Hey, so...I don't want to be 'that guy', but nobody reviewed the last chapter. While, that's cool and whatever, I'd really like to know that I'm not wasting my time putting this up. I mean, I really like it, but it'd be nice to get some feedback, so tell me if you like the songs being used, or how you felt when this character did whatever, or how you don't like that this happened, or whatever! Please? I really DO like this story, and I'd really like to continue it, but I probably won't if nobody reviews it.
Breaking Free
Santana wiped sweat from her forehead and set the pitchfork against the wall of the barn. She waved to the horses- now with freshly straw-laden stalls- and stepped out into the cool afternoon air.
She smiled and breathed in deeply, content with her work and glanced up towards the house.
She froze.
There were people at the door.
She took off towards the house, eager to meet them, half hoping that Sam's troop had returned to recruit her. As she approached however, she realized two things; one; there were only two figures at the door, and two; they were talking quite intensely to her father.
She watched as her father stepped aside and ushered them in.
"Hey!" She yelled as he turned to follow them.
He stopped and turned back, looking exasperated.
"What?" He asked.
"Who are they?" She asked, trying to peek past him. He blocked her way.
"They're looking for two of those kids that left the other day; Quinn and Sam I think they said something about official business that I shouldn't worry about." He frowned at her. "You're not to talk to them; you've had enough adventure for a lifetime. I know those kids didn't kill those wolves, I don't have to protect them!"
"You can't just give them up like that!" Santana said. "They dealt with the wolves, without killing them!"
"Well that's not what I asked them to do!" The farmer bellowed.
"They did your work, on your farm, just because they felt like they owed it to you! They could easily have overpowered and killed us both, but they were good people! You can't sell them out for nothing!" Santana scowled.
"And I won't." The farmer said.
Santana blinked.
"What?"
"Not for nothing! Once those two help out around the farm, however, I have every intention of pointing them in the right direction."
Sam squinted through the canopy of foliage at the sun setting on the horizon far ahead.
"We have to reach Ostvale as quickly as we can. They know we're in the area now!" He frowned.
"You're right." Quinn frowned, stepping over a large gnarled root farther to his left.
"If we keep moving through the night, we can cover more ground." He suggested.
"And it'll take even less time to kill us all when we're too tired to fight back..." Blaine said bitterly. Rachel and Sam exchanged a worried look. "We have to keep our strength up, either that or make friends with more ferocious woodland creatures."
After their close call, the wolves had returned with first aid supplies from the soldiers, and natural remedies from the forest itself. After Quinn awoke, thankfully without any permanent damage past a mild headache, the two of them had fixed up the others with a sewing kit found in one of the first aid kits.
Quinn had insisted on taking care of Blaine. Seeing him so close to death had terrified her more than she could explain. Blaine's head was now all stitched up, however, and Sam's nose was healing nicely. Rachel's arm had taken a bit of work, but it too was almost like new, though it would scar permanently.
The night had been stressful for both Quinn and Sam as they sat in silence, waiting and praying that the siblings would wake up, both mentally replaying what more they could've done, blaming themselves for the entire ordeal.
Blaine awoke just before dawn with a splitting headache and a relieved hug from Quinn. He'd at once been concerned for his sister, but once the initial shock wore off; he regressed into a silent, brooding mess. Even Rachel's eventual awakening did nothing to improve his mood.
Two days had passed since the ambush, and Sam had forced them all to travel by forest. It was tedious to crawl through the undergrowth, but the siblings had experience and were in their element in the woods. Each night, one of them would scale a tree and keep a look out, just in case.
Nobody deluded themselves into thinking they were safe.
Despite the anxiety and exercise, they were all fairly content that they had made it out alive! Each of them blamed themselves slightly, but acknowledged that it was in the past. Each of them-that was-except for Blaine.
For two days he had silently trudged along, trailing behind them. Both nights he'd offered to take watch, and his normally cheerful persona was gone. Whenever any of them tried to talk to him, he'd snap that he was fine and then walk off into the brush. Only Rachel could properly trail him, and the one time that she'd found him sitting at the edge of a small stream, they'd ended up in a screaming match.
He'd apologized that night, and she'd returned the favor, but his mood did not improve.
"Blaine..." Sam sighed. "It doesn't do any good to be so negative."
"Well it clearly didn't help being positive, seeing as that almost got us killed."
"It wasn't because we were happy, that we got ambushed." Quinn frowned. "It's because we were stupid."
Blaine looked at Quinn, frowned, looked at the ground, looked back at her, and promptly walked away, mumbling something about patrolling the area while they set up camp.
"Okay, I'm getting really annoyed with him." Rachel said.
"Yeah...He's just going through something..." Sam tried to defend him weakly.
"Well it's not very productive." Quinn frowned. "I mean, I get that he's clearly upset about the ambush. I get that he saw his father for the first time since he sentenced him for death. I get that he's upset that he got knocked out. I get all that." She said.
"Right." Rachel said. "But it doesn't help, if he's not willing to talk about it!"
"He will, just give him time!" Sam sighed.
On the other side of a tree, mere feet from where they stood, Blaine buried his face in his hands.
That night, Santana's dreams were filled with images of her mother.
"What do I do Mom?" She asked.
"I think you know Santana." Her mother laughed knowingly.
"But how do I know it's the right thing to do?" Santana asked doubtfully, looking down. Her mother stepped forwards and tilted her head up.
"What does your heart tell you?" She asked.
"My heart...?" She asked. She paused and listened, closing her eyes.
She saw herself wrapped in golden chains in a dark room, looking up into the laughing eyes of her father. It was symbolic, she realized suddenly. He'd trapped her in his world for so long...chained her with his cutting words and violent temper.
"My heart tells me that it's time for me to break free." She said, nodding.
"Then show me." Her mother's voice echoed.
She clenched her fists and watched as the shackles around her wrists shattered.
Her father's eyes turned dark as the clasps around her ankles and neck were destroyed and pulled back into the darkness. She took a deliberate step into the darkness and the evil eyes of her overbearing father faded away.
"Mom?" She asked.
"Yes child?"
"It's so dark out there..." She whispered.
"The darkness is necessary. Without darkness, you would never find the light. Go now, you've got a long road ahead of you."
Sam was dreaming again, but this time, he wasn't happy.
He saw Brittney in his dream, and jolted.
"Brittney?" His dream self-whispered, walking towards his friend.
"Hi Sam." Brittney smiled nonchalantly.
The scene in front of Sam flickered suddenly and he saw a flash of red before Brittney returned.
"What are you doing here?" He asked.
"My dreams are boring, I thought I'd come see yours." She shrugged.
"Seriously?" Sam asked.
"No!" Brittney said. "I don't know why I'm here, it's your dream!"
Another flash, this time Sam saw a broken window and the flash of a sword.
"Did you see that?" He asked.
"Not yet." Brittney shrugged again.
"Yet?"
The evil scowling face of a black haired teenager. She lunged forwards with a sword and another blade clashed with hers, stopping her short.
Brittney smiled and turned to walk away.
"Wait! Brittney! What do you mean, yet!" He yelled.
"Don't worry about it! You've got plenty of journey to go!"
"Wait!" Sam rushed forwards after her, but she was gone. Suddenly, Sam felt his instincts kick in. There was somebody near. He jumped in surprise as something grabbed his arm.
Sam shot up, immediately looking at his arm, where Blaine was shaking him.
Blaine withdrew his hands and blinked back what Sam was almost certain were tears.
"Are you okay?" Sam asked, legitimately concerned. He looked past Blaine where Rachel and Quinn were both contentedly sleeping, none the wiser.
Blaine shook his head and his lip quivered.
"Can you help me?" Blaine asked hoarsely.
"Yeah! Definitely!" Sam turned towards him, worried and attentive. "What do you need?"
"When my fa- when we were ambushed..." He started. "I was overpowered so easily!" He frowned and looked at the ground by his feet, as if ashamed.
"We were all overpowered, don't feel bad." Sam said. "It's not your fault we lost!"
Blaine shook his head.
"No, that's not..." He took a deep breath. "I lost because I don't know how to fight." He said, quite obviously embarrassed.
"What are you talking about?" Sam laughed. "You're the best archer I've ever met!"
"That's not the same. I know how to hunt, but I can't fight." He said.
