“Use the gold to get yourselves something from the kingdom once we get out ok?” Mono advised the group of settlers who scrounged up the remaining gold coins left from the treasury they passed.
“Thank you, thank you all…” An older settler managed to speak.
Old and rotting wood held up the tunnel they were walking through, bits of dirt fell down while the occasional creak hastened their move.
“You reckon they’d be pissed about the missing gold?” Ikari asked.
“Maybe, if they’re still alive to see it.” Ikari chuckled at Kayd’s reply, alleviating the awkward air at the moment. Ishmael glanced at the settlers repeatedly, scoffing and sighing each time.
Kayd looked back as well, all he could see were disheveled and malnourished people, but in their eyes were determination and desperation to survive. All they needed was a person to lead that desperation and determination.
We really need to find an armory, that stronghold should have one. Question is how far is it and how hard will it be to sneak into it.
—---
A sandy incline marked the end of the tunnel with the door just at the top. On their way to it, shouts, jeers, cheers, and screams were heard outside. Most of the settlers refused to take a single step on the incline with the team, shaking their heads. A few of the older and battle scarred settlers moved through the crowd.
“Inexperienced hands, they may run or scream at the smallest sight of a bandit. It’s better if we leave them here.”
“In a tunnel, in enemy territory, and away from us? No, I’ll talk to them.” With Lia, the two approached the settlers.
Looking back, Kayd suddenly heard a quick chuckle from Ishmael.
“What’s funny Captain?”
“He’s remembering my rule. And is taking initiative. Guess you did well Quellin.” She replied. Quellin turned to her, giving a nod before returning to observing his two new students.
“Discipline is a simple matter to teach, what matters is the results.”
Ikari leaned against the door, trying to gauge what they’re going to get themselves into.
Dozens or even hundreds of voices from all directions far and near coupled with the frantic cries of settlers being moved around. All aided in freezing the settlers from taking another step.
Ishmael took a step up before Mono spoke up.
“They said as long as we stay far away from the voices they’ll follow. Or anyone nearby is dealt with.” He explained.
“Sounds like a fair deal.” She looked to Kayd and Ikari, ordering them to lead from the front this time.
“Kayd, as the assigned vanguard. You and Ikari will kill any bandit in our way, make sure they are quiet and quick, I don’t want a second wasted. Let’s move.” The settlers finally joined with the team, huddled together like a sheep flock while covering their mouths, fighting the fear they had.
Kayd put his hand on the handle, it was rusted and cold but unlocked. His eyes met Ikari’s looking at one another closely, putting full trust in each other.
“You better cover me out there,” Kayd said.
“As long as you cover mine.” Ikari smiled.
The door took a good amount of force to push open. As it moved, the noise of instruments could be heard and the shouts intensified in volume, deafening everything else.
Is there a party going on? What is
Bright lights shone in the immediate area outside the door, hitting the tall wall and nearby building. Kayd leaned his head slowly, taking a peek at the entire perimeter before making a move.
Nearby, beyond a row of small and large structures, shadows ran around. Dozens or hundreds enjoying themselves. All surrounding a bonfire.
But past the silhouettes, Kayd spotted an imposing wooden building, one dwarfing all the others and resembling a fortress in itself.
A stronghold within a fort? Yeah, this is definitely the leader’s place.
Everyone seemed to be distracted, but he saw glimpses of bandits walking around either drunk or still on guard near the door, scattered around and patrolling or finding a place to pass out.
“See anything?” Ikari asked, Ishmael standing next to her. Kayd began relaying all he could find, getting a nod as thanks for his recon.
“If what that bandit said was right, we need to quickly head there.” She pointed at a building in front, just a hundred steps from them.
Just as Kayd took a step out, from the barely illuminated surroundings, a group of drunken bandits appeared.
“Come on, let’s handle this. We have a camp to raze.” Kayd and Ikari took quick peeks at any remaining spot around them before making their way to the bandits.
One gripped a pair of metal cuffs while the other, a bundle of rope. Both looked used. Another thing Kayd noticed was their armor and weapons, both looked much cleaner, better in quality, and even more decorated.
Are they officers?
Ishmael had little time to care or observe at this point, taking out her hatchet, grabbing the first drunk bandit’s helmet, and cleaving his face in from the front.
Although they were drunk, the other three took out their weapons. But the two were faster, cutting through any open skin and cutting them down before another word came out.
As their bodies vanished, leaving a pouch of gold. They realized the soldiers also carried more weapons on them, from knives to hooks and even dynamite bundles.
A quick looting of their items and they hastily moved to the door. The settlers huddled behind them, and the few older ones picked up the dropped weapons and armor.
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“The noise will cover us, quickly sweep this place and find an armory or dynamite storage. Just remain quiet and kill anyone that you find.” She turned to Mono.
“You keep your people near the door, I don’t want a single settler running off.”
“Yes, Captain!”
—-
The smell of iron and rotten wood assaulted their nostrils the moment the door was opened.
Ikari, Kayd, and Ishmael rushed in without hesitation. A short hall with doors on both sides and a stairwell at the end.
Just avoid getting heavily injured.
Kayd reminded himself. Pity for the healer and also for practicality.
Kayd rushed through the first room on his own, scanning for any bandits. A storage room of food. No threat.
