Chapter 5: Ramposa lll
King Ramposa swirled his ragged hair around his fingers as the castle was besieged. He did not know the status of Brain and Vesture, but it was not difficult to guess, especially since now the Sorcerer King's forces were at the gates of the palace.
Looking out a window in the throne room, evidence of the ongoing battle slapped him right across the face. From the burned out slabs of rock and craters from where magic had been used to the bodies of the Kingdom's warriors. Outside in the hallway, warriors in clanking plate armor rushed down to prepare for a desperate last stand inside of the walls of Valencia. The King wanted to pay heed to none of this, but he was forced to. His final failure as a king, one that doomed his entire kingdom - or so he thought.
"Aggravain," The feeble king called to a knight that was in the room along with the Princess, himself and Climb.
Aggravain was donned in plate armor, complete with a helmet that had wings engraved into its sides. Climb however, still possessed his normal plate armor with no alterations. The defenders of the Palace had access to higher quality items owing to the fact they were quite literally the last line of defense. Who better to be the guardian of the throne room than a Paladin?
"Sire," He stepped forward and greeted the king. His gaze drifted towards King Ramposa and the Princess, who herself was off in a corner for some unknown reason. He had to remind himself; none of this had felt like a dream. This was reality.
The wind whipped Aggravain's crimson cloak around. The reek of the battlefield had also found its way up to the tower.
The King turned, facing the Knight and finally looking away from the window. His face was serenely, yet troubled; within it, anyone could see a troubled man and the tranquil caution of someone desperately trying to hold their kingdom together.
"You have received your final orders, I suspect?" The king had asked Aggravain.
"From the protector of the great hall. Word has reached you?"
"No, judging by all of the soldiers running down the hallway, I assumed that you would be staying by my side. It was to my best guess that the now fallen protector had conveyed a message to you of sorts."
"Aye, but it was nothing more than aetheric shrieking."
"Even you have heard the Sorcerer Kingdom's forces speak our language in battle. From what our scholar's had gathered, they drew knowledge from the minds of the slain, essentially leeching off human thoughts to form threats or other challenges. Perhaps that screeching you had heard was a name."
At the feet of Agravain layed a pile of ash that had found its way in through the broken window. It blew across the marble floor, ignoring every living soul that still resided in the room. Agravain ignored the wandering ash, while Renner fixed her gaze on it for a mere moment.
How unsettling.
Aggravain had never been unsettled by the "Golden Princess" before, but now his Paladin senses had ever slightly been creeping in. Though, he had much more to worry about than a teenager fixated on something random.
It was clear that Agravain was hesitating, unsure how to answer.
"Do you doubt me, Agravain? I can not blame you if you do."
"I don't know if it is a doubt, but more so a lack of comprehension. This is the first I have heard of this."
"I would suspect so. It is something that I have not had the chance to inform the proper individuals about."
The king turned around again, his cane wobbling from the weight of holding himself up. He wanted to sit down, but if he was to fall on this night then it would be standing. Not kneeling, like some coward. The others had seemingly tuned out the screams coming throughout the palace and even beyond, but Ramposa did not. He did all that he could to try and save his people even though the Sorcerer King still would rather see him dead.
"Your lack of comprehension when it comes to principles regarding that often remind me of Gazef, but this concept should not be beyond you."
Aggravain had snorted a laugh somehow, in the midst of all this madness
"How you flatter me, my king."
The King smiled lightly at the soft attempt of sarcasm from the paladin.
"Then I have accomplished something, in my final moments."
Aggravain stood in silence, the unwanted wind caressing his face through the slit in his helmet. The Knight was blessed to be able to spend a lot of time with the king, though even he knew that if the situation had been any different he would likely never have spoken to him in person.
King Ramposa deeply cared for his people. Each moment this siege had been going on he had been fighting back tears. Climb washad been busy comforting Renner, who in reality needed none of that, and Ramposa decided to spend this time speaking to someone he would not have spoken to before.
The next words of the King turned Agravain's blood slow, sluggish and cold.
"The end of Re-Estize," The King said, looking out the window.
"My King?"
"Anyone can see that I have lost this war, and with the palace most likely to fall soon, all I can do is sit and wonder what I could have done differently. With Katze Plains and now the destruction of our Capital I will go down as a King who doomed their Kingdom."
