Private Tales Prisoner of Night and Fog

[James Lanvarok]

Fitting Music​

Eyes darting back and forward, James trudged down the side of the street as lightly as his heavy frame could carry. He had one hand in his pocket, but kept reaching over his shoulder for his crossbow the moment his eye caught a glimpse of movement. His feet clapped along the cobblestone, their echo carrying in between the winding alleyways of the town. Mist hung above the ground and bore the aftermath of a downpour, leaving large puddles where it had soaked the stone.

Water splashed beneath James' feet. He took a step forward and almost keeled over when his foot met a puddle that was far larger than he had guessed. The stench of excreta hung thick on the air. Vapor hovered above the stone, cut by the feet of townspeople as they went home for the night. A town crier rang his bell, heralding news of criminals and the danger they posed. The gongs of his bell, they banged, hammering the chill of the air like steel on steel.

James looked around, held onto the strap around his shoulder, then walked on.

The town guard were following him a few blocks down.

He hadn't meant to do it. He hadn't meant to lose his shit and hit that whore. He hadn't wanted to, really he hadn't, but the anger he sucked up from the barfight in the tavern below overcame his sense of rational thought.

He took in a long hard, breath, then fumbled with his fingers. He heard raised voices, then turned around and saw two guards pointing. He gasped, eyes wide as stars, then darted down an alleyway. His chest was sore from walking, and he needed to piss, but hadn't had time to stop. Once he got out of the town he could lose the guards for good. He shifted his eyes from one end of the alley to the next, then headed into the darkness. Rats scampered across the stone, the clatter of their claws splitting a breeze as it whistled through each hidden crevice of the town. A pale moon sat in the sky and brightened James' pasty features.

He walked into the middle of the alley, sighed and planted his back against the wall. He would be out of sight for a few minutes, so he used them well. He caught his breath, then undid his trousers and leaned against the wall, an eye constantly over his shoulder as he relieved himself.

He scampered down the alley and peeked out the other side. There were no guards, so he ran for it.

It was dark, and he had been too busy looking over his shoulder, that he didn't notice a young woman standing on the other side. He ran straight into her. Teeth clenched, he cursed beneath his breath and stumbled back.

"Urgh, goddamnit, fuck..." He sputtered. His temper was still foul from the tavern, so he couldn't be bothered being kind with his words. "Dumb bitch, watch we're you're going."

Hopefully it would keep her away. He would feel bad dragging another person into his bullshit. He had already knocked out one whore. He didn't need somebody else getting hurt because of him.

Before he could turn and walk away, boots thundered down the street. There was a dock on the other side and a river. Boats and ferries were tied up. The view of the water was obscured by three towering guardsmen who were quickly approaching James and the young woman.

"Oh fuck-a-doodle-doo...." He shook his head and backed into the alley, but it was too late. The guards had seen him.

"Look, whatever it is, I didn't do it."

His eyes darted. His speech was brash and slurred. He turned up his lip and shifted his eyes innocuously, then blurted, "well I did, but it was an accident!"

Well, it was true. That's what they wanted, was it? The truth?

Oh fuck. He didn't want to go to prison. Sharing a cell with thieves, madmen and syphilitic rapists. Not to mention shitting and sleeping in full view of them.

Oh god he didn't want to go to prison.

"Shut up," the guard barked. "Your girlfriend's wanted. Step aside and I might just spare you."

"Nghehe," James giggled. The guard thought she was his girlfriend.

 

[Silver Romani]

~An hour earlier~​

The girl had arrived in the dreary little town under odd circumstances, she left Raksha stationed outside the gates for fear of having her taken from her, she had lost her weapons and wouldn't be able to put up much of a fight without them. She'd lost everything, other than her beloved mare. She'd had a full day's ride since she'd escaped Talus' custody, and she arrived covered in dried blood with nothing more than a blanket tied around her chest to cover her bare skin. She needed clothes, some coin, a weapon if she could, and she hoped the sleepy settlement would surrender them without fuss.

"Wait here.." she whispered to her protesting friend, a gentle hand smoothing over the length of her face to calm her before she approached the gates alone, her bare feet avoiding what puddles she could along the dimpled path. Honestly, she hadn't expected guards to be stationed at the gates, and she physically jumped as one of them had called for her to halt, but she did as they'd asked.. Fuck.

"Gentlemen.." she turned on her heels and smiled, thinking fast, sure they'd have questions. "Evenin'.." she dipped her chin, watching them approach with furrowed brows, their eyes wandering all over her. The lack of attire she could have accounted for, but the state she was in was another issue, as she clearly had no wounds to speak of.

"What the fuck happened to you?.." one of the guards asked as the two circled her, casting each other glances.

"Milord fancied taking me out on the hunt with him.." she cleared her throat, pulling her thick, red hair around her shoulders to cover them. Whore it was. She assumed, what with the guards, that the town had nobles.. "Said I was to get back to the brothel and clean up.. he's into some weird shit." she gestured to the blood, hoping they'd believe that it hadn't belonged to a human. She grinned and approached the two, hips swaying suggestively toward the guard who'd asked the question, and she lifted a hand to rest her fingertips on his chest , slowly moving them southward. "Perhaps, when I get cleaned up, I might come visit you both.. The night isn't over yet boys." but the guard pushed her away..

"Fuck off! Spooky bitch!". He looked physically repulsed, as had been her hope. "Away with you.."

"Oh come now, I can warm your bed for the night, strapping men like yourselves.." she pouted, and slid a knee between the second guard's legs, pressing her face closer having the intention of kissing him.

