A few weeks ago the Heirs of Ruin attacked the estate of House Hawthorn in the village of Haynbury.
Before the attack happened Lucren and Savela Hawthorn were sent to safety along with their wounded brother Gallius and a sergeant of the guard Brenorn.
This is what happened to them that day.
((OOC info, Lucren is only 12 years old, Savela 15, Gallius and Brenorn are adults. Gallius is wounded from a fight he had earlier, and has problems with walking because of it.))
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They rode into Caldham on a slow pace, Savela rode on her own horse with Lucren on it's back, Brenorn rode his with Gallius, whose wounds clearly weren't making the ride much easier for him.
Savela glanced over to Brenorn, gesturing with one hand to the village around them. ''Why did Tylan send us here?'' Brenorn looked over to her for a moment, and then turned his eyes back to the road. ''He has some friends here, said we'd be safe with them.''
Savela heard a voice behind her. ''Will they be allright? Tylan, and the rest? what if they lose, they won't lose, will they?'' She sighed slightly. ''I don't know what will happen Luc, we will see when we return.'' ''They'll be fine, did you see how many men came to your brother's aid? there is no way that they'll lose.'' Brenorn noted.
They stopped by a large house at the end of the village, a hooded person, wether man or woman, old or young wasn't certain, approached them. ''Hawthorn?'' the, noticable by his voice, man asked. ''Aye, Savela, Lucren and Gallius Hawthorn, and my name is Brenorn, sergeant of the guard.'' The hooded man nodded, and gestured for them to get of their horses and opened the door for them to enter.
''Thank you for your offer to keep us safe'' Lucren suddenly noted, Savela smiled slightly at her little brother's words, and the hooded man only nodded, she didn't like that one...
Brenorn helped Lucren to carry the wounded brother inside, and Savela followed closely after, trying not to get too close to the hooded man. Inside there were six more men, some with the same hoods as the one that let them in, some without them, and with unshaven dirty beards and mustaches.
One of the men with hair as red as fire approached them, seen his attitude he was the leader of the obtrusive group. ''Welcome, Hawthorn family, to the safety of... -us-'' he gestured around the room.
The door made a 'Click' sound as one of the men suddenly stepped forward with a small key and locked it. ''I'm sure we'll be safe -without- locking ourselves in, noone even knows we are here after all.'' Brenorn noted, frowning from the man with the key to the redhaired one. The last mentioned grinned, a strange allmost insane, evil grin. ''Oh, you were safe, untill you stepped in 'ere.''
Then for a few seconds everything was in chaos. Once it was gone Brenorn was down on the ground, knocked unconciouss by the pommel of someone's sword. Gallius was dragged into a corner, and laying there moaning of the pain in his wounds, old and new, with a frightened Lucren next to him. Savela was thrown against one of the walls, and then thrown into the corner at the opposite side of that where her brothers were after she tried to get away. Her dress was ripped apart at her right shoulder, hanging loose from slightly beneath her armpit, where the man had grabbed her.
The redhaired man only stood there, still grinning. He gestured from his men to the four on the ground. '''well comon, see what they've got on them, they're a well kno'n fami'y, gotta be somethin' of use on 'em!'' The men didn't need any more encouragement and started searching Brenorn and Gallius first, probably because they were the most likely to have money with them. When one of the men reached for Lucren the young Hawthorn tried to push him away, he only recieved a hard punch in the stumach as an answer, and then sat still gagging for air as they searched him.
The men went trough the silver and occasionally gold coins, and a few pieces of jewelry, with a statisfied smile on their face. One of them pointed over to Savela. ''Perhaps she's got som'thin' on 'er too!'' The man approached her and she crawled back as far as she could into the corner, but nonetheless he was at her in a few seconds, roughly ripping a silver necklace from her neck, and a thin golden bracelet from her wrist. He then pointed towards a, with an emerald decorated, elvish looking ring. ''I want tha'one too girl! take i'off or I'll cu' off you' finger.'' Savela quickly took the ring off her finger and offered it to the man with shaking hands and fear in her eyes. The man only grinned at her and seemed to enjoy her fear, untill the ring fell out of her shaking fingers and fell on the ground, rolling away a few meters. The man followed it with his eyes before turning back to Savela angry, pointing at the ring. ''Well go'on, go 'n ge' it! You stupid gir' can't even hol' a ring!'' She quickly crawled over to get it in slight panic, as she felt a kick in the back and she fell over flat on her face, and laughter of the men around her. She could hear how Lucren tried to get up in anger but was thrown back down, while looking at the floor as tears fell from her eyes as she started crying silently. She picked up the ring and turned around, half sitting and half laying down as she held it out to the man, afraid to look in his eyes. He grabbed the ring from her and then picked her up by her arm with one hand, and threw her back in the corner. There she buried her face in her hands and sat huddled, sobbing silently.
