by Paula Mabbel
She sighed as she realized she had no choice but to go out and look. She had to at least try and find another solution to their problem without it being a lifetime of unhappiness for her. She pulled on a thick robe and walked back out into the night. It had darkened even more since she had been out and not even the embers were helping to light her way. The night’s sky was clouded over and the moon was hidden away.
She looked back over to where she knew her father’s tent was and then she walked out into the openness of the night. The clan hadn’t been in the area long, but Abi had already taken a long walk of the surrounding area, so that she would know the ground for when the time came. She picked her way through the darkness without too much of a problem and headed in no direction in particular.
She could already feel her back starting to ache as it cried out for sleep, but she told it that there would be plenty of time for that once the war was over and won. She could still hear the woman’s voice in her mind and she let it lead her path, as she padded softly through the grass and broken branches of the trees.
She stopped when she heard a branch break. The noise rang out into the otherwise silent night and seemed to echo around her. The sound had been close, but she hadn’t been able to tell whether it had been from a person or animal. She stood perfectly still as she listened out into the night. Her eyes were no good; it was too dark even after they’d had time to adjust.
“Is someone there?” She called out when no further noise followed. No one replied and she started to walk slowly in the direction of where the noise had come from. She could feel her ears staying alert to even the slightest of sounds that didn’t belong to her, and she breathed deeply to make sure that any foreign smells wouldn’t pass her by.
There was nothing though. She walked to where she was sure she had heard the noise come from and there was nothing there at all. She turned and started to walk back in the direction from which she had come, and she stopped when another branch broke under foot. “Is somebody there?” She called out again and she tried to keep the spooked feeling out of her tone.
There was no response and she forced herself to put it down to some kind of animal that was obviously sniffing about. She looked up at the sky and noticed a pinkish tone shining through the inky blue. She had been out for longer than she had thought and the dawn was just starting to break through the darkness.
She carried on walking away from the camp, though. The rising sun was only a reminder that her time was short and she knew if she didn’t find the warrior before the day completely broke, then she would have to return and accept her fate. She pushed her legs harder, as they burned with resistance. She needed to cover more ground. She needed to look harder.
She let her eyes dash around the rolling hills and meadows of flowers, as she tried to find the statue. She stopped as the stupidity of her quest finally sank in. She was looking for something that wasn’t real. She believed in it because she wasn’t willing to accept the reality of the situation. She had probably made the old woman up in a dream or something, she told herself as she turned back around and started walking in the direction of her clan’s camp.
She felt defeated and her shoulders hung low, as she retraced the steps that she had taken. She reached the point that had spooked her the night before and she stopped again. She looked at the ground for any signs of footsteps, but there weren’t any. There weren’t any human steps or animals that she could track. She frowned as she noticed the broken branch and then she looked up and couldn’t believe her eyes.
She blinked hard. She was sure that she was going mad. She reached out her hand, half expecting it to go right through, but she felt the resistance of the cold stone. It was the statue. It had to be. It was of a man whose six pack seemed etched in by the gods. He looked brave too with deeply furrowed eyebrows.
She stood back and looked at it. She couldn’t believe that she had found it, but now she had, she realized she didn’t have a clue about how to bring him back to life.
*******
Abi walked all the way around the statue and then stopped at the front. It looked like it had been made out of marble, but she couldn’t deny the lifelike look in his eyes. She ran her hands across the smooth face of the statue and then dropped them to her side. The woman hadn’t told her anything about how to bring him to life, except that he would if her intentions were pure.
Were her intentions not pure? Was that the problem? She screwed her face up with frustration and stared at the statue with all her might. She could feel herself willing it to move, willing it to come to life, but it just stood there looking like a statue. She wondered for a moment whether it had all been some great trick on the woman’s part, but how could she have made the statue appear as it did?
“You will wake up now.” Abi said in a shaky voice. “You need to wake up now.” She tried after the first words hadn’t helped. “Please wake up now?” She practically begged as she sat down at the feet of the statue. She could feel tears forcing their way out of her eyes and down her cheeks and she made no effort to stop the flow.
She was frustrated and angry. She wanted to help her clan in any way that she could, but she didn’t want to lose her own freedom doing it. The first tear fell from her cheek and soared down to the foot of the statue. It was quickly followed by a rainfall of them, as they showed no sign of slowing down.
“You’re getting my foot wet.” A deep voice said from behind her.
She jumped, as she felt something move from underneath her and her head span round to see what it was. She blinked and then she blinked again. The statue had gone and in its place stood a man who shared many of the same features. “I’m sorry.” She sniffled as she tried to catch up with what was happening.
“Don’t worry about it.” He chuckled and then he crouched down, so that he was at her level. “What’s your name?” He asked her when she had finished sniffling and had forced the tears to subside.
“I’m Abi.” She said quickly. “And you’re the stone broken warrior?” She asked him.
“Well, I’m at least a broken warrior.” He said with a smile filled with pain.
