Chapter 27: Getaway

"Quiet!" Kel whispered to her squire, who had just cursed after stubbing her toe on a tent pole.

Adalia was massaging her toe, but she stopped to glare at her knight master, "Oh, I'm so sorry that my agonising pain is inconveniencing you."

Kel just rolled her eyes at the theatrics of Adalia and finished fixing her bag to Peachblossom's saddle.

Adalia gave Kel one last glare and then jumped onto Anika. Sora was prancing in excitement. Adalia didn't share her warhorse's opinion. It was three hours after midnight when Kel had swept into her tent and ordered her to wake up and be quiet.

Charlie was disgustingly awake; it seemed that his knight master had kept him up by pacing and watching everyone go to sleep. He was treating it like some stupid spy mission, as was Kel. Adalia seemed to be the only one in the group of four who thought it was stupid to go at this ungodly hour; it wasn't as if Jon would stop them after he had promised to let them go, but it seemed Raoul wanted to take no chances.

Raoul was in the lead on Drum, with Kel close behind. Adalia was plodding along after Kel, and Charlie was at the rear. As they left the crowded grounds that all the knights were camping in, Raoul let out a sigh of relief.

Adalia was struck with inspiration and unlatched a length of rope that was attached to Anika's saddle. After telling Anika what she was going to do, she started tying herself to the saddle.

She was almost done when she noticed that Raoul, Kel and Charlie were staring at her with their eyebrows raised. She grinned impishly and said, "You may all be insane, but I am going to catch up on some sleep." When she was satisfied that the ropes would keep her in the saddle, she lied down, cuddling against Anika's warm neck and promptly fell asleep.

"Fine then." Kel said, shaking her head.

Kel shrugged when Raoul turned to her for an explanation, "She does this kind of thing more often than you'd think."

Raoul took one more look at Adalia, with her black hair hanging over her serene face. He chuckled as he saw Anika looking out for low hanging braches, and taking care to walk so that the girl was jostled as little as possible.

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Raoul didn't let them stop until midday, at which time three of them were thoroughly exhausted. He led Kel and Charlie into a clearing. "I don't know about you, but I think it's about time we slept."

"Finally!" Kel said, having abandoned her mask due to exhaustion. "We could have stopped hours ago, Oh Paranoid One." Raoul ignored this.

Charlie just pulled out his bedroll and fell asleep on the spot, not bothering with the talk of the knights.

Raoul grinned, "There is one thing we need. A look out."

Kel watched as Raoul went over to Anika, who still held a sleeping Adalia. For the last couple of hours they had all decided that she had the right idea, and had tried to wake her up, if only because they were jealous. The problem was that she did not wake, and none of them could muster the energy required to go and shake her awake.

Raoul was right next to her ear when he bellowed, "WAKE UP!"

Adalia started and would have fallen off had she not been tied in the saddle. Charlie only turned over in his bedroll as Adalia grinned happily at the knight, "That was the best sleep I've had in ages."

"Its midday." Raoul said, annoyed.

"I can see that." Adalia used a trick to slip her hands out of the ropes, and then used them to undo her legs. She gave Anika a pat when she landed on the ground, and then stretched some kinks out of her back.

Kel was dragging out her bedroll, which she plonked down a few metres away from Charlie's. "You get to be look out. Wake us up for dinner."

Raoul had already plonked down on the grass; he didn't even bother with a bedroll before he began snoring.

"Well guys, it seems that we have some free time." Adalia said cheerfully to the horses gathered. She unsaddled and brushed them, and then asked them not to go too far away.

Next she took time to stretch, and then started practising, first without weapons, and then she moved on to the sword, glaive and finally using daggers; practising releasing them from their sheaths, just to make sure that they could all be accessed quickly.

Glancing at the sun, she decided it was time to make dinner.

