Robin Hood (A Pendragon Story)

The Merry Men

3rd person:

Robin of Locksley was no more. She traveled with the Merry Men. As their leader, she grew a big reputation. They stole from the rich and gave to the poor. No one other than Little John knew of her true identity. With her classic green hood and a bow, she never faced a threat.  They traveled to many towns, but word had reached the now nineteen-year-old that some of the Merry Men were captured by Sheriff of Nottingham. Robin Hood knew they took her men for information and killed them after. But little did she know that Little John was captured.

Robin's Hood point of view:

"Larry, report on mission gold."
"Sir, three men captured." I smiled at his response. If only my men realized I was a woman. I quickly turned back to the matter at hand.
"State their names."
"William Henry, Mike, and Little John."
"Then we must go to Nottingham."
"But we don't normally do rescue missions." One of the Merry Men piped in.
"We are the Merry Men!" I continued. "We fight for freedom and justice."
"Are you saying the rescue mission will prove our goal?" Larry questioned.
"Of course," I said with confidence. My anxiety started to kick in. Realization hit me. We needed to save Little John. For he had a family to return to. And I of all people know the feeling of losing someone so important. "Let's ride!"

3rd person:

Night fell upon the men as they reached the vast and resplendent kingdom. Robin Hood snuck past the two lazy guards at the entrance of the prison. Four of the Merry Men took out the guards and kept watch. Robin knew she could only save Little John, but she had a gut feeling she was too late. As she cautiously walked around, she spotted Friar Tuck. She ran over to him. His features were hard to make out with the rusted chains around his fragile hands.

Robin Hood's point of view:

"Friar Tuck! What happened?"
"The good for nothing Prince John put me here."
"Why?"
"Well, while you were gone helping other towns, he raised the tax in hope that you would reappear!"
"So you couldn't pay tax..."
"So he put me here..."
"I'm so sorry Friar..."
"It's not your fault." He interrupted. "Although you should know that Little John didn't make it." All I could stutter was "what?".
Friar Tuck continued, "He was hung yesterday morning." A clear glaze coated my eyes. Little John was dead. I could not believe it. He had a family to return to. I failed him and his family. I freed Friar Tuck from the prison. A gloom overtook my body as I reached the hiding place of the Merry Men.

"Little John is no longer with us." Every one of the men gasped. A true member lost. We are like a family, but these men are just townsmen. I wanted them to live their lives and be with their families. I would give them that chance. A plan was starting to form in my head. "Men, we have lost so much in this battle." "We can not overthrow the King, but we can take back what is ours."
"Yeah!" All the men agreed.
I rolled my eyes, "You don't even know the plan, yet." The men laughed at my comment. They were my family, but I am not theirs. "Tonight I will sneak into the castle. I will tie the money bags onto the line and shoot the line to the nearest cottage. You guys can untie the bags. Once the warning bells go off, we will deliver the money to every home."
"Yes, sir!" I felt honored to help bring life back to England.
"Tonight will be the Merry Men's last mission."
Larry questioned. "What do you mean?"
"You all have families to return to. And once we get our money back, the true fight will be over. Prince John won't have power over the people anymore."
"It's time." A Merry Man yelled.
"To freedom!" I yelled.
"To Robin Hood!" The Merry Men shouted. If this was the last mission, my men couldn't make me more proud.

I crept around the castle until I reached the coin room. I busted the lock with my fist. The room was huge. Scarlett-colored carpeting filled the floor and money bags could be found all around the room. I had equipped six arrows each with their own rope. One by one, I tied the bags onto the line. I filled each line until I knew the Merry Men wouldn't be able to untie the coins. I aimed for the small cottage that stood in the distance. With a quick whistle, the arrow left the bow and hit the roof of the old home. Ten minutes passed, I loaded up the last of the money bags to the last arrow.

The warning bells began to ring throughout the kingdom. I shot off my last arrow to the Merry Men. As I turned around, I was faced with the sheriff and six knights. My full attention on him, his knights started to run towards me. I ripped a piece of my shirt and slid down the rope of my last arrow. If only you could've seen the shock on Nottingham's face when he realized all the money was gone. With the wind in my face, I knew this mission was a success. The one thing I enjoyed about being Robin Hood was the thrill of the chase, although the knights would surrender to sleep soon. This would be the last time I would be in England for a while. The Merry Men have lives to return to. Whereas, I will continue defending the people who can't defend themselves. My men were trained to work at the speed of lightning. But I had requested that they save me this certain cottage to give the money to.

I trotted up to the wooden door frame and knocked twice. A woman with blond hair and blue eyes opened the door. "Mrs. Smith, may I come in?"
"Of course, Robin."
"I am so sorry about Little John. If I would know this was gonna happen, I would've sent him home long ago."
The woman chuckled to herself. "You know that Little John wouldn't leave your side no matter what you said."
"Why is that?"
"Ever since you saved his life, he believed he owed you his." I felt a teardrop fall down my face. I gently reached for Mrs. Smith's hand and placed a bag of coins inside it.
"I know it isn't much but I got what I could."
"It is more than enough. Thank you!" Two little girls ran right into my arms. I squeezed them tight. They both looked like their mother. I placed Little John's hat that I found while in the castle on top of Lily's head. She giggled and ran behind her mother. I snapped a necklace around Sevilla's neck and she gave me a big smile.
"I will be leaving England for a while. I don't know if I will ever return."
"You will have to settle down at some point." Mrs. Smith stated.
"I guess settling down isn't meant for all of us. I have lost a lot in England and I want to be there for other people who can't defend themselves."
"Little John would be very proud of you Robin."
"Thank you!" And with that last phrase, I was out the door. I checked to see if there were any guards before I sprinted to the horse stalls. A black stallion with dark blue eyes was in his normal spot. I approached Noir with a grin. I saddled him up and rode out of the city.

"Little John and Robin Hood runnin' through the forest..." I started to sing. It was a simple song that many townspeople sang during our dark times. "...Goodbye to the phony King of England." The citizens hated their king, but at least I made a difference. Noir and I rode off into the distance; we had no true destination in mind. We just followed the stars deep into the forest.

I hope this was a good chapter. The book is going to steer towards the Merlin plot now. But will someone from England come back to haunt her? Read on to find out. 😆

Word count: 1350 sorry that it's so long