She'd had a long way to go, made shorter by the ride she caught on the back of a trader's wagon. He was transporting onions, which was even better. She sat in the back with them and maybe a hundred or so rats snuck in wherever they managed to crawl into while she distracted him with a lively barter for how much he ought to be paid for his trouble. He dropped her off outside the woods on the promise that she was off to visit her elven friend.
That was a long time to think, and she'd spent most of it thinking about Gareth. Despite everything, she couldn't make herself believe he'd known. Hadn't Colin said Gareth had been told not to bother coming in? And for a week or two? The King wouldn't have told him, because if he had, Gareth would have made it a whole long drawn out process. He wouldn't have just handed her over and taken a vacation. ...Would he? Would he? How deep was his loyalty to the King?
She came to the conclusion that she would find out. And if the answer was just deep enough, well...
She hummed a tune to herself as she made her way through the woods towards the lake he called home. The haunting melody echoed through the woods for the second time in a few months, but this time, she wasn't playing the role of poor pretty Polly.
Despite all the time she'd saved taking that wagon, it was starting to get late by the time she managed to find her way to Gareth's cabin. It was only because of Byron that she found it at all; once she'd gotten close enough to feel him on the outskirts of her awareness, she'd honed in. He was full of news; she kept him out of all of hers. Rats like Byron, Phoebe, and Timothy, well, they had a mind of their own, and she didn't want him to give a warning. He'd clearly grown fond of Gareth.
Gareth had that effect on people.
She was creeping through the underbrush, trying to figure out the best way of doing this. Should she wait until nightfall? She needed every advantage, and probably also to spend the night here to have a chance of surviving this far into the mountains. She'd need supplies, too. She could wait til nightfall, rob him, and leave... The thought of confronting him made her feel ill. The thought of what she might have to do if he tried to contact the King made her feel even worse. Maybe she'd just hide and leave without ever knowing if he'd betrayed her utterly, or been betrayed.
But... no. She had to know. She would always believe he'd betrayed her otherwise; she knew herself. It was less painful, in some ways, then the alternative. If he was the monster he always claimed he was, she could write the whole thing off as Stockholm syndrome, erase all the good times from her memory... and make sure that when the King found her, he'd find at least one corpse that would make him regret.
She had just decided this when Byron shrieked the alarm in her mind, a blood-soaked scream that could only have been worse if it had ended abruptly. Unthinking, she charged forward towards the cabin, terrified that Gareth had been so different from the man she thought she'd known that he'd kill a piece of her just to be rid of the nuisance.
What she saw instead froze her more than the whipping winds ever could. Gareth was on his knees, a sword sticking out of his chest. There was a retreating figure, already climbing onto a horse and spurring it into action. As the figure mounted, she saw just enough of the profile of his face to identify him.
Colin.
If she moved very, very fast, ran herself to grab the horse's reins, she could perhaps have just enough time to keep it from galloping off. She had enough rats. She could see it in her mind's eye, and the rats surged forward already, reacting to her thoughts. They could swarm up the horse's legs, if she stopped it. They could get into Colin's armor. They could tear him apart. They could eat him alive, as slowly as she wanted.
Gareth was bleeding out on the ground.
Colin's horse took off into the other side of the woods as Ren bolted to Gareth's side, falling to her knees next to him. Rage and fear didn't just leak out of her, it poured. Every rat in the forest spilled from their homes to follow Colin like a black flood. She knew they wouldn't catch him; he was moving too fast. But it would have been more effort to stop them, frankly. She didn't care.
She wasn't even aware of the crows that would swoop at Colin's head as he raced through the woods, nor did she understand that up in the tower, Gareth's pigeons were losing their minds, clawing at their cages. All she could think about was Gareth, dark blood dribbling out of his lips, sword through his chest.
"No, no, nononono," she murmured, voice sounding small and broken. She gripped the sword, in shock, accomplishing nothing more than cutting her hand on it. "Gareth, no, no, no, what do I do oh god, no." She didn't know how to fix this. Rats couldn't fix this, machines couldn't fix this. What did she know of first aid? She wasn't a wizard or a healer. All she could do is kneel useless in the blood-stained snow, secure in the knowledge that one last time, she'd made the wrong choice.
That was a long time to think, and she'd spent most of it thinking about Gareth. Despite everything, she couldn't make herself believe he'd known. Hadn't Colin said Gareth had been told not to bother coming in? And for a week or two? The King wouldn't have told him, because if he had, Gareth would have made it a whole long drawn out process. He wouldn't have just handed her over and taken a vacation. ...Would he? Would he? How deep was his loyalty to the King?
