The Truce - 17. Chapter 17

Luca wandered the hall outside the main wing of the kitchen, struggling to stay awake. The stress of his impending death made for an odd contrast with his exhaustion, and he felt useless as he thought about the battle unfolding around him. He contemplated whether he had really even truly achieved anything in this war, and wondered what would happen when he died. General Clarion had taken over command of the estate, leaving him with a lot fewer responsibilities than he had been managing previously. He had been taking this newly freed time to reflect on his life with the Di Coteaus, noting that he hadn’t done much more than escape death over and over.

I’ve really just been lucky… but I suppose there is at least the villagers. I helped to prepare them to be able to defend themselves. Most would already be dead if not for me. While that was true, Luca couldn’t help but think that this was a selfish thought. Now I’m just using their lives to prolong my own for a little bit longer. Is it really helping them, if I just throw them into battle right after arming them? Was it all… for nothing?

He sighed, wishing he at least had Eamon to confide in. Eamon was busy, though, and Luca dare not distract him now for personal issues. That was why he was on his way to Alfie, the head chef at the Di Coteau estate. He was always an excellent listener, and Luca thought he should double check on the current food supply anyway. He was almost there when he heard screaming, and sound of feet stomping hard across the floor in a run. Down the hall behind him, a few of the house staff rounded the corner in a hurry. Shortly on their heels were soldiers dressed in enemy garb.

Shit!

One of the soldiers caught up with a servant that Luca recognized as Elizabeth, and pounced on her. She fell on her front with him on top of her, and struggled to push him away. He unsheathed a dagger and plowed it into her back over and over. She screamed, and he got up to continue the chase before she even died. Luca turned, and ran as hard as he could towards the kitchen.

Did the first wall fall? No, he thought while sprinting, I would have known. His chest swelled with nerves as he was chased, and he fleetingly thought of the people he cared about in the palace. Do they know we’ve been infiltrated? Will they make it?

The sound of a weapon hitting another one of the servants and a falling body made Luca run harder. A sob mixed with a scream echoed from behind him, and it wasn’t long before the other two workers fell. Luca knew that someone must have been using a projectile based on the meaty thuds he heard, so he turned into the first doorway he came across. He tried to run evasively as he had once seen Talia do in the yard, dodging left and right sporadically. Eventually he came to the main dining hall, where events were usually hosted. Off of that were several doorways that led to a couple of different areas.

Those two are supply cabinets and butler’s pantries. I can’t go there – if I trap myself I’m as good as dead. That leaves the prep stations, the hall that adjoins to the bedrooms of the east wing, and the main kitchen. The main kitchen had a door to one of the outdoor courtyards, which was mostly used for bringing large shipments of goods in. He figured his best odds would be to have the option to access the outdoors, so that was the direction that he chose. He barely got through the kitchen door before the group of soldiers made it into the dining hall, and he closed it shut as quietly as he could.

“Luca!” said Alfie warmly. “What brings you here tonight?” He was loud, and Luca desperately motioned for him to quiet down. Alfie looked confused, and his expression changed to a frown. “Is everything okay?”

“They’re here,” Luca whispered. He was breathing heavily, and it took effort to make his breaths quiet. “They’re in the house.” He didn’t know if the group had seen him choose this door, but he was certain at least one of them would be there in a minute. Alfie’s face furrowed into deeper concern, and he grabbed Luca by the arm and began to move away from the door.

“Have both walls fallen already?” he asked sadly. He was making an effort to whisper, but Luca still felt that he was being loud. They rushed quickly to the other side of the room, padding as quietly as they possibly could.

“I don’t think so,” Luca replied. They snuck around a row of cabinets, and Alfie grabbed a frying pan and a meat cleaver from a supply rack. He handed Luca a knife, and indicated that Luca should stay behind him. “Assassins.”

“Jamison,” Alfie grunted. Luca nodded, having already come to the same conclusion. “How many of them are there?”

“I’m not sure,” Luca admitted. “Maybe four or five?”

“Okay. Stay here and keep quiet – if we’re seen, run that way. It should lead you to the storage shed – you can make your way from there to the forge. Wilhelm should be able to protect you. He’s skilled with a blade. You know the way?” Luca nodded that he did. Just then, the door to the kitchen slammed open, and by the sound of things several men made their way into the space. Luca had hoped that they would have split up, but he had no such luck. Bodily motion stilled, and, as quietly as possible, they began to inch their way backwards through the aisle of cabinets. Luca felt cold sweat on his neck and face, and it took all of his willpower not to flee.

