Chapter 01 - part 01

ARC 01 - THE STRANGER

"What will you...?"

"I'll come back for you... I promise"

His breathing came in hard. He had managed to climb up and over a wall and evaded his pursuers for the moment. How long had he been running? Why was he still running away? He did not know anymore why he was clinging hopelessly to such a life as his. The man's heart pounded and all his senses were attentive. His eyes had adjusted to the darkness and even if there was no moon in sight he could see well enough. The sounds of the men chasing him could still be heard as they ran searching for him. Minutes passed. The night was still, no movement and no carriages were roaming around this late. They would not give up, he knew that much... They had tracked him down this far after all. This was his life now, he had to admit that. He had to leave his life and everyone he loved behind and move on... He had promised that much. The man remembered vividly the events that had led him to this situation. The shame he had brought. The pain. But this was not the time for that. The man shook his head to bring himself back. He would lament later.

He took a moment to catch his breath and collect his mind. He knew he had landed badly when he had jumped the wall and he was afraid to make a move. As he looked around he had stumbled into a simple yet beautifully decorated yard. It was well maintained, there was a small warehouse nearby and the main residence was modest and stone made.

'A house for the rich.'

There seemed to be no immediate danger and the private warehouse seemed a decent place to lay low for the night as he licked his wounds. They likely had a man put in place at the inn he was staying just in case he decided to show his face. It was too high a risk to go back there now. He could feel his left foot getting swollen but the cold of the night made it slightly bearable. He couldn't put much pressure on it. "This is going to be a long night," he whispered to himself as he started hobbling off. Hopefully he would find something warm in the warehouse.

The man was almost at the door when he felt a sharp prick at the back of his neck. As he reached to check what had pricked him he suddenly felt dizzy. He pulled off a small metal pin from his neck that seemed to be the cause of the pain. His vision became blurry and the pain in his leg suddenly went away before he lost all control of motor skills. He staggered forward a few steps before his face planted the ground. His father's face suddenly flashed before him. The man on the ground grunted. "Let me just pass out already..." But the face slowly shook its head in the way his father often did when he failed to do something the way he wanted. He could hear those words he always said to him ringing in his head.

'You want to die... then throw yourself into the sea boy,...'

The man hated those words and how true they were. He suddenly wondered where his father had heard those words or what situation had occurred for him to be told that. That would explain a lot... the way he had treated him all those years. He would have to remember to ask him if they ever meet again. "...I tried..." he gasped as everything faded to black.

Consciousness returned. The man's head throbbed and the pain almost overwhelmed him. It took him a few moments then he let out a breath he wasn't even aware he had been holding in. His breathing came in short bursts as he tried to overcome the pain. He could hear voices from where he was lying down. What happened? What time was it? He could feel a lesser pain coming from his left leg. Thats right! Wall... bad landing... Pursuers... Dart!... The fall. Everything came back to him at once. His heart started beating faster. Who were the people in front of him? Had he finally been caught by his pursuers? The man groaned. He tried to move but his arms and legs had been tied up. His vision was still adjusting but he could see three figures starting to form in front of him.

"Who are you?" He croaked.

His mouth was dry and his throat was closed... it hurt when he spoke. He decided it was better to stop struggling and just stay in the position he was. "Keep calm," he told himself.

'Panic never solved anything.' The voice in his head said... his father's voice.

"Ha! Can you hear us proper! My tranquilizers pack a punch I know. A concoction of my own design. You took it well I have to say... well the dosage you took was only meant to knock you out for a little while. It will take a little longer before your throat is less swollen but we need you talking so take this..." The man felt a cup placed to his mouth and some cool liquid go down his throat.

"And we are the ones who will ask the questions here. Who are you?" It wasn't clear to him who was speaking as his vision was still adjusting but the first voice was deeper and more clearer than the one that has just spoke.

The man kept quiet. These weren't his pursuers after all it seemed. What kind of predicament had he gotten himself into this time. He needed to be careful about this.

"If you are not willing to answer there are other means to make your talk.." The deeper voice said after a minute of silence.

Again the man kept silent.

"We do not need to go there quite yet my friend. Consider the situation from his point of view. If he is indeed innocent then we would be wrongly accusing a man... and if we torture him at that... well I do not want to resort to that if there is a better way. Let me talk to him for now." The other said.

The man on the floor's eyes had been adjusting to his new surroundings while the men in front of him were talking. He could see them more clearly now and immediately any thought that he could fight his way out of this in his current state and without his weapon was removed. The one with the deep voice was big and well built with a bush of a beard covering his face. He would be most problematic if he were to attack. The other one was smaller in comparison of average build. He looked similar to the third man who was yet to speak and was leaning against a wall. They were all finely dressed so late at night. They were in a small room, most probably the warehouse because wood carvings and wood ornaments were all around. These were clearly not the people chasing him.

"If you are indeed innocent sir this should go smoothly for everyone. First things first... names. My name is Michael, this big brute beside me is Kevin and the one over there is my brother Adam. So... what shall we call you stranger?"

"Stranger is fine with me."

"Real original," Kevin grunted.

"I understand Stranger... names are sacred things after all. Keep them close to your heart and people will not take advantage of you. Stranger it is then, it has a nice ring to it. So here is the thing, you walked in on a very sensitive meeting and as it so happens we have people after us. So who are you and what do you know? I need to know." Michael continued.