On the second, just a split moment after pushing the door open, a hand grabbed and threw him in. His eyes darted up just in time to help narrowly dodge a spear headed for his head. He jumped up with his sword at the ready for combat.
A band of bandits stood in front of him, heavily armored with little to no gaps to exploit. Each spoke in incomprehensible but vulgar words directed at him. Patters and markings covered their armor, a single symbol of an axe and broken shield repeatedly etched onto varying parts of the armor.
Five heavily armored targets, in close quarters. Just great.
Kayd charged the nearest one, knocking him on a table and getting assaulted by the rest, parrying their weapons and knocking them down one by one.
He focused on one in particular, the last one still standing. A purple glow spawned from his sword and hands, in a split second, the bandit’s armor was rendered useless, and both halves of his body fell to the floor.
Before he could turn around, a blade slashed across his back and the butt of a weapon smacked him in the head.
A mix of pain and disorientation forced him to pause, moving back near a corner and turning to the four.
Backed to a corner, no gaps to exploit, and can’t use the same trick twice.
“It's the ones making a ruckus on our operations, gut em and take em to the boss lads!”
Kayd looked at his hands, a moment of thought before he was about to go on an unplanned fight against four.
The threat in front of him slowly crept forward, grinning through their helmets with a blend of different weapons. The number wasn’t a concern, but merely the armor and how close they were.
I didn’t want to try this tactic, never was a fan of wild attacks but…I have no choice.
Kayd recalled a past method of attack, one he wanted buried and forgotten but now thought to be the best method to get out of the situation.
He anchored his feet down and sword to the front, he charged at the bandit, throwing him to the ground, wasting no time to begin attacking the other three with the bottom of his blade with recklessness, like a rabid dog.
Each move, sporadic and only by instinct, striking out at them before they could hit first. His blade was useless, focusing only on blunt attacks and even punching them.
In his attack, he got on top of one, seeing the slit in the helmet. He drove the sword through the slit, ending yet another one of the bandits.
The remaining ones ripped him off their comrade, tossing him across another table and delivering a flurry of strikes, blunt and sharp. Painting material and papers fell to the floor as he regained his footing.
Where are the others?! No, I need to finish this myself. What other close-quarters methods can I recall?
As they moved towards him, Kayd charged once more, this time targeting their legs, knocking them down with kicks and strikes. Barbaric but swift, Kayd stopped them where they stood, finishing each one off as fast as possible, leaving messes with each kill.
Finally, the last one was before him on his knees. As the purple glow appeared on his hands, the bandit looked up.
“You fight like a mutt, a screaming lamb trying to escape the slaughterhouse.” He laughed. He raised his sword, to end the bandit’s life before anyone could hear anything.
In the blink of an eye, the bandit charged forth and threw him to the ground again. He wrapped chain cuffs around Kayd’s neck and pulled tightly. A new struggle has begun, unable to call for help and gasping for air, all the while the bandit grinned behind him, pulling tighter.
With each second, his grip on the chains weakened and his legs gave up, his body was pulled upwards, and the room in front of him slowly faded to black.
An object whizzed past him, and the familiar sound of piercing flesh rang out. Kayd fell to his hands and knees while the man behind him collapsed with a groan and brief scream, grabbing at the helmet slit.
He desperately gasped for air, touching his neck and on the verge of just passing out.
“You weak sons of-” Another arrow whistled past and struck the man again, silenced.
“Kayd?” It was Ikari, she rushed to him and gently pulled him up as he continued breathing deeply. She tried guiding him through words, to calm him down and get more air back.
“Thanks” The words left his mouth in haste. Her hands grasped the bloodied coat and she put her hands on his face, trying to find any further wounds that may have adorned it.
“Looks like you were in quite a mess.” She chuckled with her eyes observing the destroyed room.
“Found the armory yet?” Kayd asked.
“No, just a weird shrine for some deity. Which one? I don’t know. We’re going to the next floor.”
Shrine?
A spark of curiosity briefly distracted his thoughts.
“Me and the captain will wait for you by the stairs.” Ikari exited quickly. Heading out, Kayd could see a glimpse of that so-called shrine from one of the opened doors. The curiosity filled his mind, something was reeling him in, albeit weakly but persistent.
—--
What the….
A statuette resembling a faceless noble person adorned in gold and scriptures with clumsy handwriting stood on a wooden pedestal. All standing in the center of a room filled with sacks of different valuables. Through the horrendous handwriting on the papers stuck to it, one was clear and readable.
Grant us more boons o Eminent and Affluent one.
Finished reading, he immediately felt something, something that urged him to move away, to turn away from the statuette. A reel pulling him away rather than towards it.
What’s going on with me? Yet another bizarre thing in this bizarre world. That….Woman has something to answer if I see her again.
—------
In the hall again, he wiped his blade while heading to the stairway with the other 2 standing idly.
“Same routine as before, hopefully, we will find the armory fast.”
“What about finding the auctioned settlers first? They could help us with the whole destroying this camp plan.” Ishmael sighed after hearing Ikari’s question.
“Fine, settlers first. Not in the mood to cause problems. Come on, let’s head down.”
More time was wasted, they had to make things quick and find the settlers, then the armory. All before some random bandits finds them or raises an alarm.
Their steps were light, practically hopping down the steps to speed things up. The tension grew with the team, each flight passed only made them hasten their movement, all the while gripping their weapons in preparation for a quick sweep and fight if anyone was in the basement.