Justify the Thrill

Chapter 9

Exempt From Sanity

After starting out across the barren desert most conversation stopped.  Spot glared at many of them in the beginning, and other than that most were exhausted, having neglected to sleep during the day.  Then there were Snitch, Itey, and Skittery who were sleeping the alcohol off for a few hours, and waking up with splitting headaches.  None of them, however, dared to complain aloud.

In the hour before dawn David broke away from the group he had been riding with, and pulled his horse up alongside Mouse's.

"Mouse can I talk to you?" He asked tentatively.

The girl stiffened in her saddle and said nothing.  She merely focused her eyes ahead of her and urged her horse into a trot to catch up with Blink.

"Mouse, wait…" David urged his horse to follow, "Please…"

She rode faster and began weaving her way through the other riders of their company, and eventually passed Spot to take the lead of the group.  David followed her closely. The two continued until they were several lengths ahead of the group.

"I'm sorry," David said.

Mouse sped up.

"Mouse, I'm sorry, I didn't mean what I said.  I wasn't thinking.  I didn't mean to hurt your feelings.  I… I really am sorry."  He stopped his horse but she continued to ride.  He let the feeling of defeat wash over him as the others began to catch up. 

As the others slowly began to pass him David kicked his animal into a slow, collected walk.  He paid no attention to their direction, and rather sat slumped on her back, lost in though.

A shrill whistle that sounded several minutes later broke him slowly from his revere, and he continued only to sulk as he rode on.  The group proceeded in such a manner until they caught sight of the walls of the Pave oasis.

The Pave oasis was quite obviously barren, but the walls and buildings shone in the fading moonlight.  People were sparse, though not many were crazy enough to occupy the city in the first place.  The town's population consisted mostly of escaped, and runaway prisoners and unwanted refugees.  There was no nobility there to speak of, and it was the way the oasis would stay. 

It was a dangerous trip to only reach Pave.  Those with no knowledge or understanding of the desert were easily lost and died commonly in the blazing heat of the day.  Even the nights were too warm for comfort but the days were torture on all away from the shade.  The company had already passed several graves on their ride.

Luckily, Spot had traveled much as a child with parents that knew the desert well.  He had acquired their knowledge, and there was also Racetrack.  He was forever studying maps, and knew several possible routes to get anywhere in the entire country.  Going to Pave was dangerous due to its inhabitants, but by his judgment was also the most direct and fastest route.  Much to Jack and the other noble's displeasure they had no choice but to let these two remain as leaders for their trip across the desert. 

There was a single guard at the door.  The sight of him would have made many people continue on, hoping to reach another oasis before the sun became too much to bear.  The man was tall and rather imposing, muscles bulging from the arms of his sleeveless tunic.  A jagged scar on his cheek marked some battle of long ago.  In his arms he kept a crude-looking spear.

"Morning," Spot greeted him in a gruff manner, "Is there lodging in the town?"

"You couldn't afford it."  The man waved them on.  It was almost as if he wished to see them perish in the desert's heat.

"I will make the decision on that if you don't mind."

The man examined Spot up and down, glancing over the rest of the group as well.  He released a sigh and banged on the door.  He said not a word to them as the doors were pulled open.  Spot motioned the group forward and the other thieves slowly surged past him.  He turned to the nobles who sat back to absorb it.

"Don't any of you speak a word until we get to our lodging?"  There was a dire seriousness in his voice that made them heed him. 

At the tavern they put away the horses in the barn and relocated to a decent sized room upstairs.  The rooms were joined and each contained eight beds, four to a wall, making them appear like barracks.  They all settled into one of the rooms for a moment.

Spot heaved a heavy sigh as he joined them, "I don't want any of you talking to the villagers.  Especially, not you nobles."

"And why the hell not?" Candy asked.

"Pave is a city of convicts.  You won't find anyone of noble blood here.  Most of them are escaped.  It's dangerous coming here in the first place but it's necessary."

"Convicts?" Jack confirmed, "You must fit right in around here."

Something flashed behind Spot's eyes and he met Jack's gaze.  He shook his head at the naïve prince.  "I am a thief, Jack, a good thief nonetheless, but nothing more than that.  These are escaped convicts from your father's prisons.  They'd sooner kill you than look at you.  I won't have you risking everyone's lives by insulting them."