"You've been warned!" and he shoved her away too, landing the back of his hand hard against her cheek, her lip swelling instantly, and she cursed under her breath and retreated from the two with a nod in understanding, spitting her blood onto the cobbles.

"As you command.." she turned away, growling as she touched her fingertips to the bleeding lip. It'd be at least half an hour before they both realised their coin purses were no longer in their possession..

~Presently~
​

Silver roamed the web of seedy little alleyways, grabbing clothing from the lines that hung from ropes and discarding the bloodied blanket for a man's white shirt and some fitted leggings, and she hung the coin purses by her hip. She'd pulled open a barrel of stagnant water and dipped her entire head into it to wash the days old blood from her face and hair. She'd been knotting her damp hair into a bun atop her head when she was slammed into and thrown hard into the ground, grazing her elbow and starting a new patch of blood on her newly acquired fresh shirt. "Fuck will you shut up?! Watch where I'm going?! You ran into me! You're a dumb bitch!" she growled in whispered exclamations as she pulled herself back to her feet to dust herself down. She was beginning to believe that she was cursed after all, her luck was shit.

Of course, of course he led the guards straight to her. Silver's head tilted back and she looked to the moon, huffing and shaking her head as though to ask what she had done to deserve this "Seriously though, thank you..very much." she muttered to herself. She sighed and her bare feet stepped slowly backward, though she frowned in confusion as the man clearly believed they were here for him. Silver's jaw clenched irritably as he'd somehow found it amusing that it'd been her they'd wanted, and she threw out her hands to shove him closer to the guards "Yes well, my boyfriend said he could take on the lot of you and that you'd need to go through him first!" she yelled down the alley at the two, dropping her voice to a quiet murmur toward the man who now stood between them.. "Funny now?..Dick." .. At least he had a weapon.

 

[James Lanvarok]

James' eyes widened to the size of plates as the woman assailed him with her own string of insults. Blood rushed to his head as he struggled to control his rage.

"I'm not a bitch! You're not shit!" He barked at the top of his lungs.

When the woman thanked him for leading the guards to her, James screwed up his face. "You're welcome?" A raise of his eyebrow, and he immediately snapped. "Hey fuck you, I was running from them!"

He didn't have time to exchange verbal blows with the woman, as the three guardsmen were quickly approaching. They revealed that she was wanted. Well, James was hardly the only criminal in the town. They then told him to step aside so they could catch her. His eyes shot open. His heart leaped into his throat. That was a free ticket out of the prison or the gallows for him. If he just fucked off and let the guards take her, he could escape the town without getting caught.

But he didn't want to. He wasn't sure what she had done, but he didn't want her to die because of him.

Then she spoke, "my boyfriend said he could take on the lot of you and that you'd need to go through him first!"

Shit. Maybe was better off just handing her over but... No. He couldn't do that. He breathed in, then out, then looked up at the guards with large, blue eyes. Light from the torches bathed the stone in a yellow balm, their flames dancing in the reflection of the guard's armor.

"Is that so?" The guard laughed. "What's he going to do? Sit on me?"

A vein throbbed in James' temple. He lost it.

"Fucker!" He reached into his pocket and grabbed a vial, then slammed it onto the ground. The potion was used to coat his arrows with so he could fire them and blow things up, but was just as effective when thrown.

A small nova of flames erupted in front of the three guards, scorching their faces and obscuring James and the young woman from view. James grabbed the woman by the shoulders and yanked her inside the alleyway to shield her from the explosion.

"If we run now, we can make it to the docks!" James cried at the level of the woman's ear. He kept his voice low.

The guards coughed and spluttered. They threw all manner of expletives amidst the smoke. One had half his cheek burnt off. The scrape of steel cut a swathe through the mist, and the guards drew their swords.

 

[Silver Romani]

Silver blinked in disbelief at the man as he yelled at her - she’d been stationary in the street and somehow this had been her fault?! “Well you weren’t doing it very fucking well, were you?” She spat back angrily, putting pressure on her throbbing elbow, but she was more worried about the approaching guards. Silver pressed her thumb and index finger together and used them to curl the tip of her tongue to sound a piercing whistle. The guards glancing around warily at the sound, assuming for a moment they were being ambushed.


She was backing away when her shoulders was torn into the alley, her face contorting with protest but the explosion answered whatever question she seemed about to ask and her expression became that of confusion rather than irritation. “What the fuck was that?” She demanded and peeked around the corner to see the guards writhing on the ground in a plume of smoke.

“Row fast can you?..” She asked with a look of doubt on her face. “You go, row yourself away from the guards and their crossbows. I’m not going anywhere without Raksha.” She frowned at him, peered around the corner, and made a break for the main street as she heard the familiar sound of the Clydesdale's galloping hooves fast approaching.

There were more guards now, no doubt alerted by the explosion, and Silver darted past them and down the road toward her horse, casting a glance back at the guards who gave chase to her, their blades drawn. She was becoming more practised in mounting the massive mare whilst in motion, it was the second time in two days she’d had to make an abrupt getaway, and Raksha kept up her speed as Silver raced toward her, hand outstretched to grip hold of the saddle and she swung up onto her, the guards scattering at her sheer mass.

James would never make it if he attempted to use the docks as his escape. They hadn’t wanted him before, but they had now because of his attack on the guards. Her jaw clenched and she growled to herself, knowing the guilt would eat at her if she didn’t try to get him out of this mess. “Hey boy!!” She called, hoping he’d make it out onto the street in time, her thighs tightening their grip on her saddle, and her hand outstretched in hopes he’d manage to grip hold, she didn’t have the time to slow down.