"What do you mean?"
"As soon as that soldier got too close, I was done, I had nothing. I tried to kick him away, and even my kicking was sloppy and awkward."
"So...you want me to help you learn to fight up close?" Sam guessed.
Blaine nodded.
"Why me?" Sam asked. "Rachel's just as good, if not better." He laughed.
"I'm too ashamed to ask her...we had to fight to stay alive for so long, and my first ever hand to hand combat almost got me killed..." He sighed. "At least she stayed conscious."
Sam smiled at the other boy.
"I'll teach you." He stood up. "Come on."
Santana nodded to herself determinedly as she shoved the last of her shirts into an old leather satchel of her mothers. She'd found it buried deep in her father's closet, and couldn't help but feel that...well...
She was finally going on the adventure that her mother always had dreamed of taking her on; and now...it was like she was taking a little piece of her mother with her.
She'd spent the entire night deciding what to take, and rigging her belts so that they functioned as holsters for the two half-swords that she'd discovered stashed in the back of the barn. Her father had bought them for her mother to use for protection on her outings, but she refused the gifts. Perhaps, if she hadn't, she'd have survived.
As the sun began to peek over the horizon and the rooster in their chicken coop began to crow, she turned to face the door.
Her father stood staring at her with a red-face and wild eyes.
"What the hell do you think you're doing?" He yelled.
She stepped up to meet him.
"Could you move, please?" She asked politely as she slipped the leather satchel over her shoulder. She looked up at him expectantly but he didn't budge.
"I told you you're not going on some stupid suicide mission." He said.
"And I'm ignoring you. Could you move?"
"Like hell I'm moving!" He snapped.
So Santana drew one of her swords.
He stared at her, breathing heavily, nostrils flared.
"Those were a gift to your mother." He snapped.
"Yeah, well, she's not gonna use them anymore." Santana said coldly. "Somebody has to."
"No, somebody doesn't!" The farmer snapped.
Santana took a step forwards and he jerked backwards. She seized her opportunity and slipped past him into the hallway, briskly walking away towards the front door.
"Get back here! If you leave this farm I'll, I'll-"
"You'll what?" Santana snapped, turning back around and glaring at him.
"I'll disown you. You walk out that door, and you will never be able to call yourself my daughter again." He snapped, but she could tell that he was panicking. She raised her eyebrows and laughed.
"I haven't called myself your daughter in a long time." She said coldly and turned around. He reached out and grabbed her shoulder and she whipped around, sword outstretched. "Don't touch me." She snapped.
He glared at her, jaw clenched, veins in his neck bulging.
"Why are you doing this?" He asked coldly.
"Because I can." She said. "For the first time in my life, I have the chance to do something right. To help good people survive. My life here is comfortable, yeah, but it's worthless!"
"You take my horses and I'll have the authorities after you faster than you can say 'giddy up!'" He challenged. She leaned in close to him.
"Walking is good exercise." She turned away from him, stepping out the front door and onto the porch. As she descended the stairs he stopped in the doorway, yelling after her.
"You're being an idiot! You won't survive out there and I'm not going to come looking for you!" He yelled. She ignored him. "You're just some farm girl, you've got nothing to offer that world! Get your ass inside."
She stopped.
"That's what I thought." He smirked and leaned against the doorframe expectantly.
She turned around and looked at him.
"You don't have to be big..." She started. "To chase giant dreams."
She turned on her heel and walked away.
Blaine smiled and panted as he looked across at where Sam was standing crouched and bouncing back and forth from foot to foot.
"Alright, we'll do it again. Remember, don't forget about your feet when you move your arms, that'll leave you wide open to attack." He said. "Keep your wits about you, and rely on your senses. It's just as useful to hear an attack coming as it is to see it. You can sense it too! If there's a part of you that's open to attack, you can bet that the enemy will be targeting it. Watch your own back!" Sam said.
"Alright!" Blaine bit his lip excitedly and raised his arms in preparation.
Sam laughed and took off towards him, sprinting at him. As he neared, Blaine pivoted and brought his elbow around to the back of his head. Sam ducked and moved to uppercut but Blaine jumped back and then twisted, round kicking towards his side.
Sam pivoted out of the way and brought his arm around towards the side of Blaine's head, but he ducked it and tackled Sam from the side, knocking them both to the side. Sam pulled out a small stick that they were pretending was a dagger and shoved it upwards, but Blaine planted his hands on the ground in front of him and flipped over Sam's head, landing on his feet and turning back around, panting heavily.
Sam rocked backwards and sprang to his feet, pivoting around as Blaine came at him and swinging his foot to kick towards him. Blaine grabbed his ankle and Sam twisted, bringing his other foot up and swinging it towards Blaine's face.
The other boy bent backwards to avoid it, but Sam's other foot came free and he successfully managed to kick him in the chest, sending him sprawling to the ground. Sam held out his hands to catch himself and pushed back up to a standing position, turning and tackling Blaine, who lifted his hands and feet to catch Sam and throw him over his head.
Sam turned around and found the dagger-stick pressed against his heart. Blaine looked up at him, breathless and flushed, but grinning from ear to ear. Sam looked at him proudly and looked down at the empty sheath where the stick had been stored. Blaine had slipped it from his belt when he tackled him.
-Musical Cue-
-Angels and Airwaves: The Adventure-
Sam grinned at him and took the stick back.
"That was awesome!" He said happily.
"I know!" Blaine's grin looked like it might break his face. "Thank you so much Sam, I really appreciate it!"
"Anytime!" Sam waved him off and sighed, plopping down on the ground to rest. "We're going to have to work as a team if we're going to get through this." He said.
"I'm sorry I was all depressed." Blaine laughed, sitting down next to him.
Sam smiled at him. "It's okay! Just, don't keep it to yourself next time! We want to help you, you just have to ask!" He laughed, looking out at the sunrise. "We can't do this without you."
Blaine smiled softly and looked at the ground.
"We're fighters. We'll survive." He said.
Sam turned to him, nodding.
"I know."
As Santana walked, she couldn't help but smile to herself. She turned to walk backwards, just so she could watch the farm disappear into the horizon. She was doing it; she was taking hold of her own destiny.
Santana was a fighter, and a lover. She was determined, and strong, and independent. She was Santana Lopez, and she was a lot more than just the farmer's daughter.
She turned back around, striding purposefully into the sunrise as the wind whipped her hair around behind her, stepping to a beat in her head. She'd ripped her hair out of the ponytail, allowing it to be free.
She nodded to herself again, smiling with the kind of infectious drive that only freedom could bring. She could barely contain her determination, so she opened her mouth, and she started to sing.
"I wanna have the same last dream again! The one where I wake up, and I'm alive!" She grinned and looked over same shoulder at where the farmhouse had disappeared. "Just as the four walls closed me within, my eyes were opened up with pure sunlight!"
"I'm the first to know, my dearest friend!" Blaine sang, turning to Sam. "Even if your hope has burned with time, anything that's dead shall be re-grown, and your vicious pain, your warning sign. You will be fine!"
Santana turned back to the road again and smiled, lifting her chin to the wind.
"Hey oh, here I am..." She nodded. "And here we go; life's waiting to begin..."
Blaine looked over as Sam rose to his feet, slowly, methodically, smiling at the thoughts mulling about in his head, and looked out at the rising sun. Sam opened his mouth to sing.
"Any type of love it will be shown, like every single tree reach for the sky!" He turned to Blaine and grabbed his hands, pulling him to his feet. "If you're gonna fall, I'll let you know, that I will pick you up like you for I...I felt this thing, I can't replace!" He sang, letting him go and turning to look out at the horizon again, Blaine stood beside him. "Where everyone was working for this goal! Where all the children left without a trace, only to come back as pure as gold! To recite this all!"
"Hey oh, here I am..." Santana sang. "And here we go; life's waiting to begin..."
She paused and thought back to her dream with her mother.
"Tonight..." She nodded. "Hey oh here I am, and here we go, life's waiting to begin...Tonight, hey oh, here I am!" She held out her arms. "And here we go, life's waiting to begin."
"I cannot live; I can't breathe unless you do this with me!" Sam sang, turning to his friend.
"I can't breathe!" Blaine and Santana sang simultaneously.
"I cannot live; I can't breathe unless you do this with me!" Sam repeated, grinning.
