Rook awoke to find himself strapped to a horse that was galloping fast. He looked around, disoriented. He saw Flint ahead of him, Tucker riding to his rear, and Tonk at his side. Around them the rest of the men were riding hard. The hooves hitting the ground was like thunder.
He remembered what had happened before he passed out and put his hand to his stomach. The instant he touched it he felt a searing pain but he noticed that it was bandaged up.
"Sir? You're awake? Damn, you certainly are hard to kill," Rook heard Tonk's voice over the hoof beats.
"I try my best soldier. Now can you explain what is going on?" Rook replied.
"Oh, yeah sure. Uhh . . . after you killed Dannison we got you out and to Yorick as fast as we could. After he patched you up best he could we raided the stables and now we are here, moving as fast as we can,"
"Alright, thanks," Rook said as he pressed his horse harder so he could catch up to Flint.
Before he reached him Grim rode up next to him. He pointed behind him. Rook looked back. The city of Fellburrow wasn't very far. They couldn't have been riding for very long. Grim held out his hand and put up three fingers. He had a huge smile on his face. He began pulling his fingers in, one at a time. Three, two, one . . . Rook heard a large boom and watched as a roof exploded into splinters. A cloud of fire and smoke erupted from the building as the rest of the roof collapsed.
"Haha! Great work!" Rook said to Grim. He had told Grim to sabotage the rebel armoury and munitions. he didn't expect such a show. Grim just kept smiling from ear to ear.
Rook rode forward and met up with Flint. The old man was pushing his steed as hard as it would go.
"You'll kill it if you push any harder," Rook said.
Flint jumped, startled by Rook's voice. He turned to look at him. He sighed, "Thank goodness you survived, I thought . . . well, nothing. Yorick does his job well,"
"That he does, and besides, if I died then you or Tucker would have to deal with the Chancellor," Rook said, jokingly.
"I don't know how you do it," Flint said, laughing.
"Sirs, we have trouble!" Tonk yelled from behind. Rook and Flint spun around to see rebel riders emerging from the city. They were moving fast.
"They are going to overtake us soon. We need to prepare for a fight!" Rook exclaimed.
"Why don't we just go faster? If we match their pace then we will always stay ahead," Tonk asked.
"Because we will kill the horses by the time we reach anywhere safe! At that speed they can reach us but they won't be able to go too far. If we lose our horses then we will get slaughtered," Flint answered.
Tonk nodded in understanding. He broke off to spread the word.
***
It wasn't long before the first barrage of bullets flew towards the fleeing men. Rook could only watch as his men and his men's horses were hit and tumbled to the ground. He pulled out his rifle and turned his body to return fire. He ordered his men do the same. Those confident in their ability to control the horse and fire readied themselves to fire. They unleashed their own bullets back at the enemy and watched as they fell.
That's how it went for a while, Rook and his company exchanging fire with the rebels. His men's superior skill saved them many lives but losing men was inevitable in a battle of this type. Horses provided a much easier target than a man alone. The rebel ranks began to thin out as the battle dragged on. Rook thought that they would run out of ammo before the last man fell.
Rook let a bullet fly. He celebrated inside as he watched a rebel and his horse topple to the ground, sending the man sprawling. He watched Tonk beside him. The boy was a marvellous shot, one of the best in the company. He looked on as he felled another rebel.
"Ha! It seems we are going to win this one y--" Tonk's chest exploded in a cloud of red and he fell limp against his horse. The beast kept going, not realizing its rider had died. Rook watched with hollow eyes as Tonk's body bounced against the horses back, hoping he would get up. He knew it was hopeless. Tonk was gone.
He spun and began firing with a new rage in his heart. He emptied his ammo pouch into the rebels and their steeds, avenging Tonk's death.
When the rebel's numbers began to dwindle they broke off and headed back towards the city. One man charged forward though. He broke into their ranks yelling like a madman.
"You can have this victory you vile dogs! We will be back and your Capital will burn. It will burn you hear ME!" He screamed just before a hail of bullets ripped him apart.
With the last of the rebels out of sight the riders slowed their pace to give the horses a rest. Rook examined the outfit, counting their losses. He wished their had been something he could have done. So many good lives lost in a battle that was beneath their honour. He counted fifteen survivors. They had lost thirteen men in the fight. He hung his head in sorrow.
The remaining soldiers pressed on. Rook wished to reach the Capital by the next morning.
YOU ARE READING
The Hand
Fantasy"It has a firm grip and is attached to a very long arm," - An old saying of soldiers from The Hand. Rook only ever wanted to be a Lawkeeper, but when the rebellion started he quickly became a soldier. Follow him and his men on their adventure to end...