Agravain had no idea how to respond. He looked out the window with the king standing next to him. His cloak blew slightly, and his gauntlet rested on the hilt of his sword.
"This was not your fault, my king. The Sorcerer King has-"
"At a certain level, it was mine. Regardless of the aggressor, these are my people. I have caused them to die. I will harbor that blame, for the least I can do is sit here and accept my fate. All I wish is to die a king and be with my people once more."
Ramposa tapped his fingers on the handle of his cane, letting out a sigh before nodding.
"It is time."
"My King?" Aggravain questioned, his winged helmet turning towards the old man.
"Go. Take your place among the fellow defenders. I will remain here."
The king gestured towards Razor's Edge
"I will be sure to fight until my last breath, and though I am old and broken, I will not go down without a fight."
Aggravain nodded, he knew that at a subconscious level he was going to die. Everyone present was going to die; perhaps the king was right. His skills would be better put to use inside the palace. Any defender counted at this point, even more so now with all the defenders on the outside likely dead.
Aggravain began to walk off as Ramposa made his way over to Renner and Climb, to try and convince Climb to take Renner and flee the palace while there was still a chance.
How many soldiers even remained within the palace at this point? Aggravain still heard the clanking of plate armor so soldiers were still alive. The fighting had been at the gate; perhaps the heavy-hitters had just been watching from afar, getting enjoyment out of the last stand that was going on.
At the door, Aggravain turned around and saw him discussing something with Climb.
"My King, it has been an honor," He managed to mouth before finally walking out.
He dreaded what awaited him, expecting to see mounds of corpses but did not find that at all. He found soldiers still getting ready for one last defense, awaiting a fate worse than death.
The Sorcerer Kingdom had proven they were stronger and if they wanted to,ended the war in a mere hour. Instead, it was like they were toying with their prey before delivering the killing blow.
The thought made his blood boil.
That is all it could do, he knew that other people had already escaped from the palace. Only a fool would stay, outnumbered and outmatched the survivors would die in vain. Defending something that might as well have already been destroyed.
The flickering torches of the hallway had been all that stood between him and what looked to be pits of primordial dark. He heard distant orders being shouted and the familiar sound of people running in plate armor, if he followed the commotion he would be with the rest of the defenders.
Prior to this, he had never spent much time in the Palace. He had been here once before, but this had been an all hands on deck type situation and anyone who had not been defending the exterior were on the interior. Of course, they had better equipment but that would only get them so far. Nonetheless, he hoped the soul of whoever launched this attack would burn for all eternity.
Following the flickering torches, he began to hear the voices of others in the distance. He could not make out the words, but could safely assume they were orders. No one was laughing, no one was crying. It was as if everyone present had already accepted their fate. This place might as well be a tomb, bound and forsaken to the Sorcerer King's fate.
He let out a sigh and gulped a bit, even though he was nervous. If some of the best fighters in the kingdom stood no chance, what chance did a ragtag team of knights even have?
It did not help that the Blue Roses, the only ones who could possibly help ease the threat, had run off.
As he made his way down the wall, wounded had lined where the dark had been before. At the edge of the corridor, a group of figures had been standing there. Their voices became more clear as he grew closer.
'Why do you wait?' A voice had called out
Who appeared to be a commander of this particular area glanced at one of the last members of the royalty faction who stayed behind. The royalty member's retinue trailed him, wretched and gaudy in their enhanced plate armor. Their faces, and in some cases their forms, had grown wildly misshapen.
Their adopted color schemes hurt the eyes of Aggravain. They were the cream of this Royal family, grotesquely and excessively ornate. Haughty bastards. Why did they preserve the name of their family? Did this count fear offending his father somehow? Names could be changed. There was honor in that. When the time demanded, wolves became sons. Sons of a better father.
"Respect?" The commander had suggested.
"Also, there's a wonderful view," This voice came from a soldier who was standing next to the commander, gesturing to the priests that had been tending to the wounded.
.
"Respect? Of what?" asked the count. His voice was unnatural, almost as if it were sonically phased. He regarded the four warriors of the Royal Knights, and the row of armored individuals behind them who had appeared to be a honor guard of sorts.
