Fanfiction: Tin Man (G)
Title: The Road Less Traveled
Pairing/Characters: 'Ambrose', 'Lavender Eyes', Ahamo, Wyatt Cain, 'Adora' Cain; 'Lavender Eyes'/Ahamo, Wyatt/'Adora'/'Ambrose'
Rating: G
Fandom: Tin Man
Word Count: 2,660
Spoilers: Whole miniseries
Summary: They make it to Finaqua and go on to the Realm of the Unwanted.
Notes/Warnings: AU! lionille wrote The Curious Case of the Mysteriously Missing Lady-in-Waiting In Training and andrealyn wrote The Path Not Taken and the two fics together gave me the idea of writing a fic where Ambrose/Glitch is born a woman and stays one. *grin*
Beta and plot-hole-poker: umbralillium
Sounding board: unicorn_catcher
Previous Chapter(s): 1. Rocky Beginning, 2. Smoothing the Way, 3. Hidden Bumps, 4. Getting Over the Bumps, 5. Roadwork Ahead!, 6. Repairing the Road, 7. Good Road, 8. Hairpin Bend, 9. At a Crossroads, 10. Choosing a Road, 11. Changing Direction, 12. The New Journey Begins, 13. Dip in the Road, 14. Surprise Detour, 15. Detour Becomes a new Road, 16. Idyllic Travels, 17. Abrupt Halt, 18. Broken Road, 19. Two Roads Merging, 20. Changing Direction, 21. Travels, 22. Clearing the Road, 23. Dead End
The Road Less Traveled
24. Overgrown Road
When they reached a fork in the road, Wyatt finally faltered. Neither road looked familiar to him. He turned to the others, smiling sheepishly. "I'm not sure which way is correct. It's been a long time and this was one of the first places Az scorched when she assumed power."
"Maybe DG remember?" Raw suggested, looking at the girl.
DG looked doubtful. "This all seems familiar, but I don't know."
"Dig deep into your memories," Makanu advised, resting his hand on her shoulder. "Concentrate on your childhood."
Wyatt watched as DG closed her eyes and focused inward. He jumped when he felt something brush his hand. Looking down, he saw that Glitch was trying to insinuate her hand into his. Smiling, he took hold of her hand and squeezed gently. She reciprocated it and he returned his attention to DG just as the girl started down one path. Glitch started to follow her, but Wyatt kept hold of her hand, watching as DG shook her head and started down the other path. The others followed and Glitch whispered, "How'd you know the first one was wrong?"
"Actually, I knew Finaqua was this way, but I wanted DG to lead," Wyatt explained in a low voice. "This is where Az changed and DG was the only one who saw how it happened."
Glitch was quiet for several moments as she considered the implications of her husband's statement. "You're hoping having her lead will help her remember what happened?"
"Yeah. I think it's something we all need to know." He nodded. She may not remember some things, but her ability to reason and deduce is still good...
Moments later, DG broke into a run, almost tumbling down a slope to the entrance of the maze that took up a good portion of the grounds of the Royal Finaquan Residence. Wyatt hurried after her, only able to keep up because he remembered the maze from his own visits. Glitch followed close on his heels with Makanu right behind her and Raw at the tail-end. When they emerged, they found the grounds greatly changed. The lake and manor house were completely gone, replaced by a forest of towering trees. All that remained of the home Wyatt remembered was the swing that used to hang in the lakeside gazebo. Now it hung from one of the trees and that's where DG sat. As they approached, she commented, "This used to be paradise."
"Not paradise now," Raw observed sadly.
Wyatt was sad to agree. He had fond memories of staying at Finaqua and now, to find it like this was almost as painful as discovering that Adair was dead. Her voice sad, Glitch added, "She sure didn't leave much behind, did she?"
"No, she didn't." Wyatt's voice was little more than a whisper.
A moment later, DG stopped the swing and stood up, continuing down the path. The other four followed her at a distance. Eventually, they reached a cave with strange markings carved above it. Wyatt was the first to duck inside after DG, followed by the others. They found her deep inside the cave, sobbing. She turned to them, gasping for breath, "I'm sorry, Az. All the terrible things that have happened; they're all my fault! I should never have let go."
"Let go?" Glitch asked the question, kneeling beside DG. "What are you talking about?"