"What about sleeping quarters?" The finally sobered Skittery asked, "It's not decent for us to share a room with the girls."

"A lot about this trip isn't going to be decent," Specs rolled his eyes, "You might as well get used to that fact now.  And we're two bed's short, so people are going to have to share."

"I want a guard at the door," Spot decided, "You can situate yourselves.  Snitch, you have first watch; wake someone else in an hour.  We're leaving here at sundown."

He walked into the next room and claimed one of the beds as his own.  They split up and chose where to stay.  All exhausted by their travel were asleep before the sun rose.  Even Snitch, who had slept half the night to be rid of drunkenness nodded off against the doorframe.

He was abruptly awoken about two hours later to a loud thumping outside the door.  Suspicious, Snitch peeked through a small hole in the door.  There on the other side of the hall were two large men carrying crude weapons.  They had set up a small wooden table to sit at and play cards while they kept watch. But what were they keeping watch of?  Just as Snitch pondered that, he noticed the muscular looking man kept glancing his way.  His eyes widened a bit surprised that they had caught on to them so quickly, then he thanked the gods for the plump man's carelessness for if he hadn't started banging the base of his weapon on the floor Snitch would still be asleep and the crew would have certainly fallen into this trap. 

As quietly as possible he made his way to Spot's bed, placed a hand firmly on the sleeping leaders mouth and shook him awake. However Spot had instantly reacted to the hand over his mouth and instantly reached for his hidden dagger stabbing blindly at his attacker.  Snitch removed his hand quickly to avoid the sharp blade.

"Spot," He hissed, " cut it out, its Snitch."

"Snitch! This had better be important!"  Spot hissed back.

"Shhhh!  Not so loud." Snitch brought him to the hole in the door.  "Look, they're keeping watch on us. They're up to something Spot, we should leave."

The leader seemed to consider this before shaking his head.  "We leave at night fall, no sooner."

"But-"

"Until then I want two armed guards on that door at all times.  We're going to need our strength if we want to make it out of here."  Spot made his way to the window on the far wall of the room.  Opening it he peaked down to view their things.

"We leave out the back window, nobody seems to be guarding our horses.  Now wake two new guards and get some sleep.  Seeing as you've already slept through your watch."

  Snitch made his way to Race's bed awaking him in much the same manner leaving out a threat to his self. 

At the same time Spot had gone to wake Jack.  As he leaned over the prince's sleeping form a blade was drawn and at his throat.

 "Mithros," Spot swore looking into the smoky eyes of Wolfgang.  "Didn't your mummy ever teach you not to play with knives, someone's liable to get hurt.  Now what say you go take guard duty seeing as you're alert and leave me to wake your precious prince in peace. Savvy?"  

The noble's eyes narrowed suspiciously.  "What are you up to thief?" 

"Nothing that concerns you yet.  Now hush up and guard the door like a good little Gorgon." Spot sneered.  "And don't do anything stupid like that again, I can't be harming you before we get to Odessa.  We'll never get rewarded then."  

Wolfgang rolled his eyes at this last comment and sulked his way to the door, something big was going to happen and he wasn't happy. 

When he reached the door he met Race who looked at him in annoyance.  "What do you want?"  He snapped.

"I'm here to take guard."

"Well it's taken care of go bug someone else."  Spot who had begun explanations to Jack looked up in time to notice the growing argument between the two boys.  He quickly stood and strode across the room bridging the gap between them.  "Shut up!"

"But-" Race and Wolfgang began simultaneously. 

"No, I don't care shut up! And I don't want to hear a word out of either of you unless it has something to do with those idiots on the other side of the hall." 

As he returned to his bed at the far end of the room where Jack sat absorbing all that he had been told,  Race and Wolfgang rushed to peek through the crack in the door.  Both trying to get a glimpse of what was happening and bumping heads in the process.

"So what's the plan?"

"We escape through the window under the cover of darkness."

"And how are we going to do that?  Make a rope of bed sheets and climb down?"  Jack jested chuckling softly.  Spot however kept a straight face and Jack instantly quieted.

"You can't be serious!  It'll never hold our weight. It can't possibly work."

"Maybe if we let you make it," Spot jabbed, "Oh don't worry it'll work.  We'll let everyone sleep a bit longer before we get started.  It's a long process this rope making; It has to be done just right if you don't want to fall."

