Chapter II: The Wayward Warrior

(Queue 'The Struggle' by Olivier Deriviere)

Thump.

Dippens stirred, his eyes slowly opening as he felt an aching in his head pulse faintly. He groaned and reached up one hand to hold his head, but saw his hands bound with thick rope. He tried to speak, but found his mouth to be gagged with a cloth.

He looked around and saw a closed roof above him, and was laid alongside a plethora of stolen goods and….

Margery!

He reached over to lightly slap his tied wrists onto Margery, who stirred at the contact. She eventually opened her eyes and groaned, as Dippens did. She looked around the small cabin they were in and panic set in.

"Mmmf! Mmmmmf!"

However, as she laid her eyes on Dippens, she calmed down a bit, and immediately started to look around for escape. She looked towards the entrance where her tied feet were facing, and felt hope for a moment. She gestured to Dippens, pointing at the closed flaps, but Dippens shook his head, signaling with his hands that the door was most likely locked.

His gaze wandered over to his right, seeing a small shaft of light shining through a crack in the wooden carriage.

"Mmf!"

He awkwardly shuffled over, placing his eye as close to the crack as possible. Through it, flickers of bright lights, structures, and the landscape swiftly flickered by, the only things Dippens could really visually grasp. He sighed in frustration, giving up on the effort. He looked back to Margery, whose eyes were filled with fear.

From what he saw, they were getting close to some sort of city, but he was not sure what to do with that. He was gagged, and he couldn't get it off to yell for help. He looked to Margery, who was rubbing her back against something. He tilted his head in confusion, until he saw the broken wood she was scratching her rope ties on. His eyes lit up, and he was about to look for a way to get off his own hand ties when the carriage came to a sudden stop. Both Margery and Dippens jolted forward, and Margery suddenly cried out through her gag. Dippens saw that she had scraped her forearm against the broken wood, and it was not bleeding profusely. He panicked, thinking that their captors would see her escape attempt.

The flaps to the inside of the carriage rustled, and opened up to reveal Ames, who stepped into the carriage and grabbed Dippens by his hand ties, dragging him out and onto the ground outside. Dippens' protests were muffled by his gag, but as he looked up, his eyes glittered at the sight in front of him.

A metropolis of machinery lay before him, with buildings of all types spanning miles into the horizon. All types of lights lit up the city, of different sizes and brightness. Blimps flew overhead in the night sky, with advertisements flashing across some of them. And the noise. Even from the distance they were at, Dippens could still hear the bustling of the city, the grinding of machinery, and the revving of engines. He was in awe of the whole spectacle.

He heard muffled noises to his right, and turned his head to see Ames dragging out Margery as well. He shoved her next to Dippens.

"Alright, face me, fopfaces."

The twins turned around to face Ames, who was laying his hand on the handle of his holstered sword idly. He had a grim expression on his face as he barked his demands.

"Here's what's gonna happen. We're taking you and the other farmers into that city," He jabbed his index finger at the sprawling metropolis. "And you're gonna be compliant. If you're not, we'll make you compliant."

The twins said nothing. Dippens looked to his right to see extra carriages behind theirs, most likely loaded with the other farmers.

"As in, we'll beat you up."

The twins still said nothing.

"And... insult you."

The twins looked at each other.

"And then beat you up... again- ah, damn it! Just get back in."

As they were heading back in, Ames grabbed Margery by the arm, to which she sucked through her teeth in pain.

"Oh damn, you got a bad cut." Ames took out a bandage from his coat pocket, and wrapped it around the wound, pulling off the excess bandage and stuffing it back in his coat pocket. Dippens glared at him with confusion. The slaver went from an uncaring, unforgiving attitude, to remorse and sympathetic, then back cruel, then back to compassionate. His erratic behavior was alarming Dippens with every action; It was difficult to make a plan of escape when he couldn't predict how this villain would act.

What an oddball, He thought in irritation.

With that, the two were loaded back in the carriage, and the whole entourage took back off down the road.

(Queue 'So Much For A House Call' by Austin Wintory)

Dippens woke up groggily to the sound of voices outside. He realized he had fallen asleep during the short trip, and chastised himself for doing so. He looked towards Margery, who was also sleeping. He pushed his foot into her leg, shaking it. She woke up, groaning as the cut on her arm throbbed in pain once more. She looked to Dippens, who jerked his thumb to the side of the carriage, signaling to what was happening outside. Margery nodded, and brought up her hand ties, which were broken, as she had finished cutting them off. She then worked to take off her foot ties.

