Chapter Seven

Silence filled the room after the man had his say. The Mayor cleared his throat.

"It's already getting late. Word should have reached Ignaar by now and he might pay a visit after hearing the death of his comrade." he glanced up at Gideon and smiled apologetically, "my name is Charles, or Charlie to some." he introduced himself, and Gideon bowed his head respectfully.

"Sir Gideon Ryder. And that is..." he gestured to where Rayne was standing, but saw that she was missing. Wood creaks caught his attention and he turned in his seat to find that she was heading upstairs, "where are you going?" he called to her, but she simply ignored him and disappeared into the darkness.

"She isn't one for company, is she?" Charles asked, and Gideon sighed, turning back toward him.

"No, not in the slightest. Her name is Rayne Winters, she's a mercenary." he said, and noticed the hesitation in Charles eyes, "She isn't like most mercenaries, I assure you. She and I are on a mission for the King when we arrived here. So you have no need to fear her." Gideon said, and sat back in his seat. Charles nods slowly, the tension slowly leaving his body.

"You are quick to defend her. Does that mean that you trust her?" he asked, and Gideon let out a harsh laugh.

"I wouldn't trust her with my horse," he met Charles gaze, "we've only met this morning at a tavern. I interrupted the morning brawl she was involved in." he said, but Charles scratched his cheek, rubbing more dirt into his skin as he did so.

"You say that, but a part of you does respect her or you wouldn't be reacting the way you do about her." he said, and Gideon met his gaze again before huffing and gets to his feet.

"Is there a room available? We can talk more in the morning, I don't want to keep you while these thieves are still lingering." he said as Charles got to his feet next.

"So, you will help us?" he asked, and Gideon cocked a brow at him.

"Of course. I've sworn an oath to protect the Kingdom and its citizens after all. I would never turn my back on you." he declared, feeling the confidence in his heart. Charles smiles at him, reaching his hand out and Gideon shakes it firmly. The man behind the bar cleared his throat.

"Unfortunately, there is only one room available that isn't destroyed by those idiots. I can guess that is the same room that Rayne will be staying in." he said, and Gideon's smile slowly fades into melancholy.

Rayne sat on the mattress, her sharpening her dagger when Gideon walked into the room. She raised a brow, pointing the dagger at him.

"This room is occupied." she threatened, and he waved her dagger away, moving over to the chair by the window and sits down, leaning back until his head rested against the wall.

"This was the only room that wasn't messed up when the thieves took over." he said, but she continued to point the dagger at him, gritting her teeth.

"Then go sleep with the horses. I'm not sharing a room with you." she hissed, but he had already shut his eyes and softly snored. She stared at him before sheathing her dagger and sat with her back against the dashboard, her eyes out the broken window as the moon revealed itself in the clear night sky.

How did it come to this?

Sunlight streamed in through the window, the soft breeze stirred the knight awake, but what he found before him was not what he desired to see. Rayne stood with her back to the wall beside her bed, bags under her eyes from lack of sleep, but that wasn't what surprised him. A man stood before her, a dagger pointed at her throat, dark brown shaggy hair stopped st his shoulders, but he wore brown leather armor and a small axe was tied at his waist. He wasn't alone however. Another man stood in front of Gideon, his short sword drawn as he acted as a barricade between him and Rayne. Another man stood at the door, his arms crossed lazily, a yawn escaping his lips. Gideon"# eyes widen, leaning forward in his chair, but it did not creak. No sound came from anything around him.

After what seemed like an agonizing minute, the man at the door snapped his fingers and the sound of birds chirping filled the room.

"Now that I have your attention," a husky voice came from the man in front of Rayne, the steel of his dagger shined in the morning light, "This will be your first and only warning from me. Get out of town, and stay out." he said, and Rayne narrowed her eyes at him. Gideon stood up from his seat, but the man before him pressed the tip of his sword into his plate of armor.

"Easy, pretty boy. No more moves unless you want to watch our lord cut that pretty little neck of hers." he threatened and Gideon glared down at the man, who for a second hesitated, but regained his composure.

"Oh, that would be the last thing I would do to her," the man chuckled, lowering his dagger to her chest, but Rayne remained calm. Gideon darted his eyes to each of them, trying to figure out a way to reach her, but he glanced at Rayne and he felt himself relax. He felt as if he had no need to worry, that if things turned out badly, that she would be able to take care of herself.

Why feel this way? Did the effect of the perfume yesterday actually not fade away completely?

The tip of the dagger sank into her armor and Rayne's eyes twitched just slightly enough to show that it hit skin. The man chuckled deeply, removing the dagger, the very tip of the blade colored with blood. Gideon tensed up at the sight, his hand instinctively going to his sword. Damn it all.