"I can't breathe!" The other two sang beneath him.
"I cannot live; I can't breathe unless you do this with me!" Sam let his hand brush against his sword.
"I can't breathe!" Blaine looked at the stick in his hand.
"I cannot live; I can't breathe unless you do this with me!" Sam turned back as the sun rose higher into the sky.
"I can't breathe!" Santana's hand brushed the clasp of her leather bag; she looked up at the rising sun.
"I cannot live; I can't breathe unless you do this with me!"
"I can't breathe!"
"I cannot live; I can't breathe unless you do this with me!"
"I can't breathe!"
"Yeah oh!" Santana belted, breaking into a run. "Here I am!"
"Do this with me!" Blaine and Sam sang, turning to one another and grinning determinedly.
"Here we go, life's waiting to begin!" She grinned as her feet pounded against the dirt.
"Do this with me!" They nodded.
"Hey oh, here I am!"
"Do this with me!"
"And here we go, life's waiting to begin." Santana continued to run as the boys, far away in a different part of the land, joined her for the final line. "Life's waiting to begin."
Quinn smiled as she looked around their campsite. Four days had passed since Blaine's bad mood mysteriously disappeared, and they were gelling even better than before. They'd developed a sort of system, where each night, Rachel and Sam would prepare food and make shelter while Quinn and Blaine went out to scavenge for supplies for the next night.
They continued to sleep in shifts, but they did so in a way that put two people awake at a time, so nobody was bored, lonely or had too much time to think by themselves. Sam, the unofficial leader, always took first watch with Rachel, his equally as unofficial second-in-command, so that the other two could wind down from a hard day of travel. As the strongest, the two of them found it easy to bond with one another, and when she ignored the frantic pounding of her heart when he got too close, she found their conversations quite enjoyable.
After a while, he would turn in and she'd rouse Quinn from her sleep. The two had become best friends, and Quinn trusted Rachel with her life, even if they'd only met a month prior, and in less than ideal circumstances. They found it easy to talk, and reacted similarly to most situations.
When Rachel tired, Quinn would wake up her brother, and they'd sit and talk until the first specks of light began to spill over the horizon. Blaine and Quinn had an interesting relationship, and the tension in the air between them was almost palpable. With each day that passed they grew closer and closer and she often found herself staring at the Cupid's Rose, wondering if there was any truth to the old legend.
When Quinn retired at daybreak, Sam and Blaine would set about disassembling camp; hiding their tracks, snuffing out the fire, recollecting any goods they'd taken out, and anything else that was necessary. When that was finished, they'd wake the girls and move on.
"We're almost to Ostvale." Sam said. "We should get to the bridge by tomorrow."
"Will we get to see your hometown?" Blaine asked, popping a handful of berries in his mouth.
Quinn looked uneasy.
"I don't think that's such a good idea."
"Right, they'll probably expect you to go back, huh?" Rachel nodded, pursing her lips. "That's terrible, I'm so-"
A twig snapped.
They all froze.
Their ambush had kept them all alert, and it was getting easier and easier for them to distinguish between an animal approaching their campsite, and a fellow human. Another crack brought them all to their feet.
This was definitely a human in the woods around them.
Sam locked eyes with the others and began pointing off in various directions. One by one they melted away into the foliage and he turned, slipping through a pair of close growing trees, drawing his sword and letting it point the way.
He heard another snap and adjusted his course, heading closer to the direction that Quinn had headed off in. He crept slowly; his time in the woods had made his footfalls soft, and it wasn't long before he was almost on top of the rustling person.
He leapt out with a yell, both to frighten the attacker and alert the other three to his position, and promptly stopped short as Santana screamed.
"Fuck, what the hell are you tryin' to do to me?" She asked.
"I...what? Sorry?" He blinked in confusion. Blaine stepped into view, blinking in confusion.
"I guess I forgive you this time guppy face. So, what's goin' on?" She asked.
Quinn and Rachel appeared silently and looked on, Rachel with wonder and Quinn with blatant amusement. Santana looked from person to person before breaking down.
"Okay! I couldn't help it! I had to follow you! I know you said it's dangerous, but I'm a tough ass bitch! Nobody messes with Aunty Tana." She said. "Some people showed up on my doorstep asking about you, it was practically my duty to warn you that you were being followed!" She raised her hands as if it were the most obvious thing in the world, accidentally almost stabbing Sam in the eye with one of her swords.
"Whoa!"
"My bad..."
"Quinn..." Rachel said slowly. "Remember Violetedge...there was somebody creeping around through the ruins. What if they saw us leave?"
"We made pretty good time; we should've left them behind." Blaine said.
"But we lost a lot of time at the farm." Sam added.
"Oh yeah..." Blaine nodded, looking worried.
"Santana..." Rachel started. "It's not safe for you to join us." She looked at the farm girl sympathetically.
"I'm not afraid." She said honestly.
"What about your father?" Blaine asked.
Santana looked at Quinn.
"It's time for me to start living life for me..."
"That's easier said than done." Rachel smiled.
"You don't have to be big to chase giant dreams." Santana looked at her pointedly, and she took a startled step backwards.
Rachel looked at Quinn who smiled and shrugged, then looked at the ground, then back to Santana. She smiled.
"Welcome to our army." Quinn said finally.
The Boy On The Bridge
"There it is..." Quinn said nervously.
Falcon Bridge, which had served as a beacon of escape the first time they'd crossed it, now appeared to be little more than a harsh reality check.
The five of them wandered slowly onto the bridge, their boots clicking on the moonlit cobblestones.
"Where's your friend?" Blaine asked, looking around.
Sam crossed to one of the railings of the bridge and looked over the edge, frowning.
"I...I don't see him." He frowned.
Quinn stepped past him, eyes on the horizon where she knew Ostvale was. Her family was there, her friends. She swallowed nervously and Rachel approached her as Blaine moved to the opposite entrance of the bridge, bow drawn and eyes sharp. Santana took his cue and moved to the Ostvale-end, drawing her swords and examining the forest.
"I'm assuming that's where you came from, huh?" Rachel whispered gently.
Quinn crossed her arms and nodded, blinking back tears. She'd cried too much on this journey already.
"You'll see them again..." Rachel reassured her, rubbing her arms.
Quinn shrugged and turned away, shaking her head and looking over the other edge of the bridge at the rushing waters of the Ostvale River below.
"Maybe." She sighed.
Rachel frowned and turned away, crossing slowly to the other side of the bridge, where Sam hadn't moved.
"We need to get away from here..." She whispered. "We're too close to your home, it's upsetting Quinn."
Sam glanced over his shoulder at his friend, and then off in the distance towards Ostvale. His dream flashed back to him and his hands tightened on the railing.
"Brittney's there...she's in danger..." Without thinking he started off in that direction.
Blaine looked over his shoulder with a look of confusion as Sam started off towards the opposite side of the bridge.
"Sam stop it!" Rachel reached for his arm to pull him back, but he broke free again as Quinn turned to look at her friend with hope in her eyes. She followed after him quickly but Santana turned and blocked the exit.
"What's going on?" She asked, turning to look past them at Rachel.
"Yeah, what's happening?" Blaine asked, turning fully and jogging up to the other three.
Quinn stayed silent and continued to watch Sam hopefully. She wasn't going to be the one to suggest going home, but she wanted to more than anything!
"I have to find Brittney, she's in danger!"
"What?" Quinn whispered, stepping towards him and resting a hand on his arm.
"How do you know?" Blaine asked, but he didn't sound like he doubted him, so Sam counted that as a good sign.
"I..." He paused and turned to look at Rachel; she was the realist of their group. If anybody were to doubt him, it would be her. "I had a dream."
"A dream?" Santana asked, flashing back to her own dream, with her mother guiding her.
Sam looked at Quinn, then back at Rachel.
"It's not the first dream I've had on this journey. Early on, I had a dream of a bar being invaded, and then running through the woods. Something silver blurred through the air, and then I saw you." He said looking at Rachel. "Then there were wolves, and a scar-faced man, and a dragon."
He saw Blaine reach into his quiver and pull out one of his silver-tipped arrows, as if in realization. Sam nodded and Rachel looked between them.
"That's how you knew something bad was going to happen!" Quinn said. "You dreamt it!"
"Exactly!" Sam nodded.
