The door slammed violently open, waking Ryker and Aaron from their hard-won sleep. The clanking of armored boots echoed in the cell, as five guards strode in. Almost immediately, they picked up the boys at their feet like kittens, quickly donning Ryker and Aaron in heavy bindings to their arms and legs.

 A voice shouted down the corridor in a language neither one of the boys could understand. Though the voice seemed to be a hurried tone as the guards practically dragged Ryker and Aaron out of their cell and into the dark, dank dungeon of their prison. 

The pace of the escort was a quick one. Every time Ryker or Aaron failed to keep up, one of the guards would painfully poke into their backs with their spears, pushing them forward if need be. As the group moved from one murky hallway to the next, each with a different texture of flooring (as far as Ryker could tell anyway) one thing remained the same: The smell of rot, and the moans of fellow inmates. Each step brought a new moan or if they had the energy left, a new shout from the neverending cell doors that plastered the hallways; some of the inmates seemed to shout in anger as the group rushed past, and others were just a depressing beg for death. 

Before long the group came to a pair of immense huge, iron doors barred by a simple wooden beam inlaid with similar glowing blue runes on the guard's armor. One of the guards stepped up towards the beam.

“Open,” he yelled. The runes on the beam pulsated for a moment before parting open. From there, two other guards pulled the doors open. Sunlight burst through the seam, binding everyone around as their eyes began to adjust. 

The breeze felt nice on Ryker’s face as he stepped outside for the first time in what seemed like months. The green grass beneath his feet swayed slightly in the wind. The tree’s purple leaves flowed seamlessly. Above the twin suns shone intensely with the summer heat. There was a low buzz of life in the nearby forest ahead. To the right laid a small pond that was surrounded by an army’s camp, laughter, and the smell of cooked meat and charred wood wafted through the air. To the left were a horse-drawn caravan and a small escort party. Chained inside we’re two women, the boy’s mothers.

Immediately upon seeing her sons, the smaller of the two women leapt to her feet and attempted to run towards them. Her tiny, almost childlike frame struggling against her chains keeping her within the caravan. From within her prison came a splattering of the most high pitched and foul profanities directed to everything from her chains, to her guards, to her own legs not moving her where she wanted to be; one of the guards seemed to be shaking in fear at the woman.

“Let me go you long-eared bastards! Those are my children!” she shouted, her short and mangled blonde hair covering the bloodlust in her eyes; she spat and bit at the air like a deranged animal attempting to break free of their bindings.

The taller of the two women simply sighed. She brushed her cropped, auburn hair out of her face before neatly placing them in her lap, almost like she was used to these outbursts. 

“Sarah, that's enough,'' she quietly said.

“But Melissa…” Sarah protested.

Ryker and Aaron breathed a heavy sigh of relief, besides looking as dirty and ragged as they did the boy’s mothers seemed to be fine. However, the guards behind them were growing increasingly impatient. Poking their spears into Ryker and Aaron’s backs once again they ushered them onwards. 

The boys were wordlessly placed into the carriage, Sarah sitting still and quiet while the armed guards in front of her detached their bindings from their arms and legs, before placing the two of them with their parents. However, with the heavy oak door separating them from their wardens, Sarah's eyes watered exponentially, and she lunged for Ryker and Aaron.

“Are you two alright,” she asked between her sobs. She buried her face into Ryker’s chest, “They didn’t hurt you in any way, right”?

Ryker and Aaron grimaced at each other and shared a nod between them. She didn’t need to be any more worried than she clearly already was.

“We’re fine Mom”, Aaron lied, “We’re the ones who should be worried, you two look much worse for wear then we do.”

Aaron’s observation was true, Ryker realized, while Sarah was never the heaviest person, she felt considerably lighter than before, her clothes noticeably sagging all across her body, she was using torn parts of her shirt as a belt to keep her pants upright. Her blonde hair a rats nest of snarls and knots.

Melissa didn’t look much better, her characteristic Military style hair was now a wild and dirty mess. Her biceps, once mighty as a mountain, now reduced to pitiful hills; Ryker's own arms not looking much different. Each one of them was covered in their own fair share of bruises and surgical cuts across their bodies. It seems that their time imprisoned here did nothing but wither them all away.

There's a long silence as Sarah sobs into her children. Ryker and Aaron patting their mother’s back as the four of them sit there in the carriage, simply happy to be back together.

Before long they break apart, Sarah’s normally blue eyes red from crying. She simply smiles at the boys before putting her head on Mellisa’s shoulders and entwining her hand with her own.

