Andy's eyes flash as he was sent back. He couldn't see for a few seconds, but when his vision cleared up and felt that he was laying down, he felt that he was on a patch of grass. He groans.
"What the hell happened?"
Once his vision finally cleared up, he saw that he was in a burning forest. The trees around him burn a bright orange as smoke fills the atmosphere. Andy immediately covered his mouth with his shirt and stayed low.
"What the hell? Did they set the time right?" he thought to himself as he tried to find a way out.
Andy looked around for around two minutes before he heard something approaching him. It sounded like the galloping of a horse, and then a voice was heard.
"Halt!" The voice yelled. Knights in bronze and iron armor went up to Andy with a spear pointed at him. The armor had an engraved emblem on it, representating a sun.
"You are trespassing on Soland territory!" one of the knights shouted at him. Andy immediately stood up and put his hands up.
"Trespassing? I didn't know!" he said. The knights ignored his response and grabbed Andy by the arms.
"Come with us!" another knight said. Andy tried resisting, but it was no use. Two guards held Andy's arms and wrists, limiting his ability to move.
"I didn't do anything!" Andy said, as he kept trying to get out of the knights' hold.
"Silence! You will be held prisoner for trespassing on our land!" another one of the knights said. Andy couldn't do or say much else.
"Motherfucker," he muttered under his breath.
The guards walk Andy... somewhere. The smoke from the trees makes it hard to breathe, and small embers from the flames fall onto the grass. It was a slow walk, and Andy tried to process what's happening around him.
"This place is wrecked to hell, what happened here?" he thought as he looked around.
After half an hour of walking, they were finally out of the burning forest. The knights walk Andy towards a castle, built from cobblestone and bricks. There was a large, wooden gate that was guarded by more knights. The gate opens, and beyond the gate reveals a village full of houses, huts, and people. The people looked quite dull, and no emotion seemed to be expressed by them.
Andy looks at the village around him, and then at the castle in front of him. Once they went inside the castle, the atmosphere changed. The ambience went quiet, and the place looked different compared to the outside; it's like the castle doesn't look natural. The walls were built with the same bricks as the walls around the kingdom; a crimson carpet was laid on the floor; light beamed down from windowless holes near the ceiling; and in the middle of everything was a throne, where the kingdom's royalty would sit.
Andy was let down in front of the throne and forced to his knees. "Your majesty, this peasant has been trespassing on our land. We suspect he is a part of an ongoing raid," the knight claimed to the figure that sat upon the throne. Andy looked at the knight with a pissed-off glare and then looked at the throne. It was a woman who sat on the throne; it was their queen.
"Identify yourself to Queen Solia!" the knight shouted at Andy.
"Oh, so this place is named after her. I should've expected that, honestly. I can't reveal my mission to her. Lying it is." Andy thought to himself, keeping his composure. He sighed as he spoke.
"I am Andy Smith, and I was... travelling around the area when I happened to get lost." He couldn't bring himself to say the truth; it would only make the queen more suspicious of him.
"Perhaps you are here so you can attack us!?" the queen spoke. Her tone was intimidating, and her voice filled the room with little to no effort.
"I don't intend to attack you, your majesty. So please, allow me to leave unharmed," Andy responded. The queen continued to stare at Andy, observing how he looked and acted.
"His clothing is rather odd. I have never seen one with such strange attire," she said under her breath. No one else seems to have heard her say that.
After observing Andy, she spoke in such a daunting manner,
"Imprison him. We cannot let any outsider near our land, especially in this time of war." Andy's eyes widen as he suddenly realizes what she just said.
"Did they put me in a fucking war?" The thought flashed through his mind. He was then grabbed by the knights again to be brought into the castle's prison. The place was dark, and it seems like Andy was the only prisoner in it; he was thrown into a cell and left to be checked on later.
"Goddamn it," he thought to himself, "I hope they fix that fucking machine soon. I don't want to be here longer than I have to. They didn't check me for anything, so I still have all of my things. They took my goddamn bag though. Shit, I can leave right now, but I'll wait until nighttime."
Minutes passed as Andy pondered what he'd do next, and then Queen Solia and one of her knights came inside the prison.
"You look quite helpless there," she giggled as she teased.
"Like every other bastard you've locked up before me, unless I'm your first." Andy responded. The queen was quite shocked; no one has spoken up to her before, especially this way.
"How insolent of you to speak to me in that manner!" she gasped.
