To his right, Benni noticed multiple branches move and crack as three more bald opponents entered his view. Each wielded a similar club and bone shield as the first. They converged on his position. Benni watched as another warrior entered from behind them. His hair was long and his body was scarred. He was a mammoth of a man standing well over two meters tall with monstrous arms and fists like rocks. He wore a tattered red tunic that was sleeveless, torn and ragged. He had a large scar that stretched from his right eye halfway down his cheek. His bare arms showed his veins and muscles as he approached the center of the area they had been circling. None of them even bothered with Fairen, who hid at the edge of the clearing. Their attention was focused solely on Benni.
Finally the large man spoke in a deep, booming voice, “Who are you that you have come here? Speak quickly!”
The group of men now had him surrounded. Benni looked around, feeling like a mouse amongst lions. He caught the hulking man’s gaze and responded, “I am Benni Wakewood, a Knight of Haile. My village was attacked and I was sent here by my caretakers to seek out my father, Cranos Wakewood.”
His words caused the long-haired man to raise an eyebrow. One of the other warriors approached Benni with his club held high, poised to strike. He took a wild swing. Benni sidestepped him easily, shooting the others a look of defiance as he turned to face his opponent.
“I warn you, I am a Knight of Haile and I will not hesitate to defend myself if you attack me again!” Benni shouted.
The man turned around to face him again, a look of frustration covering his face. “Gyah!” the warrior shouted, rushing Benni again.
Benni sidestepped him and lightly ran the tip of his sword down the man’s back, causing some blood to flow. The blade barely cut the man; it was more an insult than an attack.
“I am looking for my father, Cranos Wakewood! Take me to him!” Benni roared in desperation. The warrior again turned to face him. This was starting to annoy Benni; he didn’t have time to waste fighting these miscreants.
The mysterious man rushed him once more, but this time Benni threw down his weapons. As the man approached him Benni went low, punching the man in the gut. He let out a loud “Uhh!” as Benni knocked the club out of his hand and grabbed the shield from him. Benni took the shield and bashed it against the man’s head, knocking him to the ground.
“This is your last warning! Stop this at once or I will be forced to kill you!”
Without hesitation the man dashed toward Benni who met him with a brutal counter. He put his right hand against his face and placed his right foot behind the man as he pushed backwards. The man crashed to the ground with Benni on top of him, raining punches down on him. The man was barely able to weather the storm as Benni punched again and again, drawing blood from a gash that opened on the top of the man’s head. The man turned to his side trying to avoid more blows. Benni jumped on his back. Benni saw the opening and locked in his favorite submission technique. This was no sparring match, this was a life or death fight and Benni would do whatever it took to stop this man’s assault. He locked his right arm under the man’s neck and grabbed it with his clenched fist. He was careful not to let his fingers exposed like he had done against Lawrence. He pulled back as hard as he could and watched as the man’s face reddened intensely. The other warriors rushed to help their friend, but the mammoth man wearing the ragged shirt raised a hand to stop them.
The two continued to struggle. The man grabbed and clawed at Benni’s arm, scratching him continuously, trying to tear his way free. The man fought furiously until he began to fade. His pulling became less and less as Benni’s grip became tighter and tighter.
“Damn it, take me to Cranos Wakewood or I am going to kill this man!” Benni declared.
“That’s enough!” the giant man commanded. He walked up to the two and placed a goliath hand around Benni’s head and pulled him off the struggling warrior. He tossed Benni across the clearing toward his horse. “You have come seeking Cranos Wakewood, and you have found him!” The man brought his hands up and bellowed, “Leave your weapons and come fight me like a real man! Prove to me, and to everyone, that you are my son!”
Benni needed to be more mobile for this fight, so he removed his chainmail. It dropped to the ground with a clank and the two men faced off. They stared each other down for a long while as they slowly inched toward each other.
