Stranger
"What kind of crowd is it?" Matthias asked and instinctively he reached an arm backwards to grab a hold of the axe he had strapped to his back. "Is it soldiers?"
Tino mirrored Berwald's earlier move and shielded his eyes from the sun. "It doesn't look like they are soldiers" he muttered thoughtfully. "As far as I can see, none of them of them are wearing any armor, but that's about all I can tell from this distance. Come on, let's go check it out." Then without waiting for the others, he started to move with quick steps towards the village.
Berwald and Matthias cast each other a questioning look before they followed cautiously behind the young hunter, both of them were ready to draw their weapons at a moment's notice. Soon enough they could see the group of people clustered just outside the first row of houses, just like Tino had said there was.
When they drew even closer they just barely catch it when one of the people gathered outside the village was waiving them over. Tino lit up in a bright smile as he turned towards the other two and enthusiastically signaled for them to hurry up. "That's the chieftain waiving at us. So it looks like there is nothing to worry about, come on. Let's go see what is going on."
His smile didn't last for very long however and was replaced with a look of pure horror. For the closer they got to the group assembled, the more serious he realized the situation was.
The people of the edge of the city had obviously been through hell in order to get there. Some of them were badly injured and poorly dressed. Almost half of them had apparently been unable to put shoes on before they started running and many of them had feet that were bleeding from the abuse their journey had provided. Matthias and Berwald recognized them as people from their own town.
"What happened?" Tino yelled and his voice almost gave out.
"We told you" Berwald replied quietly. "Our village was attacked and we were planning to run here for safety. That's people from our village."
Tino whirled around to face the two of them; his eyes were wide as dinner plates and his mouth hung open in shock. "But I never believed things was this bad for you" he was struggling to make the words come out right and they sounded chocked.
The villagers noticed their arrival and recognized the two boys from Griven and yelled out their names. Almost immediately after, both Berwald and Matthias were completely surrounded by people slapping them on the back and hugging them.
Torleif then elbowed his way through the crowd. The burly man looked at the verge of tears when he saw the, and embraced each of them in a great bear hug. "Thank the goods" he roared. "I was beginning to think that we had lost the two of you."
Matthias broke free of the embrace. "How many others survived?" he asked.
Torleif looked saddened by the questions. "As far as we know, the only ones that got away from Griven are those that you see here. Most of us found each other in forest and fled here together. We arrived just a few hours ago. There have been a few stragglers to arrive later, but not too many. I wish there were more of us."
"Why are you just waiting here outside the village?" Tino suddenly asked. He had been keeping his distance and watching the reunion but now made his way up to Berwald and Matthias.
Torleif turned towards the young hunter. "Who are you?" he asked sharply.
"That's Tino" Berwald answered as the young hunter looked frozen at the harsh tone Torleif had used, probably worried that he had done something wrong by talking. "He helped us find the way when we got lost out in the forest. We wouldn't have made it here without him."
Torleif's face softened a bit and he offered the young man a small smile. "The chieftain is working on finding all of us some beds and some food and told us to wait here for the time being until he had made all the preparations. I have told him what happened to us and he promised to do what he can to help us."
"Really?" Matthias was genuinely surprised to hear that. "He wants to help us defeat the king. Is he really willing to risk the life and safety of his villagers by helping us?"
"You should meet him." Torleif said eagerly and put one hand on each of Berwald and Matthias' shoulders to lead them out of the crowd. "They have had problems with the king's soldiers as well. Nobody has lost their lives as of yet, but the king's men were here just last week demanding payment. They took large quantities of gold and food and now the village might not have enough supplies to make it through the winter. They want to fight and regain what is rightfully theirs."
The chieftain of Dalahurst had been waiting patiently for the new arrivals to greet their own and make their way over to him. He looked from Torleif and gave Matthias and Berwald a curt nod in greeting and offered them a hand to shake. Then his gaze turned to Tino he smiled softly in recognition. "Welcome back Tino, glad to see you have returned safely."
Tino smiled weakly back at him. "I'm glad to be home. But I wish the circumstances were better."
The chieftain turned back to Matthias and Berwald. "So I have heard a lot about you boys. Torleif has spoken very highly of you after your efforts back in Griven during the uprising. That is very impressive for someone without proper weapons training to slay some of the king's highly trained soldiers like that."
"So you really want to help us defeat the king?" Matthias asked.
"Yes" the chieftains replied. "But you have to realize that we need more people in order to win over him. His army is far greater than what numbers our two villages can gather up and you have lost several people already."
The newcomers all nodded, acknowledging the fact and Matthias cleared his throat to speak. "We had every intention of recruiting as many other villages to our cause as we could, but we were attacked before we could do anything. They came on the same night when we defied them."