We’re so outnumbered. Gods, this is bad.

The soldiers were efficient, searching the room in quick order. As they neared Luca and Alfie’s row, Alfie made a preemptive strike.

“HA!” he yelled as he whipped the pan horizontally, smashing it into a head that just rounded the corner. The man was knocked out cold, and two more charged to where he was. “Run Luca!” Alfie shouted. Luca stood frozen with fear for the portly cook, but was taken aback when Alfie dodged the swing of a sword with expert fluidity. He brought the meat cleaver down on his attacker’s wrist, and it cut just shy of separating the hand from the arm. “I said run boy!” Luca only saw Alfie parry one more blow before he turned and ran, but he heard the loud clang of an iron pan against blades. Alfie gave a cry of agony before Luca made it fully out the door, and tears streamed down his face as he rushed out into the cool evening air.

Luca made a straight line for the supply shed, just as he had been instructed to do. He didn’t even make it there before the door to the inside slammed open again, and Luca knew that someone had followed him. He risked a quick glance over his shoulder, and saw three of the enemy soldiers making their way towards him. Does that mean Alfie has fallen too? Luca didn’t know, but the odds weren’t good for him. Thank you Alfie, Luca thought to himself.

He continued running across the yard, wet grass making his path slick. Luca was only wearing house shoes, and was not prepared to do any running. His feet slid within them, and it made it difficult to move quickly. A knife went whizzing by his ear, and this reminded Luca to try and run in zig-zags.

“Shit!” he cursed as he lost his balance and tripped over his shoes. His face fell into the dirt and grass, and he grabbed clumps of it in his fists in a desperate struggle to get back up and keep going.

The forge is too far away. I’m not going to make it. He heard the rapid thumps of footfall closing in on him, and knew that he was too late. Luca risked a look behind him as he stumbled to his knees, and had to immediately throw himself back to the ground and roll to dodge a vertical slash of a sword. The blade cut deep into the soil where he had just been, and Luca knew that he had just barely missed it.

He pushed himself up again, but was too slow to evade the enemy swordsman before he could take another swing. Luca had to stay in a squat to dodge another slash, and this time stumbled back onto his rear end. He was splayed out looking up at the enemy assassin, who now had him where he wanted.

The swordsman retracted his sword to make way for a stab that would go directly through Luca’s chest, and Luca knew that he would be too slow to dodge it. He looked into the callous eyes of his attacker, and then shut his own. The world went black, and Luca felt at peace.

At least I tried, he thought. And I got farther than most others ever get the chance to in my position. I wasn’t able to save many people, if any at all, but at least I tried. That has to make a difference. Even if we lose this war, hopefully it makes people think about how things should really be.

He heard the sound of metal piercing flesh and felt warm flecks of blood spray onto his face, but he did not feel pain. The world around him went silent for a moment, the dull rush of white noise enveloping him as he faced death head on. His memories flashed through his head, and he imagined how differently his life could have gone.

So many avenues that I could have taken – so many other dreams that I could have pursued. But I’m proud of the path I took. Ultimately, it was all that I could do.

He waited for a few seconds with his eyes closed, but began to falter as the noises of a fight raged around him. He still didn’t feel any pain, and wondered if that was the adrenaline. When he opened his eyes, he was surprised to see that the splatter of blood on his face wasn’t his. Instead, the enemy soldier that had chased him down stood motionless with his mouth open. Instead of a tongue, the head of a spear protruded hideously out of his mouth. The shaft came out the back of his head, and he slowly fell to his knees, and then to the ground in front of Luca.

Eamon.

The captain of the guard had caught up with Luca, and had thrown his spear straight through Luca’s nearest assailant. He was now fighting the remaining two guards unarmed, and somehow holding his own. Eamon was primarily defensive, moving back and forth to dodge the swings of swords. He used the momentum of his enemies against them, trying to get them to slip up and stumble in their efforts to cut him down. Luca wasn’t sure how long he was going to last, so he sprang into action immediately.