Benni felt small as he came upon this towering monster of a man. Cranos threw a punch and Benni used his hands to block. He felt a sharp shock course through his arms, the impact sending him back several paces, reeling in pain. Benni tried not to let it show though. He needed to win this fight; he needed to win their approval. Again the two circled each other; Benni was still throwing his arms about, trying to shake off the pain from Cranos’ brutal punches.
They locked up again. This time each man threw punches into the other. Both warriors backed away, grimacing in pain. To Benni’s surprise this giant man was not as invincible as he had thought. He knew that every man had his weakness and this man’s appeared to be his ribs. However, the gargantuan had landed a few blows of his own to Benni’s shoulder and chest area. The two again came to punches, and this time Benni was able to dance past Cranos’ shots and land two perfectly timed jabs right to the man’s ribs.
“Ahhhh! You bastard!” Cranos cried out, swinging wildly, missing Benni who again landed three more punches to his other side. Cranos stumbled past Benni into some of his subordinates. They helped him to his feet and he shoved them away. He ran at Benni, screaming with intensity, swinging as hard as he could. Every shot he took missed as Benni weaved and sidestepped his way past them, landing punch after punch to the man’s exposed chest. A bit of blood oozed over Cranos’ lower lip.
Benni was beginning to feel more confident. He could sense that victory was close and if he could just land a few more painful strikes, he would be victorious. It was like fighting any other opponent. Benni knew he needed to defend himself and exploit their weaknesses with his attacks. He continued to dodge and weave around the hulking man until he saw a huge opening in the man’s guard. He knew he shouldn’t move in so close, but he did anyway, the sense of urgency picking at his nerves. He threw several well timed jabs into the large man’s ribs. Again and again he felt his hands connect until his vision blanked for a moment. Benni woke up a second or two later on the ground with the man kneeling over him, about to throw a punch down into his face.
“Get off of my big brother!” a young boy’s voice rang through the air.
Suddenly, Fairen came running at Cranos and tried futilely to knock him off of Benni. The boy’s punches were unnoticeable to the man, like that of a butterfly flapping its wings against a dragon’s hard, scaly back. The bandit leader, however, became distracted by Fairen’s annoying blows and turned and grabbed the boy by his worn shirt.
“You little bastard, I’ll teach you to mess with me!” he shouted, raising a fist to the boy.
“No!” Benni erupted, kicking Cranos right between the legs, sending him collapsing to the ground, crying out in pain. Before Cranos could recover Benni was atop him, punching him nonstop in the face.
“Ahhhh!” Benni cried, smashing him over and over again. He stopped counting after the tenth one. Blood splashed and flowed from Cranos’ face. He struggled to defend himself against Benni’s blows which were emboldened by a need to protect his kin.
“You monster! If you ever touch…” Another punch landed. “My brother again…” Two more punches found their mark. “I’ll kill you!” His last punch caused Cranos to exhale sharply, his arms flopping to his sides. He was beaten. Benni fell to the ground exhausted as some of the warriors gathered around to check on them. They looked down at Benni, who lay there nearly motionless.
“Who’s next?” Benni gurgled. Everything went black.
***
Benni awoke a while later in what appeared to be a dark hut. He slowly sat up, clenching his arms together in pain as his body fought back agains
t his efforts. He felt a raging headache set in from being unconscious and all of the blows he had received. He came to a full sitting position and looked around the empty hut. He placed his hands on his forehead and rubbed it lightly. The floor was covered by dirt and grass. He could see some bugs crawling around making the hut their home as well. He stood up and limped away from the stuffed sack bed he was laying on and lumbered his way to the door. He reached his right hand out and grabbed the handle, and a sharp pain exploded throughout his entire body. He was sore from the fights he had engaged in earlier. He pushed the door open and bright sunlight blinded him. He raised his hands to shield his eyes. He looked around and could see he was in an encampment in the center of the forest. It was a man-made clearing, stumps were everywhere and half-cut trees littered the landscape. He could see brush huts with shabby thatched roofs scattered about the clearing. Benni heard a hawk cry out overhead as he continued to survey the area. He started walking, looking for Cranos. Benni knew there wasn’t a second to waste and finding the bandit leader was important because Haile was in need of his help. He continued his walk until he ventured upon a group of warriors who were gathered around a campfire. They stood and approached him.
