Chapter Thirty-Five:

Captive Truth

The giant creature ran towards the men with his ball and chain swinging over his head. The creature seemed to grow as he ran at him. It wasn't long until the creature had to be twelve feet tall. Luckily the tunnel was small and the creature had to dip his head. Thick black cloth covered Carlos' skin and blended into the darkness perfectly. Unfortunately, Greg could only make out two things: the black eyes and the long snout. Gregory dived behind the creature and tried to stab him cleanly through the head but was shocked to see that the creature now whore armor! Francis stood directly in front of the strange creature and aimed his sword directly at the creature's dipped chin at angle so that the sword would go through the mouth for a killing blow. The creature's wiry arms reached out and easily knocked the sword from Francis's hands. He stood in front of the monstrous creature defenseless. The other men jumped into action. They all ran at the monster with swords pointed out. That is…all the men except Gregory. He stared straight ahead like he longed to move but could not. Samuel wanted nothing more than to run but he just stood in shock. He had seen this creature before.

Years ago, before the Great War, Samuel was a young private on his first mission. He was afraid and nervous. Knowing that all young privates were nervous during their first battle, the commander had placed Samuel and the other privates in the last wave. The veterans of the battle were in front so that the new soldiers could see how the battle was to be preformed and come in prepared next time. Yet, the creature that immerged from the woods was too much for even the veterans to handle. Samuel shuddered at the memory. The creature had nearly killed them all…until the commander stabbed it in the back. He gripped the sword in his shaking hand. He knew that he needed to calm down but there was no time. Samuel took a deep breath and his heartbeat seemed to slow. His hand was still enough to go in for the last strike. He dove behind the creature and pushed the blade in. The creature roared and fell to the ground. Samuel savored this small victory but then realized the battle had just begun.

It seemed hopeless: scores of enemy warriors fighting against ten men. The enemy not only outnumbered the small party, they had more weapons and strength. The men seemed to be more than human because they were taller and stronger than any of the men from Bantor but that didn't stop Samuel and Gregory from stabbing anything that came near them. The two men and their comrades hacked at knives and ducked away from chains and clubs. All the men were just trying to survive. Then, an idea came to Francis with the sound of metal on rock.

The map in the alcove said that an "X" was on the right of the mound. What the "X" led to, no one knew but what other choice did they have? Only death waited back there. Francis ran to the right and the others followed. The ten-man army had to fight their way to the right wall. It was not easy. They swung and hacked and groaned. Yet, when they got there, the men were not satisfied with a seeming victory. They were terrified because they knew that another onslaught was on its way.

The wall was blank. There was no door, no secret code, and no hint. The wall was nothing but packed dirt. Gregory and Samuel continued to hold off the Monster's army while the others felt and hit the wall. There had to be a trap door. There had to be something.

"Look!" Shouted another one of the servants pointing to the corner of the wall where a small tunnel stood behind a pillar. The tunnel was well hidden. If you looked at it from any angle other than straight on, you would think it was just the pillar's shadow. The men ran into the darkness with Gregory fallowing behind them. The group ran and ran so long that John thought they would be trapped in the dark forever. Hopelessness hit Samuel with full force until he literally found light at the end of the tunnel. Gregory and all the men are safe. Now we look back to the monster and his army:

No amount of words could describe the violence and horror that ensued in this battle. All anyone needs to know is that in the end, the men of Bantor made it out alive on the end of a miracle. Yet, they were not alone. A lone survivor came with them. He needed medical treatment and the men did all they could for him. He was not a bad prisoner. The man never tried to escape but would never answer questions either. Not even simple ones like his name. It was like the man knew that he would not be with them and he planned on taking his secrets with him when he left.

He did not even live through the night…

Chapter Thirty-Six:

The Battle from the Monster's view

"Charge!" Carlos's voice yelled over the clamor. All of the enemies ran towards the men of Bantor. This is it, thought the monster, we have them. The army ran forward in a serge only to find that the men were not anywhere in sight. The army looked this way and that but could find nothing. Then they came: all the men emerged from crevasses and clefts. The surprise attack had changed. The enemy army was now on the defensive. The enemy army fell before the monster as he looked through Carlos's eyes in a rush of furry. Carlos's legs ran towards the men of Bantor's leader, the Count. Even through rage the monster had a respect for this man. He was a warrior and a swordsman. Yet, he would die. Carlos's body turned in for the finishing blow but as he did his right side was fatally open. Francis's sword cut through the air and hit Carlos's side. As the blade cut flesh Carlos's body fell and Francis pulled back in shock…

"Ohhhh," Carlos moaned as he opened his eyes, now his mind was his own for the first time. He still lay where he had fallen: right in the middle of the battlefield. Memories of the battle came flooding back to him.

