Disclaimer: I don't own Robin Hood or other related characters. These characters belong to the BBC and Tiger Aspect companies and are their properties. I'm not getting anything from this except a lot of enjoyment and hopefully you are too.
Author's notes: As I promised this isn't the end although it approaches quickly. I have had many great reviews and people putting me on story alert so I thank you. I have waited for ages to be able to type this and have really enjoyed this chapter as things get a bit more serious. WARNING: YOU MAY CRY DURING THIS CHAPTER (I KNOW I DID)
Chapter 7: Duel to the Death
"You're Achilles?" Robin said again. Faith didn't speak. Robin's words went through her like a dagger.
"He doesn't like you as much anymore, does he?"
"You were planning to kill Robin!" John roared. Faith still didn't speak; she just stood there staring at them.
"I knew there was something not right with you." Much barked.
"No you didn't!" Faith said sternly. "The only one who 'knew' was Allan. You trusted me."
"We took you into our gang." Will said. The Sheriff was shocked by this.
"WHAT?" he walked over to her and pulled her dog tag from under her shirt. "Dear God!" He said ripping it from her neck in anger. "I pay you fifty pounds to kill Hood and promise you another fifty when he's dead!" he shouted. "Not only do you not kill him; not only do you help him defy me; you join his ranks!"
Faith had closed her eyes against the bombardment of spit that came from his mouth. When he stopped she wiped one of her hands across her still closed eyes and flicked the spit to the side.
"You disgust me!" he shouted again. Faith looked at her feet. "Since you failed to kill him, he will hang."
"That would be what is known in layman's terms as a mistake." Faith said. Vaizey ignored her and turned to Robin.
"Guards take him to-ack!" Faith had grabbed the back of his robes, pulled him back and pressed the sword that she held into his throat. "What are you doing?" he wheezed with difficulty.
"Tell your guards to let them go and then leave." She ordered him.
"No." He choked again as she pressed the sword further into his neck drawing a bit of blood.
"Do not test me, Vaizey." She said assertively. "Just because I wouldn't kill Robin doesn't mean I won't kill you." Faith moved the sword away from his throat ever-so-slightly. "Tell your guards to let them go and then leave." She repeated. Robin looked into Faith's eyes and saw she was more than capable of slitting the Sheriff's throat. Looking in Vaizey's eyes he saw the man's fear. He had never known the Sheriff to be afraid.
"Let…Let those men go. Then leave." Vaizey croaked. The guards hesitated unsure whether they would be punished later for doing as he said now.
"They're not listening." Said Faith.
"Let them go!" Vaizey gasped again. "Let them go or you are all fired!"
The guards that were holding the outlaws took their hands off their captives and ascended the staircase out of the room. Once out one of them ran for help.
John straightened up and dusted himself down while Will took up his axe.
"You were working for the Sheriff all along!" said Much angrily. He approached her but still kept his distance. "You were going to kill my master!"
"We treated you like family." Will said in anger.
"Look, if this bothers you that much, we can talk about it later." Faith said not taking her eyes off the Sheriff. "But right now, as you can no doubt see, my hands are a bit full." She nodded to the stairs. "I think it would be better if you disappeared before someone turns up." Will turned from the scene and ran part way up the stairs before stopping and looking back. John shot a look of pure hatred at Faith who didn't pay it any attention. He then began to follow Will after retrieving his quarter-staff from the floor.
"Master?" Much said. Robin hadn't moved.
"You were going to kill me." he said. He didn't sound angry; he sounded more confused like he couldn't comprehend what he was being told.
"When this is all over, go to your lady friend." Faith said in reply. "She'll know what to do. Now go!" Robin looked at the girl who had just yesterday saved his life. "Go!"
"Come on, master!" said Much and he dragged Robin away up the stairs after Will and Little John. The Sheriff watched them jump up the wooden steps and leave. He tried to breathe a sigh of relief but the sword against his windpipe nearly launched him into a coughing fit.
"They're free." He hacked. "Now let me go!" Faith didn't move.
"You still don't remember." She dug the sword further into his throat as her anger rose at the memory of what he did. "Three years ago. Under Prince John's orders you sent your men to burn the house of one of your servants."
"What?"
"You ruined my life!" she shouted. "You took away my brother! You nearly killed me! Then you have the gall to ask me to kill the only man who stands up to you!"
"I don't know what you mean?" The Sheriff didn't want to provoke her. As long as he could keep her talking he'd be alright. Faith shook her head.
"I don't expect you'd remember." She said calmly. "How many people have you hurt over the years? Hundreds? Thousands? Why would you remember one person?" Someone in the room coughed.
Faith took her eyes from the Sheriff and saw Gisborne at the foot of the stairs carrying some folds of cloth. He was smiling in the way that suggested that he knew something that she didn't.
"Need a hand, my Lord?" Gisborne said still smiling. Vaizey looked angrily at his leather-clad dunder-headed sidekick. He didn't need to be made fun of now.
