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	Chapter 4 - Stealth
	Matt was moving once again towards the door, but this time was different. This time he was not alone. This time his father was with him. They were finally Father and son. His father had packed some more useful supplies and Matt had had time to re-evaluate his rushed choice of items. Now they were better equipped and they were ready to face what may come on the journey ahead. Matt turned the handle and stepped out into the cold weather. The street looked different than how it usually did. It was early morning, about 2:30, and the skies were still dark, but that wasn’t the reason why it looked different. Something else defined it. Maybe, it was because Matt had always looked at this street with resentment, because it just meant that he was near his house, and therefore, near Belinda. Now Belinda was out of the picture, they were leaving the house now, and all the bad memories were left behind with it. Matt pictured Belinda chasing him through the house with a frying pan, he saw her throwing him in his room and slamming the latch shut. As he did, he grinned. She would never be able to do that again. “You ready to go?” Asked Matt’s father. Matt nodded and they walked down the road together, into the cold. They walked across the city in silence, Matt had no time to talk because his Father kept a fast pace and he had to concentrate on keeping up and not falling behind. After a while, they passed a schoolyard and noticed it must have been about 7:30 because he saw children entering. It had been 2:30 when they had left so they must have been travelling for at least 5 hours and Matt was beginning to tire. “There’s a hotel up ahead, we can rest there” said his Father in a hushed voice. They walked for another half hour and, as promised, they came to a hotel. It was a dump, but it was good enough to sleep in for the night. Once his Father had paid for two rooms, Matt went up to his room and lay on the uncomfortable bed to fall fast into a dreamless sleep. * * * * * Arthur sat in his room, on the bed. This was all going wrong. His son was sitting in the next room and they were now homeless. They couldn’t return there again. Not with the servants of Rahn knowing he was a traitor. They would find him eventually, but for now, it was best to stay on the move. He tried to look on the bright side. Matt was alive. That was about it though. Looking on the bright side grew increasingly harder as he realised that he’d lost so much. His house, his money, his job. He was proud of his job. Manager of Princeling Supermarkets. He’d built it from the ground, started as a simple neighbourhood grocery store, not too far from his house. Back then he’d had a much smaller house. One bedroom was all he needed. One day he took all the money he’d made with the grocery store and bought a Tesco’s building that had gone out of business. Within a year, he had the first real ‘Princeling Supermarket’ Within another year, he had business there booming. He bought some more stores and by then Princeling Supermarkets was a national name. He’d also lost his wife. That was possibly the worst blow in all of this. Even if that wife was Belinda. She was still his wife, and he’d had to kill her. It was either her or Matt, and Arthur felt that he owed Matt something. His quiet thinking was disrupted by the sound of a car pulling up outside. He looked out his window, which gave a perfect view of the street, and saw the car. There was one person behind the wheel, the other three people were entering the hotel now. They were each wearing a suit. Black jackets and trousers, yellow shirt and tie. On the pocket of the jacket, as if it were a school blazer, was a symbol. Arthur couldn’t see it from here, of course, but he knew it all too well. Two semi-circles connected by a single line, with a triangle above it. It was Rahn’s symbol and it only ever meant trouble Arthur moved towards the door. He had to get out before they got here. He reached for the handle, but as he opened he door a crack to look out, he saw that they were already there in the corridor. He closed the door as softly as he could, and looked over the room for some way out. He tried the window, but it was on the first floor, and he didn’t want to risk the fall. Other than that ad the door, there was no way out. He reached into the drawer on the desk beside the bed and withdrew the only item he’d placed in there – A Pistol. He just managed to ram it into his pocket before the door opened slowly. One of the men in the Yellow and Black suits was opening it, and it was a man that Arthur knew very well. “Arthur? I sent Hurly and Francis upstairs to look for you, I had to find out for myself, please tell me you