Benni was in no condition to fight. He immediately raised his hands in front of his face. “Wait! I don’t want to fight…I just want to find my brother and Cranos.” He took a step back, trying to avoid another scuffle.
The group of men stopped, and one lone warrior stepped forward and extended his hand. “That was one hell of a fight, son. I have been challenging Cranos my entire life and have never managed to land that many blows. As far as I am concerned, you are one of us.”
Benni extended his hand suspiciously and shook the warrior’s hand. Benni was glad these men were amicable; he was in no mood to fight. The other warriors all approached and offered their praise and handshakes. Benni slowly made his way past them, continuing through the village.
After a while, Benni finally came to an area with an even larger bonfire and many people gathered around it. A freshly killed stag hung on a spit. He could hear the sizzling of the meat and the juices dripping to the fire laden embers below as it was slowly rotated by a beautiful woman. He looked farther and could see some of the bandits sharpening stones and affixing them to arrows to prepare for the next hunt. His eyes took him to a tall chair; it almost looked like something you would find in a castle, except it was rusty and decrepit. Its once golden color had faded and the cushions were flat. Cranos sat atop it. Sitting next to him was Fairen, who was now dressed in only a loin cloth.
Benni approached Cranos with haste. “Is it true? Are you really my father?”
Cranos looked him over like he was sizing up an opponent. “Yes, you are no doubt my son. Come closer, my boy, and I will tell you the story.”
Benni approached slowly, taking a seat on a nearby rock as he listened intently.
“Many years ago, Benni, your mother and I sent you to live with my brother and his wife in Haile. I didn’t want you to have the life that I have; it is a barbaric one. Fighting every day to maintain stature and control of those beneath you…it’s a life I love but don’t wish upon anyone else. I wanted you to live in the city, to have a real family. I wanted you to live under the protection of the Knights, to have a chance to grow up and join their ranks. I made the walk to Haile with my wife and informed Nicholas and Helen about our wish to put you in their care. Of course, at first they were against the idea, not wanting to take you away from your real parents. Eventually, however, I convinced Nicholas that taking you was the right move, and he assured me that he would raise you properly. See, Nicholas and I, we never really saw eye to eye on anything. I always wanted to drink and fight, and he was more of an easy-going, conscientious person. I always threw the first punch, and then beat my opponent while dealing with the consequences later, while Nicholas would check his every option before acting. He wasn’t small of stature, but I outweighed him by a lot when we were younger, yet somehow he always got the better of me. This life, though, it just felt right for me. I never handled authority well. It was here that I met my wife, your mother. She and I were joined together and then eventually you were born.”
Benni nodded slowly, trying to understand the decisions his father had made.
“Listen, son, I don’t regret conceiving you and I am nothing short of ecstatic to see you, but you cannot tell me that you are happy to see me. If you told me right now that you were excited to meet me, or even so much as grateful for a chance to get to know me, I would call you a liar. I am a vagabond, a rogue, a thief, a killer. I am nothing short of the lowest of the low, but I still live by a code. I only take what I need to survive and I never harm the innocent. No matter what you may hear of other bandits, my followers,” he pointed to some of the men gathering around to hear his story, “would never harm an innocent person! We steal, yes! We plunder and pillage, but we never murder! Most of our food we take from the land, not from store houses, and as for money, well it is rare that a traveler gets lost here. However, when they do, we feel fit to relieve them of their cryn in exchange for safe passage. And I can tell you this, they rarely argue the idea.” Cranos adjusted his sitting position and stretched his arms above his head.
Benni felt betrayed and let down by his father. “Why, Father? Why have you left me in the dark all this time?” he yelled, standing. “All this time I wondered why I was so quick to throw a punch, so fast to fight. I wondered why, when my friends would walk away, I had to stay and fight! Why did it have to be this way?!”
