"That's quite a sailor's mouth you have, boy" the Baron said "Do you even know who or what i am?"
"Do i need to?" Silas said
"If I'm your executioner, wouldn't you at least want to know my name?"
"You? Executioner? All i see is a filthy and lazy noble, to afraid to do anything by himself and hides behind his men." Silas remarked
"Your disdain for nobles is crystal clear, boy. Perhaps an unfortunate past experience?" the baron asked, trying hard to mask his anger.
"No, I just hate weak-willed men with power. One look at you and even a child will call you a spineless wretch" Silas kept verbally assaulting him
"My patience wears thin, boy" said the Baron with a pause "Surrender and you will be given the mercy of avoiding death."
"Mercy is given by the strong to lesser ones. Not handed out by hare-hearted knaves like you, you damned cur" Silas finished.
"ENOUGH. GET HIM" the Baron yelled and signaled the platoon to attack him and the platoon rushed Silas all at once.
Silas turned sideways and ran back into the academy, full sprint. He knew with full armor and with all their gear, the best advantage he would have is his speed. He hoped that the troop company accompanying the baron to carry out the order would not have any Magic casters, whether it is mages, rune casters or summoners. No sane minded individual attacks a magic academy without preparation, but he had simply hoped it wouldn't be so. Nate remembered the tactics he had used in his old life, use the terrain you are most familiar in to overpower your enemy. Higher numbers hold no advantage against an opponent well-versed in local terrain. He gave the soldiers a slip and quickly rushed back to the dorms to check on the captives.
The dorms had signs of struggle all over the walls and floors, corpses scattered and mangled by spear jabs and slashes. The students tried fighting back, but they were outnumbered. He sneaked into the central courtyard and saw only a small group of guards standing by with more than 30 captive mages. He pulled out his shortsword and when the guard turned away, he snuck behind one of the students he recognized and put a hand on his mouth "Quiet, i will free you and you will help me free others" Silas said and dragged him back into the bushes. He cut the ropes binding him and said "What kind of a mage are you? What do you do?" "I am a water mage. I have fair control over water and some over ice." he replied.
This was the perfect scenario. Silas explained the plan to the water mage, Tubok and snuck away slowly. He had seen the Mage in action before in the training halls and trusted him to do as he said.
The guard patrol was increasingly spreading out wide and this let Silas initiate his plan. He signaled the mage, who immediately conjured a water ball and covered the entire head of the soldier to prevent him from screaming or calling for help. Silas immediately rushed towards the soldier and plunged a knife into his back and into his heart. All the captives watching him and Tubok were mortified as to how easily he killed a human, another person. He dragged the dead soldier's body aside into the bushes and out of sight. He quickly signaled the water mage again and struck down another.
Silas used this method to clear about 12 guards before anymore returned and quickly freed the captives. Freeing them, he moved most of them towards the North gate, so as to avoid the potential patrol of the Baron and his troops. With only Tubok and about 6 more mages he moved to the south gate. He devised another plan on the go and explained to all of them that he was the bait and that they were on their own for any other threat besides the Baron and his troops. They slipped into the academic hall and waited for his signal from the Northern yard, where he would draw the troops and the Baron towards the North, giving them a chance to escape. Silas had one shot, to draw and slip the guards again. He took his station in the tall tree branches and screamed at the top of his lungs "OYE, YOU FILTHY NOBLE PIECE OF SHIT. COME AND GET ME." The tree was among others in a dense patch of them with leaves covering more than half of it's own trunk like a canopy. The dark made it difficult to look into the canopies but made it easier to look out from them.
The Baron came to the spot with more troops in tow and ordered a search. The guards scattered in search for the boy who insulted the Baron. They spread out and also into the nearby tower, a squad searched by the fountain while another squad looked around the nearby training grounds. They searched for about 20 minutes before regrouping with the Baron who was waiting, grinding his teeth.
"Report" the Baron said.
"No traces, my lord. We even checked the roof and the halls nearby. He must've ran farther away after making noise." the soldier responded.
