Midas stayed in the carriage for a while, his hip aching from carrying the limp bodies of the knights out onto the field. Midas watched the sky clear slowly—the rain had stopped a short while ago—as his fingers traced along the vine that held up his skin again.
The water that fell down on him had somewhat washed away the blood; his trousers drained almost completely as he sat on the bench, slightly leaning forward as he looked down at his hands, his fingers interlocked. Midas eventually left the carriage; the sooner they left, the better. The youth had no idea who would come up with the idea of carting orphans out from the woods; having to fight someone capable of convincing multiple knights to aid them wasn't something he wished to risk.
Having entered the shack, his presence interrupted the meal—his own portion of stew already wasted to blind one of the knights. Scanning their glances briefly, Midas turned to his stained blue poncho—dry enough for him to put on. Some of the children that sat in a crescent-like shape hid behind the elderly woman, scared of him. Javelin emptily stared at the charred wood, losing himself in the faint light of the leftover embers, not eating much of his soup.
"Forgive me for having wasted some of your food…"
Midas managed to say, not having thought about how costly making enough to eat for the six of them would be—simply using anything he could find to sort out his problems. Not waiting for the elderly lady to reply, Midas sat on the opposite side to Javelin—both of them staring quietly down onto the charcoals. Uteli eventually got up, her expression dim as she crouched down beside Midas, handing him her portion, only half of it eaten.
"Thank you for doing something I wasn't able to…"
Midas found himself somewhat startled, accepting her gift. Looking up to her, he noticed her placing herself on the floor instead of disappearing into the corner again, able to speak the water kingdom language with a somewhat noticeable accent. Tasting the lukewarm liquid—more watery than the soup he was served in the university dining hall—the youth glanced over to Javelin, unsure whether he would be able to leave right away.
"The rain stopped a while ago; if you're ready… we can head out."
Javelin put his fur hood over himself, letting his head sink into his arms as he put them over his head—balling up, he cautiously spoke words. The sight of the unsure Javelin made Midas's expression soften. Having no idea how to get through to him, Uteli looked at him with a confused expression as Midas spoke in words she wasn't able to understand. Seeing him not reply to his words, Midas sighed, having planned to arrive on Brutpierda this night.
„Don't forget why we have to endure all of this… We need to go fast."
„We didn't have to endure any of this…! You just had to save her, didn't you…?"
Midas paused with a dimly opened mouth, unable to reply at Javelin snapping back at him. Closing it again, the youth rubbed his shut lids with his fingers, trying to figure out the best way of how to approach someone that had to kill thanks to his choice of saving a girl he barely got to know.
"Is everything alright?"
Midas heard the unsure voice of the elderly lady, and she and Uteli watched somewhat worried as they heard Javelin's heated response—the both of them not speaking the desert tongue. Uteli watched Midas sink his head slightly, her eyes set on his soft frown through her hair strands that fell onto her face.
"We need to get going. I planned on using the carriage that these knights left behind—at least until we arrive in Brutpierda.
"Brutpierda…? Why go there out of all places…?"
"We want to reach the grass kingdom by using the carriage service that starts from there. That's most likely the safest and shortest way of getting to the capital."
Midas turned to Uteli, her eyes widening in slight interest at Midas mentioning the grass kingdom—making him lean back slightly, trying to avoid her stare, somewhat reminding him of Skye. The long-haired girl sat on her knees, staring at him for a while until she eventually bowed her head in front of him. The older woman widened her eyes in surprise, not expecting the gesture.
"Please—let me go with you…"
"Uteli…?"
"Please, I want to see them again… I can't stay here forever—I need to go with you…"
Midas looked down at her, bowing, unsure—he laid his left hand on her shoulder, her long hair cascading down both of them. The touch made her raise her head, intensely watching him as the youth didn't see any reason not to bring her with him—the carriage providing enough space for much more than four people.
"You can come, if you really want to leave… It might be for the better—this way, you won't end up being taken away by these knights."