"I don't want to keep you from leaving now." he sheathed his dagger, and Rayne stepped forward, her hand lunging out and grabs his throat, the other hand grabbing his dagger, but her moves were sluggish unlike normal. He grabbed her wrist that reached the dagger, pinning it to her side and slammed his arm into her chest, pinning her to the wall. Splinters fell around her from the impact, but she held her ground, holding the man's gaze. Gideon stepped forward, but the sword cut into his armor slightly, causing him to pause once more.

Ignaar chuckled and smiled devilishly down at her.

"You are a feisty little creature, aren't you?" he teased her, but she inclined her head up at him and spit at his face. He closed his eyes, putting more pressure into his arm, the wood behind her creaking a bit from the force.

"Leave. Now." he said, removing himself before she could land any blow against him and retreated into the hallway. The man separating Gideon from her stepped aside and followed his leader out. They listened as the footsteps slowly and surely quieted before Gideon rushed over to Rayne.

"Are you alright? He didn't cut you too deeply, did he?" he asked, and Rayne looked up at him. The bags under her eyes were deeper than what he expected, "Have you not slept either?" he asked, but she only turned her head away.

"Don't concern yourself with me. What are we going to do about him?" she asked, changing the topic right away. He looked at her and sighed, running a hand through his hair slowly.

"We need to strategize. He has a spellcaster with him, that makes things a bit more difficult." he placed his finger and thumb against his chin as he thought out loud, and Rayne watched his face shift a few times as he was thinking. He caught her gaze and gazed down at her curiously, "Is something wrong?" he asked, but she shook her head and moved past him.

"We can discuss this matter downstairs with the others. That man last night said he had an idea of how to get rid of them." she said and stepped out of the room. Gideon watched after her, his mind going back to her expression.

No, no. Absolutely not.

When he descended the stairs, everyone was already gathered there at the bar. Rayne .ade herself comfortable at the wall by the door again, her hood covering her eyes. Charles was talking to the older gentleman from the night before when he noticed Gideon approach.

"Ah, I'm glad you're here. Gregory here wanted to go over his thoughts about how to take out Ignaar." he said as Gideon took up a stool by the bar.

"I'm not worried about the swordsmen, but his spellcaster friend puts us at a disadvantage." he mentioned, and Gregory slowly nodded, reaching inside his jacket and presented a single round ball. Upon further inspection, the ball was made of some type of thin metal casing.

"I haven't tried it out yet since they keep an eye on us, but I stored a powder inside that upon contact with a hard surface, it should blast open and cause a smoke screen of sorts." Gregory said, placing the ball delicately in Gideon's hand. He rolled it around on his palm before carefully stashing it away. Gregory moved his attention to Rayne who remained quiet the whole time, "Are you any good with a bow?" he called to her, but she only turned her head away.

"Yes, she is. I witnessed her use one yesterday. She has remarkable aim." Gideon chipped in, watching Rayne's shoulders lower a bit. Gregory shrugged it off.

"This will be a good opportunity for you then. This ball will give you enough time to take out the spellcaster. You just need to plan it carefully." he said, raising the mug to his lips and slipped loudly. The door swung open and the woman from the night before walked on, followed by the small girl. The little girl wore a dress, shades of red glimpsing through the dirt that was caked on it. Her dirty blonde hair was separated into braids over her shoulder. The little girl glanced up as soon as she walked in, seeing Rayne next to her and a bright smile spread across her face and her grey eyes sparkled.

"Mama! It's her!" she squealed excitedly, closing the small gap between them and wraps her arms around Rayne's thighs. The interaction caught Rayne off guard and she froze up, staring down at the tiny human. The woman only giggled however, seeming to dismiss Rayne's discomfort.

"She was up early this morning in hoping tonsee you before you left." her mother said, her eyes soft as she watched her daughter smile so happily. Gideon started to stand, but Rayne rested her hand on the child's head, stroking it gently. The little girl looked up at her, her smile beaming from cheek to cheek.

"I am glad that you are alright. Now, can you do me and that man over there a favor?" Rayne asked her, pointing at Gideon. The girl nodded quickly, nearly jumping up and down in place, "I want you to go with your mother and gather all of the other children and stay here, where it is safe. Can you do that for me?" she asked, and the girl's smile shrunk into a thin, determined line, clenching her fists.

"Of course! Mama, let's go!" she ran back to her mother, taking her hand and dragged her out the door. Her mother only hesitated at the doorway, glancing over to Rayne who gave a small nod, and she disappeared after her daughter. Charles chuckled after they left.

"She couldn't stop talking about you until she fell asleep. It is... rare, and I mean, rare nowadays for women to be out and about as sellswords, or even as lowly soldiers." he said, and Gideon looked over to Rayne who didn't say anything. He couldn't back her up on this. He doesn't know anything about her.

"Where are Ignaar and his men stationed right now?" Gideon asked as he got to his feet and took his place beside Rayne.

"We have a large barn at the end of the southern road. We use it for storage. There is only one way in and out of there." Charles said and Gideon nodded, cracking his knuckles. Rayne looked up at him and saw a wicked smirk play at his lips.

"Let's get rid of some vermin."