Refraction, a Rondo of Swords fanfiction
Chapter 3: Luck is a lady...
The decoy plan had been frighteningly effective. Upon the sight of the 'prince', every imperial soldier at the gate had moved to give chase. Some knights screamed of the bounty they would earn if they brought the prince's head, causing disorder in the ranks. The orderly wall of armoured knights scattered, each eager to claim glory for themselves. The commander had been shocked at the appearance of the 'prince's' sudden appearance, and the few seconds of hesitation had cost him the control of his division.
"Kay, we have to move now!" Margus yelled, coming to his senses. They would be unlikely to get another opportunity like this.
"But, but the prince-" Kay sputtered, still confused over the sudden turn in events.
"Is safe here with us. But, he won't be if we dally." Margus urged. He tapped Maximus' flanks, and the horse complied, galloping towards the gate. The imperial soldiers had all left by now, chasing their key to riches and the commander had followed, in hopes of regaining control of his greed-filled soldiers. Not a single one turned back for a second look, thus Margus and Kay was able to escape the Fifth Division without any issues.
"Margus... Later, explain to me what's going on." Kay spat out as he finally caught up from his slower start. His mouth was set in a scowl. He kept turning back, glancing towards the north exit where the 'prince' had escaped to. Margus realised that the junior knight had not fully understood what had occurred. Kay had only followed him because he trusted that Margus would make the right judgement.
"Later." Margus consented. It was not the time to explain. They had to bring the real prince out of the capital. He was now more keenly aware of the presence of his passenger. He hadn't been sure of his suspicions at first, but now...
"I'll entrust him to you" was what he said. So this was what he meant. Margus thought.
His musings were cut short when a couple errant soldiers tried to block their path. Margus hesitated, jerking the reins to stop Maximus. He needed to grab his Sentinel Spear, which had been strapped to the horse, but the soldiers were almost upon him.
Then Kay burst forth, the Einherjar's edge sweeping right into the soldier's chestplates, knocking them back. The two took the opportunity to surge forth, soon leaving the foot soldiers behind.
"I'll take point. I'm still the better mounted combatant here." Kay said as he moved to the front.
"That you are." Margus agreed without a fuss. As an armoured infantry, mounted combat had not been a priority for his division. He had only learned the basics of riding, fighting upon horseback was best left for the actual cavaliers.
"Margus... earlier on, you said that if we headed towards the southwest gate, we would need to sneak past the three divisions at the gate right?" Kay asked. When Margus nodded, Kay continued his question. "Aren't you forgetting one? To get to the southwest gate, we need to go through west part of the city, where the Green Lions are..."
Kay had trailed off, and Margus knew why. The members of the Green Lions were predominantly mages. A magus corps was any army's greatest fear. Mages may not have the physical strength of the armoured knights nor the speed of cavaliers, but their magical prowess could not be underestimated. A well-trained mage corps could turn a battlefield into a wasteland and now, they were running straight into one.
"If we are lucky, they would notice that something is amiss with the Black Lions and follow." Margus said, though not liking the possibility. This would take all the heat off them, but would spell certain doom for the man who had acted as prince. Although he did not know who that man was, the fact that this man had prioritised the prince's life over his own was enough for Margus to consider him a fellow knight. He would not wish misfortune upon a comrade.
"And if we are not?" Kay asked, knowing that such luck did not come by so easily.
"Whatever we do, keep moving. The magic of the mages can reach far, but even they have their limits. Our advantage is that the Empire's mounted division is still outside the capital. So long as we can outpace the mages, we will be able to escape."
"And, if we meet the Grand?" Kay asked, considering the worst-case scenario.
"We run. As fast, and as far away as possible." Margus replied grimly.
If Kay had another question, it was forgotten when they rounded the corner. Occupying the southward road was a small squadron of soldiers. Unlike the soldiers of the First Division, these men were lightly armoured, choosing leather over metal for their shoulder pads and knee guards. They wore leather cuirasses for mobility. These soldiers were Grand Meir's light infantry. Ordinarily, this was a battle that Margus would chance, as the enemy numbers were barely double theirs, and they had the mobility advantage.
