the knife back harder; something warm and wet trickled down her neck. The tip underneath her chin dropped a fraction of an inch, allowing her to talk without cutting herself on it. She stated flatly, "No one hired me."
"Then what are you doing here?"
"I saw you grab the kid, so I came to retrieve him."
"Who is he to you?"
"A kid."
His smile grew dangerous. "Do you really expect me to believe that?"
Her cold, dark eyes met his squarely. "Yea, I do. Who'd hire a girl to protect his son, or grandson, or whoever?"
"You seemed to handle yourself pretty well for a girl. I imagine that has something to do with it." The knife scraped up across her cheek, leaving a thin red cut behind; his amiable smile returned. "I'll make you a deal. You tell me who hired you, and I'll let you go."
Leia smirked slightly, "I have a better question. You sound a little too refined to be from this place. Who are you?"
The smile disappeared, swallowed by the wave of thinly veiled anger that swept across his face. He replied in a low voice, "You ask me a question again, and I'll kill you. I'll make this offer to you once more. Tell me who hired you, and you can go. If you don't, I'll kill you. Do you understand me?"
Leia felt her blood run cold. She was alone. There was no way to escape. She didn't have the information he wanted, and if she did just give him a random name, he would probably go kill the innocents she'd pinned the blame on. There was no reply that would satisfy him, and therefore no way to win. Unless…he was coming.
She simply gave him the same thin smile he'd given her before and replied coldly, "If you touch me, my father will hunt you down, and he will kill you."
The young man smirked. "Sure. I don't have time for this. Tern, kill her." He turned away.
A sharp hiss filled the air for a scant instant, followed by a dull, fleshy thwack. The pressure on Leia's neck and arms drop suddenly, and Tern fell like a stone, an arrow protruding out of his skull.
The teenager glanced over his shoulder to see the source of the sounds and saw a tall, broad man holding a bow and arrow standing at the end of the alley.
Leia took a step back, the thin smile still on her face. "I told you my father would come."
The young man's face went white for an instant. He swore, threw the child at Leia, and sprinted away around a corner, narrowly dodging an arrow.
The girl dove forward and caught the crying toddler. She dropped to her knees and quickly began checking him for wounds just as her father ran up.
"Leia!" He knelt beside her and tilted her chin up, inspecting the cut left by Tern's knife. "Are you hurt?"
She flashed him a quick, relieved smile. "I'm fine. What are you doing here?"
"Joran and I settled on a price a couple minutes after you left, and I decided to follow you so we could eat together. When I was almost to the tavern, I saw a crowd gathered around the old woman and asked what had happened. They told me you went after the kidnappers."
Leia glanced down at the child crying on her shoulder. "Any idea who this is?"
"The old woman called him Geriyan. He's the son of a nobleman named Piranis. Come on, we'd better leave before anyone else gets here." He picked up her bloody knife and wiped it on his pants as he stood up. Leia carefully got up as well, giving him a quick hug. She glanced at motionless man on the ground. "What about him?"
"He shouldn't cause any trouble. Let's go." He turned away from them and started walking back down the alley, Leia close behind him.
=-=-=-=-=-=
About half an hour later, Leia and Carran were being led up to a grand house by the old woman. The toddler was now sleeping peacefully in her arms, exhausted by his ordeal.
The door opened, and a middle-aged man dressed in good-quality clothing ran out. He snatched Geriyan from the old woman and exclaimed in alarm, "What happened? What's this blood—"
Leia raised her hand. "Relax, it's mine, and, uh…yea, some of it belongs to some other guys, but none of it's his."
The middle-aged man glanced at her suspiciously, then addressed the old woman. "Oryal, what happened?"
Oryal gestured towards Leia. "She saved your son from his abductors, Piranis. Show some gratitude."
"Abductors! What—"
The old woman interrupted, "We were attacked by some Vedri. This young lady kept them from killing me, then she and this man followed them and brought Geri back."
Piranis swallowed hard and handed Geriyan to Oryal; he turned to Leia and Carran, folding his hands behind his back. "I can't thank you both enough. May I enquire your names?"
Carran smiled politely. "I'm Carran, and this is my daughter Leia. Thank her for saving your son; she was the one who first followed the thugs. I came too late to do anything for your son—just for my daughter."
Piranis glanced down at Leia. "Then I owe you my gratitude. How can I repay you for this?"