"Wait, the wolves, I get, but what about the other two things? The scar-faced man and the dragon?" Santana asked. She wasn't analysing the validity of his dreams, she was analysing potential future threats. She, of all people, believed that dreams were more powerful than they seemed.
"I cut your father's face before they won..." Sam whispered to Rachel, putting two and two together.
Blaine swallowed deeply. "So I take it we haven't seen the last of him..." His eyes were cold.
"I guess not." Sam agreed. "But if all of that was true, then why would this dream be a lie! I don't know why I had them, but I-"
"I did too." Santana interrupted him.
They turned to look at her and she frowned.
"That's why I'm here..." She said, crossing from behind Sam and standing beside Quinn.
Sam nodded and turned back to Rachel.
"See? Dreams are powerful, and Brittney's one of my best friends! If she's in danger, I have to help her."
"I understand that but...the soldiers will expect you to return to Ostvale!" Rachel insisted. Blaine nodded, but they both looked torn between doing what was safe and what was right.
"Right..." Blaine said sadly. "I mean, we came here to find your friend right, and then he was supposed to help us find the way?"
"Yeah, but he's not here!" Sam let his frustrations win out. "We really needed his help!" He cried.
"Sorry! I was eating..."
Sam let out a cry of surprise and jumped forwards, whipping around and drawing his sword. He looked from side to side and saw that Santana, Blaine and Quinn all had their weapons drawn. Rachel looked ready to fist-fight if it came to it, though she hadn't drawn her daggers.
"What?" Finn raised his arms, shrugging overdramatically and giving them a cheesy smile.
"Stop doing that!" Quinn cried.
"Where did you even come from?" Blaine laughed.
"Uh..." Finn started. "Well, my mom and my-"
"Never mind!" Blaine yelled, turning and moving to the back of the group so that he could watch the opposite entrance again.
"Is this the guy?" Rachel asked.
Sam nodded. Finn looked at their group critically.
"You've grown since last time! What happened to-"
"He's dead." Sam said.
Finn nodded awkwardly, eyes wide, flickering from side to side.
"Uh...Do you know you're being followed?" He asked, as if that were a better conversation topic.
Blaine tensed near the back, preparing an arrow and examining the countryside beyond the bridge. He didn't see anybody.
"We know." Santana said.
"But how do you know?" Rachel asked him.
"I can sense it!" Finn wiggled his fingers in a gesture that was probably supposed to symbolize magic. "They're getting closer though, so we should probably get going..." He sighed, almost in disappointment.
Sam nodded and got down to business. They could address the Brittney issue when they were safe again, but for now, in such an open bottle-neck location, they had to be quick.
"We're going to fight the King-" He said.
"And you'll die, because you're not strong enough." Finn cut him off. Sam scowled.
"We know that, there are only five of us."
"Six." Finn said.
Sam paused. "Five...Quinn, Rachel, Blaine, Santana and I..."
"Six!" Finn said pointedly. "I'm gonna join you!"
"Wait, what?" Santana blinked.
"If you want to beat the King, you'll need magic!" He crouched low and wiggled his fingers again. "I'm a wizard and that's sort of...badass, you know? Right?" He asked.
"It's too dangerous. You-" Quinn started.
"Hey!" Finn cut her off. "I'm a fugitive too, okay? Calm down. I'm going to join you, mostly because, I have nothing better to do and you need me." He smiled broadly and Sam raised an eyebrow, blinking curiously.
"Wha...umm...okay?" He asked.
"Wow! It wasn't that easy for me to join!" Santana complained.
Quinn stepped forwards. "Wait, what about Marley?" She asked.
"What about Marley?" Finn asked.
"You said we weren't strong enough, what if we-"
"Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!" Finn raised his hands and pushed Quinn back to her spot beside Santana, shaking his head. "Whoa...The King knows how powerful Marley is, and he has guards on her at all times. If you want to fight your way through them you'll need more manpower."
Rachel looked at him and crossed her arms.
"Who do you have in mind?" She asked.
"There's another man we have to find, strongest dude in the kingdom! He rejected the army's proposal to join them, and he's been living in a cave ever since!" He said.
"Do you know how to find this man?" Sam asked.
"Nope!" Finn shrugged and turned away, walking off the bridge towards the Ostvale Forest. He turned back to them and glared pointedly. "Come on!"
"Wait, what?" Santana asked.
"You need weapons!"
"We have weapons..." Sam said. Rachel coughed.
Finn glared at him.
"No, you and that chick have weapons." He pointed at Santana. "The rest of you have shit."
Blaine and Quinn raised their bows and blinked curiously.
"No offense."
"So...what are you suggesting?" Sam asked.
"You're the Blacksmith's Apprentice right?" Finn asked, and then continued without waiting for an answer. "Let's go to your shop and then you can make them something good, and then I'll tell you how we can find the strongest man in the Kingdom!"
Without another word, he stalked off into the forest.
Quinn stepped up next to Sam.
"What do we do?" She asked.
He turned to look at Rachel.
"We have to..." He said.
She shook her head and started forwards.
"Fine..." She said. "I just hope we're not walking into a trap."
Finn proved to be an interesting addition to the team in the four days of travel between Falcon Bridge and Ostvale.
The five of them only travelled by night, sleeping during the day, and while Finn was quick with dimwitted and often humorous quips, he often became irritating when serious discussions began.
Blaine had nearly throttled him one day when Finn had sarcastic comments while the taller boy had been filling Santana in on their journey between her farm and her re-arrival. He'd just reached the part where he'd been knocked unconscious and Finn had begun commenting on the fact that he'd technically been incapacitated by an inanimate object.
Santana had been quick to shut him down and send him on his way, but it still took another fifteen minutes of listening to Blaine rant about their new recruit for them to move on.
In addition to his quirky sometimes-appreciated-sometimes-loathed behavior, Finn was the oldest of their group. He was also the greatest individual. Whereas the others made tight bonds almost immediately, Finn preferred to be aloof, and when things got too personal for his liking, he just turned into an asshole.
Unfortunately, nobody could piece together why Finn was the way he was...
They supposed that he would tell them when he was ready.
"Home again..." Sam whispered as the fourth night fell and he found himself staring up at the large gate that he'd hastily climbed over two months ago. Though standing before it again, it almost felt like he'd never really left.
"I'll get to see my mother again..." Quinn whispered, blinking back tears.
"No." Finn said. "We're getting weapons! And then we're getting out."
"You can't just force them to come here and refuse to let them see their families." Santana snapped. Finn glared at her; the two of them were anything but friends.
"It is safer if they don't though..." Rachel admitted. "I'm not saying no but...let's play it by ear, okay?" She asked sympathetically. Quinn bit her lip but nodded.
"Alright. So, over this fence?" Santana asked, stepping up to it. Sam nodded and she planted her foot, hastily scaling the structure. Finn was next and awkwardly clambered over.
Rachel smiled at Sam and Quinn and gestured for them to go first.
Quinn stepped up first, grabbing the gate so hard that it hurt her hand. She looked through it at the storefronts and houses that she'd grown up with. In the distance she could see the fountain where she sometimes sat.
Her house was nearby; she could practically see it from her vantage point.
Taking a deep breath she put one foot above the other. She had just made it to the top when a soldier appeared.
"You there!" He yelled.
Santana and Finn froze.
The soldier approached with a torch in hand and waved it over their faces. Blaine dove to one side of the gate, Sam and Rachel leapt to the other. Quinn froze and began to hyperventilate at the top.
"Us?" Santana smiled sweetly, trying not to show her fear.
"Yes, what do you think you're doing?" The soldier asked.
"Just, going for a walk officer!" She said.
"That's right!" Finn nodded. "Limbering up!" He proceeded to do some squats until Santana smacked him upside the head and he straightened up.
"Really? Going for a walk? After hours?" The soldier snapped.
"After hours?" Santana asked sweetly.
The soldier stared at them both.
"If you were from around here, you would know that nobody was permitted to be out and about after night. The ban has been in place for two months now, since the criminal activity perpetrated by some civilians here." The soldier snapped.
Santana pursed her lips and floundered, looking for an excuse. Eventually she settled for slapping Finn.
"Ow!" He gawked.
"I told you going for a walk was a bad idea!" She snapped.
"What the hell?" He scowled.
