Windrider, The escape
#2 of Windrider
Alrighty, part two. As always, comments are appreciated and requested.
Hope you enjoy it.
Continued from "Dawn over Heliopolis..."
Aldaz woke up suddenly, a hand shaking him awake. Groaning sleepily, he tried to focus his eyes on the person who had shaken him from his peaceful rest. Finally, after a few moments, his eyes discerned that it was Urlidor, the old man fully dressed in his light tan robes, his crystal topped walking staff in his other hand. Groaning again, Aldaz turned over to go back to sleep, trying without much success to ignore the sounds of revelry trailing in from open window. Now that he was actually awake, he was surprised that he had been able to sleep at all, what with all the racket outside. Urlidor shook him again, this time more urgently, his old voice managing to overcome the sound of the festival.
"Young master, you must get up." He said, and something in his voice made Aldaz's mind wake up more fully. Sitting up in bed, he looked at the old man once more. To his surprise, he saw that the old sage's eyes were lit with worry. Seeing that Aldaz was going to actually do what he wanted, he left the boy's bedside and hurried to where his brother was sleeping. Falk woke with much less reluctance than Aldaz and their teacher spoke once more, urgency bleeding into his voice. "Come, we must hurry."
With that, the sage ran from the room and Aldaz yawned broadly, sliding his feet out from beneath the sheets and off the bed, slipping them into his sandals. And then, as he covered his loincloth with his robe and cinched the belt closed, details began to resolve themselves in his mind, details that made his heart clench with fear. What he had at first taken for the cries of revelers resolved themselves into panicked screams of pain and fear. The metallic clanging that he had taken for some odd foreign music was in fact much worse. It was the sound of soldiers in combat, the clash of weapons and armor. Aldaz and Falk exchanged the same worried glance and hurried to finish getting ready. Now wide awake, the brothers hurried from the room and down the stairs. In the main room of the house, Urlidor was waiting with their parents and younger sisters, all of them looking afraid.
"Come on you two, we have to leave, Heliopolis is under attack!" Their father said, urgently herding the girls out of the house and into the street. Aldaz and Falk hurried to follow him, their old teacher the last one to leave the house. Outside their home, the street was empty, save for a single guard. The man was lying face down, unmoving, a dark puddle of red blood spreading out from him. As they passed him, Aldaz looked down and was horrified by what he saw. The guard's armor had been torn asunder by what looked like claws, scattering chainmail rings around him. Aldaz stared in shock at him for a moment before his father's voice jolted him back into action, following his brother down the street after his family. "Come on, we have to get to the Aerodome."
At his words, Aldaz froze in place in the street. His father was intending to take the entire family out of the city in his airship. By all rights, Aldaz should have been happy to go that way, for he at least had a way out of the city. But all he could think of was Gradis. She would be trapped within the Aviary, maybe even killed. Aldaz felt his heart clench when he thought of her lying dead. He couldn't let that happen, not if he could prevent it. Making his decision in an instant, the boy turned and ran off in the opposite direction, passing the fallen guard without a second glance, heedless of the danger he was running towards.
"Aldaz!!" His father yelled, "Aldaz, where are you going!?" Aldaz didn't even look back at his call and his father started to run after him. Before he could take a step, he was nearly bowled over by a second white streak as Falk dashed past him, following after his brother, calling for him to wait up. "Falk, come back!! Damn it!" The man started to run off after his sons, but to his surprise, Urlidor suddenly blocked his path.
"Go, get your family out while you can, I will make sure the boys are safe." The old man ordered, his eyes ablaze with a strange light. Before Aldaz's father could reply, the old sage clasped his hands to the clear stone that capped his staff. To his surprise, it began to glow brightly, the white light encompassing the old man, making his tan robes shine as if they were made of copper. Before Aldaz's father could ask what was going on, the man vanished in a flash of magic. For a moment, he was too surprised for words. He had known Urlidor for practically his entire life, and while the man had always been wise, he hadn't shown the slightest indication that he knew any magic. A tug at his sleeve caused the man to turn back to the rest of his family. His wife, her eyes wide with terror, was tugging at his sleeve, reminding him that he had more pressing concerns. Gathering his wife and daughters close, he led the way to a back alley, a secret path to the Aerodome. He would just have to trust in his old teacher to keep the boys safe...
