Warning: adult language and situations within.

In the Moon's Shadow

Chapter Two: First Encounter

1163 A.D.

27 miles from London, England

Outskirts of the village Rhisha

Relena landed with a bone-jarring thud.

One minute she had been falling, the next the ground was coming up to meet her.

Every muscle felt wrenched in the wrong direction and she was surprised her back

wasn't broken. She could feel sharp rocks poking through her cotton dress and

the fragrant breeze that blew quietly over her tickled her skin. The strange

thing was that she didn't hear any noise. Where were the crowds of people

cheering? Was she alone?

Groaning against the oncoming headache, she opened her eyes slowly, squinting

against bars of sunlight that drifted over her face. Above her, the green

branches of a tree moved in the wind, and birds called sweetly to her. She

scrunched her face in thought. There were no trees around the mansion. She was

sure of that. Maybe she had hit her head harder than she thought.

Muscles protesting, she sat up and looked around, taking in surroundings she had

never seen before. She had landed in the middle of a dirt road that stretched

across the landscape. All around her were trees that stood majestically against

the rolling hills covered with wildflowers. The sky overhead was a warm blue and

the air dancing hazily with the serenity of late afternoon. A pond glittered in

the distance and she could see sheep grazing nearby.

Immediately, she closed her eyes. She wasn't seeing this, she wasn't here. She

must have passed out in the kitchen and this was only a dream and soon Heero

would be shaking her awake and she would find herself back in the mansion. This

was all just a hallucination.

She took deep breaths, her racing heart slowing a bit. Of course this was just a

dream. A very realistic dream, but a dream nonetheless.

She cracked one eye open, wondering at the beautiful array of colours around

her. It certainly was the best delusion she had ever had, even the dirt under

her felt real, and she could hear thunder pounding in the distance. This had all

come from her imagination? Well, maybe she should take up writing as a hobby.

Take that, Anne McCaffery.

Under her the ground began to tremble slightly, a low rumble building in her

ears. She frowned, realizing it wasn't thunder she heard. Something was coming.

Her eyes flew open as she recognized the deliberate sound of rapid hoof beats

and, down the road, three shapes came hurtling towards her. She jumped to her

feet, wincing at the soreness of her body. She wanted to see the riders who were

coming, talk to them if she could. After all, this was her dream, she might as

well enjoy it.

She had only a moment to brush off her sun dress and rake a hand through her

hair before the horses were upon her, pulling up in a cloud of dust and flung

gravel.

The first thing she noticed was that the horses were huge, much bigger than

anything she had ever ridden. They moved and stamped, not content to stand

still, practically bursting with energy. Sleek muscles moved beneath their shiny

coats and she blinked at the power of them. The next thing that grabbed her

attention were the men themselves. All three of them wore scuffed silver armour

that glinted in the bright sun, through their heads were bare. They eyes were

hard and glinted dangerously at her, but she did not see, so astonished by their

armour was she. She had often thought of a knight in shining armour that came to

rescue her. It had been a daydream of hers, when things got too much for her at

work. More often than not, her knight wore Heero's face, though she knew it

would never happen. Heero was her bodyguard and, though she often caught him

gazing at her with more than friendship in his eyes, he only protected her for

the sake of the peace. She had accepted that, and buried her own feelings deep

inside where she couldn't hear the screaming of her heart.

"'Tis a farmer's bitch." One of the knights muttered, the one with bright blonde

curls and a long scar down his cheek. "Move aside, wench, lest you be rode

down."

Relena blinked at the knight's language, feeling more afraid by the second. This

wasn't real, right? She didn't have to fear these men, right? Then why did she

have the sudden urge to run away as fast as she could?

"Jesu, Alwain, look at her. Think you her husband would object to having a

little sport with her?" Another knight said, with a grin. This one had dark

brown hair and eyes that moved over every inch of her frame with lust in his

gaze.

The last knight had pale blonde hair the colour of her brother's and he glared

coldly at her. "She looks to be more than enough for all of us, John."

She took a step back, not believing what she was hearing. The minute she moved,

John was upon her, grabbing both her wrists and crushing her to his armoured

chest. He smelled and tasted of beer as he planted his mouth over hers, stifling

the scream that rose in her throat. She tired to wriggle away but his arms were

rock solid and she could stand there, panic eating its way through her. She

didn't even see the other knights dismount and move closer. Her mind was

shutting down, trying to escape what was about to happen.

<This isn't real, it can't be. This isn't real.>

But it was. She could feel very clearly John's hands on her and the minute he

came up for air she screamed as loud as she could.