"Fuck you, dude. I'm not bound to your rules. I'm not afraid of you, Solia. Not... one... bit."
"You shall treat the queen with respect!" The knight beside her yells at Andy. He continued to keep his composure and ignored the guard; he stood upright to show his lack of intimidation.
"If you will not treat me with honor and respect, you will be put to death!" the queen exclaimed. Andy again remains unfazed.
"I'll tell you again, your majesty. I am not afraid of you; I am not afraid of death; you cannot scare me," he says, emphasizing his previous statements.
The queen then thinks of something, while the knight beside her grits his teeth and raises his sword at Andy. The queen stops the knight; she wanted to say something to Andy.
"Disregard my mention of your execution, for now."
Both Andy and the knight were confused.
"What is she saying?" they both thought.
"You mentioned the fact that you do not fear death; it is also a trait of my soldiers," she says with a smirk, lifting Andy's face by the chin. "If you truly value your life, how about you fight for us?" Andy grabs her arm by the wrist and lowers it, causing her to let go of his chin.
"I won't fight for pricks like you. I fight for my own cause, and trusting you will only lead me to harm," he says, continuing to stand his ground.
Solia's smirk then fades. "You don't wish to attack us, and you don't want to fight for us. What do you fight for?"
Andy stared at Solia for a few seconds before responding. He took a breath and said, "I fight for what I know is right. Now fuck off; you have a kingdom to rule."
The queen turned her back on him and left the room, while the knight stayed behind. The knight looked at the agent, observing what he'd do next. Andy saw that he was being stared at.
"Is there anything you want to say?" he asks.
The knight simply left without a response, and Andy is left alone in the prison.
A few hours have passed, it's almost sunset; Andy has been sitting around for quite a while. There's nothing much else for him to do but gather whatever information he can get. He taps a few buttons on his smartwatch and records a voice note.
"Agent Andy Smith, this is my first day. This period seems to be a time of war, though I have yet to find out the reasoning behind it. The war seems to have caused forest fires and possibly some other types of damages, though I haven't gotten to explore the area.
There's a monarchy being led by a queen named "Solia." Her motives are currently unknown to me, but it seems like she is some sort of tyrant. Unfortunately for me, as I got sent here, I got noticed by one of her guards and got arrested.
The place is apparently named 'Soland', I assume it's spelled: Sierra, Oscar, Lima, Alpha, November, Delta. Their dungeon, or whatever the hell this place is, seems to be built decently. It's built with some sort of limestone. Though their cell bars aren't the best quality, they've rusted over time. I assume this place has been here for a while, possibly even before she ruled it. I'd assume this place was built decades ago.
That's all I can observe about this place for now. I'll record once I see something new."
A few seconds after he had stopped recording, someone knocks and goes inside the prison. It was the same guard as before, keeping his sword with him.
"Were you sent here to watch over me?" Andy says, to which the guard nods in response. "How sweet. Send her my regards," he says again, now in a sarcastic tone. The knight then sets his sword against the wall and starts interrogating Andy.
"Tell me why you're here," the knight asks. Andy felt tension from the knight, but he ignores it.
"I told you already. I got lost while travelling. I didn't come here with the intention of invading you," he responded.
"Your lies don't work on me. You were sent here, weren't you? Why else would you trespass?" the knight spoke again, now in a more frustrated manner. Andy was confused. He thought about the area surrounding the kingdom and what he would possibly see from them.
"Believe what you want; I'm only telling you the truth here," he said. Andy then stares at the knight from head to toe; the knight notices this.
"Are you planning something?" the knight questioned.
"No. I'm merely observing you. Even if I was, it wouldn't be about you." Andy examines the knight again, the armor reflecting whatever miniscule amount of light entering the room. "You're a loyal knight; it's sad that you work for someone like her."
The knight's stare suddenly broke, and his face shifted from frustration to uncertainty. He had nothing else to say and left the prison.
Andy again records on his stopwatch, "The knights aren't too fond of me, but I should be fine for the time being."
He waited until midnight to finally start escaping. Andy grabbed his utility knife and started cutting through the rusty iron. It took several minutes to cut through, but eventually he was able to take a bar off. Bar after bar, after bar, Andy could finally fit through the space he opened up.
"Fucking finally..." he sighed.
The room had a hole in the walls that was also barred like the cell, and Andy started cutting through the bars. As he cut one bar off, the bar fell inside the room and created a metallic clanging noise.
