Chapter 11:
Stagira was an ancient city located in the easternmost region of the Chalcidice Peninsula. Once a location of great significance, it now lay mainly in ruins. The town was comprised of sloped, winding roads lined with crumbling structures, much of whom had been overtaken by vegetation.
At the foot of these sloped roads lay the shore where half a dozen caravels were parked and numerous cultists gathered, including Grand priest Valnykuluk and his disciple, Kunpaetku. As the cultists loaded cargo onto the boats, an Ottoman patrol stood nearby in patrol of the area.
As the two priests discussed, Sarpedon dragged Christine over to them. She had been stripped of her red jacket, leaving her with only a sleeveless black top and black tights. Her hands were bound by shackles. Her appearance had gradually changed to that of a malfested, with dark, sunken eyes and ghostly white skin.
"You're making a mistake," she pleaded, "If you carry out this ritual, there's no telling how many will die!"
"Enough woman!" snapped Sarpedon, "You will do as your priests command you, understand?"
As Sarpedon shoved Christine, she retaliated by elbowing him in the gut, followed by a kick to the shin. As Christine attempted a run for it, Sarpedon grabbed her by the chin and pulled her close. He drew his kopis and placed it against her neck.
"You miserable wench," he spat.
"Hold, Sarpedon," warned Valnykuluk, "Do not let your anger get the better of you."
Sarpedon growled through his teeth.
"How could you?" demanded Christine, "How could you take such pleasure in striking down your young friend, hm?"
"Listen, you," began Sarpedon, "I have no choice but to keep you alive for now, but that does not mean I will not enjoy killing you when the ritual is over."
Christine broke free of the Greek's grasp.
"Build a new Soul Edge if you want," she taunted, "My husband will destroy it like he did the first one! You will never get away with this…"
"Your pathetic husband currently lies dead, at the bottom of the Adriatic Sea. When this is over, I will let you join him."
"Sarpedon," said Kunpaetku, "We need you to assist in packing the final ship. Can you do this for us?"
Sarpedon sheathed his sword and angrily stormed off.
"You need not worry, child," said Valnykuluk, in a fatherly tone, "Do as we say, and I guarantee you we will do all we can to ensure you survive this."
"Lies!" snapped Christine, "If you give Ares Soul Edge, then you may as well have killed me already!"
"So be it," Valnykuluk said, sternly.
At that moment, several cultists loaded what appeared to be a large cage onto a ship. The cargo was covered by a tarp which bore warning text and handling instructions. From inside the tarp, Christine could hear growling.
"Is something in there?" she asked, "A creature?"
"That," began Kunpaetku, "Is our final resort. Hopefully, there will be no need of it."
"Are you expecting resistance in Lemnos?"
"We can never be too safe, Christine," said Valnykuluk, placing his hand on Christine's necklace, "We are venturing into unknown territory. The necklace will show us the way, but afterwards we will be on our own. Even the Great Palgaea can no longer protect us, as Lemnos is his brother's domain."
As Valnykuluk spoke, he failed to notice Christine's hands, which firmly held the key she had picked off of Sarpedon while assaulting him.
Elsewhere, the group had successfully found the location that the cultists were preparing to leave from. From the top of a large slope leading down to the shore, the gang observed the numerous Ottoman soldiers patrolling the area.
"It's too dangerous," said Johan, dismounting his horse, "If we get any closer, we risk being spotted."
"Then," began Kyria, "We travel on foot. We will sneak our way over to the docks and launch a surprise attack, then steal one of their caravels. We can use the ruins and rock formations as cover."
"We're so close now," began Thomas, "It's almost over…"
"Do not get ahead of yourself, Thomas," cautioned Kyria, "We have only one last chance to do this right. Now, let's move quickly before they finish loading their ships and depart."
The rest of the group dismounted their horses and followed Kyria as she led them through the ruins.
Near the shore, Christine sat against the wall of a small hut near the docks. Using the stolen key, she began undoing her shackles. The two cultists assigned to watch her were too busy arguing to notice her.
"Et voila!" she whispered, her shackles finally coming undone, "Now to sneak out of here."
