In the morning, I sat on the pile of rags I was using as a bed and spent around an hour or so oiling down my weapons I recollected last night. The putrid stink of goblin oil permeated my little shack but it helped me clear my mind, freeing myself of all distractions as I thought of what I needed to do today. Once the maintenance was finished, I tore a corner off of a page in The Foolish Sage and scribbled a short message onto it in Informal before stuffing it into my pocket. Taking a deep breath, I gave my cheeks a few slaps and left my shack, heading to the canteen for food.
Before yesterday, everyone I would pass by whenever I made my way through the citadel would only give me a nod in passing or if it was someone I knew from a mission, they would give me a quick “hello” before continuing on their way. Now, however, every person I saw would go out of their way to stop me to talk for a bit, mostly about yesterday’s events centering around the ambush and the citadel defense. The ones who were there talked to me like we were old comrades who went through hell and back together. The ones who didn’t take part in the fighting sang my praises as if I was a hero straight out of a fairytale. A little girl even gave me her apple as a gift before I handed it back with a strained smile. As I watched her skip away from me, I couldn’t help but wonder whether I could just leave by myself tonight considering The Fold only has a fraction of the men it once had.
The people I’ve run into seem enthusiastic after our victories yesterday but I’ve noticed how substantially deserted the citadel has become. Before yesterday, people would be bustling about with their business and it made this place seem lively even with how huge it is compared to its relatively small population. But yesterday’s events have shown just how disastrous they were with this desolate sight. I have no doubt in my mind I could find my way out of here, get Genuine from the stable, and leave all of this behind. There’s still a decent chance Gavin and a team could track me down and kill me, but with everything I’ve learned from him over this past month, I think I can evade his pursuit well enough.
There’s no need to burn this place to the ground. Aside from the 40 fighters that survived, there’s still 70 noncombatants here, innocent of all wrongdoing. Innocent? Are they, truly? This place… Rebirth Haven was built from evil. Wouldn’t it make sense it ends that way as well?
These people took… no, they’ve stolen four months of my life from me. They’ve stolen decades from Hawthorne. They’ve stolen hundreds of lives to fulfill some sick, twisted beliefs of a deranged monstrosity. They’re all evil, they’re all complicit, they all deserve to die. Even that little girl… alright, well, maybe not the little girl.
I've always known there were children in The Fold because I saw them running around the citadel before but they never really entered my thoughts. I was preoccupied with making sure the first few steps went off without a hitch to account for them but now that I’m at the final step, with my foot on The Fold’s throat, ready to crush it, I’m having second thoughts. Can’t I just run away by myself? If I have to, I can leave Hawthorne and the rest of them behind. It’s just… I really don’t want to. They’ve done so much for me and they’ve suffered infinitely more.
It feels weird to weigh lives against each other. It’s like I’m trying to balance my own feelings of morality with doing what I think is right. Is this what Derriv goes through every time he has to make a decision? What would he do here? What’s the perfect solution to everything? … What if there is no perfect solution?
Alright, alright, if I can’t balance it objectively, then what’s best for me? I’d have a much easier time getting out of here if everyone was dead. I’d have all the supplies for myself, I’d have all the riches for myself, and I wouldn’t need to worry about anyone coming after me. I guess it all boils down to whether I can live with myself if everyone here were to die.
Admittedly, they’re not all evil. It’s just easier to see them that way. Every person I’ve ever killed deserved it in some way, aside from the boy in the cave. They all tried to take my life and I took theirs instead. Even now, I don’t think about them that much but every now and then, I remember the boy in the cave. If I do this… the way I want to, will I have to remember that little girl in the same way too?
I wonder if kings have to make choices like this. I did say that was my goal. Maybe this will be the trial run to see if I have that quality in me. Alright, let’s burn this place to the ground. Tearing my eyes away from the girl, I head into the canteen.
Inside the canteen, I receive a warm welcome from everyone there. The ugly cook wants to ladle me a good helping of stew but I refuse, saying I’d rather have some hardtack instead on account of a small appetite. The hardtack here was made months ago and isn’t the most appetizing but at least it doesn’t use any of the water I tainted. Shrugging, the ugly cook hands me three of the biscuits, each more than capable of being used as a blunt weapon. When he offers me a cup of water, I look around sneakily and ask if I can get some ale instead. Smiling, he went into the backroom and returned with a cup of the yellow liquid, handing it to me with a wink.
Thanking him, I took a seat and had my breakfast. It took much longer than normal to finish it because I kept being interrupted by various Fold brothers wanting to recount things that literally happened a day ago. After I was done, I headed to Elder Neil’s residence. When I arrived, I was surprised to see he lived in a wooden mansion incomparable to my little shack. His house had doors, windows, and even wooden flooring.
