Royal Ambitions

Chapter 5: Travelers Camp

The next two months of my life I spent adjusting to life with the fog-folk. I would say I caught on quickly but they might believe otherwise. I've made friends in the settlement and have taken on a sort of guard role. 

My armor got pierced so one of the Fog-folk, a redhaired dark skinned human with hairy slender arms and legs, made me new boots and gauntlets. His ears were atop his head, his jaw and nose were further from the base of the skull than a normal humans. His eyes were like that of someone thinking intensely.  His name was Vuli. He had a large scar across his hand. The boots and gauntlets he made me were made of a nearly white wood. The insides were soft but tight as they should be.

As I patrolled the edge of the settlement, the young girl who I learned was named Ava walked beside me.

"What are we looking for?" Ava asked the question, swinging a stick like a rapier

"I'm lookin for threats, like angry people or angry animals"

"Why would they be angry?" 

"I don't know. Some people are angry for no reason"

"That sounds stupid"

"It is"

"Well what are you going to do?"

"Hopefully sc- what's that" I stopped myself, seeing a light in the woods and smoke rising above the tree lines

I looked at Ava and spoke as clear as I could. "Go to your mother"

I waited for her to leave before I progressed into the swamp. I quickly came across a small clearing with two tents and three people. A campfire was between the tents. There were cart tracks but the transport was gone. The three women all had swords.

"The king really thinks these... creatures... killed that knight?"

"Look, it was good pay so we're gonna just do as told and rather find the knight or kill these people"

"You think we're gonna have to walk back to the city?"

I chose this time to emerge from the shrubbery I had chosen to hide within.

"If you remain here then you won't be going back to the city at all" 

It wasn't my voice that spoke. I raised my sword and so did the three women. Someone walked from behind me to be at my side. Vuli. He held what looked like some kind of pistol. His work truly was impressive.

"We aren't going anywhere. We have a job to do and intend to do it"

The tallest rushed Vuli so I kicked her away from Vuli's shot

"We don't need to kill!"

"Fine." He drew his bone carved dagger

With the tallest on the ground, the second and third tried to overwhelm me but with Vuli's help I held them off. His fighting was sub-par but it was enough to even the odds.

"I'm the knight you are looking for"

" prove it!"

 I lowered my guard. This was a poor choice seeing as my left flank was pierced by the woman's blade and all I could hear was another shot ring out from Vuli's flintlock. I saw her body hit the mud that we waded in. I tried to look to Vuli

"You've started a war..." were the only words I could force out of my mouth as I bled out. 

I don't remember much aside from Ava and Edo tending to my wound and having miss placed over the bandages. War would come soon, and I needed to protect my new home.