Meanwhile, the voices outside got louder and more aggressive, and eventually the unsheathing of weaponry was heard.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

Dippens cringed in fright as gunshots rang out from outside the carriage. He shivered in fear as he wondered what was going on. He saw Margery finish up untying the rope around her feet, and was about to move over to untie Dippens when the sheet covering the carriage was torn by a blade, accompanied by the screaming of a dying person. Blood splattered across the the carriage canvas, staining it red. The blade was pulled away, and Ames' face showed up, looking into the carriage.

"We need to get you out of-hey! Why are you out your ties?!"

Margery looked up to Ames as she was untying Dippens, a sly expression plastered on her face.

"Sounds like you're in quite the pickle there, Ames, so why don't we skedaddle before we're all done for?"

Ames looked between the fighting outside and them several times. After struggling for a few moments, he finally made a decision, and swiped his sword across the remaining canvas of the carriage. The canvas in tatters, he reached his hand down into it, offering to take them out. Margery finished untying Dippens, then reached up to take his hand. She was yanked out, and was able to see the entire fight.

They were in a rather shady alleyway, and bandits from Ames' side as well as raiders in uniforms clashed. The uniformed raiders were winning significantly, showing to have more skill in battle as they cut down Ames' bandits left and right. Ames saw the massacre and his face contorted in anger. He thrusted his sword into the air, giving a guttural battle cry and charging into battle, cutting down a few raiders. Margery pulled out Dippens from the carriage, and immediately moved to pick up a sword from one of the dead raiders. Before she could even raise the weapon, she looked up to see a pistol cocked and aimed at her. She turned pale, beads of glistening sweat trickling down her face in those few milliseconds.

THWOP!

Ames came in, smacking the butt of his sword into the back of the raider's head. He crumpled to the ground. He gestured in urgency to Margery.

"Let's go!"

She didn't need a second urge. She got up, and the three fled from the fight.

After 5 minutes of running, with Ames continually looking over his shoulder, he had finally decided they had evaded those raiders. He came to a stop, huffing as he was out of breath. They had found themselves in a large alleyway, with three different alleyways branching off in different directions. A rusty door sat in the corner of the alleyway.

"Let's…stop here." He panted. The twins nodded silently, also in the same shape. The twins sat down in the alleyway next to a door, with Ames pacing around in anger.

"Damn it! Damn it all!" He shouted, pounding his fist against the door several times.

Margery, though still untrusting of Ames, decided it would be necessary to give gratitude.

"Well, uh, thanks for, you know, back there-"

"I don't give a hoot. I just lost my crew to those damn Ciphers. Why did they attack us?"

Margery tilted her head.

"Ciphers...is that what those raiders are called?"

Ames looked up, furrowing his eyebrows and grunting.

"Yeah. Caesar's Ciphers. They're the most powerful crime syndicate across these lands. He's got a whole hierarchy of gang leaders, captains, crime lords, and other dreadful dickheads. Each of his followers is trained to be adept at both pistol and sword. His reach across these lands is...frightening."

Margery's mind was racing with all of this information.
"So...why did he attack you?"

"That's what i'm wondering. I'm sure this won't come as a surprise to you, but I kidnapped you and the other villagers as part of a deal with his syndicate. He pays me to bring new slaves for his factories."

Margery was pissed hearing this, and without thinking she punched Ames in the face. He grunted in pain and shock, turning his eyes up in fury.

"Ow, goddamnit! What the hell was that for?"

"You were going to sell us into slavery, you son of a bitch?!"

Ames' eyes reflected regret as he turned them downwards.

"Look, I didn't want to do the task. Usually I do mercenary stuff. But any person with a brain who knows about Caesar's Ciphers knows that you do not want to incur their wrath. Believe it or not, I happened to be one of those people, even after the supposed deal."

Margery was about to tell him off, but after hearing about just how extensive in influence these 'Ciphers' were, she could begrudgingly understand where he was coming from.
Ames got up from the wall, sighing as he sheathed his sword.

"Well, i'm done here. You guys can enjoy the freedom you have, however long that lasts."