“You are a bandit at heart, son. It appears even sending you away cannot break those bonds. They are bonds formed over hundreds of years of tears and bloodshed. Hundreds of years of history and devotion to a code much like that of the Knights of Haile that you now belong to.”
“You are nothing like the Knights of Haile! You are damn cowards! You prey on those less fortunate and seek advancement at the cost of others! To hell with you and your code!”
“Not true, son. Both are cut from the same cloth! Accept it or don’t, it’s still the truth!”
“So far the only thing you have shown me is your ass when you and your bandits turn tail and run from your responsibility!” Benni yelled. His eyes lit up with intensity. “I, on the other hand, have spent the last eighteen years of my life training for a good purpose, a higher cause. I want to serve these lands as a Knight, a protector of all that is good. You stand there and tell me of our equality and all I hear is lies! None of that matters now though, does it, Cranos? Haile has been attacked and my father, Nicholas, sent me here to seek you out. He sent me to seek you for a reason, we need help! All of these lands are at risk. Razzius, a fellow Knight, has turned his back on Haile and has given himself to Deminion. He has accepted evil and wants to consume these lands. Cranos, Haile needs help! Are you a warrior? Are you able to fight? Can you ride to Haile with me and help me save my people? Or are you going to do what you did all those years ago and run like a coward? You speak of us being cut from the same cloth, well if that is true, then in the morning you and your finest men will ride with me to help defend Haile! You will ride with me to defeat the evil army that has consumed my city, and you will help me save my people!” Tears welled up in Benni’s eyes. He needed someone to help him, and the muscular brute sitting before him claiming to be his father was his best bet. Benni didn’t know where else to go, and he didn’t know who else to turn to. He had put all of his faith in Cranos, and hoped his gamble would pay off.
Cranos looked at Benni for a long while and then back at Fairen who was shaking at Benni’s outburst, his eyes flooded with tears. Cranos could see the deep connection that had formed between the two in the past years and it moved him. He leaned forward. “You know, son, that’s a mean left hook you’ve got. Where did you learn that?”
“I learned it from my father, Nicholas Wakewood. He’s ten times the man you’ll ever be, and if you two ever squared off again, he’d knock you out in five seconds
!”
“With a punch like that, I’m sure he would.” Cranos turned to the men that had gathered around them and said, “Well, men, what do you say? Who’s up for a little bloodshed?”
The entirety of the camp roared with glee at the thought of a real fight, and they all sounded off in approval.
“Well, there you have it, son,” he declared. “My men and I will ride with you at dawn!” He stood up, raising his arms. “But first, let us feast!” The camp again resounded in approval and all manner of festivities, drinking, eating, and chatting began. A second stag was put on the spit for later on and the original was removed, cut up, and distributed to each member of the camp. Everyone ate and drank to their heart’s content. Benni and Fairen embraced and talked, smiling for the first time since leaving Haile.
“We will save our people and our family,” Benni said to Fairen, who nodded in approval as he took a big bite of food and washed it down with a swig of milk. The two continued to chat about how well things would go tomorrow and how everyone would be safe. Fairen hadn’t caught on that Benni was trying to mask the fact that many of their people had already been killed. It relieved Benni to know this and kept him focused on his overwhelming task at hand, to save Haile from Razzius and his army.
“Benni, come with me!” Cranos commanded as he approached the two boys.
This time Benni didn’t argue, he had gotten Cranos to agree to help, and thought it best to oblige the bandit leader. The two walked for a while until they were far enough away from the group to not be heard.
Cranos turned to Benni. “So, tell me, son, what are we up against? Has Embrydge sent its hunter’s guild to rattle Mayor Flint’s drawers, or has a mysterious army come from the West?” he asked sarcastically.
“Cranos, this army is unlike anything I have ever seen before. I watched Nicholas bash them to bits, only to witness them re-form before my very eyes. I can guarantee you that you have never faced an enemy like this. They take all sorts of forms from larger brutes to smaller more agile ones. It is best that you prepare your men well!”
The Trinity of Heroes (I Will Protect You Book 1) Page 30