The soldier looked at them both doubtfully.
"You're gonna have to come with me." The soldier said, grabbing Finn's wrists and pulling them behind his back.
He whistled and two other soldiers appeared from out of the darkness. Santana backed into the gate and looked at them both. She darted to one side, then to the other, but it was to no avail. The soldiers grabbed her, spun her around and began forcing her away.
"What do we do?" Rachel hissed. "I knew this was a bad idea!"
"I don't know!" Sam swallowed nervously. "They'll be taking them to the jail!"
"Well we have to get them back..." Blaine whispered, crossing to them as the soldiers vanished into the darkness. "And it wouldn't hurt to fix up our weapons while we're here." Blaine suggested.
Sam nodded, looking up at Quinn who was looking back at them. He waved for her to climb down the other side and she nodded.
Five minutes later the four of them were crouched in the shadows within the city limits.
"What's the plan?" Quinn asked.
"We should split up." Rachel said. "Sam can go start working on the weaponry; Quinn can lead somebody to the jail. We're going to have to break them out..." She murmured.
"Looks like we're actually about to become criminals." Quinn remarked.
"I don't think it counts if we're not breaking out real criminals." Blaine said. "I'll go with Quinn." He added.
Sam nodded.
"Why?" Rachel asked.
"You don't have a solid weapon; if it comes to a fight I'll be able to protect her more easily." He said. "No offense."
"None taken, you're right." She said. "I'll go with Sam and he can make me a weapon first. I'll keep watch while he works just in case they're staking out the Blacksmith's place too."
They all nodded and silence descended upon them. They didn't want to leave, just in case either mission went south.
Sam realized yet again that it had fallen to him to be the leader, so he stood, and the others joined him.
"Good luck." He said nervously.
"You too." Quinn nodded.
Blaine turned and she followed him off into the darkness.
Sam nodded and breathed out deeply, turning and heading up the street with Rachel in tow.
Santana cried out as she was shoved to the ground inside of the Ostvale jail. She scowled and looked over her shoulder at the three soldiers who leered down at her.
"You can't just throw me in here for no reason!" She yelled, standing up and glaring at them as they slammed the door closed.
One of the guards sauntered closer to her, smiling smugly.
"Watch us." He cooed.
She scowled and swung her foot through the bars, nailing him between the legs.
Finn burst into maniacal laughter from the cell across from her as the man cried out and fell to the ground.
"Bitch!" The soldier gasped as he writhed.
The other two soldiers rushed forwards and drew their swords.
Santana scowled and backed against the wall, hands up in a defensive position. Her eyes flitted towards the table in the corner where her swords were being held.
Finn snapped his fingers and a small bolt of electricity zapped one of the soldiers in the butt. He gasped and jumped forwards, inadvertently smashing his head against the bars of Santana's cage.
He grabbed his head and staggered backwards, groaning and glaring at the boy.
"A mage..." He grumbled. "Are you registered?" He asked.
"Uh...no. Why? That's a thing?" Finn frowned and the soldiers exchanged a look with one another.
"An unregistered mage..." One of them mumbled.
"I'll go get the captain." The other said and fled the building as Santana's unfortunate victim managed to rise to his feet again, still glaring at her.
"You know what we do to mage's right?" The soldier glared at Finn.
Santana perked up. She didn't know what they did to mages. Perhaps now she'd discover why Finn was the way he was...
"Yeah, that's why I was in hiding, duh!" Finn rolled his eyes. The soldier narrowed his eyes suspiciously.
"Hiding? In Ostvale?" He asked.
"...Yes." Finn lied unconvincingly. Santana sighed, slumped down on the bench and buried her face in her hands. The jig was up, they'd been caught.
"I knew it! Where did you come from? Why are you in Ostvale?"
"We were just passing through!" Finn tried to save the situation.
"And you happened to scale the fence?"
"Fuck. We're running from the King." Santana swore and rose to her feat. "We don't like the way he's ruling things, so we're trying to get out of the Kingdom, but we ran out of supplies, so we were going to pillage from some fucking storefronts here." She said.
"What she said!" Finn nodded.
The soldiers grinned at one another and then one of them hurried away, insisting that the captain be informed.
"Your days are numbered kids..." The other soldier grinned and sat down at the desk next to Santana's swords, fingering the keys on his belt. "And that number is one."
A Father's Redemption
"This way..." Quinn whispered, creeping through an alley behind Brittney's father's store. She looked up at one of the windows of the house and pursed her lips. She wondered if Brittney was still living with her mother, or if she'd returned home after Quinn was forced to flee.
Blaine crept around the corner, bow drawn, running fleetly. Their experiences with the Imperial Soldiers thus far were not promising, and they were concerned for the safety of their companions.
"Wait!" Blaine hissed as Quinn turned another corner.
She gasped as she came face to face with a soldier.
"You there!" The soldier boomed. "What are you doing in the..."
He trailed off as he approached.
"You're the girl!" He yelled excitedly. "Hey! Hey!" He began to scream as loudly as he could. Quinn whipped her bow over her shoulders and shot an arrow at the man, silencing his cries.
Blaine swore and rushed into the area where she was, shooting off another arrow at a man who had turned a corner behind Quinn. He didn't stick around long enough to watch the man fall.
The two of them attempted to run the other way, but four other soldiers appeared, blocking their way. They turned back the other way, only to find even more enemies in their path.
"They're everywhere!" Blaine yelled as soldiers began to converge on their location.
"We can't take them all!" Quinn cried.
Quinn and Blaine held hands as they were backed into the stone wall of Ostvale's city limits.
Sam gawked at the ransacked remains of Bruce's shop.
The soldiers had torn the place apart looking for him, and there wasn't a surface in sight that wasn't completely destroyed. There was metal and glass littering the floor, and the tables had been turned to splinters.
Rachel's steps echoed in the demolished room as she came up beside him. She took his hand and brought her other hand to her mouth as she looked around at the destruction. For some reason, seeing the lone room so gutted was even more heartbreaking than the burned remains of Violetedge.
This was personal.
This was an army looking to do more than just kill a man; they were looking to rip him apart, piece by piece.
Sam didn't speak as he brushed his hands along the stone benches that had managed to withstand the abuse, and he looked at the fire place that looked like it had bore the brunt of the attack.
"Destroyed..." Sam whispered, looking around. Bruce was dead...and so was his business. It was as if the Imperial Army was determined to snuff out any and all remains of the fugitives. They truly wanted them incinerated; this was the army trying to make of them an example.
"Tragic, isn't it?" An unfamiliar voice echoed in the gutted room.
Sam and Rachel jumped in surprise; neither had heard the approach of another person. Sam shoved Rachel behind him and drew his sword, pointing it at a shadowy corner where the voice had come from.
Slowly, a worn looking old woman stepped out from the darkness, scars raking down her cheek and a permanent half-frown to her face from another jagged wound. She stared at them both challengingly before she noticed the blade itself.
"Bruce's sword..." The old woman whispered.
Sam looked from the sword to the woman and paused, flashing back to that night on a hilltop just outside of Ostvale long ago.
Bruce was sitting on the hill, looking back towards town.
"I have a wife, you know..." Bruce said, not taking his eyes off of Ostvale. "And two kids; a boy and a girl."
"You're Bruce's wife..." Sam realized, stepping forwards and lowering his weapon.
"And you his apprentice..." The woman looked at him, tears in her eyes, but refusing to show sadness on her face.
"Yes." Sam nodded.
They all turned as the sound of footsteps approached. The woman turned back to Rachel and Sam and waved them over to her hastily.
"Follow me!" She said, turning and shoving against an old stone bench. It slid out of the way and revealed a staircase that descended underground. "Bruce created this in case the town was ever overtaken...I always called him paranoid for keeping those adventuring instincts..." She mumbled and then rushed down them, Rachel and Sam right behind her.
As soon as he was through, he reached back and pulled the bench back into place. Seconds later a soldier entered. He looked around the room and analyzed one of the stone benches. He peered at the streaks in the coat of dust and then rushed out of the room again.
Quinn ducked as a soldier lunged at her, narrowly cutting her back. She cried out as he flipped over her and landed on the ground behind her. She kicked him in the temple and he blacked out as she turned and drew her bow on another soldier that was approached.
He swung his sword and snapped her bow string before she could shoot.
