Chapter Fifty Eight

My Name is Prometheus

ELSA

"Whoever she really is, she's mad." Tracy remarked as she and Elsa sprinted back up the stairs.

"Can't disagree," Elsa really didn't know how to feel about it all. Was Peggy a spy this whole time? Was she spying on the duke? An undercover with the Empire perhaps? Ludwig had mentioned that there was a possibility that there were moles within his household. But that didn't add up. Why would Peggy inspire the revolution if she was an Imperial loyalist? No, it didn't make sense at all.

"I knew there was something really fishy about her!" Tracy said as they reached the fourth storey and found a ladder that led up to the roof.

Elsa began climbing the ladder first, followed by Tracy. "Me too. Couldn't put my finger on it, but somehow I knew we could trust her."

"And now?"

"She is helping us, isn't she?" Elsa grimaced as they emerged onto the roof, where ten soldiers lay flat on their bellies, their eyes close to the rifles resting snugly on mounds of snow that covered the roof. The Vodarian Eagles were positioned like men defending a fortress' bastion wall. Unfortunately, there were no artillery pieces.

"I don't know," Tracy crouched on the rooftop in a gap between two prone Vodarian Eagles. "But there ain't no time to start questioning her loyalties now."

Peggy came up behind them, a rifle with a long barrel in hand. She set her rifle down in the snow, aiming in the same direction the rest were, and lowered herself into a prone. Immediately, she looked like one of the ten Vodarian Eagles on that roof.

Shaking her head, Elsa lowered herself down to a knee as well. It was hard to see far in the dark, but she could see movement far away. Clad in their white uniforms, the first few Blitzguard soldiers crested the slope and started riding down Modeley district. With the Voda Estate being about two hundred and fifty yards down the road from the slope, the first of the Imperial Blitzguard were now within range.

The Vodarian Eagles opened fire, cracks from their rifles lashing out in quick succession, flashes of white stabbing out in the dark. Elsa saw the first few Blitzguard topple from their horses, some pitching forward and dying on their mounts.

"Bloody hell," Tracy said. "Ludwig knows how to pick them."

And Tracy was right. These soldiers had good equipment - judging by the make and model of their rifles which gave them better accuracy than the standard smoothbore musket. Their weapons had a longer effective firing range, and that surely wasn't discounting the skill of these men.

As more of the Imperial Blitzguard began to crest the slope and gallop towards the Voda Estate, the Vodarian Eagles in the garden also began to open fire, and coupled with Peggy and the men on the roof, they scythed down a good many of the mounted Blitzguard soldiers. Still, some managed to avoid being shot and more poured onto the scene. The Vodarian Eagles continued loading and firing in rapid succession at the oncoming enemies, but it was clear they couldn't hold the enemies off for much longer.

Narrowing her eyes, Elsa took aim. A torrential stream of ice flew from her hands, raising thick ice stalagmites on the road that the Blitzguard were traversing. Horses were reined up and others swerved precariously to avoid being impaled, a good many men falling from their mounts with the effort.

"That's not going to slow them down for long," Tracy threw a bolt of her black magic at a knot of fallen soldiers. There was a bright coruscation of light that rippled out upon impact, sending many more mounted men catapulting off their horses, screaming as they flew through the air, some getting impaled on the stalagmites Elsa had left behind.

Many more soldiers in white poured onto the road, advancing towards the Voda Estate. A hundred and fifty yards now.

Elsa and Tracy continued hurling sorcery at long range, doing their best to slow down the enemies as the Vodarian Eagles around them carried on loading and firing at erratic intervals. The forces down in the duke's garden were fanning out to intercept the Blitzguard, rifles firing in the dark. It was clear that things would soon dissolve into a melee.

Beside Elsa, Peggy was still loading and firing at a constant speed. Biting down the paper cartridge and tearing, pouring black powder down the barrel, ramming the lead ball down the barrel with the ramrod together with the wad of paper on top, half cocking the hammer, priming the pan with powder, snapping the frizzen shut and levelling to her eye. One rifle crack among twenty or thirty others, her shot always hit her target in a spray of blood, sending the soldiers tumbling off their mounts without missing once. Peggy worked with such confidence and swift familiarity that it was hard to imagine she was actually a servant girl. No, this was most definitely not a servant girl.

