"I wish you hadn't seen that," Sergeant Kane said to Nick as he stood next to the cloaked man. He was staring down Nick as he raised his hands to prevent the archers from shooting. "Baron Black requires your assistance. It seems that although most of Lord Tommel's men have suddenly left him unaided, we have yet to capture the frail man." Kane twirled his hair as thought out loud.

Nick looked to his right at the only other conscious person in his party. The man's face looked ready to fight at any given moment. Sighing slowly, Nick then looked behind him, Bryce was still unconscious. What was he supposed to do? He had never led anything before; his older brother had made all the decisions for him since they were younger.

Finally, Nick looked towards his left. The horse had a weak Khal laying there staring at the cloaked figure with hatred. Nick had never exchanged many words with Khal before. He knew he had to control the boy before he got everyone killed. "Khal!" he whispered to the boy to get his attention. Khal continued to look at the Burgan, ignoring Nick. "Khal! There is no way we can defeat them now. Bryce is injured, we're all exhausted. If you attack, it'll be suicide!" Nick tried his best to talk reason to the boy. Hopefully, some of what he was saying would get through.

Khal unsheathed his weapon then gripped it strongly. Nick stared at the boy, convinced that this was their last stand. He just hoped that the boy would make better decisions in the next life.

Boof!

Khal's weapon dropped to the ground. Nick looked at the boy, surprised that he chose to surrender. He knew how much Ser Roth meant to him. Relieved, Nick signaled for the other soldier to drop his before he turned towards Kane. Staring at the man, Nick sighed once again before he too dropped his weapon. "Good choice, Nick." Sergeant Kane smiled before he signaled for the gate to be opened. Nick continued on horse through the gate as he observed his surroundings.

The town looked exactly as it did before he left. There was no sign of forced entry in the town and majority of the townsfolk were moving about, minding their own business. Was Baron Black working with the Burgans? How long has this been happening? Nick racked his brain trying to put the pieces together. It didn't make sense. If Baron Black was working with the enemy all this time, then why would they need to suppress communication from the town? Nick questioned himself again. Majority of the pigeons killed outside the town belonged to Baron Black after all.

Nick wish Bryce was awake right now. He was not ready to deal with this.

---

Baron Black smiled at Nick and his men as soon as they entered the mansion. "Welcome, you must be tired." The fat man smiled at Khal as he invited them into the dining room. "Have a seat, feel free to eat whatever you like. It's not often that we get visitors. Hehe." The man's belly giggled as he laughed heartily.

Kane withdrew his sword as he placed it at Khal's back. The other guards withdrew their weapons also and aimed it at the rest. "Your Lord Tommel has barricaded himself in his little manor. There is no way for us to get inside without risking the lives of my men." Black said, no longer smiling. Nick found himself unable to listen to the man. "If it helps you want from us you can just kill us instead. We Katarians don't do well with Burgan sympathizers."

Twah!

Nick finished by spitting in Black's face.

Bam!

Kane punched Nick in the face at almost the same time. Blood sprinkled on the wooden floor as Nick's lower lip became busted. "Ahem, this is as unpleasant for you as it is for me," Black continued as he wiped the spit off his face. "As I was saying, what I needed was leverage to get Tommel to come out. A head or two would do nicely." Black grinned sinisterly as he watched Nick's eyes widen.

"You need not worry, Nick. That's what they call you right? It's so difficult to remember the names of commoners after all." Black sighed before signaling to his guard to bring forth a bloody bag. Kane grabbed the bag and withdrew a severed head.

"I believe this one was with you until recently, no?" Black smiled again as he watched the trio resist the urge to retaliate. The severed head was the soldier who Nick sent ahead to report to Lord Tommel of the enemy's location. Their entire mission rested on this information getting to Lord Tommel. Nick grit his teeth to control himself. So many of his friends had died to complete this mission. There was nothing to show for it now. Nothing at all.