There were two knights walking near the prison, having conversation about how to deal with the kingdom as the war ensued, then being interrupted by the metal clang from the prison.
"Did you hear that?" one of them asked,
"Yes, I did. I think that came from the dungeon." the other responded.
They quickly went towards the door, but it was locked. Andy, from inside, hears them fidgeting with the door handle.
"Oh shit, they heard me," Andy thought as he hid behind the door. After a few seconds of fiddling with the doorknob, the knights finally got inside. They were daunted by the sight of the broken cell with no one inside.
"The prisoner escaped," one of the knights said. Suddenly, Andy lunges towards a knight and stabs him in the head. The other pulls out their blade but is disarmed and killed as quick as the first knight. Andy was breathing heavily after the sudden appearance of the guards.
"I need to dip," he thought as he started cutting the bars of the window again.
It took a while to cut through the bars, and it was also a bit of a tight fit, but it worked after a minute of struggling. Andy had finally gotten out of the castle, but is still within the parameters of the kingdom.
"Where do I even go?" he whispered as he looked around.
He took a good look around the village. The houses were lit with torches, the houses are built with oak and ash wood, the paths and roads are empty and quiet, it can almost be described as desolate. The whole kingdom was surrounded by a stone wall, around forty to fifty feet tall. He looked around for a way to go beyond the barrier until he found a massive hole. No one seems to know this is here. Andy approached the hole as quietly as he could, and walked out unharmed. The forest around was burned to rubble; it's a miracle that some of the trunks stayed intact. The smell of burned wood remains in the area, along with a few pieces of dead bark and leaves on the ground.
He then pondered where he'd go to wait for the Voyager to be fixed, and he decided to record another voice note into his smartwatch.
"It's me again; I managed to escape the castle, though I had to kill two of the knights inside to leave. I also took time to look around for a bit, and there was a village around the proximity of the castle. The village seems to be stripped of almost all of it's resources, Solia's a bit greedy, apparently. Fucking hell...
It's also around midnight as I record this, and the forests around are burned to hell. It smells awful, but at least it's a bit more open. I'm travelling around to see where I can stay to wait for the machine to be fixed. I'll once again record when I see something new."
Andy walked through the forest for about an hour and a half. Hunger and exhaustion go through his body, but his will to make it out is stronger than mere tiredness. He walked through the forest without anything guiding him; he was on his own. But then he found a small speck of light through the dead trees. He approached it and saw that it was a village, almost similar to the one he saw back in Soland.
"I think I can hide somewhere here," Andy thought. As soon as he started walking, he tripped on one of the roots of the trees and cut his cheek on the branches of another.
"Fuck, I'll deal with this later," he says as he walks towards the village.
The village didn't look as desolated as the one he saw when he escaped, there were pigs around, and the houses were well lit and overall well-maintained. He sat by the side walls of one of the houses and decided that he should sleep.
"I'm pretty damn exhausted from all that; I'll just see what I'll do tomorrow," he said with a heavy breath.
But then the person from inside the house he sat by came outside, holding a lantern.
"Hello? Are you okay?" the villager asked.
The villager had bright gray eyes; the color was almost like marble. His hair was brown, like one's morning coffee. He wore a top made from wool, a vest made from leather, and trousers made from dyed sheepskin.
Andy suddenly got up and prepared himself to potentially fight.
"Don't worry, stranger. I'm not here to harm you. You are hurt, and I want to help!" the villager says after seeing Andy's reaction upon meeting him.
The villager noticed Andy's cut on his face, and he offered to heal him. His palm was open, though Andy was still hesitant. After a few seconds of thinking about it, Andy accepted the offer. The villager then takes his hand and let Andy inside.
The house's interior was quite calming, and the room was warm compared to the coldness of the outside. The place was mostly made out of wood, the fireplace was constructed with granite, and the blankets on the bed were woven from wool. Andy was sitting on a chair while the villager lit up a candle on the table in front of him.
"How are you, stranger? Do you have any other injuries?" the villager asked, Andy shakes his head. "No, just this cut."
The villager then grabbed a woolen cloth and dropped liquid onto it; the liquid looked to be some sort of herbal medicine.
"Here, this should help," he says as he hands the cloth to Andy. Andy nodded in thanks while taking the wool cloth to his face. The villager proceeds to ask about how he got here.
