Young Writers Society

Chapter 12 Part 1: U stinky bounty hunter, go eat a sock sTINKY

Clandestine's heart stopped when she heard the yell echo through the forest. She froze in her steps. Elliot's ears flicked forward and he stiffened.

That didn't sound like a normal yell. That sounded like someone in pain, and it sounded too much like Matt for her to write it off as nothing. She was too deep into the forest for it to just be any other traveler or even other bandits. Wherever the bounty hunter was going, he really wanted to stay away from the roads.

Clandestine looked down at the ground. The trail she'd been following had come and gone, but if the yell told her anything she had to be close. It was late, and the sky was dark, and she knew Billy and Elliot would need to rest if they were to be ready for a hurried get-away run in the middle of the night. She squeezed their lead ropes with a small sigh and looked back at the two.

She had to hurry.

She inched closer with careful steps, hoping that the horses wouldn't make any noises to draw attention to themselves. She didn't know how good the bounty hunter was at fighting, but if she wanted her best shot, she needed the advantage of surprise.

After heading in the direction of the yell, she eventually spotted the faintest trail of smoke coming up from the trees. The cool air around her crept its way up the sleeves of her jacket and made the sweat under her armpits send shivers up her arms. She took in a deep breath and leaned forward into the grassy undergrowth of the forest. Clandestine wasn't used to fighting people. She'd fought for people all the time, but she was more used to animals and monsters. The thought of having to face the bounty hunter on her own, and not knowing how well-off Tiberius was intimidated her.

What if he was some kind of trained assassin? What if she didn't make it out alive, and she was left dead in the forest, forgotten?

Her heart leapt out of her chest as Billy nudged her in the back with his nose, and she jumped, looking around at Billy with wide eyes. She was about to draw her sword but slid it back into its sheath as she looked back at her relaxed equine companion. If the enemy wasn't so close, she would've scolded him for spooking her while she was deep in thought. She waved a pointed finger at him before looking ahead to see what Billy was staring at.

There was light peeking through the trees. It was faint, but it was close.

Clandestine hurried to find a suitable tree to tie Billy and Elliot under. If shots were fired, she didn't want to bring them any closer, lest they get caught in the crossfire. She didn't know what level the bounty hunter was willing to stoop to. She couldn't bet on him sparing innocent horses.

Though it was cold, she ditched her jacket on Billy's saddle so it wouldn't snag on anything as she snuck through the darkness. With a quick kiss on Billy's head, she pulled the ropes tight and left to slink into the forest with light steps. She followed the light until she heard the soft murmuring of voices, and then she got low to the ground. She took cover behind the shade of a pair of full bushes and took out her gun with careful movements. In silence, she found a break in the branches to peek in at the campsite before her.

She could see the fire.

She moved to the side ever so slightly to get a better angle.

Sitting by the fire was the guy from the tavern. The one who'd followed her and knocked her out. He was finishing off some soup and setting his bowl down by the fire. Across from the fire, she could see two shoes on the ground. Matt's shoes. Tiberius's shoes. She lifted her head a little more, but all she could see was that Tiberius was tied to a tree with a few strands of tightly bound rope. She couldn't see his face - only that he was turned away from where she was at. His head was hanging low with his hair over his eyes, and he was covered in dirt and who knew what else. But what stood out the most was that he was bleeding from his shoulder.

Her grip on her gun tightened as she shifted to get a better look at the bounty hunter again. A burning anger began to stir in her chest, and she took in one careful breath.

She was going to have to shoot him. There really was no other good option. If she went in there trying to talk, the first thing he would do would be shoot at her first or something else violent. With a hardened resolve, she pointed her gun through the bushes at him. She had to get it right. She didn't want to kill the guy- she just wanted to hurt him enough that he wouldn't be able to fight back a bunch when she went in to get Tiberius. Right?

She took in another breath, silently bringing all of her focus on one shot.

BANG!

She stared, wide-eyed. Wait. Where did the guy go? One moment he was sitting up, and the next, he was flat on the ground. He sprung back up with alarming speed and lifted up a gun of his own, aiming into the bushes. Clandestine got to her feet, scrambling out of the way. Several shots came whizzing into the bushes as she practically fell out of the way. She made her way to Tiberius's tree, poking her head out just enough to peek at him and the bounty hunter.

"Hey, Tiberius! It's me! I'm here to save you!" she whispered in hurried words.

Apparently, Tiberius was gagged, because all she got out of him was a: "Muhh? Guh!" which made no sense at all.

And that was the extent of their words exchanged as another shot sent her ducking behind the tree for cover. As she saw the bounty hunter approaching, she looked down at the rope wound around the tree. In three quick movements she slid her gun back into its holster, she took out her sword, and she sliced at the ropes. She probably hacked about halfway through them before she saw the bounty hunter coming towards her out of the corner of her eye.

"Oop!" she yelped as she jumped out of the way.

She ran around the tree with her heart pounding and switched her sword for her gun. She finally got a clear glimpse of Tiberius's wound out of the corner of her eye but she kept moving. The bounty hunter could still shoot at her at any moment.

