Chapter 35: Flight At Night
Landar
[AUTHOR NOTE: This is the last Landar chapter of Part 1. I hope you’ve enjoyed his journey so far as much as I have :) We’ll see more of him soon. I promise.]
I found my way out of the temple complex by dodging through the central chapel, where the gray supported by the city knights were putting up a fighting retreat, and then cutting through a set of offices on the far side. When I emerged into the night, I found all was quiet around me. The sounds of fighting sounded muffled and distant, and in front of me was a small garden that butted up against the protective outer wall.
It didn’t take long for me to find a side door that was barred from this side with heavy metal straps, and powerful enchantments. Luckily for me, the door was designed to keep people out, not in. It was the work of a few moments to unlock the door, remove the bars, and make my way out onto the cobbled stone street beyond.
I was far away from where the fighting was happening, on a side street that ran along where the temple wall intersected with the city wall, that kept the noble district separate from the lower district. I turned around, and used my ax to carve a notch into the stone large enough that I could easily pick the door from the outside.
This will be perfect for when I bring help. Don’t worry Tabitha, we’ll get you out of there.
A roar of rage erupted from seemingly every direction, and reinforcements began rushing in from all the side streets. Knights, wizards, men-at-arms, clerics, and to my shock even several mobs of angry peasants who had joined the fight on the side of the Gray. They carried little in the way of proper weaponry, mostly pitchforks, hammers, or makeshift spears. But their anger, and numbers, were enough to give me hope they might have some kind of positive effect on the outcome.
I looked for my Tomas and found him leading his front line squad forward, supported by my mothers squad close on their heels.
Why the hell are they going forward? I followed their trajectory and found a gaggle of some twenty orphans running for their lives away from the fighting retreat of the knights. Mother Margaret had a glowing white magical shield raised behind them, protecting the fleeing children from arrows, or stray spells not intended for them specifically, but were a near constant hazard of being anywhere near such intense fighting
The Lord Collector was the only thing keeping the steadily retreating line from breaking, I could see that clearly enough. Knights and clerics bowed and bent, but the line never broke. Wherever it seemed like it was about too, he flashed in and ended the life of a blue armored warrior, wizard, or knight, relieving the pressure just enough for it to hold.
Then he was off again in a flash to some other critical area of the battle.
I moved as quickly as I could towards Tomas’s people. I wanted to do my part in supporting them. Besides, I thought. Once the orphans are free and clear, I'll take Tomas through the side door and rescue Tabitha.
Before I reached the halfway point enemy knights began jumping over the lines like paratroopers. Landing admits cracked stones, and pluming dust. They menaced the reinforcements, slowing them down and in the case of the peasant mobs sending them scattering and running with flames leaping from their swords.
More for show and intimidation than an attempt to actually harm the civilians. I suppose not everyone working for the Blue are complete degenerates.
A knight landed directly between Tomas’s charging force, and the fleeing orphans. When he stood, I recognized his special armor from inside. That’s the knight leading the fight. We’re in trouble.
I gripped my axes, and pulled them from their loops. I wasn’t delusional. I heavily doubted I could even scratch the guy's armor, let alone actually win a fight with him. But it was the only thing I could think of.
Until a blast of pure white light knocked him to his knees from behind. Mother Margaret blasted him with another spell. “Run children! Get into the city!” she let loose another spell, keeping the knight on his knees while the children flowed around the fight like water around a rock.
Tomas’s men grabbed the smaller children, turned, and ran for the cover of the barricades and the other soldiers of the watch waiting to take in those fleeing the fight. Tomas however, stayed. His club in one hand, his new mace throbbing with a cold magical energy in the other.
“Flee Gaudhaus! I’ll deal with this one.” Margaret demanded but Tomas just shook his head.
“Can’t let you face danger alone. Not after what you’ve done for me and mine.” He charged in, legs pumping like pistons, and just as maragrats latest spell ended, he brought both his weapons down in an overhead swing on the knight's helmeted skull.
I was still running, but to where, I wasn’t sure. Towards Tomas, towards the fight. But, if I got involved, I'd only distract them. Damn it, I'm not strong enough yet! They’re not strong enough either. What the hell am I supposed to do?!
“Landar!” Elsbeth's voice, at a near shrill panic filled my ears, and I couldn’t help but watch as Elsbeth ran from cover near the entrance to the street where the other warriors were, and towards me. Desperation and panic in her eyes as she reached for me. To pull me to safety.
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I turned, and discovered something that nearly made my heart stop. Another knight falling from the sky.
I’m too close. I threw myself towards Elsbeth, and slammed into her using Dash with as much energy as I could. We were propelled nearly a yard away, and we skidded to a halt prone on the ground in a heap of arms and legs.
Eslbeth gasped for air. I had hit her right in the lower diagram. Sorry mom! I thought, but didn’t have time to say. The ground right where we would have met cracked, as another knight stood from where he hand landed, and raised his sword in challenge to me. I got to my feet and ignored the bastard. I began dragging her towards safety.
A lance of fire erupted from somewhere behind the Guard’s lines, and impacted on the knights armor. I heard a grunt of pain, and chanced a glance behind me. The knight had been knocked back several feet and prone to the ground. His sword had been sent sprawling off into the darkness and chaos of the night.
