CHAPTER 4.

"How does one save a King, at the age of five?" Gavin slurred.

"She saved him with the bread knife, that he dropped." Marcus hiccuped, drowning himself in his drink. Referring to the sword of legend. Their boisterous laughter echoed throughout the room, not giving a care whether they were yelling. Not a soul was there to object. The red-haired, young man was; passed out from an exceptional amount of drinks. Quiet snoring was deafened by their laughter, leaving Axel silently playing a game with multiple different folks, earning money, and losing some along the way.

Marcus and Gavin spent that time to: get to know one another. Whether it was stories of the past or plans of the future.

Axel chose not to drink, after knowing what it does to people when it strikes their blood. And they just so happen to become overly violent, when having too much. Some individuals can hold their intake of alcohol, but what didn't surprise her was: Marcus couldn't.

She sat there silently, entertaining herself with her thoughts. The man with encrypted secrets continued to sit in the corner, forlorn, and barely attending to his drink. His shadow continued to dance upon the walls behind him.

What she didn't know was he was watching her from the corner of his eye.

A man with scruffy, and rough-looking attire sat down in front of Axel. The stench of the man-made her cringe inside. She would prefer to wrap up the game and get sick outside. But it was already too late. The man placed a bag of coffers down on the table.

The shell game, a game of strategy. The game of attention, made most mortals frustrated. He rubbed his hands together and laughed.

"Let's get started!" the man said, with a half toothless grin.

She started rearranging the cups, focusing on confusing her opponent.

"So, what's your name?" She began a conversation, focusing on snagging the attention of her opponent, away from the cups.

"Mike, my name is Mike. I'm quite the lady's man, I do say so myself." the man revealed to be Mike. Mike's sentence made Axel smirk, nearly losing herself in laughter.

"So, Mike the spike. Where are you from?" Axel continued.

The man smiled, showing his rotten teeth, "I'm from around these parts, grew up in Londinium. Then after the war, my family moved to the countryside." Mike answered. He scratched his head and pulled back his greasy, shiny, dark hair.

"Alright, Mike. Which one is it?" Axel questioned, encouraging the man to try to win, scratch that, lose himself in frustration.

"One, two, or three?"

"Neither, I chose four. I've been watching you for a while here, Pendragon-"

"That's kinda creepy," she muttered under her breath.

"I am not related to the fallen King. You are highly mistaken or possibly drunk. My name is Axel Embers, the bastard daughter of a baker." Axel replied calmly, holding back her anger.

Mike growled, "I am not mistaken! Now I choose four!" Mike argued with Axel.

Axel rolled her eyes and reached for the right cup, which would be his left. He grasped onto her wrist with an iron grip. He tossed her hand back. His chair screamed against the floorboards. He jumped onto his feet and held up his hands.

"Watch as this witless bitch is revealed to be a: cheater!" Mike hollered, causing a scene that he didn't know the outcomes of.

The room turned silent and watched Mike play the shell game, against a woman...

The man proved to be sexist and rude, instead of this cheerful and socially-awkward man. Marcus and Gavin exchanged looks. The fourth man stared at the cups from the distance of Gavin's table.

"This doesn't look good." the brown-haired man scratched the back of his neck, along with an anxious voice.

"It'll be fine, Ryan. Axel's smart, watch as this scoundrel gets smoked." Marcus replied with a groggy voice, to the fourth member of Gavin's gang. Ryan had sun-kissed, speckles along his pale cheeks, and deep green eyes, along with short brown hair. The youngest of the group as it seemed, he was a blacksmith. The edges of his hair and eyebrows were singed lightly.

Marcus took sips of his water, trying to shake the alcohol from his system. Possibly the grossest feeling he's ever felt.

Mike picked up the one on his right, skipping the one on his left that Axel reached for.

His fingers pinched the small cup and pulled it up. He waved his arms in the air in a 'V' shape. The crowd of folks was silent. Mike paused and realized he didn't pull the right one. Frustration bubbled through Mike, his face started to burn a vibrant red.

Axel stared at her opponent, her hands folded, acknowledging the fifty-percent chance for both remaining cups.

Mike picked up the one Axel went for and froze when nothing was; concealed beneath the cup...

The room started to echo with laughter, embarrassing enough for Mike to never show his face around Londinium.

Axel lifted the last remaining cup, that sat in the middle. A small, sly, grin, formed from the corner of her lip. The remaining cup revealed a small, metallic, ball. Slowly, Mike's face changed to bitter and irritated.

"Good game, Mike." Axel jumped onto her feet and extended a hand. Mike's face slowly scrunched up and something flew from his lips.

It was thick and slimy and slid down her face. With disgust, she wiped the spit off of her face with her sleeve. Anger rose up from her stomach. Mike made the biggest mistake of his life.

"Are you done yet?" She questioned.

Immediately, at the end of her sentence, she hit him after he spits on her. Her fist collided with his face and the fight was on. Marcus's jaw collided against the floorboards beneath him.

