Crown Sword

Chapter 5

I burst out of the forest in record time. I ran a few feet before I noticed the animals' voices had stopped. I turned my head. A large force field surrounded the forest, one that I could barely see. The animals had lined up around its border inside the forest and stared out at me, forlornly. I was out of the trees and I could still see them. They looked caged. Yeah, there's something definitely wrong with that place.

I turned back around shaking my head. That's when I noticed something different. I wasn't in the children's park, nor was I in the soccer field. I was on some grassy plain that sloped downwards towards a field of cows. There was a big red barn lit up from within and a few small houses around. Where was I? I must have gotten on the other side of the forest. But to get back, I certainly wasn't going to go back. The animals were still watching me.

First, I had to take care of the sword. I was still holding it in front of me like I was going to cut someone down. I would most likely be arrested if I didn't do something with it. I couldn't very well hide it, so I carefully tucked the hilt of the sword into my belt so that it hung from my waist.

The light cast from the barn revealed the figure of a woman sitting on a stool and milking a cow. I needed to ask her for directions.

"Excuse me!" I called out stumbling down the slope.

The woman turned, startled. She got up gathering her dress apron and took a step back knocking her stool over. I didn't blame her. I probably looked crazy, looking disorderly coming out of the woods, sword hanging at my hip and all. The cow moseyed on into the barn, unbothered.

I put my hands up as if to show her I was fine. "Ma'am," she took another step back. "Ma'am I just found this sword in the woods. I just wanted to turn it in to the police. I'm not going to use it. Funny story actually, I found it in the trunk of a tree. Don't ask me how that happened. Anyways...  Don't worry I'm not a crazy killer that's come to hack you down. I just wanted to ask you how to get on the main road to get onto South Citrus street. I-," I rambled.

"What? What did you just say?" she asked in a strange accent. She was staring down at the sword now, with a great intensity in her eyes.

"Yea, um, South Citrus street? Do you know what street I can take to get there?"

"No, no, before that." The woman was now circling, eying me with a sort of curiosity. She stopped when she got to the side of me the sword was hanging from.

"I... I guess I was telling you how I found the sword. But nevermind that, I'll be on my way now." She was acting weird and I was getting creeped out. I walked past her.

"Please, I'm sure I've seen that sword before..." she trailed off and walked towards me. She  crouched down to examine it.

"I really should get going now," I stepped around her and walked down the side of the barn. She was in a weird sort of getup, dressed like... well, a milkmaid.  She seemed very old fashioned and talked like people do in older movies. I'm not really a trend follower, but I'm pretty sure people don't dress like that anymore.

In front of the barn was a small cottage. I was pretty sure I could get to the street if I went to its front. When I got there I was even more confused. There was no street. It was only a dirt road with cottages lining the sides of it. A few people walked about the area minding their business and dressed like the milkmaid I left behind. Well, I saw men too and they were dressed in tunics.

A bell rang in the distance. I looked around. There on the far end of the road was a small church looking building. I saw a figure up in the tower pulling at the rope attached to the bell that was ringing. This place looked like a village. There was a village on the other side of the forest? Weird.

Just then, a horse drawn cart of hay stopped before me. A short man with a straw hat and a long beard got off.

"Are ya Miss Ada?" he spoke in the same accent as the milkmaid did, a piece of straw bobbing in his mouth as he talked.

"Er, no. But sir? Can you direct me to South Citrus street?" I asked.

"Eh? Southern Citrus, did ya say?" He then coughed and spit something horrible on the ground. "Dunno nothin' of it." He turned around and got onto his cart muttering to himself. The horse kicked up dirt as it drove the cart away.

I had to find my way home soon. It was getting dark and I didn't want to stick around. I felt like I was on the set of some old medieval movie. I reached in my pocket only to find that I forgot my phone at the house. Again.

"Ugh," I said to myself as I walked down the road. I needed to find a place with a public phone. Maybe a restaurant? It didn't take me long to reach the other side of the road. I looked around. There was the church and a couple of older cobble stone buildings around. Maybe the church has a phone?

I walked into the open doorway of the church. Inside there were a few long wooden benches facing the rather plain altar. In the corner, there was a small tower with a spiral stone staircase I could only assume led to the bell. For some reason, I ditched my plan to find a phone and decided to climb the stairs to the bell.

At the top of the tower, the bell hung from a chain attached to the roof. It was basically outside considering the tower had no walls.

"See? She's up there! I told you!" I heard the milkmaid's voice floating up the stairwell. I looked down. There was a small crowd of the villagers carrying torches beneath the tower. They all stared up at me.
   
"It could be any sword," a farmer squinted up at me holding his torch in my direction.

    "No, no! I saw it with my own eyes. It be the crown sword!" The maid accused, angrily pointing her finger up at me.

    The crowd was getting bigger as people walked over to see the reason for the commotion.

    "Look at her clothing!"

    "Goodness! She wears trousers!"

    "Is it true? Is that really the crown sword?

    "How could that be? She stole from the King?"

    "Woman! Come hither!" the same farmer called out to me.

    What the hell were they talking about? I didn't steal the sword from anyone, let alone a king. I found the sword in the woods.This was the second time I was hearing about some king and I was confused. All I knew was that I could sell this sword for good money. The ruby looked too real to me. Finders keepers, I say.

But they looked about ready to tear me apart, especially the maid. Looking the way they were at me, I decided against going down the stairs. I didn't know these people. Maybe if I just ignored them they would go away or call the police or something. Good, I don't care. In fact, maybe the police would give me a ride home. I could show them the sword, and maybe we could work something out. I'd get a little reward money or something...

"Woman, come down! You are accused of treachery and theft against the crown! Prove yourself!" The crowd got bigger and bigger, the faces of the villagers now clear to me with the lights of the torches flickering down below. I shivered as a wind surged through the air.

I heard someone climb the stairwell beneath me. A fat bald man with a long beard dressed in brown robes emerged. He carried a small cloth in his hand. Before I could think, he lunged towards me and shoved the cloth in my face. I felt myself slip as the world went dark.

I blacked out for the second time that day.