章 38: Abandoned Mill
We had finally arrived to the outskirts of Stratheom by night fall. Nicklos had taken over in navigating as he had been here numerous times. He knew exactly where the abandoned mill was and took us on shortcuts through the forest to get there. It was in an over grown hey field. A single barn looking ready to fall apart with its worn out red faded wood and crumbling walls. The ceiling was caved in, only a few boards dangled dangerously towards the grown. All the windows had been smashed in or broken away from heavy weather. Some of the walls had gaping holes in them, the wood rotting around the edges from years of decay.
A lone wooden wind mill sat erect next to it. The blades had long fallen off and sat scattered at the base of the hexagon body. The wood on it's body was in greater shape than the barn, but it was still just as faded. It was very sad to look at, and the moon light only made it look that more pitiful and haunting looking. But it's the best spot for a hideout, especially when there in a few injured parties. Why would any one want to hide out in a place that has little to no coverage? But it was bad luck for them if a storm happened to pass by, it would make the situation for Jerimiah and Maxwell that much worse.
"I suppose desperate times call for desperate measures." Marquise said blandly as he tugged on the reigns of his horse. The horse anxiously tossed his head as we gazed at the unfortunate scene before us. Something didn't feel right. It was too quite. There wasn't any wind, there was no noise coming from the mill, it was too silent. Not even a stroke from a small cricket filled the air. A dark, creepy, and eerie sensation filled me inside as I gazed around at the tall thick foliage around us.
I was hoping to get a sense of anything, maybe Nathanial was hiding away, keeping a look out for enemies? But if he would have been, we would have already made an appearence. There was no way he would leave his brother unatteneded, especially if his condition is bad as he made it out. With the blood on the paper, I knew that he wasn't just simply struck. He was in bad condition.
"Eyes and ears pealed. Something feel very off." I murmured, unsheathing my sword and tugging on my horses reins. With a soft grunt, it walked slowly next to me. The others followed suit, staying quiet as we followed the small and over grown dirt path to the mill. I scanned the ground, finding multiple footsteps marching towards the mill. A few drag marks here and there, with a small blood trail told me that they where in fact here, but the question was, where they alive.
"They are here alright. But someone should have seen us by now. Do you really think they are alright?" Marquise asked skeptically, kneeling down and brushing his fingers through the rough dirt. I opened my mouth to reply, but a distant snapping nose stole my attention. I jerked my head in the direction where it came from, glaring into the tree line to find any kind of outline. Another snapping noise, it didn't sound like it was coming closer...more like it was going up.
Anxiously I dropped my reins, taking a step closer to the trees, my heart thundering in my chest like a thousand tiny drums. Adrenaline was coursing through my veins, pumping energy through me. I gripped the hilt of my sword tightly, ready to swing my blade at any given moment.
"Alliah, what is it?" Nicklos asked, walking. I couldn't bring myself to say anything, because I wasn't sure if it was human, or animal. I was probably working myself up for nothing, but with all these warning signs I was receiving, I would rather be safer than not. I put a hand on his chest, giving him a warning look not to go any further. Another branch snapped, and my head whipped up. It was deffinetly closer that the last one. What ever it was, was heading this way.
Then I saw it, the outline I was dreading to find. The silouette was alarmingly familiar as it sat crouched in the tree. I could just barely make the outline of a bow, the moon light just barely glaring off the smooth pale wood held in the hands of the intruder. As he leaned forward in the tree, I could barely make out the features of this mystery archer. Long blonde hair, pinned up into a tight pony tail emerged, grinning as he looked down on us.
"Nathaniel?" I asked, barely over a hushed voice. His hand was pulled back on the string, an arrow notched against the wooden bow. His aim was towards Nicklos, who was standing confused as he kept passing his eyes over the tree line. My eyes widened, mostly with shock as Nathaniel let the arrow loose through the air. A cold icy feeling came over me as I quickly pushed against Nicklos. He grunted heavily at the surprise attack. Falling through the air, a hand wrapped around my waist, dragging me down too.
A loud whizzing sound came flying at us as we both fell to the ground. It happened all to fast. Fear raced through me as it got closer, the arrow head gleaming in the moonlight as it came soaring through the air. Time seemed to slow as I watched the trajectory of the arrow. Despite Nicklos's desperate attempt to pull me down and out of the way. It was going to make impact. I could only accept my fate as it closed in, tearing through the leather of my pants and into my flesh. It split my skin apart, blood spurting every where.
The pain that followed was enough to make me grit my teeth and silently scream. It only worsened as the arrow head dug deeper into my thigh. I clenched both of my hands tightly, my fingers digging deeply into the flesh of my hands, drawing blood. As my back hit against Nicklos's chest, time seemed to return to normal. Despite the pain I was feeling, I kept my eyes trained on Nathaniel, as he hopped out of the tree, bow slung around his back.
"So you where behind this the entire time where you? Where is your brother? Is he even hurt?" I spat angrily. Nicklos sat up, holding me in his lap as I bled out. Nathaniel walked calmly into the opening, moon glaring down on him. His look was passive, distant even as he looked at the arrow protruding from my leg. I have never seen someone so disinterested.
"Oh you mean Jeremiah? Oh he died a long time ago. In fact I was the one that killed him. His heart was too soft and he was honestly too trusting. Someone weak like him didn't deserve to live. He made for good bait though." He grinned. He actually grinned like he was proud for killing his own family.
"As for who is behind all this, it's not me. I am simply just the messenger. Although, this message was not for you. It was for Nicklos. You simply jumped in the way before he could receive it." The grin faded, replaced with his cool demeanor once more. Nicklos pulled away from my body, unsheathing his sword and stoicly standing in front of me.
"Oh calm down Nicklos. If you should be mad at anyone, be mad at her. She was stupid enough to play the hero. We all know what happens when we try and play the hero, right?" Another bone chilling familiar voice entered the clearing. He wore a black masquarade mask, covering everything but his creepy, smiling mouth. His posture, his build, it all seemed so familiar. I tried pulling myself to my feet, but Marquise kept a hand on my shoulder, keeping me down.
"So, you lured her out to get to me. How pathetic of you." Nicklos replied dryly.
"What's pathetic is that after all these years you are still so glued to her. Look at her, she can't even take care of herself. Is this suppose to be your future Queen? Her whole Kingdom is about ready to fall apart at the seems. She can't even handle keeping her soldiers in check. Look how easily I twisted them." The mystery man chuckled darkly. The black hair, the olive colored skin, the menacing tone that still haunts my dreams to this very day. It flooded in like a large water gate. My fear was immediately replaced with a strong sense of abhor.
Shoving aside Marquise's hand, I rose shakily to my feet. Digging my sword into the ground like a makeshift support cane, I glared at this masked man.
"Uriah, what an unexpected and surely, an unpleasant surprise."
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