The charge was not entirely an urgent or violent one as everyone was following the goddess. Jenna herself was taking leaping steps forward at brisk pace and thus all the adult men and women behind her were left basically jogging themselves. This left both sides somewhat unsure how to feel due to the strange sight. The town still kept its gates tightly closed however and what archers were on the wall did loose their arrows at the approaching soldiers.
Geffeld kept a tight grip on his sword as he jogged forward towards the gates. This was not the energetic charge he was used to when it came to an army attacking a town. As he moved he noticed that the arrows coming down from the walls were being redirected into the ground by an unseen force. Definitely the work of Goddess Jenna. He was certainly happy that she was on their side, though any mage could likely have done the same in this instance.
As the captain he felt it pertinent to stay close to their goddess as to relay orders from her. Thus he tried to keep pace behind the bobbing girl, his mind marveling at how she seemed to bounce over the ground like a butterfly over water. Those two books of hers on the blue ribbons stayed in position no matter how she moved as if they were floating separately than she was.
Once they were at the gates Geffeld could see how sturdy they were. The decades of attacks and occupations had resulted in sturdy gates indeed. They were made from thick wood and banded by metal, the mechanism for opening safely hidden away within the stone of the wall. Even with a battering ram this gate would be difficult to force open.
All the defenses in the world could do little to halt the advance of a goddess however. Jenna did not even slow down as she pranced forward. She simply held out her left hand in front of her and made contact with the gate. In an instant it split in two with a great echoing crack, split in two down the middle like a piece of firewood by an axe. Both halves fell inward and fell to the ground with a terrible crash.
At this point Jenna had begun walking normally on her feet as she advanced beyond the gatehouse. Any arrows that came down from above simply missed her as if they had never been aimed her direction in the first place. They rained down from above and straight into the dirt ground. Moments after their impact the sound of struggles and shouts could be heard about as who knows what happened to those men.
Geffeld jogged through the gatehouse after the goddess with the rest of the army following behind him, their mood rather calm due to the fact they were immune to arrows with their goddess around. He was about to speak when Jenna beat him to it.
Jenna's voice was firm and serious sounding as she barked out orders. She kept marching forward even while speaking, her voice echoing all around.
“Spread out throughout the town and subdue everyone as discussed. Mages take top priority as I haven't been able to constrain them all remotely.”
While she spoke the glittering dome in the sky flickered out of existence and the young goddess gave a big sigh.
“Keeping that up was draining.” She then raised her voice and pointed forward. “Get moving!”
Geffeld stopped jogging and turned to face all of his troops as they came through the gatehouse. He raised his own voice and motioned them forward with his arms.
“You heard the goddess! Forwards men!”
The street beyond the gate had not been empty of defenders during this exchange. Though the two dozen men and women standing there were rather ill-inclined to stand up against a force so much greater than themselves. As the horde poured in and surged towards them they threw down their weapons in surrender. Those among them that could use magic had already been bound by wriggling vines that grew up from the ground at their feet.
Their goddess's focus on minimal to zero deaths was weighing on Geffeld's mind as he watched the soldiers under his command rush past him with various volumes of battle cries. Hopefully their goddess's words were on their minds as well. He assumed they would be. They even had to rush past her on their way to apprehend the defenders standing in the street.
All of the civilians had done the sensible thing and hidden themselves away inside their homes. The windows were shuttered and doors barred. With the lack of warning before the attack they had been given no chance to flee and thus this was their only hope for survival. In a normal attack Geffeld knew many of their lives would have been forfeit and their possessions looted. Goddess Jenna had specifically denounced these things and thus these people were more safe than they realized.
Jenna's voice echoed through Geffeld's head and presumably everyone in their army's head as well.
“Spread out through the town and make sure all the exists are defended. Make sure all defenders are disarmed and restrained if necessary. Pray to me if anything gets dangerous and I'll take care of it.”
Upon being given this mental command everyone obeyed and spread out through the streets, the lack of torches or fire making it a very strange attack indeed. It was the most peaceful town takeover Geffeld had ever seen. He decided to stick with the goddess as he had originally planned and ran over to her follow behind her.