***
Aldaz ran down the street as fast as he could, heading for the far side of the city, where the Aviary rested. The roads that had been silent and empty just that morning were now filled with hundreds of panicked people in various states of dress, all running, all shouting, and none seeming to have the slightest idea what was going on. Aldaz nimbly ducked a flailing arm, skipped aside to avoid a line of soldiers rushing on quickly through the streets to their posts, then narrowly avoided being flattened by a woman running along with a heavy sack slung haphazardly on one shoulder. Just when he was about to reach the next intersection, the one that would lead him on the fastest path to the Aviary, someone in the running crowd let out a piercing shriek, pointing towards the sky. All eyes tracked upward, and the crowd became still and silent in shock and amazement. Soaring down from on high were hundreds of mounted dragons, all of them inky black, barely visible against the night. But, a moment later, the still crowd became a panicked mob, for long tongues of brilliant orange fire began to fly downward from their jaws. Aldaz was pushed roughly against the wall of a nearby house hard, the press of people dragging him along with them, nearly suffocating him against the stone.
Just when he was beginning to fear that he would be crushed, he felt a hand grip his shoulder and yank him out of the line of people and into an alley. Looking back, he saw Falk standing there, breathing hard. Nodding his thanks to his brother, Aldaz led the way down the alleyway, bypassing the panicked crowds that filled the main streets. These small passageways were rarely used by most people, but the boys luckily knew them well from their mornings spent creeping through them.
The air was growing more and more hot by the moment, the fires that had been started by the dragons spreading fast through the city. The boys ran on as fast as they could, trying to ignore the screams that still echoed within the city. Rounding a corner, the brothers saw another pair of guards lying slain, again rent by claws. They didn't pause to look at them, but Aldaz wondered what could have possibly have done that. It looked as if some sort of savage animal had attacked them. The boys were almost to the end of the alley and out on the streets again when a dragon flew low over them, breathing a breath of fire down on the buildings ahead of them. Aldaz skidded to a stop, holding a sleeve up before his face as the buildings kindled with flame. A moment later, bracing himself from the heat, he ran between the buildings quickly, reaching the road beyond and turning towards the Aviary once more. This road was empty for the moment, which Aldaz found a little odd, but he ran on anyway, into the smoke that lay ahead.
"I wonder where our dragons are." Falk shouted at him, a half step behind his brother. "Shouldn't they be out fighting?"
"I have no idea. You were always the one interested in the military, you tell me." Aldaz replied, coughing in the smoke and slowing down a little. The smoke made everything hard to see and Aldaz thought he could make out an open space before them. But, then, Aldaz froze in mid step, holding an arm out across his brother's path. Falk stopped and looked at him questioningly, but the reason why he stopped was soon readily apparent. Ahead in the smoke, a hulking shape stood. It was bigger than any human, taller and broader. But its outline was wolfish, a terrifying hybrid of human and animal. The brothers stood absolutely still, hoping that it wouldn't notice them. The creature's head turned from side to side for a few moments, and just when it seemed that it might notice the boys, a thunderous crash sounded from somewhere nearby, shaking the whole city and sending Aldaz and Falk to their knees. Another sound followed it quickly, a sound akin to shattering glass, though it was infinitely louder, and the screaming in the background got louder before suddenly getting quiet once more. When the sound faded, the creature in the smoke moved off in another direction, apparently deciding that it had better things to do than stand in the street. Aldaz exchanged a relieved look with Falk and the brothers made their way forward quietly, in case the horrible silhouette returned.
"What was that?" Falk breathed, and Aldaz shook his head, he had never seen anything like it before. Ahead, a pile of rubble from a collapsed building filled the streets, blocking their way forward for a moment. Aldaz slowly began picking his way through the rubble, his brother close behind him. It seemed to be stable enough, for the moment. Falk looked around, obviously confused. In all the smoke, he had lost all sense of direction. "Aldaz, where are we?"
"Near to the Great Square I think." Aldaz replied, climbing over the last beam that lay in his path. "If I am right, it should be right up..."
