Willow: The Lost Daughters. ~ Chapter 2

Chapter 2 ~ Bear on Wolf violence.

Germania; City of Wolves.

Another day another coin that was what Willow thought as she shouldered through the crowded streets. Her stature and outfit did nothing to discourage her thought pattern, nor did the surrounding citizens mind her appearance. In fact she spotted more alcoholics laid wasted on the ground, ruining their life drop by drop. Eyes sickened by the sight, gut wrenching as she couldn’t accept this new “society” they had been forced into.

During these two years, a lot had changed, from the way people used to live.—Gone from tribesmen to full on ants in symmetric squares.—Willow was sickened by the sheer thought of what her fellow countrymen had agreed to join. Cowards, the whole bunch of them. Willow strode with confidence, her guardian waiting outside the village like the good bear he was, while the adolescent took heavy steps towards the bar.

“Hey! Leave me alone!” A squeaking voice reverberated through the crowded bricked streets.

“What are you going to do you punk!? You are such a punk Egilhard.” An adolescent male voice followed.—Voice cracking as if he was going through puberty.

“I will show you!” Scuffle could be heard before shouts followed.

Letting a sigh escape her lips, the princess couldn’t let her people fight in-house, pausing her quest for vengeance and chose settle the skirmish. Pushing through the crowd, she spotted three teenagers surrounding a smaller adolescent. A tan boy dressed in leather and white pelt, the brown haired 5 foot adolescent could barely stand a chance against one of the larger teens, but against three? No way. So, Willow intervened.

“Who the hell are you?” The large teen asked the princess of the bear tribe.

A grunt was the respond he was received, the blond warrior didn’t want to spare another second wasted. She knew that words could settle this, but these boys were men of Wolves, she could clearly tell by their markings.


“Oh, Egilhard is this your girlfriend? Coming to save you? Bahaha! You bear people are the same! Worthless bunch of—“ He barely got to finish his sentence before his teeth flew of out his mouth. 

Her forehead already connected with the bully, her sword wanted to make its way towards his throat, but the thought of murdering a teen was pulling on her heart strings. Coward. Willow cursed under her breath.

An unsuspected punch caught her by surprise and sent her on her bum. Shaking her head in confusion, she watched Egilhard tackle a bully, while the last standing started walking towards Willow. Gritting her teeth, she growled as she rushed towards the similar sized teen. Brawling on the ground, they both swung, aiming to wound the other until Willow managed to grab a rock, smacking it against his ribs before she busted his already ugly face. 

Egilhard groaned as he finished his fight, Willows eyes still towards the knocked out foe. Heart pounding, tunnel vision focused on aggression. With each deep breath she returned to her centered self, seconds later she realized that a large crowd was spectating, even applauding the action. Confused by their reaction, she rose then darted straight towards the bar.

“Wait! Lady. . Wait up!” Egilhard shouted.

It was too vain, she had already kicked in the bar door, sword unsheathed and ready for combat. The barkeep looked at the female warrior, then at the mercenaries. “Don’t even think about it! I’m here to find out about the roman army that attacked the bear tribes.” The princess finally spoke, eyes trained on the mercs but speaking directly to the barkeep.

“Well, that’s a tall order coming from some unknown teenager wielding a weapon.”

“Yeah well if I were you I’d start talking before I wreck up this place and force you to talk.”

The barkeep started laughing and so did the rest of his companions. “Listen princess, I don’t know who you think you are but you can’t just come here and make threats you can’t keep.”

Egilhard bumped into Willow at that moment, then yanked on her pelt. “He is right miss, we shouldn’t disturb these gentlemen.”

“Shut up—Final warning!” Turning her attention from the pesky kid over to the barkeep.

“Alright, I warned you. First to take her down gets a free drink, get her lads!”

“With pleasure!” Some shouted simultaneously.