Oh gods. He jumped to his feet and circled around the body of the enemy assassin that had just died, and tried to dislodge the spear from his neck. He had to put one foot on the head and use two hands to pull the spear out by the shaft, but was eventually able to free it up. He ran with the spear in his hands back towards Eamon as close as he could, and tossed the spear.

“Your spear is behind you!” he shouted at Eamon. The throw had been pathetic, and landed farther away from Eamon than Luca had hoped for. He groaned at his lack of athletic prowess, and watched the fight from as close as he dare. He didn’t want to get in Eamon’s way, or become a further liability. Instead, he scanned the area to make sure that no other enemies were around.

Eamon moved into action as soon as Luca had shouted, and gave what sounded like a whooping cry of joy. Luca realized that Eamon probably didn’t know until he spoke up that he had been saved, and that Eamon was relieved Luca was still alive. His fighting stance changed almost immediately, and he began to step forward every few steps that he took backwards. The soldier to his right threw a strike in the form of a near-horizontal slice, and Eamon spun to one side and ducked as he dodged it. As he faced away from the man, he used the momentum of his spin to bring his elbow crashing into his opponent’s face. Eamon was in plate, and the crunch of metal on skin told Luca that the hit was painful. As the man bent backwards, Eamon jumped up and pushed off of him with both legs. He dove towards the ground, and rolled to pick up his spear. He just got back on his feet in time to parry a blow from the other assassin’s sword, and they began combat.

Three quick strikes that patterned high, low, high, were met sword to spear, and then the swordsman tried to go for a stab. Eamon moved the spear in circles around the blade, causing the wielder to drop it for fear of his forearm getting punctured. Eamon took the opportunity to thrust his spear into the man’s gut, and rip it out hard. As he pulled it out, Eamon swung the spear in a wide, one-handed semi-circle that caught the recovering warrior off guard. He had been advancing to join back in the fight, but the tip of Eamon’s spear sliced directly above the man’s breastplate and opened his throat in a straight line. He fell to the ground gagging on his own blood, and was extinguished shortly afterwards.

Luca ran towards Eamon, and jumped into a tight hug. The hard metal of Eamon’s armor wasn’t comfortable, but Luca didn’t care. It was good to have Eamon’s arms around him, and he felt the older teen kiss him on top of the head.

“Thank you for coming,” he said quietly, trying not to let emotion get the best of him. “You saved me.”

“Of course I did,” Eamon replied soothingly. “I was terrified that I had missed.” Luca just hugged harder, and the two stood there embracing for a solid few seconds.

“I love you, Luca,” Eamon said softly.

“I love you too.”

***

Alex, Carl, and their entourage walked through another set of streets in the Capitol quietly, patrolling for any remaining enemies or looters that existed in the neighborhood. They were in a primarily residential area of the city, where houses were built out of simple stacked stone and shared walls. Narrow alleyways were all that existed for transit, so they weren’t able to take horses through this part of town. This made Alex feel a bit more susceptible to ambush, but he knew that he needed to do his part to defend the city. They had already quashed two groups of enemy soldiers that day with only a few casualties on their side, so all in all it was turning out to be a successful day.

“We need to end this,” Alex said. “It isn’t sustainable to continuously divide our forces and patrol these winding streets. We should approach this with a large-scale battle at the outer walls.”

“I agree,” said Carl, “but we can’t just let soldiers run amok in small pockets in the city. Who would there be to stop the pillaging and murder of civilians?”

“This is Nabius,” Alex reminded him. “The citizens here will fight back. They’re not so hopeless as they might seem.” Alex knew that Carl wouldn’t have considered that, but he agreed with the sentiment overall.

“I guess that’s true,” the prince replied thoughtfully.

“It’s good to care about their welfare – you’re right. Of course you are. But that’s why this whole war started in the first place. So that common folks don’t get run over by the stronger, richer, or more ‘noble’ people in the lands. The best thing that we can do for them is win. We can’t help them all. That’s why I want one war – a decisive strike.”

“You sure it’s not because you’re a better commander in a larger setting?”

“Maybe,” Alex said with a frown. “I guess I hadn’t really considered that. And I don’t even know if it’s true. But that can only be a good thing, no?”

“Maybe,” said Carl. “I think you feel more in control when you can see what’s going on on the battlefield. The city isolates pockets of soldiers and is a more tumultuous setting.” Alex thought about that for a few moments, realizing that he did feel like he had less control during this period of small scale raids.

