Year 2, Fall, Third Month, Fourth Week.

Until now, their escape was going as planned, but when things go bad, they go all the way… Moving more than two thousand people through a beast-infested Forest isn’t an easy job, even worse when most of these people get sick from just being alive. But they didn’t stop, they couldn’t, freedom was within their reach. For the first time in their lives, they had a future, they had dreams, they longed for something.

While the precursor of this change struggled to bring the barrier up, groups of hundreds moved through the Forest towards their new future. The barrier wasn’t just a barrier, it represented their freedom and their arduous walk was the price they would have to pay for it. The weaker faltered, but their comrades supported them. The children cried as the energy levels made their heads hurt, but their parents soothed their suffering with care and promises of a better life. However, would freedom from a lifetime of servitude, be paid with just this?

Night came with an odd silence, but they still didn’t stop. The decision to keep going, even through the night, would surely cost them. But they were too close to the Kingdom, hours of walking were nothing to a mounted Guard. With only a couple of days before winter came, chances were the Kingdom already learned of their disappearance.

***

“Hmm… And the villagers also disappeared?”

“Yes, my Lord. There weren’t signs of struggle in the village, they probably ran…”

“There’s something else happening here… Thousands of villagers wouldn’t be able to move through the Path without somebody noticing. Usually, when they rebelled, they don’t leave their village, after all, where could they run to? There wasn’t an accident or anything to trigger them. Last year, we didn’t expect any villages to fulfill the Tributes’ quota but they did…”

“My Lord…”

“Someone is helping them… But how did they entered our section without nobody noticing? I have to report this to the Wind Lord…”

“Wouldn’t my Lord be punished for losing the resources?”

“Yes, but if another country is involved, I could lose my head if I don’t report it… Send a bird messenger to the Wind Lord…”

***

A couple of hours before dawn, the last cart filled with resources left the camp accompanied by another group of a hundred villagers. Now, only the elders, the sick and some hunters remained. If everything went according to their plan, the carts would be back to take them before the day ended. Their initial plan was to move the elders first and only then bring the resources, but the Council changed plans last minute. In the end, the elders felt the resources were more important…

Marlen pushed away the straw cover and carefully moved past the sleeping elders, since she couldn’t sleep, it was of no use staying here and staring at the dark. When she exited the crude and crowded tent, she met with an old friend who was sitting by the fire.

“Did you even tried to get some sleep?”

“Bah… I’m not as hopeful as you… Marlen, it feels the same as that time, but also different… I wish Sania was at the outpost with Alfeur and her sister…”

Marlen looked at Bill with a complicated expression, she wanted to offer some comfort but she wouldn’t lie to him, not that it would make a difference if she did. Ironically, the Forest that they always feared, now looked like the safest place to be. It wasn’t a coincidence that all of their children had been sent early. Was it already time for her to meet with her husband?

“Bill, we shouldn’t have attacked their fields… From what Keller told us, the Kingdom’s response could be unpredictable…”

“At least, if we die, we would have caused… Argh…”

Everything happened so fast that Marlen could barely process it, Bill’s eyes reflected the fire as the blood traveled through his legs and painted the ground below him red. He yelled in pain and fell after the sword was pulled from his stomach. In a few seconds, the grandma who cared for dozens of children was back to been the frightened five-year girl that escaped a massacre. She trembled as her mind refused to accept what was happening in front of her.

“You should die too, disgusting slave…”

The man moved forward stepping over Bill’s body without a trace of respect before slashing his sword at Marlen. Surprisingly, pieces of her long-forgotten training returned prompting her to fall forward to barely miss the attack. The small crash sent a wave of pressure to her old bones, but she ignored it the same way she ignored the pain from picking a burning stick from the fire. Without hesitating, Marlen thrust the stick into the confused man’s face. The Guard screamed and stumbled back after releasing his sword.

Ignoring the wounded hand and her sore bones, Marlen leaned on the chair to stand up and picked the sword before thrusting it through the Guard’s neck.

Realization hit her as screams and sounds of fighting started to emerge around the camp. Behind her, Lew was fighting against five Guards, who were probably trying to enter the tent where the elders slept, while a team of hunters seemed to be facing another group near the tent of the sick villagers. They were under attack! Marlen tried to don’t think about what happened to the hunters keeping watch over the camp as she kneeled to check on her bleeding friend.

The sound of a villager crashing against a shed at the other side of the camp capture her attention. The bleeding boy crawled towards the spear that landed a few meters from him but was kicked back before he could pick it up.

“Filthy slave, you dare to point a weapon at me… Who gave you these weapons? Where are the rest of the villagers?”

Horacios stepped over the boy’s hand to hold his arm in place as he twisted his sword inside of a wound. The boy screamed in pain and the Captain smiled. Horacios pulled back the sword to hear the boy’s answer but had to jump back to dodge a spear that landed beside him. He traced the weapon’s trajectory with a displeased expression until he found the approaching attacker.

“So, you’re really trying to kill me?”