Gilbert wondered if she was an angel descended from the heavens to protect him.
"I am Dyna," the lady said. "The daughter of the leader of the Sun tribe."
"Sun tribe," reacted Gilbert with a quizzical expression. "Where have I heard this name? Oh, do you belong to a clan of the wild tribes?"
"The wild tribes, yes. That is what you all call us," the lady said. She noticed the man looked unwell. Before she could react, Gilbert dropped to the ground and passed out. "Take him," she ordered her men.
***
A few horsemen carried four unconscious men on a cart through the dense jungle. They did not know what was waiting for them. Suddenly, a wooden block fell out of nowhere, forcing their movement to halt.
"Stop!" a man cried. They were Varius's men who carried Logan, Sango, and two others.
They saw a few soldiers blockaded their way with swords in their hands.
"Who are you?" inquired a man on the horse. He noticed their armors were the same as theirs. "Are you one of us? Who sent you?"
"We are not one of you," one of Kyte's soldiers said. He signaled towards the cart. "Just hand them over and we will let you go."
"Who do you think you are, you fool?" Varius's men jumped down from their horses and pulled out their swords. "You do not know who we are. Let us show you."
Both the parties clashed each other. Varius's men were sure they would win, but they did not know they were pulled into a trap. Just when they fought each other, arrows were hitting them from nowhere.
"We are being shot!" a man cried and hid behind a tree. He was wounded as he had received a cut wound near his stomach.
"Hurry, take the cart!" a Kyte's soldier ordered the others. The archers kept a check on Varius's men until they snatched the cart away from them. "Let's go! Let's go!"
***
"Hey, old man, wake up!" Dyna tried to wake Gilbert up. He had been unconscious for hours.
"Ah." The old man slowly opened his eyes. The first thing he saw was weird tribal men staring at him from above his head. "What happened to me?" He tried to get up, but Dyna stopped him.
"Rest. Your wounds would hurt if you move too much."
Gilbert found his wounds were tended. They even bandaged them. He was seated on the ground with a tree supporting his back. "Thank you for saving my life."
"Do not sweat it. I had to," Dyna said.
"Why one of the wild tribes would help me? You all are under Hammer's command," Gilbert said. "Is this a ploy to catch Prince Colt?"
"No, this is not a ploy. Not every person of the wild tribes is under the command of that dastard."
Gilbert noticed Dyna had some pent up fury against King Hammer. He also sensed some hatred oozing out of her. "What do you mean? Are you not under his influence?"
"Not at all." Dyna clenched her fist and gritted her teeth. "I will kill that treacherous dastard who killed my father."
"Killed your father?"
"Yes. Do you not wonder how that man managed to unify the wild tribes under his command in a single night?" responded Dyna.
"I do. How he did so is still a mystery. If he had not done it, I would not have been running for my life."
"Do not you want to know?"
Gilbert nodded. He never thought the questions would be answered in such circumstances. Dyna began to tell him about the events that transpired that night.
"On that night, there was a festival of our sun tribe in which all the leaders of the different clans of the wild tribes were invited. My father was chosen as the great leader of the wild tribes. All the leaders were to lead their own tribes under his supreme command…"
(The events will be told in a flashback in the next chapter.)
***
"Oye, open your eyes!" a soldier slapped Logan. It was hard enough to wake him up.
"Ah! Ah! What happened!? What happened!?" he shouted in panic.
"Oye, shut up. You are safe," the soldier said. "We saved you from those people."
Logan scanned them cautiously before talking. "Do not lie to me. You are wearing the same armor."
"Not everyone works for Hammer. We are under the command of Prince Rozerd," the soldier responded.
Logan sighed. "What do you want from me?"
"Exactly what they wanted."
"Uhh… Fine. I sold Prince Colt to the governor of the bordering castle of Wilds. The one near the nest of the wild tribes," he spilled it out without hesitation. It seemed like he was so one with the beating he got. He submitted without a difficulty. "Now, let me go, please. I told you what you wanted."
"Are you sure is this all you want to tell?"
"For God's sake, this is all I know!" Logan cried, as his injuries hurt badly. "Just let me go."
The soldier questioning him said to the other soldiers, "Take them to Prince Rozerd and tell him everything. I will give this information to Sir Kyte."
"Understood."
They parted their ways, and the soldier hurried towards Kyte, who still followed Varius and his men.
***
"Where are they going, sir?" a soldier asked Kyte.
"These lands border the Kingdom of Wilds," Kyte said with an uneasy face. "The wild tribes roam freely around these jungles. We have to be on the guard at all times. I wonder where you are going, Varius."
They followed Varius and his men, and a castle came into their view. They saw Varius talking to a guard at the entrance.
"Wait, that castle…" Kyte muttered. "Does that mean Prince Colt is here?"
"What should we do, sir?" a soldier asked.
"We will wait until the soldiers take information from those bandits. We have to confirm whether Prince Colt is really there."
After a while, the soldier with the information arrived. "Sir."
"Yes, did you get anything out of them?" Kyte asked him.
"Yes, sir. Prince Colt is held inside that castle. Those bandits had sold him to its governor," the soldier said.
Kyte nodded. "It is confirmed now that Prince Colt is alive." He ordered his soldier, "Go to Prince Rozerd and give him this information. Tell him to send some backup for us. We might clash against Varius in the worst-case scenario."
"As you order, sir." The soldier bowed and hurried away.