“That’s true. But I can’t help but feel that these small parties are meant to divide and distract us. And besides,” he said with disgust in his voice, “not all of our soldiers are even helping in the city skirmishes.” Alex was referring to several men who had enjoyed the pleasures of the city rather than doing their job when no commander could see them. He was also referring to Markus and Skorpa’s men, who were officially part of Ysabel Clarion’s army. He and Carl had discovered that they were doing nothing but collecting bodies, following raiding parties and cleaning up after the battles. While this was a semi-useful service, Alex had been furious to know that they weren’t truly helping in their fullest capacity. When Alex had given direct orders for them to stop and help, they refused. He supposed that he wasn’t their true commanding general, but it was bold of them to flat out say no. He wasn’t sure what to do after that, so he had simply left and returned to fighting.

“You’re probably right. Ever since the confrontation with the tribesmen, I can’t help but feel we’re missing out on the full picture. Believe me, I want an end to this fight too, but I don’t know that we would win a one to one battle.”

“We won’t win if it lasts too long either. Look at the north. I’ve already likely lost my home. All the soldiers from my lands have probably lost theirs too. People don’t stay loyal to leaders that fail them. If we drag this out… that counts as a failure.” Carl nodded, but Alex could see that there was still doubt in his eyes.

“What is your plan?”

“To fight,” Alex replied simply. “We know where the Generals’ tents are outside the walls. We take them down.”

“Fran La Croix is likely commanding from elsewhere privately. She’s too old to join in battle,” Carl pointed out.

“That may be true. But Davora is here. He’s been seen.”

“So how do we take him out?”

“Walk up and do it,” Alex said with a shrug. “I’ll run the plan for a full-scale offensive by General Torne tonight. We need to make a move – we can’t just hemorrhage all of our resources and wait for this to end. It’s as good as rolling over.”

“Alright,” said Carl. “If you really feel like now is the time.”

“I do.”

“Okay. I trust you.”

***

Kade and Adrian were sitting on their bed in their room, cross-legged and facing each other. They had been doing nothing but talking since the siege began, detailing moments of their lives that they regretted and celebrated, and their best and worst memories. Neither had caught much sleep, instead preferring to cling to wakefulness in the remainder of the time that they had left.

“I’m sorry that I never got to see your home. The Illjard sounds beautiful.”

“I’m sorry that you never got to see it too. I would have liked to show you my world.”

“I would have liked to have seen you rule it.”

“I don’t rule. Just lead.”

“Same difference.” Silence settled for a few moments after that, only broken later by a sigh from Kade. “This is a bit grim. I don’t like sitting around waiting to die.”

“I don’t either,” agreed Adrian. “But at least if I have to go out, my last few days have been good,” he said with a suggestive double raise of the eyebrows. Kade smiled, and rolled his eyes.

“Yeah. That part has been good at least.”

“We may make it. This estate is defensible, and I’m sure Alexandre will send some kind of back up. If we were a bit closer to the water my fleet could have helped to turn the tide, but this far inland they aren’t very useful.”

“Yeah,” said Kade, “Maybe. But unfortunately we are inland, and we don’t have near enough men to man all of the defenses that we would need. Do you really think my cousin will send men our way?”

“I think he’s a man of honor,” said Adrian coolly. “He wouldn’t sacrifice his home and friends for nothing.”

“I agree with that second statement, but it wouldn’t be for nothing. It would be for the war. Honestly… I’m doubtful that he’d help, even if he wanted to. I don’t mean to be pessimistic, but he’s engaged in other fights down south. And this territory… it isn’t worth that much in the long run. I know I only know him by reputation, but I think if Alexandre is faced with choosing between the tactically reasonable and emotional relief, he won’t follow his emotions.” Adrian frowned at that, giving a slow nod.

“Perhaps,” was all that he said. Kade could tell that Adrian was trying not to give up hope, but that was futile. There was an unspoken understanding among everyone in the estate that the war would be lost, but Adrian seemed to be resistant to that. Again, Kade wondered if the Prince’s blind optimism and faith in the future was a weakness.

It certainly doesn’t help us much in this situation.