Margery felt panic rise in her throat thinking about losing their only protector and guide in this city. She and Dippens had been on their own for a long time, being orphans, but they were in an entirely new landscape, with different rules and cultures that greatly varied from their lives at the hamlet.

"Wait-"

Suddenly, the door in the alleyway swung open.

"Who the hell is banging on my damn establishment?"

The three turned their heads to look at an old man with greying hair and stubble. He wore a raggedy suit, as if he was a failing business man thrown out on the streets. As he saw the three, his eyes flashed, as if he saw an opportunity.

"Customers, eh? Well then, go ahead and come on in!"

"Uh, we're not here to-"

"Come in!" The man said more forcefully.

Ames decided it wasn't worth it to hash it out, so he walked in, rubbing the bridge of his nose in annoyance. Dippens and Margery followed behind.

"Wow!" Dippens exclaimed.

The place was surprisingly large on the inside. The entirety of the inside was oval-shaped, with dozens of display cases lining the sides. The variety of weaponry was huge, ranging from swords and flintlocks to hand cannons. A staircase on the right led up to the second floor, which ran in a circular ring around the edges of the walls, serving as a big balcony. Dippens could see several doors leading into what he assumed were different rooms. The same could be said about the first floor as well.

However, the whole place was quite derelict-looking, with the staircase leading up having broken steps, cobwebs lining display cases and the light fixtures, and other dilapidated features of the emporium that gave the whole place a sort of antique but rundown atmosphere.

"My god, this place is huge! How did you manage to afford such a place?"

The old man peered at Dippens.

"What you tryna say, boy?"

Dippens realized he had made an assumption of the man based on his clothing.

"Oh-uh, well, no reason, just...you know…"

The old man waved his hand dismissively.

"Ah, whatever. I get it." He said, turning his glance back to the grandiose interior. "Your assumption was right, anyways. I didn't start off with too much money, but the only reason I was able to buy this place was because of its location."

Margery tilted her head in question.

"Location…?"

The old man raised an eyebrow, gesturing back to the door they came from. "Did you not see the placement of this store? The front entrance has little chance of attracting actual customers. Well, that's not actually true…"

The old man grinned, and Dippens felt pressured to ask him to elaborate.

"What do you...mean?"

"Well, to clarify, when I started this place up, I had to give city hall a couple documents detailing this establishment and what I did. I put it down as a 'museum'. It's not."

He swept his arms outward, gesturing to the whole store.

"Welcome...to the Oversized Arsenal."

Silence ensued as he sat there, his arms still stretched outwards to present his emporium in a grand fashion.

"Then...what is it?"

The old man's grin dropped as he stared at Margery in dismay.

"It's a friggin' weapons store, what else?"

He chuckled, probably mentally patting himself on the back for how clever he was.

"So, then, who are your customers?"

"Take a gander. We're in a back alley, and this is a weapons store."

Margery was fast to pick up on his clues.

"Bandits, thieves, criminals basically."

"Bingo! Do you know much money I can make selling to those degenerates? Tons!" He exclaimed. "Even better, I got a supplier who runs into these constantly, so I don't need to worry about supply so much as...well...demand."

At that, he scratched the back of his head, starting to realize that he had gotten himself into a bit of a pickle.

"Now that I think about it...These weapons are taking up, uh, a lot of room."

His face lit up as he came up with an idea.

"I know! Why don't you guys buy some? I don't mean the armored over here, but you scrawny kids are definitely gonna need some firepower to back you up if you're gonna be in this city. These streets are cruel and unforgiving to those who are unprepared." He gestured his hands with palms upward. "Think of it as...a head start."

Dippens was not against that idea. From what he had seen so far, this old man seemed to know a lot about this city.

Maybe it would be best to befriend this guy, Dippens thought.

He stuck his hand out, flashing a bright, toothy smile. "Well, before we get into that, we'd just like to introduce ourselves and get to know you first. I'm Dippens-" He pointed his free hand at his twin. "-That's Margery, and…" He looked over at Ames, giving a slightly skeptical look. "...That's Ames."

Ames grunted, noticing Dippens' expression.

The old man took Dippens' hand, shaking it. He was surprisingly strong, judging by how firm the handshake was.

"Nice to meet you all. My name's Stanley. But you can call me Grunchie."