Speaking between sobs, DG recounted what had happened that day so many annuals ago: "I thought I heard a little girl crying in the forest and I wanted to investigate. Az tried to stop me, but I insisted. We ended up here and found a little girl. When we turned to leave, she turned into an old witch. Az told me to hold her hand, but the witch scared me and I ran. When I turned around, she'd gotten hold of Az and these monkey-bat things were diving into her. Then the witch dissolved and disappeared into Az. That's when I ran to Mother."
"Oh, DG." Glitch gently drew the girl into her arms, hugging her comfortingly. DG resisted at first, but soon clutched at the former Royal Advisor as her sobs resumed full force.
Wyatt bowed his head, clenching his hands into fists. "They'd never have wandered off alone if we'd come to Finaqua, too."
"What do you mean?" Manaku asked the question, but Wyatt knew the others were listening, too.
He looked at the former tutor as he explained, pitching his voice loud enough for it to carry to the others. "After Adair, Glitch, and I became a triad, we would all travel to Finaqua with the Royal Family during the summer. That annual, though, Jeb was very sick and we chose to stay at our cottage on the Palace grounds to avoid risking his health."
"Why would our presence have made a difference?" Glitch frowned as she asked the question, unconsciously stroking DG's back.
He walked over to crouch beside the two, his eyes flicking from one to the other. "If we'd been here that annual, Az and DG wouldn't have been able to wander this far without an adult or two."
"Who is or isn't to blame is not the issue right now," Makanu interrupted. "What do we do now?"
Wyatt helped DG and Glitch to their feet. "I think there's supposed to be a message for DG somewhere nearby."
"Whatever it was would have been destroyed when Az razed this place," Glitch commented as they all filed out of the cave.
Makanu patted the former Royal Advisor's shoulder. "Knowing the Queen, if she left a message, it would have been done with the magic she had left to herself." He addressed his next words to DG. "Concentrate, DG. Let the Light move through you."
"But--" Glitch started to speak, but Wyatt clapped a hand over her mouth. "Quiet."
DG wandered amongst the trees for a moment, and then crouched down to dig through a pile of rocks. When she found whatever she was looking for, she walked to a spot and kissed the rock. "I hope this is the perfect day."
She threw it as if she was going to skip it across water. Instead of striking ground like Wyatt had expected, it skipped across it, like water. That seemed to trigger something, because the forest around them sunk into the ground and the Finaqua of old reappeared. An image of the Queen appeared in the gazebo and began to speak as they approached, "DG, if you're seeing this message, then you've overcome much on your journey to find the Emerald. The Emerald of the Eclipse contains the power to bring either Light or Darkness to the O.Z. As you now know, the evil witch of the Dark lives inside your sister. That is why she knows not of my plan and why I could only entrust the Emerald's power to you, my angel. Make haste now, south, to the Realm of the Unwanted. There, you must find a man named Ahamo. He will help you on the final leg of your journey to save the O.Z., to the Gray Gale, to the Emerald."
"Wait!" DG reached out her hand to the image. "Who's Ahamo?" She turned to the others when the gazebo remained quiet and still.
"Ahamo is your father," Makanu explained in reply to her unanswered question.
She frowned, walking towards them. "He's alive?"
"Apparently, if we have to find him," Wyatt answered wryly, inwardly relieved. He hadn't believed the rumors about Ahamo's abandonment when they'd begun circulating. The man had loved his wife and daughters dearly. "Come on, let's get going."
DG fell into step with him. "What's the Realm of the Unwanted?"
"You might call it the dark underbelly of the O.Z." Wyatt told her. "Full of criminals and other outlaws, it's where they go to escape justice."
Disbelief was rife in her voice. "And that's where my dad is?"
"Where else would you go when you don't want to be found?" Glitch asked. "The same place as all the other people like you."
* * *
Glitch stayed close to Wyatt as they made their way through the Realm of the Unwanted. Even with half her marbles missing, she knew it wouldn't be a good idea to get separated from anyone. They all stayed close together, even while they asked Airofday how they could find Ahamo and arranged to meet the Seeker. "I don't know about you, Wyatt, but I have no money."
"Don't worry about it," he murmured as they worked their way to the tavern in question. "Something tells me that'll be the least of our worries."
Makanu shifted nervously beside them. "I'd feel better if I shifted form. This place doesn't sit well with me."