However, he knew a trap when he saw one. Rather than engage the soldiers, both knights opted to dart down the closest alleyway. They were barely in time, as green balls of lightning spiralled from the heavens, arriving at the position they were once at. Not finding their targets, the viridian balls pulsed once, before zipping down the alleyway after them.
Margus was unafraid. He knew well that all magic had a range. The Spark Edge spells were not a problem, after turning two corners, the mana powering the orbs exhausted itself, causing the orbs to simply fizzle out of existence. It was only when a green sputter of magic lit up the sky did he feel worried. Their location was being broadcasted to all.
It was no longer the time for words. Margus focused on keeping up with the actual cavalier, who was taking the most complicated route through the capital alleyways. Twice, they encountered mages hidden in the alcoves. Both times, they chose to escape, with green lightning raining around them as they fled. There was no time to fight - with the mages sending up signal flares, the chances of them getting surrounded were high.
Margus let out a relieved sigh when the next turn Kay took brought them alongside the city walls. The mess of turns had been dizzying, but Kay apparently knew the way well enough to bring the two to the perimeter of the city. Of course, now they had to break through the southwest gate, which would be undoubtedly heavily guarded-
And his mind screeched to a stop when he saw the situation at the gate. Both Maximus and Gawain gave little whinnies when their riders tugged their reins a bit too sharply. Margus did not hear the horses' complaints, he was busy staring.
What his eyes showed him was a long-haired man with green robes. Slit-like grey eyes gave him an arrogant, hawkish look. He did not wield a staff, and instead had a blade buckled to his belt . This was the commander of the Green Lions, Ernest the Mage General, one of the very few mages that could utilise the sword.
The Grand was alone. A mage without any guards, just a single man between them and their goal. There was no way for just one mage to block their path, nor to chase after them. The gate might as well be unguarded.
"I've never thought I would be glad to see the Grand. " Kay said, shaking his head.
"Lady luck must be smiling on us today." Margus remarked with a relieved smile. "We'd best not disappoint her by failing to make it through despite her graces."
"I'll take the left, and you the right?" Kay asked, his tone light.
"As usual. Go at full speed. Even alone, he is a Grand. We'll have to go through thunder and lightning once more." Margus cautioned.
There was a nod in reply. Both knights charged out of the side street at the same time, sweeping past the astonished grand. Their horses easily crossed under the open city gate, the clacks of their hooves against the pavement soon being muffled by the soft grass. They had made it out of Evgard.
Experience had taught Margus to never be complacent. He had never taken his eyes off the Grand, knowing that any unattended enemy mage could wreck dozens of knights. He urged Maximus to go faster when he saw Ernest recover from his shock and take out his sword. A crazed look had entered the mage's eyes and in moments, he had summoned dozens of bolts of green lightning. The bolts flowed into each other, merged together, moulding themselves into a reptilian form. Soon, a giant green lizard had taken form above the mage.
Dread settled in the pit of Margus' stomach when he realised that neither of them were out of range of the spell yet. There was naught that he could do, he was no longer within striking distance of the mage. If only he had a ranged attack...
Without warning, a red beam of light descended from the sky, slamming into the Grand. The momentary distraction had an effect upon the great spell, the lizard's seemingly solid form started to flicker. What efforts the Grand put in to control the spell was wasted, as moments later, the mass of magic power exploded. At the centre of the spell, the Grand was the first to fall unconscious.
When Ernest finally regained his senses, he would call for whatever that remained of his division to scour the central plains. It would be a futile effort, for the two Bretwaldean knights would have long since escaped.
His heart pounded as he charged right through yet another ambush team, Spirit trampling over an unlucky mage. His sword came down upon the other unharmed mage - he did not want to deal with magic in his escape. Everyone else was left unharmed. He had not the time, not with death racing from behind. He did not need to turn around to know that Alberich was after him.