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After travelling for three days, they caught up with Third Company of the Own. There were many wolf whistles as Kel flung herself into Dom's arms, and kissed him. Adalia was amused as she watched Charlie turn red. It was extremely discomforting for him to see his parents act like teenagers, but Adalia thought it was sweet that they still loved each other so much. Not many people could say that after almost seventeen years of marriage.

Third Company was actually going to a distress call from a nearby village that was being accosted by spidrens. Kel's sparrows discovered their hidey-hole and the men of Third Company soon cleaned it out, managing to rescue a child who had recently been taken.

By the time the hunt was done, it was getting much colder. Midwinter was only a few weeks away. Kel and Adalia decided to travell back to the palace with Third Company, which had been out longer than originally planned, and deserved a break, in Raoul's opinion.

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After a week of travelling, they were finally only a day away from Corus when they set up camp near a freezing cold river. Adalia, Charlie and Dameon were stuck cleaning dishes with a few of the men. Dameon and his knight master, Esmond of Nicoline, had joined them when they passed Trebond.

"I think I get stuck cleaning dishes every time." Adalia said irately, scrubbing off an unidentifiable glob of something that looked like it was once edible.

"If you had been nicer to the guy who assigns tasks, then I'd bet you would get a better job." Charlie pointed out conversationally.

She raised an eyebrow at him, "What have I done that is overly mean to him? Just cos he's a cry baby doesn't mean I'll let him win."

Charlie examined his friend, "You could have been a bit nicer about it. You didn't have to beat him in three seconds flat. Gods, you usually let them last for a few minutes before winning."

Adalia snorted and laughed, "I told you. I didn't mean to beat him that fast. I moved really slowly and he was just a much worse swordsman than I thought. Also I was really bored. I don't appreciate those people who wait till I've fought at least twelve men until they jump in and chance a match to see if they can win."

Dameon was examining a newly finished plate, and he was very wary of the fact that this sounded like the beginnings of an argument that would likely set off Adalia's short temper. To divert this explosion he said, "There's no point arguing about what has already happened."

Adalia sighed and brushed some stray black hair out of her eyes. "Yeah, yeah, yeah." With this, Adalia finished her pile of plates. "See ya later guys."

They gave her scathing looks as she wandered back into camp. "Why is she always first finished?" Charlie asked, annoyed.

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As Adalia walked into camp, Kel approached her. "Come on, squire. I think it's time for a spar."

Adalia whooped in delight and, quick as a flash, drew her sword. The Own men that had nothing to do quickly formed a circle, cheering them on. No one bothered to place bets, as all had seen Adalia's skill with the sword, not to mention various other weapons, and respected her for it. This was just entertainment, as none of them had ever seen the Lady Knight beaten so much by someone, and so repetitively.

"Go Kel!" yelled Dom from the sidelines.

"Go Adalia!" this was Charlie, who was now next to his father.

Kel glared mockingly at him, "You are my son. You should be cheering for me!"

"I don't want to be associated with the losing side!" Charlie retorted. Adalia was laughing at these antics, and Kel took this chance to lunge at her.

Adalia parried and slipped away from the attack. Kel was mightily strong, just like any other knight, but Adalia could easily match and beat her. Adalia switched hands and, fast as lightning, slipped inside Kel's guard, pressing her blade to the knight's throat for a second.

Just as quickly, Adalia jumped away to be in a guard position. The soldiers cheered this, and watched as Kel began a series of chopping blows aimed at limiting her to defence. Each time Adalia blocked, a loud clang could be heard throughout the opening, attesting to the strength of each blow.

Adalia kept Kel turning, every now and then dealing out a blow of her own, although she mostly kept to the defensive. It was a spectacular fight that way, Adalia wearing down the experienced knight. It meant that she got much more practise, and Kel was among the best.

A full twenty minutes after the start of the fight, Adalia took mercy on Kel and yanked Griffin out of her hand, sending it soaring up in the air. Kel was breathing hard, "Thankyou! Gods I thought that would never end."