Quinn swore and backed up; she looked to the side just as Blaine was thrown past her and into the wall of a nearby building. His head hit the wall and he stumbled away from it, dazed.
"Kid! Duck!" A new voice yelled and he blindly did so. A blade swept over his head and he gasped, tumbling backwards. The soldier leapt at him and Blaine caught him with his legs, flipping him backwards into the wall and then rolling out of the way as the soldier came crashing down where he'd landed initially.
Blaine jumped to his feet and looked at the house that he'd crashed into. A dark haired middle-aged man had stepped out onto his porch. The man was wielding a butcher's knife and looked willing to use it.
"Quinn!" The man yelled.
Quinn looked up and gasped as she recognized Brittney's father.
"Mr. Pierce?" She asked.
His eyes widened and he stepped forwards, throwing his butcher's knife. It caught the soldier that was attacking her in the side of the head and he hit the ground hard.
"This way! Hurry!" He yelled.
Blaine rushed forwards and vaulted the porch, turning and drawing his bow.
Quinn rushed forwards but screamed as another soldier stepped in the way. Blaine didn't hesitate to shoot him and Quinn pivoted around him as he fell to the ground.
She leapt up the stairs and in the door, Blaine following closely behind. Brittney's father slammed the door closed and jammed a heavy piece of wood through the handle and against the wall, keeping the soldiers from following them.
"That won't hold them for long." Brittney's father remarked, ushering Blaine and Quinn towards the front of the house. "What are you doing back in Ostvale? Are you crazy?"
"We were nearby, we needed weapons." Quinn explained hastily. "We wanted to see Brittney again too..."
"Well she's not here, and I don't have any weapons." Mr. Pierce continued. "Where's Sam?"
"Sam's off making the weapons." Quinn said.
"He'll find that difficult, the Blacksmith's place has been destroyed. Why aren't you with him?"
"We'd barely taken two steps into the city when some friends of ours were captured. We're trying to free them." Quinn said.
Brittney's father grabbed his jacket from a hook and ushered them towards a side-door that led into another alley.
"Alright, well we'd better hurry than haven't we?"
"What do you mean?" Quinn asked.
"I made the mistake of letting my girl go, I was a bitter person and I've got a hell of a lot of repenting to do."
"So you're the mage..." The captain drawled.
Admittedly he wasn't nearly as intimidating to Finn as Coal and his niece had been. The captain was strong, that was clear, and he didn't take anything from anybody, but he was still fairly far down on the Imperial chain of command.
"You bet your ass I am." Finn said in what he referred to as his 'badass, inspiring leader voice'. Santana gave him an annoyed look from her cell.
"Well than we'll have to kill you." The man shrugged and Finn narrowed his gaze.
"How do you know you can?" He said.
The captain turned to look at him smugly.
"There is one magical being in this Kingdom that we haven't managed to kill, and the only reason we haven't killed her is because she's hiding in that little world of hers. We chased her into that tower, and there will be soldiers waiting for her to emerge when she inevitably does, you're here, however, and we managed to arrest you, so I'm going to go out on a limb and say that you'll be far easier to dispose of."
"Why are you killing mages?" Santana asked standing up off of the bench where she was seated in her cell.
The captain turned to glare at her.
"Was I talking to you?"
"Do I look like I care?" She asked back. Santana was not afraid of what was to come. She only wished her adventure could've gone on a little bit longer.
"You'd do well to hold your tongue in the presence of a superior." The captain snapped, drawing his sword.
"I'll keep that in mind for when I meet somebody superior to me." Santana tossed her hair and inspected her nails.
"That's it." The captain spat, holding his hand out towards one of the three soldiers accompanying him. One of them hastily deposited the keys in his hand.
He stepped forwards and smashed it into the lock, opening the door.
Santana backed into one of the corners, fully prepared to fight her way out as the three soldiers entered to apprehend her.
One of them lunged forwards and Santana's fist connected with his face, he stumbled backwards as the other two rushed her. She kicked one in the gut and then ducked, knocking the legs out from under the other.
She rushed towards the door but one of the men grabbed her ankle and pulled her to the ground. She caught herself and kicked him in the face, crab-walking backwards. The first soldier stepped on her stomach and forced her into the ground and she gasped as he dug his boot into her, hard.
She grabbed his ankle and pushed him up and off balance, reaching out to push his other leg and shove him into another wall. She managed to scramble to her knees and exited the cell before the captain stepped up behind her and grabbed her hair, pulling her head back.
He pressed his sword against her throat.
"You've got spirit girl..." He growled in her ear. "It's a shame you picked the wrong side to use it for. This isn't a fairytale little one, this is war, and it's power that wins a war. Power that you don't possess."
"Fuck you." Santana spat, panting heavily. The man laughed.
"You won't be missed. Any last words?" He asked.
"I already said them." She said coldly and closed her eyes.
"Yeah, fuck you." Blaine said and let his arrow fly.
It struck true and Santana gasped as the blade clambered to the ground in front of her.
"Didn't you hear her?" He smirked, lowering his weapon.
Santana looked up to find Quinn, Blaine and a light-haired man stepping into the jail.
"Dude that was so badass..." Finn gawked.
The three soldiers rushed out of the cell and drew their weapons on the three intruders as Santana clambered backwards, leaping for her short-swords.
One of the soldiers rushed for a rope in the corner of the room.
"Stop him!" The unfamiliar man yelled.
Blaine hastily fired an arrow at him, but he ducked and continued on, leaping and bashing the rope. They all froze as the loud chime of a bell echoed throughout the city.
Rachel smiled at the little boy that sat across from her, happily smashing oatmeal into his mouth. He was so innocent! It was refreshing. His older sister scowled at him as he covered his face with food.
"I'm sorry about your husband." Sam said.
Breaking the news had been hard for them, but the old woman was strong, and she seemed to have accepted the inevitable long ago. She was surprised that there were as many survivors as there were.
"I'm sorry about your friends." She said.
"We'll get them back." Sam nodded.
"Your faith is remarkable." The woman said passively.
"But how will we get weaponry now?" Rachel asked.
Sam frowned and shrugged.
"I may be able to help you there. Follow me." She meandered off down a hallway and Rachel and Sam followed unquestioningly. She led them to a door at the end and pulled a key out of the pocket of her dress, slipping it in and turning it sharply.
They stepped through into a veritably armory.
"Oh my..." Rachel gasped, looking around at the cornucopia of weaponry around them. Her fingers brushed over the shafts of spears and war hammers that lined one wall. She looked opposite it to find bows and daggers of all shapes and sizes. The other two walls were filled to the brim with swords; long-swords, short-swords, great-swords, half-swords. It was breathtaking.
"Tell me about your friends." She said. "What do they use? How large or small are they?"
Sam paused and gawked.
"Umm, well...Quinn is about 5'6'', and light. She's kind of a delicate person, but she's stronger than she looks." He said. The woman pondered this for a while before crossing and picking up a short, red bow that curved
"A short bow, three feet long made of cherry strung with horse hair. This is a very difficult bow to shoot, and she'll have to practice with it, but once she's adept, she'll rarely hit without a true kill." She handed it to Sam who slipped it over his back.
The old woman walked back and picked up a blue velvet quiver with black trim filled with cherry arrows with silver metal tips. She handed it to him before returning.
"And who else?"
"Blaine is taller than Quinn, he's thin, but fit. He's been living in the woods for a decade so he's well versed in using a bow already." Rachel said.
"A specialized long-bow then." The woman said, plucking a golden bow off of the wall and walking it over to them. "Four feet long, shorter than most long-bows, longer than most short-bows. Lots of kick when you shoot it, he'll have to practice."
She returned to select a golden quiver with white trim, filled with gold and silver arrows, bringing it over and handing it to Rachel, who thanked her.
"Finn's a mage, and Santana has two short-swords already." Rachel said. "Then there's me."
The woman walked over to one wall and plucked a black-hilted dagger, then moved over to the swords and eagerly plucked two sharp looking half-swords. She handed them and their hilts to Sam before walking Rachel over to a wall of spears.
"I kind of want a sword actually..." She admitted.
"I have just the one!" She rushed over to the wall and grabbed the hilt of a greenish-silver looking sword. She walked it over to her and she noticed the snake-like patterns curling up the hilt. "This sword was passed down through generations; it's imbued with an energy that is said to warn of impending danger! It'll vibrate at your side when danger is near, use it well!"