The grand had never stopped the chase, he only slowed down when he gave new commands to his errant division. Despite this, the gap had not widened. The double had been equally hampered when he encountered more ambushes. He guessed that news of the 'prince' had spread to the Green Lions, drawing a part of their forces to block his path. The double hoped that at least, Margus and Kay would have an easier time escaping, with the Green Lions spread thin.
He had taken the most direct route to out of the city, rushing down the main street. He supposed that the only reason why it was not more heavily guarded was the fact that Alberich had moved the whole division to the castle earlier. It was a bit of good luck, if there had been walls of armoured soldiers at the gate, there would be no way for him to charge through like how he had done so to the small ambush teams. In another few minutes, the north castle gate came into view. The way ahead was clear.
Unfortunately, merely escaping from the city was not enough now. He had to shake off his pursuer. He turned back and let out a gasp. The grand had closed in, having coaxed another burst of speed from his steed. There was a slight desperation in his eyes, the 'prince' was too close to escaping.
A quick double-tap against Spirit's ribs was enough the spur the steed. The auburn horse broke into a full-on gallop, and soon broke past the city limits, entering the northern plains of Bretwalde. There was no time to feel relieved, as even the increase in pace merely kept the gap from narrowing further.
The double knew that his horse's current speed could not be maintained for too long. Spirit had not been raised as a warhorse, thus lacked the stamina to keep up his speed. Alberich's horse would be able to keep its top speed longer than Spirit could. All the grand had to do was to keep his pace for a few more minutes, and Spirit would tire enough for him to catch up.
Alberich was evidently too impatient to wait for that to happen. His horse suddenly reared up, and trails of darkness started to gather around them both. In moments, they were enveloped by shadows, the only indication that both rider and horse were under the darkness were the red gleams of their eyes.
When the two charged again, the gap was crossed in an instant. The dark lance came straight for his chest, but Spanta reacted, throwing itself upwards to parry the blow. The force of the collision threw the double off his horse, and it was a miracle that he had managed to land on his feet. He heard a heavy thud, and hoped that Spirit was still alive. For now, he had to somehow ward off the grand.
However, as seconds passed, he realised that the grand was not acting. The darkness soon faded from the grand's body, and the double could see a deep frown on his face.
The lance moved, but all it did was to point at the sword he wielded. "That is not Spanta." The grand gritted out. "Which means, you aren't actually the prince, are you?"
The double blinked. Then he realised the issue. The blade of the Holy Knight Altrius was known for being impossible to make a replica of, as the ethereal aura it possessed was too distinctive. However, the holy blade had been cursed, resulting in it losing its golden sheen. The grand had taken the blade's current appearance to mean that the sword was a fake. The conjecture was wrong, but he had hit upon a truth that few had known before, that the prince had a double.
The grand continued speaking. "It seems the Holy Kingdom hid some of its cards deeply. I suppose, that the real prince is currently escaping in the opposite direction?" His tone was easy, but the spear levelled at the double told him that it was a threat. It made sense, the grand had no reason to spare an enemy knight, not in this war.
"I apologise. As a knight of Bretwalde, I cannot answer that." The double said, as he shifted into a combat stance. He did not know his chances against one of the grands, but he had to fight. He still had to return Spanta to the prince.
"That answers some of my questions. I was wondering why the prince was being idiotic enough to show himself in front of my entire platoon and why he chose to fled alone." Alberich muttered. He then shook his head and put some distance in between himself and the double. Charging distance, the double realised.
"Then, knight of Bretwalde, are you willing to die for that prince of yours?" The grand yelled, giving him one final chance to surrender.
The double simply smiled. That was not even a question to him. All he did was raise his blade slightly higher, awaiting the grand's charge.
It never came for the heavens had other plans. The sky had turned overcast, clouds blanketing the originally clear skies. Green ripples of lightning darted through the grey clouds, all of which were travelling to a spot in the sky at the south of Evgard. The lightning swirled together, merging into a solid form of a lizard. The double shivered at the sight. This was lightning, the most unstable of the three stable elements, how could anyone coalescence it into a solid form?