The chieftain nodded as well. "Torleif has already informed me of the tragedy in Griven when he arrived with the rest of your group. Be assured, we have taken our precautions and set out armed guards on the edges of the village. If the soldiers try anything they will not be able to take us by surprise."
"That's good right?" Tino asked a bit more cheerily. "That should mean we're safe for now."
"Yes, for now" Matthias said thoughtfully. "But there won't be much we can do excepts run if the king's soldiers are capable of preparing another assault as quickly as they did in Griven."
"I still don't understand how they were capable of launch the attack only hours after the uprising in the first place" Berwald muttered darkly.
"You haven't heard?" Tino exclaimed. "The king is a sorcerer!"
The chieftain immediately frowned at the young hunter. "That is just a foolish story, boy. It is meant to scare children and villagers to prevent them from ever daring to defy the king."
"I'd like to hear that story" Matthias said.
The chieftain sighed at their childish behavior that they showed in the grave situation they were all in. "Now is not the time for stories. But if you're determined to hear it then you should now there will be a campfire held later tonight as we keep guard throughout the night, Tino can tell it then. For now, why don't all of you get some rest? It has been a long night and day for all of you and we have prepared a few beds in the inn and gathered some extra blankets we can spread out on the floor. There are also a few villagers that have some extra space."
Torleif nodded in agreement and turned back to the rest of the villagers from Griven before he whistled loud and sharply to gain everybody's attention so he could relay the information from the chieftain. Almost all of them looked relieved at the thought of getting some long needed rest.
"Tino" the chieftain said. "Maybe you can bring your new friends with you to your house where they can get some rest. That is if your aunt doesn't mind the company."
Tino signaled for Matthias and Berwald to follow him. "This way, just follow me."
Dalahurst appeared to be just a little bit bigger than Griven had been. It was a town built for hunters, farmers and merchants, for the houses were mostly small and simple. Matthias looked at the building they passed while following the lead of the excitable hunter. It was nice to see a place that seemed so untouched by evil, even if they had been told that the village had lost most of their resources to soldiers the town was untouched by flame and blood.
He was letting his gaze roam from house to house, taking in the surroundings and then… there he was.
It was the stranger, casually leaning against the wall of a house and staring right at him with a challenging look on his face.
Matthias froze in his tracks and stared back, eyes wide in amazement. The stranger turned around to disappear around the house corner and out of view down an alley.
Tino and Berwald noticed how he was not following after them any longer and turned around to look at him in question. "Matthias?" Berwald lifted an eyebrow at him. "Are you coming?"
"Huh?" Matthias was still staring at the house corner where the stranger had disappeared only seconds ago and barely paid any mind to the question aimed at him. "I'll join up with you later" he muttered absentmindedly and stepped away from them, closer to the alley. "I want to explore the village a bit while it's still daylight."
Tino looked surprised. "Oh, well okay… I live with my aunt in that red house just down the road, so you can just go there when you're ready." He pointed out the direction and by his side Berwald silently furrowed his brows at Matthias in suspicion.
Matthias flashed them a smile and said a quick thanks as hurried away before the others could question him any further. He went directly towards the spot where he had seen the stranger disappear and rushed down what was a completely empty alley.
He followed the road and cursed under his breath when the passage split up and the path went off in two different directions. Figuring that if he wanted to catch the person he would have to run immediately and so he picked a way at random and followed the path as quickly as his feet would carry him.
The line of houses ended abruptly and he ran out into a large field of fruit trees. He almost screamed out in anger when he had zigzagged around several of the trees and far out in the field and realized it was all empty around him.
It was almost beginning to be a habit for him to question his own sanity after the rebellion in the square. He couldn't come up with a reasonable argument for why he would follow someone that was probably long gone by now. And he was beginning to think that maybe the stranger had never been real in the first place, not even back in the town square.
He then heard a light chuckle.
He spun around to locate the sound, but there was no one else out there. The field was empty all around him.
"Have you always thought it wise to follow strangers around when you have no idea of their agenda?"The voice was dark, calm and carried just a hint of playfulness to it. "Look up."
Matthias did as he was asked and his mouth fell open when he did so. Perched on one of the branches was the stranger he had began to doubt even existed. He was leaning back against the tree and calmly swaying one of his legs back and forth off the branch. In his hand he was holding an apple that had escaped being picked by the locals during the harvest.
"Have you any idea what you and your people have gotten involved in by rebelling against the king?" The stranger glanced down at Matthias for a moment and then turned his attention towards the apple in his hand and took a bite of it.
Matthias was at a loss of words and kept gawking at the stranger in the tree. The young man was even more handsome than he had first realized. His skin was pale and flawless and his hair shone in the evening sun. His clothes were simple, but still elegant and hung perfectly on his slim body. He looked far too noble to be a farmer, hunter or any kind of commoner. "You're real" Matthias finally managed to choke out.
