Hell's Bane (COMPLETED)

Chapter Twenty-Six: The Storm Beckons

The leader thought about the madness he was walking into once again. It wasn't that he had cared so much about the Blade, but Kazim would most likely be guarding it or at least position someone over it. The Blade was bait for his brother. Kazim would face him, and this time, Davis would be ready.

And once Kazim is out of the way...

Davis eyed the sword that Ayn had given him, held in his right hand. He had always been able to beat his brother in a swordfight, but none of that mattered now. If Kazim had a gun, he would improvise. If he were ambushed, he would cut his way out of it. The leader suddenly felt the urge to take out his other weapon – a dagger that Ayn had also given him, but then shook his head. He wouldn't reveal that he had that. Yet.

Blood in the sky, I really have no idea what I'm walking into. Maybe I won't be able to use this dagger when the time comes. Or maybe I will. Or maybe I'll be shot on the spot.

Clenching his teeth, Davis continued to climb up the stairs, until he could finally feel the pressure change in his ears.

Susan and Ayn hid in the shadows between thin alleyways in the castle, the only thing they were able to hear were the footsteps of the people who walked past and their own breath.

"Dagger," Ayn had said on the first day, handing it from her belt to the spy. "Use it wisely."

After that, they began to prey on people who were foolish enough to disturb them. The bodies piled up one by one, but each of them hidden, just as they were. It was almost a sweet life to live, Susan thought morbidly. It was a sweet life, to always be on the edge and always occupied.

Of course, her routine ended the moment the war began... and she found herself once again doing an insane act that would determine the fate of the world, for better or for worse.

Though they were visible, only the keenest of Scavenger would be able to spot that tiny gathering of armies at the bottom of the massive hill. Joss wasn't able to sleep that night and stayed awake until morning when everyone else arose too.

Many stifled gasps of surprised rang through the crowd as they saw the giant castle looming over a towering hill, so tall that they could only see the rooftop of Gladwyn. Joss waited impatiently and finally cleared his throat.

"You explain this, or I explain this?" the hermit asked. Amandalin shrugged.

"I'll explain it."

"Sure."

Amandalin stepped between the crowd and the two other leaders in front of them before finally saying: "Well, today is the day. Today we approach the Scavenger and determine once and for all the conclusion to this never-ending war. Through trials and tribulations, we have made it this far, and we will persist until we either be victorious or die trying. For the Claimant!"

The half-hearted armies answered, "For the Claimant!"

"This is the plan. We're going to circle Gladwyn Castle and march up the hill as far as we can without being seen. Then we charge straight at them and try to knock down their gate. For the others in the circle who are too far from the gate, grab the ladders-" Amandalin gestured to the people scattered across all four armies carrying the ladders. "-And try to take them down from above. I know it'll be too tall to reach the top of the castle, but try and crawl into the windows."

"That's actually not very comforting," Joss muttered. Amandalin shooed him.

"We have another chance, though. Halfway up the hill, under where the gates are, lies a hole that's half-completed, leading into the Scavenger. I will lead a dozen-or-so people to complete that hole, and then we will attack from the inside." A dozen people walked up to the front but rather armed with swords, carried shovels. "These are also good for knocking people out in battle if you were wondering!" Amandalin added. "So don't be nervous that we get ambushed, and all get shot!"

"Even though we probably will," Joss continued to comment. Hugo restrained the hermit, in no mood to hear what else he had to say.

"Once we've completed the hole, we'll send message to sound the horn, and then Fedlimid army will help us charge into the castle through that tunnel. If we're in the castle, our main goal is to kill the Gaulinslott and Kazim. If those two are eliminated, we have won."

Amandalin looked around at the anxious faces and raised her dagger with a triumphant smile on her face, as if they had already won. "For the Claimant!"

"For the Claimant!"

Forming an entire circle around the hill, the bloodbath began.

Davis crouched up the final set of stairs, and suddenly froze as he peeked around the corner... only to see no one inside Kazim's chambers, only the Blade in sight, shimmering on top of a wooden table.

Unbelievable, the leader thought, shaking his head. Unbelievable.

Perhaps there was something he was missing. He could only see so far as to what was on the other side of the wide doorway. But when he stepped in, his suddenly flinched as he saw Kazim on the other side of the massive room, apparently hidden from the sight of where he could've seen from the stairs.

"You've come," Kazim said, stepping forward and raising the gun he held in his hands. "You've come."

Davis gritted his teeth and unsheathed his sword. "Face me in a fair match, brother. Earn all the respect and power you deserve, if you truly want to prove that you aren't a coward."

Kazim grinned and continued to point the gun at his brother, only to lower it and put it in replacement of the Blade, which he raised in front of him. "I suppose you're right, Oswin Linwood. We've exchanged blows too many times in shadows. Let this duel decide once and for all who rightfully deserves the Brimstone Faction and the values along with it."

"I suppose you have another trick up your sleeve," Davis muttered, clenching his teeth even tighter. Kazim laughed as if it were a joke between good friends.

"Of course not!" To prove his point, Kazim opened his arms, and, rather than checking to see if there was anything hidden there, Davis charged at his brother, sword flashing towards him.

Sparks flew. They clashed, and though Davis' technique was far more refined, Kazim's sword did enhance the bearer's ability, and with every attack Davis did, his brother seemed to anticipate it and parry it with a simple raise or lower of his sword.

It was almost an equal match. One side thrust forward, another side blocked and then also went into the offense. They danced across the room, scarring walls and destroying objects. Finally finding himself in harmony with his blade, Davis persisted, driving Kazim back, until his brother was against a wall.

"You lose," Davis said, preparing to deliver a final blow, before Kazim suddenly kicked him in the gut, sending him sprawling backward.

"No, you do," Kazim said, looking at him with false-pitying eyes as he placed the Blade against his brother's throat. "You need to learn that in a real duel, there is no fair and unfair. Either I kill you, or you kill me. And I will do everything I can to make sure I survive."

The sword pressed closer to Davis' throat. The leader gasped, thinking of a plan, and then reached for his dagger. Kazim didn't notice, bent on ending his brother once and for all, and only realized it was there when Davis plunged it into his side, causing the leader to gasp and roll over, quickly losing blood.

"So will I," Davis said, plunging the dagger even deeper in his brother's wound. "It appears you've run out of tricks this time, Kazim." And then, without any more thought, the leader stood up, taking the dagger out and preparing to sink it into his brother's heart.

That was when half a dozen soldiers rushed into the room, and Davis' eyes suddenly fluttered as he felt a bullet through his head. The leader fell over, life draining out of him, dead.