The LoST 15

The Lone Shadow Templar

15: Stuck

The orb pulsated a gentle green once more as I stared into its murky depths. A breeze ruffled my hair and Wolfe finally pulled himself up. His weapon hung slack across his body. I looked around; this place looked like a scene from a medieval movie.

“This place looks like a scene from a medieval movie,” Wolfe murmured as he raised his submachine gun and checked its actions.

“Exactly what I’m thinking,” I replied and eyed the sign once more, “Well I suppose we should go find the locals; perhaps they could tell us where we are.” My eyes shifted to the castle in the distance. Sighing deeply in dejection, I managed to put one foot in front of me to start our trek. Even the best laid plans don’t go accordingly.

The hills of grass were lush and perfectly green; it felt crisp with morning dew as we trod over it. The sun was not completely up yet, so it must have still been morning. To the west was a thick green forest, its trees swaying lazily in the zephyr. Somewhere up ahead there was the sound of a cowbell. Then, hollering voices.

Immediately, I crouched down and aimed my weapon forward. The voices grew louder and I realized someone was coming up the hill. My finger twitched as it rested upon the trigger.

Then, a head appeared in the distance, followed by the rest of a man wearing an old farmer’s outfit. He wielded a pitchfork and wore a tan cavalier atop his unshaven head. As he approached, I loosened my grip on the weapon and looked up at Wolfe, who had the same puzzled look etched across his face.

“Hello there!” He yelled when he came within ear shot. I straightened myself up and motioned Wolfe to come with me. We met halfway in between.

“Hello, my name is Natalie and this is Wolfe,” I replied politely and offered my hand. The farmer shook firmly, but his eyes remained fixed upon my submachine gun. I felt awkward as he stared me down, cycling through every gadget I was wearing with his eyes. “You are?” I asked, snapping him back to reality.

“Oh sorry, I am Bob the farmer. I work for the Duke Horacio of Lumbridge. Tell me, what are these crazy contraptions of yours that you carry? I have not seen anything of the sort, not even from the iron forges of the gnome city Keldagrim.” He introduced himself, still looking at my gun.

“Well here is…” Wolfe started, but I cut him off.

“We’re from a distant land,” I said quickly, “We bring gifts for your Duke from our own leader.”

Bob finally took a moment to look into my eyes. He seemed to be pondering deeply, but then finally said, “Well if it’s a diplomatic mission, who am I to interfere? This way lassie.” He waved us to follow him.

“What are you trying to pull?” Wolfe asked under his breath.

“Trust me,” I whispered back.

“I don’t…” He rolled his eyes.

The market place bustled with business, with vendors raucously shouting out their best prices and products. As we moved through the crowd of buyers and sellers, I could feel each and everyone’s’ eyes follow in our footsteps. Trying not to make eye contact with any of the locals, I stared straight ahead toward the spires on each side of the castle. The large oaken front gate was almost before us. I could see the guards clad in steel armor from head to toe lean over and talk to each other, no doubt about us. What a strange city this was…

“Miss, miss!” A high pitched voice suddenly rang into my ear. I felt a tug on my hand and looked down at a little boy not past 10 years of age. “Do you have a present for me?”

I looked at the boy with surprise. Who are these people and why are they so old fashioned… I began to wonder if this was all merely just a dream. Perhaps I had gotten a concussion from the grenade blast.

The boy’s large blue eyes looked up eagerly, and I felt a deep tugging at my heartstrings. “Hmm let me see,” I replied, patting myself down for some trinket that I could give him.

My fingers wrapped themselves around something cold and hard. I brought my hand up to reveal an extra set of communicators. I hesitated, but then handed it over to his outstretched hands. “This is a very special device,” I bent my knees and lowered myself to his level to inform him. “You give the other one to one of your friends, press the button, and no matter how far you are from him, you will still be able to hear what he says.”