"Long time since human," Raw offered his own observation, resting a hand on the former tutor's shoulder.
Wyatt nodded. "I understand. Go ahead."
"Thank you." Nodding, Makanu stepped back slightly and changed his form.
The four of them, plus Toto, continued on to the tavern. Wyatt paused inside the door. "I don't like the looks of this place. Why don't you guys wait outside and I'll cut the deal myself?"
"No, I think we should stick together," DG objected before Glitch could. "I feel very safe with you guys."
Glitch nodded when Wyatt glanced at her. He stifled a sigh and gestured Toto to a spot under a chair. As they continued to look around, Airofday appeared from behind a barrier. "There's nothing to be afraid of."
Her words must have been a signal, because the other patrons got up and moved away from where they were standing. Beside her, Glitch felt Wyatt push back his coat to rest his hand on his gun. DG addressed Airofday, "Where can we find the Seeker?"
"I'm here." A man not too much older than Wyatt and Glitch appeared from around a barrier on their other side. His clothes were dark and worn, his hands clasped behind his back.
"We were told that you know where to find Ahamo," DG told him, her tone indicating that she wasn't entirely sure she believed it.
Glitch didn't like the way the Seeker gazed only at DG. He hadn't even glanced at the rest of them! "Show me your palm?"
"What for?" Wyatt demanded, moving forward to protect her.
She held up her hand to stop him, speaking with a confidence Glitch wasn't sure she actually felt. "It's okay."
DG moved closer to the Seeker and held up her right hand. After a moment, he told her, "The other one."
Glitch exchanged surprised glances with Wyatt and Raw. How did he know? As requested, DG held up her left hand. He stared at her hand for a moment and started to smile, as if seeing the symbol confirmed something. At that moment, Airofday shouted, "Now!"
As the patrons who'd left returned, this time armed, the Seeker shouted, "We had a deal!"
Someone did something that made the lights flash and Glitch vaguely heard DG screaming and shouting. Unfortunately, she was too busy fighting off the men who were attacking her to do anything to help her young friend. Then they were trapped under the netting from the ceiling and the fight was over. They were caught and DG was gone, as was the Seeker. Presumably, he'd taken her away in the middle of the confusion. The Longcoats who gathered them up were led by the one Wyatt had called Zero. Something in the captain's eyes as he stared at her sent chills down her spine. "Bring them all. The Sorceress could use the others for entertainment at least."
"What? No!" The men who'd been fighting them protested, but the Longcoats brandished their weapons and forced them over towards a log waiting outside the tavern.
One by one, they were shackled to it. The last to be shackled, Glitch flinched at each blow of the hammer. "Ow! Yeah, that's right, abuse the one with the zipperhead!"
The Longcoat simply stared at her for a long moment, and then looked over her shoulder at Wyatt. Still gazing at him, the Longcoat placed Wyatt's hat on his own head. As the dark-skinned man walked away, Wyatt told her, "Calm down, Glitch."
"Calm down?" She tried to look at Wyatt, but the way she was shackled prevented her from doing so. "We've been captured and we lost DG to the Seeker!"
"He may call himself the Seeker right now," Wyatt replied, lowering his voice even further. "But I know for a fact that he is Ahamo."
"He's DG's father?" Glitch really wished she could turn and look at Wyatt.
"Yeah. He's changed, like we all have, but he's Ahamo all right." The ex-Tin Man sounded confident and assured.
"Look!" Raw's exclamation distracted Glitch before she could start thinking again. "Toto!"
Glitch looked over and saw the dog nearby. "Toto! Come on! Show these Longcoats what you're really made of!"
Her heart sank when the dog turned and ran off. She sighed and slumped onto the log. Wryly, Wyatt commented, "He just did."
"I believe you owe me something?" Airofday's exotic accent brought Glitch's head up and she watched as the other woman talked with Zero.
From their conversation, it was obvious that she'd set them up for capture. Whatever price she'd been expecting, it wasn't the one that Zero gave her. As his men dragged her away, one of his lieutenants approached and told him something. The captain nodded and pulled Wyatt's gun out of his belt, pointing it at Wyatt. Glitch was certain she'd hear a gunshot any moment and flinched in expectation of hearing it. Instead, Zero spoke, his tone light-hearted and cruel, "At least I'll have a souvenir to remember you by."