"Heero!" Her frightened plea only angered the knight holding her. His dark eyes

blazed and he backhanded her with a steel covered fist. Her head rang from the

blow and she could barely see as he slammed her against the nearby tree, further

jarring her muddled senses. The other two knights closed in on her, blocking any

escape she might have had. Tears glittered at the corner of her eyes as John

kissed her again, and through it all, only one thought ran through her mind.

<This isn't real, this isn't real...>

* * * *

Heero did not like things he didn't understand, probably because there was very

little he couldn't pick apart with his sharp mind. But this...This was

different. He knew he wasn't in the Sank Kingdom, the air was too unpolluted and

the land was different. And he couldn't find Relena. He knew these things, but

he couldn't understand why they had come to be. They must be connected with the

falling sensation and the icy feeling he had felt before, but he didn't know how

or why. Still, he could accept all this if only he knew that Relena was safe. He

was supposed to protect her and he couldn't do that if he didn't know where she

was. There was the slight chance that she hadn't been pulled to wherever it was

that he was now in, but he doubted it. She had been the first to feel strange

and he knew that if it hadn't been for her hand on his arm, he might not have

followed her to this place.

Frowning, he looked towards the horizon, planning his first move. He would

search in circles, spiralling outward from the point where he now stood, then-

A scream interrupted his thoughts as he turned sharply towards the sound, his

whole body becoming alert as he recognized the voice.

"Heero!"

He took off, knowing only that Relena was afraid and calling for him. The scream

had come from close by and he headed for the road that lay not far away,

mentally preparing himself for what could be wrong.

But what he found was not what he expected.

Relena was pushed up against a tree, the right side off her face red and

bleeding as if she had been struck. Three men surrounded her, all of them

wearing armour and swords. One of them, the dark haired one, was preparing to

rip the thin cotton of her dress with a greedy hand.

Heero didn't even think.

He leapt forward, bringing the edge of his hand down hard on the back of the

nearest man's exposed neck. He crumbled without a sound, but Heero's attention

was all ready on the next. He flung out a leg and swept the knight's feet out

from under him causing him to hit his unprotected head. In an instant he had

drawn the fallen man's sword and pointed it at the man with Relena, his dark

blue eyes pulsing with protective rage.

"Step away from her." He said, his voice deadly quiet. The man half turned to

look at him, keeping Relena pinned between him and the tree.

"'Tis none of your affair of what I do with her." He growled, moving a hand

towards his own sword. Heero didn't give him a second chance. He swung the flat

side of his sword towards the man's head, felling him with a single blow. The

knight fell to the ground without having even touched his sword, unconscious.

Heero planted his sword into the soft earth at his feet, his eyes going directly

to Relena with no more thought of the men sprawled around him. A bruise was

starting to spread across her cheek bone, a large cut dripping blood down the

flawless skin. Her eyes were wide and dark, glittering tears caught in her

lashes. Pushing herself away from the tree trunk, she took one shaky step

towards him before falling into his arms, frightened sobs erupting from her.

He wrapped his arms around her comfortingly as she gripped his shirt, her tears

wetting the fabric under her fingers. Her shoulders shook under his touch and he

held her close as she cried herself out. After a few moments, when she had

quieted somewhat, she raised her head and met his eyes, tear stains running down

her cheeks.

"I'm sorry," She said, immediately, and he felt the sudden urge to tell her she

didn't have to apologize for her tears. "I just..I'm...I don't understand what's

going on. What happened to us, Heero?"

"I don't know." He answered, softly, touching her hurt cheek. She flinched and

he tore off a strip from his shirt to press it against the cut. As he kept his

hand on the fabric against her face, he glanced at the fallen men. "But these

are knights, and the landscape is not that of the Sank Kingdom."

She blinked at him, regaining her composure in the calmness of his voice.

"You're not suggesting that...that we somehow went back in time."

He arched an eyebrow and dropped his hand to make sure the bleeding had stopped.

"I'm not suggesting anything, only stating what I see."

She nodded uncertainly and her bright eyes pleaded with him, counting on him to

know what to do. He took it all in stride.

He would not fail her.

He leaned towards her, so close he could feel her warm breath on his skin.

"Whatever happens, never doubt that I will protect you."

She nodded again, transfixed by his nearness. With difficulty he stepped away

and retrieved the sword he had used. If they were going to run into anymore

knights he was definitely going to need that. He eyed the armour a second too

before dismissing it. It was too heavy to carry with them, but the horses...No,

they were battle-horses, and though he was pretty sure he could handle one, he

didn't think Relena was up for it yet.

"Come on, Relena." He said, finally, taking the sword belt off the knight at his

feet and strapping it around his own waist. "Let's go."

She hesitated a moment before falling in beside him, content for him to lead

them to safety. He only hoped he could live up to her expectations in this

strange, new world.

The two walked on, blissfully unaware of what lay ahead of them and unknowing of

the future they had chosen.

tbc...