“See”, Melissa said, “I told you they’d be alright. My soldiers. '' She beams in pride, a small smile gracing her face. She wraps her free hand around Sarah and pulled her close. Ryker and Aaron smiled back.

“Hey don’t worry about it,'' Ryker said, “While I'll admit this is the worst thing we’ve ever been through we managed to pull through, and the important thing is that we're all here now”.

“Right, now the only question is... Where will here be in the coming days”?

A loud banging on the carriage door interrupted the family’s conversation. One of the guards was raping the door with the shaft of his spear. The guard poked his head through the bars of the door.

“Shut up back there,'' he yelled, his scowl piercing through the tiny window on the door, before going back to his conversation with a fellow guard.

Melissa furrowed her brow but said nothing further. She rested her head upon Sarah’s before closing her eyes.

Her rest was only momentary though, as soon the cart the four were in started to move. The ground beneath them rumbling along the dirt road, dust being kicked up in their wake.

As the day wore on the group got quieter and quieter. Casual chit chat to keep the spirit high slowly falling upon deaf ears and eventually stopping to be replaced somber observations and heavy sighs. The group had no idea how long they have been traveling for; a couple hours was their best guess. The sun never faded from their tiny portal to the outside, so there was no way to judge the quiet passing of time.

“Did I ever tell you guys about my former Drill Sergeant”, Melissa asked finally breaking the silence.

Ryker snorted, he remembered all the crazy stories his mother told them about Drill Sergeant Sherman from back when she was a mere cadet.

“I don’t think there's a single story you haven't told us yet,'' Aaron said

“Oh, don’t doubt me yet. I still have a few I've been saving for emergencies like this.”

“Well now my interest is piqued, though I doubt it's gonna be better than your trash can mop story”

“Oh, I doubt it will ever top that one,” she said, “but it can come close.”

“So, back when I was but a mere cadet there was a peer of mine called Rachel, and man was she just the most useless piece of shit this side of Truman. Racist, overweight, lazy. Basically only in the military because of the draft, you know? Anyway, one day she just goes off on another black recruit with racial slurs and the like, just an absolutely vile stream of consciousness pouring out her abyss of a mouth. And Drill Sergeant Sherman was absolutely tired of her shitty, racist attitude. Luckily, we had two model soldiers from the male side of the camp who just so happened to not have a drill sergeant after being transferred. So, Sherman made those two her battle buddies, which are people who share accountability and time with you. Until the day she graduated, she was too remain in, and I quote, Oreo formation with these two greek gods of men. And they were great, they actually managed to shape her up a bit and make her into someone worthy of holding a gun.”

The others listened intently as Melissa told them stories through the hours. Many of them were punctuated by laughter and tears. It didn’t matter where they were or that they were in the back of a prison carriage on a destiny towards death, as long as they were together everything would work out okay. 

Ryker suddenly felt a chill go down his spine, he realized that the guards had gone silent and their caravan had come to a stop. He looked to his mother, Melissa, and locked eyes with her; she knew something was off as well. They quieted the laughter of Sarah and Aaron, shushing them with their fingers. Together, the four of them listen carefully to their surroundings. 

Suddenly they heard one of the guards yelling to her squad, telling them to get in formation around the carriage and to protect the cargo. Ryker and Aaron peeked through the window, and saw that the guards had assembled a semi-circle around them, shields out and locked together in wall formation; spears poking out like barbed wire. 

The head guard climbed onto the top of their carriage with a cluttering noise, she stomped her metal boots, making them echo through the cabin, and brought down her sword-staff with a large and imposing THUD.

“ALRIGHT YOU CONGLOMERATES, WE KNOW YOU’RE THERE!” she roared, “COME OUT PEACEFULLY AND WE MIGHT JUST LET YOU LI-”, the head guard fell silent as she shot down with ear-ringing blast, her body slumping ungracefully onto the roof, her blood leaking through the wooden ceiling of Ryker’s carriage, staining the floor red. 

The guards gave a mighty war-cry for their fallen commander, but before they could mount a counter defense, dozens of bodies emerged from the woods and charged at them, roaring in unison. The guards gave another hearty cry before charging into battle themselves. The sound of metal clanging against armor and shields being heard from outside Ryker’s carriage; the screams of those who were struck as spear and sword tore through flesh made shivers go down the spines of Aaron and Sarah. 

