“If we can’t take it against your will, then I’ll make you want to give it to us!” Cadmun yelled, as he landed another blow on Becket.
Becket grinned. “That won’t do. I have enough Armor and LP to go all day.”
The exchange refocused the men’s attention. Stick inspected Becket’s [Status]. He was right. Becket’s Life Points had barely taken a dent. Cadmun hit him again with a right hook. Then a left. Then a right again. But it’s not making much of a difference.
“I can go all week,” he said.
“But you don’t have a week,” Becket said, unfazed by the hits.
Cadmun went over to Shadis and extended a hand. “The axe.”
Shadis handed him the rusty axe, but not before adding: “Make it quick. We don’t have time.”
Cadmun nodded. “Now, what was that about armour and shit?”
With the axe in hand, he took a menacing step towards Becket.
“You don’t really think that I’ll give up my position at Carnifex because of a stupid little riot?” Becket asked, his voice shaking ever so slightly.
Cadmun lifted the axe above his head. “We’ll see.”
“Stop!” Stick yelled, taking a step forward to block Cadmun.
“Out of my way, Stick,” Cadmun grunted.
“This isn’t necessary!”
“Yes, it is. It’s part of the plan, alright.”
Stick looked over his shoulder to see Becket’s panicked eyes fixed on the axe. “Why did you start the fire so early then?”
Michael, who was on fire duty, responded: “We didn’t! We wanted to because we figured that you could’ve used the smoke to lure Becket back to us, but Cadmun told us that you’d be back and held us off.”
“Somebody else must have done it then,” Varyan commented.
“Doesn’t matter now,” Cadmun insisted. “Smith already ran off with the meat to get the wolves when he saw the fire. We need to move on with the plan. He needs the horse and I need that sword.”
“No!” Stick insisted. “The Lords have to leave. The Baron will probably have seen the smoke already. Our whole timing is off.”
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“But how will he get the wolves to the pantry without a horse?” Michael yelled. “That’s madness! He can’t outrun Dire Wolves!”
“Forget the wolves! He’s right! The Lords leave right now!” Shadis yelled. “Besides, Smith said he’ll find a way to lure them from one entrance to the next without removing the defences. We just have to make sure to get to the south exit where the wolves won’t be.”
“Sir, with all due respect,” Michael said, “have you lost your mind? The whole point of the wolves is to buy you time! Stamos will catch up to you in no time.”
“What good will those wolves do? Two minutes' worth of distraction?” Shadis pointed at Becket. “These men are monsters! The idea was foolish to begin with!”
“We need that time for Reacher to see the smoke so we can get his horse too. Stick has to come with you or you’re going to starve,” Michael explained.
“We can’t even fight Reacher like this!” Shadis snapped.
Cadmun tightened his grip around the axe. “If we stop wasting time and get on with it, then we can.”
Stick had an idea. He hastily opened his [Inventory] and took out the food and helmets inside. The items manifested in the air in front of him and dropped to the ground.
“The servants brought enough food for a day or two! The Lords can leave right now! We’re wasting too much time discussing this already.”
“Out of my way, Stick!” Cadmun pushed Stick back, making him land forcefully on the ground.
“You really want to do this?” Becket nervously yelled. “Assault with a deadly weapon against a Player deserves capital punishment! You and that bony beard over there will get hanged for sure.”
Cadmun took a step forward.
“Lord Blitz made me who I am today. He gave me my job, my title, my men.” Cadmun’s stern expression remained unchanged. “He allowed me to build a house. He allowed me to have a family. He allowed me to have purpose.”
Cadmun took another step closer, raising the axe above his head.
Becket ground his teeth. “Think about your daughter! You really want to leave her alone?”
“Lydia is a fine young lady. She will understand.”
“Cadmun, please don’t,” Stick pleaded.
But Cadmun wasn’t listening. “Lord Blitz gave me a life worth living and never asked for anything in return. Is it really that much to give it back?”
The axe came crashing down. There was no wound; Becket still had his Protection up, but still Becket reeled in pain. No, please!
“That’s something you Adventurers just won’t understand!” Cadmun roared at the top of his lungs, “You’re not the type to give. All you can do is take!”
He hacked the axe into Becket’s head over and over again, each clank taking a big chunk of Life Points away, as Becket’s cries filled the air. Please, stop!
“Take away my home!”
Clank!
“Take away my wife!”
Clank!
“Take away my best friend!”
Clank!
“I didn’t do any of that,” Becket hissed through the pain.
He started to cry as his Life Points reached 0, but Cadmun didn’t hesitate to raise the axe one final time. His face was bathed in the ominous light of the raging fire across town. You look just like Reacher…
image [https://i.imgur.com/7tV5XNT.jpeg]
“So maybe I shouldn’t ask you to give me that sword,” Cadmun continued, “maybe I should just take it from you!”
“No!” Stick screamed.
A jolt of electricity quickened his body and threw him on his feet. In a flash, he pulled Becket’s sword from the scabbard and swung it against Cadmun’s axe coming down on Becket. Instead of an axe splitting flesh, Stick heard a loud clank resonating through the shanty town. But this time, it was a different type of clanking. It was the metallic clank of two weapons locking into each other.