Meanwhile Brenorn had woken up and sat against a wall, three men guarding him. They had taken his weapons which were now on the table in the middle of the room. He had been trying his hardest to get them and fight a way out but six of them men had beaten him bloody untill he had to give up. He was now sitting back, breathing in and out heavily as he tried to regain his strength for a bit. He nodded in Lucren and Gallius's direction too see if they were allright. They both slowly shook their heads in an answer, and when Brenorn glanced over to a crying Savela he didn't get much hope from her either. He decided that waiting for what will happen was the best thing to do now.
''Foolish nobles!'' The red haired man spat. ''Di'ye really think that noone'd hear about yout lil' plans? Tha' lord o' yours, Tylan, he had friends in here ye, but we kill'd 'em. They're outside, buried in t'e groun' 'leady!'' He spat, with the same insane grin still on his face.
''I'd rather think you the fool, brigand. Do you really think that noone is going to look for us here? You're all going to die, have my word.'' Gallius suddenly said with a calm, harsh voice. He was still sitting on the floor in the corner, with Lucren next to him.
''O'course your precious family is goi'na look for ya, but they won' get you a'ive if they don' pay no ransom first. Those couple o' coins we go' from ya all aint what we're doin' this fo', it's the big money we wan'! aint I right lads?'' The men let out a harsh, cheerful shout towards their leader's words.
The red haired brigang looked over to the Hawthorn girl in the corner, who was looking up now though still crying and frightened, with a new grin now, one not only evil but also full of lust. ''And meanwil' we can have some foin time with th' lass o'ver there...'' Savela's eyes opened widely in horred and disguist, but also in utter fear as she started muttering. ''No, please, no, don't, -please-'' The insane brigand let out a shout of pain as Lucren kicked him in the leg, he had jumped up in anger as the man threatened his sister. He tried to hit the man over the head with his fist, but he was smacked back down by a third's fist instead. The red haired quickly walked over to Savela, his eyes full of rage now as he pulled her up from the ground and started touching her all over her body, she screamed and stumbled and tried to get herself free but the man was much stronger and only got more angry and rougher. The men stood around the two in half a circle, their backs to the other three prisoners as they started chanting encouragements.
Out of nowhere the hooded man who let them in the door dropped down from the line like a sack of potatoes, a knife sticking from his neck. Brenorn appeared from behind the man and used the moment of confusement to run over to the table and grab his two swords. He first sprinted over to the brigand leader with a controlled rage in his eyes, throwing him off Savela, who fell to the floor weak and sobbing, and threw him back to the wall before cutting of his head in one clean stroke. The other men stood stunned in utter silence for a moment, before they drew their swords and attacked Brenorn all at once, which resulted into chaos as they got in eachother's way ending up wounding eachother while the sergeant fought them off. ''Get out of here you three!'' he shouted. As quick as they could they got to their feet, Lucren supported his older brother as they stumbled on leaving the sounds of pain and steel behind them. Even in her panic and fear Savela managed to get the key from the first-fallen man, and quickly ran over to the door to unlock it. She threw it open and fell out in her haste, rolling down the stairs outside. She got up to her knees slowly as her brothers stumbled down the stairs, once all three of them were down they sat staring at eachother without words.
Once the sounds of fighting dimmed and dissapeared, they glanced up at the doorway, where a heavily bleeding and exhausted Brenorn appeared. He fell down the stairs, his swords clinging as they came down behind him.
''They... dead.'' he sighed with a low voice as they pulled him on his horse with all power that they had left.
They rode back in a slow, sighing, moaning, bleeding and exhausted convoi of two horses, one wounded man, a young beaten-bloody boy, a nearly-raped girl and a dying sergeant.
The fight between Hawthorn and te Heir's men was only just over once they arrived at the family's estate, once Brenorn, Gallius and Lucren who didn't want to leave them, were safely inside Savela went out again. She stepped into the estate's garden with a leather tunic bearing the Hawthorn colours, which she had replaced her ripped apart dress for. She found her brother Tylan and all the men of Hawthorn and those who came to aid them, standing around a kneeled, bleeding from everywhere Morgang, And a hooded woman, also kneeled.
When the business there was done, and Morgang and the woman were locked up safely they all went inside for an evening feast, those who could stand up straight atleast.
They were home and safe, again.