Jenna was marching down one of the side alleys with her hands stuffed hidden in the pockets of her jacket. Her dress swirled about her while sparkling in the midday sun. This cast golden lights all along the shadows of the alley. Her expression however was one of intense focus, almost angry, with her head tilted slightly downwards as she walked.
Geffeld jogged up behind her and then slowed down to a walk. This allowed him to catch his breath, though he kept his sword at the ready in hand.
“Great goddess!” He said. “Things seem to be going well.”
Without turning her head Jenna grunted. If her human companion had been in front of her he would have seen her eyes darting to and fro, her gaze stunning the people that peered out from the windows.
Unsure if he had done something wrong Geffeld offered an apology.
“My goddess I did not mean to offend-”
Jenna cut him off with a impatient sounding tone.
“You're fine Geffeld.”
They had reached the end of the alleyway and walked out into the street beyond. Immediately the two men who had been waiting there in ambush leapt upon them with a fierce battle cry. They were clearly defenders of the town and were prepared to die rather than submit.
Geffeld was caught completely off guard and raised his sword much too late to defend himself. He had not even needed to do even that. He watched in amazement as the two books floating beside Jenna whirled around and opened aimed at the two attackers. They then each blasted out a torrent of water which knocked their offenders back as if they had been caught in a surging river.
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Both men were sent flying backwards a dozen feet by the rushing water which stopped pouring from the books after only a few seconds. With painful sounding thuds they landed on the street, their weapons ripped from their hands by the water as it rushed down the street to settle in puddles somewhere. They lay there groaning as the little girl kept walking past completely ignoring them.
Geffeld heard himself gulp as he splashed through the standing water and skirted through the two bruised men on the ground. He then battled for several moments in his mind whether he should try speaking to Jenna again. While thus debating he kept hurrying after her down the street until she made another sharp turn to the right.
The sounds of small fights could be heard all around with the shouts and clangs of metal on metal. They could even see some of these play out as they walked, though the defenders rarely stood a chance. These were mostly bandits and mercenaries and stood little chance against trained soldiers. There was also the fact the attackers would be aided by their goddess in magical ways at the drop of a hat. A deathless takeover seemed all but inevitable.
Jenna's pace picked up again which forced Geffeld to jog after her. She was taking many quick turns which seemed to be zig-zagging them through the town.
Finally working up the courage to speak again Geffeld jogged up closer behind her.
“Um. Goddess.” He said between breaths. “Where are we going?”
A rather disgruntled scoff from Jenna as she moved her hands from the pockets to behind her back. Now she was floating over the ground instead of walking, almost if she felt they were not making good enough pace.
“I told you.” She replied. “To the castle to speak to the duke and wife.” She then turned her head to look over her shoulder at the captain. There was a certain degree of judgment in her eyes. “Are you unable to keep up?”
Geffeld's heart almost stopped beating as those eyes pierced through his very soul. The surprised caused him to trip up and almost fall over on his face. Meanwhile his voice stammered out of his mouth.
“W-Well goddess I-”
Jenna turned her head forward again and lifted her left hand for a moment before lowering it again. With this movement Geffeld felt his body lifting up into the air as if being lifted by unseen hands. It was terrifying at first, his limbs flailing about only to meet with no resistance.
His panic passed just as quickly as it had come over him however. This force lifting him, it was gentle and firm. Perhaps bringing back deep memories he had of his mother holding him when he was just a babe. For whatever reason it made him relaxed as he hung limp there in the air, pushed along like a banner in invisible wind. He let out a deep sigh as he floated down the street after his goddess.
Geffeld had no idea what his goddess was thinking or why she seemed to be in a sour mood. He at least felt this attack was going well. It had only been a few minutes since they started their attack and the sounds of fighting were already dying down. Their victory was certain. The relative peaceful nature of the takeover had also meant there had been very little streaming or yelling from assaulted townspeople. The lack of women screaming was strange but comforting.
As the floating captain looked up he could see the castle was just ahead and in another moment he floated out into the main street behind the goddess. It was a straight shot to the castle walls.
Suddenly Jenna's demeanor changed as Geffeld heard what must have been a woman screaming. It sounded quite far away and he could just barely make it out. Jenna had clearly heard it and did not look very happy. Her shoulders tensed up and her left hand whipped out to her left. It ignited in crimson flames which spread up her arm and across her shoulders, even going up as far as her head.