With a shout to the small Calvary, the monster ran after the men of Bantor. This mission was too uncertain to leave to foot soldiers and slaves. This situation called for the stealthy riders. The stealthy snakes were fast and caught up to the men without a problem. The men could go left but the men could also go right. The monster needed to make sure they went where he wanted them. No matter what, they couldn't go right.

Carlos ran into the north, although his wounds were great, seeking the men. Surprisingly, when he came to a fork in the road, someone else he didn't expect stood waiting for him.

"Didn't expect to run into me, God of Chaos? You are an old friend and it has been too long. Why it seems only yesterday that you left me thinking that you could take Bantor's men by yourself." The Tracker stepped out from behind a bush and smiled mischievously at the god.

"What do you want, Scum?"

"Isn't it obvious? I want to play a game of scripts with you. If I win I get to take control of your slave army. If you win I will lead you to the Batorian men… That is what you were planning to do isn't it?" The Tracker smiled as he spoke and laughed at jokes that not even the monster could hear.

"You think you can stop me from achieving my goal, Tracker?"

"I know I can. Those wounds will make it easy. I don't even have to fight. All I have to do is wait for the blood to pour out of you."

Carlos charged at the Tracker. He ran at the tracker as forcefully as he could but a punch in the stomach stopped him. Carlos's longs breathed hard as the tracker smiled his malice smile. The monster knew that he would have to go along with the tracker. He hated to admit it but at his present state of injury, the tracker was stronger than a god.

"Are we going to have the trial or what?"

The game begun:

The tracker and the monster both looked down at the scripts. Then, they looked up at one another. "Pick," said Carlos's voice as his lips curved with a smile. The tracker had seen Carlos duel on many occasions. He knew the monster's moves. He would choose the Lance Deck in the middle. Of course, the tracker chose this deck. The god of Chaos would not have the advantage or be playing with his favorite deck. That would surly give the tracker an edge that he needed more than he would admit.

The monster inside of Carlos saw what the tracker had done. "If that weasel thinks he can beat me that easily, he has another thing coming," the monster thought in frustration. "I'll use his own plan against him!"

The god used Carlos's hand to grab the deck on the left quickly and both sides drew. The monster's five were weak but the tracker's puzzled looked proved that he was not fairing well ether. The tracker put down three scripts and watched the monster make his move.

"I know what you are playing: Helena the witch Beast Script with Troy and Oma Will Scripts. It won't work," the monster said with a sneer. Sure enough, the tracker had played the scripts Carlos had named. He turned his scripts over to revile a golden haired woman in a blue dress, a floating city surrounded by monsters, and a scroll with music written on it in orange letters. The tracker's face went white.

"How can I play against a man who knows all of my moves? I forfeit!" Cried the Tracker as he started to run. Carlos knew that the man had gone back on his word and silently made a promised to kill him.

Chapter Thirty-Seven:

The Green X

Now, in the Bantorians' camp a fire flickers in the moon light as Samuel and the other servants made camp. It has been a hard day and they are ready to rest. They all gather around the fire to decide who takes which watch. Little did they know someone is already watching them. Two men sit out of the ring to watch the Bantorians talk.

"Is that a nobleman?" asks one Watcher in a squeaky voice.

"It looks like it," answered another. "Jabwel will not be happy to hear this." With that, the two young Watchers left and went south.

Francis walked around the camp slowly. Something seemed to click in his brain. He had been here before. Had it been a previous battle? That must be it why else would this place seem so familiar? Footsteps ran towards Francis, breaking his thoughts. "Invaders have been spotted coming from the north," stammered Samuel.

"Sharpen your swords and get ready for battle," Francis replied immediately. He turned his back and got ready to sharpen his own sword when Samuel interrupted him again.

"That's the problem. A servant named John is missing." All the men gaped at each other. Invaders were on their way and John was missing! Of all the times to get separated! The men broke into four search parties and went out in each direction. Gregory and Francis went south.

Gregory's Tale:

When Gregory had heard that John was missing summersaults twirled in the pit of his stomach. Who would just walk away from camp like that? The men had barely survived the battle and the dangers of the wilderness seemed more real now than they ever had been before. John had been strange from the beginning but he was never that stupid. Gregory had not known the men long but he knew that they were all experienced war veterans. Wandering off without telling anyone didn't seem like something a veteran would do. Veterans would know the dangers with even more severity a man who had not been through war.

