The snow crunched under her boot as she pulled her hood further forward in an attempt to ward off the worst of the cold winds. Winter had been mild until recently but as she arrived in town a storm of ice and snow had encased the land in a thick blanket. Travel had been made impossible and Talaetha had been forced to wait it out much to her annoyance. Finally after almost a week of waiting the snow had receeded enough for her to begin her journey home.
"Finally leaving us are you?" A gruff voice called from behind her.
"The weathers turning, now is as good a time as any" she replied without turning around. She knew the voice of the local innkeeper quite well. He'd been her only real source of company for the last week, drinking at his bar each night as she waited for her chance to return home.
"Well it'll be a shame to see you go, make sure to return some time" he said kindly before retreating inside.
Talaetha checked her wagon once more, making sure everything was secure and the horses were harnessed properly. The last thing she wanted was to have a problem on the road. The waggon was filled with weapons and armour. Old rusted pieces unfit for combat that had been discarded or sold for a small fraction of their original value. She had travelled to four towns in total, collecting the various pieces as she went. Some she had bought for a good price and others had been given to her free of charge, the owners no longer having any use for them but most had wanted a small sum for their scraps even if they hadn't asked for much. To anyone untrained it looked like she was hauling a waggon of rubbish around but to those who knew, there was fine steel in that waggon. Ready to be melted down and forged anew into dangerous weapons.
The sight of all the metal made her long for home. Whilst she had little skill as a blacksmith her husband could craft the finest swords and axes of anyone she knew. Her hand fell to her side and lovingly gripped the handle of the rapier attached to her belt. She thought back to the countless nights her husband had spent at his forge, secretly working away and refusing to let her in. At the time she had no clue what he was up to until months later he emerged one night with a large smile on his face. He had approached her with his hands behind his back before presenting her with the blade. It was a beautiful blade, perfectly balanced and masterfully crafted which had surprised her greatly. Her husband specialised in broadswords and heavier weaponry but he had spent months learning, practicing and reforging this one blade over and over until he got it perfect just for her.
She smiled at the memory and climbed onto the waggon, more determined than before to get home whilst the weather allowed. With a click of her tongue the horses sprang to life, effortlessly pulling the heavy load behind them. She guided them along the winding main road through the middle of the town until they reached the gate. A guard quickly checked her out before letting her through, they were more worried about who was entering the town than leaving. Once the gate slammed shut behind her she picked up the pace, balancing the desire to go quickly with her concern for the horses on the frozen road. She estimated it would take four days to reach home providing the weather held, if it snowed again she was unsure what she would do.
The first two days were quiet and uneventful, she met one or two people along the road but none stopped to talk. Everyone shared her concerns about the weather and just wanted to get where they were going as soon as possible. Getting stuck out in the open with no shelter would mean certain death for anyone unprepared. It was on the third day when things took a turn for the worst but it wasn't the weather that caused the problem.
Talaetha laid across the wagon and rested her aching back, trusting the horses to follow the straight road whilst she took a short break from guiding them. She sat up sharply when she felt the horses suddenly stop, her hand already gripping the handle of her blade. Looking to see what had caused the animals to halt she was surprised to see two men blocking their path. She instantly knew they were trouble. Their light leather armour provided little protection against the elements, they couldn't survive travelling in such outfits so she knew they had to have warmer clothes nearby. That meant only one thing, they were expecting combat and were wanting the freedom of movement. She locked eyes with each of them in turn, waiting to see who would make the first move.
"She looks fierce, reckon we've upset her" one sniggered to the other.
"Don't worry darling we aren't going to hurt you" the other called out. "Well, as long as you give us what we want!"
She wasn't sure whether they were referring to her or her supplies with the way they were leering at her. She decided not to take the chance to find out. In one swift movement she kept from the top of the wagon, discarding her heavy robe in the process and landing gracefully on the ground. She drew her blade and charged at the men who were too stunned by her sudden display of aggression, and the fact she too was wearing her own armour, to react quickly.
Her blade whistled as it cut through the air, quickly finding the first mans forearm as he threw it up to protect his head. It cut through flesh and muscle with ease, almost slicing through the bone. The man instantly fell to the floor clutching his nearly severed arm. Talaetha knew he would no longer be a threat and quickly turned on the second man. He had already drawn his blade but was distracted by the sight of his friend wounded on the ground. She took her opportunity and struck fast.
