The wagons wheels turned for the 3,086th time or was it the 3,087th? Hector had been counting the churns of the wagon wheels for what felt like hours going off the groaning creek they made every time they went around. His cotton shirt was caked with sweat from the shining sun in both the chest and back, Dimitry and Danielia both still sat on the coach of the wagon driving the horses down what felt like an endless path gods...how much longer? he thought to himself. It was so quiet out on the road, the only sounds were the cries of birds, the wagon groaning or straining to move all of the weight it held, and the occasional snort from the horses who pulled it. Normally Hector would be rather fine with the silence preferring it to a roaring city like Italica, or the shouts of the partying soldiers at camp late into the night when he was trying to rest for the next day's march. The part that made it unbearable to him would be that he was left with his own thoughts, Hector was slowly degrading back into the hate filled thoughts from his previous days of travel that referred to him as coward and told him you should've died at Alnus. Hector also thought of Alnus the memories hitting him like a load of bricks to the back. Men torn apart from an impossible distance, fireballs blowing them into nothingness, and the haunting screams he'd listened to while stuck in the foxhole unable to save them, unable to do anything to help. Twice he nearly yelled uncontrollably over the trip wanting to drown out the terrible memories of the last few days, but he couldn't with the gypsies right in front of him otherwise they might think Hector insane and demand he leave the back of their wagon.
As they neared a fork in the road Dimitry he'yad the horses to the left making Hector jump then clutch the bow tight in his left hand, but as soon as he realized it was just the old man he sank back down into the back of the wagon. This was getting to be a pattern Hector would jump at any little sound ready to use the bow, the first time had been just a robin calling to its' mate, the other was a large branch falling in the distance, and finally the multiple times Dimitry would yell expletives or make a sound at the mares to change direction, go faster, or slower. Every time Hector's chest would pump rapidly, and his left hand would clutch the bow then he would ready himself for a fight, but nothing was attacking the gypsies, and nothing was attacking him. Hector had to reassure himself of that and sit silently back down to not alert Dimitry or Danielia, in a way deep down he did appreciate the momentary excitement that it brought for a few moments it would get his mind off of Alnus. However, it was a small and brief moment of respite as almost as soon as he was ready to spring into action, Hector would sit back and immediately think of dismembered limbs, the hole, and the screams of the dying men. And so, the silence would continue for hours sometimes interrupted by the odd sound which Hector would nearly ready an arrow at only to realize it was something trivia like a bird or a rodent.
It was Danielia's gentle voice that brought him away from his daydream, "Hector, are you feeling alright back there?" Looking over he saw her turned around to face him while she stood with her knees, green eyes staring down at him. "Yeah" Hector mumbled "speak up boy! I know my hearing ain't that bad yet!" Dimitry exclaimed still running the horses, "father please" Danielia said putting her hand on the old man's shoulder. Dimitry grumbled something and said no more, Danielia hopped over the wagon getting into the back and sitting next to Hector, she peered down at him at nearly six inches above him "how is your shoulder?" "fine" Hector said in the mumbling and monotone voice. "Is your fever getting worse?" Danielia said emerald eyes locked on to his face, Hector looked away for some reason "no" he mumbled. "Why do you look away from me? Is something the matter?" She said trying to lower herself to look him in the eyes "I said I was fine" Hector firmly stated. Danielia's face was still calm and collected, Hector's attempt to drive her away seemed to be in vain as she just kept trying to talk to him.
"You're from Italica?" she asked "Solva...but I journeyed to Italica three years ago when I became a man" He responded. Danielia nodded her head gently as he spoke "what is Solva like?" "it's a small village maybe a hundred people at the most" Hector mumbled, "why did you leave?" she asked. Hector was silent for a moment staring out at the trees slowly going by them, "my ma died when I was a boy, and my pa...well he drank all our savings away and took himself along with them." He stared out amongst the massive valleys and mountains, a long time ago he couldn't even talk about his parent's deaths, but now it seemed like it happened years ago. As if the six days that had passed between Alnus and now were instead six decades. "I'm sorry I shouldn't have asked that" Danielia said quietly, "It's alright you did not know" Hector muttered, she looked down at him then to the road, and then back to him again "what is your plan for when you get to Italica?" Danielia asked after a moment. "What's your's?" Hector said looking up at her, finally meeting her eyes, she seemed taken aback by his sudden interest in her and her father's life. "Well...venture to Italica and then keep moving east going to city to city, usually we only stay for about a few months at the most, father gets bored rather easily" Dimitry said a simple "yep" in response to that. "Now what about you?" Danielia asked him, Hector was still looking her in the eyes which was becoming harder and harder for some reason. "King Duran disappeared or was cut down during the battle, therefore Clan Formal will take control but the only one left would be countess Myui, all her brothers and father perished." The wagon was quiet for a moment Danielia looked worried and Hector said nothing, "shit..." Dimitry said softly, "shit is right" Hector joked.
