Chapter 13

Chapter 13: Flooded

****THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS 18+ CONTENT. LANGUAGE, VIOLENCE, BLOOD, GORE. VIEWERS DISCRETION ADVISED****

“What’s the matter, Lassie? Yer man run off and leave ye to defend yer self? Not much of a man now, is he? How bout ye let me show ye what a real man can do for his woman?”

The Nomad that Skye assumed was their leader sneered as he spoke. He was ridiculously tall, and quite honestly reminded her of a bear. Despite it, Skye was calm. She had a smile on her face, but her eyes were cold. The leader stepped closer, making Skye’s smile widen. Mistaking it for compliance, he took another step towards her.

“Tsk, tsk, tsk.. Ye shouldn’t talk about Prince Tidas that way. It’ll bring the king’s wrath down upon ye.. And mine,” Skye replied chidingly.

All but one of the Nomad’s faces perked up at Skye’s words. For a prince would make a good ransom. They traded looks before the leader turns back to Skye and said, “Oh.. A Prince, is he? Well, that changes everything..”

“We were just gonna kill him and play with ye for a wee bit. But if he has value, then maybe we can be convinced to keep him alive. If ye can keep us entertained tonight... Now, where is he, woman?” the man asked with an evil smile.

‘That’s right, ye stupid man-bear; keep runnin’ yer mouth..’ Skye thought to herself.

.....

“Around... Yer pals there bloodied him up fairly well. Can’t just hand him to ye without getting something out of it for me self,” Skye replied, hoping he would take the bait.

“Oh, don’t ye worry yer pretty lil’ head, Lassie. We’re All gonna give ye somethin’ for yer troubles..” the leader replied; accompanied by agreements from his men.

Skye felt a wee bit of bile touch the back of her throat. ‘Why do men think that they are the gods’ gift to womenkind?! More like a bloody curse..’ Skye thought repugnantly.

“Now come on, darlin’... Where is he? If ye be a good lil’ girl, we won’t kill ye once we’re done with our fun,” the man stated, getting another round of approval from most of his men.

“Ima not that kind of woman, so Ima afraid Ima gonna have to decline ye..” Skye replied with snark.

The leader barked his laughter, as did his men. The lass must’ve had a screw loose, or so they thought. But their amusement soon died as icy water swelled around their ankles, and up to their knees. Shock, then fear surged in them as they tried to lift their feet to get out of the water.. But their feet stayed in place.. Trapped by the water somehow.

Skye had been pulling the water from the stream to herself from the moment she stepped into it. She had blocked it from going past her down the tiny hill, so the men wouldn’t realize she had an endless source. The tiny stream connected to the small river that fed the loch and moat at home. When the water became too difficult to hold back, she’d decided to change tactics; holding them in place instead currents.

Realization dawned in their eyes as they looked over to the beautiful woman. It had been her! She’d killed their man before, not the prince. They figured that he was a Tanker. That the woman had only served as a distraction while the man did the killing.

“Oh? Did ye Finally figure it out?” Skye asked the men with a wicked grin.

“What the Hell are ye doin’ woman! Release me NOW!” the leader screamed as he swiped at the water; his hand going through it like normal.

“What’s wrong, laddie? Feel like a fish on a hook? Well don’t ye worry.. Ima no fan of fish,” Skye raised her arms up slowly as she’d spoken.

A loud crashing sound caused the five grown men to shiver like scared children. A massive wall of water could be seen building behind the woman. She pulled wave after wave; building up a massive one behind her. One slip with her concentration would kill her and Tidas along with the men.

The pressure felt like it was crushing her, but Skye held her ground. They were going to kill Tidas, rape her, and then most likely kill her themselves. Or at the very least, leave her for dead. Skye thought about how many innocent people that must’ve suffered at the hands of these men.. She didn’t want to kill them, but she’d rather do that then let more innocent people be hurt, or killed, due to her inactions. Her soul couldn’t bare that.

“I Catch and Release!” Skye yelled as she lowered her arm definitively.

The mountain of water parted and rushed around her, sweeping the men up, and trapping them in a swirling vortex shaped like a sphere. Two exhaled as the icy water surrounded them. The other two: the leader, and a man who looked to be about her age; still held their breaths. They swirled about in the torrent Skye had created within the bubbles.