The other soldier couldn't control himself as well as Nick and suddenly jumped one of the guards. Black watched with glee as the guard was beaten quickly. It didn't take long before Kane stabbed him in the gut and left him listless on the floor.

"No!" Nick screamed as he watched the man's eyes become still. "Well, this makes two heads. Who knew it would be so easy." Black giggled before turning back to Nick. "If Tommel cares for his men as much as he says then these two heads should get him to come out."

---

Khal stared at his surroundings. He had closed his eyes during the entire ordeal. It was only because he knew there was no way to win that he allowed himself to be held captive. He had also learned that Knights were powerful existences. There was no way he could hope to defeat one without landing a surprise attack. He had immediately given up on trying in an attempt to get closer.

Ser Roth had been good to him. Besides teaching him many of the virtues of a Knight, the man had been partial towards him since he knew himself. Khal rubbed the dagger he had hidden in his shirt. He only needed one chance before he slit the neck of the man who killed his friend.

Baron Black stared at Nick for a few more seconds, satisfied to see the man in agony. "You look far too young to be a soldier, boy," he finally turned towards Khal. "Are you Avery's boy? Khal was it?" Khal stared at the man, surprised that he knew so much. "No need to be scared young one. Strange, why would they send you to such a dangerous place?" Black asked softly as he started thinking.

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"I snuck out," Khal said slowly, trying his best to hide the fact of his prowess. "Hmm, it would seem that way." Black rubbed his chin as he thought about it. "Kane, clean up this mess and secure the prisoners in the dungeon," Black said as he finally left the room.

---

Baron Black had left the room as soon as he could. The fact that the Burgans had captured his son had weighed heavily on his heart. Normally, he would never oppose Lord Tommel so openly but desperate situations needed desperate measures. Commander Fascal had personally made his way into the town after sending him his son's fingers along with demands.

First, the man wanted free entry into the town. Since it would be too difficult to bring his entire army into the town without causing mass panic with the townsfolk he decided to enter himself. Secondly, he forced the Baron to desist from sending for help. That didn't matter to the Baron though, all of his messenger pigeons were already dead.

Lastly, the man wanted full control of Lord Tommel's manor. It was the only area that the Baron had no sway over. Tommel was the only one that could send men for help in the surrounding cities. Who would have known that Lord Tommel would act so fast by sending two separate units away? The first had gone to discover the location of the enemy's camp while the other had gone to the nearby Ensom City. Noticing the first unit only, the Burgans had set a trap. This allowed Sergeant Michael to slip away unnoticed. It was only thanks to Commander Boegard's luck that he discovered the Sergeant in time. Well, in retrospect it was unlucky.

The hardest thing for Black to accomplish was getting all of his men to follow his orders. It had left a bitter taste in his mouth to know that he had to kill Ser Roth and all the men that followed him. It had angered him to know that the man had already allied himself to Tommel. It was yet another win for Tommel.

Baron Black thought about all of this on his way to his chambers. Word of Sergeant Michael's battle had made it to his messenger coop at the same time as Commander Fascal. Just as he was about to enter his chambers he was stopped by a cold steel on his shoulder. "It would do you well to always be alert 'Lord' Black." The man mocked as he removed his weapon.

"Has everything been put in place? Remember, if you decide to double cross us, your son will lose what's left of his fingers. There is only so much he can lose before he eventually loses his life." The man said jokingly. "No need to remind me, Commander, I'm well aware of the stakes," Black said quickly as he entered his chamber.

---

Lord Tommel held Erik close to him. He had experienced many things in his younger days. There was no reason for him to seem phased by what was happening around him. The attack by Baron Black the night before was not unexpected. There was no way for the man to break into the manor within a short amount of time. Erik, however, was too scared to be left alone. The boy had panicked when he realized Khal had left the barony to avenge his father's honor.

"Nate, report any movements you notice outside. We're battling against time right now." Tommel calmly stated as he began to read his scrolls. "And your brother will be fine, he's with Bryce after all. You can relax," Tommel said matter of factly. Nate released a breath he didn't even know he was holding at his Lord's words. It was things like this that set Lord Tommel apart from other nobles.

