Chapter 4: Ride On
Beast Boy's group continued at a quick pace down the road leading away from the walled town. Beast Boy was still in a daze going over the events that had occurred. The road was lined with trees in spots; in others it passed through open fields and farms. The group kept silent with the man in the purple cape leading the way and setting the pace. Beast Boy guessed it was about noon when the battle took place. It was late afternoon when the group stopped by a large stone house situated by the road. Behind it was a stable. A man in a simple white tunic and sandals came out to greet the group. The others dismounted and quickly began inspecting their mounts. Beast Boy continued to watch them for a moment before he noticed the rider he was with was staring at him. "Are you going to get off?" the rider requested a bit perplexed.
"Oh, sure," he said nervously then awkwardly slide off the back of the horse. He staggered a bit then attempted to stand up straight. "Where are we?"
The rider dismounted his horse and flashed him an annoyed look from underneath his helmet. "Post house," he replied curtly then led his steed towards the man in the purple cape. Beast Boy noticed the others were staring at him. He felt very uncomfortable left alone on the road. Some of the men broke their gaze and took their horses to the stable to exchange them for fresh mounts.
The man who had rode with him passed his mount to another man then disappeared into the large stone house. He emerged several minutes later with another man in a tunic who carried a large clay vessel with him. The man Beast Boy had rode with walked to the others and began handing out strips of something along with a wooden bowl. The man with the clay vessel then poured some liquid into each man's bowl. Each man began chewing on their food and drinking from their bowls.
The rider and the man with the vessel eventually worked their way to Beast Boy. He was handed a brown strip and a bowl which the man in the tunic filled with a purple liquid. "What is this?" Beast Boy quickly asked.
"Smoked pork and wine," the man curtly replied and turned to make his way back to the others.
"Wait, I don't eat meat," Beast Boy replied holding the dried meat in his one hand. The rider halted, turned around and flashed him a puzzled look. He then came back, snatched the shriveled meat from Beast Boy's hand and stuffed it in his mouth ripping a small piece from it. He turned away leaving Beast Boy holding the wooden bowl.
"Thanks a lot," he half said to himself. It had probably been several hours since the battle and the afternoon heat told him it was summer by local standards. He raised the bowl to his mouth. The pungent smell of vinegar overwhelmed him. He quickly held the bowl at arms length and scrunched his face in disgust.
He looked around and noticed a small rock-lined stream running on the other side of the road. He made his way to the stream and knelt down next to it. Cupping his hands together he splashed his face with the cool stream water and felt a little better. Next he dumped the contents of the bowl and washed it out. He dipped the bowl in the stream then stood up and drank its contents. He turned back to the road and noticed the man in the purple cape and the man he had ridden with were watching him.
Beast Boy turned back to the stream knelt down and inspected his hands. They were a mess covered in dirt, grime and blood. He began scrubbing them, then splashed his face and tried to work some of the water in his hair. The spot on his head where the boulder hit was sore to the touch. The water that dripped down his face was tinged with blood. Beast Boy sat by the stream listening to it gurgle in the rocks.
"Come, we must be going," the man he had ridden with shouted at him from the road.
Beast Boy stood up, turned from the stream and made his way back to the road. Along the way he pulled his shirt bottom up and wiped his face dry. The others had already mounted their horses and were looking back at him. Two rider-less horses sat at the back of the group. Beast Boy became anxious as he realized he would have to ride alone this time. The other rider quickly mounted his horse.
Beast Boy stood next to his horse and looked up unsure how to get on. "Where are the stirrups?" he asked himself. The saddle was about eye level and he was unsure how he was going to get on his horse. He grabbed the saddle horns and tried to hoist himself up. The horse cantered sideways and Beast Boy quickly lost his grip and fell to the ground. A slight cackle of laughter erupted from the others.
The man in the purple cape nodded to the man who had retrieved him from the stream. He quickly dismounted and came back to Beast Boy as he stood up. The man grabbed the reigns and pulled the horse back into position. Beast Boy looked at him unsure if he wanted to make a second attempt. The man released the reigns and came back to the side of the horse where Beast Boy stood. He clasped his hands together.
"Go ahead, get up there," he said curtly. Beast Boy placed his foot on the man's clasped hands and was hoisted up to the saddle. He grabbed the saddle horn and tried to steady himself as the horse reared sideways and whinnied in protest. The man pulled the reigns over the horse's head and handed them up to Beast Boy.
"Thanks," Beast Boy called down. The man flashed him a puzzled look then walked back to his mount and hoisted himself up. The group broke forward at a fast trot. Beast Boy's mount stood still momentarily then lunged forward to join the back of the group. He grabbed the saddle horn to steady himself then pinched his legs tight to keep from falling off. The horse grunted in protest the shook his head almost pulling the reigns from his hands. "Hey, I don't like you much either," Beast Boy replied in disgust.
The group rode on for several hours at a hurried pace. Beast Boy struggled to keep up building a steady dislike for his horse, though he was sure the feeling was mutual. Towards dusk the group took a turn onto a side road. A group of houses stood off the main road. The men entered a small walled compound and dismounted. Several people were in the compound when they entered. The man in the purple cape dismounted and made his way towards the main house. A finely dressed man came forward and bowed slightly. The two exchanged words then both made their way inside the house.
Beast Boy slid off his horse very stiff from the day's ride. The insides of his legs ached tremendously. We walked to the front of his mount and waited to see what the others did. His mount took a step and pushed Beast Boy with his head. Beast Boy stumbled forward the looked back at his mount. "Cut it out," he said to his horse then turned back to face the group. His horse nuzzled his shoulder then opened its mouth and lightly nipped the back part of his arm. "Ouch!" Beast Boy yelped. He quickly turned around and angrily stared at his attacker. The horse took a step back, shook his head and whinnied lightly in triumph.
"Stupid horse," Beast Boy muttered under his breath as he rubbed the back of his arm.
After several minutes people began to stream out of the main house. Several men came forward to take the group's horses. Beast Boy was happy when someone relieved him of his mount. The others walked to the house's main entrance. Nightfall was quickly approaching and the entryway was lit with several lamps that hung from the walls. The group continued into the main hallway led by the man whom Beast Boy had ridden with earlier. The men remained quiet and Beast Boy followed the group at a safe distance.
The hallway emptied into a cavernous room where food had been laid out on large tables. Beast Boy entered the room and watched most of the men step forward and begin devouring the food in front of them. Beast Boy's stomach gurgled as the smells enticed his appetite. As he stepped towards the table he was halted by the man who had rode with him earlier.
"Come with me," he said curtly. Beast Boy nodded knowing better than to argue with a soldier armed with a sword. He was lead down another hallway. A door to a small room was open on his right. The man pointed to the room. "Wait here." Beast Boy momentarily halted at the doorway to inspect his accommodations then slowly walked into the room as the door was closed and latched behind him.