didn’t do it Arthur” the man said. “I did Jeremy. I stand by my decision though. He is my son.” “But Arthur, Rahn is your master. You can’t turn your back on power.” Said Jeremy. “I can, Jeremy, and I did. I’m prepared to face anything Rahn wants to throw at me for that boy.” “Did he kill Bell, or was it you?” asked Jeremy “I did. She was trying to kill him Jeremy. I couldn’t let her do that” “You were supposed to help her Arthur. Rahn wants you dead now.” He reached inside his jacket and pulled out a handgun. “That’s why I’m here” He cocked it and held it shaking in his hand. “I really don’t want to do this Arthur.” “Then don’t.” Said Arthur. “Let me go, like I let Matt go” “You know I can’t do that Arthur. My master, your mast-“ “Don’t say that. He is not my master anymore” “Arthur, the point I’m trying to get is this. Rahn will gain power again soon enough. When he does, we will be rewarded as his most faithful supporters. All we have to do is kill M-“ “No” Arthur’s voice was sharp and definite. “Matt will live.” He stopped to think for a moment, before finally carrying on. “I will make sure of that” “Arthur. I’m really sorry for this” Said Jeremy, his voice trembling as much as his hand. He held the cocked gun up to Arthur’s forehead. “Don’t do this Jeremy” Pleaded Arthur, reaching slowly for his pocket. “Join with us, we’re going to find the warriors now” He put his hand around his own gun “We can beat Rahn with their help” He started to pull the gun out “No, Arthur. My loyalties lie with Rahn!” insisted Jeremy “It’s not your loyalties. I know that if it wasn’t for that cut on your arm, you’d leave Rahn’s side in an instant. It’s fear, not loyalty” He had the gun all the way out of his pocket now, and he held it to Jeremy’s chest. “Now, neither of us want to do this Jeremy, but if you’re between me and my son, I have all the nerve to pull the trigger.” Jeremy’s finger was on the trigger, but he couldn’t pull it. Nothing in the world could make him kill his friend, even the influence of Rahn. His arm started to turn red along the cut. Instantly it was enveloped in the same red glow that Arthur’s own arm had been. Arthur turned to the door, to get Matt, but he stopped as he reached the handle, and turned to help his old friend one last time. * * * * * “Matt, wake up” said his father quietly. “They’ve found us” “They?” asked Matt, Still half asleep “The servants of Rahn. Get up quickly and get dressed. We have to leave”. Matt was luckily already wearing the clothes he had on earlier, so he grabbed his bag and followed his Father out the door to his room. They went through the hotel to the back door and crept out slowly. Once they were sure no-one was around they ran quietly and stealthily around to the front of the hotel and saw two men standing watch, dressed in black and yellow uniforms and Matt thought they looked like some sort of government officials. “The uniform is designed to make people think that they are here on official business, it makes it easier for them to go wherever they want” said Matt’s Father, seeming to read his thoughts. They went back to behind the hotel, as it was clear that if they left here, they would be spotted. Matt’s heart stopped as the door that they’d come out of was pushed open, his father acted quickly though, and pulled him behind some nearby bins. When the man had looked around and decided nothing was out here, he went back inside again. Arthur pulled Matt from behind the dustbins, and led him further into the alley; they reached a dead end at the next turning and just waited there, hiding. After a few more minutes, Matt heard the satisfying sound of the car doors shutting and the engine starting up to drive them off, hopefully as far away from here as possible. They crept out of the alleyway, Matt’s father making sure they’d all gone. They made it to the front of the hotel and moved into the street to blend in with the crowds. Now they continued walking, but this time they were under the cover of the midday crowds and they could move about virtually without detection, everyone would know they were there but no-one knew who they were. Even if someone did recognise them, they would be hidden before the connection could be made and forgotten in an instant. It reminded Matt of a book he’d once read. The book was about a witch, and Matt remembered specifically once chapter, where she cast a spell to make her go un-noticed. Full invisibility was impossible, so she’d simply made them forget she was there. They walked for another few hours and it started to grow dark again as the crowds started to thin out. Matt was starting to grow hungry now, and his father went to get some sandwiches from a nearby café. He emerged with two grilled cheese sandwiches, and