She swung hard at the man, slicing directly at his neck. To her surprise he threw up his blade just in time to deflect the strike. She carried her momentum and danced behind him, striking low this time at his legs. Again his blade blocked her blow but the sudden turn and low angle left him dangerously exposed. Not wasting a second she delivered a third strike aiming at the mans shoulder. He was still recovering his balance, making him too slow to block the strike which landed cleanly, carving flesh and bone and slicing through the artery in his neck. He fell to the floor as blood poured out of the wound. Despite his efforts to stem the flow he quickly bled out, staining the frozen road red.
Turning her attention back to the other man she grimaced. She never liked killing but found it easier in the heat of battle. She believed killing a man who was defenceless to be distasteful. Looking down at the pale panicked face of her attacker she knew she had no choice. Leaving him would be a crueler fate, if he didn't die of his wounds first he would not survive long being exposed and injured in the elements. But Talaetha was not cruel so she steeled herself and walked over to the man. His eyes were glazed, his body in shock from the large gash in his arm. Without saying a word she ran her blade through his chest, piercing his heart and killing him almost instantly.
The earth was too frozen and hard for her to dig graves so she dragged the men off the road a ways, somewhere where no one would find them until the snows melted completely. She then spent the next two hours searching the nearby fields and woods until she found the men's camp. Two horses were tied to a tree each carrying the men's supplies. She gave them a quick search finding a few bags of coins, food and thick robes. She couldn't help but smile at the irony of two bandits attacking her actually making her a profit. She untied the horses and led them to her wagon. She rode one whilst holding the reins of the other as her own followed dutifully behind pulling the wagon.
After a couple of hours the sun began to set forcing her to stop and camp for the night. She knew she wasn't far from home now, less than a days ride. Most people would be too on edge after the days events but Talaetha fell quickly to sleep. She had trained in combat all her life, as a child she would fight with the boys of her village much to her fathers amusement. It was he who had given her her first blade. He had been a guard and knew how to fight, he taught her every night, even when he had been working all day he still made the effort. She was thankful that he had or she may not have survived today.
Not would she have met her husband who had hired her as a mercenary to guard his shipment. She dreamt of that day as she slept. She remembered how she had arrived in a small town looking for work. After her father had been killed she had no one else to turn to and travelled, loaning out her skills to anyone who would pay. He had approached her in the tavern asking her to protect his wagon. Apparently bandits had been seen on the road outside town and he was concerned. Thinking back she was unsure if that was just an excuse to buy her company for the journey but she didn't mind either way. She had met the man she loved and now she travelled whilst he worked. It was safer for her to go to purchase the metal and someone had to stay home and look after their son.
She awoke the next morning feeling giddy with excitement. She had been away from home too long and had to get back. Skipping breakfast she fed the horses as she readied herself for the rest of the trip before getting back on the road. Each bump in the road no longer caused discomfort but excitement as she neared home. Before long the first signs of smoke from the buildings began to drift on the horizon. She hurried the horses and soon she could see the walls of the town and the gate that stood as the barrier between the outside world and home.
She arrived at the gate expecting to be greeted by guards but no one came. She dismounted and trudged over thumping hard on the gate but getting no response. She began to worry, there were always guards at the gate. Where were they she wondered to herself. Just as she began to panic that something horrible had happened the gate began to open. A lonely guard walked out with his hand on his weapon. He marched over to Talaetha before visibly relaxing when he saw it was her. She smiled at him, it was her friend Tom who often was on gate duty and he waved her inside. She climbed on her horse and led the wagon through the gate as it closed behind her.
"Stop falling asleep on the job or you'll end up emptying the guards outhouse for a month" she yelled over her shoulder teasing him as she went. He yelled some retort but she couldn't hear him as she hurried down the streets of the town until she could see her home. Her heart skipped a beat with excitement as she saw her husband standing on the step holding their son in his arms. She lept off her horse without even bothering to tie it up and rushed over. He scooped her up in one strong arm as she hugged him and kissed her child's head.
"How do you always know I'm going to be home?" She asked. "Everytime I come back even when I'm delayed you're there stood on the step."
"What can I say, I just know" he shrugged in reply, neglecting to mention he stood there every spare moment of every day she was gone waiting for her return.
