There were two things Arden hated most: Liars and the ocean. The captain of the ship predicted steady waves and blue skies, but the ship slowly rocked from side to side ever since they departed. The unbalanced movement of the rocking ship made it impossible for her to sleep, so she went to eat in the small dining area. However, the constant glances from the men sitting around her made her stomach churn even more. There was simply no means of comfort. Not here or at home.
Maybe she could run away forever. No, her father's spies were too abundant. If she changed her name and dyed her hair, they would still sniff her down and bring her back. A life as a runaway wasn't exactly a desirable lifestyle, anyway. In an ideal world, Arden imagined an island home hanging over the sea. She would be married to a farmer or chef and have two children, a boy and a girl. Their house would be far away from gangs and violence, so life would finally be quiet and peaceful. Yes, that was ideal. Too bad the world doesn't care for ideals.
Arden was picking at the grapes from a fruit bowl when someone slipped into the seat next to her. Arden shifted her gaze to him, a man with thick-rimmed glasses and a pleasant smile. He said what sounded like an introduction to himself and seemed to ask her a question, but she didn't understand. He was speaking Dan Blic, the native language of Ritheca, but Arden wasn't fluent in the foreign language.
"I don't… understand." She tried to reply, but she knew her accent was terrible. Danblic was very different from Ceylone. Ceylone sounded melodic when spoken like water flowing down a stream while Danblic sounded stressed and hard like clay she couldn't mold. The man's eyebrows rose, and he laughed, a deep and hearty sound. He asked another question, but in another language. Her confusion deepened and she shook her head.
"I'm from Ceylon. Can you speak Ceylone?" She asked.
"Yes! A little bit." His Ceylone sounded less crisp than her native tongue, but grammatically, he made sense. "My name is Remington Blue. What's your name?"
"Arden."
"Why are you headed to Ritheca?"
"Vacation." She couldn't let him know too much about her trip. Her exile. Sure, Arden considered killing Viktor Ancelin in his sleep after his hand wandered up her thigh at the recent celebration, but she wouldn't go out of her way to kill him when he lived so far away in Kutan. Her kick to his groin in her heels satisfied her at the time. If anything, she had her blade set on whoever decided it would be a good idea to frame her.
"Visiting family for the holiday?" Remington asked. Arden raised her brow. Why was he so curious about her endeavors, anyway? She wanted to ask, but a sudden jolt from the ship sent her falling back. Remington's hand quickly shot out to catch her wrist. When the ship corrected its balance, he let go and she steadied her chair.
"Thank you." She mumbled. His quick reflexes paired with his curious nature set her on edge. His easy smile was also suspiciously broad.
"It's no problem. I love traveling, but I hate the ocean. Not a good combination, is it?" He laughed. Arden reached for another grape.
"Where are you from?" She asked.
"Kutan." He replied. Kutan? That state was full of beggars and thieves. Why would someone so sophisticated come from there? Thundering footsteps issued from behind her, and before she could look back, someone grabbed her by the neck. While they conversed, the men eyeing her before had all inched closer and now, seven greasy men were surrounding her. Remington stood up, chuckling as he dusted off his navy jacket. His new grimy grin matched the rest of the men behind him. So, the act was all an intricate ploy. She should have known better.
"You thought you could just run away after what you did?" He asked. The fingers on her neck tightened and pressed her cheek against the wooden table. Arden hissed, baring her teeth as she twisted her head to look at Remington. He lowered his face to meet her eyes and grinned. "Nice try, little girl, but you can't escape."
The men around her howled with laughter and began to move. They forced her out of her seat and crossed her arms behind her, bringing her with them. She looked over her shoulder. The man behind her had bright gold eyes that glittered as his grip tightened on her neck and wrists. He had a sword at his belt. If he loosened his grip for a second, she could throw him off balance and grab his sword. Another hand suddenly pressed against her, interrupting her train of thought and touching her jaw.