"Stay there!" ordered Faith. "Come any closer and I swear to God that the Sheriff need never worry about buying a hat again." Gisborne laughed. "You think I won't do it, but I promise I will."
"I don't doubt it." He remarked. "But if you do kill him then I can't promise you your friend will be safe."
"What friend?" said Faith cautiously. She didn't like the way this conversation was going. Gisborne threw the cloth in his hand onto the floor. It landed with a thud.
'Cloth doesn't thud' thought Faith.
Gisborne then kicked it and it rolled over. Faith gasped. It wasn't cloth. It was Allan!
"What did you do?" she asked looking at Allan's limp body. He had a small trickle of blood coming from his nose and mouth. A large gush of blood also came from a cut in his forehead and a large purpley-red bruise showed through the top of his tunic. A similar bruise seemed to be accumulating around his right eye. Not Allan. Please not Allan. Gisborne was smiling wildly. "What happened?"
"Gisborne," croaked the Sheriff, "need I remind you that she has a very sharp sword at my throat. Making her angry is not a clever move."
"What happened?" Faith repeated.
"That doesn't matter." Gisborne said. "What does matter is that if you don't let the Sheriff go, then whatever happened will happen again." The girl was faced with a dilemma. If she killed the man she hated with every fibre of her being, she would cause the death, or at least further suffering, of Allan, the only person who saw her for who she was. "What is your choice?"
Allan could hear voices talking beside him. Every part of his body ached so he didn't try to move just yet. He didn't know where he was but he knew he could feel the floor against his cheek. The last thing he could remember was he and Robin were creeping through the corridor. Then it came back to him. The hand, the struggle and the unbelievable pain.
"What is your choice?" he heard a voice above him say above him. Gisborne!
Thinking Gisborne was talking to him, Allan tried to move but it only caused more pain. Wincing slightly, he groaned. What had happened to him?
He felt someone kneel next to him and so he made an attempt to open his eyes. They felt swollen and he could see out of them just a crack. He saw Faith looking back at him with a look of fear while she held a sword at the Sheriff's throat. Allan's head was swimming. He was extremely disorientated and couldn't process what was happening above him. Something was wrong though. He could gather that from how he felt.
Faith released the Sheriff from her grip but still held the sword tightly in her right hand. Vaizey scurried from the girl clutching desperately at his throat. He took his fingers away from his throat and saw the thin spattering of blood over his fingers. He turned and pointed at his attacker.
"You're crazy!" he yelled, constantly touching his punctured neck. "You are crazy!"
"And you look like a balding weasel." she snapped back.
"I will see you hang for this!" he shouted. "Guards! Guards!" His guards returned and quickly apprehended the girl ripping the sword from her grasp. Then a thought occurred to him. He smiled as it crossed his mind. "On second thoughts…wait…" he walked up to her. "You are the perfect killer, are you not?"
"That's what they say." No emotion showed on her face but the Sheriff was not worried.
"You must be…quite good with a sword."
"I must be." He struggled to tell whether she was being sarcastic.
"What say I give you a chance to…redeem yourself?"
"Very sporting of you." She said. "But how?" The Sheriff smiled.
"To the courtyard!"
Robin ran out of the courtyard, closely following the others. Everything made sense. He didn't want to believe it but he had to. Faith was planning to kill him. She'd planned this all. Still there was something screaming at him that she wouldn't do that kind of thing. He and his men stayed in Nottingham as he had to sort something out.
"When this is all over, go to your lady friend. She'll know what to do."
He sent word to Marian to meet him as soon as possible. He had to know what Faith had meant. He had to clear things up even if the others didn't understand.
"I must say," said Faith as she walked next to the Sheriff, "I'm not feeling terribly brilliant about this idea of yours."
"Why ever not?" he asked.
"You're smiling."
"Oh, come now," he said grinning wildly. "I think you'll like this a bit more than the alternative."
"Do I detect a patronising tone there?" Faith said laughing slightly.
Behind them, Allan listened to this sinister conversation and once again felt his instinct screaming at him that there was no way that this could end well. He winced as every movement caused him pain while he was walked along almost held up by Gisborne.
Vaizey walked out onto the front steps and breathed in the foul air of Nottingham. He watched as the girl who had betrayed him stood by his side and looked up towards the overcast sky.
"That's something I never thought I'd see again." Faith muttered. She turned to the Sheriff. "So what's this proposal of yours, weasel-face?" Vaizey ignored her comment.
"You, 'Achilles', perfect killer of England take on my man-at-arms, Gisborne. A fight of honour."
"What would we fight for?"
"If you win, you walk free and are declared an outlaw meaning you can attempt to patch things up with your beloved Robin. If you lose, you surrender to the full force of the law and are hanged."
"And what of Allan?"
