Extraction

Logan didn’t get the warm reception he was hoping for. Really, he should have seen it coming, since the woman had always kept him at a distance. However, she was the one person Logan knew wanted away from Fort Errstile, and well… Logan was headed out anyway.

Besides, Logan knew better than anyone that the Prince didn’t always lock up people for the best reasons.

Or, maybe not everyone. Logan thought, looking at the corpse still held in the cell next to the woman.

“Who are you? Better yet, who do you think I am, to know a nameless goon from the Prince?”

Oh right, the tabard.

The only people who wore them were the Prince’s men, which is what had allowed Logan such easy access into the camp. Of course, it was a major defensive oversight, but none of the normal Legionaries were willing to risk doing anything to earn the ire of the Prince

“Uh, sorry, this is just a disguise.”

“Oh, an assassin then. Get it over with.”

“No, I’m n- I’m the other prisoner who was here a couple days ago.”

At this, the woman scoffed. Logan still could barely see her face in the dark basement, but he could see the doubt nonetheless. It almost made him second guess his decision to come back.

“The one who was executed? What games are you playing at?”

Wow, she hasn’t heard about my escape. That makes my story much less believable. Wait, I know.

Logan decided to prove his identity with hard evidence. Teleporting, he slipped into her cell without a hitch. She had seen him do such before, and from Logan’s admitted limited knowledge, it was an uncommon piece of Divinity to possess. However, recognition wasn’t her immediate reaction.

“Ah!” The woman exclaimed while backing up.

“Quiet, I needed to get in here to free you.”

Logan unsheathed a small knife Amar had given him, along with the tabard. Of course, this didn’t do anything to assuage the woman’s worries, being tied up before a male stranger with a knife. However, Logan didn’t have the time to be considerate. Every minute he remained in camp was another that he risked discovery, and death. Time constraints forced him to grab the woman’s arms to halt her flailing, and begin to saw at her restraints.

----------------------------------------

Stepping back, Logan gave the woman the limited space allowed in the dingy cell. She was still clearly weary, but Logan freeing her and then backing up had relieved some of that stress.

She was also clearly beautiful from this distance, with dark curly hair that was obviously luscious despite the dirt caked in it. However, Logan pointedly ignored that, as this definitely wasn’t the time. Not if Logan wanted to claim to have any morals, at least.

Instead, he noticed the intense rope burn on her wrists, from being held bound for much too long. She was poking at them, and Logan winced in sympathy. His own wounds ached, urging him to rush out of the fort, but Logan managed to be patient with the woman.

Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

It took her several minutes to collect herself, in which Logan cut apart the cell with his Soul Sword. Then, she asked a couple more questions.

“How did you avoid your execution?”

“Ah, it’s a little bit of a long story, but suffice to say, I escaped, and made the Prince very angry in the process. Serves him right, if you ask me.”

“And, you want to help me escape? Why?”

“To be honest, there isn’t a whole lot of reason behind it. I wanted to piss off the Prince a bit more, and I was here anyway, and I didn’t think it would be that hard.”

At this, the woman shifted to look cautiously optimistic. However, something was clearly still causing her to hesitate. Logan didn’t know exactly what it was, but figured they could work through it once they hit the road.

“We really should get going, if we get caught, I’m not sure if I can get you out. I’m Logan Brewer, again.”

“Anastacia. Pleasure to make your acquaintance.”

----------------------------------------

The two of them made their way up the stairs, with Logan holding her arm as if escorting her. Their ploy needed to be convincing enough to stand up to a fair amount of scrutiny, so Logan cajoled her through the doorway like he meant it.

No one stopped them, and they continued through the throng of people in the communications building. The rush made Logan nervous, but he remembered that it was all part of the plan and kept on going. They had almost made it out the door, when suddenly a familiar voice stopped them.

“Hey, Private, what are you doing?”

Logan tried to keep walking forwards, ignoring the call.

“Private, I’m talking to you.”

Knowing it was no use, Logan slowly turned around. Of course with his luck, Logan would get stopped by someone that knew him on sight. Bringing Anastasia around to keep up his cover for spectators, Logan faced Major Frear. A brief startled look crossed her face, before she schooled it back to a neutral position, revealing her recognition. Still, she continued on.

“What are you doing, Private.”

What? Is she playing along with my act? Why would the Major do that..? Well, if she’s keeping up appearances, so should I.

“The Prince requested this prisoner, ma’am.”

“Oh, did he now?”

Wait, is she not playing around? Or is she playing with me?

“Uh, yes ma’am. He did.”

“Ahem. I see. Well then, carry on.” The Major said, turning and walking away.

Logan let out a sigh of relief. Then he got a jab in his side mid exhale.

“We aren’t safe yet, keep going!” Anastasia whispered furiously.

“Okay, okay. Let's go.” Logan shot back.

Exiting the communications building, Logan brought Anastasia out to the thoroughfare. Thankfully, everyone here was in too much of a hurry to wonder why a prisoner was being brought to the edge of the Fort. The same was true at the South gate, where Logan was easily able to walk out, with Anastasia in tow.

Miraculously, Logan’s plan had gone off without a hitch, and the two met up with Remy in the woods. After introducing his two traveling partners, the three of them set off into the woods. Of course, that’s when everything went wrong.

----------------------------------------

Amar had been sent to distribute news of the attack, and therefore, got to witness how Fort Errstile prepared for battle first hand. All around the camp there was action and movement, and Amar quickly forgot about Logan in the rush.

Instead, she witnessed hasty defenses being erected, sharpened logs being inserted in the ground in a grid to break up any attacking charge. They were sporadic, but there were enough of the rough logs that Amar thought it would at least give a modicum of effect.

Although Amar wasn’t that confident in the defenses, it appeared some people were. Or, maybe her squadmates were just overly cavalier, because when she had told them of the impending battle, only Jerry had gotten nervous at all. Larry had laughed, while Aerie had just harrumphed. Amar had shaken her head, telling them she had to keep going around before regrouping with them.

Next on Amar’s list was Kelvin, the quartermaster who had accompanied them from Marineford. It took Amar a surprising amount of time to find the man, for reasons she discovered once she did.

It turned out, he already knew, having learned from one of the other officers, and had been bouncing around camp making sure that there were proper stockpiles in various places, so Legionnaires would have easy access to additional weapons, bandages, and more. It was an impressive amount of work for the time since Amar had come bearing the news.

After meeting with Kelvin, Amar continued on her journey around the camp. Eventually, after informing another handful of people, Amar’s task was done, and she had some time to prepare herself for the impending battle.

At least, if Logan’s information is good.

Amar didn’t even want to think about what would happen if it was wrong. Even if an attack came the next day instead, Amar doubted she would be around to see it take place, knowing the man’s temper. Just as she was considering running away with Logan, a gut wrenching aura burst out over the entire Fort.