Aggravain could almost smell his scorn, and the look in the count's eyes spoke of the very special place he kept in his heart for the now falling Kingdom. A place swimming with contempt.
"There is work to be done," he announced.
"I'm aware," said The Commander. "I am at my post, can you say the same?"
"My beloved lord," said the Count, "grows-"
"Many more supple breasts every day?" asked the warrior next to the commander. Another with them snorted loudly.
"Don't goad him, little one," said the commander, smiling despite himself wanting not to. "It really might put our good king off his stroke if we started brawling with our fellow kingdom members while he worked."
He looked at the Count.
"Besides," he added, "it might dent that lovely armor. Which would be a terrible shame."
Aggravain had finally walked past the scene and realized how much contempt that each warrior here holds for the royalty faction. The last line he stated alone, Aggravain thought that was the most telling. The commander holds the Royalty Faction with so much contempt he thinks they will never fight.
The maroon cloak - embroidered with the sigil of a tree - showcasing his faith had shown as he moved through the hall, the adventurer was one of the few who did not defect to the Slane Theocracy, rather joining up with the Royal Army in the final days of the conflict. He had been born and raised in this kingdom and would gladly give his life to protect it, more than that he absolutely hated the other adventurers who had left.
To see the soldiers on a desperate last stand at work, that was a thing. A mighty thing that anyone who still held love for the kingdom made their blood boil with motivation. Few others around could orchestrate a defense like this, such is the price of desperation. That pool of desperation had been inside the walls that the Sorcerer Kingdom had currently been tearing down.
"Well, one or two minds maybe." Aggravain had thought. And one of them was about to find his way into the palace.
More soldiers had been present, heading towards the main entrance, but the figure at front outfitted in plate armor,raised his hand. He had an oversized shield on his back.
"What?" asked Teonora, a fellow soldier headed with the group. "Are you afraid we may break the concentration going on just up ahead?"
Another soldier had chuckled, there was little love lost for the organization of things. The war had spilled too much bad blood. But setting these things aside, there was a unifying goal that had to be accomplished and compliance with each other had essentially been the master of the battle sphere.
"Well, I suppose it would take more than the sight of you to derail the concentration going on." Falko Kirbe had said to Teonora, pausing and sneering before finishing "I don't know though…"
"Just shut up." The commander said quietly "I wanted to see this at work, our kingdom coming together for a common goal. For a moment, it is quite a mighty thing."
The soldiers under his command had shrugged, they stood for a moment and watched with him indulging the man.
Teonora, glanced backwards towards Aggravain
"An Adventurer?" He whistled low "You chose a good place to die today."
No one tried to silence him and the only response Aggravain gave was a slight chuckle. He was right, they all knew it. It seemed even if the gods themselves had been present, nothing would change the outcome.
Aggravain finally glanced at the main entrance, past the columns of soldiers that had been standing in the entryway with their spears raised, the door had been barred shut with furniture blockading it further. Wooden barricades had also been erected on the platforms above, ones that had holes for the archers to fire out of.
Every few moments, the palace shook. The fighting outside was coming to a cold standstill. Aggravain did not even wish to think of what was taking place to cause such quakes.
Then, an eerie silence.
It lasted a few seconds, but it may have well lasted hours with how long it felt. During those few seconds, everyone present bit their lips; prayers whispered in the breach.
As almost everyone had anticipated, the silence did not hold. On the massive doors to the palace, banging could be heard along with the sounds of muffled screaming.
"Do not open the gates!" A voice cried out, clearly distraught.
They were besieged not by their enemies, but by their allies. Soldiers trying to flee to the safety of the palace There had been soldiers trying to get into the palace, but who knew what other omens had followed. The banging continued to get more frantic until it stopped. The distant sounds of swords clashing and dying gasps could be heard until the banging continued once again.
Seconds after, a massive serrated sword had penetrated the door, with blood oozing out of the opening. Silence had taken over the defenders, no one knew what to do. From what Aggravain could see, most people had been panicking. He let out a deep breath.
[Under Divine Flag] He muttered, causing the masses to calm down. Fear would not help the situation, nor would breaking formation. The sword had pulled out and the door had nudged a bit. When the door wouldn't open, a haunting roar had been heard at the other side as the Death Knight prepared it's tower shield and rammed into the door.