Christine slipped past the arguing cultists and began climbing her way up the sloped path. Every once in a while, she sought cover behind a wall or rock to avoid being spotted. Christine did not realize that not too far away, Thomas and the others were sneaking their way down to her location. While taking cover behind a broken wall, she spotted them on a ridge above her.
"I don't believe this," she said, "Thomas? Thomas!"
Thomas looked down in shock and saw Christine as well.
"Christine!" he exclaimed.
"Thomas," warned Kyria, "Not so loud! You'll…"
Thomas ignored Kyria and began climbing his way down to her location.
"Thomas!" snapped Kyria, "What the hell are you…"
"Christine!" called Thomas.
Thomas' actions attracted the attention of a nearby Ottoman, who immediately drew his rifle and pointed it at Thomas.
"Ordasin!" he yelled.
"They're going to kill him!" cried Kyria.
"Not if I can help it," said Johan.
One of Johan's men drew a rifle and shot the soldier in the chest, killing him. The noise startled Thomas, causing him to trip and fall, while also attracting attention from other soldiers, who immediately began mobilizing.
"They're here!" cried a soldier, "Assemble!"
"So much for the stealthy approach," lamented Kyria.
"Finally," laughed Johan, "Some action!"
From the shore, Valnykuluk, Kunpaetku and Sarpedon watched in shock as Johan's men charged down the hill and began fighting the Ottoman soldiers.
"How the hell did they survive?" demanded Kunpaetku.
"Nevermind that," said Valnykuluk, "We need to start dispatching the caravels! Most of what we need is packed already. Just grab the girl and…"
Valnykuluk turned his head and saw Christine was missing.
"WHERE THE HELL IS SHE?" yelled the priest, "Sarpedon, you…"
"Look," said Sarpedon, pointing, "Up that hill!"
Christine remained in cover as the fighting raged around her. Despite the chaos surrounding him, Thomas continued making his way over to her. Not far from the priests, two Ottoman soldiers aimed their rifles up the hill and fired. The shots struck the ground between Thomas and Christine.
"They're going to kill her!" cried Valnykuluk.
Without saying a word, Sarpedon stabbed one of the soldiers in the back and pointed his kopis at the other's throat.
"You," warned Sarpedon, "Order your men to fetch the girl, alive. If she is harmed, I will slit each and every last one of your throats, understand?"
The soldier nodded nervously and ran up the hill towards Christine.
"Amateurs," muttered Sarpedon, "You two, start boarding!"
"Without the girl?" asked Valnykuluk.
"I will take care of things here," Sarpedon insisted, "For now, it is imperative that you and Kunpaetku survive. The faster you set sail, the safer you will be!"
"He is right, Grand Priest," said Kunpaetku, "It is time to go."
Valnykuluk and Kunpaetku boarded one of the caravels alongside multiple cultists. One-by-one, the caravels departed from the shore.
"Time to put an end to those fools' misery," chuckled Sarpedon, as he observed the chaos.
"So much for avoiding international incidents," said Kyria, striking down a soldier.
"These men are not true soldiers," said Johan, stabbing another, "Once we are done here, we will expose Dragut's corruption to the world!"
"Good luck, then," said Kyria.
Meanwhile, Thomas still struggled to reach Christine, but found himself constantly on the defense from attacking soldiers. Christine had no means to fight back and thus remained in cover.
"I'm coming Christine!" yelled Thomas, "Just…"
"THOMAS!" yelled Christine.
An Ottoman soldier suddenly grabbed Christine and began dragging her down to shore. Christine kicked and fought back as hard as she could, prompting another soldier to assist in restraining her.
"NO!" yelled Thomas, cutting another man down, "CHRISTINE!"
Thomas began making his way down the hill in pursuit of Christine, but the chaos of battle proved to be an ever-present distraction. As Thomas made his way further down, he almost could not believe what he saw:
"Uhhh," said Thomas, "This is definitely not good…"
Two cannons were set up by the shore, facing the hill. An Ottoman soldier stood by each one, ready to fire.
"WOAH!"
Thomas hurled himself to the ground as the first cannon fired, narrowly missing him and instead striking a nearby building, burying him in a pile of debris and rubble. The second cannonball flew up the hill and struck a large column near Kyria, causing the top half to blow off.