Aldaz trailed off suddenly, standing utterly still in the street, his eyes staring straight ahead. Falk came and stood beside him, looking out as well. They were near to the Great Square alright, in fact they now stood on its western edge. But, the great dome of clear crystal, the pride of the entire city that had once captured the morning light, the lens through which they had viewed the fireworks earlier, was no longer above them. Instead, the great open square was now filled with dozens of pieces of clear stone, the shattered remnants of the dome. And there was far worse to see. Most of the shards were no longer clear. They were stained dark red with blood, and beneath them were the bodies of untold hundreds who had foolishly sought shelter beneath the dome. Aldaz and Falk stared, unmoving for a few moments longer before the piercing cry of a gryphon broke the horrible spell. Looking up, the brothers spotted a lone gryphon grappling with a black dragon high above them, the nobleman who rode it dueling fiercely with the dragon's rider. Shaking themselves out of their surprise, the brothers moved off at last into the square, picking their way carefully along the outer edge towards the east, the road that led to the Aviary in sight in that direction.
When the brothers were only around halfway along the square's edge, they heard the gryphon shriek once more and they looked up to see the noble winged beast falling from the sky, its rider nowhere to be seen. The gryphon fell directly onto a few of the shards of crystal that littered the square, splintering them on impact. The dragon it had been grappling with hovered above its fallen foe for a moment, then its head raised, looking right at them. Aldaz could fell the hatred in the beast's yellow eyes and he felt the sudden urge to run well up in him, but the dragon's gaze held him fast. The dragon flapped its wings harder a few times, rising up a short distance before diving down at them, its jaws opening wide, the fel orange glow of its fiery breath igniting within its throat. Everything in Aldaz screamed for him to move, screamed for him to take cover, but he couldn't make himself do it. A power that was beyond him had taken over, refusing to allow him to make the slightest move. All he could do was wait there, watching his death approach.
And then, just as the dragon exhaled a long tongue of fire down on the frozen teenagers, another silhouette appeared beside them. The newcomer raised his staff into the air in one hand, the crystal shining brightly. An instant before the fire reached them, Aldaz saw a shimmer in the air around him, as if from a mirage rising from the ground. And, to his great surprise, the flames curled around them, melting much of the crystals nearby into molten slag, crisping the flesh of the luckless victims that had been crushed beneath them, but leaving the boys unharmed. When the dragon's fire moved on beyond them, the dragon confident that it had destroyed the witnesses to its fight with the gryphon, Aldaz at last found himself able to move. Turning to the side, he looked at the man who had saved him and his jaw fell open. It was Urlidor, the old man now lowering the glowing staff to the ground. The man looked tired, so tired that he was leaning on his staff for support. But his aged eyes were filled with a power that Aldaz had never seen in them before, a fire that seemed to drive the old teacher.
"Come, we must hurry if we are to reach the Aviary in time." The old man said, guessing quite rightly what the boys were doing. He started off at a pace that the teenaged brothers had to hurry to match. While they walked through the rest of the square, Aldaz stared at the old man's back, as if he could bore a hole through the façade of the old man and see who he really was. Urlidor had used magic to save them. There was no other word for it. Magic!! Magi were extremely rare these days, magic being a fading force in the world. And this old man, this teacher who had seemed so scholarly and boring, was one of them. Shaking his head, Aldaz turned his attention to the burning city around him once more, wondering why whoever it was, was attacking them. Then, as they passed out of the sad square and into the road, he wondered suddenly if the rest of his family was safe. In his haste to insure the safety of his friend, he had forgotten. Now, so close to the Aviary, it all came back to him. Knowing he could do nothing for them now, he turned his mind away from that worry. Instead, he looked ahead as they rounded a corner, smiling when he saw their destination in the distance. The doors were still closed and the building was intact. Relieved, he started to run, out pacing his brother and the old sage.