It was a man with a shaved head and unkempt beard. He grinned, displaying two rows of yellow teeth. He shouted something in a language she didn't understand, but his sing-song voice and cackles taunted her boiling anger.
But, when the man behind her decided to laugh along, his grip loosened for a split second. Arden stopped walking, interrupting the flow of footsteps. A fist swung above her head, which she predicted, so she ducked and in the same moment, her fingers reached back and gripped the handle of the sword from the man behind her. As he let go of her and pulled back, she slid the sword out of its holster and quickly swiped the blade at the necks of the men in front of her. While some of the men were able to reel back, others proved too slow and pressed their palms against their bleeding necks. Another man lunged at her but she twisted her body and kicked his chin up, hearing a satisfying snap.
Remington's eyes widened as he turned around and he promptly shouted what sounded like commands. The remaining men unsheathed their blades. Arden quickly spun around, swinging the blade at the chest of the man behind her. It sliced through his chest neatly like butter and he screamed, falling back onto the wooden table. It crumbled underneath his weight. A short blade flew towards her neck, but she met it half way, parrying the blade and bringing the sword handle down on the attacker's skull. As he fainted, he fell towards her. She caught his fall, grabbed his arm with her free hand and swung his body around, blocking the next blade that swiped at her with her offhand shield. She shoved his limp body towards her attacker, who fell back under his weight. She then leaped over him and sliced her sword across his neck.
As she finished him off, she felt a cold blade swipe at her lower back. Arden arched her back and cried out. A foot kicked at her fresh wound and she fell onto her chest. As Arden flipped onto her back, Remington's sword came down at her head. She used her own sword to prevent it from reaching her face, but gravity was on his side. He leaned down, the vein in his jawline popping and his teeth gritting as they battled for dominance.
Arden eased on the pressure first, angling her blade to the left and his sword sunk into the wooden floor. She quickly rolled to the right, and as he raised his sword, she got to her feet. The two swords met with a loud clang, sending tingling vibrations up her arms.
Arden's jaw clenched as she grunted against the force required to hold her sword against his. The collision of steel broke apart as they pushed off of each other, jumping back simultaneously. However, after one breath, they both surged forward and metal was quick to meet once again.
He then lunged and pushed the length of his blade towards her neck to where her own defending sword brushed against her skin. Remington grunted, "This is revenge for Viktor!"
"The asshole had it coming." She hissed through her teeth. The harder she tried adding pressure, the closer their bodies leaned towards each other. Once their faces were mere inches apart, Arden's eyes glared up at his, which were dark and narrowed. His matted black hair stuck to his sweaty forehead and a prominent vein sat on his neck. She couldn't have looked much different. The swords between the two quivered as they continued to push against each other, emitting the sounds of chipping steel.
Arden quickly lifted her leg, shoving her heel into his gut. He reeled back and covered his injured gut, cowering over. Arden stepped forward and kicked his chin until he threw his head up. She then brought the butt of her sword down on his face. He fell to his knees, and she quickly finished him off, piercing the tip of her blade through his neck. His limp body fell onto his back, and he was motionless.
Her chest was heaving, strands of her hair stuck to her temples, and the cut on her lower back stung but she couldn't sit still. She rushed down the hallway and up the stairs to the deck. The ship continued to sway and she gripped the railing for balance, but eventually, she made it to the top. Instead of a vast open sea, there was a line of land and docks sitting on the horizon. Arden dropped to the floor. She let go of the sword and pressed her palm against her damp forehead, her other hand pressing the wound on her back. While the thieves seemingly appeared out of nowhere, they had definitely been plotting to kill her since the moment she stepped on the ship.
No where was safe. Arden kept an eye on the stairwell just in case anyone survived, but no one stumbled up before the ship met land. When the ship got close enough to the docks, Arden raced down the stairwell and searched for the exit. When she found it, she pushed through the door and stumbled onto the dock. Workers turned their heads, but she ignored them, moving as far away as she could before they realized the carnage she left behind.