"Why don't you unshackle me?" Wyatt replied, his voice bored and unintimidated. "I'll teach you how to use it."
Zero's chuckle was cold and cruel and Glitch couldn't help shivering at the sound. "You surprise me, Cain. Not a lot of men make it out of the Iron Suit with their sense of humor intact. Let's see how funny you are when you're hanging from the gallows in Central City Square."
With that, they set off out of the Realm of the Unwanted. They didn't say much as they walked. All of them knew that they were marching to their deaths. Glitch could only hope that DG was having better luck continuing her journey with Ahamo. She found it hard to picture the man she'd seen so briefly in the tavern as the King Consort. Of course, she also found it difficult to picture herself as the Royal Advisor, so she really should know better. Wyatt murmured as they walked along. "Look up ahead."
"What?" She did as her husband suggested and frowned. It was just a bunch of people trying to move a cart off the road.
"Get this out of our way," Zero commanded them imperiously.
One of the people, swathed in a cloak, turned and called out. "I'm sorry."
"Now!" Zero shouted the word, obviously annoyed.
The cloaked man approached with a bucket of water. "Would you and your troops like a drink of water?"
Zero kicked the bucket and lots more people suddenly erupted from the trees and bushes, ambushing the Longcoats. There were deaths and injuries on both sides, but the people won in the end. As the others tied up the captured Longcoats, the young man in the cloak approached them and slowly pushed back the hood of his cloak, staring at Wyatt. "Father?"
"Son." Wyatt sounded just as surprised as the young man.
"Mother?" The boy turned to Glitch, then, surprise and sadness warring in his eyes.
She stared at him for a long moment, taking in his wavy light brown hair, brown eyes, and weather-browned face. Offering a smile, she waved as well as she could with her wrists still shackled to the log. "Hello, Jeb."
End Chapter
A/N2: For the record, if people want a visual image for Adair, picture Dr. Spencer Reid from Criminal Minds. For lots of pictures of him and the actor in other roles, go here. I have a hair fetish, so this picspam made me very happy. I especially like the season two hair. That's about how I visualize Adair's hair. Amber Rose is pretty much Alan Cumming with longer hair and boobs. I made a series of "dolls" of Amber Rose that you can find here.
Pairing/Characters: 'Ambrose', 'Lavender Eyes', Ahamo, Wyatt Cain, 'Adora' Cain; 'Lavender Eyes'/Ahamo, Wyatt/'Adora'/'Ambrose'
Rating: G
Fandom: Tin Man
Word Count: 2,660
Spoilers: Whole miniseries
Summary: They make it to Finaqua and go on to the Realm of the Unwanted.
Notes/Warnings: AU! lionille wrote The Curious Case of the Mysteriously Missing Lady-in-Waiting In Training and andrealyn wrote The Path Not Taken and the two fics together gave me the idea of writing a fic where Ambrose/Glitch is born a woman and stays one. *grin*
Beta and plot-hole-poker: umbralillium
Sounding board: unicorn_catcher
Previous Chapter(s): 1. Rocky Beginning, 2. Smoothing the Way, 3. Hidden Bumps, 4. Getting Over the Bumps, 5. Roadwork Ahead!, 6. Repairing the Road, 7. Good Road, 8. Hairpin Bend, 9. At a Crossroads, 10. Choosing a Road, 11. Changing Direction, 12. The New Journey Begins, 13. Dip in the Road, 14. Surprise Detour, 15. Detour Becomes a new Road, 16. Idyllic Travels, 17. Abrupt Halt, 18. Broken Road, 19. Two Roads Merging, 20. Changing Direction, 21. Travels, 22. Clearing the Road, 23. Dead End
The Road Less Traveled
24. Overgrown Road
When they reached a fork in the road, Wyatt finally faltered. Neither road looked familiar to him. He turned to the others, smiling sheepishly. "I'm not sure which way is correct. It's been a long time and this was one of the first places Az scorched when she assumed power."
"Maybe DG remember?" Raw suggested, looking at the girl.
DG looked doubtful. "This all seems familiar, but I don't know."
"Dig deep into your memories," Makanu advised, resting his hand on her shoulder. "Concentrate on your childhood."