And, just when he was about halfway there, about to pass the last cross street, he felt his foot skid forward suddenly on a patch of loose gravel, sending him sliding forward on his backside. The accident probably saved his life. Just as he passed the entrance to the cross street in this unceremonious fashion, the creature that had hidden there awaiting his passage lunged outward, its clawed hands slicing across the air where his neck would have been had he been standing. Now, at last, he got a good look at one of the creatures whose outlines he had seen in the smoke. It towered over him, tall and extremely muscular, but its continence was horrifying. More wolf than human it looked, its face contorted into a snarl, its eyes red and burning with savage, wild rage at having missed its target. Aldaz cried out in terror at the beast as it reached down, its claws dripping with blood from another victim. Just as its claws almost touched him, a bright flash flared past the creature's back, and the beast staggered, reddish lightning wreathing him. Aldaz wasted no more time, rolling to the side and onto his feet. The creature whirled, forgetting all about its teenaged prey, facing Urlidor, the sage's staff still glowing in the after affect of the spell he had used. Before the beast could so much as comprehend how an old man had dared to strike it, Urlidor raised his staff and brought it down with a sickening crack on its head, crying aloud a word in a strange language.
When the crystal atop the staff contacted the creature's head, it shattered with a brilliant flash of light, sending Urlidor reeling. The creature didn't have a much better time of it, collapsing into a spineless heap, quite dead. But, before Aldaz could congratulate the old man, a trio of the horrible creatures came around the corner from the direction they themselves had just come from. From the way the leader was stooped nearly to the ground, Aldaz knew they had been tracked. Aldaz gulped nervously, sure that they were done for. But Urlidor drew himself up straight tiredly, his face a mask of calm resolve, the face of one who is resigned to give his life for a just cause, turning to face the beasts alone.
"Aldaz, Falk, go." He ordered quietly, but Falk, who had always dreamed of being a soldier, looked like he might disobey, his hands balled into fists. But, before Aldaz could try and make his brother see reason, the old sage spoke once more, not even looking at the boy. "Now is not the time for you to sacrifice your life Falk. I promised your father I would get you out of the city safely. Would you make me a liar?"
Falk said nothing, his face twisting with indecision for a moment, before he turned his back and ran toward the Aviary, followed quickly by Aldaz. Neither brother looked back as they ran, but Aldaz could hear the sage speaking more words behind him, and, as he shoved against the Aviary's doors with all his might with his brother, forcing them back on their great hinges, he could feel the smoky air beginning to crackle with energy. Whatever the old sage was doing, it was powerful. Moments later, the door swung open just enough and the brothers ran inside, allowing it to swing shut behind them. The brothers ran down the aisle quickly, making their way to the stalls that held their friends. Running headlong into Gradis' stall, Aldaz was relieved to see that was perfectly fine and standing ready, anxious to be away.
"Aldaz, what is going on?" she questioned.
"Heliopolis is under attack," he replied, leaping up onto her back quickly. "We have to get out of here."
Gradis just nodded in reply, moving quickly out of the stall and into the aisle. And then, just as they were starting to fly off, a brilliant flash of cold blue light enveloped the doors at the far end, leaking around the edge like curls of smoke. Aldaz shielded his eyes with an arm held in front of his face, the light so bright it nearly blinded him. Before he could speak, the air in the room shifted, a wave of silent force spreading through the open space. It hit with the force of a hammer, nearly toppling Gradis and her rider. It was gone as fast as it had come, along with the blinding light, but Aldaz looked over at Falk and Aerin, the brothers exchanging a surprised glance. Both knew the source of the odd phenomenon. Urlidor's spell had gone off. But, before either of them could make mention of it, their feathered friends leapt into the air, their wings beating hard. A moment later, they were through the far end of the Aviary and soaring high. But the situation, if it was possible, had turned even worse as they had made their way to their friends. Above the city, the great black bulk of an airship bearing the cold, light blue insignia of the invaders hovered, blocking out the moonlight. Smaller airships swarmed about it, along with many black dragons, tiny when compared to great black bulk of the airship.
Aldaz found himself frozen at the sight of the massive ship, and he barely felt his eyes go wide as one of the large turrets on the front turned in his direction, the huge cannon in it aiming right for them. Gradis and Aerin needed no encouragement. They dove, spiraling apart quickly, heading as fast as they could away from the city. As it turned out, they needn't have bothered. They were not the target. In fact, it was doubtful that the gunners could even see them. The fireball that came from the turret shot unerringly downward, striking the roof of the Aviary. The great building had been constructed of the strongest stone, buttressed and strengthened until it could have withstood almost anything. But it might as well as have been constructed of parchment for all the good it did. The shot from the cannon cored right through the roof, and the interior glowed with fire for a few moments. The light from the fire illuminated the corpses lying out in the street for a brief, horrible moment, four monstrous shapes and one dressed in simple robes. And then, the building exploded, some magic contained within the airship's round sending a shock wave scattering through the whole of the city, debris and chunks of stone as large as people flying so far that a few of them arched over the whole floating island to land hissing and sparking in the ocean far down below.
