Chapter 3 of the Renegade!
First chapter: https://scratch.mit.edu/discuss/topic/683435/?page=1#post-7216807
Previous chapter: https://scratch.mit.edu/discuss/topic/683719/?page=1#post-7220562
Next chapter: https://scratch.mit.edu/discuss/topic/687012/?page=1#post-7262765

Trigger warning: some violence, threatening, and the mention of killing

CHAPTER 3
The Overseers



As soon as we made it home, Evelyn brought Midnight to the little stable and cleaned his front legs. Turns out they were only mildly scraped, which is a relief. He was fixed up in no time. I didn’t stick around in the stable for long. I took Artax, brushed him and fed him, then went inside and lay down on my bed, thinking about the forest and what we had seen. Why would someone have that many bows and arrows? And why did they leave? A bigger question came into my head: what if Evelyn is right? What if we should use them? I thought about life before Castor’s death–when he, Evelyn, and I would hang out, play, and do everything that we wanted to. We’d take the horses riding, explore new areas, and live life to the fullest. He was always a little reckless, but I think that was what we loved most about him. And best of all: we weren’t under “lockdown”. Our little village was always active, with people walking in the streets, talking, and hanging out. Life was perfect. Our parents weren’t always jumpy; school was actually open; Ramiel’s shop was booming; I even had a knife that my dad gave me, which I used to practice my aim with an old tree stump.
I thought about how everything changed after his death. Our little, happy family started falling apart, along with our village. I stared up at the ceiling, wondering why everything had to turn out this way. Why couldn’t everything be perfect? Why did it have to be this way?
After about an hour of staring at nothing, I heard Evelyn enter the room quietly. I didn’t look at her; I just kept my gaze fixed on the ceiling. “Do you ever think about what life would be like if Castor was still alive?” I asked quietly.
She crossed the room and sat cross-legged on her bed, which was behind mine. “Yeah. You?”
I nodded. “If he had gone to the forest with us, would he have wanted to come back and make use of the shack?”
Evelyn paused. Then she said, “I think so. Seems like something he’d do.”
I sighed. I knew she was right–Castor would do that. The problem was, I didn’t really see a need to do it. We were perfectly safe . . . right? That’s what our parents always told us. But is it true? Are we safe, or are they just trying to protect us?
I was startled when Evelyn said, “I’m going back.”
I sat up and faced her. “What?”
She glanced at the door as if she thought someone might be eavesdropping. “I’m gonna go back to the shack and learn how to shoot a bow.”
I stared at a wrinkle in my blanket. “Why?”
“Because! What if there was an invasion? What if a pack of wolves came and attacked Midnight and Artax? If I knew how to shoot, I’d be able to defend them.”
“Always putting the animals first,” I grumbled.
She frowned. “What!”
“Nevermind.” I stood up. “We can’t go to the forest–Mom and Dad’ll find out and ground us for life.”
“Come one, Phoenix!” Then she sang, “you know you want to!”
The problem was, I did want to. More than anything I wanted to shoot a bow and be good at it. And why would Mom and Dad care? There’s nothing in the forest that could harm us, except maybe a pack of wolves, though they’d never actually attack us. And it’s not like they’d ever find out . . .
“Yeah, right.” I walked out of our room, lost in my own thoughts. I walked into the living room, but stopped abruptly when I heard voices arguing.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” I heard Dad say.
I heard a gruff voice that I didn’t recognize say, “I know who you are. You’ve been supplying the Renegades with goods for the last five years. You don’t have to keep lying.”
“I’m not lying,” Dad insisted. “I don’t help them. Why would I?”
I peeked around the corner of the wall to get a look at the stranger. He was surprisingly fit, and kind of reminded me of an ox. He had black hair, dark eyes like pits, and wore completely black clothes. A sword was strapped to his belt, and an ax hung at his side. He was tall, probably at least six feet, which was a whole three inches higher than Dad. He didn’t seem like the type of person that I’d wanna get in a fight with, that’s for sure.
The man crossed his muscular arms. “Oh, I dunno, maybe because your family is responsible for creating the Renegades, and you feel it’s your duty to help them!” he shouted.
Dad just shook his head. “I haven’t, and you have no proof that I have. You cannot harm me or anyone in this village until you have proof.”
The man just chuckled. “And what excuse did I give for killing your son? Oh, right. I simply said it was an accident. Funny how easily they happen.”
Dad threw himself at the man, pinning him against the wall. “Don’t you ever talk about my son like that again!” he shouted. “You hear me? You had no right. No right!”
The man shoved Dad away. “I don’t care about your son! You will never send anything to the Renegades again, or I’ll take everything you love.” With that he turned on his heel and marched out, slamming the door behind him.
Dad sighed, and collapsed on the sofa. I moved from where I was hiding and walked over to him. “Dad?” I asked quietly.
He looked up at me. “Hmm?”
“I-I heard you and that guy arguing. H-he said something about . . . about Castor. D-did he–”
Dad sat up and looked at me, his eyes full of pain. “Yes, Phoenix. Castor wasn’t killed by an accident here; he was murdered because of something that our family has been doing for the last twenty years.”

Awesome sissy!

WOW you are sooooooooo good at writing! I wrote like 2 chapters of smth but lost it sadly

Emerie_Sencen wrote:

WOW you are sooooooooo good at writing! I wrote like 2 chapters of smth but lost it sadly

Aww, thanks so much!! Omg I'm so sorry I hear that! Ik what it's like to loose your writing :'(

It's so gooooood! I love your writing. The characters are really relatable, the description is amazing, and I love the way you slowly reel us in with growing suspense. Super good, can't wait for the next one

Drama4Fun_10 wrote:

It's so gooooood! I love your writing. The characters are really relatable, the description is amazing, and I love the way you slowly reel us in with growing suspense. Super good, can't wait for the next one

Thank you so much for the encouragment!! That's so sweet of you to say ^^ The next one will be coming out tonight (otherwise Splash will kill me, haha)

Yes I will

Love ur book plot and way of writing.. btw I hv also written a book https://www.bribooks.com/bookstore/adventures-of-alaria

Here's the link.. pls buy if u like the preview or atleast leave an appreciation.. thank you

FUNDUME wrote:

Love ur book plot and way of writing.. btw I hv also written a book https://www.bribooks.com/bookstore/adventures-of-alaria

Here's the link.. pls buy if u like the preview or atleast leave an appreciation.. thank you

Aww, thanks so much! I'll check it out

This is so, so good! Becoming a writer as good as you is my new aspiration. The ending is so suspenseful! Luckily, you've posted Chapter 4 - I should go and read it.

fc_ghshsh wrote:

This is so, so good! Becoming a writer as good as you is my new aspiration. The ending is so suspenseful! Luckily, you've posted Chapter 4 - I should go and read it.

AWWW that's soooo sweet of youuuu! Yeah, I've written 7 chapters and I'm writing chapter 8 right now!

MusicCode17 wrote:

fc_ghshsh wrote:

This is so, so good! Becoming a writer as good as you is my new aspiration. The ending is so suspenseful! Luckily, you've posted Chapter 4 - I should go and read it.

AWWW that's soooo sweet of youuuu! Yeah, I've written 7 chapters and I'm writing chapter 8 right now!

No problem - I only speak the truth.

OMG plot twist O:

CoolWater826 wrote:

OMG plot twist O:

hehe yes, I love doing those *evil laughter*