Effortlessly, the door shattered. Wood had been sent everywhere like shrapnel and even some of the furniture. The impact of some of the furniture hitting soldiers was enough for them to drop dead.
"Do not let it pass!." A voice called out
Aggravain had felt his hands twitching as he drew his sword, he had heard stories of these creatures but to see one face to face was terrifying. Its empty eye sockets spoke of rage that you did not need to see and the sheer size of it alone looked as if it was enough to crumble a whole entire castle wall.
As it stepped forward, taking awkward steps he swore he could feel the ground shake. It raised it's sword and in what seemed like a second a dozen soldiers dropped to the ground.
"Balls." Teonora had muttered, the group of soldiers had now joined the initial fight.
A few soldiers thrusted at the death knight with their spears, but it was to no effect. Arrows had hit it from above, but nothing. It was as if it were unstoppable and in reality it was. No one there had the strength to take down a death knight. More and more people found themselves attacking the giant armored creature, only to meet their end shortly after.
"This is bad, we need to get out of here." Tenora stated as he began to walk backwards, though elected not to do so.
For matters to be worse, some of the dead had begunbegan to now get up. Shrieks of terror could be heard echoing throughout this chamber. It, it was an absolute slaughter.
"Fall back!" A voice cried out, the blessing the paladin gave had little to no effect.
On a rooftop that was visible through the now destroyed entrance, Aggravain was able to notice a figure clad in black armor. Though that was all the features he was able to make out before the soldiers had begun to run back.
The Death Knight had remained in the main chamber, while the zombies that now had been spawned continued on.
Tenora remained with a small group of other soldiers, attempting to buy time. Such a heroic action in anything else would have granted their victory, however this was not the case. The defenders were swiftly cut down but their reanimated comrades. Tenora cursed lightly before he swung at a Squire Zombie. His sword had gotten stuck in his shoulder while another group of undead circled him, he cried out as they tore him limb from limb.
Vampire bats also began to make their way inside, dealing with the archer's that had been at the platforms firing arrows down at the group.
Aggravain had no choice but to fall in with the retreating soldiers, he slashed at a few of the Undead decapitating them as he was walking backwards. Falko Kirbe, his commander and a few of the other soldiers that were with that squad had also stayed back to buy time.
This, as expected, was only a gesture of defiance. The undead had ripped each of them apart within the span of a few seconds. Though, those few seconds were enough for the soldiers to fall back to the next line of defense. They had been expecting soldiers from that position to cover down, assist them as they retreated as they arrived but that is not the scene they got at all.
Blood trails and blood splatter lay around the fortifications. Bodies of the soldiers had been sprawled out around the fortifications with a few bodies leaning over them.
"By the gods…" Aggravain had muttered, walking forward at this point.
If they had already infiltrated this far into the palace they must be at the king by this point. But what makes it all the more interesting is that there were no sounds of a battle. Though, perhaps their senses were overloaded by the appearance of the Death Knight. That was the only logical outcome.
Few remained of the initial guards, only six remained and it seemed as if the undead had halted. The sounds of plate armor clanking filled the halls as it approached them, A beckoning laugh had followed with it.
"Lower Life forms!." The feminine voice called out with glee "Rejoice, for you are about to be a stepping stone for Lord Ainz!."
In the flash of what seemed to be a second, more guards died. The figure clad in black plate stopped twirling her black battle axe, specs of blood flying off of it.
Then more had died as she raised her axe effortlessly and swung it into a group of soldiers who had just readied their spears.
Aggravain had looked around at the carnage, more bodies. He was the last one that was left. The figure charged at him, he barely had time to raise his sword but as he did he blocked the attack but was sent flying backwards crashing into a pillar. A wet cough escaped his lips as blood came flying out staining inside of the helmet.
"A shame, you lower life forms have put up little resistance." The figure said spitefully as she was walking towards the man who had just crashed into a pillar.
"It brings me immense joy that I will have my hand at erasing your nation from history." The figure spoke again.
Aggravain, struggled to his feet. Swaying as he stood up and he made eye contact with his dented helmet at the woman. He was a mess at this point.