"I don't know anything.""I am just a wonderer going from one place to the next."

"I would like to believe you but you did scale over our wall... rather badly and into this premises in a very suspicious manner. You have no weapons on you as far as we can tell but I have heard stories of people who are themselves weapons hence you being tied up."

"I have no idea who you people are. I came here looking for a quiet place to rest for the night then I'll be on my way. So if you'll kindly release me we can all forget this ever happened with no grudges and I can look elsewhere."

Kevin grunted again which earned him a look from Michael.

"Lying to us will get you nowhere but the truth will set you free as they say."

"I told you my story, if you do not believe me...."

"Is that your final answer?"

Michael interrupted.

"Yes." Stranger replied after a moment.

"And you are sticking to it?"

"I am."

Michael sighed. "Well if you do not want to take the easy way and tell us the truth we will just have to give you some time alone with Kevin here." At the mention of his name Kevin gave a fierce grin. A minute of silence passed. "Hard way it is then."

"I was hoping you would say that," Kevin said, his grin growing wider. "Here, take my coat."

"I for one cannot stomach needless violence so I'll be taking my leave." Michael said already turning with Kevin's coat in his hands. "Adam... care to join me?"

The two men set off for the door.

"You know you talked when you were under." Kevin said. " Most of it was gibberish but you kept saying one name over and over. Tell me all about Emilia... Ah, that was the reaction I was hoping to get... you have some fight in you after all. Good. Now let's get this rope off of you... I enjoy it when they fight back." The last thing the two men heard before they closed the door behind them was the unsheathing of Kevin's knife.

"Why do they always pick the hard way?" Michael said when the pair went outside. He hugged his coat tightly against the cold.

"It is for his sake as well." His brother replied.

"So why give him a go with Kevin... even I wouldn't have gone that far. We know he is not one of the spies. You even said so yourself when we carried him in. We should have dumped his body somewhere else and be done with it."

"All good lies have some truth in them. I believe he is a wonderer looking for a place to belong. We can use that."

"Use that piece of information for what exactly?"

"Trust is earned dear brother and he would no doubt have lost his trust in us if we had let him go without any altercation. That is what we are after. We may not have got to know much about the people who are against us but we may yet gain an ally."

"And here I was thinking this night was lost."" You think we can trust him? Friends come and go but enemies accumulate."

"That will be up to him."

"Yes yes we'll see which we will end up with. As for now this cold weather is my enemy. Can we go inside and have a warm cup of tea while we thank our host for agreeing to this charade."

"I thought we already did that."

"Well I would like to do it again in the comfort of his home... you know... away from the cold. I swear you miss the most obvious things sometimes."

"Lets go then," Adam replied clasping his old brother's shoulder and pushing him on.

It was about an hour before Kevin came barging in the house.

"The kid's finally passed out." He said to the men sitting around the fire place. "Lasted more than I thought he would."

Adam took a sip of his tea before responding, "Did you get anything of him?"

"Nothing at all. He held out all the way... I'm impressed."

Adam gave his brother a knowing look. "He has a strong sense of loyalty. That is valuable to have around."

"What's going on in that head of yours Adam?" Kevin asked crossing his arms.

"My dear brother here wants to keep him."

"Him? Why did you have me beat him up then?..."

"Does it matter?"

"No, I..."

"We all know we need all the people we can get. We are spread thin already." Adam interjected.

"Interesting... why him?" Kevin said after thinking for a minute.

"Adam always had a thing for strays" Michael sighed.

"Very funny.""Do you disagree Kevin?"

"Not at all, I like him...if things go sideways he won't break easy. But he has to be useful."

"And you Michael?"

"This is all assuming he wants to join us... I'm still not convinced. There are narcissists all around us." The older brother replied.

"He will just have to win you over then... like he did Kevin."

"We shall see" Michael snorted.

"Now that that is settled..." Kevin said after a moment, "What shall we do with him in the meantime?"

"Well we cannot leave him in the warehouse..." Adam replied.

"If it's okay with mr Geiger he could stay in the guestroom until he is better... and knowing Kevin he has been through a lot in one night." Michael suggested.

"It is fine... I could use the company around here." The old man who had been quiet until now said.

"And he could also use some patching up." Kevin added. "I got carried away near the end."

"It was expected," Michael said shaking his head. "Even I knew that."

"It is okay. I will look after him." Mr Geiger said. "It looks like it is going to be a busy night for me as well. Just bring him in and you can leave. I'm sure you have to rest also and come up with what to do next."

"We'll bring him in," Adam offered and the two brothers left to retrieve the stranger.

"They are not afraid to do the dirty work are they?" Mr Geiger said after they had left.

"It keeps them from being high handed I think. They hold the lives of many. It is good they can look them in the face."

"There is still a lot for them to learn. The harshest one yet to come"

"Is that so?"

"Yes... There cannot be victory without sacrifice. You know this."

Kevin's face went grim. "I know. All we can do is hope old timer."

"That we can... and do our part."

"That we can."

The men returned carrying Stranger between them and when they had layed him down on his designated bed to be cared by Mr Geiger they finally called it a night and left, each in his own direction on that moonless night.