Midas softened his brows at her flat smile, satisfied with at least saving one of the children from potentially facing the same fate as Skye—even though the youth couldn't tell for sure what they truly planned on doing to her. Briefly glancing back at the lady that owned the hut, Midas watched her sigh, seemingly not opposed to the idea of helping her to see 'them' again. The implication the woman made, before they were disrupted by the knights, made it clear to him that they most likely were her family, making him wonder why she was left by them in the first place.
"About the corpses... let me take care of them. I still owe you that favor for bringing her back and saving us from these thieves that call themselves knights. Before you go, though... let me give Uteli something; I'm sure she will be needing it much more than me."
Her calm tone puzzled Midas somewhat, even making Javelin glance up from his crossed arms, as he hadn't moved an inch from his original seat at the unlit fireplace. The three of them watched intently as the elderly lady opened a crate that sat on the other end of the elongated shack, seeing her retrieve an old axe from the wooden box—her eyes wrinkling slightly at the sight of the somewhat oxidized blade.
Uteli looked onto the axe with wide eyes, her mouth slightly opened as she inspected her dated weapon—her excitement easily noticeable as she traced along the heavy metal head of the axe with her finger. Midas quietly moved his head as he glanced at Javelin, the motion making it clear he should get up—something he reluctantly did as neither of them had much time to spare.
"This was the axe of my husband; he forgot to take it with him the day he set off—I didn't check if he brought it with him or not; I assumed he did because he always had... Now it just lies here, unused... An old lady like me can't do much with these heavy tools, so I will be giving it to you as a farewell gift..."
Uteli glanced up from admiring her present, her lower lip trembling as her softened brows suggested she currently held back tears from hearing the elderly woman's words—letting the axe rest against the wall of the cabin as she gave the woman a tight hug to say her goodbyes. Midas formally thanked the woman clothed in green for providing him with treatment, shelter, and food—making haste to the carriage.
"Do any of you know how to handle a Fahin...? I sure don't..."
Midas asked the two of them as they looked around inside the carriage; the cloth spun over their heads was striped in white and light blue—the wooden beams supported by additional iron that wrapped around them, making sure the parts stuck together properly. Not covered in any other metal ornaments like the royal carriage that belonged to the general they crossed at the bridge.
"That's a Fahin...?"
"Yes, they were bred exclusively to tuck onto carriages—perfect for crossing long distances or carrying heavy goods with you. This Fahin here is built much more broadly than the ones you would see in their natural habitat..."
Midas gave an explanation to Uteli as she hung out from the inside, peeking forward from the carriage as she looked down onto the youth. The Fawn moved his head up from the floor it grazed on, its fur drenched from the rain as it was forced to endure it—its leash bound onto the tree next to it. Letting his hand glide over its fur, Midas watched into the almost perfectly circular shape of its eye, careful not to get too close to it.
"Midas, I found this under the bench... can you read it? It looks important..."
Javelin's almost concerned tone made the youth's attention shift away from the beast, reaching up to the folded paper the hooded boy handed him. The text of the paper was printed with the same precision as the ones they were handed out at the university—describing instructions to bring exactly four children in relatively healthy condition to Brutpierda. The handwriting was much more elegant than the one Midas was used to seeing in his books.
"This clearly belonged to these knights; they were given orders to bring children like Uteli to Brutpierda. It wouldn't surprise me if some nobility were behind all of this... The paper doesn't say to explicitly take girls or boys—just those in a healthy condition."
"We should abandon this carriage once we get to Brutpierda, then... unless you want to head for the plant kingdom right away—this way we might save us the fee we have to pay to use the carriage service."
Having freed the Fahin from the tree trunk, Midas climbed into the carriage from behind, seating himself at the front of the ride as he walked past Uteli and Javelin—the both of them looking at the youth as they wondered about his success in getting the beast going. Grasping the leather leash that was connected to the straps around the Fahin, Midas flicked his wrist, a whip noise toned from the leash, making the Fahin groan slightly as it began moving forward.
"Why don't we find someone to sell this carriage to...? I'm sure the money we get from this ride and the Fahin will be more than enough to finance our trip towards the plant kingdom capital..."