Just then, the doors to their room flew open and a group of soldiers flew in. The lock to the door had been smashed off of the frame by either a kick or a small ram – Kade didn’t see which. The soundproofing of the room had eliminated any forewarning that anyone was coming, and the pair was caught off guard. Kade barely had time to register that these were not soldiers from the Di Coteau estate, and by default they must be enemies. Evidently, Adrian had reacted to this just a bit more quickly than Kade, and had shoved the other man off of the bed hard. It was just in time to stop an axe from coming down on him. Instead, the weapon tore into the mattress, and a snowstorm of white feathers exploded from the bed into the air.

“Move!” Adrian shouted. Kade recovered, and looked for a weapon while Adrian scrambled off of the bed.

I don’t see anything. Fuck!

Adrian grabbed a slim rapier from the bedside table, which he ordinarily wore with his crown and royal garb. Kade had originally thought that it was ceremonial only, and wondered if it was even sharp. The blade looked like ice, and Kade wondered whether it was made of true steel. Adrian unsheathed it faster than Kade thought was even possible, and poked three holes through the chest of the axe wielder before he had even removed his weapon from the mattress.

Holy shit.

There were three other men in the room, all of which had swords. One swung at Adrian, but he dodged with a slight movement to the left. He was unflinching, and Kade noticed that he stood with one shoulder facing the target. Kade knew that this was a stance designed to minimize target area, which was commonly used by rapier wielders. It required speed and the ability to dodge and parry rather than outright block attacks, but Kade knew immediately that Adrian must be trained by the way he fell into his rhythm so quickly.

When the assassins took the sight of Adrian in, the nearest one hesitated for a moment. Illjardi weren’t a common sight in Nabius, but just a second’s hesitation proved to be fatal. Adrian took full advantage of the moment, sticking the point of his blade in and out of the mans throat in a flash. His sword sounded like the swish of a whip when he brought it down to his side, and a thin line of red was painted on the floor and bed as a result. The second and third men did not hesitate and came at Adrian with vigor before their companion had even realized what happened. One man swung an axe and Adrian hard, and he deftly sidestepped out of the way.

Lifting his rapier, Adrian cut open the man’s knee between where his shin guard ended and a plate skirt began. In a ‘Z’ formation, the next two strokes of Adrian’s blade striped across the forearm, and then the neck.

The third man had swung before Adrian could recover, and as a result the prince had to drop himself onto the ground backwards. He tilted his face to the side as he did so, and the enemy blade came close enough to the face that Kade thought he might have cut Adrian’s ear. The man stomped down on the rapier as he fell, and Adrian was left defenseless.

“No!” shouted Kade as he rushed in unarmed. He jumped across the bed to tackle the man, who responded by slamming the hilt of his blade into Kade’s stomach. This made him double over and hit the floor. Kade looked to Adrian, expecting one of the two of them to take a hit in a few milliseconds. Instead, he saw that Adrian had reached up above his head instead, and grabbed his crown off of the night stand. Kade wasn’t sure that he could do much about that, but Adrian looked composed and determined.

The prince kicked both legs up into the air and forward, landing on his feet. Using his momentum, he placed the crown point-side up towards the enemies face, and pushed. Kade kicked at the back of his left knee, causing it to buckle. While he was caught off guard, Adrian used the opportunity to slam a foot into the rim of the crown, which drove it’s spiky peaks into the enemies eyes and neck. He screamed, releasing his grip on his own weapon, and stumbling back off of the rapier. Adrian stomped on a part of the hilt of his sword, which made the weapon jump into the air with a spin. He caught it by the handle, and drove it through the now prone enemy. This silenced his screams, and Adrian ran over to the door frame. He was still fully alert, clearly assessing the situation. Poking his head out into the hallway, he looked right and then left. After a few moments, he turned around to face Kade.

“Are you alright?”

Kade nodded, eyes wide. Adrian had just reacted better to a fight situation than he had. Kade wasn’t sure what surprised him more: that, or being caught in a sudden fight itself.

“What was that?”

“The walls must have been breached,” Adrian said coolly. “That, or someone found a way in that Eamon and Ysabel didn’t know about.”

Kade nodded again. He was dumbfounded, going over the idea that perhaps Adrian was not so weak as he had assumed.

No, definitely not weak. Not weak at all.

“Either way,” continued Adrian, “now we only have one aim. We need to try and survive for as long as possible.”