"Who?" The Sheriff turned and saw Allan behind him. "Oh, your little friend. Well he can walk free whatever the outcome." Faith looked intently at the Sheriff no doubt trying to see into his head.
"This is unusually noble of you."
"Hood has gone and you have flouted the law…yet…I am a bit bored of the straight forward hanging." He explained. "Also I believe you deserve a fighting chance." Faith launched into a laughing fit.
"No, really," she said when she'd calmed down, "why are you doing this?" Vaizey paused in thought.
"I guess I want to see you cut up or something. It's boring around here." His smile dropped. "Alright, I'm now growing bored. So do you want a chance of winning your freedom, or not?"
Faith looked at Allan's beaten face and glanced out towards Nottingham. She couldn't let anyone else suffer because of her.
"You got yourself a deal." She said. The Sheriff grinned.
Faith was stood facing Gisborne in the courtyard. She, like him had one sword. Faith felt its weight, noting the possible strong and weak points of the blade. She swung it across her body to feel the movement. It was shoddy craftsmanship but enough for what she faced.
"Do not expect me to go easy on you." Stated Gisborne.
"Wouldn't dream of it." Faith replied. "I mean, where would be the fun in that?"
"When you two girls have stopped chatting," said the Sheriff, "you can begin fighting."
Faith didn't move as Gisborne approached her with speed. He lifted his sword high above his head and brought it down on top of the girl. At the last minute Faith swung her sword up into a block position. Gisborne's sword slipped harmlessly off the end of her blade, which she swung around and knocked into his side.
Clutching his side with his left hand, Gisborne continued to attack with his right. He attacked her from all angles but she just blocked and parried them. Each time he attacked, it resulted in him gaining more cuts and bruises while Faith stood there unscathed.
"You have some skill with a sword." Gisborne panted after receiving a slash to the face.
"Oh, did I forget to mention that my father was a sword smith," Faith said solemnly, "and he taught all he knew about swords?" She moved in for the kill. No more holding back. This had to end right here right now.
Faith attacked Gisborne with strength she didn't know she possessed but imagined that it came from the fact that this was what she had been waiting for, for the last three years. Gisborne quickly crumpled under the fury of the attacks, exhausted by his attempts to hurt the girl. Falling to his knees, Gisborne noticed that Faith had her sword at his throat. He didn't move. She wanted to kill him and he could see it in her eyes.
'Kill him' Faith told herself. 'Kill him' but there was another voice. It told her that killing Gisborne would do no good. All it would do would be drag her down to his level. Robin wouldn't kill him, neither would her father, or David.
"Look at that." She said eventually. "It seems I've won." She moved her sword away from Gisborne's throat. She turned to the Sheriff. "I believe that means that Allan and I can be on our way."
Vaizey didn't look angry but he felt it. She was not meant to win. She was meant to die. Yet he nodded. Allan walked cautiously down the steps, now having feeling in his legs. He joined Faith and after she gave a mocking two finger salute with the sword still in her other hand to the Sheriff they made to leave.
A look of fury was shot at Gisborne who was panting on the floor. The Sheriff was not pleased. He wasn't used to not getting his way, even though it happened often. He looked at Gisborne again. He drew his finger across his throat and Gisborne knew what to do.
Slowly he stood up. Quietly as he could he snuck up behind Faith and stabbed her right in the middle of her back.
As they walked Allan breathed heavily.
"You might want to get that seen to." Faith told him. Allan said nothing. "Get ready to run." She added.
"Why?" he asked. She didn't reply and Allan noticed she wasn't next to him. He turned back and saw her stand there in silence. Her mouth was open in a silent scream. Behind her Gisborne yanked something out of her back. He was smiling, as was the Sheriff.
"I've never liked losing." Said the Sheriff. "And I'm not a man of honour."
Faith fell to her knees and Allan saw a patch of blood forming on the front of her tunic.
"Run!" she rasped. Allan hesitated as Faith staggered to her feet. "Run!" and she ran slowly towards him and dragged him out.
"Guards!" yelled the Sheriff as they got away. "Guards! Arrest that girl!"
"What of the man, my Lord?" asked one of the guards.
"Don't bother with him! Now get a move on!" He walked up to Gisborne. "You can't even kill a girl properly. You're a disgrace." And he walked into the castle in fury.
"Yes, my Lord." Gisborne said through gritted teeth before following him.
Faith was hidden in an alcove beside a house. The blood was flowing freely and she could feel it trickle down her back. Her breathing was heavy and her lungs felt on fire. Both she and Allan had run from the guards and she'd managed to lose Allan in the flight.
"Run and live." She silently prayed. "Run and live, Allan A Dale."
Faith herself had run a little more but it hurt so much. Eventually she just gave up and found a little place where she could hide. She could feel the blood seeping slowly from her stomach, bringing her to peace and she closed her eyes. No longer angry. No longer afraid.
Chapter 8: Letter from the Grave