"Shit, time to step in?" Gavin questioned anxiously.

"Yep, I think it would be a great idea." Marcus gagged, holding his chest for a couple of seconds. Gavin stood up and held his hand up, telling him to stay put. Axel rounded the table, Mike held his nose. Blood glided through the creases of his hands.

He snorted back the blood and swung for her. Instead of hitting her, he grabbed her by the collar of her fur and slammed her against the wall behind him. She raised her knee up and smashed him in the rib cage. She couldn't feel the weight of her feet on the ground. Her feet didn't press against the floor. Mike didn't give up, nor let go. She slammed her forehead against his once again and managed to knock the stars within him. Mike dropped Axel when Gavin stepped in.

Gavin grabbed Mike's arm and ripped Mike's grip off from Axel. Mike shoved him back and grabbed the porcelain pitcher from a nearby table. Mike smashed it against the side of Gavin's head. Gavin lost his balance and took a couple of chairs down with him.

Axel had to give it to Mike, he was a decent fighter, and she underestimated him. Marcus wobbled over to the counter, the same counter that their weapons sat on.

Marcus picked up her sword and tossed it to Axel. Axel caught the handle of the sword and wiped the crimson that slowly glided down onto her eyelid. Just from headbutting him ended in her cutting her eyebrow.

Mike stood there for a moment, frozen within time. His gaze followed the tip of the blade that was inches away from his windpipe. Thick beads of sweat rolled down from the edges of his hairline.

"Don't move," she warned him. Mike held his hands up, unarmed.

"Wait until this filth gets a piece of me," Gavin mumbled, stabling himself with the table next to him. He must of passed out for a couple of minutes from the impact.

"You ever spit on other women or raise your voice to a female, this won't be the last time we meet." Axel threatened with a vile tone. Making sure the other travellers in the Inn heard the message.

"Y-yes." Mike obediently answered.

"Now take your threats and out you go," Axel replied calmly. Mike's gaze shifted to the door. Her blade was steadily removed from his throat.

Mike knew he opposed no threat to her, unarmed. He considered himself lucky for walking in out alive. Gavin looked around the room, only a couple of people shifted out of their seats and departed the Inn.

Several folks were left, silently chatting away after the outburst of her actions. She couldn't understand why Humanity was so foul to each other.

'Live their lives before a crisis and avoid the Blackguards that marched our way.' Axel recalled a sentence she ignored earlier from the old women. Does that mean they'll be here soon? How far? She felt an intense wave of fear consume her.

They had to warn the Queen.

But the risks were too high if they returned empty-handed.

"Gran is going to be pissed when she sees the damage." Gavin anticipated. Axel took Gavin by his arm and helped him up onto his feet. Axel watched as Gavin examine the damage of a couple of chairs, drinks spilled, and the massive crack on the wall, where she was pressed up against.

Axel dug through her pocket and placed the bag of coffers, consisting of sixty coffers. Wrapped in a small square sheet of fabric, wrapped up with a tiny strand of leather.

"Axel... I cannot accept this.

"Consider this from Mike, with his deepest apologies," Axel said in a sincere voice. Axel chuckled and held out his hand.

"I misjudged you, Axel. I took you for more of a crooked woman, but the way you do business I approve of," he admitted. Gavin appreciated her kindness and payment. He admired the code that she ran by. It detonated her from killing the folks that wronged her.

"Thanks, Gavin. Send me a letter when I get back to Camelot."

"Will do." he passed on a charming smile and shook her hand.

She searched the room for Marcus, he seemed to of returned to the same table they sat at. He slept soundly at the same chair, and his head pressed against the table. A small string of drool hung from the corner of his lip. A small sigh escaped her lips. Marcus was in no condition to travel with her back to Camelot.

"We can probably prepare a room for your friend, to stay the night. And you?" Gavin questioned.

She bit her lip and shook her head, "I can't stay here, Gavin. As much as I wish I could, I still have to bring something back to the Queen. I'm planning to bring down the roadside Bandits." Gavin widened his eyes to her answer. And shared an expression that none of it sounded like a plan.

"Alone?! Are you sure this is your best option?" Gavin exclaimed. Gavin attempted to stop her from running into a death trap.

"It's my only option-"

"Don't forget what you said, 'vow your loyalty to me.' I am not letting you fight them alone." the native man recalled.

"Fine, but you'll have to write a note to Marcus. Make sure he knows where we are." Axel conditioned.

"Alright, done," Gavin answered.

***

After a while, Gavin turned his back and prepared a note for Marcus and left it next to his bedside in his assigned room in the Inn. Gavin closed the door quietly and crept down the stairs, risking a chance to nearly wake Marcus up, due to the floorboards that creaked beneath him.

Gavin returned to the dimly lit entrance of the Inn, with two hatchets that hung from his belt. The two of them were met by a crisp, early morning, summertime breeze. Guards marched down the paths, occupying the streets with a close eye.