Chapter 4- A dangerous Intervention.

After almost an hour in the carriage ride, Sal and the guards stop the carriage to feed the horses. The stopped at the Forest of Abbot. The last stop before they reached the King City, Wyeth.

"Ugh! Why did we stop?"

Astra complained as she stomped her foot on the carriage floor and she could not wait to leave. There was excitement in her veins. Going to the Queenstrial was the biggest moment of her life. Being Queen was even bigger. 

She could almost imagine it. That sort of power at her fingertips. She was going to charm the Crown Prince, she would do anything she could to make him hers. 

She wasn't going to let anything ruin it. Besides, she had to get there early enough to check out the competition. 

Summer got out of the carriage quickly, with the hopes that she could finally have a little bit of air. Being couped up in the carriage with Summer was not only suffocating but extremely uncomfortable for her. Especially since Astra chose to talk her ears off about her incompetence and the things she was going to do once she became queen. 

Oh Summer was filled with dread already. Astra should not be let anywhere near a throne. If she was, Summer could only imagine the despicable things she would do. 

She walked over to Sal and two of the other guards who were feeding the horses. 

"How is it going?"

She asked as she patted one of the large horses and Sal shrugged.

"If all goes well, we should be in Wyeth by nightfall."

Summer nodded her head slowly, wondering how life in the palace was going to be, she supposed that it would be very different from the life that she was living, even though she was still going to be expected to serve Astra. She didn't want to think about what life after Queenstrial would be if Astra won, Astra would most certainly find a way to dispose of her. 

"Are you worried about the Queenstrial?" Sal asked and Summer scoffed.

"I'm not the one competing. Astra should be the one worried."

She said and Sal smiled.

"Well, it's all going to be all right, once I save enough money, we can leave this place and do whatever the hell we want."

Sal said and Summer smiled painfully, she had no heart to tell him that no amount of money he would make would ever be enough for them to live in Ludmilla or escape to some other place. The world was filled with suffering everywhere, each city was worst than the last, and people like them who were poor and came from nameless homes had it worse.

It was easy for the rich to buy their way into anything they wanted and make the suffering easier for themselves, but no. Not the poor. 

She was about to walk back into the carriage when she heard one of the horse riders crying out loudly.

Summer's eyes turned sharply and she found out that they were surrounded by bandits. And they were already attacking.

A quick look from Sal as he drew his sword and Summer jumped back unto the carriage, startling Astra in the process. 

"What's going on out there?!!!" Astra asked as her lower lip wobbled in fear. The clashing of swords could be heard clearly outside the carriage.

"Stay here! Don't fucking leave! Or you will be dead."

She warmed as she retrieved the new bow and arrow set that General wells had given her. She made sure that the carriage door was locked securely before she left. 

In a flash she was out of the carriage and she could see how the skilled horse riders and Sal were combating with the bandits.

Their swords gleamed in the cool light. Summer knew that only Sal would walk away from the bloodshed, he was a master with his lucky sword and the bandits didn't stand a chance. 

She quickly started putting her bow and arrow lessons to show as she shot one of the bandits that was approaching the carriage. If her guess was as good as it was, they wanted to take Astra. The forest of Abbot was known for bandits and thieves, but not at this time of the day. The night was still young.

She turned to one of the coachmen who had a deep gash on his thigh and was crouching in pain. 

"Take her! Take Astra and go! They won't follow you if we hold them off!!"

She screamed and he nodded his head. He scrambled to his feet and started running back to the coach. 

Sal turned back for a moment, still in the thick of the fight and found the coachman about to leave. Summer was nowhere to be found though, good, he hoped that she was already in the carriage safely with Astra.

His opponent's sword was stained with blood. Sal shuffled to the side and awaited in attack, and, possibly, inevitable death. His opponent charged with a mighty cry. He dodged to the side in one fluid move. His enemy swiveled in his direction. His menacing eyes were a blazing red and his dark hood made the rest of his features indistinguishable. His opponent thrust his sword forward, only to be met by Sal's sword. Both sword met in the air with a resounding 'clang'. 

The man was a master swordsman. Slowly, Sal was tiring, he had fought off about four of the men, three were on the ground while the remaining two were still alive. One of them was injured and the other was the master swordsman.

With renewed vigor, he slashed his blade back and forth. His wound began bleeding openly. He had been hit below the chest in his first fight. 

Suddenly, an arrow landed in the neck of his opponent and he fell with a resounding thud.

He looked back to see who it was and found Summer. His eye widened in growing fear as he noticed the carriage was gone, Summer had stayed behind.

"Summer! What are you doing? Run!"

He screamed as he found more bandits running towards her.

She turned back and saw them and started running.

Her agile movements were far too slow. Four pairs of rough hands seized her and threw her screaming and squirming body on top of a horse. 

A rag was inserted in her mouth to stop her from screaming and all her protests became futile when she was knocked out with the blunt end of a sword to her head.

"Summer! Summer!"

Sal called out as he started to chase after them.

"Sal! Come back here! She's gone!"

The Coachman shouted and Sal shook his head.

"We can't just let them take her! If I take one of the horses I bet we'll be able to make it."

The Cooachman shrugged. There was a look of pity on his chubby face.

"We have to go. Before more of them come back and take Astra..."

"No! We can still save her."

"Sal! If anything happens to her, the General will have your head! Let's leave while we can. We'll come back and look for her."

He shouted hoping that Sal would be able to think straight.

Astra banged on the carriage door incessantly till the coachman opened it.

She brought her head out and glared at Sal angrily.

"Do you still have you wits intact or did all that fighting get in it? Let's go!"

Sal hesitated and Astra sighed angrily.

"You swore to my father that you would protect me! Is this how you'll protect me? By leaving me in the woods for the next set of bandits to come and take me?"

"No."

Sal mumbled as he started moving towards the Carriage.

He had to save her.

He had to save Summer. 

He couldn't even imagine what she was going through or what the men might be planning to do with her.

But Astra was right, his commitment was to her. And if the General found out that he left his daughter unattended to, he would have his head truly.

"Let's go. We make it to Wyeth by nightfall and come back and look for Summer."

He said with a steely resolve.

If his guess was correct the only reason they would take Summer was to sell her. Summer would still be somewhere in the Abbots Forest, somewhere where the bandits kept their loots.

He was going to find her.

He was determined to.