11 Unwelcomed Rescue

Lynne:

After that horrible tasting burnt dinner, we both slipped into a deep sleep lulled by the sounds of the forest around us. This night, I think I had fallen asleep the easiest so far. I didn't feel the pain in my hip as the bone rested against the hard dirt ground, and the cold night wind blowing through my clothes didn't keep me up in a shiver.

Maybe I was too distracted from what I had learned about Clay only a few hours earlier. How he had grown up in slavery, something people from my time fought so hard to abolish, now rearing its ugly head in this new world I became a part of.

Though I didn't ask any more questions, since that would have been intrusive, I still wondered if his experiences matched those I saw on TV. Especially those horrifyingly detailed ones that ran during black history month, or that we used to watch in history class.

Now I wished I had paid more attention to how it was abolished. If I truly was the prince of this land, and if I wanted to keep my word on what I had promised to Clay I needed to know how the people in my world handled the situation.

Just thinking about it overwhelmed me, and I decided to just tackle everything one step at a time. Before I felt this pressure, first I needed to find out if I was really the prince of this land. I needed to find out what my father was like.

I spent the rest of the night dreaming about how my encounter with him would go. One version of the dream was a touching reunion. He smiled and ran to me, he warmly embraced me with all of his might. I was smiling too. He was strong, big enough to pick me up and spin me around. However, no matter how hard I tried to look I could never get a clear grasp on what his face looked like.

Another dream he didn't even recognize me. He was cold, he brushed me aside as he continued with his work. The man didn't speak a word to me, didn't even look up from the paperwork on his desk as he used an old feather dipped in ink to scribble something on them.

The last one was the worst. He said that he didn't have a son. Laughing at me for even suggesting I was related to him. The look of amusement in his eyes as he told his guards how I was a desperate bastard in search of some meaning to my birth hurt even more than being ignored.

As the entire room laughed at me, including Clay, I could feel my heart beating in my throat. Choking on the image of mocking figures that pointed my way. I was about to turn around, to run as far away as I could when I was shaken hard, startling me awake.

"Hey, why're you all sweaty?" Clay asked, his golden eyes close enough to mine that I could see my reflection in them. I saw my shocked expression melt away as I realized it was a dream.

"I'm just dreaming about my father," I admitted to him, sitting up as Clay moved back. As soon as his shadow was no longer cast on me, I flinched at how bright the sun was. "I guess I'm more nervous to meet him than I thought."

"That makes sense." He agreed. "You won't have to wait much longer. We're gonna need more rice soon. We should leave to look for him today before our stash runs out."

I looked over at the now half-empty rice barrel. At least now with half the weight, I would be able to help him carry it. But that also meant we only had a few more days before we'd need to find more. "Yeh." I agreed. "Let's get moving after breakfast."

Clay caught the fish as I boiled the rice. I was getting sick of nothing but rice and fish, but after that burnt heap we ate yesterday I was hungry enough to eat anything.

We spent most of the preparation and eating in silence. A heavy gloom cast over us as we contemplated the journey ahead.

With Clay as a runaway slave, it could be dangerous to talk to authorities and just announce that I was the prince. Especially since most didn't know about my existence. It would also welcome more people like those alleyway goons to try and take a stab at selling me off for ransom.

"The capital should be a few days walk from here." Clay suddenly said as we watched the fish cook over the fire. "That is, IF, we keep moving. No breaks to rest other than eating and sleeping."

I took a big gulp of air when he said that. I had never been hiking in my life, let alone a three-day backpacking trip. I wondered if I could even manage something like that. I guess I didn't have much of a choice. "Alright." I bluffed, though the way his eyes narrowed made me think he saw right through it.

But instead of calling me out, he shifted his gaze to the fish. "Looks like it's almost ready," Clay said, standing up and making his way to the fire. He grabbed the hot stick with the fish skewered through it. "Here. Try to eat quickly so we can get going." Clay then extended his arm out to give the fish to me…

That's when a sudden cry of pain echoed through the trees. The fish falling to the ground and getting covered with dirt.

It took me a moment to process what I was seeing. Clay suddenly collapsed on the ground, the fish he was holding stained red. Now that I could see Clay's backside, I noticed the end of an arrow sticking up through flesh and blood. The sharp arrowhead was completely buried into Clay's skin.

"We found the kidnapped prince." A voice I didn't recognize came from the now silent woods. I looked up to see at least 10 soldiers. They were dressed in differing medieval attire, similar to what I had seen knights wear on TV when they weren't in a full suit of armour. Each of them had a plus sign somewhere on their clothing.

"CLAY!" I yelled. Running by his side as I dropped to my knees. I tried to analyze his injury but there was too much blood pooling around it for me to see much of anything.

Clay slowly raised his head from the dirt, shifting in an attempt to stand. "That…. hurt… you bastards…." He breathed heavily, able to lift his torso just enough to turn and see the men standing behind us, all their bows were drawn and pointed in his direction.

"W-what did you do!?" I exclaimed, whipped my head up to look at the soldiers and bared my teeth in their direction.

"We received a message that Prince Charlton has been kidnapped. We're here to rescue you."