Wyatt watched as DG closed her eyes and focused inward. He jumped when he felt something brush his hand. Looking down, he saw that Glitch was trying to insinuate her hand into his. Smiling, he took hold of her hand and squeezed gently. She reciprocated it and he returned his attention to DG just as the girl started down one path. Glitch started to follow her, but Wyatt kept hold of her hand, watching as DG shook her head and started down the other path. The others followed and Glitch whispered, "How'd you know the first one was wrong?"
"Actually, I knew Finaqua was this way, but I wanted DG to lead," Wyatt explained in a low voice. "This is where Az changed and DG was the only one who saw how it happened."
Glitch was quiet for several moments as she considered the implications of her husband's statement. "You're hoping having her lead will help her remember what happened?"
"Yeah. I think it's something we all need to know." He nodded. She may not remember some things, but her ability to reason and deduce is still good...
Moments later, DG broke into a run, almost tumbling down a slope to the entrance of the maze that took up a good portion of the grounds of the Royal Finaquan Residence. Wyatt hurried after her, only able to keep up because he remembered the maze from his own visits. Glitch followed close on his heels with Makanu right behind her and Raw at the tail-end. When they emerged, they found the grounds greatly changed. The lake and manor house were completely gone, replaced by a forest of towering trees. All that remained of the home Wyatt remembered was the swing that used to hang in the lakeside gazebo. Now it hung from one of the trees and that's where DG sat. As they approached, she commented, "This used to be paradise."
"Not paradise now," Raw observed sadly.
Wyatt was sad to agree. He had fond memories of staying at Finaqua and now, to find it like this was almost as painful as discovering that Adair was dead. Her voice sad, Glitch added, "She sure didn't leave much behind, did she?"
"No, she didn't." Wyatt's voice was little more than a whisper.
A moment later, DG stopped the swing and stood up, continuing down the path. The other four followed her at a distance. Eventually, they reached a cave with strange markings carved above it. Wyatt was the first to duck inside after DG, followed by the others. They found her deep inside the cave, sobbing. She turned to them, gasping for breath, "I'm sorry, Az. All the terrible things that have happened; they're all my fault! I should never have let go."
"Let go?" Glitch asked the question, kneeling beside DG. "What are you talking about?"
Speaking between sobs, DG recounted what had happened that day so many annuals ago: "I thought I heard a little girl crying in the forest and I wanted to investigate. Az tried to stop me, but I insisted. We ended up here and found a little girl. When we turned to leave, she turned into an old witch. Az told me to hold her hand, but the witch scared me and I ran. When I turned around, she'd gotten hold of Az and these monkey-bat things were diving into her. Then the witch dissolved and disappeared into Az. That's when I ran to Mother."
"Oh, DG." Glitch gently drew the girl into her arms, hugging her comfortingly. DG resisted at first, but soon clutched at the former Royal Advisor as her sobs resumed full force.
Wyatt bowed his head, clenching his hands into fists. "They'd never have wandered off alone if we'd come to Finaqua, too."
"What do you mean?" Manaku asked the question, but Wyatt knew the others were listening, too.
He looked at the former tutor as he explained, pitching his voice loud enough for it to carry to the others. "After Adair, Glitch, and I became a triad, we would all travel to Finaqua with the Royal Family during the summer. That annual, though, Jeb was very sick and we chose to stay at our cottage on the Palace grounds to avoid risking his health."
"Why would our presence have made a difference?" Glitch frowned as she asked the question, unconsciously stroking DG's back.
He walked over to crouch beside the two, his eyes flicking from one to the other. "If we'd been here that annual, Az and DG wouldn't have been able to wander this far without an adult or two."
"Who is or isn't to blame is not the issue right now," Makanu interrupted. "What do we do now?"
Wyatt helped DG and Glitch to their feet. "I think there's supposed to be a message for DG somewhere nearby."
"Whatever it was would have been destroyed when Az razed this place," Glitch commented as they all filed out of the cave.
Makanu patted the former Royal Advisor's shoulder. "Knowing the Queen, if she left a message, it would have been done with the magic she had left to herself." He addressed his next words to DG. "Concentrate, DG. Let the Light move through you."
"But--" Glitch started to speak, but Wyatt clapped a hand over her mouth. "Quiet."
DG wandered amongst the trees for a moment, and then crouched down to dig through a pile of rocks. When she found whatever she was looking for, she walked to a spot and kissed the rock. "I hope this is the perfect day."
