Despite what happened earlier, the moon is still floating high in the middle of the empty sky. Tonight is going to be a long night, for men and demon alike.
I follow the soldier named Lapidoth after taking back my equipment. He himself also takes new weapons to arm himself, namely those belonged to the dead human soldiers. With the swords and javelins he carries, the man is like a walking armory. The stench of blood constantly emits from him, not only because of the weapons he used to kill the soldiers earlier, but also from his armor, which got soaked during the fight.
No, that was hardly a fight, it was a massacre.
Beside his name, I know nothing about Lapidoth. Why did he show up back then? And how? Maybe he just wandered there after killing another group of human soldiers, finding new preys to kill for his amusement?
Even if I ask, I doubt he will answer me. It will get me more troubles if I do ask.
"Stop daydreaming, we have company."
The man suddenly stops his track as we take cover at a dark corner. I stand behind him, searching for the signs of possible enemies ahead. There are several sound of footsteps on the other side of the hallway. The sound of greaves stomping on the stone tiles. Armored men, roughly three or four men. Consider what happened earlier, they might be a group of hostile humans.
The footsteps are getting closer. Lapidoth puts his hand on the sword hanging by his waist. I also take out my handgun, preparing for another encounter.
Shiiing
Lapidoth draws his sword with the speed of an Iaido master, and probably even more impressive considering he is doing that with a Western-style straight sword. Whatever gets cut by such speed will be dead by now. However, Lapidoth holds back. Blood doesn't spill, since only the living can make a conversation, not a corpse.
"What do you think you're doing?"
His sword is hanging by the neck of an armored soldier. He is however not the enemy. The man is wearing a goat-themed armor, with a demonic goat head helmet. He speaks the demon's language. Accompanying him are three soldiers wearing the same type of armor. My allies, in a sense. They have their swords in hand, but none dare to do anything funny, not when someone already drew his faster.
"Thought you were the enemy."
Says Lapidoth as he sheathes his sword. To stop his attack midway like that, the guy is a real master with a blade. I doubt I can be as good as him if I ever need to use a sword, but I am not a swordsman, and I have my own tricks to compensate for that.
"If you are not a demon soldier I will gladly off your head!"
The man with the goat helmet takes off his headpiece. A bearded man with an attitude. He's the same guy who tried to harass me and Iola yesterday. How ironic for most of the parties involved back then to meet up once again in the middle of a war.
"You are free to try."
Lapidoth nonchalantly replies. The bearded demon soldier is visibly angry, but he holds back because screaming in anger is certainly unwise at a time like this.
"What are you even doing in this castle anyway? And why is that…thing…here with you?"
I presume the thing he said is me. Of course, I never told them I am a human despite being identical appearance-wise to one. I guess that's the nicest word he could use to describe me.
"Oh, nothing special. I just caught sight of a mouse whispering words to the cats."
And by that, I think he's implying the event earlier. Lucky for me, they don't seem to get what he's implying, or just simply too infuriated by Lapidoth's manner of speaking to care. If they know I'm a human, I wonder what sort of things they will do to me…
"Stop being vague and dodge the question! Why did you ditch the defense and run off to the main castle? Depends on your answer, we are authorized to use force and pass immediate sentence of treason and desertion for your action!"
The bearded demon soldier and his comrades draws their swords and point them at Lapidoth. They are serious with their intention to make the guy submit. I just hope I won't get roped into his mess solely because I am accompanying him. The man in question however still stays silent. His head holds high, his gaze fixed upon the ceiling above. Before anyone can make any movement, a loud sound of rock crushing the walls comes from the upper floors. While the hallway we're standing in is intact, we can still feel the rumbling shock above. The crash site is probably not far from here.
"I'm here for the same reason as you."
Lapidoth answers. Without any warning, the guy resumes his trek, leaving the other soldiers to tail behind in search of an explanation. Seeing that I won't do anything good by merely standing in one place, my only option is to follow suit.
"Since you are here, I guess the upper echelon must have noticed something is amiss. There's no way they would bother sending four soldiers solely to bring me to justice, of course. That would be four less bodies to throw at the humans."
"Even if you know about it, you can't just leave your fellow demons to run away when they're fighting!"
The bearded demon yells.
"By the time an official order is given, I'm afraid it might be too late."