"Well, I'd certainly like to think so" the stranger answered calmly and took another bite of the apple, unfazed by Matthias' behavior.
"But I've been seeing you in my dreams" Matthias protested. "I saw you back in Griven and out it the forest like some ghost. Why? Who are you?"
The stranger completely ignored the question and kept his attention on the already half eaten apple instead. "What you see in your dreams is not really my problem. But I was in that town square on the day you killed one of the king's commanders. And now I am here. I just wanted to tell you something that could be of importance. For if you and your people are really meaning to make anything of this rebellion you might find it interesting to know where the soldiers are planning to strike next."
"What?" Matthias was barely able to believe what he was hearing. "How can you possibly know where they will strike next?"
The stranger tossed away the apple core and sat up on the branch, both legs dangling on the side as he stared down at Matthias. "I can't tell you how I know what I do, but I can guarantee that the soldiers will be at the village of Dale in less than two weeks. And after the stunt you pulled of back in Griven, they are not planning to play nice with anyone anymore."
"They weren't playing nice before either" Matthias grumbled. His neck was starting to hurt from tilting his head back for so long, but he had no way to change that. He had been looking for a way to climb up the tree, but even the lowest branches were out of his reach without a ladder. How the stranger had gotten up there in the first place was a mystery to him. "How do I know you are telling the truth?"
The stranger just stared challenging at him. He seemed to know that there was no way for the other male to reach him and looked to be finding great entertainment in the fact. "There is no way for you to know" he replied simply. "I just wanted to give you a fair chance for a fight. The only way for you to beat the superior forces of the king, is if you manage to take them by surprise and you cannot do that without knowing the soldier's movements."
"Matthias threw out his arms in frustration. "You obviously possess a lot of knowledge, but if you won't tell me who you are and how you came to come by it, how can I trust you or a single word you're saying? Can't you come down please?" He was on the verge of begging, desperate to know more, both about the soldiers and about the mysterious male in the tree.
"I carry no love for the king" the stranger said darkly and his voice had grown sinister. The playful hint in his eyes were gone and turned cold and empty. "I just wanted to give you information. What you chose to do with it is not for me to decide." He stood up on the branch, perfectly in balance and seemed just a bit further away from Matthias' grasp.
"I'm sorry" Matthias blurted out and he almost threw himself at the tree trunk, grasping for lower branches. He was determined to find a way up before the stranger could climb further up. "I didn't mean to insult you. Please, I just want to know more."
"I have nothing more to tell you" the stranger snapped back.
"At least tell me your name" Matthias begged desperately and stared right into the stranger's eyes and clutched on to the tree.
The stranger tilted his head slightly to the side without breaking their eye contact. It looked like he was considering whether or not he should tell or not. Then he sighed. "My name is Lukas."
"Come down" Matthias pleaded. "It's not like you have anywhere to run to. You're trapped up there and cannot get anywhere to go unless you come down."
Lukas just stared at him, not moving a muscle and still didn't seem at all worried by Matthias' words. "Don't waste your time with me. You should go back to the village; your friends will miss you soon."
"Matthias?"
There was a call from the village. Matthias almost cursed for being interrupted and instinctively turned towards the sound of his name.
Just by the line of houses he could spot the hunter, Tino. He turned back towards the tree again, figuring that Tino could wait for a little longer. "I don't want to hurt you; I just want to talk…"
His words died out and he forgot what he had wanted to say. For when he looked up, the tree was empty. The stranger, Lukas was gone. The only thing in the tree was a small blue looking at him. Matthias rubbed furiously at his eyes and looked again. When he opened them again it was just in time to watch the bird flutter away.
Matthias had no idea of what to think. Had he imagined the entire meeting just like so many other things? He couldn't believe it and furiously looked around for any evidence that would prove he was not mad. And there, just a few meters away in the grass, lay the apple core. Lukas had thrown that, so Matthias was sure he had been here.
Matthias was about to circle around the tree to see if anyone could have hidden among the branches in the few moments he had looked away, but approaching steps stopped him.
"Are you okay?" Tino had approached him from the village and looked at Matthias in worry. "We were starting to wonder where you had gone. The campfire is already lit and we have some food ready if you'd like some. Then he noticed Matthias' lack of interest. "Uhm, what are you looking for?"
Matthias immediately turned his attention from the tree and towards the hunter. "I just thought I saw something" he said nonchalantly. "It turned out to be nothing. Why don't we go to this campfire, I want to hear that story now." He flashed Tino a grin.
Tino smiled in relief. "Let's go then, Berwald is waiting for us there."
With one last glance at the tree, Matthias turned to follow Tino back to the village. He was wondering if he would ever see Lukas again.