She came to the conclusion that she would find out. And if the answer was just deep enough, well...
She hummed a tune to herself as she made her way through the woods towards the lake he called home. The haunting melody echoed through the woods for the second time in a few months, but this time, she wasn't playing the role of poor pretty Polly.
Despite all the time she'd saved taking that wagon, it was starting to get late by the time she managed to find her way to Gareth's cabin. It was only because of Byron that she found it at all; once she'd gotten close enough to feel him on the outskirts of her awareness, she'd honed in. He was full of news; she kept him out of all of hers. Rats like Byron, Phoebe, and Timothy, well, they had a mind of their own, and she didn't want him to give a warning. He'd clearly grown fond of Gareth.
Gareth had that effect on people.
She was creeping through the underbrush, trying to figure out the best way of doing this. Should she wait until nightfall? She needed every advantage, and probably also to spend the night here to have a chance of surviving this far into the mountains. She'd need supplies, too. She could wait til nightfall, rob him, and leave... The thought of confronting him made her feel ill. The thought of what she might have to do if he tried to contact the King made her feel even worse. Maybe she'd just hide and leave without ever knowing if he'd betrayed her utterly, or been betrayed.
But... no. She had to know. She would always believe he'd betrayed her otherwise; she knew herself. It was less painful, in some ways, then the alternative. If he was the monster he always claimed he was, she could write the whole thing off as Stockholm syndrome, erase all the good times from her memory... and make sure that when the King found her, he'd find at least one corpse that would make him regret.
She had just decided this when Byron shrieked the alarm in her mind, a blood-soaked scream that could only have been worse if it had ended abruptly. Unthinking, she charged forward towards the cabin, terrified that Gareth had been so different from the man she thought she'd known that he'd kill a piece of her just to be rid of the nuisance.
What she saw instead froze her more than the whipping winds ever could. Gareth was on his knees, a sword sticking out of his chest. There was a retreating figure, already climbing onto a horse and spurring it into action. As the figure mounted, she saw just enough of the profile of his face to identify him.
Colin.
If she moved very, very fast, ran herself to grab the horse's reins, she could perhaps have just enough time to keep it from galloping off. She had enough rats. She could see it in her mind's eye, and the rats surged forward already, reacting to her thoughts. They could swarm up the horse's legs, if she stopped it. They could get into Colin's armor. They could tear him apart. They could eat him alive, as slowly as she wanted.
Gareth was bleeding out on the ground.
Colin's horse took off into the other side of the woods as Ren bolted to Gareth's side, falling to her knees next to him. Rage and fear didn't just leak out of her, it poured. Every rat in the forest spilled from their homes to follow Colin like a black flood. She knew they wouldn't catch him; he was moving too fast. But it would have been more effort to stop them, frankly. She didn't care.
She wasn't even aware of the crows that would swoop at Colin's head as he raced through the woods, nor did she understand that up in the tower, Gareth's pigeons were losing their minds, clawing at their cages. All she could think about was Gareth, dark blood dribbling out of his lips, sword through his chest.
"No, no, nononono," she murmured, voice sounding small and broken. She gripped the sword, in shock, accomplishing nothing more than cutting her hand on it. "Gareth, no, no, no, what do I do oh god, no." She didn't know how to fix this. Rats couldn't fix this, machines couldn't fix this. What did she know of first aid? She wasn't a wizard or a healer. All she could do is kneel useless in the blood-stained snow, secure in the knowledge that one last time, she'd made the wrong choice.
