The Ridgerunner in the Durgan Guild 1

(This series will contain spoilers from book 3 and possible spoilers for books 1 and 2. Keep in mind I haven't finished book 3 so NO SPOILERS FOR ME PLEASE. Also be aware that because I haven't finished, I don't know all there is to know about The Hollows. Without further ado, enjoy The Ridgerunner in the Durgan Guild.)

It was a well known fact the people of The Hollows did not like ridgerunners. It was also a well known fact the reason why.

Ridgerunners were cruel and selfish little creatures; they stole whatever they pleased whether it was animals, weapons, or even farm equipment. However, there was one thing in particular they loved to steal the most... And that was fruit.

Now, it had been a while since any ridgerunners had come down to this side of the mountain for a raid. Perhaps even fifty years. Due to their good behavior, the people even traded with them under strict pretenses... But all that was about to change.

"Here's the mission." Barked a particularly muscley ridgerunner in furs. "Tonight we take all our arms can carry. Not one of you is to take any for yourselves, you will take it back to the counsel and drop of your findings there. If you see a brother get caught, best to scatter. If you stay to help, you might lose your chance to feed the tribe. Are we all in understanding?!"

"Yes, sir!" The small battalion of ridgerunners responded with spears in their childlike hands.

"Good." The the commanding officer responded before motioning his underlings to leave immediately.

Many ran past him but one stopped right in front of him. "Father- do we have to go now? It's so late and... I'm so tired from training this morning..." The ridgerunner speaking was none other than the commander's daughter who was no more than twelve years of age.

"If you're tired, it's because you didn't sleep last night. I heard you playing that blasted instrument even from a mile away. What were you thinking being out at night in the woods? Do you wish for death?" Her father showed no sympathy, which wasn't uncommon for him. He was known for his ruthlessness, even toward his own family at times.

"You know why I go." The daughter replied with a stiff tone and tears in her eyes. She shifted her wooden flute inside her vest pocket to be sure it was secure.

Meeting his daughter's gaze, the commander finds he must look away. "... You should be over yourself by now, Keya. She's been gone for six months."

Keya became hot-headed and pointed in her father's face. "YOU should be over YOURSELF. She was YOUR wife!"

"I will not be spoken to this way, Keya." Her father replied, stamping his spear in the ground. "Join the others and bring the honor to me you've ought to give. We'll speak of this later."

"Will we? Will we really?" Keya asked hotly.

"Maybe if you do well tonight, I will guarantee the talk. Now go." Her father pointed off in the direction the small army went. "And don't forget your training."

Keya huffed as she glanced at her father before scampering downhill and through the woods in the dark.

She kept running, following the faint glimmer of light near the bottom of the steep incline. That was their target- a barn known for storing the locals fruit for the market and winter. Keya knew well that her father had plotted this attack for months in advance to ensure success.

The Hollish people had become complacent in their guarding of their storehouses in the years leading up to this raid. After years of no drastic thefts, they had forgotten how dreadful the ridgerunners could really be when left with an inch. They could take a mile. The commander knew this well.

Keya soon caught up to the others who quickly reviewed their plan and spread out. Since she was the offspring of the lead warrior, she was graced with the challenge of unlocking the door for all the ridgerunners. If she was able to get the door open, then the mission had a chance at succeeding. As a result, she quickly and carefully headed down the slope and made a run for the door. There were thankfully, no humans in sight.

Once she reached the door, the lock was above her head but it didn't stop her from picking it with a thin metal pick. It was customly made just for the occasion.

Keya listened carefully to the lock while glancing around. She could see her peers watching her every move from various places in the dark and it made her nervous. But thankfully for her, she heard a click and unlocked the door.

The others rubbed their hands together greedily and quickly entered the barn with all speed and carefulness.

Joining them inside, Keya was stunned to see the sheer amount of fruit being held here! "Father wasn't kidding when he said this was important." She thought as she walked past her peers to grab some fruit to take home.

That's when she saw it; the most beautiful fruit she had ever layed eyes on. A huge cluster of big red was resting in a bowl on a high shelf; it shimmered beautifully in the moonlight coming through the upper window. Oh the temptation was just too much!

"Grapes!" Keya quietly squealed to herself before glancing around. Many of the ridgerunners had exited the barn at this point as they were committed to the mission's instructions. However, Keya's tempation got the better of her. She climbed those shelves rather ungracefully until she reached the top. Once there, she began grabbing as many vines of grapes as she could and stuffing them in her bag. Keya was so busy stuffing grapes into her bag that she didn't notice the shelf bending under her weight.

Next thing she knew was the sound of wood cracking and her falling to the ground below and cracking open and watermelon with the back of her head.

The commotion was enough to stir the farmer who lived near the store house.

