2. Preparations and unexpected encounters.
Maria Walked through the servants entrance of the east wing of the mansion, where she and the other hunters of Lord Brendan’s estate were housed. She went straight to the room she and Annie shared. Theodore would probably be there. He had taken to napping in their room during the afternoons. He had come to like his life here, courtesy of an edict from her aunt.
She walked into the room and saw a lump under the bed sheets.
"Just as I thought. Your becoming predictable Theodore. Wake up!" she said to the lump.
The lump began to move toward the bottom of the bed. A small white nose poked out of the sheets followed by a white head. Theodore’s eyes blinked in the sunlight. He stood up on the bed keeping the sheets wrapped around his body with only his head exposed
"Wwhat? why did you wake me up for?" He asked. He was still a little groggy judging by the way he swayed on his feet.
"we have a job." she told him. She began to gather her things for the trip.
"What do you mean by we?" he asked. " I’m not the one whose job it is to go and catch those people. I never volunteered to be your assistant."
"True" She replied. "But my aunt has volunteered you. Would you like to write out a protest? I can bring it to her."
Theodore’s face whitened even more than Maria thought it ever could. "Protest an order from Eva Lonehunter? Only if I want to see what my insides look like. You’ve got yourself an assistant!" He held out his paw. She shook it. "When do we leave?" He asked.
"As soon as I pack and we let the others know we are going."
As she packed, her back was to the door. She could tell that Annie was trying to sneak up on her. It was a useless endeavour, as she did not have the light step needed. So while she thought she was being quiet, Maria heard her as if she was a elephant walking in the forest. She would never tell Annie this of course, since she liked having her nose in an unbroken state
Two arms wrapped around Maria’s waist and soft lips kissed the nape of her neck from behind.
"Please dearest," she said, "not in front of the ferret."
Theodore looked up at them. "And what exactly is that supposed to mean?" He asked putting on his most indignant sounding voice.
"It means she thinks you are a pervert." replied Annie.
"What?!"
"I know he’s a pervert." Maria told her.
"HEY!!" was all Theodore could muster.
Annie noticed what Maria was doing. "You’re leaving aren’t you?" she said in the voice Maria knew meant she was worried and a little scared. Maria turned to face her.
"I’m sorry dearest. But I have to. I know you understand."
"I do. But I still worry."
Maria kissed her softly. "I’ll return as quickly as I can. Besides I have big strong Theodore to protect me." The two of them broke into fits of giggles.
"Keep that up and you will find out just what I can do." He said, trying his best to look mean. It only made the two of them giggle even more. Theodore could only sigh.
"If you two could stop insulting the ferret for a minute, I gather from how Maria looked as she walked back to the manor and what you were saying, she will be leaving us?" said a voice from the doorway.
Maria turned to the young girl, in the doorway, and bowed. "Yes miss Annabel. I will be leaving soon. And you need not have come into this section. I was on my way to your brother, his Lordship, too let him know."
"I go where I please, whether my brother likes it or not. And you need not worry about telling him, I will inform him myself. I gather that time is of the essence in these cases and I shall not allow you to stay here longer than necessary. Good day to you Maria, and do hurry back." She turned and walked back to the family section of the manor.
"She really worries about you when you go, despite the front she puts on." Said Annie.
"I know. She is stronger than most people her age." answered Maria. "But she is right. Time is important here. I have to go now." She gave Annie one last kiss, took her sword and bow from the wall and went outside followed by Theodore.
"I need you to make a portal." she told the ferret.
"Why?"
"Because I have already done it twice today and it takes more effort for me to do it than it does you since, being a spirit animal, you can do it naturally. I have to use my own energies."
"All right." he conceded. "Give me a picture of where we are going." She concentrated on the image she had of their destination and he concentrated on her. "Got it." he said after a short time. He turned, opened the portal, and the two of them stepped through.
They stepped out in a clump of trees.
"This looks nothing like the picture I had in my head. Are you sure you got it right?"
"Yes. I saw the city you were thinking of. But this is where I could get to. I was going fine when I suddenly found myself forced to come out here." Theodore looked puzzled and upset.
"Well it can’t be too far from here, I hope." said Maria as she started walking into the forest. "Come on, let’s see if we can find out where we are and which way we have to go. Maybe you can climb a tree and look around."
The arrow embedded itself in the tree near Maria’s head.Quickly she scrambled to shelter behind another tree.
"Well that will teach me to lower my guard."
"Who was that shooting at you?" Theodore asked quickly.
"I was not able to converse with the gentleman in question long enough to ascertain his name." was her reply.
"Great! you nearly get killed and all I get is sarcasm."
"Sshh!" she told him. And that is when she finally heard what she hadn’t before. She had been so busy trying to figure out what had gone wrong, that she hadn’t noticed the distinct sounds that were all around them.
The sounds of battle.
She looked at Theodore. "What did we get ourselves into?" he asked her.
There was no time for a reply. Just then a large man in a brown uniform that Maria barely had time to register, came running out at her brandishing a large axe. Maria quickly pulled out her sword to deflect the axe, and using his momentum against himself, pushed him into the tree she had been hiding behind. There was a cracking sound. Whether it was his head or the tree, Maria did not know and didn’t stay around long enough to find out. She ran followed by a flurry of arrows.
"Where are you going?" said Theodore inside her head. He had hidden when the axe man had emerged, and was probably flitting from tree to tree right now. "The fighting is worse in the direction you’re going."
"I know. I can hear it." said Maria. "This is spillover from the main battle, The bulk of the fighting is probably for control of the city, which means most of the fighting will be near the city. And since that is where I want to go, I am going to where the big fight is."
"You’re willing to wade into battle just to get to a city?!"
"I have a job to do." was her only reply.
She stopped dead in her tracks.
"What is it? Why did you stop?"
Maria did not answer. She just listened, hoping she hadn’t heard what she thought she had heard. Then she heard it again. In the midst of all the battle sounds, the cries of pain and triumph, the sounds of metal hitting metal, the sounds of bones breaking, she heard a sound that chilled her more than any of these.
She heard the sound of a child crying.
Back to the Hunter's Tales Page