The Baron, in a fit of rage, kicked the soldier and yelled "What the hell are you being paid for? You can't even find a mere boy studying in an acad-" and out of nowhere a soldier at the back slumped to the ground and another screamed in immense pain, drawing the attention of the Baron. The soldier screamed for help and medical attention but the suddenness of this occurrence confused the Baron for a few moments. Meanwhile, another 2 of the soldiers slumped onto the floor, dead. The Baron came to the realization that he was lured here, and before he could turn his horse around, a dark red projectile pierced his knees and he let out a painful wail and fell off the horse. All the soldier soon realized that they were being hunted and quickly pulled up their shields and covered their vital organs. The soldiers formed a protective wall around the screaming Baron and tugged him as they moved to a better location. One of the soldiers raised his shield a bit higher to wipe the sweat of his brow, TINK! The sound rang through his comrades' ears as he fell down dead from the shot. They quickly covered up the breach in formation and moved towards the tower with more cover. The platoon quickly but carefully moved into the tower and setup up and internal defensive perimeter blockade.
Silas had a lot of his ammunition still left. He quickly got off the tree branches and sneaked towards to tower The job wasn't done and neither was he. He peeked from the window into the tower to notice of the empty rooms. He slid into the room and slowly made his way to the 2 floor after surveying and finding the first floor empty. By the stair's mid crest, he turned around and fired a dud shot to watch for ricochet and heard the loud PANG! noise. He had now confirmed their presence, guarding the stairway. Silas fired off his special shatterburst bullet into the wall close to them, he intended for the bullet to shatter on impact, crack and splatter outward and injure the closest to the wall. Three of the 4 defending the stairs scream in pain and break formation, keeping his bullet usage to the minimum he shot when they stood in front or behind another one of their comrades so the bullet could pierce through them for maximum damage. The second floor was empty besides the ones he had killed and the Baron couldn't have any more than 4 more guards with him.
It was time to end this.
He grabbed the nearby dead guard's helmet off his corpse and put it on his head for some safety and he moved to the next floor with conviction to finish what he started. There was a blood trail all over the stairs, from the Baron's busted and bleeding kneecap. He moved to the final room where they were boarded up. Silas tore through the door with enough force to make it seem as thought there never was anything blocking the door in the first place. The 4 guards stood in formation, spears pointed toward Silas, and slightly crouched to protect their vital organs with the shield. Silas knelt down and shot a bullet on an angle at the floor at high force. The bullet ricocheted off the floor and hit a soldier's lower shin, causing immense pain and losing balance and end up leaning on his comrade. Silas took advantage of the formation break and killed 2 of them and used the confusion of their comrades to kill another with his shortsword. The last guard lost his will and strength and collapsed to the floor begging and groveling for mercy. "No mercy for the wicked, no forgiveness for those by whom I am sickened. You slaughtered students, academics and other youth, your judgement is death" Silas said and executed him point blank.
The Baron crawled, crept and dragged himself to the corner of the room, away from the monster he witnessed, to get away from a being of the worst carnage and the Herald of Ruin before his own eyes.
Silas pulled closer to the Baron and grabbed him by his hair and looked him in the eye, he wanted to see this filthy being at his worst when he has no power over anything, let alone power and control over his own life. The Baron foamed at his mouth in shock and primal fear and lost consciousness. Silas shot his second kneecap to bring him back to restore consciousness but it didn't work, he was out cold.
Silas decided to let the Baron live and let go of his limp but alive body and sealed the Baron's wounds. He looked around him. He was back on the path of carnage, he had ruined all the progress he had made towards righteousness. He peered through the window and saw a massive horde of approaching soldiers from the Northwest. It looked like the Baron was able to send out a signal for help. Silas quickly hurried down and ran with as much remaining strength in his feet towards the south gate and out. He faced and headed for the town of Grytrand, taking off his cape and stuffing it back into the rucksack. He was tired, almost drained of mana and in need of water. He just moved one step at a time and moved away from the path to avoid any incoming patrols and sat down, very far from the road at the base of a tree. Hoping for any rest he could get, even a moment to catch his breath.
He sat there just exhausted and unable to move at all and the slumber of night calling to him like a siren to a Cabin boy on the sea and gently guiding his eye shut.
In his losing battle with exhaustion he had hoped that everyone he helped had gotten out safely
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