Matt smiled. Grilled cheese. Matt’s favourite. His father had remembered. “Dad, what are we actually looking for?” Asked Matt, as they sat down on a bench. There were many other benches along the road, they were in what appeared to be a town centre, and there were people sitting on each and every one. Matt had been lucky enough to sit on this bench as soon as someone had just gotten up to leave. He looked at the people on the benches, and saw how happy they were. It was only now that he understood what his teachers said about taking what they had for granted. There were happy couples, sitting in each others arms, gazing into each others eyes, sometimes even sharing a kiss. There were groups of friends sitting at benches, some with skateboards, showing off tricks while their friends sat and watched, some playing music on their phones, some just sitting, talking and laughing. Then there were the families, just sitting around on the bench, siblings bickering with each other, and parents trying to control them. At least they had families, thought Matt. All he had was his father and Kaman. He had no house to go back to at the end to the day, no bed to sleep in; even now he was starting to miss his old room. “I don’t know the name of them but we are trying to find The Warriors I told you about.” Said his father, breaking the silence between them. “What do you know about these warriors?” “I know they are the last chance we have against Rahn.” “Who is this Rahn?” Matt had heard the name before, and already he didn’t like him. Although, this was probably due to the fact that this ‘Rahn’ person wanted him dead. “He is the one who-" He paused and looked ahead in horror. “They’ve found us again.” He grabbed Matt’s arm and pulled him up into the crowd, but it was too late, the three men were walking towards them with an obvious sense of satisfaction. One of them pulled out a gun and fired twice into the air and once at a woman’s leg. She was a mother, as soon as the man pulled out the gun she had grabbed her children, a boy and a girl who looked about 6, and started to run. Get them to safety; that would be her only thought. The woman fell to the ground and the crowd quickly dispersed, running to get away from the gunner. Matt saw the cuts on their hands briefly. These were definitely servants. Matt and his Father turned and ran, but it wasn’t enough. After a loud heart shattering crack, his Father fell forward, holding his arm. Matt tried to help him but he was deathly aware of the two men running fast towards him and had to run himself or they’d catch him. One of the men got to his Father and was dragging him over to a car, while another man seemed to be fighting against the other man. The third was chasing after Matt himself. Matt chanced a look back, and he regretted it. The man who was dragging his father pulled out his gun, and fired two shots, one straight into the head of the man who was struggling to save his dad, the second into his father’s. Matt turned into an alley and ran, tipping bins and crates over in the same fashion as he’d done when Belinda was chasing him through his house. He reached the end of the alley and it led to a street, also abandoned due to the noise of gunfire, and he sped down it. All the time his pursuer was coming closer and Matt was losing energy. Soon he would join his Father in the back of that car if he didn’t think of something fast. The gunman fired two shots but, by luck, they missed him and ploughed into the road. Matt tried to work out, two bullets had been fired into the air and one at that woman to scare the crowd, one was embedded in his dead fathers arm and two had been fired wildly at him, 6 Bullets, then Matt remembered the two that had been shot at his father’s head, but realised that they were from a different gun. It couldn’t be long before he had to stop and reload. If he could just stay alive until then, he might have a chance at beating him hand to hand. The gun man fired another shot and this one hit a parked car, setting off the alarm. That was 7, how many did one magazine hold? Two more shots. Matt didn’t have time to register where they’d hit though, because he started to look around frantically for something he could use as a weapon. By this time they had turned into what looked like a park and the gunman fired another shot which buried itself in a tree. Another shot ploughed into the ground and sent dirt flying in all directions. This gave Matt an idea. Three more shots and Matt guessed that the gun held no more. Matt yelled and fell to the ground clutching his leg. When he hit the ground, he had a sickening thought, even if this gun had no more bullets, the man could still have a second gun. It was too late for that now, Matt