I think Lapidoth has his reason, but he's probably too confident for his own good. Can he actually know there are human infiltrators inside the castle? Did he actually think he can take on all of them alone? I wish I have that confidence of his, maybe then I will stop struggling from pulling the trigger if an enemy shows up, or actually decide on whose side should I be.
With Lapidoth's lead, we climbs the stairs to the upper castle floor. This is the general classroom quarter, the place where I used to study back when this place still had some resemblance of peace. My classroom is just by the corner, but I can't freely go back to that place now, there might be enemies nearby.
"Your armor stinks. A Warg can sniff you out even at this location."
A demon soldier whispers when his nose gets offended by Lapidoth's lovely blood-soaked outfit. Of course, we're technically in enemy territory right now, can't have an out loud conversation for all to hear.
"Good thing a Warg can't fit in that rock."
Lapidoth points his finger at a crushed classroom in front of us. We slowly approach the place. In the middle of what used to be a classroom lies a big rock torn to four parts, the same kind used to transport the soldiers I met earlier. There is that same goo flowing from inside the rock. No doubt about it, there are some soldiers in this floor. The question is where are they?
"Ignisian alchemists and their wacky inventions. Never fail to amuse people with their tricks."
Says Lapidoth. So this is a creation made by alchemy. A trebuchet-propelled human carrier, I think. The goo is probably used to nullify the physical toll inflicted on the people inside. If it wasn't there, the people that got carried along would be a bloody mess by the time the ride ended. A clever way to help soldiers infiltrate a place, but not exactly a very practical one. People will surely notice when a rock crashes their castle. The only way for this thing to be effective is to use them in a chaotic siege battle, like this one.
But enough of that, there is a more pressing matter.
"They're not here."
I speak for the first time ever since the soldiers appeared. Don't want them to think of me as a mute, of course.
"Who?"
Another demon soldier replies.
"The human soldiers. They came here using this rock, but they're not here."
I answer. By the time we arrive, we should be able to catch a glimpse of them. Unless…
"This isn't the same rock we heard earlier."
Says Lapidoth. He seems to have noticed. The man walks out of the room, with all of us silently follow suit. Our little walk isn't long, it ends only minutes later when Lapidoth gives us his silence hand signal. And then, there come voices. Not from us, but from the enemy. I carefully lean myself forward from our hiding place by the classroom's walls, just to get a shot at satisfying my curiosity.
In a faraway corner, there is a group of four human soldiers, kneeling in front of another group that just recentely emerged from a newly arrived rock. Though rather than a group, they are kneeling in respect of another individual. A tall, bulky man in iron armor. He's roughly two meters tall, a giant in a sense. But that's not the most noticeable aspect of this man.
Under the shining moonlight, I see the dark skin covering his body. A black man. His head is bald and covered with exotic tattoos in place where his hair should be. He has a small black goatee on his chin. He has eyes that are as brown as the earth. On his right hand is an iron mace as long as a sword, and on his left is a big golden round shield so masterly forged that it looks out of place with this man's homely and ordinary armor set. But that little contradiction doesn't detract him from his charisma. He has the smile of a gentle father, finally meeting his children after a long way back home. A smile capable of warming the heart of men dwelling in this cold land.
This man isn't your mere everyday soldier.
"So the man himself finally showed up."
Lapidoth whispers.
"General Origen, the Black Paladin. Banisher of Demons. Defender of Man. Or so they called him."
Lapidoth seems amused, a feeling that isn't shared by the other demon soldiers. They drag him back to somewhere safer. Can't have a battle plan discussion right in front the enemy's ears, of course.
"We should fall back to the main army and regroup!"
Says the bearded demon soldier, who already has his helmet on his head by the time we discover the one they called Origen, preparing for battle at a moment's notice. His advice is sound and logical, but I wonder what will Lapidoth has to say about this.
"We can't afford to waste time. We shall deal with them right at this place."
Of course, the absolute mad man intents to do this with only five soldiers and a familiar like me.
"He's the goddamn Origen! Have you lost your mind!?"
The bearded soldier somehow manages to stop himself from yelling out loud and alert the humans.
"By the time we get reinforcement, it may already be too late, that is to say if the guys outside even have reinforcement to spare. Time isn't on our side. We need to stop him right at this moment."
"Easier said than done."