"ACK!" yelped Kyria, placing her hand over her ear, "They're going to destroy this whole damn town just to stop us!"
"Let them try!" boomed Johan.
Kyria and Johan fought valiantly, but there seemed no end to the number of soldiers the Fygul Cestemus had working for them. Both soldiers and cultists climbed their way up the hill in a last ditch effort to stop Johan's men.
"It's hopeless," said Kyria, "We will never make it to shore with all of this resistance!"
"That is why," began Johan, "My men and I will do all we can to hold them back. You and Thomas must board that ship at all costs. I trust you will complete the mission!"
"Johan, I…"
"Just go, damnit! Leave the cannoneers to me, ja?"
Kyria nodded and bolted down the hill, while Johan drew a crossbow and headed for higher ground.
"Time to silence those guns," he muttered, while taking aim.
Johan fired the crossbow, striking one of the canoneers in the chest.
"Bullseye!" he laughed.
Back at the shore, only two caravels and a handful of cultists remained. Two of them forced Christine onto one of the boats.
"THOMAS!" she cried, "PLEASE GET UP!"
The injured Thomas slowly awoke as Christine's cries reached his pained, ringing ears. Blood ran down the side of his face from a cut in his head and he was covered in soot and dust. As his vision returned, he saw the caravel containing Christine move farther and farther away from him. Time was running out to save her.
"I have to keep moving," he thought.
Thomas pushed himself back up and collected his fallen sword before limping his way towards the docks. The remaining cannoneer stepped out from behind his cannon and drew his sword.
"Damnit!" muttered Thomas, preparing for combat.
The man swung his sword downwards, forcing Thomas to sidestep. Thomas retaliated with a thrust, but the soldier deflected the blow. The soldier twirled backwards and followed up with a thrust of his own, but Thomas blocked the move, then pressed his sword firmly against the soldier's.
"I won't…" grunted Thomas, "Let you…Stop me…"
Thomas kicked the man in the groin, forcing him back, before delivering a punch to his face with his left hand. Thomas then finished him off with an upwards slash.
"Now," thought Thomas, "Time to get to that boat!"
Thomas turned around and continued making his way to the last boat, only to be stricken down by a blow to the face. Thomas fell face down and spat out blood.
"Thomas!" boomed Sarpedon, "I must say, I truly admire your persistence! Even when faced with impossible odds, you carry on. Bravo!"
Thomas tried to stand up, but Sarpedon delivered a heavy kick to Thomas' gut, sending him back to the ground.
"I'm sorry," said Sarpedon, gesturing to his ear, "What was that? You want me to spare your pathetic life? My boy, I'm afraid that is no longer an option…"
Sarpedon grabbed Thomas by the collar and lifted him up. Thomas, weakened from his injuries, threw a flimsy punch that barely scratched Sarpedon's chin.
"You're going to have to do better than that," he laughed.
Sarpedon then threw Thomas behind him, sending him rolling into a piece of rubble. He then chuckled as he drew his kopis and approached the fallen young man.
"What chance did you have against me?" proclaimed Sarpedon, "You face a demi-god!"
Thomas resigned to his fate as Sarpedon raised his weapon in the air and prepared to deliver the killing blow. As Sarpedon brought his sword down, it collided with a shield.
"And you," began Kyria, "Face an Amazon!"
Sarpedon growled and pushed her back. The two circled each other slowly with weapons in hand.
"Your claims of godhood are nothing but blasphemy," said Kyria, "Your arrogance will be your undoing!"
"Oh, I will enjoy killing you," taunted Sarpedon, "The same way I enjoyed killing your little Pallakida!"
Kyria let out a might battle cry and charged for Sarpedon. As she slammed her sword down on his head, Sarpedon blocked with his own weapon, then pushed her back. He thrust his sword multiple times at Kyria, forcing her to sidestep each one. When Sarpedon attempted a vertical blow, she quickly raised her shield above her head in defense.
"I thought you were better than that," Sarpedon taunted.
"My thoughts to you," retorted Kyria.