I glanced back towards where the fire had come from and found Oswald, grim faced, the faint light of a fire spell diminishing around his outstretched hand. Crossbow bolts whizzed by me, and dinged almost rhythmically against metal armor as the rest of my fathers men joined the fight. Each one zipped, and cracked like a bullet against sheer steel plate. The effect was loud, distracting, and I was sure it was at least mildly painful to the men they were targeting. No matter how powerful they were.
I pulled Elsbeth, now gasping for air back behind the cover of the closet barricade. An overturned cart, reinforced with sandbags and stone. The magical healer immediately went to cast a simple spell on her, one that eased her breathing but seemed to strain the young priest who cast it.
“Still new to casting alone.” He tried to say, but I waived off his explanation. He was doing his best, and my mother wasn’t really injured. Just had the wind knocked out of her. My attention turned back to the two knights.
The second knight was a frightening sight. His armor was riddled with dents from the nearly constant barrage of heavy crossbow bolts, his cape was burning, probably a leftover effect from Oswalds spell, and in several small gaps in the armor thick looking bolts had found purchase. Whoever he was, he was not having a good day.
And I was about to make it much, much worse.
Lifting my hatchets, I ran straight towards the knight.
“Cease fire! You’ll hit Landar!” I heard Oswalds voice thunder over the line and the barrage quickly ended. The knight staggered, as if his body weight had been at least partially upheld by the attacks. As he did, I Dashed directly under his knees. At that same moment I Imbued my Battle Ax. Both weapons impacted square in the groin as I passed under his legs on my knees and skidded to a halt a few feet past him.
The axs themselves didn’t do much but dent his codpiece. He bent double, the pain overwhelming his senses. But he didn’t have much time to recover before the Imbued Strike erupted straight through the weakened codpiece and up through his body.
I don’t know if I killed him. But the sounds he made were not made by a healthy man. And the smell that came from his unmoving body indicated he had lost full motor control.
As Oswald and several spearmen charged forward to take the man prisoner, if he was still alive, I turned my attention to the other fight.
Tomas charged past the kneeling knight and attacked the man. Landing blows that would have decapitated a cow if my guess was right, square on his helmet. The moment he was clear running past his target, Margarat unleashed another magical attack. Keeping the knight disoriented and unable to recover from either hit enough to respond.
I was trying to figure out a way to help, but it was clear to me the knight was going to lose this fight. I wasn’t sure if it was Tomas’s repeated, skull cracking blows, or the surprisingly potent magical attacks given off by the old woman who had watched over me on my deathbed, but the knight was slowing down. There were one, then two second delays in his attempts to retaliate.
They’re going to win! Hope rekindled for a moment, things were going to turn around. The fighting retreat had turned into a solid defensive line in the middle of the court yard, and the Lord Collector was going mad. Buzzing from one fight to the next, as if he were a man possessed. His son, Ezekial, fast on his heels darting from fight to fight, supporting their men and keeping them from being overwhelmed by the clearly better equipped and more powerful Capital City members of the Blue Priesthoods Order Militant.
Until a pillar of light erupted from the enemy line, engulfing the Lord Collector and several other knights, and burning a hole straight through the stone street. People screamed, animals panicked, and my eyes burned.
The fight directly in front of me stopped, as everyone stared at the scene of pure destruction and the diminishing blue pillar that had lit up the night sky as if it were day.
The line broke, and everyone ran. Peasants, knights, priests, clerics, and men-at-arms alike. If something didn’t happen soon, it would be a total rout.
But nothing did. People broke, and in their fleeing terror, the blue order slaughtered or captured them in droves.
“Surrender, Peasant. And I will see you are given a fair trial.” The voice, I had heard it before. The knight commander, the enemy knight commander stood now, his sword leveled at Mother Margarets throat. The old woman glared death at the man, but it didn’t seem to bother him in the slightest. “You served your masters well. But the fight is over.”
People tried to flee past us, only to wheel another direction, looking for another street to find an escape. I turned to find what it was, and found the second knight standing over my mother, sword to her throat as well. Oswald and his team of spearmen were on the ground. Either dead, or unconscious I couldn’t tell. But the pools of blood gave lie to my unwillingness to understand what I was seeing.
“Surrender, or your wife and child die, and then you will swiftly follow them into the grave. Either way, I will sleep soundly tonight.” The Knight Commander's voice was as calm as if he were ordering dinner.
My mother screamed as the second knight lifted her off her feet by her neck, and placed his sword against her abdomen.
“Damn it! Fine!” I watched as my father tossed down his weapons, and kneeled on the ground his hands on his head.
I turned, and ran.
“Get him!” The commander ordered as lesser warriors wearing his colors and armor were already getting closer. “Seize that child!”
“No!” Tomas pushed the knight down and grabbed his sword, trying to wrestle the enemy commander in a futile effort for control of the weapon. “Run Landar!”
“RUN!” My mother shouted, before she too was silenced.
I didn’t look back. I didn’t want to know.
I couldn’t watch them die, like I had my friends in a desert, in another life, in another world. I couldn’t.
But just like in that past life, I could get revenge.