However, the next moment, it was clear that whatever spell it was, it had not worked correctly. One moment, the lizard was poised to strike, and the next, it's form flickered. Then, the mass of magic suddenly blasted apart, the shockwave scattering the overcast clouds. Light returned to the lands, though it left the double with some confusion.
"Twisted Fury? What the hell is Ernest doing?" The grand was muttering. It seemed that the Alberich had a better idea of what that was happening at the capital. The grand seemed to be at a loss, looking between the double and the capital. The spell had apparently changed the situation drastically. The double was no longer a priority.
After a few more agonised seconds, Alberich made his decision. "My duty was to bring back the prince of Bretwalde. I've wasted enough time chasing after you. You can go."
The double could barely believe that the grand would just leave. He was only a single knight against the grand - it would not take very long for the grand to kill him. However, whatever that had happened at Evgard apparently required the immediate attention of the grand. Still, the double did not dare lower his blade. It was better to err on the side of caution.
Alberich let out a small huff. "I am not so dishonourable as to go back on my word." The grand strapped his spear to his back and turned his horse around. It seemed he was truly leaving.
"It is rare to see a knight with such devotion to his master. If the circumstances were different..." His words trailed off. He shook his head, ignoring the wishful thinking, and headed back to Evgard.
Only when the black clad grand had disappeared into the city did the double finally sheath his blade. He could barely believe his luck. In truth, he had not much hope that he would escape Evgard alive. He had only hoped that he acting as a decoy would be enough to let the prince escape.
His spirits were raised further when he found that Spirit was still alive. The horse let out a low neigh when he approached to check on its wounds. The blow from Alberich had knocked the stallion on to his side, but there were no more than bruises. So long as he did not force Spirit to gallop, it would soon recover.
Grabbing the reins of the horse, the double started leading it away. He did not have a specific destination in mind, but he knew better than to linger near the capital. Evgard, no... the entire country of Bretwalde was no longer a safe haven for him. He had to leave before the Empire sent out more people in search of the prince.
He casted one last look at Evgard before leaving. He knew it would be a long, long time before he could return again.
Miles in the southward direction, Kay and Margus were galloping as fast as they could press their horses. Although the grand had been temporarily incapacitated, the spell had been too eye-catching. There was no doubt that some imperial soldiers would come to investigate, and in time, search parties would be sent out. Knowing this, Kay spurred Gawain, urging his partner to keep his top speed. Gawain complied without issue. However, mere minutes later, it was evident that their current speed could not be maintained.
"Kay, slow down! I don't think Maximus can keep the pace much longer!" Margus yelled, slowing his steed. The white stallion's breath was uneven and its eyes were unfocused. It was barely holding on. The reason for this was the doubled weight the horse was carrying. Kay cursed himself for being too impatient. The horse needed rest if it was to continue the journey. Looking around, he soon spotted a familiar thicket and guided his senior there. The small clump of trees would be able to hide them from immediate view, and importantly, also had a spring.
Margus understood upon seeing the place, dismounting quickly from the tired horse and carrying down the other passenger. The tired horse relaxed, then slowly headed to the spring for a drink.
"Are you alright, Kay?" Margus asked as he set down the person he was carrying. Kay of course knew that his senior was referring to his use of his Overbreak. When Ernest had casted that terrifying spell, Einherjar had reacted, its warm pulse reminding him of the power that the spear had. By sacrificing a part of his vitality, he was able to strike the grand from afar, shattering Ernest's concentration and allowing them to escape. However, this move was something he rarely used. It was called Last Resort for a reason - his arm was still weak even after several minutes of rest.
"I'm fine. Just a little numb." Kay replied, rubbing his arm. He didn't particularly like his Overbreak, but he knew he was luckier that most of the soldiers that never obtained such a power. Such power only manifested when the right weapon met the right owner, and it was said to reflect the wielder's soul. It might be right, as Last Resort did give the reckless, hot-headed vibe that Margus had often chided him for.