The men were watching the sword, which was still in the air. Adalia stepped a little to the left and plucked the sword safely out of the air by the hilt, then handed it to Kel. Kel bowed to her, and Adalia saluted the woman. "Any other challengers?" She bellowed to the crowd.

She raised an eyebrow when someone said, "No one is that mad, Adalia!"

She laughed when there were sounds of consent from just about all of them.

"I'll have a go."

Adalia jumped at the woman who had parted the crowd and was grinning amusedly at the antics of the soldiers.

"Flick!" Adalia yelled delightedly.

The Shang Falcon grinned happily at her pupil and briefly hugged her back before stepping into a guard position.

A ripple went through the crowd, 'A Shang fighting Adalia?' 'Who will win?' The bets started as Adalia calmly stepped back to square off with her trainer. None of them knew that the Shang had actually taught her, and that she could usually best her – except her fellow squires.

"Open?" Adalia questioned casually.

Flick grinned wolfishly, "Of course."

Adalia gulped, and groaned inwardly. This match could go either way, as she hadn't been able to practise both at the same time against an opponent while she had been a squire.

Kel moved to stand with the watchers, and repeated "open?" to herself. She had no idea what that was supposed to mean.

Charlie looked up at his mother, excited, "It means that they can do anything they like. It's usually a mix of swordsmanship and hand-to-hand, but sometimes they add daggers, if they have them. I know that Ady has at least four on her that I can see. It is amazing to watch."

Kel raised her eyebrows and gazed at the two intently. She had heard of that kind of contest, but so unusual it was that two Shangs would face off in a public area, that hardly anybody ever got to witness it. It was extremely impressive that Adalia could do this with a full Shang, as usually only the Shang attempted it. 'No wonder I can't beat her.' Kel thought.

The soldiers extended the circle a few meters on all sides, none of them wanting to get in the way of the fight. Now that all the bets were down, the crowd was silent. You could feel the anticipation building up between the watchers and the fighters.

Adalia mirrored the Shang's guard position, slipping into the state of mind necessary to stand a chance at this kind of combat. She scanned Flick's clothing, and upon seeing faint marks against her clothes, made a mental note to herself to watch out for the six or so concealed daggers. She had a few more than that, and was confident that a few of them were invisible in her loose clothes.

The calm gripped her. Now I am ready for anything… at least I hope so.

The crowd watched as Adalia initiated the fight by swooping down on the Shang, bringing her sword down on her left hand side.

Flick blocked her with the sword, and aimed a precise kick at her legs, trying to trip her over. Adalia jumped it and brought out a dagger, using it to stop the sword that had swung around, trying to reach her neck to win the battle. The Shang yanked the dagger out of her hand, but at that precise moment Adalia succeeded in landing a punch to her arm.

It continued like this, neither staying still for longer than the few seconds needed to land a solid strike or block. It was amazing. The audience found it hard to follow, and often as not would only realise that a dagger had been brought into the fight when it landed a few metres away from the fighters, the owner having been disarmed. The odd glint of steel, and the deadly flashing of blades, the clang as each strike was deflected was breathtaking to behold.

The slender, violet-eyed, raven-haired girl moved with a catlike grace as she darted out of reach of a deadly sweep from the Shang. Her face impassive, only her eyes betrayed the intense concentration it was taking to stay out of reach. After all, not just anyone can hope to even match a Shang's skills, let alone best one at a match that is reserved for only the most advanced fighters.

The soldiers cheered on the fighters, all changing their opinion of the girl - again. Seeing her fighting earnestly against none other than a Shang, even the most stubborn of the lot had to admit to themselves that woman could fight at the same – or even better skill level – as a man could.

Kel was wide-eyed in shock. Never had she seen Adalia do anything like this. She was going really easy on me this whole time. I must get her to teach me some of those moves. She thought with amusement.