As the shockwave stirred the air around him, Aldaz felt the fear that had paralyzed him fade, to be replaced with sorrow for all the innocent avians that had been killed by that shot. And, he felt his heart speed up, adrenalin filling his veins, something began to stir within him. All his life, he had been a kind person, rarely getting angry, never seeking revenge. But within the heart of every Windrider since time began was a spirit, a wild and free spirit that recoiled at blind, naked aggression against the innocent. Suddenly, as the boy looked up at the massive dreadnaught high above him, he felt something strange fill his body. It was a blindingly hot feeling, as if the sun itself had been kindled within his flesh, and he felt a rage building within him, a rage that sought only one thing. Revenge. His face twisted into a snarl, Aldaz lowered himself so he was laying flat against Gradis' back, and he signaled with his legs for his mount to curve back towards Heliopolis. Gradis banked slowly, looking back at him in surprise.
"We can't just run away!" Aldaz yelled, "We have to do something to help."
Gradis nodded, her look becoming determined and sharpened her bank, turning faster. Falk and Aerin turned with them, and soon the brothers were flying quickly over the outlands of the island. Up ahead, the city was covered in a haze of smoke, the clouds lit from below with the light of many fires. Aldaz could see Maniite airships beginning to land in the city, no doubt packed with troops. Even with the anger hot within him, Aldaz knew they could do little for the city at this point. The attack had been too swift, too coordinated and far and away too effective. But then, on the western edge of the city, where the Aerodome was obscured by smoke, Aldaz saw airships taking off, nearly a dozen of them. And, as they lifted off, Aldaz could see dozens of dragons arcing towards them. Airships were very durable, reliable vessels, but not even military airships could long survive an onslaught of dragons, to say nothing of merchant vessels. Tapping Gradis' side, he pointed to the west. Grim faced, the brothers and their mounts flew together towards the fleeing ships, soaring high above them. Before they got anywhere near them, the three in the back were already going down in flames, the dragon fire melting their engines. The remaining ships scattered, flying in all different directions to escape. And then, far down below, Aldaz spotted a familiar outline.
Their father's ship was flying almost at the level of the wave tops, and he could see even from there that it was packed to the brim with refugees. And, from his vantage point, Aldaz could see a dozen dragons closing on it, drawn up in neat formations for an attack. Aldaz looked over at his brother and they nodded to one another. Both knew what was needed. Gradis and Aerin didn't need to be told either. Aldaz hunched low to Gradis' back, holding on tightly to the avian's feathers, instinctually streamlining their outline. When he was in position, she nosed over, tucking her wings in tight to her body. Together, the twin avians with their human riders stabbed from on high like two dark spears, cleaving through the smoky sky with ease. The dragon riders down below never even saw them coming; their attention was focused wholly on the fleeing airship. Moments ticked by slowly for Aldaz, his perceptions slowed down in the adrenalin of the magnificent dive. Peering out from his perch on his friend's back, he could see that Gradis was aiming for the dragon in the center of the pack. To his surprise, he could see every detail of the dragon and his rider, as if he was suddenly gifted with the sight of a hawk.
The warrior was wearing black scale armor with light blue insignia worked into it. He was armed with a long lance and a sword, both weapons attached to him by ropes of braided leather. His saddle was made of similar material, the intricate twisting strands of cured hide standing out well against the dragon's black scales. Each scale was shaped like the tip of a blade, making the dragon look as if it were armored in spear points. Aldaz was surprised by how slow they appeared to be falling. The dragon seemed to be only crawling closer, and yet, he knew in his heart of hearts that they were flying faster than he had ever experienced, the buffeting wind so strong that if he straightened up but a little way, he would be swept off of his mount's back and out into open air.
