When Shelby returned to the Inn, Chase and Riley were already there. Their demeanor relaxed, and their bellies filled with ale (well, Chase's belly, either way). And Riley had his nose a book he had purchased from the vendor. Both of them were far more relaxed then Shelby had ever seen them. If only she had felt the same way.
"Your majesty?" Sir Chase said, "Is something the matter?"
But the princess did not answer. She walked over to the window, and stared outside. Back to where that caged man was, held prisoner by someone else. Shelby was a princess true, but this village was outside of her realm and, unfortunately, she held no power.
"Sir Riley," she said, "What do you know about the tribes of this kingdom?"
Sir Riley looked up from his book, scrunched his nose up (a habit he had whenever he began to think) and answered, "There were only a few tribes around here, but most were wiped out by King Sledge and his minions. Rumor had it that he was looking for something."
"Oh yeah," Chase piped up, "I heard that rumor too. Apparently he wiped them out completely looking for some kind of…" Chase rolled his hands, trying to find the word, "mystic stones."
"Stones?"
"Yes," Chase said, "He wiped out an entire group of people just for that…and most people aren't even sure that these 'mystic stones' are even real! Looney, ain't it?"
No…it was disgusting. A whole group of people, families, children, friends, gone. Simply to feed one person's ego. That man. He who had lost not only his family, but his freedom now as well.
"Are there any more of these tribal people left?" Shelby asked.
But Riley shook his head, "I'm afraid not…well, not from what I've read, but you never know."
"And," Shelby said as she placed her hand on the window's glass, "If one of those tribal men were found…what would happen?"
"Well," Riley said, "I suppose it'd be the discovery of the century. A person from a lost civilization, people would pay top dollar to see that!"
"I know I would," Chase said.
Shelby felt her stomach turn inside of her. The idea that you could just gawk at someone who had lost so much, only to for him to lose even more. Shelby had made a promise that she would find Prince Tyler, and she intended to keep that promise. But that didn't mean she would let the injustices she saw go uncorrected. She was a princess, a servant of the people. All people, and she would never, ever turn her back on someone who needed her. It was her solemn vow.
And Shelby turned to them both and smiled, "Good. Because I know where you both can see one, and the good news is, it won't cost either of you a cent."
Under the cover of night, Shelby, Chase and Riley skulked through the sleeping village. Riley kept looking over his shoulder, afraid someone might recognize them. Shelby might not have had power in this realm, but she was still a princess, and if spotted, the consequences could be dire.
"Your majesty," Riley said, "Are you certain about this? Can't we just-"
"No," Shelby said. "Sorry Riley, but I can't just leave this town knowing that this man is still a prisoner."
"But-"
"No buts."
They crept through the town, hunched low as to not arose too much notice. Riley had already packed their things, and stashed the horses on the outside of the village as to make a quick getaway. All that was left was-
"There," Shelby said pointing. On the other side of the street sat the iron cage, and the man that it held prisoner. Without thinking, Shelby rushed over, with Riley and Chase trailing behind her. The bars looked much stronger up close than they had that afternoon.
"H-hello?" she called out. Shelby wrapped her hands around the cold metal and leaned forward. There, in the dark corner, sat the man. His face was smudged with dirt, and his hair was tangled into too many knots to count. "C-can you understand me?"
The man looked up, and slowly crawled on his hands. Even though his face was smudged with dirt, Shelby could just glimpse the kind eyes that lay beneath. He opened his mouth "I…" he pressed his palm against his chest, "…Koda."
"Koda?" Shelby nodded and leaned in, "Koda, listen, we're going to get you out of here. Okay?"
But Koda shook his head, "No…stay." He spread his arms out wide, "Bars are safe."
"But," Shelby said, "Y-you're not free. Y-you're trapped here. Don't you want to-"
"Want stay," Koda said, his voice cracking under its own strain. "Family…gone. Little brother…gone. King Sledge…destroy." Koda shook his head, and his long mane waved. "No reason…to leave…family gone."
Riley gently tapped Shelby's shoulder, "Your majesty, if he wishes to stay then-"
"No," Shelby said. It wasn't right. None of it was. No one deserved to be someone else's prisoner. Not Tyler, and certainly not Koda. "You said your family was gone?"
Koda nodded his head. "All gone."
"B-but how do you know that? How do you know your little brother is gone, or that you're the last of your tribe? Have you searched? T-there maybe more." Shelby leaned deeper into the cage, gently brushing Riley's hands away from her shoulder. "Koda, I can't promise you'll find something, but I do know that you'll never know if you just sit here and give up. Maybe more members of your family are out there, maybe you're not the only survivor, but you'll never know unless you get out."
What was she even saying? Giving false hope? Trying to convince someone of a dream that may never come to pass.
"Is it…true?" Koda asked.
"I don't know…but I'm more than willing to find out." She reached her hand out, through the cage bars. "How about you?"