The man Skye had marked as their leader looked angry. He tried to swim against the currents she was making, but she would just flip him whenever he got too close to the edge. He smacked against one of his dead comrades, loosing some of his air. As much as Skye didn’t want to admit it, she was quite satisfied with herself.

She’d barely been able to keep up with her training thanks to Peggy constantly trying to limit her riding. Skye always had to be sure to be far enough away from the castle, so no one would discover her. It had never occurred to her to come to the hollow. But the memories of her time with Tidas would’ve been too distracting to train, anyways..

‘Speaking of distractions, what the hell is that man doing?’ Skye thought as she watched the young man spin around while curled in a ball. He was holding something in his hands, and staring at it with fear in his eyes. If it wasn’t for the water, Skye would’ve sworn he was crying.

Taking a few steps closer to get a better look; Skye approached the bubble with caution. She kept her mind focused on the rotation of the water. Making it hard to focus, and process what the man was holding. When she finally saw: her heart dropped. Skye immediately flung the young man from the bubble, making him crash to the ground with a squishy thud.

The man rolled onto his back, gasping for air. He still held the object in his hands like his life depended on it. Skye looked down at the man as she placed her foot on his chest near his neck. She reached down and took the item from his hand, gasping slightly as she confirmed her theory. It was a small hand carving of a woman and child.

Skye’s anger flared as she stared daggers at the man. He clearly had feelings for these people. ‘His wife and child maybe?’ He looked to be Skye and Tidas’ age, so it was a high possibility.

‘But if he loves his family so much, then why would he want to rape and kill? He had laughed with the others before, when their leader had discussed his plans for me.. Why would a horrible person like a rapist give two shits about his family at the end, when he clearly didn’t care about them before?!’ Skye’s thoughts began to rile her ire.

Suddenly; there was a loud crashing noise as the bubble containing the other nomads burst. Skye had allowed her train of thought to break her connection to the water. The other two were dead, but the leader shuddered and puked up the water that had been only seconds away from ending him. His face was bright red, and his veins bulged as he looked murderously at Skye.

“Oh shit!” Skye said in her realization.

She looked to the water, but didn’t have time or clarity to focus her power. The nomad had seen her panic and was now staggering towards her. Skye looked about for a weapon... ‘A weapon! Tidas’ sword!’

Without another thought; Skye ran over to where Tidas’s sword was. She grabbed it, but the man was too close for her to take the sheath off. The look on his face had made it clear to Skye that her death was not going to be quick if he got ahold of her.

“Get over here ye lil’ bitch! Ima gonna ring the life outta yer scrawny fucking neck!” the man bellowed as he reached for Skye.

Skye cranked the sword back and swung at him with all her might. It hit the Nomad in the side of his head; making his ears ring and knocking him onto his side. She tried to withdraw Tidas’ sword, but it was stuck due to being soaked. She fought with it a moment until she felt someone grab her hair and yank her backwards, knocking the wind out of her as she slammed down onto the muddy ground.

Skye glared at the Nomad with a mix of fear and rage as she tried to stand back up. He snarled at her before slapping her across her face, sending the lass rolling back into the mud. He quickly straddled her; pinning her down. Skye screamed and kicked, but the man applied pressure with his weight; knocking the wind out of her again.

“Now, ye lil’ bitch.. Time to teach ye some manners,” the Nomad slapped Skye again, causing her ears to ring.

The man stared at the top of Skye’s breasts a moment before reaching down, and running his fingers over them. Skye cringed at his touch. She was strong, but she didn’t know if she was strong enough to bare being raped. Panic fought her for control as her mind did it’s best to grasp her options.

The man chortled at Skye’s fear as he caught his breath. The bitch had nearly drowned him, and he was going to make her suffer for it. He was going to beat her until she told him where the little prince was, then he was going to use every inch of her while he made her prince watch..

As the Nomad reached his arm up to strike Skye again, she squeezed her eyes shut. She waited for the stinging pain, but it never came. Instead, Skye felt him jerk slightly, then his body tense. She slowly opened her eyes to see the point of a sword sticking out of his chest, him arm still in the air..