Draft 2 – The walk project

It was stunning summers day when Stephan went off to the market to get food for his family. The Mediterranean sun scorched the clay houses made up the village of Lindos and the sea dazzled. It was days like this when Stephan loved to be down the market, as he got to immerse himself in the sights and sounds of the vibrant marketplace. Approaching the main square, he began to browse the stalls searching for the ingredients his mother had instructed him to get. Sun ripened tomatoes, mutton and cheese were just some of the many things he had now got in his basket. The square however was not as busy as normal. Rumors were circulating about a troop of rogue Spartans who were reported to have been pillaging nearby farms. They wouldn’t dare attack the town though, would they?

The morning came and went, and Stephan had finally finished his shopping. With a full basket and sore feet, he trudged back towards his house to present his mother with the days haul. As he neared home, a group of the town guards rushed passed him, fully clad in armor and clutching weapons. That was odd as usually in weather like this they would not wear their armor. Stephan decided to go and investigate after quickly dropping the goods of at home. He sprinted up towards the town gate, following the chorus of shouting in the distance. All of a sudden a stray arrow whistled past him, barely inches from his head, and pinged off the cobbled floor. The shouting from before was now joined my terrible moaning and shrieks, as well as the clashing of metal. Peaking round the corner of a house, Stephan witnessed an absolute massacre. The town guard had been cut to pieces by about 10-15 Spartans, who must have climbed a ladder to breach the walls. The remaining 4 or 5 guards were surrounded in a corner, clinging to life behind a makeshift wall of shields and spears whilst the Spartans slashed at them with swords and shot at them with arrows. They didn’t stand a chance against these men who were bred for war.

Sneaking over to the corpse of one of guards, Stephan picked up a dagger and tucked it into the waistband of his tunic. He then picked up a bow and quiver of arrows lay near another body. Being only 15, Stephan was too young to join the town guard but he had started archery training, that being said he wasn’t very good. Taking up position on top of one of the houses, he places an arrow onto his bow and drew back the string as far as he could. Taking a deep breath to focus, he targeted the Spartan archer sat atop the town wall. He waited for his heart beat and then let fly, the arrow now whistling towards it’s target. Bulls-eye. The archer keeled over and fell off the wall in a heap, causing the Spartans attacking the guards to turn. In an instant, another arrow left Stephan’s bow but failed to hit the target. The Spartans were confused and this allowed the guards to break out of their trap. At least 6 Spartans were slain in the confusion, the once beautiful cobbled streets now running with crimson blood. Stephan continued to pump arrows into the Spartans, wound 4 more and leaving them unable to fight. Only 4 were left now and they began to run to the ladder and escaped down it. Stephan was filled with pride. He had helped defend his people. Suddenly he felt a smack on his head, and he instinctively rolled aside. Behind him, a huge Spartan had managed to sneak up on him and began attacking him with his bare hands. Stephan was hit several times, pain shooting across his face and down left arm. Remembering the dagger he had hidden, Stephan waited for the Spartan to close in on him again. As the Spartan loomed over him, Stephan drew the dagger and drove it straight in the mans stomach causing him to scream in agony. Staring down at the blade in his abdomen, the man stumbled backwards before falling from the roof and onto the floor below. It was over, and Stephan was the hero.