“I was told about you. I mean, you’re a legend.” Abi stumbled on her words.
“That’s always a nice thing to hear.” He said cockily.
Abi didn’t know what to say. She hadn’t expected to get this far on her quest. She hadn’t put any thought at all into what she would do if the legend had turned out to be true. “I came to you for help.” She settled on finally.
“Help with what?” He asked her curiously.
“The legend says that if you heart is true, then you’d wake up and you’d help me with my clan.” She said. “We’re going to war and we have no chance of winning without you.” She explained.
“Have you not the help of other clans?” He asked her with a look of pity.
“We have the help of one, but under the condition that I marry him.” She said bitterly.
“Then you should marry that man, so that your clan will succeed.” The broken warrior said sternly.
“How can I ever rule a free clan if I have imprisoned myself?” Abi asked him. “How can I expect my people to be free when my own heart cannot? My clan was built on the freedom for people to choose what they wanted from life. What example do I set if I chain myself down?”
“You are against the marriage then?” He asked her thoughtfully.
“I am against the marriage only whilst there is hope of help elsewhere. If you chose to not to help me then I have no choice. I must ensure the lives of my people, even at the cost of my own life.” She said.
“That is a very noble thing to do.” He said and then paused. “I will help you.” He said with a small nod.
“You will help?” Abi asked him with excitement in her voice.
“If you speak the truth then I was always destined to help you, otherwise I would have never of broken out of my stone prison.” The warrior said simply.
“Can I ask what you
r real name is?” Abi said, as she stood up and brushed off the dirt that had settled across her dark blue cotton dress.
“Gregory.” He replied without any hesitation.
“Is it true that you never lost a man in battle?” She asked him with curious eyes.
“Until the last battle, yes.” He said and then his eyes seemed to go foggy, as his voice grew distant.
Abi could tell from the flashes of pain in his eyes that he was reliving the last moments of his final battle. “I’m sorry that your wife betrayed you.” She said tenderly.
“As am I.” Gregory said with a wince. “That doesn’t matter anymore though. I am sure she is long gone if I have become but a legend.” He said as he turned his face up to the sky that had started to turn light blue.
“We need to hurry back.” Abi said as she realized that the camp would already be awake by now.
“Just show me the way.” Gregory said with a smile and a small bow.
Abi nodded curtly and turned in the direction of the camp and started to walk. “Do you think that you will be enough to lead us into victory?” She asked him, as they walked over the long fields that stood between them and the campsite.
“I know that for you, bonnie lass, I will try.” He said with a warm smile, which reassured Abi’s heart that she was doing the right thing.
*******
Abi and Gregory walked for some time in silence. Abi was unsure about how she should break it. She didn’t want to seem intrusive, but all her mind was offering her were questions. She stopped when she realized that Gregory had a few footsteps behind her and she turned to look at him.
“Is everything alright?” She asked him as she took in his worried expression.
“I’m sure everything is fine.” He said with a stiff nod. “I sense people are close though.” He said as his eyes scanned the horizon.
“How can you be sure?” She asked him quietly.
“I just know these things.” He said and then he turned his head quickly behind them and looked into a gathering of trees. “I’ll be right back.” He said and then he walked over to the trees slowly and disappeared among them.
Abi stood watching for a moment, before she turned her attention back to the horizon. She frowned as she noticed something moving along it. It looked as though it was getting closer to her and she watched it with curiosity. It wasn’t long until she realized that it was two men who were walking across the fields towards her. She thought about calling out for Gregory, who still hadn’t appeared from the trees, but there were only two of them and she was sure that she could handle the situation.
She took a deep breath as they got closer and then she called out into the space between them. “What are ya doing here?” She said with a steady voice.
“Are you Abi?” The one with dark hair asked.
“Aye.” She said with a curt nod. “What is it to you?”
“We heard that you were trying to free the broken warrior.” The dark haired one spoke again. “We can offer you and your clan immunity from the battle if you hand him over to us.” He said with a serious look on his face.
“What will ya do with him once you have him?” Abi asked him with suspicion.
“That’s not your worry, lass.” The dark haired one said quickly.
“I think you’ll find it is.” Abi said defiantly.
“What does it matter to you? Your clan will be safe.” The dark haired one said with steady face, but Abi could see the layers of frustration working their up to the surface.
“You know what? I could have saved my clan by marrying a man I didn’t love, but I didn’t. If I wasn’t willing to give away my freedom what makes you suppose that I’ll give up his?” Abi said with a sneer.
“You’ll regret it if you don’t.” The dark haired one warned her.
“Aye, and I’ll regret it if I do. So, I guess I’m not winning that battle any time soon.” She said with a casual shrug.
A rustle of leaves sounded from beyond where her eyes could see and she flicked them over to find the source. It was Gregory working his way out of the trees. “Ya heard the lass.” He said in a deep, booming voice that seemed to fill all the stillness around them. “Now get gone.” He said firmly.