The boy’s eyes lit up with excitement. “Thank you so much miss!” He ran off into the crowd, which had stopped to witness the exchange. I looked around and immediately they turned, going about their own business as if nothing had happened.

We crossed the threshold of the outer walls of the castle and made our way up the stone steps to the front door. The keep towered over us; the sun now shown directly down at us. I felt a single bead of sweat slide down my cheek.

“Good day, Bob,” A guard greeted the farmer.

“Good day, Sir Marcus,” Bob replied, bowing and taking off his hat. “These two here are emissaries from a distant land. They seek council with our Duke.

Sir Marcus gave us the same stare down that Bob had, then nodded to his partner. Together, they opened the wooden doors to let us in. A blast of cool air made my skin tingle excitedly. Across the lavishly decorated hall, was a man with a red cape, donning a crown. As we moved forward, I looked around. There was a line of lit candles atop golden chandeliers as well as silver stands leading all the way up to the Duke. The walls were lined with paintings and what seemed like animal fur. However, some of the designs on the hides did not remind me of any beast I had ever encountered.

The door shut with a resonating thud and I realized Bob had left us at the entrance.

“Greetings from Lumbridge,” Duke Horacio welcomed with outstretched arms. He walked down a small set of stairs that led to his throne and came up to us, giving each of us a warm embrace.

“So, to where must I send a gift for this fine pleasure?” He asked as he took my hand and kissed it.

“We’re from a distant land called Victoria Island,” I replied, gently removing my hand from his grasp, “Can you tell me what year it is?”

“Certainly, if you tell me your name?” his eyebrows rose in bribery.

“My name is Natalie, and this here is my friend Wolfe,” I explained. Wolfe nodded as his name was spoken.

“Alright, Lady Natalie, the year is 1516 of the second age, though it is most curious that you need to ask…” The duke replied with the slightest hint of suspicion, though his gleaming eyes still looked over us welcomingly.

My eyes, however, were fixated in horror. I looked over at Wolfe, who looked even more bewildered than me.

Horacio merely overlooked our astonishment and continued, “So, what is your business here in the Kingdom of Misthalin?”

“We uh…” I realized we had nothing to give him.

“We seek the trade of knowledge and technologies.” Wolfe quickly filled in for me as I sighed in relief, “As you can see, we possess many devices that you probably have not seen before.”

The duke looked down at my submachine gun, eyeing it curiously, “May I?” he asked.

“It would be best not to… uh my lord,” I responded, tightening my grip on the weapon. “Though we can train you on how to use it.”

Horacio smiled broadly, then put a hand on each of our shoulders, “Well then, that is good news! We shall start in the morning. I suppose you would like to be shown to your quarters. Cook!”

A chubby man shuffled out of the other room, bringing with him a strong scent of grilled steak. “yes me lord?”

“Take these two fine emissaries to our guest rooms, make sure their every need is met!”

“Yes me lord,” the Cook bowed humbly, “This way good sir and madam.” He motioned for us to follow.

I shifted my eyes to Wolfe as we went up a set of winding staircases. His face was stone, as if he had just seen the eyes of a wild kargo. I was just about to speak when his gaze turned towards me. In that instant, I felt an icy feeling trickle down my spine, making me shiver involuntarily.

And it should have. We were trapped in a medieval world thousands of years behind our own. I had my MK-9 and S36 Seraph, a few frags, a communicator stuffed in my pack, as well as an EMP watch and two shiny combat knives. Wolfe and I could quite possibly wipe out the entire city by ourselves. Another chill rushed through my body.

“Here we are, me lords,” the Cook finally stopped in front of a large door cut from a maple tree.

“Wait, one room?” I asked, looking at the Cook, then to Wolfe, who’s stone face had given way to the tiniest hint of a grin.

“Is there a problem?” the Cook asked.

“No, no problem!” Wolfe finally spoke, still looking at me.

As the door latched shut behind us, my fist instantly came in contact with Wolfe’s jaw.