Another soldier replies. While Lapidoth's reasoning is logical, it's not like the other soldier is wrong. This madman is asking us to do the impossible: Taking down the dreaded human General and seven of his men with only six guys like us. It's not like I don't have my fair share of doing unreasonable things, but that's just it. Unreasonable is different than impossible. I can do unreasonable things if needed of me, but I can't make possible things that are impossible. The battles I choose to fight are battles I have a good chance at winning, but this battle...the success chance we have right now is only a bit higher than zero...
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"Of course, because we haven't done it yet. You can't win a battle you never start to fight."
What else do I expect from this madman?
"I have a plan."
Says Lapidoth.
"And what is that plan?"
Asks a soldier.
"Taking down Origen himself is impossible, that I know. That's why we only need to focus on taking out his men."
An army isn't made by the generals, they are made up from the soldiers instead. I think that's what he's implying. It's not actually impossible in theory, but there is one huge problem.
"Of course, Origen won't stand idly and let his followers die in front of his eyes. Someone has to be the bait and stall him for time. I will take the job, since I proposed the plan."
"Wait, you're making it look like we accepted this plan of yours."
The bearded demon replies. Of course, he's absolutely right.
"Then be my guest, think of something better than running back at the main army and bring in friends you don't have. If you can't, then do it my way. We don't have the luxury to waste time."
Regarding my earlier encounter with the humans, the map they showed me indicated that their objective lies in the Magic Art Department, which is the building next to this place. It will only take them roughly five minutes to arrive at that place if they move uncontested. By the time we have reinforcement at our back, it might be already too late to act.
"Do you think you can prevail over that black guy?"
I ask my question, which somehows put Lapidoth into silence. If I need to kill in order to help, then so be it, but at the very least my ally should be able to complete their task, since my life depends on it. Lapidoth may be a prick, but his skills are undeniable. However, Origen's combat prowess is also a mystery to me. Just because Lapidoth is strong doesn't mean he can defeat Origen. Not that we need him to defeat Origen, but it will be anticlimatic if Lapidoth dies within the first attack.
"Well…I actually fought Origen once."
Lapidoth doesn't continue his punchline, but his tone alone is enough for us to understand the rest. He's still here, Origen's still here, so basically Lapidoth managed not to get himself killed, but also failed to kill General Origen before.
"That's better than any of us."
Says another soldier with his sword already drawn. He seems eager for battle, a sentiment I do not share.
"Hmm, do it your way then, asshole."
The bearded man seems to have accepted the urgency of this situation. He yields with his words, but not with his sword. The rest of us also accept Lapidoth's proposal. Seems like we're going to do this after all. I'm not exactly ready, but this time I won't hesitate, not anymore when there are things need to be done. I want to protect this castle, and the memories I made inside this place.
"Well then, try and listen well. My plan is simple, but don't you dare forget your part."
---------------------------------
The paladin gathers his subordinates and moves on to their objective. Greeting them on their path is an empty hallway, some part hidden by the shadow under the dark night, some revealed by the moonlight hanging above the world. But there is no sign of the enemy, not yet. 'Melas castle is not a very lively place', the black paladin thinks. But of course, such emptiness is a blessing considering they are the infiltrators here. It will be a problem if they are greeted by a band of merry man armed to the teeth. This lifeless atmosphere is a good sign, somewhat.
-According to the map we received. The Magic Art Department is in the building next to ours. It will take roughly five minutes to get there if we're hurry with our feet, general.
A soldier explains. He's holding a map of Melas castle, a detailed map of this place's interior. Despite his explanation, the black paladin doesn't make any replies, which prompts the soldier to ask.
-What's the matter, General Origen?
-Shh. Close your mouth and listen with your ears.
The black man whispers. His answer is met with the confusion of his men, but they obey nonetheless. For several seconds, the human soldiers just stand there, using their ear to search for any sound that may appear. Aside from the tiny bit of noises from the battle outside, there is only silence among the hallways in front and behind them.
-We can't hear anything, General. There's only silence here.
-Indeed it is. That's the problem.
Origen replies, which confuses his men even more.
-I've sent eight men to infiltrate this castle ahead of us to secure the pathway. Even if they failed, I already told them to stay alive and regroup with us. But here we are, greeted by the cold night and the eerie silence.
The black paladin sighs.
-I'm pretty sure the last thing they would do is to let the silence take their job.
The other soldiers seem to have noticed their general's intention.
