Req Ratchet-Halo: Gone Girl Returned

Astrid Cosette sighed as she tried but failed to get out of the literal binds she was in. How in all that is holy did she get tied inside of a barrel with a pack of bandits auctioning her off to the enemy territory? She put her head against the side of the barrel, remembering how she got here.

+++++
The band of knights were stopped for a break. They broke bread and shared it around, the loaf ending up last in Astrid’s hands. She stared at the butt end of the baguette they had all broken and frowned at it.
“Thanks a lot, guys. You know I don’t like the butt end.”
Some of the knights chuckled at her pickiness but she ate the bread without another complaint. Though Astrid was still getting used to being with the brave knights, she was grateful that they were kind to her and also grateful that women were even able to be knights. Astrid really would have preferred being back at home and blacksmithing, for that was her main profession when she was doing normal things.
It seemed so long ago that she had heard the sounds of the metal being forged and the hissing of steam as things were cooled. Though she didn’t like to fight too much out of her own town due to a nasty run in with a pack of wolves when she was a child, if nothing else, being a blacksmith taught her how to fight since she had to make sure that all the swords were sound. If it hadn’t been for her having some sort of training already, she wouldn’t have been able to give herself as a knight.
She was still a little leery about being out of her hometown but she had people around her who would protect her with their lives if something were to happen, so she felt ten times safer.
As she munched on the bread, she thought she heard a distant scream. She stopped chewing and found the others were doing the same. A definite scream let out and everyone jumped up, swords at the ready. As they all looked over, they saw that a nearby village was being ravaged by bandits, smoke ascending where they must have started setting fire to the houses.
“Men, get your horses. Seems like some bandits think they can just descend on a small village.” Sir Roderick said.
They all got on their horses and went to help out the village.

People were running everywhere when the knights finally got there to help the people out. Astrid could see the ringleader of the bandits and yelled at Sir Roderick about his location.
“I’ll take Dennis and James with me to defeat this man. Astrid, you and Ingrid and Paul go and see if you can put out some of the flames.” He directed.
Everyone nodded and did what they were told.
Astrid found a well and jumped off of her horse quickly, looking inside of it.
“Ingrid, see if you can find another bucket so that we can brigade the water to the burning buildings.”
Ingrid nodded and Astrid looked at Paul.
“See if you can find someone to help us get the flames out.”
He nodded and Astrid lowered the bucket into the well, letting it fill up with water. As she was about to pull it back up, she heard a little girl screaming and turned to see her being chased by two bandits. Astrid gulped, not having thought that she would have to show bravado so quickly but pulled out her sword, running after the two bandits.

She eventually found them cornering the girl in an alleyway and she breathed in, gathering courage.
“You there!” she yelled. The bandits turned. “Leave that girl alone.”
“Oh yeah? And what are you going to do about it, woman?” one of them said, brandishing a sword of his own. “Are you going to fight me for her?”
“If… if that’s what it takes then I will fight you.”
The man laughed and though Astrid was still frightened, the fact that he was laughing at her –whether because she was a woman or his ignorance of her skill- she took it as highly insulting. She lunged at him and they began to fight.
After some minutes, the other man came in to help his comrade but Astrid was too good for them. She defeated the bandits and they ran off from the alley. Astrid breathed heavily from the fight and then turned to the little girl.
She looked a little over nine summers with red hair in pigtails and bright blue eyes. Astrid walked over to her and knelt down in front of her.
“Are you hurt anywhere?” The little girl shook her head. “Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
“Good. My name is Astrid Cosette, what’s your name?”
“Danielle.”
“Well, Danielle, shall we go and see if we can’t find your parents?”
Danielle nodded and Astrid held out her hand to her.

“Way to go, Ass-trid, for leaving us high and dry like that.” Ingrid growled, looking at her. “I thought we were supposed to do a brigade to help fight the fires.”
“I’m sorry I left like that but as I was pulling up water from the well, I saw bandits chasing this little girl and I knew I had to help her.” Astrid said, pulling Danielle from behind her.
Ingrid smiled a little at the girl. “Aw, hello. What’s your name?”
“Danielle.”
“That’s a nice name… well, since Astrid decided to go off and save someone, I assume she is going to take you home, right?” Ingrid said, looking back up at Astrid with a devious look.
“Oh could you?!” Danielle asked, looking up at Astrid.
Astrid made a face at Ingrid, who knew very well that Astrid was afraid of being by herself on the road due to her trauma. She looked back down at Danielle and smiled.
“Of course I’ll take you home.”
“My house isn’t far. Come on, you can meet my mother and father.” She said, pulling Astrid with her.
Ingrid smirked as she took Astrid toward her house.
When they got there Danielle knocked on the door. They waited but no one answered so Astrid knocked a little louder. There was still no answer.
“Your parents aren’t home.”
Danielle made a face and turned the doorknob, opening the door for herself. The placed had been ransacked and Danielle ran through the house calling out for her parents. When there was no sign of them, Danielle sniffled.
“They ran away…”
Astrid quickly went to her, bending down to her.
“I’m sure they haven’t left you. Tell me, why were you being chased by those bandits in the first place?”
“Father and I were headed back from the stables when the town got attacked. I tried to run with him but I tripped and then we got separated. I heard him yelling that we would be at home but that was a long time ago and…”
“Don’t worry, Danielle, I’m sure he’s in the next town. I… I will take you there myself, alright?”
Danielle smiled and hugged Astrid around the neck.
After informing Sir Roderick of her plan (with much apprehension), she and Danielle set out for the next town that was about a day’s walk from the town they were in.