His musings were cut short when his eyes fell upon the person Margus had set down. Deciding that there was no better time than now, Kay dismounted and asked, "So, Margus... is this really Prince Serdic?"
"Most likely." Margus replied. Upon seeing Kay's incredulous look, he continued, "I cannot say yes because I have no proof, but it is more likely that this is the prince. The man that we spoke to today was probably the double."
"I've never heard of Prince Serdic having a body double before." Kay remarked, his tone in slight disbelief.
"A body double would not have been effective if people knew that it existed. It was likely that very few people knew. They would not spread such information to us ordinary knights." Margus replied. "The body double must have been in the castle when the attack occurred. I suppose he found the prince injured, and tried to escape with him. When he saw us, he chose to enlist our help by acting as Prince Serdic. We would ask less questions that way."
"Did you know from the beginning, Margus?" Kay asked, wondering if the senior knight, with more insight and experience, had noticed that they had been tricked.
Margus shook his head. He too, had been fooled. "In truth, at first, I wondered more about why Prince Serdic would want to protect his double. I thought it was suspicious, but I never thought that the prince we were talking to was actually the double. His looks, mannerisms, even the tone of the voice... it was exactly the same. I only truly understood the situation when the double took off."
Silence took over the small group when they remembered what the double had done. Kay hoped that the man was still alive. They were alive thanks to his actions.
"For now, let's see why Prince Serdic has not awoken. There had to be some reason why he has remained unconscious till now." Margus said as he turned back to the prince. His movements were gentle as he searched the prince's body for wounds.
Kay knelt down to help. His hand idly brushed by a part of the black clothes and he realised that it was hard, like something had dried into it. Curious, he scratched at it, and flakes of red fell upon his fingers. His heart stopped when he realised it was blood. A large part of the prince's clothes was crusted in dried blood.
Margus had quickly flipped the prince's shirt up, and found traces of wiped blood upon his body. Dried blood but no injury. Both knights had seen this situation before. The prince had been treated with salves. However, considering the amount of bloodstains...
Margus was already moving, grabbing Sentinel from where he had left it. He placed his free hand upon the prince and focused. A white gentle aura appeared, flowing from the Margus to Prince Serdic. Kay knew that this was Margus' Overbreak. Cheekily called Share the Love, it gave Margus the ability to share his vitality with others.
"How is the prince?" Kay asked as the white light died down.
"Not good. He lost a lot of blood." Margus said, with a shake of his head. "It'll be in our best interests to head for Shalem as soon as possible so we can get proper healers to check on him. I have no idea if my Overbreak helps with lost blood."
Kay threw a glance at the horses. "Maximus seems somewhat recovered. If you pass Prince Serdic to me, then Maximus should be able to carry you. So long as we do not gallop, Gawain should be able to carry both me and Prince Serdic. This way, we'll be able to at least make some headway towards Shalem."
"Aye, that may be the best option for now." Margus agreed.
The two knights immediately set off. The knowledge of the prince's condition spurred them to hurry towards their destination. Their journey would be a long one, but eventually, they would reach Shalem, where they were welcomed into its halls. It would be there where the weary knights would be able to obtain rest.
Chapter 3: Luck is a lady... Be glad when she smiles
-End-
Author's note:
And finally, I am done with Chapter 1 of the game! Three story chapters for one game chapter. Definitely not what I expected when I first started writing this. The ratio definitely won't be constant, with what I've planned for future chapters, but it is rather scary. I am writing a lot more than I expected.
We are coming up to a point where trying to keep the story in proper chronological order will be difficult, since we have our characters split up, and different things may be occurring to them at the same time. I may end up wanting to write both sides of the same situation in the future, so do note. I will make it clear when this does occur though. There will be some sort of narrative landmark or time stamp, something like Ernest's lizard, when I have to do this again.
From here on, the story will start to branch quite a bit. It may be a bit of the butterfly effect, but we won't have hurricanes on so early. The early parts should all be recognisable... though I might play with your expectations. If you want to know what I mean, then read on.