Short Story: Vireo's Flight

[DragonHeart]

Part of a writing exercise I did with Piroblaze. We both wrote the first 2 pages of a story based on a randomly selected prompt. I'll probably finish this at some point, I just wanted to see what people think.

The Prompt: It was a dark and stormy night...

The Story: Vireo's Flight (Working Title, First Draft)

It was a dark and stormy summer night when he arrived. Hidden in the darkness, assaulted by the sting of half-frozen rain and buffeted by the howling wind, he waited with some discomfort at the manor gate. A piece of crumpled paper fell to the mud beside him, the official seal already washing away.

Was it a trick? No, it couldn’t be. They wouldn’t dare trick a man like him. A Marked man. They would pay dearly if they thought to anger the gods.

Vireo cautiously pushed on the stark iron bars, surprised when they swung open. Advancing quietly up the meandering path, alert for any dangers, he noticed something strange. Fresh tracks along the same path, made with haste. The deep imprints of many hooves. At the doorstep lay a battered coat with dark patches. He smelled blood.

He was too late. The Hunters had been here recently. He would never find the bodies nor any other trace of the attack. Their “justice” was swift and absolute.

“Welcome home, Vireo,” A voice hissed from just beyond the door. Sudden movement, a crushing impact, and darkness. Nothing.

~~~

“How did the raid go?” General Falcon barely looked up from his paperwork. There were a lot of bodies to account for this time, Jaeger knew.

“As expected, General. We captured Vireo as requested. He will trouble us no more.”

“And the others?”

“Dead. We left no survivors.”

“Excellent. Let Lord Quetzal know. I’m sure he will be pleased to announce the execution.”

“Sir.” Jaeger saluted and left. But why, he wondered as he marched down the corridor, would their Lord enjoy the public murder of his own brother?

~~~

Daylight. A single bird, braver than his fellows, chirped to welcome the sun as it revealed the sodden world reeling from last night’s fierce storm. Such things were rare but not unheard of in this kingdom. The bird chirped again, louder this time.

Vireo groaned and opened his eyes. He’d been tricked, but not by the people he expected. How did they know where he would be before he even got there? Even Quetzal didn’t see -that- clearly.

He started to assess his injuries, but the throbbing pain in his skull made thinking futile. He only vaguely remembered the events. Bastards. They were damned good at the job, he’d give them that. They were strong, but were they smart? A slow smile crossed his face. Already, the plan was forming. They wouldn’t know what hit them.

~~~

Captain Jaeger approached the prison with some apprehension. He’d heard all the stories about the Lord’s brother, none of them reassuring. Why he’d been chosen to interrogate the man was beyond him; he’d better be getting quite a bonus with his pay this month for the trouble. Vireo was as dangerous a man as any in the Hunter’s, perhaps more. Caged, doubly so. He clutched the whip nervously as the nodded to the guards. He must have look pale, for the other nodded at him encouragingly.

Easy for them, they aren’t dealing with a man who might as well be a legend!

The gate opened. Jaeger saluted the others and entered, vanishing into the depths with only the ghostly echo of his own footsteps to accompany the frightened young man.

~~~

Footsteps echoing in the otherwise empty hallway woke him. Feigning sleep, Vireo listened as the sound approached, stopping just outside his cell. The interrogator, no doubt. He’d seen their like before. He wondered how long this one would last. With grim satisfaction he could say that he’d always broken them first. Weak, all of them. He took no joy in doing it, but he had to live. He had to.

The interrogator didn’t say a word, didn’t even crack the whip at him. Idly, Vireo wondered if he was being tested. He was an old hand at these little games; he had the escapes, and the scars, to prove it. He could wait this one out if that was what they were doing.

But no, as Vireo tried to get a sense of him, he found nothing more than a boy. Curious and more than a little afraid. What was Quetzal playing now? Sending a boy to do such a dirty job wasn’t like him. Unless…he’d finally learned. That meant that his life, and this young soldier’s, were forfeit. He needed a plan, fast.

“Traitor…Vireo…” The interrogator finally spoke, his voice low. He didn’t seem to like the title Vireo was branded with years ago. It had been a long time since anyone called him by his true name. Vireo made his choice.

“What do you want, kid? The sandbox ain’t here.” He growled, trying to bait him.

to be continued...

~DragonHeart~