Keya, dazed but still aware she had to get away, stood up with her hair covered in watermelon juice and, unfortunately, grape juice. She whined at the sight but wouldn't let herself mourn the loss long. Keya could hear the human's heavy footsteps approaching and it made her frantic. She quickly climbed some more shelves to reach a window higher up.

Just when she had reached the window and swung one leg onto the outside, she heard the sound of a bow being drawn. Keya freaked out and dove out the window just in time to evade an on coming arrow.

The sound of the farmer yelling could be heard inside the barn as Keya fell hard to the ground outside. She groaned but the adrenaline kicked in so she was able to force herself up and run back to the tribe. She really didn't in know the extent of injuries she had received from her falls but she had no choice but to make a run for it.

Fortunately for her, she was too fast for the farmer, who was a heavy man.

Back in the tribe's circle, each of the party's soldiers can forward and offered the fruit they had stolen. This is the fruit they wished to use for when winter came as its a harsh winter in the mountains.

When Keya came up, all the others took notice of her. They didn't just see the fruit massacre all over her- they smelt it too. Many shook their heads, thinking that it was disgraceful.

Keya became very meek as she came forward and reached into her bag. All she could offer was a handful of grapes that didn't get crushed when she fell on them. When her eyes lifted up from the ground, they met her father's. She could see the disappointment and anger in his eyes.

The silence ended when an elderly ridgerunner with a ridiculously long beard approached Keya. "What happened, child? How have you become soaked with the juice of our hunt?"

Keya started to cry and told the elder quietly. "I fell. I fell on the fruit. I had to run. He almost got me..." As soon as tears started rolling down her face, she felt the adrenaline wearing off. She held her head, the pain increasing with each second.

The elder sighed and shook his head. "Bring a torch closer, I can't see her face."

A torch was brought to the elder and he held it up to Keya's face and observed she had really been banged up from falling from such a great height. The elder shook his head again and handed to torch off. "You, Keya. See the herbalist. Go see Cheeki. You most certainly have a concussion with those eyes." He glanced at her legs. "Maybe a leg injury too but I can't tell." He looked back at her and shooed her off to another ridgerunner.

Keya started limping away before eventually collapsing. Some nearby ridgerunners helped her up, and while they despised touching her with their beloved fruit juice all over her, they took great care to get her to the herbalist.

The elder turned to Keya's father. "You, Commander Conrow. Make sure your daughter gets rest tonight. I know she just committed a horrible disgrace but be a father." After whacking Commander Conrow, Keya's father, in the leg with his big walking rod, the elder walked away.

Commander Conrow huffed to himself before going to see how Keya was doing.

Entering a tent, the father found Keya laying on a small cot in the middle of the room.

A ridgerunner herbalist was administratoring some special herbs for healing injuries quickly.

Keya, on the other hand, was slipping in and out of consciousness.

Conrow walked over and looked his daughter over before asking the herbalist. "Is she okay?"

The herbalist Cheeki rose an eyebrow at the commander and went back to work. "'Is she okay?' He asks me. She told me she cracked a watermelon open with her noggin. No, she needs rest."

"Please tell me it wasn't on purpose." Conrow replied before being shot a glare from the herbalist.

"Of course it wasn't. She fell. Why on earth would a ridgerunner bring such disgrace on themselves? No, it clearly wasn't on purpose." Cheeki said while working on Keya before looking back at Conrow and pausing her work. "Do you have any sympathy? She's your daughter, Conrow. Just a youngin too."

Keya couldn't keep concentration enough to speak and neither would her helper let her speak.

Conrow made brief eye contact with Keya and sighed. "I shouldn't of sent her..."

"You expect too much from a twelve year old ridgerunner." The herbalist lectured. "When I was young, I was too busy chasing flabbits to think about hunting fruit."

"Cheeki, were you ever young?" Conrow joked.

"Rude! I'm only nine years older than you Conrow Cryer!" Cheeki replied before lowering her voice. "Enough of that. You need to take this little one home and make sure she gets the rest. I already sense fatigue in her."

Conrow nodded to Cheeki before carefully picking up Keya and taking her home.

The next day, Keya felt the warm sun on her face as it came through her tree house window. If it were any other day, it would of been pleasant, but because of her head injury, it only brought pain.

She groaned and whined as she pulled the fur blanket over her eyes. After laying there a bit, Keya slowly remembered pieces of what had happened that night. It was fuzzy but the scent and feeling of stickiness from the fruit was still ever present to reminder her. She wondered how this could of happened and wished for nothing more than to be able to get up and enjoy the day. Alas, Keya knew she couldn't do anything to will herself to sit up, let alone stand.

She began thinking about the night before the raid and how peaceful it was in the forest clearing. That was the place she loved to play the flute her mother had made her from gliptree wood. The thought of hearing her mother play the flute to her was comforting until she realized... She was missing her flute.