-If so, then…
-Something is wrong.
Says Origen.
At this very moment, a sound breaks the eerie silence haunting the hallway. A clanking sound, a sound of metal dragging on the stone tiles.
CLANK
Something is coming. Someone is coming. And whatever that is, it is not an ally of Origen. If the men he sent were here, they would greet him with smiles and laughter, maybe with a bit of beer they smuggled along on the road, but certainly not with swords and spears dragging on the ground as warning.
-Men, be on guard.
The human soldiers reply by drawing their weapons. They stand ready, and so is Origen. He has his big golden shield up, and holds firm his mace in his other hand.
The moonlight shifts to the other side of the hallway, revealing a man in armor underneath the darkness. The design of his armor isn't something made in the kingdom of metal. Its visor resembles the mouth of a skull. The darkness makes it rather hard to see the one behind the helmet, but Origen doubt he can see it even if it's in broad daylight. However, the most noticeable thing Origen see isn't the demon's armor, but the liquid soaked on it.
-You stink of blood. Human blood. You will look lovely as vampire's food.
Origen's expression stiffens, despite the gentle smile on his lips. The demon's appearance and the human-made weapons he carries are enough to tell Origen the full story.
-Though I don't know if they like minced meat.
Slowly, Origen walks forward with his weapon ready. The blood-soaked man stops his track. He's holding two spears in his hands. Their tips also stained with human blood. He's waiting for something, an opening, perhaps? But it's not like Origen has the luxury to wait. Soon, he puts more strength to his legs and runs toward the human slayer. He swings his mace sideway at his enemy, but the demon soldier dodges it with a backflip jump. As he falls in midair, the demon soldier throws his two spears at Origen. With a big shield in his hand, the paladin has no problem blocking the spears. In this situation, the paladin has more advantage. A chance has already shown itself to him, a small window when his enemy regains the balance after the jump. A chance the paladin won't let slip by.
-Your retribution awaits!
The holy man's righteous fury is given physical form by the shape of a white flame on his mace's end. Origen channels the power of light by swinging it down the floor, erupting a line of white flame toward the demon soldier. Unexpectedly, the demon soldier manages to escape his death by dodging. Using just one of his finger, the soldier somehow gains enough momentum to shoot himself out of harm's way. The line of flame keeps going until it is extinguished, it fails to accomplish the mission given by the man of god.
-You are no ordinary demon.
The paladin understands everything solely from looking the place the demon's finger made contact earlier. There's a small hole on the stone tile, with the size of a small finger. The demon soldier somehow generated enough force to push himself out of the ground solely with his finger. A soul energy technique, thinks Origen. He doesn't know what kind of technique is that, but because of it, Origen knows this demon isn't one to be underestimated.
-Not a fan of human words, I see.
The demon keeps his silence. He may not know the language humans talk, or maybe he just doesn't care. But there is another type of language which both of them know to communicate with each other. The language of violence.
The demon soldier begins his counter attack. This time, he draws out two swords. The demon unleashes a barrage of sword slashes at the human general. Origen is skilled with a shield, he mixes both defensive and offensive maneuvers with his shieldplay. He's an impenetrable fortress when defending, and an unstoppable earthquake when attacking. The demon's flurries of slashes do no good in hitting the man of God. Just when he thinks he has a chance to attack, the demon is met with a shield bash to the face, which luckily hits his swords instead when he realizes his mistake and goes back to defend himself.
'I can't defeat him', thinks the demon soldier. Even though he hasn't run out of steam, Origen's overwhelming strength is still making his will to fight waver. The paladin starts to approach the demon with his mace held high. His smile disappears, replaced by a stern and solemn face befitting one who kills in the name of God.
Only a miracle can help Lapidoth defeat a man blessed by Lielos's holy light.
-Salvation to all!
But defeating Origen isn't his original intention anyway. Lapidoth already knows he can't defeat Origen from the start. However, there is something else that he can do.
That is drawing Origen far away from his followers.
"Do it now, shitheads!"
Lapidoth yells, and there comes a bang sound afterward. From the darkness behind the human soldiers comes a bullet. It pierces through the helmet of the nearest soldier, reducing their number from seven to six. A number passable enough for the four demons and a familiar behind to think they have chance of defeating these humans.
"Charge! Kill all of them for the glory of the Demon Realm!"
Another battle of men and demons has just only begun.