"Something is behind us," whispered Francis. Gregory stopped walking and listened. He heard soft but obvious steps. Each step landed with a thud, like the owner was tired. Francis and Gregory instinctively drew their swords and turned around quickly to startle the perpetrator. Four Invaders stood behind them with weapons already drawn and at the ready. Francis rushed forward but the Invaders quickly overcame him and just knocked his weapons out of his hands. It all happened so quickly and was so surprising! Gregory rushed forward but the Invaders only laughed. It did not take them long to knock the weapons out of his hands. Gregory and Francis both were shocked when the Invaders, like the monster, mentioned that they have to followed the Law and instantly brought trays of decks forth out of nothing.

"We are more than mere mortals and we uphold the Law as the gods do. The decks were drawn when Civilization began and so they are drawn now," said an older Invader with white hair ceremoniously raising his hands. Another Invader reached a gloved hand down for the still unconscious Francis but Gregory got to his mentor first and stood protectively over him.

"The rules need to change for this game. More lives are at stake. If more things are taken if I loose more rewards should be given if I win. If I win, both Francis and I go free," Gregory demanded, praying that the Invaders would not see through his bluff.

The Invaders huddled together and whispered for what seemed like an unnecessarily long time to Gregory. Finally they came to a conclusion:

"The stakes need to be even higher for such an agreement. If you loose, both you and the old man die. If you win then you both live. The game will only be even then." Gregory only nodded.

So it began:

Gregory reached for the deck on the right while his adversary, an Invader wearing a fur coat with a black stripe running down his arms, grabbed the deck on the left. The decks were shuffled and the game was ready to truly begin but neither player moved to start. The two stared at each other for what seemed like hours the people around them were getting restless but never moved nor spoke. No one lifted a finger until Francis coughed and broke the hanging silence. At that exact moment both Gregory and his adversary jumped to draw out five scripts as fast as they could, as if just realizing that time had pasted in the beginning. The reach for scripts almost became a race for the finish although neither one of them really knew where the finishing line truly was. The enemies' minion went through his scripts first:

He looked at his scripts with a blank face, expressing no emotion and laid down three scripts. The Invader turned to Gregory and stared at him with a mocking smile on his face and said in a clear, audible voice, "Your turn."

Gregory looked at his scripts and saw three Beast Scripts and two Will Scripts. What luck! Gregory looked at the scripts with joy. One had 30,000 points and a picture of a unicorn behind the men in gold armor that held a broken sword. The one with a dark, starless sky and shining ground had 50,000 points. The last had 28,000 points and a falcon carrying a blank flag in its' mouth flying over the sea. The two Will Scripts also had high numbers. They all had pictures of flames. The first was red with 500 points. The other was yellow and had 800 points to be added. The most powerful was green with 1200 points.

Gregory chose the Beast Script with the unicorn and the men and 30,000 points. His hand was half way between the Labyrinth and the rest of his deck. His hand stopped there because the colorful image of the unicorn caught his eye. The unicorn's head shifted from side to side in an annoyed motion as if it was upset that the men was in front of it. The unicorn didn't like to be ignored but what could it do with a golden the men in front of it? Gregory felt sorry for the poor creature.

Francis stood behind Gregory and saw the moving picture in the script and whispered to Gregory, "Does that normally happen?"

"No. I have never seen this before." Gregory's eyes scrunched as he thought hard. He seemed to be considering his words hard as he finally came to a conclusion. "The unicorn is jealous," answered Gregory slowly. Francis looked at Gregory with pity in his eyes and spoke to Gregory in a slow voice as if not to upset him.

"The scripts aren't alive. So, why is this one moving?"

Gregory knew that Francis was right. There had to be reason that this script could feel an emotion like jealousy and move. It was then that he remembered the verses. The answer must be written in them. All answers seemed to be found there. Gregory made his eyes go out of focus. Letters appeared in flowing but slanted handwriting.

Trust and Hope are the

Only things strong enough to

Support the whole building

Gregory thought about this verse. It was comforting but it did not explain why the unicorn moved. So, Greg read on. The answer had to be in the next verse. It would make the other verse make sense. He grasped the script with the black night and prayed he would know what to do.

Be strong and wait for Hope.

He heaved a sigh of frustration. The duel needed to continue but he needed to know which script to put down. "Be watchful"? Maybe it was encouraging him to read the third script. He took the last one in his hand slowly and looked at the eagle's flag before he let his eyes go out of focus.

All who have Hope

In a world full of troubles

Are worthy of happiness.

Gregory looked down at the scripts and read their verses. They all spoke of hope and faith. Greg looked over at his sly-faced opponent and felt his confidence move to new lows. Yet, at the same time, his determination went up. He prayed for courage and faith and played the men and unicorn with 30,000 points.