She threw it as if she was going to skip it across water. Instead of striking ground like Wyatt had expected, it skipped across it, like water. That seemed to trigger something, because the forest around them sunk into the ground and the Finaqua of old reappeared. An image of the Queen appeared in the gazebo and began to speak as they approached, "DG, if you're seeing this message, then you've overcome much on your journey to find the Emerald. The Emerald of the Eclipse contains the power to bring either Light or Darkness to the O.Z. As you now know, the evil witch of the Dark lives inside your sister. That is why she knows not of my plan and why I could only entrust the Emerald's power to you, my angel. Make haste now, south, to the Realm of the Unwanted. There, you must find a man named Ahamo. He will help you on the final leg of your journey to save the O.Z., to the Gray Gale, to the Emerald."
"Wait!" DG reached out her hand to the image. "Who's Ahamo?" She turned to the others when the gazebo remained quiet and still.
"Ahamo is your father," Makanu explained in reply to her unanswered question.
She frowned, walking towards them. "He's alive?"
"Apparently, if we have to find him," Wyatt answered wryly, inwardly relieved. He hadn't believed the rumors about Ahamo's abandonment when they'd begun circulating. The man had loved his wife and daughters dearly. "Come on, let's get going."
DG fell into step with him. "What's the Realm of the Unwanted?"
"You might call it the dark underbelly of the O.Z." Wyatt told her. "Full of criminals and other outlaws, it's where they go to escape justice."
Disbelief was rife in her voice. "And that's where my dad is?"
"Where else would you go when you don't want to be found?" Glitch asked. "The same place as all the other people like you."
* * *
Glitch stayed close to Wyatt as they made their way through the Realm of the Unwanted. Even with half her marbles missing, she knew it wouldn't be a good idea to get separated from anyone. They all stayed close together, even while they asked Airofday how they could find Ahamo and arranged to meet the Seeker. "I don't know about you, Wyatt, but I have no money."
"Don't worry about it," he murmured as they worked their way to the tavern in question. "Something tells me that'll be the least of our worries."
Makanu shifted nervously beside them. "I'd feel better if I shifted form. This place doesn't sit well with me."
"Long time since human," Raw offered his own observation, resting a hand on the former tutor's shoulder.
Wyatt nodded. "I understand. Go ahead."
"Thank you." Nodding, Makanu stepped back slightly and changed his form.
The four of them, plus Toto, continued on to the tavern. Wyatt paused inside the door. "I don't like the looks of this place. Why don't you guys wait outside and I'll cut the deal myself?"
"No, I think we should stick together," DG objected before Glitch could. "I feel very safe with you guys."
Glitch nodded when Wyatt glanced at her. He stifled a sigh and gestured Toto to a spot under a chair. As they continued to look around, Airofday appeared from behind a barrier. "There's nothing to be afraid of."
Her words must have been a signal, because the other patrons got up and moved away from where they were standing. Beside her, Glitch felt Wyatt push back his coat to rest his hand on his gun. DG addressed Airofday, "Where can we find the Seeker?"
"I'm here." A man not too much older than Wyatt and Glitch appeared from around a barrier on their other side. His clothes were dark and worn, his hands clasped behind his back.
"We were told that you know where to find Ahamo," DG told him, her tone indicating that she wasn't entirely sure she believed it.
Glitch didn't like the way the Seeker gazed only at DG. He hadn't even glanced at the rest of them! "Show me your palm?"
"What for?" Wyatt demanded, moving forward to protect her.
She held up her hand to stop him, speaking with a confidence Glitch wasn't sure she actually felt. "It's okay."
DG moved closer to the Seeker and held up her right hand. After a moment, he told her, "The other one."
Glitch exchanged surprised glances with Wyatt and Raw. How did he know? As requested, DG held up her left hand. He stared at her hand for a moment and started to smile, as if seeing the symbol confirmed something. At that moment, Airofday shouted, "Now!"
As the patrons who'd left returned, this time armed, the Seeker shouted, "We had a deal!"
Someone did something that made the lights flash and Glitch vaguely heard DG screaming and shouting. Unfortunately, she was too busy fighting off the men who were attacking her to do anything to help her young friend. Then they were trapped under the netting from the ceiling and the fight was over. They were caught and DG was gone, as was the Seeker. Presumably, he'd taken her away in the middle of the confusion. The Longcoats who gathered them up were led by the one Wyatt had called Zero. Something in the captain's eyes as he stared at her sent chills down her spine. "Bring them all. The Sorceress could use the others for entertainment at least."
