The Medallion of Asgar

13.

Reise

With Midnight squirming and Reise tugging in vain at the vines, it took longer than necessary to unravel the stallion from the trap nature set out for them. As he struggled, one of the town guards ran over to him and muttered something about assisting before he ran off toward the stables. Reise only nodded at this, his focus on trying not to get kicked by the horse that was growing more and more upset. At one point, Reise became frustrated himself and gave up tugging and untangling, and simply drew his sword. But the guard returned on horseback with a dagger for him to use, which would be slightly easier. With the horse neighing in complaint and trying to pull his leg free, it was difficult and dangerous, but the knight worked with care. Eventually, he was able to cut through the tough vines. "See...? There, you're fine. Now calm down, alright?" He looked up at the horse that decided to walk around in a circle for a bit, kicking his back leg and shaking it a bit as he huffed condescendingly, obviously irritated by the whole situation. Reise frowned and stepped toward Midnight, taking a moment to stroke his mane and coo words of comfort to calm him down; he could not ride him if he was like this, with him being a formerly wild horse.

Reise handed the dagger back to the guard and uttered a quick "Thank you" before he mounted the black horse. Reise spurred Midnight into a bolt across the field, taking care to watch for other vines to ensure there was not another repeat of this scene. He'd fallen behind and lost sight of the other two who'd disappeared into the thicket in pursuit of the suspect, and was in a hurry to catch up. The town guard followed him silently, only the thumping of his horse against the ground letting Reise know he was still with him. The knight slowed down for a moment when he caught sight of Sir Rowe's horse grazing idly in the field. He furrowed his brow at this, but figured he must have given chase by foot. Reise soon found out why the knight would do such a thing, as it was difficult to maneuver Midnight through the heavy foliage. The guard was also struggling as well, and it would have been considerably easier to just trek by foot. However, they were already within the forested area and it would be a waste of more time to turn back.

The two of them were moving through the thicket blindly, not knowing in which direction the culprit had gone. However, there was suddenly noise in the distance off to their right; a loud, desperate neighing followed by a crash, then silence. Reise came to a stop, Midnight rearing up at the sudden order to halt, and he looked at the guard with wide eyes. "What was that...?" The knight blinked, overcoming the shock of the noise to wordlessly move towards the source. One hand went from the reins to the hilt of his sword as he broke out from behind some trees, his eyes skimming over the area. He didn't see the culprit, but what he did see caused him to give an audible gasp. "Sir Carson! Sir Rowe!" He lost his knightly bearing for a moment to exclaim "Shit!" as he hurriedly dismounted and ran over to where the two knights were sprawled out on the ground along with Sir Carson's horse. He knelt down and felt each man's pulse, expression full of worry, concern, and guilt. They were under his charge, and thus his responsibility. If they were killed...

Reise gave a relieved sigh as they were indeed alive. "Just what kind of monster is this...?" The guard murmured as he rode over to them, dismounting slowly and looking over the two fallen knights, checking for open wounds or blood. One person. There had been a single person, hadn't there...? For someone to be able to take down two armed members of the Royal Guard was infathomable. And the possibility that the person behind this was a female was just insane. Reise glanced at the horse that had been knocked out as well. But they weren't bleeding or anything; just what exactly happened, here? He slowly got to his feet, fists clenching. Slowly, he said, "Take them back to town, see to it that they're treated." Reise began walking off, eyes narrowed. The guard looked up. "What about you? That person is dangerous...!" "I'll be fine; I leave Midnight with you, use him to get the others back." Reise did not stop walking as he said this, his gaze directed straight forward.

The guard watched him for a moment, feeling the waves of anger rippling from the Charcoal Knight. In that instant, it was obvious why the man would have so many rumors associated to him. He could be kind, respectful, chivalrous, and gallant; but when he was angered in this way, he could be, for lack of words, scary. In his black armor, complete with the black helm, one looking upon him could be greatly intimidated by the aura he gave off. However, despite his renown and appearance, the guard knew that he was only human. He could still very well be felled by a blade; he bled and suffered and felt emotion just like any other. The fact he was upset over his comrades was proof of his humanity. And as such, the guard worried for the man. "Yes, sir. Do be careful," He murmured before turning his attention to Sir Carson and Sir Rowe.

Reise moved at a normal pace through the thicket, taking deep breaths. Anger coursed through him, but he understood that such an emotion could cause mistakes. Mistakes he could not make when dealing with someone capable of doing something as what he'd seen. He needed to approach with great caution, needed to gauge his enemy. And most importantly, determine what was done to incapacitate his allies in the first place. He slowed to a stop when he came to a clearing, and his narrowed eyes fell upon the red-headed figure leaning against a tree just across the area. In the light of the hour, he could see and confirm that it was indeed the woman he'd encountered in the tavern. With his suspicions confirmed, he was at a loss.

What was he supposed to do? The woman looked weary, tired, and vulnerable - but from what he'd seen of his comrades, that was obviously not the case. She looked incapable of doing that, yet she did. The question was: How? How could this woman infiltrate the castle? Steal an important artifact? Knock out knights? Even knock out a horse? And why...? Why would she do all of this? For wealth? Fame? He found his anger giving way to sympathy at seeing the lone female sitting there and suffering from fatigue, and also curiosity as he wondered how exactly she'd done all of this. Reise quietly began to walk cross the clearing towards her, his sword hand twitching, but he stopped himself from reaching for his blade. Instead, he came to a stop before her and said, "Madam, you are being charged with the crime of stealing from your King. You have fled, thus incriminating yourself. In addition, you have added assault of two members of the Royal Guard to this. With these crimes, the High Court will undoubtedly give you capital punishment for treason." He paused, and after a moment raised his hands to his helm. He couldn't help it; his curiosity was too great. He lifted the helm over his head and looked at her, his emerald eyes questioning. He did not want to see a woman strung up...which would definitely happen if he were to apprehend her. There was silence at first, then he finally spoke. "Why have you placed such crimes upon your shoulders, Madam?"