"Just take the damned mask off. I want to see your expression when I kill you" He spoke, continuing on
'
"Your stench is worse than the Death Knight. And that was very putrefying."
And the one that cut deep, for all its obviousness.
"I should have taken on the master of all this. I should have fought Ainz."'
The woman had flown into a rage, a flurry of attacks that should have killed him went his way but Aggravain remained standing.
Panting hard, feeling like his heart was fit to burst, Albedo finally ceased the barrage. The first ache of exhaustion rippled up his arms, his vision shivered a little. Aggravain was near death.
Aggravain still breathed. Somehow, amid the swamp of gore that had once been a proud visage, the air was still being sucked in, bubbling feebly amid floating flecks of bone.
Albedo readied her axe hauling it up again, making ready to end the grotesque spectacle.
"I thought you would dance."
She said again, genuinely mystified. "You just…took my attacks. Do you think so little of me!"
Aggravain started to cough, sending more bloody spurts out over the ripped-apart ground. His shattered gauntlet still clutched the hilt of his blade, but the arm must have been broken in many places. Only slowly, as he trudged back, did Albedo realize that the sound was bitter laughter
.
"I… absorbed," He rasped, "the… pain."
Albedo halted "What do you mean?"
"Aggravain said, his voice a liquid slur "This battle. You… gave up. I… did not." And then he grinned – his split lips, his flayed cheeks, his lone seeing eye, twisting into genuine, spiteful pleasure. "My endurance is… superior."
Aggravain had known that he would not win this battle, but he could wound this creature's Ego. Which is what he had attempted to do. Unfortunately, he was not able to hear her response as he died after saying that. He managed to keep himself alive long enough to spite the woman, one final middle finger to the Undead Kingdom that is seeing there's destroyed.
With the defender's death, the Sorcerer Kingdom had seized control of the palace and even Lord Ainz himself had entered though he had gone somewhere else. To the room that had housed King Ramposa and Princess Renner, the final remnants of any leadership that resided in the kingdom.
The Theater of the battle had not been worthy enough of Ainz's attention. He walked between bodies, outside he had almost been knee deep in corpses. He walked on corpses, finally reaching the palace room where the rest of his elite warriors had been. Guarding a lone grey haired figure- still clad in his kingly robes and the princess.
Ramposa had looked up at Ainz, He smiled without merit showing his bloodied teeth
"So this is how it ends."
Ainz had stood still, saying nothing. The wind pulled at his magical robes, the weak fires from outside glistened on the orb of his staff.
"Why?" The King had asked bitterly "Why annihilate my people like this?"
"Some of your people will be allowed to live on." Ainz had said "Your army and yourself, will not be allowed to."
"The Sorcerer King." The gray haired man couldn't help but laugh, a laughing sneer to be more exact. Blood ran from his mouth, it was clear he had been roughed up a bit prior to Ainz arriving.
"The Overlord." Ainz corrected him.
"Overlord now? One Nation wasn't enough for you, so you will take your cancerous touch across the world."
"Your defiance is ill-placed." Ainz had said.
"You truly are an arrogant beast." The King managed to say, while the black armored female figure attempted to walk forward, but Ainz had halted her by simply raising his hand. "That is hubris, the rest of this world will not let you walk over them."
"Yet, I stand victorious." Ainz pointed out, gazing out the window towards the smoke stacks.
"You have only brought damnation to our lands, that is all you have done. All my people have fallen and yet you still see the need to come and talk to me.." The King said, calmly not letting his rage get the best of him.
"I warned you, King Ramposa." Said Ainz "I have warned you a long time ago. I stand here now because of the choices that you have made."
Renner's face changed from worried to serious, she reached for Razor Edge and a smile began to form on her lips. The King did not notice that due to the dialogue he had been in with Ainz.
Gripping the sword, she plunged it into the back of King Ramposa. The glowing blade of the Broadsword had been stained with red and Renner did not seem to mind, in fact her smile had only grown.
"I have abandoned my blood and now I shall part you from yours." Princess Renner had spoken, glee had been practically spilling out of every syllable of that sentence. As the King's body collapsed to the floor with Razor Edge still inside. Renner had dropped to a knee as she was swearing loyalty to the Sorcerer King.
With that final blow, the Re-Estize kingdom had come to an end.