Three mercs and two drunks rose of their chairs, each wielding a weapon and some sort of armor. –Ranging from metal scraps down to plain cotton.—Willow cursed under her lips as she grinned, Egilhard was confused by the sight and immediately started to back away. Willow on the other hand stepped forwards, kicked the nearby table onto the closest drunk. Dodged his partner’s swipe and countered by cutting of his arm.

Blood splattered, covering her right side of her face, still grinning. “You can all still live, I don’t want to kill my own people.” Willow got serious, her tone changed back to the brash and ruthless version she donned.

“You have lost it haven’t you?” The barkeep growled.

Dodging the skilled swords-man slice, then blocked his comrades, Willow chose to punch the drunk then defend herself, rather than attack the skilled merc. She sent the punk flying over a table, placing him out of the combat at the moment. 

Focused on the foes in front of her, clearly skilled warriors working simultaneously to find a weak spot in her fighting skill. Had it not been for her superior fighting skills and strength, they would’ve easily defeated the teen. Clashing then head butting a mercenary, she was quick to stick her blade in between his plates and into his guts.

She wanted to laugh, she knew that she was getting closer towards her goal, yet the fight wasn’t over. A swing almost clipped her head, if not for her intuition. A counter swipe cut her foes head off and with a quick spin, she clashed with the remaining mercenary. Eyes locking, and still grinning, Willow knew how this battle would end, she could read it in the cowards eyes. 

The barkeep crashed into the shelf behind him, backing away in fear, while Egilhard cheered on. “I warned you.” Willow pushed the goon back, jumped back then leaped forward, slashing downwards. Using her speed and force to crash through the clash and cut into the mercenaries shoulder.

The mercenary wouldn’t give up, still standing with a blade embedded in his shoulder. Willow knew that if he swung for her chest then she would parish, pulling her blade downwards, grabbed his weapon arm then sweep kicked his feet, causing him to fall on her blade. Protruding out of his throat, the barkeep shocked, while Willow marched forward. 

Grabbed his shirt, placed her feet on the counter then mustered all her strength to pull the obese barkeep, both crashed on the table behind her, smashing it as they landed on the hard pavement.

“Wait, wait!” The barkeep cried out.

Willow pushed herself off the ground, punched the man, then stepped on his neck. “Whooh! You are a bad ass!” Egilhard cheered.

The barkeep didn’t share the same excitement. “Start talking!” Willow pressed her knee around his neck.

“Okay, okay! All I know is that there were four commanders who worked together with a polish band of raiders. I swear that’s all I know!”

“What do you mean polish band of raiders?”

“Exactly what it sounds like!”

“Tell me which direction I can find them in.”

“East!” With that answered, Willow stomped his neck, causing him to black out.

Egilhard gave her thumbs up, grinning from ear to ear, eyes glistening with joy. If only the surrounding crowd shared that enthusiasm, it seems that back up had arrived in the form of a rag tag army of mercs, there to save their comrades skins. “Who are they?” Willow asked the kid as she passed him.

“The Black Band, loyal to no-one but money.”

“Then they die for nothing as well.”

“Are you going to engage them as well?” Egilhard asked.

“No, my beef doesn’t lie with them, but if they insist on standing in my way then they leave me with no choice.” Willow wasn’t the one to talk, in fact this was the longest she had spoken in the last two years, and it was starting to annoy her.

Large masses of citizens and warriors alike surrounded the bar, each excited over seeing action and terrified at the same time. Willow’s aura frightened the people, yet at the same time intrigued them. Eyes wild like a ferocious bear, darting between the twelve mercenaries hiding within the crowd. “The Black Band you say?” Willow asked.

“Yeah.” Egilhard answered.

“All belonging to The Black Band, give up now or die with your comrades.”

“—It was their commanders.” Egilhard pulled on her pelt.

“What? So I killed their leaders?”

“Yes.”

“Give in while you still have the chance.” Willow chuckled as she turned around to face her foes.

They all laughed at her, even the citizens that had witnessed her previous victories, even they knew that she had a limit. The real question was whether or not she knew her limits.