Through their tiny porthole of a window, Ryker and Aaron could only watch in horror as their guard company began to slowly lose ground against their unknown attackers. From the woods bordering the road they were on, Ryker noticed an armor-clad individual, covered in red glowing runes, began to draw in energy around him. Suddenly, his hands burst into flames as he hurled fireballs towards their carriage.

The group tumbled through the carriage as an explosion knocked the carriage onto its side and tore a burning hole through it. Ryker picked himself off the floor with his arm but fell back down in pain, his arm bent at an odd angle and refusing to move.

“Great,'' he hissed through his teeth, “My arm is broken, isn’t that just swell”. 

Using his other arm as leverage, he was able to get himself into a sitting position and access the situation he was now in. Melissa and Sarah were shaking off their daze as well, only suffering from minor burns and bumps, however, Aaron was not waking up; the blast had rendered the boy unconscious, his head bleeding from the temples.

“Aaron!”, the three of them cried out in unison.

Melissa crawled over to Aaron and picked him up, putting his head in her lap.

“This isn’t good,” Melissa said, “He’s not waking up and the bleeding isn’t stopping.”

Ryker clampard over towards them, tearing off a large piece of his shirt, he wrapped it around Aaron’s head, muttering under his breath while doing so.

 “Damn asshole, blasting us with that godforsaken fire of theirs,” he muttered, “Sarah! Give me a hand, will you?”

“Right,” she said, helping Ryker tie the tight rag strip around Aaron’s head.

“This should stop the bleeding for now,” Ryker asserted, tucking the remaining length of the makeshift bandage behind Aaron’s ears, “But we need to get him some serious medical attention soon.”

Melissa set Aaron down as she peeked her head through the smoldering wall, now roof, of their carriage; the sounds and screams of battle still waging outside. 

“You’re right, but first we need to focus on getting out of here. It looks like our defense force is losing ground,” she said with dark amusement.

“Great, just great,” Ryker said, “Can you carry Aaron then? I’m certainly not in any position to do so.”

“I don’t have much of a choice now, do I,” Melissa confirmed, she glanced down at Ryker and noticed him clutching his arm in pain, “and what are we gonna do about that busted arm of yours?”

“Not a damn thing right now, unless you want us to die.”

Melissa sighed, she bent down and picked up Aaron in the fireman position, his torso draped over her neck like the world's worst shawl and his arms dangling uselessly on her chest.

“The minute we’re out of danger I'm putting you in a sling whether you like it or not, are we clear?”

“Cyrstal”

Ryker stood next to his mother and poked his own head out as well, Melissa’s observations were correct. A dozen guards had already fallen to the attacker's blades and arrows, their bodies saturating the grounds with a crimson red stain. Others could be heard in the distance, screaming in pain or crying for mercy. In front of them the remaining guards formed a wall between them and the advancing group of attackers, their shields pincushions full of arrows and scorch marks; the attackers seemingly suffered no casualties. The body of the head guard lay face down, contorted on the forest floor next to them; her sword-staff stuck in the ground, a sword still in hand, and a golf ball-sized hole on her back, piercing her armor where her heart used to be.

Ryker pulled free the staff and the sword from her, her limp hands providing little resistance against his corpse robbing. He threw the sword to Sarah but kept the staff to himself.

“Why are you giving me this,” Sarah asked, catching the sword but caught off guard at her son throwing weapons at her.

“Because you’re gonna have to help defend ourselves”

“What?! I can’t do that, I haven’t even held a gun before, much less a sword!”

“Because Melissa is the only one who can carry Aaron right now, and I would much rather have something to defend ourselves with then rely on luck alone,” he explained, swinging and thrusting the staff in his good hand to get a feel for the weight.

“But… I don’t know…” Sarah whispered, putting the sword on the ground.

Melissa put her hand on Sarah’s shoulder and gave a soft smile to her.

“Sarah, my love, I know you can do this. You defended us before when you broke that guard’s nose, you defended us when we were first caught, and you can do it again,” she proclaimed softly. She gave Sarah a soft kiss on the mouth, trying to reassure her wife. Melissa had the utmost trust in Sarah, she knew she could do it. 

Sarah rose to her feet and picked the sword off the ground. She gave it a few test swings, air whistling on by as she got a feel for its weight. She put the sword on her shoulder with confidence.

