NO ONE WANTS TO WAKE UP IN A MEDIEVAL AGE PRISON WITH ALL THEIR MEMORIES LOST. Not even Walther Scott who loved the medieval period and fantasy novels.
Walther abruptly opened his eyes as he felt ice-cold water splashed onto his face. The impact of it made his brain go numb for some seconds, he couldn't feel anything but, stare blankly at the darkness that veiled him. When the numbness faded, he felt an excruciating pain enveloping his body and saw that his hands were tied behind him and his upper body was naked.
"Wake up traitor! We have been ordered to keep an eye on you and not to let you sleep." someone called out from the darkness.
Walther tried to breathe but, he wasn't able to breathe properly. The air inside was thin and not ideal for him, a thought strikes his mind as he was thinking of a way to escape this place. "How did I end up in a place like this?"
Walther soon got to know that he wasn't able to remember anything except his name and that he didn't belong to this place. Whatever was happening to him was not right and he was just tensed up and tried to call out the person who just informed him about his miserable state but, he wasn't able to utter a single word out of his mouth.
Suddenly, Walther heard footsteps that came nearer and nearer after each passing second. Soon he saw a dim light hove into view. He tried to gather as much information about his surroundings as he could in the dim light. He saw black iron bars in front of him that were rusted in someplace and he could hear the sounds from the other side of the bars.
"This is his last night in this place. We should leave him alone as he is going to die anyway." someone suggested in a soft tone.
"I know this lad is just seventeen years old but, we cannot deny the orders of Yasuke, or we will also face severe consequences. Also, you should start it now and make sure that you have drugged him before doing it. And once he is unconscious, bring him to me. I will deliver him to the afterlife." another voice explained.
As soon as the footsteps faded into the distance, Walther heard the creaking of the iron-barred gate and two people came into sight. They both were wearing ironclad armor and had a sword sheathed beside them. Both of them had a whip in their hands which they lashed onto the ground at regular intervals.
One of them guffawed as he mocked Walther, "Look at the pathetic state of our dearest traitor, enjoying himself in the prison."
Walther was puzzled by the words of the guard and struggled to question, "What are you saying, I don't get any of these traitor claims."
The other guard was swift in reacting to the question of Walther. "Don't act smart, you were leaking the information of our armies to the enemy and planning to invade the capital."
Walther knew he was stuck in a sticky situation and he cannot get out of it easily. He still dared to ask the guards, "I don't remember anything at all. But, I just want to know what is going to happen with me?"
The guards replied in unison. "You will see, what happens with the traitors of our state. I hope this is your last time experiencing pain."
All of a sudden, Walther felt a sharp pain throughout his body as he was lashed by both the guards at the same time. Every time his body got in contact with the whip, it left an imprint on him and an unbearable pain. Walther tried to stay conscious as he counted the times he was lashed, he was aware he couldn't do anything now but he promised himself that if he got a chance, he wouldn't hesitate to put a sword through them.
After counting till three hundred and forty-seven, Walther lost consciousness. The guards immediately untied the rope around his body and dragged him out of the cell. His face bumped on the edges of the stairs as he was brought up from the prison. The prison was not a proper prison but a dungeon that was transformed into a prison.
One could see several colorful tents lined outside the dungeon. Unlike the darkness and dread that enveloped the dungeon, the outside was sunny and warm. There was a hearth in the center of the tents and people in leather tunics were sitting around it, chatting and guffawing leisurely. The guards kept dragging Walther's unconscious body until they reached in front of a white tent. One of the guards left the body and went inside the tent. While the other guard waited outside.
The other guard came outside and whispered something in the ears of the other guard and both of them lifted the body and carried it to a horse cart and dumped the body inside the horse cart. The guards then looked at each other and nodded before leaving the place.
The city of Vahryn, Kingdom of Varynia
The horse cart drove past the city of Vahryn. It had four people inside including Walther. He was still unconscious and lying in the corner. There were two guards inside the cart who were keeping an eye on the four prisoners.
Vahryn Keep was a small settlement situated on the mountains of Olivia. It was used for mining and timber collection to support the economy of the Empire. All of the Varynian Kingdom was at war with the neighboring Tribes of Karnith. The ruling lords of the cities in Varynia ordered the imprisonment of the common people as the trade routes to the other kingdoms were blocked.
People who were captured by the guards were then charged for treason under false charges against the Kingdom and taken to the execution grounds in Vahryn Keep to be executed. Those who were not charged were taken to the military barracks to train and join the Royal Army of Varynia.
The path that led to the Vahryn Keep was narrow and snow blocked the path at many points so, the cart had to take several hours to finally reach inside the Keep. In the execution grounds, the shackled prisoners were all silent as the two guards chatted among themselves. The guards nudged Walther, waking him up.
"Hey, kid! How did you end up in this situation?" one of the guards questioned Walther who was sitting silently in the corner.
"It's like they care about my situation." Walther sarcastically muttered under his breath while rubbing his eyes.
