People looked at me like I was a monster as I headed down the road towards the city center. Maybe I imagined it.
I took the shortest way to the nearest church. A few alleys painted with all the worst of the worst.
"Now the Lord said...!" The priest was saying as I walked into the congregation. What he was going to say next, no one heard, for my lord my anger told me to put an arrow in his chest and I did. Amen.
Let it be known that the son of the beast has finally walked into a church. Most people got up in surprise I let my arrows rain. Aiming for the gentlemen's necks, not a sure kill but whether they died depended entirely on... their lord?
Or how much alcohol they drank.
As the ladies and kids all ran for cover and the nearest exits, I took out my sword and started a slaughterhouse of the men who found it better to turn and try to attack me. I ignored the screams. the pleas and walked straight towards the priest who lay on the ground drowning in his own blood.
"who gave out the bounty for my head?" I asked the struggling priest. He just struggled to breathe. And made no attempt to answer me. Or if he did, he just couldn't say. Hard to differentiate between the two with an arrow on someone's chest.
Well done Andre. well done.
I looked around for someone who could tell me who but I couldn't find anyone. I let the priest go, maybe I should have asked and killed later. Not kill then ask.
Before I left, I burnt the church and headed towards the temple. I knew by now that the palace guards and soldiers would have gotten wind of what was going on and...
wait, should I just pay them a visit? I wondered. They would know who is responsible for giving out the bounties. But I needed a good night's sleep.
I turned myself into an old rundown in, knowing it would not be crowded. The owner, an old lady didn't have much to complain about. Having a sword at her neck did the trick. Fifty gold coins for the old inn can also get even a tortoise running.
I ate the food she had prepared and took a nap as the sun was setting on the horizon. Into the night I heard horses approach. I got up and armed myself. They jumped off the horses and I heard their metals clank as they landed on the ground. I sighed a little, at least it wasn't the centaur.
Knights? and I thought the king wasn't involved.
"Andreana Fox!" One shouted in a voice that clearly was forced to be deep. "By the order of the Knights of Arga, you are under arrest for the aggravated violence and murder of the priests of the church and the monk of the temple of the Guardians among other high treason charges."
As I walked out of the inn, I was met by four knights in full metallic armor and I had to say, They looked RIDICULOUS! Like tin men. Men are slow as themselves but now they wore iron armor and were sacrificing that speed for what? Protection?
Why did they send four? four? was i... let's not read too much into it.
"Hello." I greeted them and they looked at each other, probably wondering what the fuck this was. I know, I look ridiculous too in this white tight Swan armor. "that's what you're supposed to say first. we didnt wake up in the same bed, so greet first. its manners." Damn, I love being into the hunt. It's exhilarating.
"Okay, now that we got that out of the picture, Who knows who put a hit on Princes Ariana?" I asked. "you can put your hand up if you know who did."
one took out a bow and shot it at me. I hit the arrow out of the way with my sword. and threw a knife at the small opening of his eyes and... Whooa hoo! bullseyes! Always wanted to do that. I caught him, clean.
They attacked me and i defended myself as the knight fell. I tried not to kill them and i disarmed them and dislocated their joints. two of them, i knocked them out clean easily. Even taking their armor off was way easier than massacring the churchgoers. But they claimed to be knights.
i took the throwing knife from the dead knight's eyes and stared at the naked knights free of their armor.
"now who was it that knew the person who gave out the bounty for the witch queen?" i asked. they looked at me and spit on me. saying stuff like, they'll die with honour than tell me the names of their bosses.
moments like these are the ones that make me hate my resolve. but honorable death. well i do still have a fun bone.
I sighed and kneeled next to them. "let's keep this between us, but you have two options here. give me the name of the one who hands out bounties, or i take your horses tie your small wiener and pull you throughout the city naked. that wont be honourable at all. even your grandchildren would be laughed at."
they looked at one another.
"this is me being nice. count from ten and i wont be nice at all."
"what's going to happen to us if we tell you?" one asked.
"well, i havent killed you yet have i?"
a few moments later, the knights were back in their armour. back onto their horses as i was tied to their horses and dragged away.
my armor was concealed beneath a torn robe and the knights really werent kidding.
the dragged me as roughly as they can into the palace in the middle of the night.
i watched them and did nothing as they tossed me into the dungeon. i spent the rest of the night tied up in the dungeon next to a dead body.
As morning came, i heard footsteps approaching my cell. Heavy footsteps with a lot of cringing like the metal heads they call the knights.
as the cell grew illuminated by the torch light they came with, i closed my eyes and waited patiently for whoever was visiting me to come.
He came. the visitor in a form of someone i didnt entend to see. General Raoul. the guy who has been trying to recruit me into the army of the king.
"Andreana." He called as he hit the bars. i looked at him and bowed my head again.
"so this is what you meant by saying we will meet again? killing half the people in town?" he asked.
here i was thinking i was free from the lady in white. "prettg much. and i didn't half the people in town, i killed fifty three."
"in one day!" he shouted at me. "you know, i thought you were like your father."
"why is everybody saying that everyday?" i growled. "i am not my father, so dont look for him in me, you won't find him."
"you are frustrating, you know that?" he asked searching for my eyes. i took a peek at him and bowed my head again.
"so everything your father taught you, was for yoh to become a serial killer? huh," he scoffed at me and turned to leave. His soldiers opened the cell with their weapons drawn. "you are adisgrace to the knighthood."
"I'm not the one paying assassins and hunters to hunt down the very people I vowed to protect!" I shouted at him and he stopped and turned.
"What is that supposed to mean?" He asked.
The soldiers carefully approached me and I put a crystal coin on top of the heavy wooden handcuffs. "By the order of the knights of Arga and the order of the guardians, I call parley, if you do not honour it, you can go ahead and face the consequences." The soldiers stepped back as they saw the crystal coin gleam. He ran into the cell and picked up the coin.
He looked at the coin and then at me.
"Where did you get this?" He asked with his eyes wide open.
"I grew up in the forest surrounded by gods, monsters and beasts. I can pick up things here and there." I said and relaxed. Lets let them try to harm me and refuse me that council. I dare them.