They waited nearly forty-five minutes before waking a few of the thieves up.  They quickly and quietly stripped the blankets and sheets off of several beds and Hotshot and Specs began knotting them together and pulling them tight.  The prince could only watch as Spot and the two thieves communicated through hand signals and looks rather than speaking.  As the cloth rope became longer they woke other nobles and thieves as to get more material.

To test if the rope was long enough they ties Specs' staff to the end and carefully lowered it out the window, the weight of the staff keeping it form becoming caught in the straw, thatched roof.  It reached well onto the stable below their room.

"All right," Spot quietly said as they were all assembled in a semi-circle, "Here's how this is going to work.  Swifty, you're going down to keep the horses quiet.  Snitch, Pie, and Candy, you three need to get the horses tack if they put it in the storeroom.  As soon as you get in there find the carthorses and attach the cart, then saddle as many of the horses as you can while we get people down there.  We won't start with the others until the cart is ready.  Understood?"

The four nodded and Swifty flipped himself over the windowsill, speedily making his way down the rough rope.  Pie and Snitch followed him just as quickly.  Candy had been watching all of them to get their climbing technique down and followed slightly slowly but with a good, even pace.

The small group disappeared between the straw slats in the roof and were gone for several moments before Snitch's shoulders were revealed again and he waved a black handkerchief over his head. 

"Who's next?" Spot asked, looking behind him.

One by one the group made their way down the cloth rope and into the dimly lit stable.  Jack and Spot were the last to climb down, as was necessary for their positions.  All of the horses were saddled and well packed. 

"We'll go out the front entrance, just like we came in.  Try to keep out of sight as much as possible.  There's no way in telling who's after us and who doesn't care."

In the fading light of dusk they led their horses through the crowded streets of Pave.  People made some room for their horses but only enough for them to get past single file.  As they neared the exit it was Candy who noticed a pile of corpses against the far wall.  She and several of the other nobles watched the back door to a tavern of some sort open and two men dragged out a body and threw it on top of the pile.  The man cried out as the two others went back inside.  A pewter knife was lodged in his neck and he was not quite dead yet.

"It's better if you don't watch," Pie told Candy as he reined his horse into position next to hers.  "That's the day's casualties.  They usually burn them." 

Candy looked in the other direction only to see more men fighting, a small group was arguing over a simple knife and as they readied for exit she noticed a large group surrounding the three fighting men.  They shouted encouragement, demanding bloodshed or death.

The young squire was happy when their group passed the guards and once again made a trail through the still-warm desert.  No one from the village gave chase to them immediately so she figured they were safe.  

They stopped after a few short hours of riding, Wolfgang having spotted a small oasis.  No buildings were seen and the lake was small, but Blink quickly concluded that the water was clean and they all drank. 

They all moved about cautiously, still slightly shaken by what they'd seen of the town before they left.  It was a horrible mess of people.  There had been several decomposing bodies in a pile by the door when they left.  The day's casualties one had said. 

Without any argument all of them filled their water flasks and drank their fill.  They milled around aimlessly.  Swifty tended to the horses as had become his daily duty on the trip.  Jack was busy shooting Spot constant stares traced with the ever-present animosity.

In the middle of a stride back to his horse Specs froze.  All his limbs went rigid and his normally bright eyes turned dull and clouded over.  Everything in his arms clattered to the ground and a strangled cry escaped his lips, which gained everyone's attention. 

The wind that had been strong during the entirety of their ride died suddenly, and Specs began to shiver, though at the same time beads of sweat appeared across his brow.  Dutchy was the first to venture a step closer to him, but Pie Eater put a hand out to block his path and shook his head.

The faraway look in his eyes grew, and he looked almost like the empty, soulless beings told about in stories to scare young children.  He quite obviously was not in control of what was happening to him.

He began to speak.  The voice that left his mouth was not his own.  It was strangled and sounded far older than he was.  It sent a chill down Jack's spine, reminding him of a long dead grandfather, the kind that despised children.  "Ten…" He said, "Strong… The scar… My arrows…" 

None of what he said made any sense.  It seemed as though he could not dwell on one thought long enough to complete more than two words.

All at once his mouth clamped shut, and the shivering ceased.  His eyes rolled back in his head and he sank to the ground.  His body stirred up sand as the wind started up again.