"How did you end up here? It's dangerous out there; I don't know how you managed to survive," he wondered. Andy couldn't really answer; a lot had happened in only one day.
"I... was traveling around, and I happened to come across Solia's knights," Andy answered, making up a lie as he went. The villager intently listened.
"Well, I'm glad you aren't severely wounded," he says as he walks around to clean the house. "I can take care of you until this whole war is over, I don't want to risk you going out in these times."
Andy wasn't ever supposed to interact with any of the people in this period, but what else could he do in this situation? Nothing much.
"Thank you... I appreciate it. I'm Andy, Andy Smith," he said, holding out his hand for a handshake. The villager gave a soft chuckle as he shook his hand.
"I'm Mala Caius. Welcome to Nuringham, our village."
The house was filled with silence for a few minutes; only the quiet sounds of the wind and grass outside could be heard. Andy was still sitting at the table while holding the cloth to his face, and Mala was looking outside his window, his hand placed on his chin. To make conversation, or to at least get rid of the awkward silence, he asked about what happened during this time.
"I'm sorry to, you know, break the peace. But I had to ask, how did things get like this?" he asked.
"I don't know," Mala sighed as he answered. Andy understood how he felt; he knew that Mala only wanted simplicity in his life, not a bloody war. "Things have been like this since the previous leader died, about a few years ago. I don't know why she does all this. All we know is that anyone that goes against her rules, well, die."
Andy looked down on the floor, thinking about how bad this situation is. "I'm sorry for you; it must be quite a hardship," he said.
"Don't worry, we still hold on to our hope. I don't know what will stop her, we just wait for the day she does," Mala said with a smile, expressing a slight melancholy. Andy only nodded in agreement.
"This really sucks, I kinda never thought about how good we had it," he thought. Mala then starts preparing his bed.
"Well, we should go sleep. Especially you; you must be very tired," he said while arranging the blanket, the fabric being made from wool, "You can sleep on my bed, brother Andy. I can sleep at that table." Andy was surprised by this.
"Are you sure? Are you comfortable with this?"
Mala laughed and shook it off, "I am content with sleeping there; I have done it several times after doing village work. I insist that you sleep on my bed." He gestures his hands towards the bed; there wasn't a mattress, only a wooden frame with the wool blanket placed on top of it. It wasn't much, but it was enough for him and the rest of the villagers.
Andy laid down on the bed, the bed creaking as he sat his body weight on it. It took a few seconds to get used to it, and he was able to fall asleep shortly after. Mala, on the other hand, finished his chores for the night and went to sleep as well.
At the crack of dawn, Andy was woken up by a creak from the door. It was Mala.
"Oh, my apologies. Did I wake you? I just got finished helping our village blacksmith get some iron," he said, wiping the sweat from his forehead. Andy groaned as he sat up.
"It's alright; I usually wake up a little later than this though." Mala had the idea to go to his cupboards and give him a type of wine.
"Here. Drink this wine; it gives me the energy for the morning." Andy was a bit baffled by this, so he took a cup of wine from Mala and drank it. It tasted like grapes and blackberries with a strong alcoholic flavor, similar to a strong vodka. The wine also had a weird fermented undertone, which slightly put Andy off of it. As soon as Andy swallowed the wine, he exhaled a deep breath.
"I respect you for being able to drink this quite often," he says.
"Well, it's from my younger brother. He said it helps him wake up early, so I tried it; it works. But I only drink it if I really need to; I get headaches quite easily,"
Andy caught on to what he said, "You have a brother?" Mala realized he never mentioned his brother last night.
"Yes, I do. His name is Aorus; he's a woodworker. I don't know how he is now; he moved to another village for personal reasons. I just hope he's safe," he walks around with such worry in his eyes. Andy couldn't help but feel compelled to say something.
"Don't worry, you guys will get through this." Mala nodded in response to this act of affirmation, though deep down, he would never expect the war to end so soon. The conversation was interrupted by commotion happening from outside; shouting and yelling were being heard. The two checked to see what it was.
A group of about a dozen knights appeared in the village, all with swords and armor. The people in the village were very nervous about why they were at their hometown.
"A prisoner of Soland has escaped, we are here to apprehend him. If you know where he is, reveal him to us now." The knight's tone dominated the village, it surrounded the village as the villagers continued to tremble. The mayor of Nuringham stood to talk to the knights, in representation of the village.