The following 2 users Like SolitareLee's post: liarliaronapyre, Tindome
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Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-01-2019, 11:13 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-01-2019, 12:23 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-01-2019, 01:27 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-01-2019, 02:24 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-01-2019, 03:02 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-01-2019, 03:23 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-01-2019, 05:22 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-01-2019, 10:06 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-01-2019, 10:47 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-02-2019, 02:41 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-02-2019, 06:36 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-02-2019, 08:55 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-02-2019, 09:16 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-02-2019, 09:34 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-02-2019, 10:05 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-02-2019, 10:54 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-02-2019, 11:10 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-02-2019, 11:46 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-02-2019, 12:01 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-02-2019, 12:55 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-02-2019, 01:15 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-02-2019, 02:33 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-02-2019, 02:56 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-02-2019, 03:25 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-02-2019, 03:40 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-02-2019, 04:10 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-02-2019, 04:37 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-02-2019, 11:14 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-03-2019, 12:11 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-03-2019, 04:36 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-03-2019, 07:06 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-03-2019, 10:38 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-03-2019, 11:11 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-03-2019, 11:44 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-03-2019, 12:07 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-03-2019, 01:06 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-03-2019, 01:32 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-03-2019, 02:02 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-03-2019, 02:30 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-04-2019, 01:15 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-04-2019, 01:42 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-04-2019, 02:22 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-04-2019, 02:58 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-04-2019, 06:11 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-04-2019, 07:34 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-04-2019, 08:38 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-04-2019, 09:01 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-04-2019, 10:01 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-04-2019, 10:53 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-04-2019, 11:23 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-04-2019, 12:51 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-04-2019, 02:21 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-04-2019, 02:39 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-05-2019, 03:15 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-05-2019, 03:33 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-06-2019, 05:29 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-06-2019, 08:02 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-07-2019, 11:55 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-07-2019, 02:09 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-08-2019, 05:17 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-08-2019, 07:28 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-08-2019, 08:12 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-08-2019, 08:58 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-08-2019, 02:13 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-08-2019, 06:33 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-09-2019, 05:45 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-09-2019, 07:23 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-09-2019, 08:28 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-09-2019, 09:04 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-09-2019, 09:35 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-09-2019, 09:55 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-09-2019, 11:59 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-09-2019, 12:20 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-09-2019, 01:25 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-09-2019, 01:52 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-10-2019, 12:42 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-10-2019, 01:18 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-11-2019, 07:35 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-11-2019, 08:23 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-11-2019, 10:52 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-11-2019, 11:11 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-11-2019, 11:58 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-12-2019, 12:39 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-12-2019, 04:20 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-12-2019, 05:33 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-13-2019, 09:54 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-13-2019, 10:14 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-13-2019, 02:46 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-13-2019, 03:00 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-14-2019, 10:58 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-14-2019, 11:19 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-14-2019, 12:50 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-14-2019, 01:13 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-14-2019, 03:57 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-14-2019, 04:21 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-15-2019, 02:42 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-15-2019, 03:17 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-16-2019, 11:18 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-16-2019, 11:42 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-18-2019, 03:08 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-18-2019, 03:28 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-19-2019, 03:17 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-19-2019, 03:47 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-20-2019, 11:26 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-20-2019, 11:50 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-20-2019, 01:25 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-20-2019, 01:58 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-20-2019, 05:13 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-20-2019, 05:27 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-21-2019, 01:23 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-21-2019, 01:52 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-25-2019, 02:38 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-25-2019, 02:54 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-27-2019, 01:23 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-27-2019, 02:20 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-28-2019, 01:11 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-28-2019, 01:36 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-28-2019, 09:55 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-28-2019, 10:28 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-28-2019, 11:27 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-28-2019, 11:38 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-28-2019, 03:16 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-28-2019, 03:52 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-29-2019, 03:06 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-29-2019, 03:26 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-29-2019, 05:59 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-29-2019, 06:39 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-29-2019, 07:26 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-29-2019, 09:11 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-29-2019, 02:49 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-29-2019, 03:06 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-29-2019, 03:51 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-29-2019, 04:20 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-30-2019, 04:45 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-30-2019, 05:40 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-30-2019, 07:37 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-30-2019, 07:56 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-30-2019, 09:45 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-30-2019, 11:03 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 12-30-2019, 01:27 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 12-30-2019, 01:43 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 01-01-2020, 01:56 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 01-01-2020, 02:12 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 01-02-2020, 01:23 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 01-02-2020, 01:51 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 01-02-2020, 02:23 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 01-02-2020, 02:40 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 01-02-2020, 03:27 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 01-02-2020, 03:45 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 01-03-2020, 06:38 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 01-03-2020, 07:03 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 01-03-2020, 08:21 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 01-03-2020, 11:15 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 01-03-2020, 12:39 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 01-03-2020, 12:58 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 01-05-2020, 10:59 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 01-05-2020, 11:10 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 01-05-2020, 03:04 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 01-05-2020, 03:20 PM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by Tindome - 01-31-2020, 11:34 AM
RE: Beg Forgiveness [Closed] - by SolitareLee - 01-31-2020, 03:27 PM