“Alright, I'll do it, I’ll keep us all safe”

“Good, then let's go. Our captors got their hands full right now, so let us sneak away quietly while we can,” Ryker said

Ryker was the first one out of the destroyed carriage, he quickly ducked behind it, out of view from the ongoing battle. They wouldn’t have much time, their attackers were nearly at their feet, and the guards were falling fast. He pulled Sarah up with his good hand, and together they pulled the unconscious Aaron out of the wreckage, along with Melissa.

With Aaron securely on Melissa’s back, they slowly made their way towards the far end of the battlefield, where the forest met the road. If they could get there then they could easily hide among the trees and escape recapture. They kept close to the ground, trying to stay hidden behind the carriage blind spot for as long as possible. Slowly, they inched their way across the ground, holding their breath at every step. The staff felt heavy in Ryker’s hand, it was too top-heavy to carry one-handed and dragged along the ground at times. He hoped the survivors of this battle wouldn’t be able to track them with this. Arrows raced past their heads from bows that had strayed too far above their targets. Another explosion boomed behind them, sending dirt and rubble flying around them; the top half of a guard landed not too far away, his guts landing a ways behind them as they were covered in a shower of blood. Before long the screams of the battle started to die down as the last of the guards were cut down, screams for mercy and damnation being replaced by silence. The battle was over and the four of them were only halfway across the clearing.

Ryker cursed as he knew the battle was over and that whoever had survived would soon begin looking for them. He quickened his pace, Sarah, and Melissa following suit, trying to get to the woods before the unknown assailants discovered where they were. Whatever they had planned for them, they did not want any part in it, and they certainly didn’t want anything to do with that Elf’s plan. Ryker glanced over his shoulder, the unknown attackers were approaching the carriage with great caution as if they were cornering a feral animal, their spears and shields held in defensive positions in front of them.

“Nearly there,” Melissa said between pants.

 Melissa was barely holding onto Aaron, she was much weaker than she let on. Melissa’s heart pounded in her ears and her arms screamed in protest, telling her to drop the boy and run for it, but she refused to listen. Fueled by pure adrenaline and determination, they carried on. One, two, one two three. They marched together in unison, focused only on getting to the woods in front of them, towards safety. The attackers finally entered the destroyed carriage, one two three they marched. One of the attackers yelled that the targets were not in the carriage. One, two, three, the four of them continued onward. 

After nearly an eternity of marching, they made it into the woods undiscovered. They were drenched in sweat and blood, but they made it. Taking cover behind a tree, Ryker sighed in relief as he knelt down onto the cooling grass. Melissa and Sarah followed suit, trying to catch their breath before heading out. They were out of immediate danger.

The feeling was short-lived, as an arrow whizzed overhead and embedded itself in the golden bark of a nearby tree with a loud TWANG, Ryker and Sarah snapped to attention at the dozen or so soldiers in full plate armor stared them down from across the clearing. 

“Hold it,” one of them exclaimed, holding her hand up as if to draw their attention.

Ryker and his family bolted into the woods, weaving through the thicket like startled deer escaping a hunter. The violet leaves of the treetops darkened the forest floor, enveloping it in an eerie shadow only broken up by the occasional beam of sunlight. Animals darted away as the four of them ran, their pursuers not far behind them.

“Get away,” Ryker thought, “Get far far away.”

They fell out of their marching pattern, simply sprinting through the woods like a wounded animal. One tree, two trees, three trees. Ryker doing his best to dodge everything in his path, he kept his sword staff close to his body, he did not want to be caught weaponless if it were to become lost in this forest. He kept dodging and weaving through the trees, his family right behind him and the pursuers chasing them. From behind him, he heard a male voice begin to chant.

“Great and Mighty Nelt, lend us your aid. Shift your land so my foes may fail to stand,” he shouted, blue lights swirling around him before fanning out into the ground. The man thrust his hands upwards and the ground rose beneath Ryker’s feet.

The sword staff clattered from Ryker’s hand as he fell on his broken arm, he screamed in agonizing pain. Melissa and Sarah stopped behind him, Sarah took up a defensive stance between her family and the ones chasing them. Ryker cursed, before taking the staff back in hand and moving in front of Sarah.

“GO,” he yelled towards his mothers.

“We’re not just gonna leave you here,” Melissa replied, desperation filling her voice. 

The pursuers were right in front of them now, four of them. Ryker locked eyes with one, the one cloaked in the Red Runes, his helm may have obscured his eyes, but Ryker could see through them all the same, the cold stare filling him with fear. He was the reason why they were in this situation, to begin with, Ryker wasn’t gonna let him take them without a fight. 