Geffeld was suddenly jerked forwards at high speed as his goddess blasted off in the air faster than any bird. In an instant she had darted between two buildings and away from sight. He followed her in her wake at a much slower speed, though he still felt like a stone being hurled from a catapult.
After being tugged down several alleys and into another street he found himself floating about twenty feet away from a terribly frightening scene.
There two of his men were bound up by those grasping vines Goddess Jenna was so well known for, though these were covered in painful looking thorns that dug into the clothing and flesh of their captives. Both men were on their knees and bent over backwards with looks of pure terror on their faces. Jenna was floating above them with her upper body all ablaze as fury burned in her glowing eyes. Even her books seemed to float over the two men from their ribbons like wolves over a felled animal, their bindings open like hungry mouths.
Nearby a woman lay on the ground with her clothing ripped apart revealing her naked body to the world. She was just as terrified of the little girl herself, too stunned to even blink. Behind her who might have been her husband was also frozen in fear, though a large cut on his arm showed that he had been part of a scuffle.
Those few bystanders that were gathered around could tell what had transpired just as well as Geffeld could. This had been a molesting and perhaps would have turned into a rape. While a normal event in any hostile takeover it had been something the goddess had specifically prohibited.
Jenna was in the middle of raging at the two soldiers.
“Which reflects back on me you see?” She then pointed her left index finger at them angrily. “Give me one reason not to execute you on the spot!”
Both men had long since soiled themselves and were left blubbering nonsense in their terror. They could be assumed to be begging for their lives though their words were hardly audible through their tears.
A child's voice interjected itself into the scene. A young girl's voice chiming from the door of the house.
“Mother?”
All eyes turned to look at the doorway. There stood a little girl no more than six years old in a plain dress. Her eyes were wide with fear and at the sight of the goddess terror began to overcome her as well. The man who was clearly her father moved in front of her instinctively, his body moving despite his own terror.
Jenna's demeanor instantly changed at the appearance of the little girl. The flames on her body vanished without even a puff of smoke and she landed on the ground. Both books closed and floated closer to her body, their threatening appearance fading alongside the fury on their master's face. While the goddess's face was no longer filled with rage her eyes remained glowing with eyes still narrowed in anger.
Thus calmed she turned away from the two men and towards Geffeld. She gave a stern look to a couple of the soldiers in her army and then gestured to the two bound ones.
“Shackle them and take them away.” She commanded. “They shall be tried under human laws and face whatever judgment is placed upon them.” Her hands then moved behind her back and she began walking away. “See to it everyone here spreads this tale far and wide. So that everyone knows what this act will get them.”
The anger still burned in the goddess's glowing eyes like burning embers as she walked away. Geffeld could ever swear there was a small whift of smoke coming from the top of her head. However in spite of this the danger had clearly passed, her wrath prevented from causing any widespread damage.
She glanced up at her army captain who was still floating in the air and even though her gaze was fierce Geffeld could feel her ire was not directed at him at all. She then spoke in a tone that betrayed a controlled rage.
“I'll not judge you for your men's actions.” She said coldly. “Only the greatest leaders can control every single man under their command.”
Geffeld felt a wave of panic rush over him as he had clearly almost been held responsible for this himself. It was true what she said and usually the superior was held accountable for the actions of his men. A great deal of relief came over him as his goddess told him he was off the hook this time.
“I-It w-wont happen a-again!” He stammered.
Jenna looked up at him with narrowed eyes and then turned away to look down the street.
“Oh I know it wont.” She replied coldly. “At least not in this army. Or any of the armies the soldiers in this one find themselves part of in the future.”
She then loosened her shoulders and let out a great sigh, the very air expelled from her mouth shimmering with heat as if it was a great blast furnace. As this intense blast of searing air left her body her demeanor became much more relaxed. Almost as if the very rage inside her had been expelled.
“Alright.” She said more calmly. “On to the castle.”
With this said she once again lifted into the air and floated down the street like a swift bird. Geffeld was dragged behind her in the air once again, the cobblestones rushing under his feet as he was swept towards their destination. What fate awaited the nobles he wondered?