Marionette

Chapter 1-Unleashed

It had been a beautiful spring day in Yejac. The little sun that remained shone down tender light between the tree leaves, down onto the forest road leading back to Rifira. Reno, the stubborn horse of the Modul family pulled along their small yet heavy wagon along the dirt. In the front sat a black haired and eyed middle aged man by the name of Orion, head of the Modul family, as he called himself. His blue eyes felt tired from the voyage; he could not wait to get off the uncomfortable seat from which he guided old Reno for the past six hours.

As his eyelids grew heavier, he heard something; a rustle from within the bushes. Before he could ask who or what, five men, four armed with swords and one with a crossbow jumped from the shadows. All of them clad in brown cloaks, their faces covered by black cloth. Startled, Orion shrieked, awakening the ones sleeping inside the wagon. Hialur, his sixteen -year -old son, quickly peeked out from behind the white cloth that hid him, his mother, and a young couple that was accompanying them.

Hialur had black hair and large fiery red eyes. His features were soft; his jaw narrow and his cheeks small. The young man gasped as he gazed in shock at the four broadswords and crossbow pointed at his father. "Get back inside, son"- Orion asked as calmly as he could. Hialur's legs wouldn't move, his whole body was paralyzed, numb. The only thing he could feel was the chilling twilight air almost freezing his cold sweat. "Go on, dad is going to settle this, it'll be fine." He instructed. "Tell your mother and the others to-" "Quiet, old man! I want everyone out of there, now!"- Yelled one of the robbers in a high and nasal voice. "And don't try anything or it'll put an bolt in your ugly head!"

Hialur's mother, Ebastine stepped out first with her eyes down and a stern face. Aged forty summers, her hair was long and brown, grown past her shoulders and shone timidly as if embarrassed of its own form, and her eyes were the same color as her son's. She wore a simple beige dress with short sleeves and plain leather shoes. A man grabbed her roughly by the arm and pushed her into the side of the wagon. After her came the couple, both a few years older than Hialur. The man, named Cide, was tall and dark skinned, with a skinny build and very short black hair; his eyes were covered in bandages, so he was led by the pale, blue eyed blonde who accompanied him. She moved cautiously and softly, gently leading him down and to the side of the wagon next to Ebastine.

As Hialur joined the others the robber yelled "Now you, old man! And make it snappy!" Orion slowly stepped down and stood completely still, hesitating to mutter a single word. The men rummaged through the wagon, finding nothing but leftovers and a cane. "These guys don't have anything worth the trouble!" Complained one of the men. "Where did you come from, old fart?!" asked the one with the crossbow; he seemed to be their leader. Hialur's father shook like a leaf, unable to make a sound. "What are you, a mute?! Answer me!" "Yejac. We came from Yejac." Said Ebastine. "My husband's a doctor, and we sometimes go there to-" "I didn't ask for your life story, you bitch!" Yelled the leader as he slapped her. "Mom!" screamed Hialur. Before he could move, the tip of a sword hovered in front of his throat. "Move even a little and I'll take that ugly head as a souvenir." Hialur gulped as he stepped back slightly.

"Well, I suppose if we can't take anything from you, there's one way to make this worth our while. Phil, grab the girl!" One of the men grabbed the blonde girl by the arm and pulled her towards him. "Anna!" The blind man called. "Let go of me!" she begged, kicking and screaming. "Shut up, bitch!" ordered the man as he threw her down onto the dirt. "You too, wench!" Called the bowman. Ebastine looked into Hialur's eyes, trying to hide her fear as best she could. The boy could ground his teeth as he felt powerless, ashamed he couldn't protect the one he held dearest. "It's okay, son. I'll be alright." She turned her gaze towards Orion. "Take care of Hialur."

Ebastine joined Anna as she stood up. Two men kept their blades pointed at them, the rest had their steel turned to the men. "Those two will fetch a good price down in Seagate. You shitheads can walk home, we're taking the wagon too." Hialur growled faintly. His frustration turned to rage with each second. He couldn't just stand idly as his mother was taken away. It had always been like this. Always holding back when he could have helped someone; always staying his hand when striking would end someone's pain.