Both Spot and Hotshot were at his sides instantly, followed within seconds by everyone else.  Spot propped him up into a semi-sitting position.  "Which way were they coming from, Specs?" he asked.

The taller boy's eyes were opened, though not quite back to focus yet.  Despite the fact that he had fainted only seconds before he seemed remotely alert and only seemed to miss the use of his limbs.  He glanced quickly around them and nodded his head in one direction, "There."

"Get ready!" Spot told them.

"Spot, what the hell is going on here?" Jack snapped, "What was that?" He followed Spot to the horses.

Frustrated, and in no mood for wasting time Spot grabbed the sword from Jack's saddle and tossed it to him.  "He had a vision.  We're going to be attacked.  Arm your men, now."

"Arm yourselves," Jack shouted to the other young nobles, ignoring any shock he felt,  "Hurry!"

As a group of riders appeared over the ridge they'd passed over earlier Jack risked a glance toward Specs, who was still breathing heavily as he sat in the sand.  He seemed to be catching his breath now, and one hand was on the staff that someone had obviously gotten for him.  Hotshot, Pie Eater, and Dutchy formed a semicircle between him and the approaching danger.

The enemy was riding closer and the air was filled only by their warrior cries.  Spot's voice broke their side's silence.

"Now!"

Candy, Swifty, and Hotshot loosed their bows and three arrows sped toward the approaching group.  One felled a rider and another struck a horse.  As the two groups clashed Wolfgang was the first to meet an opponent.  He swung his wide sword from his back and cut a broad stripe across another man's chest.

David did not fare as well.  His first swing at another man missed completely and the heavy adversary's sword dug into his right arm.  He let out a fairly pitiful cry, only to be drowned out by another sound.  Waves of water flowed past him and pursued the convicts.  He turned to find Blink and Mouse at the water's edge.  Their eyes and skin seemed to emit a faint glowing light as they concentrated on their task.

Sure enough it worked.  The band of convicts called a quick retreat, yelling what David could only guess were exclamations of fear to one another.

All of them froze in one position or another for a moment to make sure their enemy was not going to suddenly turn and come back after them.  Then they formed a small group.  Specs examined a notch that had been cut by another man's sword into his staff in the little fighting time he'd had.  Hotshot was quickly next to him making sure he was all right.

"I'm fine," he insisted wrapping an arm around her shoulder, "You worry too much."

Jack was about to inquire about the two's strange behavior toward each other until David yelled as Wolfgang bumped his arm.  Wolfgang and David both cursed loudly as they glimpsed David's jagged cut in the moon's light for the first time.

Before either Dutchy or Wolfgang could even say anything Pie Eater took David's arm in his hand and put one hand over the long incision.

"What… he's a healer…" Dutchy stuttered.

"Spot, I want explanations for all of what just happened," Jack's voice shook.

Spot shook his head, "Not here."  He took a deep breath before continuing.  "They're scared of the water demons, but they're only going back to get reinforcements.  That's what they were shouting to each other.  If we're not out of here by the time they get back we may as well have lost this fight.  Specs are you good to ride?"

Specs nodded.

"Then we leave now.  If we reach Medina by morning I'll explain everything to you when we get to the tavern.  I swear, but it's too dangerous here."

Jack only nodded and mounted his horse.  Spot, as he now knew, wouldn't tell them anything until he was ready.  As much as it angered Jack to be confused and have to wait by now he knew there was no use to trying to force it out of the thieves.

"Let us be off then.  I don't want to be stuck in this desert any longer than necessary."

A/N:  I know, I know, it's been roughly six months since we've updated.  And we're horrible, horrible people.  But first of all we've both got who is supposedly the hardest teacher in the school for honors English.  But the big thesis paper for the year is due tomorrow so no more stupid novels.  And supposedly the only other book we read this year in Hamlet.  Shouldn't be too bad

And we've both been writing other stuff and doing some time consuming things.  Honestly, why do we need to work?  Shouldn't we teenagers who do productive things like writing in their free time need jobs?  They only make us too busy to write.  We've both written some other stuff under our own pen names, (read: check them out) and I had winter guard, SaL is teaching CCD, right?  Yeah, we've been busy.  But I am determined not to let this thing die.  Hopefully we'll be back with another chapter soon.

Forever,

Exempt from Sanity