“I’m going to hold them off for as long as I can, take Aaron and get as far away from here as you can. I’ll join you once I'm finished.”

“Ryker, we’re not just-” Sarah started. She stepped forward with her son, the sword in her hand trembling in fear and anticipation at the pursuers in front of them. 

“GO,” Ryker interrupted her, he knew there was no way that all of them would be able to escape now, they had nowhere to run to. He had to buy time for them to escape, even if it meant getting killed or captured. Sarah looked down to her feet and returned to Melissa. Melissa and Sarah gave one last pleading look towards their son, tears welling in their eyes as they knew what they had to do. They turned heel and continued to run.

“Oh for the love of Kli’e, not this again,” the Red Rune man said. Lights started to swirl around him again as he began chanting.

“Great and Mighty Nelt, lend us your aid. Shift your land so my-,” he began, before being cut off by Ryker rushing towards him and thrusting his sword-staff into his leather-clad shoulder.

The Red Rune man yelped in pain as the staff pierced through his armor and mail, the runes on his arm stopped glowing and the lights around him faded. Ryker jumped and brought him to the ground with his full body weight and a crash, his knee on the man's chest plate denting the silver metal.

“Magic isn’t exactly fair now, is it?” Ryker asked sarcastically before pulling his staff free from the man. It made a rasping sound as it scraped past the man's shoulder blade, he screamed in pain once again. Ryker took up another defensive stance in front of the Red Rune man, his one good arm shaking with adrenaline and wrath. An armor-clad man stepped towards him, spear drawn, glowing silver runes making his armor shimmer in the shadowy light of the woods. 

“Anjali, go find our targets,” the one clad in silver Runes said, his voice booming through his helm, “Me and Hro got this one.”

“Right,” replied the tallest one, her voice quiet but firm.

 She took off in a blur behind Ryker, despite being in full plate armor, the clagging of her armor fading as she ran. Ryker cursed, she was gone before he could make a move. He hoped that Sarah and Melissa would be able to handle her. The remaining two approached Ryker, shields, and spears in hand. The grass below them made a crunching noise as the three of them stared at each other in silence, wind shrieking through the woods. Ryker held his ground, doing his best to quell his fear.

They suddenly leaped at Ryker, rushing towards him from both flanks. Ryker backpedaled and deflected one of their spears from his right. They continued their assault, never letting up; all Ryker could do was dodge, but exhaustion was catching up to him, he couldn’t keep at it forever. He swung toward the one identified as Hro, his staff whistling through the air as Ryker brought it down with all his might.

Hro, blocked it with the pauldron on his arm, the staff harmlessly bouncing off the armor with a loud CLANG. Hro countered, thrusting his spear towards Ryker. Ryker deflected one with the handle of his staff but took a cut to his side. He cried in pain, hot blood pouring from his wound. Ryker's fight or flight response was leaning heavily on flight, but he stood his ground, facing Hro. Ignoring the pain, he took up another defensive stance, his Sword-staff held horizontally to block any attack the soldier in front of him tried to do. The dual colored sunlight gleamed off his armor and reflected the silver runed one behind him preparing another spell.

“Light oh blindly light, lend me your luminesce…”

“Fuck, not this again,” Ryker said as he rushed towards the caster behind him. Ignoring Hro, who simply stood there waiting for the inevitable to happen.

“I ask you for your incredible radiance..” A small vial in the caster’s hand began to glow a brilliant hue of white, brighter than the sun’s light. Ryker kept going towards him, determined to get to him before he finished his spell.

“Bring upon the light of Gliss on my foes…,” Ryker was nearly there, he raised his sword-staff high above his head as he prepared to thrust downward towards the man; suddenly, he felt a lurching motion under him as the Red Rune man grabbed his ankle, pulling him to the ground face first.

“Don’t need magic for THAT you bastard,” he spat. Ryker turned back to the caster. His spell was finished, and so was he.

“And blind my foes with your guidance,” he shouted, the vial exploded in his hands filling the woods with a blinding light and a ringing in Ryker’s ears. 

Ryker tried to stand up, but he was disoriented. The light blinded him and the sound drowned out his hearing, he couldn’t tell where he was. He held his hand up to his eyes and yelled in pain.

“Was that a flashbang,” he thought. The whiteness of his blindness quickly began to wear off, and he began to reorient himself; As Ryker’s vision came back, his eyes were filled with the sight of Hro coming up to him, and knocking him unconscious with his fist. Only the metallic aroma of blood filling his nose, and darkness remained as Ryker drifted.