Sarpedon growled in anger and commenced a new barrage of attacks, forcing Kyria to remain on her guard.
Meanwhile, Thomas, who lay injured on the ground, overheard two men conversing. He turned and saw two panicked cultists preparing to board the last boat, despite the fact that Sarpedon and other cultists remained in combat.
"I have to stop them," he wheezed.
Thomas struggled to his feet, clutching a jagged rock, and made his way to the boat. Thomas snuck up on the first man and slammed the rock into the back of his head, knocking him out. The second man turned around and drew his sword, but Thomas immediately pinned him to the wall of the boat, clutching his wrist tightly to prevent him swinging his sword.
"Oh no, you don't!" yelled Thomas.
Thomas bit the man's wrist hard, drawing blood. The cultist screamed in agony and finally dropped his sword. He retaliated by kneeing Thomas in the gut, and before long, the two were on the ground, trying to wrestle the other down.
"GACK!" Thomas cried as the man tried to choke him.
Thomas punched the man in the face several times to force him off. For the next while, they rolled around on the wet, rocky shoreline, taking turns punching and strangling each other. Eventually, Thomas gained the upper hand, delivering mounted punches to the man's face before forcibly submerging his head underwater, drowning him.
Once the man went limp, Thomas closed his eyes and exhaled a sigh of relief. Suddenly, the other cultist, whom Thomas thought he had knocked unconscious, came charging at him with a sword. Thomas shielded his face in panic, but was surprised when the man suddenly collapsed to the floor. A large arrow was lodged in his back.
"Huh?" asked Thomas, standing back up.
From where he stood, Thomas could see Johan up the hill holding his crossbow. The young mercenary nodded at Thomas before rejoining the battle. Thomas smiled and nodded back.
Meanwhile, Kyria and Sarpedon continued their duel, with each of their blows more vicious than the last. One of Sarpedon's blow struck Kyria in her shoulder armour, knocking her back. Sarpedon tried to follow up, but Kyria raised her shield in defense. Still, the force of the blow knocked her backwards to the ground. As Sarpedon tried to stomp on her, she rolled away from him and quickly stood up.
"Just give up already!" snapped Sarpedon.
"You'd like that," said Kyria, "Wouldn't you? An opponent who poses no challenge?"
"THAT'S IT!" Sarpedon screamed, "I've had enough of you!"
Sarpedon charged Kyria like a mad bull, but she blocked each of his attacks. As Kyria predicted, his arrogance was getting the better of him, leaving him open for a counter-attack. Thinking quickly, Kyria performed a low sweep that cut deep into Sarpedon's thigh. As the Greek yelled in pain, Kyria clubbed him in the face with her shield, knocking him back, before slicing his chest with her sword. Sarpedon fell to his knees, dizzy from pain.
"KYRIA!" yelled Thomas from the shore, "We have to go! There's no more time to waste!"
Kyria nodded at Thomas before turning back to Sarpedon.
"Get up," she commanded.
Despite his injuries, Sarpedon collected his sword and struggled to his feet. About halfway up, he fell to his knees again.
"I…I…" he said, meekly, "Please…"
"I said 'get up'," ordered Kyria, "And die like a man."
Sarpedon tried again, this time managing to get to his feet. His right hand trembled as he held his sword out in front of him. As he charged for Kyria one last time, she blocked the blow with her shield, then stabbed him square in the gut.
"Kyria!" Thomas called again, "We must go now!"
"I'm coming," said Kyria, removing her sword from Sarpedon's bowels.
As Sarpedon's body fell to the floor, Kyria made her way over to the boat. She and Thomas glanced one last time at the chaos still ensuing up the hill. Kyria desired to go back and aid her friend, but she knew she had a far more important task to accomplish now.
"We have to maintain our distance," she said, boarding the ship, "We cannot allow ourselves to be seen by them."
"Understood," said Thomas, as he boarded as well.
"We will dock at the north end of the island," continued Kyria, "Then, we will figure things out from there."
"For my wife's sake," began Thomas, "I hope we pull through."
Thomas released the anchor while Kyria manned the sails. As the boat set off, Thomas set his sights on the small island that lay in the distance. Their journey had almost reached its end…