Cathrac the Gilded City

Chapter 10

A couple days had passed. Boy had spent them peacefully trying to connect with this little girl. He and his sister tried to give her name but they could not come to an accord, so they simply called her girl. She did not speak. But she communicated through a rudimentary sign language. She would mine drinking and eating respectively. She would hold her hand out in the universal sign to stop. If something was a little hard to sign she would slowly make finger letters. Some of them were a little hard for Boy to learn, especially the letter Q, Girl taught him patiently writing a letter in the dirt and moving his hands until he learned it. He was slow but he did his best.

He was in a conversation with Girl when Hightooth walked in. "Get up Boy" she said simply. Boy was not in the mood for her high and mighty behavior today.

His raspy voice was extra sandpapery today, "Why it's not a hunting day?"

"Because I said so"

Boy just went back to talking about hats with Girl. At least he thought it was about hats.

Hightooth grew rigid, "Move your butt Boy." Boy did nothing so Hightooth put on her fake smile and said in the snarkiest tone she could muster, "Will his royal highness please get off his royal dirt floor and come help the village that took him in and fed and housed him in his time of need?" Boy just looked at her blankly till she rolled her eyes and added "Please".

Boy jumped to his feet and said in a clear voice dripping of sarcasm, "Why yes my loyal subjects I shall go outside today and help with whatever this young girl needs."

In his normal voice he asked seriously 'What's going on? How can I help?" Hightooth rolled her eyes and said while exiting the building as dramatically as she could, "Centaur migration."

They heard the centaurs long before they could see them and smelt them even sooner. They smelt of sweat and horse manure. Hightooth had explained that they make a migration route every year but Boy was confused as to what the emergency was. He was wearing his full armor and carrying a thirty pound tower shield with no other weapons. There was a group of four other hunters and Hightooth. The four had been the ones who beat him for keeping them awake.

They were watching the glorious migration of almost a thousand centaurs race through the road four at a time when suddenly a centaur tripped and fell to the ground. Hightooth yelled "shields" in a surprisingly strong voice. Boy was very confused and stumbled along with his heavy shield and was last to the shield wall. They were pushing centaurs away and all that was left was the middle spot of a shield wall. The one with all the weight on it. Boy fell in place the shield wall protecting the fallen centaur who had a broken leg from being trampled by his own kind. The shield wall grew heavy on Boy. He had only been in one shield wall before in the pits and he had not been the middle one. He grew weaker and weaker. As he a centaur landed directly on his shield he fell but not before he noticed something. All the other hunters were pulling down on their shield instead of bracing it by themselves. Boy got hit in the mouth with the edge of his shield and the the last group of centaurs run up. Luckily only was heading directly for Hightooth who was still tending the fallen centaur. Boy tried to lift his shield, but his arms were to weak and he fell again to the ground. Boy looked in horror expecting to see this girl his age trampled to death. However, Hightooth stood her ground, it seemed to Boy that she grew bigger and he saw a more animal look in her face. The centaur jumped towards her. She ducked down, then once the centaur was above her she lifted. The centaur flew three or so feet away from her and scampered off. Boy felt sorry for the hunters as she stalked towards them with lightning and fire in her eyes.

Meanwhile in Cathrac there is another woman with fire in their eyes. The Vizier who ruled the city with an iron fist looked at the cowering wretch in front of her. "Where is my daughter? I know she was stolen by your son. I know they ran off where did they go?" Useless quivered in fear, he was too hammered to really understand what was happening here. FireSteel stood up from her golden throne and placed a hand on Useless's face. Then her eyes flashed and the flesh beneath her fingers began to bubble as this terrified lump of flesh tried to squirm away. As the screams faded because he had fainted from pain, she sighed, "Put him with the fisherman maybe they will talk about it together." Then she summoned the new captain of her bodyguard, she made this new one kill the old one for losing her daughter, "Find my daughter, I don't care how much it costs, in gold or blood, Find my daughter." The last line was delivered in a terrifying roar heard throughout the castle.