Adalia had just danced away from a twisting blow from Flick when she saw an opening in the Shang's defence. Ignoring the sweat dripping into her eyes, she dodged another strike and came up under her guard. With a movement the speed of lightning, her blade came to rest at the Shang's throat.

In no time at all, Adalia was aware of a dagger closing in on her throat. Having expected this, Adalia used one of her last daggers to block this one and yank it out of Flick's hand. The Shang grinned, "I'm done. I yield."

Adalia removed her sword from the Shangs throat and bowed to her. The crowd was cheering uproariously. Had she the breath, Adalia would have said that someone in the Copper Isles was probably wondering what was happening, but she hadn't. Flick and Adalia slumped to the ground. Kel came up and handed both a flask of water, clapping Adalia on the back, "That was fantastic. Next time, you are going to teach me a few new moves."

Adalia was too busy to respond, as she was downing the whole bottle of water.

Kel sat down next to her squire and decided to introduce herself to the Shang, "Hello. I am Sir Keladry of Mindelan and Masbolle. It was a pleasure to see you spar with my crow." She grinned and ruffled Adalia's hair.

"Flick Gordon, the Shang Falcon. Thankyou. I was the one who had the pleasure of training that crow for two years. Gods the mornings were horrible. How are you finding them?"

Kel shook her head, "Impossible. Have you any tips?"

Adalia groaned as she watched the women exchange methods of waking her up in the morning. 'It is going to be impossible to sleep in now.' They only spared her a glance before getting back to the conversation. Adalia leaned back on the grass, arms behind her head while Flick told Kel that she was on her way back to Corus, having been visiting Port Caynn, when she just happened across this spectacle and wanted to try a few rounds with her past student to see if she had kept in practise.

Kel and Flick got up and walked away, but Adalia just stayed in the grass, relaxed. That is, she was relaxed, until Charlie and Dameon leaned over her. "Not dead, are you?" Asked a grinning Charlie.

"Dunno. Go away and come back later, I'll tell you then. Wait a second… never would be more preferable." Adalia replied after closing her eyes.

Dameon inspected her and said, "No, Charlie. I think she is alive. She must be if she can be sarcastic."

Charlie reached down and tapped her lightly on the head. He got a surprise as Adalia grabbed his arm and flipped him onto the ground next to her, so he landed with a thud.

He winced, "Ow. Definitely alive."

Dameon laughed and plonked down on her other side. "Ady. If you don't get up, you don't get your daggers back." He taunted.

He dodged the blow aimed for his head and laughed as she hesitantly sat up. She scowled at the triumphant look on his face, but had no energy left to pound him into the ground. "If I had enough energy to make you pay for blackmailing me… who am I kidding?" She wiped some sweat off her forehead and turned to Dameon, "Can I puh-leese have my daggers back now?" She begged mockingly, acting like a child missing her favourite toy.

Dameon used one of her daggers to tap his chin, "I don't know…"

She fluttered her eyelashes at him, employing puppy dog eyes. "You did promise."

Suddenly collapsed into laughter, unable to keep up the act.

She had been subtly pick-pocketing the other daggers from both the boys, and joined in the laughter, taking this moment of distraction to place them back on her person. It was a fun game to play, and she was certain they hadn't noticed her take them, intent on watching her Player's performance.

She suddenly stopped laughing and swiped the last dagger (not that they knew it) from Dameon's hand. She stood up and shoved it up her sleeve into its sheath. She then stuck her hands in her pockets, whistled innocently and walked away.

"Hey!" Dameon yelled, jumping up at the same time as Charlie and following Adalia over to the fire.

"You haven't got all the daggers yet." Charlie said smugly.

"Haven't I?" Adalia asked teasingly.

Dameon and Charlie shared a confused look, and then checked their pockets.

"HEY!" They yelled, and then started to chase her. She was laughing and mustered the energy to run away from them, darting in and out the men, who only laughed at the supposedly mature squires.