thought, he’d just have to hope. In seconds the man was standing over him. He held his gun over Matt and pulled the trigger. Matt heard the satisfying click which signalled the gun had no more bullets and jumped up, throwing dirt into the mans eyes. He then ran and grabbed two nearby sticks, which luckily were the same short length, and brought them down on the gunman’s back as he cleared the dirt from his eyes. Startled, the man fell forwards and Matt dug both sticks into the back of his head. One of the sticks broke and he had to discard it, this gave the man time to get back up. He reached into his waist and pulled a short sword from a sheath at his waist. This was not going to be easy, thought Matt. He ducked and weaved as his attacker swung the sword blindly, and seeing his moment, swung his feeble little stick into the bottom of the mans wrist, making him drop the sword, and swung the stick into the mans chest. He reached down for the man's fallen sword and his attacker chose that moment to strike, into the back of this head with his fist. Matt fell to the floor, dizzy from the blow. He slowly got up and took a moment to get his head straight when he realised the man was stood there, perfectly motionless with all of the colour drained from his face. At first he thought that the man had seen something behind Matt, but just as Matt went to turn around to check behind him, he saw blood pouring from the man’s chest and an arrow sticking out of the wound. The man grabbed at Matt as he was falling to the ground, but Matt stepped back, and he was forced to fall. Matt saw the archer running towards him and reached down and picked up the dead man’s sword, ready for another fight. The archer slowed as he approached Matt, held his bow up in the air and placed it on the floor in front of him. Then he took the pouch of Arrows from his back and lay it on top if the bow. Matt must have not looked like he believed the boy was friendly, because he kicked them to the side, where he couldn’t reach them. “Are you Hope?” he asked “I’m Matt” he replied. “Show me your arm!” demended Matt. “Huh, wh-“ The boy started “Just do it!” said Matt, reaching for his arm, he pulled the sleeve back, revealing his arm. There were cuts there, the arm was badly scarred, but there was nothing that looked like the one his father had. Matt pulled the other sleeve back, and found it stained with fresh blood. There was a new cut at the top of the forearm, and this was as scarred as the other, but still no cut that resembled his fathers. “You’re not with them then” “Rahn?” asked the boy “Yeah... Are you-“ Matt guessed who the boy might be, and paused before he asked “Are you with the band of warriors my Father mentioned?” “I don’t know which your Father mentioned but I am indeed allied with other warriors. Your name is Matt did you say?” He spoke with a Scottish accent, but it sounded as if he’d not actually been to Scotland for a while, as it was quite weak. “Yes” “Come with me Matt. I am Stealth” Normally Matt would not have gone with anyone, especially someone who called himself Stealth. What was that? A codename, obviously, no real person could possibly have the name Stealth. But what did it mean? He was sneaky? And why did he need a fake name? The boy held out his hand to signal Matt to follow. It was a strong hand; Matt supposed it had to be strong to use a bow. Matt had tried archery once, on a school trip. He failed terribly at first, but he picked it up quickly enough, although he still wasn’t as good as Stealth. Stealth had drawn his arm back now, but he walked over to where his bow was. He looked about 17 years old, with short blonde hair. He’d used hair gel or wax to spike it up and it looked good on him. His arms were well muscled and his clothing was casual enough. A t-shirt with the slogan “Read this”, a pair of loose blue jeans and on his feet was a pair of black leather boots. Give him a backpack and he’d look just like a college student, Matt thought. That was when he noticed how the pouch he kept his arrows in resembled a backpack. “So where do I go if I come with you?” Matt asked. Stealth had finished sorting himself out and turned to Matt. “Well, our base is about 15 miles from here, in a town called Scunthorpe. We can stop at my place on the way back. I haven’t got any parents; Rahn killed them, just like he did with yours, and regrettably, all the other warriors too. My dad left it me in his will though. You coming then?” “OK, I’ll come.” Was all Matt said. He’d been unsure of whether to go with him, but as soon as Stealth mentioned Rahn, it clenched it. Rahn killed his dad. Matt swore there and then that he was going to find and kill Rahn. “Lets go then”
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