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Right when I was about to knock on the door, it swung open and a well dressed man in his 30’s stood there with a big smile on his face. A moment later, he ushered me inside, laughing, “You must be Isaac! I’m Elder Niel but when it’s just the two of us, you can call me Niel.”
Once inside, he led me to his kitchen. His mansion is gigantic, probably 100 times bigger than my shack, though admittedly my shack is pretty shit. Seeing me marvel, Niel’s smile grows wider and he says with a chuckle, “Your accommodations aren’t much now but I’ll put in a few good words for you with the other Elders and we’ll get you a new place, no less than this. Don’t be surprised, you are The Fold’s hero after all. Now, try this venison I’ve just cooked up. I’m sure you’re sick of the slop they serve at the canteen.”
Chewing the slice of meat he handed me, I thoroughly enjoyed the first taste of meat I’ve had in months. Watching me with glee, Niel continues, “That’s just the beginning, Isaac my boy. Your feats have reached the ears of every Elder and seeing how the rest of the fold adores you, you’ll be granted amazing privileges from now on as long as you keep leading us to victory. I’ve also heard about your current squabble with Gavin and rest assured, those allegations will be swiftly forgotten.
“Eldon, like you said, was killed in the line of duty and he’ll be remembered as a hero of The Fold. But between you and me…” Niel stops talking to look around for eavesdroppers jokingly before turning back to me with a huge grin on his face, saying, “I don’t give a fuck who you kill as long as you do your job. The Fold has mysterious deaths every year and investigating every one of them does nothing except hurt morale. As long as you don’t go too far, the other Elders and I have your back. Though, keep it in moderation considering our current situation.”
Niel just smiles at me, waiting for my response. I think I understand why it took Gavin a fucking whole week to convince these assholes to approve the ambush now. They’re all unhinged like the Savior is. Maybe Gavin and I are the only sane ones in this whole godsforsaken place.
Smiling back at him, I respond, “I understand Elder Niel. I don’t have any more grudges with anyone in the citadel.”
Seeing me willing to play ball with him and basically admitting to killing Eldon, he beams at me and says, “Good! Ahh, I’ve also heard about your… infatuation with Sister Bella. She is an attractive woman after all and you’re a strapping young lad. It’s a match made in heaven! When you go back to your shack tonight, you can expect a present from me to you, cementing our partnership.”
“... Right. I appreciate the offer Elder Niel, but-”
“No! No! No need to thank me. Besides, our little citadel does seem a tad empty, don’t you think? Don’t be shy, I insist.”
Seeing how he’s not backing down, I can only smile back and say, “... Thank you, Elder Niel.”
“Now, now, no need for that, let’s go see the Savior in all his glory.”
Niel leads me out of his house as we head towards the Savior’s longhouse. The people we walk by all get down on their knees and direct their eyes toward the ground when they see the Elder. I did notice quite a few of them looking more happy than normal before they saw the Elder though and seeing their overly exaggerated looks of shock when they did see him, I think everything’s going according to plan. I mean, it better be. I’ve essentially invested 30 gold coins into making this work.
When we arrived at the Savior’s longhouse, Niel barged in without a second thought. Surprised, I followed him in and was about to leave my weapons at the rack when he said without turning back, “Don’t bother. You’re with me.”
Confused, I followed closely behind Niel. Instead of crawling on his knees towards the Savior’s throne, Elder Niel strolled along the rug with his head held high. When we arrived in front of the throne, it immediately started shrinking until the Savior, in all his hideousness, was eye level with us. Oddly enough though, he looked… afraid for some reason. Once the throne stopped descending, the Savior dismounted tenderly quite unlike the first time I met him and quietly hobbled in front of Niel.
Smiling, Niel said, “Hello father. How has your day been so far?”
Huh. That’s… interesting. The Savior cowers at Niel’s words and struggles to say, “G-Go-Good.”
“That’s good to hear. But I have to let you know, because of you, a looooooot of people died last night. A lot of my people died prematurely and couldn’t contribute as much to the fold as they could have. All because you. All because you lost your FUCKING POWERS!”
Niel grabbed the Savior by his frail neck and started choking him. Bewildered, all I could do was watch in stunned silence. A moment later, Niel threw the Savior to the ground and started stomping on him before switching to kicking his ribs. The Savior didn’t try to fight back at all and only whimpered in pain, trying to protect his head. I wasn’t expecting myself to feel sorry for the Savior today, but here we are.
A few minutes later, Niel finally stopped his brutal assault, breathless and sporting the biggest smile I’ve seen on him all day. Fixing his disheveled brown hair, he turns to look at me and says, as if nothing horrific just occurred, “Let’s get going, shall we?”