Leia returned his pleasant smile. "It was my pleasure. There's no need for recompens—"
The nobleman cut her off. "At least come inside for a while. My family and I are about to take our midday meal—there should be just enough time for you and your father to clean up. We would be honored if you would join us."
Carran glanced at Leia, then replied for her. "We'd love to."
"Then please, come inside." Piranis spun on his heel and strode back towards his house.
=-=-=-=-=-=
Two hours later, Leia was sitting in a chair, trying to figure out how to leave gracefully.
After she'd washed the blood off her face and neck, she'd been ushered into a windowless, candle-lit room, where she and Carran had eaten a small lunch with Piranis, his wife, Geriyan, and his little girl, Meya. She'd been asked to retell the story of her rescue attempt several times, and now, she was just sitting here wishing she could leave. Piranis and his family were nice enough, but she simply didn't feel comfortable sitting in a stranger's home for hours on end.
Carran glanced at her; his eyebrows rose a fraction of an inch, and she replied with an imperceptible nod. He turned to Piranis. "Forgive me, but we must be going. I promised my wife we'd return tonight, and our home is several hours' journey from here."
Piranis stood up hastily. "Oh, I see—forgive me for detaining you. Please, feel free to stop by anytime."
Carran smiled graciously. "Thank you, we will."
Leia felt something tug on her cloak; she glanced down and saw Meya trying to get her attention. The eight-year-old looked up at her solemnly and handed her a piece of paper. "I made this for you."
The teenager took the paper and turned it over. She found herself looking at a picture of herself. It was very, very good—the mouth was a little off, but that was the only mistake she could see. Leia glanced at Meya. "Thanks. You're a good artist." She held it out to the little girl. "This is great—you better keep it."
Meya shook her head and stepped back. "I made another one for me." She turned and ducked around the corner of the table.
Leia smiled to herself and looked back at the picture. It really was quite good.
=-=-=-=-=-=
By the time Carran and Leia reached their home, night had long fallen. They'd seen their small wooden cabin from a distance—the torch Leia's mother, Armaltra, had put out marked it clearly in the darkness. When they'd finally entered the cabin, the tall, stately woman was simply sitting at the kitchen table reading a book. She'd done what she always did when they got home—she looked up, brushed a few strands of her long red hair out of her face, and quietly asked how the trip had been. When she'd heard about the kidnappers, she'd merely chided Leia for not attacking the one holding the child first, made sure that the small neck injury had been washed out properly, and proposed that they all have a small supper and go to bed.
Now they were all seated at the small, rough table; they'd finished eating several minutes before, and Armaltra was looking at the picture Meya had given Leia. The woman finally set it down on the table. "It's late. We should all get some sleep."
Leia stifled a yawn and stood up. "Agreed. 'Night." Her nostrils flared for an instant; she frowned. "What's that smell?"
Carran sniffed the air for a moment. "It doesn't smell like our fire…" He walked over to the door, pushed it open, and looked out.
His hushed, horrified whisper reached Leia's ears.
"Oh no." He spun to face them. "Forest fire! We have to get to the river!" The man darted outside. "The pack animals are gone! They must have pulled free, dammit!"
Leia looked out; her face drained of blood. The sky was lit orange. Dense smoke filled the air, smoke that had mostly been kept out by the secure seals of their cabin until now. The tall, searing flames seemed far away now, but they grew closer by the second as sparks leaped from tree to tree, setting them alight.
The silhouette of a man stepped out from one of the black trees twenty yards from the cabin, framed by the light of the fire. "You thought I couldn't figure out who you were?" A mocking laugh echoed in her ears.
The accent—she recognized it! It was teenager who'd escaped her in the eighth quarter! She started in the voice's direction, reaching for her knife.
Armaltra grabbed her arm and yanked her the other way, shouting above the rising noise of the fire, "No time! We have to go!"
Leia glanced back at the silhouette again; the laugh rang out, further away this time. She turned away.
They ran.
Three minutes later, it was clear that they were losing the race. Ash swirled in the smoke and air around them; the heat was almost unbearable, the fire was so close. Leia glanced back, silently cursing as she ran. This wasn't how she wanted to die. She turned away from the flames and simply concentrated on running.
An unfamiliar roar filled her ears; it wasn't the sound of the fire, but…what could it be? She'd been hunting animals all her life, and she'd never heard anythi—
There was a flash.
Back at the burning cabin, the conflagration consumed the picture of Leia, turning it to ash.