Finally Charlie and Dameon stopped chasing her, having remembered just how much endurance she had.

After giving them time to cool down, Adalia slipped down beside Dameon.

Charlie was annoyed. "How?"

Adalia just raised her eyebrows at him. He sighed, "Fine. Whatever. Don't tell us. But why did you filch some money as well?"

Kaden looked surprised and checked his money. Discovering that some was gone he looked accusingly at Adalia.

She looked surprised, "Hey, I'm only taking my share of the of the profits." She added emphasis on profits to tell them exactly what she thought of them betting on her to win, when they knew that it was more likely that she would beat the Shang. They had seen her do it many times before.

They had the decency to turn pink and look at the ground. Adalia smiled satisfactorily to herself. Now she had more money and she had those two feeling properly ashamed for their recent antics. Just goes to show that miracles could happen.

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All the men in Third Company were awake early the next morning, including Kel and Flick, who had decided to travel the last leg of the journey with the soldiers. In fact, the only person still asleep in the whole camp was none other than Kel's errant squire.

Kel was eating breakfast with the Own with Flick sitting next to her, Dom on her other side. She turned to Flick after finishing her meal, "I think it's time that the crow wakes up."

An evil grin spread across the Shang's face, "I have been missing torturing her in the mornings."

A matching grin touched Kel's face.

"I feel sorry for Adalia." Charlie said dryly from across the clearing, having heard the conversation. The men of the Own were obviously in accord with the boy, but like all soldiers, they loved a good prank, and it seemed like what ever the warrior women had in mind, it would be entertaining to say the least.

Everyone watched as Flick whispered in Kel's ear, and then both got up and walked over to the only closed tent.

Flick went to one side, Kel the other. Kel held up one hand with three fingers up. She counted down three silently. On one, they grabbed their respective sides of the tent and lifted it off the girl.

It is almost Midwinter at this time, which means was is really, really cold. They started laughing as they saw Adalia in her bedroll. She woke up really fast as the frosty air hit her.

Surprisingly, she looked calm as she sat up. The look she gave the two women was anything but. Adalia took in the many faces laughing at her, as well as her tent, which was sitting discarded a few yards away.

She then said sarcastically, "Oh har-de-har-har. Everyone laughs at the expense of me."

To the collective surprise of everyone gathered, the girl then made a wolfish grin. "Fine. Have fun cleaning up my tent."

Before they had registered this statement, Adalia had changed into a crow and flapped up to be perched on the high branch of a nearby tree.

The men started laughing. Flick and Kel were both rubbing their chins. Flick was the first to comment dryly, "She's got us there."

Kel sighed as she met Flick's eyes. Then she smiled, "You know, there is an upside to this."

"Oh?"

Kel's grin widened, "She is awake."

The men broke into renewed laughter as the crow bawled at them mockingly.

Kel and Flick shared the task of packing up Adalia's tent and bedroll, as well as hitching them onto Anika and Sora. The men set off with Kel and Dom in the lead.

Adalia took care to fly over them, and had any of them understood crow language, they would have realised that she swore at her Knight Master and Evil Personal Shang; who were "Sent from the underworld to conspire to wake me up in dreadful ways."

The only thing that Adalia really took delight in was, after getting permission from Anika and Sora, doing one last sweep and then flapping off to Corus. She took pleasure in their annoyed calls at her; they all wished that they could get back as soon as she would.

Adalia was laughing inside on her flight to Corus.

She scanned the roads, and upon seeing them bogged with snow, she couldn't help but thank the women for giving her a good reason to fly home. Under these conditions, they would be lucky to arrive in Corus two days from now, while she would get there in about an hour.

The joke would definitely be on them.

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Disclaimer: NOT TP.

Well, I hope everyone enjoyed that. I worked really hard to make it longer. I thought it was about time I added more action, and this is the result. I hope you liked, although I just made it up as I went along!  A big thankyou to everyone who has been reviewing, I really appreciate them!