"What? No!" The men who'd been fighting them protested, but the Longcoats brandished their weapons and forced them over towards a log waiting outside the tavern.
One by one, they were shackled to it. The last to be shackled, Glitch flinched at each blow of the hammer. "Ow! Yeah, that's right, abuse the one with the zipperhead!"
The Longcoat simply stared at her for a long moment, and then looked over her shoulder at Wyatt. Still gazing at him, the Longcoat placed Wyatt's hat on his own head. As the dark-skinned man walked away, Wyatt told her, "Calm down, Glitch."
"Calm down?" She tried to look at Wyatt, but the way she was shackled prevented her from doing so. "We've been captured and we lost DG to the Seeker!"
"He may call himself the Seeker right now," Wyatt replied, lowering his voice even further. "But I know for a fact that he is Ahamo."
"He's DG's father?" Glitch really wished she could turn and look at Wyatt.
"Yeah. He's changed, like we all have, but he's Ahamo all right." The ex-Tin Man sounded confident and assured.
"Look!" Raw's exclamation distracted Glitch before she could start thinking again. "Toto!"
Glitch looked over and saw the dog nearby. "Toto! Come on! Show these Longcoats what you're really made of!"
Her heart sank when the dog turned and ran off. She sighed and slumped onto the log. Wryly, Wyatt commented, "He just did."
"I believe you owe me something?" Airofday's exotic accent brought Glitch's head up and she watched as the other woman talked with Zero.
From their conversation, it was obvious that she'd set them up for capture. Whatever price she'd been expecting, it wasn't the one that Zero gave her. As his men dragged her away, one of his lieutenants approached and told him something. The captain nodded and pulled Wyatt's gun out of his belt, pointing it at Wyatt. Glitch was certain she'd hear a gunshot any moment and flinched in expectation of hearing it. Instead, Zero spoke, his tone light-hearted and cruel, "At least I'll have a souvenir to remember you by."
"Why don't you unshackle me?" Wyatt replied, his voice bored and unintimidated. "I'll teach you how to use it."
Zero's chuckle was cold and cruel and Glitch couldn't help shivering at the sound. "You surprise me, Cain. Not a lot of men make it out of the Iron Suit with their sense of humor intact. Let's see how funny you are when you're hanging from the gallows in Central City Square."
With that, they set off out of the Realm of the Unwanted. They didn't say much as they walked. All of them knew that they were marching to their deaths. Glitch could only hope that DG was having better luck continuing her journey with Ahamo. She found it hard to picture the man she'd seen so briefly in the tavern as the King Consort. Of course, she also found it difficult to picture herself as the Royal Advisor, so she really should know better. Wyatt murmured as they walked along. "Look up ahead."
"What?" She did as her husband suggested and frowned. It was just a bunch of people trying to move a cart off the road.
"Get this out of our way," Zero commanded them imperiously.
One of the people, swathed in a cloak, turned and called out. "I'm sorry."
"Now!" Zero shouted the word, obviously annoyed.
The cloaked man approached with a bucket of water. "Would you and your troops like a drink of water?"
Zero kicked the bucket and lots more people suddenly erupted from the trees and bushes, ambushing the Longcoats. There were deaths and injuries on both sides, but the people won in the end. As the others tied up the captured Longcoats, the young man in the cloak approached them and slowly pushed back the hood of his cloak, staring at Wyatt. "Father?"
"Son." Wyatt sounded just as surprised as the young man.
"Mother?" The boy turned to Glitch, then, surprise and sadness warring in his eyes.
She stared at him for a long moment, taking in his wavy light brown hair, brown eyes, and weather-browned face. Offering a smile, she waved as well as she could with her wrists still shackled to the log. "Hello, Jeb."
End Chapter
A/N2: For the record, if people want a visual image for Adair, picture Dr. Spencer Reid from Criminal Minds. For lots of pictures of him and the actor in other roles, go here. I have a hair fetish, so this picspam made me very happy. I especially like the season two hair. That's about how I visualize Adair's hair. Amber Rose is pretty much Alan Cumming with longer hair and boobs. I made a series of "dolls" of Amber Rose that you can find here.