They both jumped out from opposite sides of the tree at the same time, facing each other. She aimed at him, but he moved faster than her bullet, as if anticipating where it would go next. She missed. Her hands quivered, and she shot again, but he easily dodged as he weaved his way towards her. Why did he have to be so fast? And now he was too close, and shooting him would mean really messing him up. She took a few steps back, with her gun still pinned on him. She didn't have many shots left. It was just a six-shooter.

He lifted his gun back at her, and with a huff of breath, she rushed towards him.

For half a second, she'd thought she'd thrown him off. His eyes widened, but then they focused. His gun was back on his belt. She didn't see that. She lifted her own to counter, to get control back, but he advanced as she advanced, and he grabbed her shoulder with a vice-like grip. His hand squeezed quickly and painfully down her arm until he made it to her gun, that at that point, he easily twisted out of her hand. He elbowed her in the face, but instead of fighting back with raw power, she grabbed for her sword.

As she pulled it from its sheath she jabbed the handle into his side. He didn't let out a grunt or anything, but the hit landed, and that small victory gave her courage. She lifted her sword to face the bounty hunter but he was already hurrying back and away, out of range. She hurried and sliced after him, and felt her sword catch on something. Without any thought, she responded with a flurry of slashes, only to realize halfway through that all she'd caught was his hat that had flown off behind him. As soon as the realization hit, however, the bounty hunter had vanished from her sight. On her right she heard him:

"I should've just killed you," he said with a voice that sent chills down her spine. When she turned, she saw the barrel of his gun line up with her head.

As she blinked, her life flashed before her eyes... and Tiberius came out of nowhere.

With rageful eyes and a face set in stone, Tiberius brought his hands around the bounty hunter's neck and his cuff with him. His legs flew up around the hunter's arms, pinning them to his sides, and they both slowly stumbled down to the ground. Tiberius tightened the metal chain around the guy's neck as they hit the forest floor, and Clandestine could tell the bounty hunter was trying to muscle his arms out of Tiberius's grip.

Or at least, he was trying to at first. Until his face started going red, and the veins in his forehead started sticking out.

Clandestine stared for a moment at the struggle, unsure of how in control Tiberius was over the whole situation. He was unrelenting and not letting go. The guy's struggle was starting to weaken...

Was he trying to kill him?

"Matt!" she yelled in a panic, before realizing she used the wrong name. "I mean Tiberius! Tiberius! Stop!"

Tiberius's eyebrows lifted slightly, and she could see the name click in his mind. He ripped his hands away from the bounty hunter's neck with a sudden movement. The man fell to the ground, gasping for air with a quivering breath. Tiberius was backing away, but his whole body was shaking. Clandestine found herself stuck, unsure of who to help. The man who was barely breathing or the man who was barely standing on his feet?

"Tie him up," Tiberius spoke. But... but that wasn't his voice. His accent, the cowboy twang, it was all gone. He spoke straight and clear and low, in a way she had never heard him talk before. She looked up at him in confusion.

"Now," Tiberius said with urgency. She looked down. The bounty hunter was reaching around for his gun. She shook her head, and wordlessly, grabbed the gun and threw it out into the forest. Roughly, she pulled the guy up to the tree Tiberius was tied at, and she hastily tied the rope around his torso. As she tied off the final knot, the hunter kicked her in the legs, sending her to the ground with a rough thump, but she pushed herself back up again. Clandestine looked down on him with a frown, but her frown faltered. The guy was still wheezing.

She looked over at Matt, who was kneeling on the ground, breathing heavily, and holding his shoulder.

"Mat-gah!" She threw her hands up in the air in frustration. "Tiber- okay, I don't know what to call you. But agh, dragons above, you're hurt." She slowly approached him, with the same caution she would treat a wounded wild animal. Then she caught a whiff of him. She raised her brows and cleared her throat. "And wow, you smell."

She knelt down beside him, and he stayed still, still holding his shoulder until she tilted her head to get a look at his downcast face. He was avoiding her gaze, and he looked miserable. With shaky hands, he started unbuttoning the top of his muddy shirt.

"You shouldn't be here," he said lowly.

Clandestine stared at him in disbelief. "What? I helped you escape, Matt! How about a thank you!"

Tiberius slid a sleeve off of his wounded shoulder. He looked up at her with a dead-eyed gaze.

"Thank you," he said emotionlessly before he stood up.

Clandestine had to admit that was a lot less satisfying than she'd expected it to be. She also hadn't meant to sound so serious and angry when she demanded a thank-you. Maybe she should've, but for some reason, it felt wrong.

"You're welcome," she muttered as she stood up beside him. "I'll- I'll grab some water to clean that."

"Someone should watch Alexander," Tiberius said with a glance behind them.

Clandestine followed his gaze. "Alex- oh." That must've been the bounty hunter's name. Alexander. She realized she never asked his name back at the tavern. "B-but I, I brought the horses," she mumbled as she looked between the forest and the tied up bounty hunter.

Tiberius landed his still dead-eyed gaze on Alexander.

"Fine. Get them. Hurry," he said gruffly, though it still threw her off to hear him talk so differently than she was used to.

Clandestine only nodded. He didn't have to tell her to hurry.