The guard waited for a reply from him but, all he received was a cold glare from his sharp eyes. He checked the lad from top to bottom and noted that the guy was lean, wearing a black robe and a half-covered leather armor inside the robe and a ragged pair of trousers. He was wearing a pair of leather sandals to cover his feet.
"What's your name, kid?" asked one of the prisoners in a sympathetic tone.
"Why do you all care to ask for my name or any other details! It's not gonna save me right?" Walther yelled in an irritated and angry tone.
"Listen, Kid, if you don't wanna talk it's fine. But, no one gave you permission to cry or yell at us." the other guard warned coldly.
"It's Walther, Walther Scott. I am trapped inside this world and lost all my memories except two small yet important details. First, my name is Walther Scott and second I do not belong to this place. Now, I am a proclaimed traitor, charged for treason, and is waiting to accept my death like a goat sacrifice." exclaimed Walther, sadness, and anxiety clear in his voice.
The other five people stared at Walther blankly. They were either shocked or were trying to imagine the condition of the child. Suddenly, one of the guards and prisoner started to laugh loudly while pointing a finger at Walther. Immediately, Walther turned his head up and the coldness in his eyes sent chills down the body of the people sitting beside him and silenced them.
"I don't know how to get out of here, I don't know where to go, I don't know whom to trust, I don't even have my memories. And, I don't wanna die in a place like this." thought Walther.
Walther showed as if he doesn't care whether he lives or dies but, inside him, the war was at its peak. A war with himself, he wanted a chance to escape and attain his memories back to return to the place where he belonged but, when he peeked outside from the cart, all he saw was a narrow path that led forward or backward and a path that led downwards and then upwards. In short, there wasn't a way for Walther to escape his doomed fate.
The horse cart suddenly stopped with a jerk in the middle of the mountains. This shook everyone by surprise excluding Walther, who was entangled in his thoughts. Everyone waited for some time, giving each puzzled gazes, before one of the guards get off the cart and went to the cart driver to inquire about the situation.
"What happened, why did you stop the cart?" inquired the guard.
"Sire, the path ahead is sealed off by snow that might have happened after last night's snowfall. We have to clear the path before proceeding ahead." explained the cart driver.
"We don't have much time and if we reached late, there will be some serious issues. Is there any way to clear the snow right now?" questioned the concerned guard.
"There is one way, I have got some shovels inside the cart, we can use them to clear the snow and move ahead. It might take half an hour to clean up but, it's worth it." answered the cart driver and climbed down the cart.
The cart driver and the guards started to descend everyone down the cart and, the cart driver took out four shovels from inside the cart and gave each one a shovel. Everyone started to clear the path by moving the snow aside. Walther was frozen in his place, thinking of a way to escape his execution.
"Brother, you must help us to clear the path or the guards will try to harm you. I know you want to escape this place badly but, trust me, there's no way." one of the male prisoners whispered in Walther's ears.
Immediately, Walther started to help others with the work. He was physically clearing the path but, mentally, he was thinking of a plan to escape and how to execute it properly. He started observing the people and their conditions. He was still shackled in chains with other prisoners which meant, he needed the help of others to break free.
Walther gazed at the man who warned him earlier and whispered the plan inside his ears and told him to pass it to others. Slowly the escapade was passed throughout the group and everyone nodded while looking at each other.
"O' God! I need your help to save my life. Please help me to get outta here." muttered Walther as he nodded to others.
All the prisoners gazed at the two guards standing behind them and suddenly, Walther started to Act like he was about to faint. Immediately, one of the guards came rushing and held him under his arms. Taking this opportunity, Walther grabbed the hilt of the sword that was sheathed beside the guard.
Walther sliced the throat of the guard while he unsheathed the sword. The other guard who was standing at a distance and talking to the cart driver rushed to the aid of his comrade. But, before he could react, the other guard was slaughtered to death by Walther. One of the prisoners immediately gets hold of the keys to unbind the chains and first unshackled Walther and started to unbind others.
"You son of a... you killed my comrade! I won't forgive you for this. I will slaughter you myself." exclaimed the other guard, anger, and hatred in his voice.
"Give me the keys, I will unshackle the chains and you all take the shovels and rush into action," ordered Walther.
Everyone agreed and the prisoner gave the keys to Walther. Walther started to act like he was unbinding the chains but, he suddenly threw the bunch of keys from the cliff of the mountain and started to laugh like a lunatic. The prisoner beside Walther grabbed his robe and punched him in his face. Blood started to gush out from Walther's mouth but, he kept laughing.
"You all are so done for, I am gonna slaughter every one of you," Walther announced as he stabbed the man who was holding his robe.
"I will kill you first you bastard." cried the guard as he charged towards Walther.
"On the other hand, I think I will just leave you all to hunt me down as there is no fun in living a life without a motive." challenged Walther as he got hold of the two daggers that hung at the thighs of the fallen guard.
"Mark my words! I will come for Yasuke and the guards who tortured me. I will eliminate them with my own hands and, if I died before that happens then, see ya all in hell," exclaimed Walther as he jumped off the cliff of the mountain.