Hector heard crunching leaves and bushes a few paces to the right of the road behind some trees, but he did not act this time instead just assuming it to be a squirrel. He felt better about himself for not immediately going for the bow, but the brush rustled again this time slightly louder looking to the coach Hector saw both Dimitry and Danielia were looking right ahead at the road or the mountains. Again, Hector told himself it was just an animal and nothing more and rested his head against the wagon the thoughts of all the dead souls beginning to play on repeat once more. It was a voice that awoke him from his daydream "Halt!" something whizzed past the back of the wagon just a foot above his head. In an instant he grabbed Danielia and put her to the wagon floor "whu?" she tried to protest but Hector covered her mouth and put a finger over his own, she stared up at him eyes wide and nodded, with that he heard Dimitry yell "hey!" and a scuffle breaking out. Peering just half his head over the wagon wall Hector saw Dimitry being forced off the wagon and to the ground a few steps away from the wagon by what appeared to be several men in chainmail, plate, and leather armor. One however big and fat was half naked large belly jutting out over the black pants waist, he had Dimitry face down on the path besides the wagon. Fuck Hector thought, the armor the men wore did look like Empire armor but instead of a dull gray or silver the colors were an evil looking blood red or pitch black.
"Anyone else in your wagon old man?" a tall one said, he looked like a human version of one of the many pine trees that surrounded all of them. "Fawk yew!" Dimitry yelled up from the ground, "Tiberius check the back and make sure this crone is telling the truth" A younger looking man probably close to Hector's age nodded his head. Danielia's eyes grew wide with fear and so did Hector's, both knew exactly what men like this would do to her, and so in a split-second decision Hector whispered to Danielia "hide under the blanket they won't see you" she nodded and quickly pulled the blanket over herself her shape under barely visible, Hector then threw the bow and its' arrows out over the wagon and yelled "WAIT!" then threw himself and his arms up. Hector's heart pumped with fear as all the men turned to him some pointed crossbows and swords directly to his position, Hector saw at least twelve men all of whom looked as if they would kill him for breathing the wrong way "gave us quite the scare didn't you boy? Come on down from that wagon now, Tiberius grab his bow, Adonis grab him." Hector swung his legs over and jumped down from the wagon, he was grabbed by a man whose face was covered by a plate helmet but wore leather armor on his body, the man brought him next to where the fat one held Dimitry down.
He was forced on his knees and the lanky one yelled at a few others to take everything inside the wagon, Tiberius held Hector's bow awkwardly changing the position a few times until he put it over his shoulder along with the quiver that held the arrows. Looking to his left Hector saw Dimitry looking up at him from his restrained position fear very apparent on his face, Hector knew it was only for his daughter and felt his rage slowly building over the fact that these bastards were terrifying an old man. He looked behind from his tied-up position and saw all the others quickly grabbing the boxes filled with clothes, a few weapons, and supplies hoping that they would not notice Danielia, Hector hadn't prayed in a long time, but he begged all the gods at that moment Emroy, Hardy, or Flare to please not let the girl be found. Several times Hector thought they would be close enough to the front of the wagon to see her shape visible under the blanket, and with those times his heart sank and rose each and every occasion. But the fools were much too greedy to spot her and eventually all of the valuables from the wagon were stripped, and he knew for now Danielia was safe.
The lanky bandit yelled "alright leave em here let's go!" almost all seemed ready to rectify the order, but instead the fat one holding Dimitry down had other plans "wait!" he said his voice gravely and deep, "what about these one's?" the lanky bandit turned back "I just said leave them didn't I? we need to move Nero!" Nero shook his head and looked towards Hector "what about him?" Nero said looking him up and down "he's pretty ain't he? Make a good time for relaxin." The fat bastard smiled a one toothed grin at him, "Emroy's sake we don't have time for this we need to move!" Adonis yelled. "You already have the bunny bitch, what're are you wantin another one for?!" he sneered, Nero seemed dead set looking at Hector hungrily and he felt fear like never before, his heart was beating at a horses gallop as these men all argued on whether or not to take him to be this fat piece of shit's sex slave, he couldn't believe how they were all just talking as if he wasn't there kneeling only a few feet away from them. Adonis who held his bound arms from behind tightened his grip "Dammit! Fine! But it's your job to keep him from breaking free understand?!" Nero nodded at the lanky one "righto Cyrus hand him over to me here" Adonis grabbed Hectors shirt collar and threw him forward. Hector was grabbed by Nero, and he was dragged kicking and screaming as the bandits headed quickly for the forest, "GET OFF ME!" Hector yelled, Nero smiled his strength was great enough to hold him by the back of the neck with one arm "awww don't worry you should be happy, we're sparing the old man."
As he was being dragged beyond the trees, Hector watched frantically as Dimitry looked on in horror as he was taken from the light of the sunny sky back into the darkness of the forest.
Notes: don't worry this isn't the end for Hector, I'm also changing the rating to M but not for the reasons you might think. Sorry for the shorter chapter the next one is going to be way longer and better, that last word hopefully being true.