And then, suddenly, they hit. The impact was bone jarring, and though Gradis was only about a quarter of the size of the great beast, the strike was wholly devastating. The dragon let out a horrible roar and there was an audible snapping sound, and then they were past the formation and diving, Gradis altering their flight, leveling out from the dive. Aldaz blinked, sitting up and looking back. He had never experienced such a thing before. It was as if time had slowed for him, giving him all the time in the world to act if he wished. And, the sudden strike had been more effective than he had thought it would be. Avians were not warriors, and were not used in war unless there was no other choice, but they could still be devastating it seemed. Two dragons were falling from the sky, their backs broken and their wings savaged by the claws of the Avians. The remaining dragons were reeling, flitting this way and that through the sky, spirally apart from their neat formations, seeking their assailants. It seemed that they had not expected to find any resistance this far from the city, and certainly not from Avians. And then, as they realized what had happened, the dragons roared, their calls so loud and strong that it made the air itself tremble. And then, whether by virtue of the dragon's sight, or by some light catching on Aldaz's white robe, one of the dragons spotted him.
Forgetting all about the airship, the dragon called to its fellows and five black dragons dove after the Avian and her rider. The rest peeled off in the opposite direction. Gradis needed no urging, her wings beating hard, flying off to the east as fast as she could. While she flew, Aldaz looked off to the west, back over the ocean. In that direction, he could see a tiny white shape, barely to be seen against the dark background. He knew that it was Falk and Aerin, fleeing from their own pursuing dragons. And, even as he watched, he saw the white speck suddenly turn about, going through wild evasive maneuvers, and then, it was obscured by brilliant orange tongues of flame.
"Gradis," he called, shouting at the top of his lungs to be heard over the wind. "We have to go back!! Falk and Aerin are in trouble."
"We can't. If we turn, the dragons following us will catch up." She replied, soaring a little higher, searching for a wind current that would aid them. Her face was tight with worry, her muscles tense as she strained to go faster, and Aldaz knew she was right. "We can't help them if we get ourselves killed. Your brother is strong, and my twin is wise enough not to try and fight them. Let Urlidor's sacrifice be a meaningful one."
Looking back once more, Aldaz saw the dragons still following them and he sighed. While they had not drawn any closer, they were certainly not giving up either. If they tried to turn back and aid their siblings, they would be caught for sure. Even now, flying straight and true, it was doubtful that they could escape their pursuers. Nodding, he turned back and lowered himself to her back once more, streamlining their shape to aid in their speedy flight...
***
Arman held onto the palace wall with ease, the climbing claws he wore digging into the cracks of the stone wall. He and his small command lay unseen and motionless against the wall, waiting for the right moment. The screams in the city behind him let him know that the monsters he had unleashed were doing their work well, spreading fear and terror among the populace. Listening closely, he heard the sound of the guards on the palace walls being ordered from the walls to go out and fight in the city, just as he had hoped. But he could not move yet. He had to wait. And sure enough, the waiting paid off. He could hear the foot steps of a lone sentry above him, left to watch the wall where once four or five had stood. Grinning, the Maniite reached higher with his climbing claws, feeling the tip of the rampart under his fingers. Gritting his teeth, he hauled himself upward with one arm, swinging his legs up and over the stone wall. His arms were burning from hanging on so long, but he had only a few moments to act. The sentry had his back to him for a crucial moment and he moved quickly, sprinting forward. Before the sentry knew what had happened, Arman had one hand covering his mouth, the other bracing across his chest. With a sharp twist of his arms, he silenced the sentry for good. Looking around, he saw only a few guards on the walls, and none could see him. He had picked his moment well.