Badoop Badoop Badoop!

Hearing the loud sounds of horses galloping, Nate ran towards the manor's gate to see what tricks the Baron was using next. To his surprise, he saw Kane riding with a small unit towards the manor. Held within two of the riders' hands was a pike with 2 heads attached to it. Nate stared dumbfounded as he recognized the faces. Were they not Lord Tommel's men that left with Nick only a day ago? He thought to himself.

"Baron Black sends his greetings, Tommel, you lowly worm! He has what remains of your men. He sends these 'gifts' in good faith. Open your gates and face judgment for going against the Baron. Failure to do so will result in these pikes decorated with new faces. You have just 1 hour to decide."

Hiyah!

Kane and his men rode off after leaving the pikes buried next to the gate. It took Nate 10 minutes to make sure the area was safe before he grabbed the pikes to report to Lord Tommel.

Lord Tommel grabbed his cane and caressed it slowly but firmly as he started to feel flustered for the first time. He had not expected Bryce's unit to be caught by the Baron. Something must have happened to Bryce, whether Bryce was dead or alive could not be said with certainty but Lord Tommel knew he was running out of time. "1 hour huh, it seems we have played all the cards we have. Nate, when I go outside in an hour I need you to secure everyone and make a run for the southern gate. It shouldn't be too heavily guarded. Make sure everyone gets out alive."

"Milord! Let us wait for Sergeant Michael to return with good news. We cannot let them win like this," Nate responded insistantly. He knew his brother was most likely dead or captured. Regardless of which one it was, there was no saving his brother. Even if the Baron released him after Lord Tommel surrendered the Baron would not allow him to live.

Tommel smiled at his faithful Knight. "It will be alright Nate. Have some faith in your Lord a little more."

---

One hour had passed since Kane's announcement. Lord Tommel had finally decided to walk towards the manor's gate. He had done all he could. Everything else depended on faith and all the pieces he put into place. The walk towards the gate seemed longer than usual today. Tommel chuckled to himself at how frail his body had become. It had been many years since he had come close to death. Nothing about the feeling bothered him too much. What distressed him was knowing that he would not be able to protect those he loved, should he happen to die.

When Tommel finally reached the gate and walked outside, what greeted him was Baron Black and Sergeant Kane with at least 20 of his soldiers. There was also a man in a green cloak that stood next to the Baron. He must be the Burgan scum that was pulling all the strings, Tommel thought to himself. Behind Kane, Bryce, Nick, and Khal were kneeling on the floor with their hands tied behind the backs. It ached Tommel to know that a little boy like Khal was subjected to such treatment. He would have them pay if it was the last thing he did.

"Well, you do care about your vassals. I guess all commoners stick together eh, Tommel?" Baron Black taunted. Lord Tommel didn't bother to address the man. It was pointless since he wasn't the one in charge. "May I know your name, Burgan?"

Black's face visibly changed. He had been fighting with Tommel for at least 10 years and when he finally got the upper hand, the man didn't even acknowledge him. "Quite astute of you Lord Tommel, my name is Commander Fascal, second in command of this little mission. Our esteemed leader, Captain Howler should have met with your little army earlier today. Although I don't know the outcome, I'm sure that your men won't be coming back ever again."

"Hmm, if this is the will of the Gods then so be it," Tommel ended as he guessed that it was enough stalling for Nate to escape with everyone else. "Exactly so," Fascal responded before he turned to Black. "You can kill him now."

Black withdrew his weapon before he approached Tommel. "This is for not knowing your place all these years commoner!"

"Urgggg!"

Before Black could even raise his weapon against Tommel, he heard one of his guards behind him. Turning around, he was surprised to see Khal holding a dagger to one of the guard's throat. One of them was already laying on the ground, dead. Yet, before he could even order his men to attack the boy, another sound made its way to his ears.

Kane was already engaging with another surprising person, Avery.