Chapter 04

The knights were on our tail but they couldn't catch up to us. The horse was pushing hard and running fast. I'd never ridden before and I felt like I would fall off at any moment if I wasn't holding on to this red haired woman. I wrapped my arms around her waist tighter...
I know this is a serious moment but I felt a little giddy. She was quite beautiful.
I was quickly reminded of my raw flesh and charred arms as they rubbed on her waist.
Man, this could take months to recover from.i was reminded of home though and what my mom and terra would be thinking. I hope terra is ok...
Like a mind reader, the red haired woman spoke, "my men found your sister in the village unharmed. We are heading to a safe place and we will be there shortly... My men are starting to catch up" she smiled with confidence as she turned to look at me, then she had a disgusted look on her face when she saw what I looked like.
"is it really that bad?" I asked. She quickly turned forward again. "Yes... You're quite disgusting." I've never been shot down so hard before. I wasn't expecting brutal honesty.
Brrrrruuump
The sound of a trumpet rang out from behind us. I turned my head around to see what the sound was coming from. There, not too far behind the knights was another band of armor wearing warriors. These warriors were wearing normal iron armor, but their entrance was very welcome. The new warriors were catching up quickly to the knights. They must be pushing their horses extra hard. Soon they made contact with the knights and the knights were forced to fight them and defend themselves. "Gahhhh you filthy little bugs!" The knight leader shouted in anger.
We were suddenly no longer being followed. The sounds of battle grew quiet as we rode further and further. Some men screamed as they were injured.
Something didn't make sense to me though.
"why are you doing so much to help me?" I felt terrible for the people who sacrificed themselves for me. My father came back to my mind... I started to feel my lingering emotions well up from my chest.
"trust me. We aren't saving you for free. And my men know why we do what we do. Our mission is noble and important. You'll soon learn more, but if you were being taken by the Drezir then you are worth saving." She looked slightly more relaxed and our pace slowed slightly. "Those Black knights are the tyrant king's loyal servants, the Drezir. They are zombies teetering between life and death frozen in time. They search tirelessly for the true heir to the throne... So they can snuff out our last hope."
She got quiet. The horse started to slow down and took a turn off the road into the forest. Our path seemed random to me. I couldn't see the road any more and I was certain that if we were being followed, we would not be found. The woman put a finger to her lips to tell me to remain quiet. I obeyed. Shortly we reached a small clearing. In the center of the clearing was a lonely boat, land locked and utterly out of place. The woman finally broke the silence.
"we are here."
"Here? Where is here? What's with the boat?" I blurted out in bewilderment. She rode closer, dismounted the hourse, then attached a harness to her horse that was connected to the boat. Then she got back on the horse and gave three tugs on the ropes and we began to float. Well more like we were lifted.
"what's your name kid?" Now she asks my name?
"torin, yours?" She only looked up. She had a proud smile on her face, "torin, good name. I'm Thena a scout. Welcome, to the Dawn Brigade"
We slowly rose over the top of the boat rails and suddenly I heard clapping. An entire crew was watching us being lifted onto the boat. They were cheering loudly.
Some shouted, "good job Thena!" Others shouted at me, "good job staying alive kid, ew that's ghastly!" Even more talked about their exploits and success, "we really gave those old bags the slip eh?" Everyone was happy to see us. They all looked like the men who had fought the knights from behind us. Some were injured but none of them looked mortally wounded.
The horse was detached from the harness and I was lifted off the horse gently. A tall thin man with an eye patch, long blonde hair, and a scar on his lip came up to me, "so you have a flame? That's a nasty one. We'll get you fixed in no time" he spoke like this was a common injury. All of these reminders about my charred body were starting to do a number on my confidence. He led me down into the boats lower quarters to be treated.
I was alone now with this tall man, "so how is this boat any safer than somewhere else... Isn't it actually more noticeable?" He chuckled like it was a silly question, "you're a bright kid. This is a special boat. Oh by the way, my names Arthur. I'm the team medic"
Just as Arthur finished talking I felt a familiar sensation like I was being lifted up. I almost fell over and Arthur helped support me so I didn't fall. The ship started moving, but it wasn't on the ocean.
Arthur grinned, "this boat can fly"