The two men looked nervously at each other and then started to walk quickly back in the direction from, which they had come. Abi waited until they were out of earshot, before she spoke. “They wanted me to hand you over.” She said, as her eyes darted between their fading figures and Gregory.
“I know.” He said.
“How?” She asked him.
“I heard everything.” He said simply. “I was going to come out and protect you, but then I heard their offer and I needed to know what you chose to do. I needed to know whether I could trust you.” He said and his eyes burned intensely.
“And can you?” She asked him.
“Aye.” He said with a quick nod.
“I’m glad.” Abi said as the left corner of her mouth lifted up into a smile.
They didn’t have much distance to travel back to the camp, but Abi picked up her pace even still. The morning had stretched on and she knew that her father would be growing worried about her absence. She forced her legs to move quicker, as she dashed ahead of Gregory.
“What’s the hurry?” He asked her as he widened his stride to keep up with her.
“My father will be worrying about where I am.” Abi said as she stood on the top of one of the peaks and looked down at the small plume of smoke that was coming from the fire at her campsite. “It’s just over there.” She said pointing to the smoke.
“I see it.” He said with a nod. “You have a good sized clan.” He said with an approving look.
“We do.” Abi said. “It’s just a shame that this war is bigger.” She said in a hushed voice. “Come on, we need to get down there.” She finished as she started to make her way down to the settlement. She could feel her feet moving quickly beneath her as they tried to keep up with how fast she really wanted to go.
She came to a stop just around the back of her tent and she waited for Gregory to catch up. She peered around the corner and saw that a wedding arch had already been built and was standing close to the fire. She scowled at it, before turning back to see whether Gregory had made it to her yet. “We need to speak to my father.” She said quietly, as she gestured for Gregory to follow her.
“Do you think he will listen?” Gregory asked as he followed her direction.
“I hope so.” She said wistfully as she came to a stop behind her father’s tent.
******
Abi made her way around the tent and opened up the doors slowly. “Father?” She called out.
“Abi, where have you been?” Her father said with a voice full of relief.
“I went on a quest to save our clan.” Abi said as she walked into the tent and gestured for Gregory to do the same. She could hear his quiet footsteps push against the damp earth beneath his feet, but she didn’t turn to look at him.
“I’m going to need you to explain this to me.” Her father said with eyes full of confusion. He looked at Gregory and then back to Abi, as he waited for one of an explanation.
“Have you heard about the legend of the broken warrior?” Abi asked him hopefully. She didn’t want to have to waste any time explaining the story to him.
“I have.” Her father nodded quickly.
“Well, I found him.” Abi said and then she glanced at Gregory and smiled. “And he has agreed to help our clan in the coming battle.” She said as she turned her gaze back to her father.
“You can’t have.” He said and shook his head. “He’s just a legend.”
“All stories start from something real.” Abi said.
Her father frowned and looked at Gregory. “Is this true?” He asked.
“Aye.” Gregory said with a quick nod. “Except I’ll only fight under one condition.” He added.
Abi turned to him with a frown on her face. He had never mention
ed any conditions to her and she couldn’t help but bite her lip in anxiety as she waited for him to explain.
“What is this condition?” Her father asked Gregory curiously.
“Ya don’t make this here lass marry someone she don’t want to.” He said as he gestured to Abi. “I will fight with your clan and we will win, but only if you allow her to follow her heart.”
“Can you assure me that you are enough to enable our clan to win?” Her father asked him with a look of disbelief on his face.
“Aye, I never lost a man until my final battle.” Gregory replied.
Abi noticed the same flinch of pain on his face, as the old memories resurfaced in his mind. She felt a sudden urge to reach out and stroke his face. She wanted to mend what had been broken inside of him. She wanted to make him feel better and whole again, but she kept her hands by her side.
“Then your condition will be met.” Her father said with a curt nod. He looked at Abi. “You better be right about him.” He said and then he smiled warmly. “I knew you hadn’t abandoned us.” He added.
“I would never abandon my people.” Abi said fiercely.
“We need to tell Alistair about the change in arrangements.” Her father said after a moment of thought. “I’ll go out and fetch him, you two wait here.” He said and then he quickly headed out of the tent.
“You sounded sure that you can win.” Abi said after her father had walked out.
“That’s because I am.” Gregory said with a warm smile.
“But how can you be so sure?” She asked him. There was more to the question, but she was unsure about how to ask without upsetting him.
“Do you mean because my heart is still broken?” Gregory asked with a faint. “You don’t need to worry about watching your words around me lass. I’m stronger than you think.”
“Well, I guess so, yes. I mean you lost your last battle because of it. How can you be so sure that you will win this one?” She asked with her eyes fixed onto his.
“My last battle was lost because I had nothing to fight for.” Gregory explained. “That is not the case today.”
Abi wondered what he was referring to, but she didn’t ask him. Before she had a chance to speak footsteps from behind the tent curtain filled the silence and she realized that her father was back. She turned to face the doorway and watched as he and Alistair walked into the tent.