The Rokkoh Adventures

Rokkoh and the Princess, Chapter 12

The horse still pulls us along the road when my eyes open to the darkness of the carriage. Sore muscles protest movement, but I sit up regardless. Blurriness sharpens to reveal that I am alone. The princess is gone again, not even Borso remaining this time. The white blanket, though, greets me. That urgency, that fear, that anger races in my heart once more. She has been taken, yet we still move. Hijacked. God damn bandits. But, then, why was I not removed and discarded into the roadside brush? Why did they leave me? Was it out of spite for what I had done to their kidnapping comrades? Maybe I was the target this time, captured and meant to be taken to their base for punishment. Despite the concerns, it would be a good fight.

Opening the door, trees blur as we speed down the road. The sun sinks in the sky, letting the stars have time to show off their beauty. A few shine in the waning light. I turn in the doorway and pull myself onto the roof of the carriage. The smallest bumps in the road threaten to buck me off, but a wide stance steadies my footing. I inch forward, ready to draw out Lavender if at all necessary. Approaching the front, I gaze down upon the hijacker. Only a dash of disappointment mixes with my relief upon seeing Torvald's yellow dome. Evalina, bouncing Borso in her lap, sits beside him with rapturous laughter.

"Faster!" she commands.

"If we go any faster, Mr. Horsey will get too tired and won't be able to run anymore," he reasons with her, a smile in his voice.

"Go! Go! Go!" she screams with glee.

Seeing them like this, not a care in the world, free, having fun... the thought of running away returns. Only this time Torvald would come live with us. Though a naive fool at times, the boy has a good heart and the will to learn. We could find a bit of land somewhere back home and build ourselves a home. Or we could head to another country entirely, one with whom none of us have ties. It would be peaceful, easy. Kym could be there too, having put down her dagger for good this time. What a life that would be. Farming our own crops, taking care of our own animals, calling no man king and no woman queen. How perfect.

Getting on my belly on top of the carriage roof, I let my head poke out above the two of them. My feet dangle over the edge at the other end.

"Faster, Torvald!" My order makes them both jump.

The princess shrieks, clutching onto Borso with all her might. The boy's frightened screech rivals hers in pitch and surprise. The reins, tight in his hand, rise to his chin. The horse gives a startled sound of its own as its head is pulled back for a moment, and its pace slows in a quick few seconds. I hold on tight to the little ledge under me, doing my best to not slide off. Their scared faces look up to me once we have stopped. I flash them the biggest, most genuine I am capable of making. For a moment, it terrifies Torvald further. But the little one's bright and infectious laughter kicks up again. I join in with a low chuckle, and even the boy offers a light-hearted smile.

"Is Torvald keeping you company?" I ask the princess. With enthusiasm, she nods her little bow.

"She seemed to wake up not long after we left," the boy explains. "I was just driving the horse and I heard someone knocking on the wall behind me. So I stopped, and checked on you two. You were out like a deadman, and the little lass needed to go potty again. So I thought I'd let her sit with me so you could get some sleep. You seemed to really need it."

A thousand ways for any piece of the story to have gone wrong flood my thinking (another ambush, her getting lost as she relieved herself, a stealthy archer with impressive accuracy, any number of wild things in search of the next meal, her simply falling off, et cetera), but I build a dam. Everything seemed to turn out fine. Perhaps the last of our pursuants provide scavengers a meal back in that clearing.