Arc 5: The Heart Within
Road to a Hero:
Three chances in another world
Chapter 14. The Raid commences
A few hours pass and everyone reunites outside the outpost in the slums. Gray and the others stand outside of the house, waiting just a bit longer to start the raid. Gordon holds out a communicator and connects it to Grays, Ryos, Lincolns, and Jongs.
Gordon: “Was everyone informed of the coming raid?”
Soku: “They should be.”
Gray twiddles his thumbs, nervous and antsy while Julius flies Dema, heading right toward the castle. Peter struggles with the fear of flying and the feeling of impending doom. Soku tries to maintain her composure, Julius is emotionless, Edward is content, and Rosemary is hopeful.
Gray: “Are we sure we can do this? Because when we start we can’t stop till we’re done.”
Ryo: “It makes sense to be afraid. To be honest, I’m afraid. Afraid for your lives and the lives of the people in this Capital.
Jong pulls his communicator out and clears his throat. Below him are his men, looking in awe at Jong Long, the great Commander, dressed in basic Knightley attire with the addition of a light blue cloak with a black Walgonian crest on the back. And lastly, before he does anything else, he feels the claw mark scar on his face, touching each of the three slashes that go across his face, scars that narrowly miss his eyes.
Jong {This is for you...all of you. Gotsu, Musashi, Jasmine, Al, and Bjørn. We may not be known as a grand group…hell, the world doesn't even know we were a real team…but I promise I won’t lose what we fought for. And if any of you are listening, I’ll protect Edward for you Gotsu, and you as well Jasmine…hell all of you mean so much to him. Bjørn, you and Jasmine did a fine job raising him, and Al, Musashi, you did a good job finishing the job and did a good job training that Gray kid too.}
Strangely enough, Edward’s thinking about the same people. Gotsu, his father. Jasmine, his mother. Bjørn, his stepfather. Al, his pseudo-grandfather. And Musashi, his uncle. Though Edward isn’t the only person thinking of loved ones, Gray thinks about his mother and father, Peter and his parents, Soku and Ophelia, along with her adoptive mother. And Rosemary with her mother. Their family lives are all a mess, but at least they can be a mess together.
Jong: “Everyone is in position. Thanks to Peter's communicator we can broadcast the orders to all the teams across the Capital.”
Edward: “Alright, now go over it all one last time.”
Gordon clears his throat, takes a deep breath, and begins speaking to all two-thousand four-hundred thirty soldiers. Fifty leviathan soldiers, five hundred Red Arrows, one thousand and eighty Althens soldiers, and eight hundred Walgonian knights.
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Gordon: “EVERYONE! THIS IS IT! Gray Kyojin, Edward Van Helsing, Rosemary Goldenwind, Sokudo, Peter, and Julius Cromwell will be the ones to lead the assault on Arthur Willams. Leo and fifty Red Arrows will go into the castle as well, making sure that nobody can get into the king's chamber and fight with Arthur. Lincoln will lead the charge on the east side. Ryo will hold down the west side, where we will send most of the citizens. But we will set up depots for people within the other sides, being places where the citizens are told to go in case of an attack, those being the four statues of Walgonia’s founders. Jong will lead the charge on the south side, I will attack the north. All of the sides will have six hundred soldiers, so we’re pretty outnumbered, but that just makes it even better when we win.”
Gray: “I know that a lot of this is relying on us…but if we lose we must ensure that the Capital is saved!”
Soku: “We told a lot of the civilians about the raid…but we may run into an issue about humans and demi-humans not wanting to be held together, and forcing high-class people into the slums won’t turn out well.”
Jong: “They’ll have to deal with it!”
Jong then bangs his rather large Naginata on the ground, over and over, getting his men to chant as they go to take back their country
Leo grabs the communicator out of Gordon's hand, screaming into it.
Leo: “EVERYONE! YOU GOT THIS! WE GOT THIS! GO, GO, GO!!!”
The Raid begins, and every group heads straight toward the homes of the people. Running down the streets, banging on doors, telling each civilian where to run to. Some complain, some are scared out of their minds, and some refuse and are forced to leave. Panic ensues all over the Capital, drawing attention from the Sect. The Sect marches out into the streets, still faking their knight persona. Swords swing, arrows fly, magic roars, and signs in the night. Screams of Humans and Demi-humans alike consume the land throughout the land. Bodies on both sides start to fall, morale goes up and down, and friends and family are slaughtered in front of them. The most powerful fighters lead the head of the battles. Lincoln takes out groups of the Sect with single blows, Leo's spear pieces through enemy after enemy in the Castle, and Gordon's arrows rain through the clouds, hitting each target like clockwork. Hundreds of civilians flood the streets all heading towards the camps set up all over the slums, all being guarded by thirty or more soldiers. They all run and shove past each other, some screaming slurs at the other race. Fights begin to break out, children are lost, and people are getting trampled. Houses even erupt in flames burning everything inside, and thieves take all that they can, feeling nothing for the destruction around them. Gray and his friend soared through the sky looking down upon the horror.
Rosemary: “It’s madness.”
Rosemary gets this sick look on her face, almost like she could throw up any second.
Peter: “THIS IS INSANE!”
Edward: “Such is war.”
Julius: “I could not agree more.”
Gray: “It’s crazy…and we’re almost at the castle. It’s about time for the fight of our lives.”
Soku: “Can we really do this?”
Julius: “Gray's spiritual abilities will have to carry us through this battle.”
Gray: “I’m going to use Knightic on you guys and boost your powers, but I’ll sit back and wait until you’re all finished so I can attack.”
Soku: “Really?”
Gray: “You guys need to wear him out so I can finish the job. I’ll go into my astral state and interfere with his flames, so I’’ be doing something. And I’ll try my hardest to stabilize your mana connections to make you as strong as you can be.”
Peter: “What about me? I’ll die in an instant!”
Rosemary: “You need to stay back and wait, protect Dema and Gray's body.”
Soku: “What’s the game plan then?”
Gray: “Edward is the driving force in this. He’ll play lead attacker, and Julius will have to assist and be his right-hand man. Rosemary will take the backseat and save all her strength so she can strike when the timing is perfect. Soku, you have to play support and make sure they get out of any danger.”
Edward: “Here we go!”
Julius drives Dema right to the window of the king's quarters, a big room where Arthur is currently sleeping. Julius slings them off of Dema, diving right through the window. Gray grabs Demas's lead and pulls up, grabbing Peter's arm to make sure he doesn't fall off. The rest of them land right in front of Arthur, who had just jumped out of bed due to all of the commotion down in the Capital. Edward stands tall, in front of the group. Julius and Rosemary stand on either side of him, and Soku waits in the back, all staring Arthur down dressed in their full armor. Arthur gains a big grin on his face and throws his hands into the air.
Arthur: “IT’S SHOWTIME!”
End of Chapter Fourteen