Reaching over the wall, he motioned for his soldiers to come up and join him. Not bothering to wait for them, he ran along the wall to the tower. His men had their orders, they didn't need him anymore. As the officer picked for this assignment, he had been given the most important duty of all, a duty that required the swiftest actions he could manage. Arman ran down the stairs at the end of the wall and through the now empty courtyard to the doors of the keep. The main doors loomed above him, iron banded oak that would be impossible to force open without a battering ram. Not that it mattered, they were not his objective. Making his way around the keep's walls, he ducked into the shadows of the stable. Silently, he crept along through the darkness. The horses were either standing silently or lying down, seemingly unconcerned that a stranger was present. Grinning at the foolishness of this wealthy nation's rulers, he made his way to the back corner of the stable. In Mani lands, the royal stables were constantly guarded, and the horses were trained for war, and would not have simply sat quiet while an intruder crept through their home. When he reached the dark corner, Arman waited, dagger in hand. He didn't have to wait long. Suddenly, the flagstones that made up the floor before him shifted, then swung upward, sweeping back the straw that lay atop them, revealing a passage downward. Standing there was an unarmed man dressed in the fine yellow silks of a Heliopolan nobleman. He eyed Arman for a moment with suspicion, then motioned him forward. Arman smiled, following the man down into the passage.
"I wondered how long it would be until you got here." The nobleman sneered over his shoulder, "Took you long enough." Arman said nothing in reply. 'Let this pompous ass sneer.' He thought. The noble led him along the corridor and then paused, tapping the stones of the wall in an intricate rhythm. "I can't believe you Maniites even got this far through our defenses," The noble continued derisively, pushing open the door to the keep's basement. "And here we are, now, where is my reward?" He turned around and Arman smiled a smile so disturbingly hostile and unfriendly that the man's confident grin faded quickly into shock.
"Right here." Arman said, speaking his first and last words to this pompous fool. Before the nobleman could react, Arman stepped in close to him, driving the dagger he held into the man's chest and then upward, until the hilt of the dagger was flush to the man's skin, the point lodging itself into the mortar of the wall behind the noble.
Smiling pleasantly, Arman waited, leaning in close and watching as the man twitched, gaping like a fish out of water, unable to speak or even to cry out in pain while his blood stained his fine clothes dark red, clawing weakly at the assassin officer. The assassin eagerly watched the man's life fade from his eyes, making sure that he knew before he died how wrong he had been to help the Mani invaders. When the man let out a final gasp, slumping in place, Arman spat upon the noble and left him there, pinned to the wall by the dagger. Still grinning, Arman moved quickly out of store room he found himself in and ran upward, following the central spiral staircase, confident that no guards would find him. At the entrance to the top floor, he crouched, just out of sight, peering through the door to the small antechamber beyond. Two guards dressed in heavy plate armor and carrying long spears stood outside the door in the far wall. They were all that stood between him and victory. Smiling, he prepared his crossbow once more. Taking careful aim, he gently touched the firing trigger, sending the bolt whistling through the air. Even as it flew, he ran out into the chamber, heading for the other guard as fast as he could.
Arman had to give the man credit. Before the assassin officer had gotten halfway across the room, the man had leveled his spear at him and set himself for battle. But Arman had been well trained, too well trained to be defeated by any guard. Before the man could lunge with his spear, Arman leapt into the air, flattening out his body as if he himself was a weapon. Both feet connected with the man's breastplate, sending him tumbling to the ground. For all the guard's experience, he, like all who wore heavy plate armor, was helpless when he was on the ground. Landing gracefully on his hands and feet, Arman scrambled quickly across the stone floor and ripped the guard's helmet from his head. The man's eyes were terrified, seeing Arman as the very spirit of death itself, but they did not stay seeing very long. Arman stabbed quickly with a stiletto dagger, the thin blade passing right through the warrior's chainmail hood and into his neck. No more than a minute after Arman had entered the chamber, both guards were nothing more than piles of armor.
Flushed with success, Arman walked up to the door leading on ahead and found that it had been sealed by a spell, and no amount of brute force would break it. Not that Arman cared. This assault had been planned for years and he was prepared. Reaching into a pocket, he drew out a small, precious green gem, one of three that he carried. Smiling still wider, he pushed the stone against the door and both glowed brilliantly. The stone crumbled into dust, but the door swung open, even though he hadn't pushed at it. Pushing it wide, Arman stepped over the threshold and strode quickly towards the room's single occupant. The king of Heliopolis sat up in his bed, terror gripping tight upon the old man. His wife had died a few years ago, making Arman's job that much easier. Smiling a smile that was all teeth, and not at all pleasant, the assassin drew out his last dagger and grabbed the old king's white hair, yanking his head back, baring his throat.
"Emperor Archadius sends his regards." Arman said, then stabbed with the blade...