"Thank you." Rachel said as the old woman ushered them back out into her main room where her two children had taken to throwing food at one another. She turned to reprimand them just as the bell sounded across town.
"Go! Your friends are in trouble! To the police station, hurry!" She practically shoved them back into the tunnel but caught Sam's arm first. "Honour my husband's death." She said.
"I will."
"Good." She let him go. "Now go!"
Santana grabbed her swords and took care of the soldier who had rung the bell before turning and dropping to her knees, grabbing the keys from the captain's body. She set Finn free as quickly as she could and the remaining two soldiers stood back to back, one facing Blaine, Quinn and Brittney's father, and the other staring down Santana and Finn.
"You're outnumbered. Let them go." Brittney's father stepped forwards and the soldier glared at him.
"We won't be outnumbered for long." One of the soldiers said.
"They're just kids."
"Fugitive kids. They're wanted!" The soldier snapped. Brittney's father opened his mouth to speak again, taking another step forwards so that he was practically standing on the dead captain. The soldier cut him off. "Look, we don't care old man! They mean nothing to us, if they die, we get paid, and that's all I care about."
"Pity." Brittney's father remarked.
He stomped on the ground and the captain's sword flew into the air. He caught it and lunged forwards, startling the soldier so that he fell backwards, bumping his friend.
Santana and Finn dove forwards and passed by them, narrowly avoiding a hasty sweep by one of the soldier's swords. The soldiers ran to intercept them but Brittney's father stepped in the way.
"Kids, get going!" He yelled over his shoulder. "You don't have much time!"
"What?" Quinn yelled. "No! You come too!"
"If you get away now, they won't know which way you've gone! If I let these two goons chase after us, they'll have a clear direction to follow! Hurry, and if you see my Brittney again...tell her I love her, and I'm sorry." He said.
Quinn looked like she was going to protest, but Finn grabbed her arms and threw her out the door.
"Come on!" Santana gestured to a nearby alleyway. She took off into it and Blaine gestured frantically for Finn and Quinn to follow her before bringing up the rear and pointing his bow behind them. He and Santana were the only ones still armed, and he had a hunch that Finn's little zaps wouldn't suffice if it came to a full on battle.
Santana screamed as a soldier jumped out in front of her. She ducked and he tripped over her, into Quinn, who shoved him backwards just as Santana pivoted and stabbed him with her sword. Finn grabbed him and shoved him off to the side and they continued running.
Blaine gritted his teeth as two more soldiers followed after them. He dispatched one with an arrow, but when he reached back for another arrow, he found his last one waiting for him. He stared at it nervously, but fired it anyways.
"I'm out of arrows!" He yelled out, slinging his bow back over his shoulder.
"Fuck." Santana swore.
They sprinted until their lungs felt like they would burst, but they seemed to be losing the soldiers. Quinn stopped short suddenly when she realized where they were. She turned to the right and stared at the back door to the bakery.
"Quinn?" Santana paused from further ahead.
"Come on!" Finn shoved her and she bit her lip, staring at the door.
"What is it?" Blaine asked as he reached them.
"This is my home..." She whispered.
"We don't have time!" Finn shoved her again but Blaine stepped between them.
"Go find Sam and Rachel...We can't bring her this close, and then make her leave again."
"But-" Finn started.
"Alright." Santana interrupted him, grabbing his arm and dragging him away. "Be careful!"
"We will be!" Blaine yelled back. He turned back to Quinn who looked like she was about to cry. "I know it's hard, but we can't spend forever here, alright?" He asked.
"Thank you." She whispered and wrapped him up in a tight hug. He smiled and hugged her back.
"Don't worry about it." He smiled and then turned, shoving her towards the door as the heavy Imperial footfalls approached.
Santana and Finn stepped through into the ruined Blacksmith's shop, trying to stick to the shadows and looking around in awe.
"Are you sure this is the right place?" Santana asked.
"They're nearby, I can sense them." Finn said.
"Maybe your senses are wrong." She snapped.
They both paused at the sound of footsteps behind them. Slowly they turned to stare at a small army of soldiers.
"Fuck."
Quinn gently pushed the door, letting it swing inwards. Her house was dark, and absent of the normal scent of flour and cinnamon that usually permeated the air.
She crept further into the house and Blaine entered behind her, closing the door as quietly as he could. He moved to the window and peered through the drapes, watching as several soldiers rushed past.
"All of Ostvale is crawling with soldiers..." Blaine frowned, eyes fixed on the glass. "We should never have split up..."
"You were the one who said I could come here." Quinn protested, turning around and looking hurt. Blaine turned and caught her eyes and hastily shook his head.
"No! No! I don't mean-" He paused and took several steps towards her. "I do not regret bringing you here. It may not be the safest option, but it was the right one."
While that didn't appear to be the answer Quinn had been looking for, it satisfied her, and she turned away again, only mildly concerned.
"You know, for a bakery, there are very little supplies..." Blaine said.
Quinn turned once again in confusion and followed his gaze to where a wall of cabinets had been left open, and empty. Spider-webs clung to several corners of the room, and there was a thick coat of dirt over everything.
"Something must be wrong..." Quinn realized.
"Quinn..." Blaine said slowly, approaching her.
"Mom?" She screamed. "Mom?"
She turned and sprinted for the stairs. Despite her shorter stature, she took them three at a time and whipped around the banister. She ran to her mother's bedroom door, which stood part of the way open, and froze.
Slowly, she reached out a hand, and pushed it inwards.
Santana swung her swords as quickly as she could, a blur of instincts and weaponry. There were at least a dozen soldiers after them, but everywhere they turned, another soldier seemed to be waiting to block their attack.
Santana gritted her teeth and kicked one soldier backwards, and then stabbed one sword into him. The soldier fell back, but another soldier swung his sword at her, causing her to fall backwards onto the ground, dropping the sword she'd been using.
The soldier stabbed down at her but she hastily rolled out of the way and jumped to her feet, running past the ruined furnace.
"Finn!" She yelled. "Do something!"
"I'm trying!" Finn yelled back, zapping one soldier and then another. His magic was weak, however, and it did little more than irritate them. He was starting to hyperventilate as four swordsmen backed him into a corner of the ruined Blacksmith's Shop.
One of the soldiers lunged at him with his sword and Finn contorted out of the way and then turned back around, grabbing the blade and pulling it from the man's grasp to throw back across the room.
He paused.
"Ouch!" He whined, looking at his hands where he'd cut himself.
The unarmed soldier scowled and went to retrieve his weapon as Santana was backed into another corner.
"I blame you for this Finn!" She yelled.
"Oh sure!" He snapped back. "Blame the new guy!"
"We were fine before your stupid idea!" She growled.
The unarmed soldier shook his head and reached down for his sword. He froze as a boot stepped on the blade, and looked up at where Rachel stood, new sword in hand, buzzing softly.
"Hello." She nodded.
The other soldiers turned with a start as their companion let out a strangled cry and fell to the ground, dead.
Rachel withdrew her sword and glared at the other men, who paused, and then laughed.
"A girl?" One of the soldiers asked. "Seriously?"
"Can't you guys get any real backup?" Another laughed. "Like, a guy!"
"Hey!" Santana frowned. "I'm a girl, and I was kicking your asses!"
"Please, we just didn't want to make you feel bad." Another soldier chuckled. "But I'm tired of the cat and mouse game. I'm not afraid to hit a girl."
Rachel pursed her lips and placed her hands on her hips.
"You think you can take me on?" She asked and then leaned in towards them. "Bring it."
Four of the soldiers peeled off, leaving three on Finn, and five on Santana.
Rachel didn't bat an eye as they approached; in fact, she sheathed her weapon and took a few steps backwards.
"You admitting defeat already?" One of the soldiers laughed as they approached her.
"No." Sam said, popping up from behind a bench behind them. "You are."
Sam stabbed one of the soldiers immediately and then kicked him off of his blade, ducking and raising his sword to parry another blow. He twisted the blade, and that soldier's sword flew across the room. He lunged for it, but Sam twisted and elbowed him in the face, causing him to stagger, dazed, before another soldier shoved him out of the way and into a wall where he crumpled, unconscious.