+++++
Thus, how Astrid ended up in the barrel she was in, tied up and unable to do much of anything. How she was ever caught by the same bandits that she had ran out of Danielle’s town was beyond her but there she was, listening to what they were going to do with her. Apparently, it had evolved from being sold to enemies to ransoming her to her knight friends. Whatever the case was, she didn’t like either one of those options and hoped that Danielle was safe since they had gotten separated.
On the contrary, Danielle was watching the bandits at a safe distance. She had seen them stuff Astrid into a barrel and was listening to them debate on what they wanted to do with her. Danielle was very scared but wanted to hide but she knew that Astrid needed to get out, if not only to help her find her parents than just because she had been captured. From listening to Astrid’s stories of her adventures, Danielle decided to stay hidden until the camp was asleep and then try and free Astrid from her binds.

After hours of waiting and almost falling asleep herself, Danielle watched the last bandit fall asleep, which was the lookout. Seeing his head nod and not move again, Danielle took her opportunity and got up, stretching her legs from having them bent for so long. She then crept carefully over to the barrel and knocked on it softly.
“Astrid?” she whispered. She heard a muffled noise that sounded like Astrid trying to speak. “I’m going to get you out, alright?”
Danielle looked around for a moment and spotted one of the bandits with a dagger at his waist. Biting her lip in agitation, Danielle slowly tiptoed over to the sleeping man and quickly took out the dagger. She ran back over to the barrel and sat next to it.
“I found a dagger but I don’t know how to get you out of that barrel.” Astrid made some muffled sounds but she couldn’t hear her. “I will just tip the barrel over as quietly as I can.”
Astrid rolled her eyes on the inside of the barrel, knowing this was a horrible idea.
Danielle braced her feet against the barrel and pushed on it as much as she could, using all her might. She tried three different time and then finally on the third one, the barrel knocked over with a loud thud. Danielle froze, waiting for the bandits to wake up. To her surprise, none did and she looked inside to see Astrid giving her an annoyed look.
“Sorry… here, let me get you loose.”
She used the dagger and cut Astrid’s binds and she crawled out of the barrel.
“What are you doing here? They could have captured you too.” Astrid growled.
“I had to save you.”
“You could have been killed.” She said, hugging the girl to her. “But I thank you for doing that. Come on, let’s get to the village as quickly as possible before they wake up.”
Danielle nodded and Astrid found her supplies and took a couple from the bandits themselves and they left.
After a bit, Astrid found a place for them to sleep and Danielle told her all about what she had done and how she had gained knowledge from Astrid’s stories. Astrid commended her on her listening skills and they went to sleep.

“You do have a surname, correct?” Astrid asked the next morning.
“Yes, it’s Jacobs.”
“Good, then this will be a little easier to do.”
Astrid went into the first inn she came across and went up to the innkeeper.
“Excuse me.”
The innkeeper jumped at her appearance. Her blonde hair was disheveled and she probably smelled from being kept in a barrel and being outside for a while. She reminded herself to take a bath.
“Yes, how can I help you?”
“I’m looking for a couple with the last name of Jacobs.”
“Jacobs?”
“Yes, they would have checked in either early this morning or late last night due to a raid on the village.”
The innkeeper looked through his book and shook his head.
“No Jacobs here. Try the Dancing Fool across the way, they get a lot of traveling people.”
Astrid nodded and began looking in all the inns for Danielle’s parents.
Finally, at the very last inn, the innkeeper nodded.
“Yes, I seem to have checked those two in early this morning.”
“Great, what room are they in? I have something that they will want.”
“Second floor, third on the left.”
“Thank you.”
Astrid took Danielle’s hand and they went up the stairs to where her parents were. Astrid knocked on the door and an older man opened the door, looking into her red eyes.
“Yes? Can I help you?”
“Yes, do you have a daughter named Danielle?”
“Yes I do. Have you found her?” He looked down. “Ah! My Danielle!”
“Papa!” she yelled, running into his open arms.
He kissed her cheeks and then turned into the room.
“Abigail, look!”
A woman who seemed to have been crying came to the door and gasped, running to her husband.
“My baby!”
“Mama!”
She grabbed her into her arms and Mr. Jacobs turned to Astrid.
“Thank you for saving our daughter. I thought we had lost her when I couldn’t get to her during the raid. You’ve set our hearts at ease.”
“No trouble at all, sir. That’s the duty of a knight and it was my privilege. Your daughter actually came in handy… Bye, Danielle, it was nice meeting you.”
“Bye, Astrid! I’ll never forget you!”
Astrid smiled and left the inn, stepping outside. She put her hands on her hips and made a face.
“Now where am I supposed to go?” she growled, not knowing where in the world her fellow knights were.