"We do not know of any prisoners; may it be in your heart to spare this village. We do not have what you want!" the mayor spoke to the knights, but it was merely dismissed by the leader of the group.
"We will search your homes to prove your claim. Hiding a prisoner is an act of treachery, and you will be put to death!" the knight continued to shout at the mayor.
Mala and Andy stood on the sidelines, Mala looked at the knight in terror as he reflected on what he had done. The village doesn't know that Andy went to their town, and Mala let him in. He felt confusion, fear, and especially guilt. Andy saw this look in Mala's eyes and he too felt bad about letting the situation turn into this, so he took it upon himself to confront the knight.
Andy went out in the open, saying, "I am the one you are looking for! If it's someone you want to kill, it's me, not this village!"
The villagers looked surprised at Andy; the knights, on the other hand, looked angry.
"You! You committed heinous crimes in the land of Solia! You will die for what you've done!" the leader of the knights shouted. Not a glimpse of fear or intimidation appeared in Andy's eyes.
"I told you guys before, I'm not afraid of you. I do what I want; I fight for what I think is right," he said.
The leader spoke, "It's foolish to live against order; you will surrender or rot otherwise!"
Andy started approaching the group of knights. "I've already killed some of you fuckers before; what makes you think I can't kill all of you?" he said.
Andy and the leader stood opposite each other, and tension filled the air as the villagers looked in awe. The knight raised his sword to Andy's chin; Andy remained unfazed, his hands still placed to his sides, and eye contact left unbroken. Mala, petrified to hell, covered his eyes; he couldn't bear to see what would happen next. Some of the villagers cover their eyes as well.
The leader retracted his sword an inch. Andy quickly noticed this.
"Think fast," says Andy.
He redirected the knight's sword with his left hand and pulled out his multi-use knife with his right. It was a swift motion; even the knight couldn't react that fast. In the next second, Andy stabbed the knife into the leader's forehead; blood leaked from the wound onto the face of the now deceased guard. The villagers looked shocked; some would even say impressed, especially Mala.
"I didn't know he was that brave. He's quick too!" he thought.
Half of the knights retreated, while the rest stayed behind in an attempt to apprehend Andy.
The villagers stood back at the farther end of the town in order to stay away from the ensuing fight. Andy proceeded to kill another two knights with his knife; one was stabbed in the eye while the other was slit by the throat. It wasn't long until he ended up using his pistol. Gunshots were fired, and the townsfolk flinched from the loud bangs of the gun. One by one, the knights fell, and Andy stood uninjured. He turned to the crowd of villagers, and spoke with the same tone as the leader from earlier.
"Your town isn't safe! The knights have found this village and are now telling Solia. I suggest you all move!" says Andy. The mayor followed to talk to the agent.
"Are you the criminal they were looking for?" the mayor asked. Andy nodded his head as he put away his knife.
"Yes, I am the person they were looking for, but I wouldn't say I'm a 'criminal'. I am a mere traveler who happened to be caught by the queen's knights. I had to kill a few of her knights to escape. Now they are all after me."
Chattering arose from the crowd of villagers; they were conflicted by the idea of a criminal helping their village.
The mayor spoke to Andy, "We appreciate you getting rid of the knights, but what would make us trust you?"
Andy tried to get rid of the tension between him and the town. "I'll offer you protection from the knights, like what I did just now. I am a professional hunter; I know how to defend myself, and I can defend all of you."
As Andy lied about being a hunter, he was genuine about his ability to protect the townsfolk. The mayor was still quite hesitant, but he decided to approach Andy to make a deal.
"I, Mayor Coraphus, on behalf of Nuringham, trust that we will be in your care," he says, holding out his hand.
Andy and the mayor shook hands, and they settled on a deal: Andy's protection in exchange for the townspeople's trust and cooperation.
"Where will you and your people go, though?" Andy asked as he let go of the mayor's hand.
"I formed an agreement with another town years ago; we have agreed to aid each other whenever in need." Mayor Coraphus responded.
Andy was surprised, but yet pleased, by this information. The mayor turned to the crowd and made an announcement.
"Dear people! Take your things! We will move to another village, this place is not safe now! We must move our homes, and we must do it now!"
Conversations arose again among the people as they went to their homes and gathered their things, some out of worry, some out of relief, and some out of frustration. There are a bunch of different emotions and opinions from the townsfolk, but the situation at hand leaves them no choice. They will start a walk in a few moments, and Andy can only imagine what happens next to him and to everyone else.