It was quick work for Rachel to incapacitate one of the other soldiers when he turned to face Sam, but the other proved to be a far greater adversary. He turned back around and swiped his sword at her, forcing her into a backbend. She carried on into a handspring and kicked him in the face, causing him to stagger backwards, and then she lunged with her sword.
The soldier smacked her wrist with the hilt of his sword, causing her to drop her weapon, and then swiped at her again. She jumped backwards and then tilted forwards, cart-wheeling and grabbing her sword in the process. She popped back up and stabbed her adversary in the stomach.
Meanwhile, Santana spotted an opening. When the soldiers were distracted, she easily managed to incapacitate two. One more split off to chase after Sam, and the other two turned back to face her.
Santana ducked one of the blades that came her way and parried the other, pushing against it and using her momentum to spin around and swipe at the neck of one of the soldiers. He ducked and swiped at Santana's feet but she jumped it and landed on his shoulders, kicking him onto his back.
Santana jumped at him, half-sword outstretched, but he rolled out of the way and Santana ended up having to combat roll back to her feet, pivoting and raising her sword to parry an attempted cheap shot at her back. She broke the connection and kicked the man back, into his partner's sword.
"Bitch!" The living soldier said, dropping his weapon and his friend.
"What else is new?" Santana snapped back.
The soldier balled his fists and growled at her.
"It's time somebody showed you women your place." He snapped.
He ran at her and Santana ducked his punch, shouldering him in the gut and shoving him up against a wall. He gasped as he hit it and bent over double, falling to his knees. Santana sighed and kicked him once for good measure as he blacked out.
"Estrogen-1, Douchebaggery-0"
Sam had managed to take out the other two soldiers that had attacked Rachel and him, and now only one soldier remained, standing near Finn and looking around at the other three heroes.
"I...uh..." The soldier stammered.
He sprinted out the door.
"Yeah, you better run!" Finn waved his fist triumphantly.
"Where are the others?" Sam asked, concerned.
"They're at Quinn's house..." Santana admitted guiltily.
"What?" Rachel cried, stepping forwards.
"We don't have time to wait for them!" Finn protested. "Soldiers are everywhere; we have to get out of Ostvale."
"We can't just leave them here." Sam protested vehemently.
"No, no, you see, we can. You just don't want to." Finn protested.
"Whatever we do, we can't stay here." Rachel said. "We need to get out of town Sam, it isn't safe. We'll get to the gates and wait there if we can. At least then we'll have an easy exit."
Sam frowned. He didn't like the idea, but she was right, and he hated it.
"Fine."
Quinn put a hand to her mouth as she looked at her mother's bed. She felt tears well up in her eyes as they rested upon the figure there. Blaine walked up behind her and took her hand, squeezing it supportively.
"Quinn...?" Her mother whispered sleepily, sitting up and squinting at her.
Quinn's mother's hair was in utter disarray, and her room was just as messy as the rest of the house, but she was alive, and that was all that Quinn cared about.
"Hi mom..." She whispered, feeling very choked up. She hadn't realized just how much she missed her mother, until she was sitting before her. The worst part was that Blaine's presence acted as a constant reminder to her that time was limited.
"Oh Quinn! Oh my baby!" Quinn's mother wailed, practically leaping out of the bed and grabbing her, kissing her head and holding her so tightly that she could barely breathe. "I was so worried! I couldn't eat, I couldn't sleep! Oh my goodness! Oh my baby!"
"I missed you too Mom." Quinn smiled and Blaine stepped back to allow the two of them their private moment, silently wishing that he had somebody to hold him like that. "Mom?"
"Yes?"
"What happened to the bakery?"
Her mother fell silent.
"I couldn't find the strength to carry on. All the prying eyes, they either pitied me or they hated me out there, I couldn't take the constant reminder that you could be dead..." She whispered. "I'll get back into the swing of things now that you're back though!"
Blaine coughed uncomfortably.
"Actually Mom...I...I can't stay here for very long. We came back to get supplies but...the soldiers found us, they'll search here soon enough, we have to get out of Ostvale."
Her mother pursed her lips and shook her head, as if trying to clear the mist that had descended upon her.
"Of course, you're right. It's just been so long, I was being silly." She nodded.
"I'll make things right, and I'll be back someday, and we can just go about our lives." Quinn nodded earnestly.
"You can't promise that you'll be back. I know that, I'm old but I'm not stupid." She smiled softly.
"Then I promise." Blaine piped up.
She blinked and looked at him, as if noticing him for the first time.
"You?"
"This is Blaine Anderson." Quinn introduced him.
"I'll watch Quinn for you. I promise." He said. "I can't promise that either of us will make it back, but if there's anything I can do, I will!"
Quinn's mother held a hand to her heart and her eyes watered. She opened her mouth to speak but then closed it, at a loss for words.
"We all will. Me and Santana, Sam, Rachel, maybe even Finn." Blaine nodded earnestly.
"...You always did know how to pick your friends Quinn." Her mother smiled at her daughter and wrapped her up in another hug.
"Right!" Quinn realized suddenly, pulling back. "Mom, where's Brittney?"
She ran from the bedroom, down the hallway, past her old bedroom and into the spare room. She burst in with a great show of excitement and paused when she saw the empty bed. Her mother stepped slowly in after her.
"Honey..." She started. "Brittney was taken by the soldiers a long time ago..."
Quinn stopped breathing.
"What?" She asked.
"They broke in and arrested her for aiding a fugitive...She was sentenced to death."
"She...she what?" Quinn whispered.
Blaine burst into the room suddenly.
"Quinn, there are soldiers at the door! We have to go!" He grabbed her arm and pulled her down the stairs, Quinn's mother racing after them. They all gave the door a fleeting look as the soldiers pounded against it again.
"Be careful!" Quinn's mother insisted, shoving them out the backdoor, she reached out and grabbed Blaine's arm. "Take care of my baby girl."
"I'll try." He said.
"I believe you." She nodded. "Now go!"
Quinn and Blaine didn't pause as they raced away into the darkness.
"We don't have time for this!" Finn paced impatiently behind the fence. He'd already scaled it and was preparing to flee.
"We only just got here." Santana sighed from the other side.
"They'll be here." Rachel insisted, peering into the darkness.
"How do you know?" Finn asked.
"I just know!" She scowled.
"There!" Sam cried, pointing down a partially concealed alleyway where two figures were swiftly approaching.
"Sam!" Quinn called, sprinting the last few steps and practically vaulting into his arms.
"Thank God!" Sam whispered as Blaine jogged to a stop behind her. "Hurry, over the fence!" He insisted.
She nodded and leapt onto it, scaling it as quickly as she could, the other four vaulting along after her.
"How was Brittney?" Sam asked as they reached the other side.
Quinn frowned and looked off into the woods.
"She's..."
"She was arrested." Blaine said, saving her from having to choke out an explanation.
"She...what?"
"And...her father was killed." He continued. "Saving us from the soldiers. I saw it happen just before I turned the corner..."
"I'm sorry..." Quinn whispered. "It was my fault."
"It was not!" Santana protested.
"...How could this happen?" Sam whispered.
Wordlessly, Rachel wrapped him in a sympathetic embrace. Quinn joined in immediately, and Blaine and Santana were quick to follow. Finn looked awkwardly from the huddle to the gates and then back again.
He circled around, and began to push them all, in huddle form, further into the woods.
"That's nice, but we're going to die if we stay here so hurry up!"
They all separated and walked off, disappearing one by one into the forest.
Sam and Quinn paused and looked back towards Ostvale one last time, and all Sam could think...was that he hadn't gotten to see his mother's smiling face one last time.
Brittney is in Imperial hands? Coupling that with Sam's vision of blood and broken glass and her future doesn't seem all that certain anymore, but sometimes that's what friends have to do for one another. With this shocking realization under their belt, how will Quinn and Sam cope?
In the next chapter, the team are forced to trek into a new environment that nobody is used to. Rachel begins to entertain the feelings that have been sparking up over Sam, and Santana and Quinn won't let her brush them aside. Finn has to make a tough decision between helping his new friends and facing a foe from his past, and when that face appears, the entire group is threatened, and somebody doesn't make it out alive. With a new town on the horizon, Sam finds a new world in his dreams, and the group may just find out why Finn is the way he is.
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