บท 232: Servant of the Axe - Press Gang

Chapter Type: Character Development

At first, I didn't believe what my senses were telling me.  So I made a game of it.

There were two of them, one young, one old, both male.  Both rusty brown of hair, but clearly not related.  They were clearly watching me as we approached.  They walked normal, they talked normal, only their faces gave them away.

Cruel smiles, that reached all the way to their eyes.  Both with clubs, one with a large sack.

I'd heard rumors of such activity, of course.  But I'd always dismissed it as urban myth. 

And I had always believed press gangs worked in larger numbers.  But they had timed their paces so that we would intersect near an alleyway.  I went ahead and nudged myself closer to the opening, giving them room to pass.

At just the right moment, the elder turned toward me and SHOVED with both hands.