Focus! Elsa whipped her attention back to the road, eyes narrowed in concentration. Her hands sent another stream of ice that punched a bunch of advancing soldiers off their feet. Beside her, Tracy was unleashing all manner of hell against the Blitzguard that were beginning to reach the garden. Coupled with the Vodarian Eagles' rifles on the ground, Tracy's sorcery sent them pitching backwards, jerking and flying back into their comrades.

Many of the other Blitzguard soldiers took up positions a good distance away, crouching in the snow and firing at the garden. Others aimed for the roof, and lead balls began pinging and zinging off the bricked rooftop.

"Heads up, they're firing at us!" Tracy shouted to Elsa. "Pick them off!"

Grunting, Elsa conjured a mini blizzard and hurled it straight at the men firing at them. Some managed to duck out of the way, while a good many of them were hit squarely by Elsa's attack. Ice, snow and water erupted from the point of impact, and for a moment, the firing on their position ceased. But it began again soon enough, more Blitzguard soldiers joining in to knock their attackers off the roof.

Peggy, along with the Vodarian Eagles on the roof turned their attention to the men firing at them, and began to eliminate them one by one. But the Blitzguard were smart, constantly evolving. They fired, then ran to another spot, firing again and moving at random like seasoned skirmishers. It made for a good strategy as it was way harder to hit them. But the exchange of fire soon became a stalemate, with the majority of the Blitzguard troops beginning to push into the duke's garden, slowly forcing the Vodarian Eagles on the ground to backpedal. There were just too many of the Blitzguard soldiers, Hans probably having sent all of them to wipe out every traitor in the capital. It was just a matter of time now.

Just when Elsa thought it was time to suggest beating a hasty retreat, an arrow whizzed through the dark, a grappling hook anchoring on the edge of the roof. A shadowy figure rose from the ground and soared into the air, gingerly evading all the rifle shots that came from both sides, and silently landed on the roof behind one of the Vodarian Eagles. Bow in hand, the black-clad man turned to Elsa and Tracy. He wore a familiar mask and hood.

Heart skipping a beat, Elsa choked in gladness. "Janus! You're alive! I thought I lost you." She would've moved to embrace him if not for the fact that her knees felt weak with relief.

"You tough bastard! You're not dead after all!" Tracy cheered.

Silently, his gaze did not waver.

Something's wrong. Elsa frowned, forgetting about the firefight raging around them. "Janus?"

Without warning, he drew his falchion and slashed the spine of the man right in front of him. Amid the screams of the man, Janus strode towards them and drove the blade down into the next man before he had any time to react.

"What the hell?" Tracy gawked. "Janus! What are you doing? They're on our side!"

"Tracy, back!" Elsa hissed. "Peggy! Get behind me!"

Peggy looked up from her shooting. "Why?" Then her eyes fell on Janus. "What-"

"Do it! Now!" Elsa shouted, her eyes not leaving Janus as he continued stalking towards them, his face hidden behind that suddenly frightening mask of his.

Hurriedly, Tracy pushed Peggy behind her and began to close ranks with Elsa as the trio slowly backpedaled. "Elsa?" Peggy said.

"They made him a Mage Slayer," Elsa felt the blood drain from her face as she uttered the deadly words. "Hans didn't kill him. He turned him into another of his personal assassins."

"Oh, bugger it," Tracy muttered. "That son of a bitch."

"Is he going to fight us?" Peggy was still clinging to her rifle that she'd just loaded but not fired yet.

"Wrong. He's going to kill us." Tracy said.

Jaw tight, Elsa's eyes narrowed. "Stay behind us. Whatever you do, do not engage, no matter what."

"Bloody hell, what are we gonna do?" Tracy said as they reached the edge of the roof and could retreat no further. "We can't fight him and win!"

As if on cue, Janus leapt high into the air, his sword raised and his bow held across his chest as a guard.

Letting out an involuntary gasp, Elsa pushed Peggy and Tracy out of the way and dove left, just as Janus' sword came crashing down where her head had been a moment earlier. She rolled across the snow-covered rooftop, backing away from Janus who continued stalking her.

Four of the Vodarian Eagles charged him, leaving the remaining four to continue firing from the roof. Skilled as they were, they never stood a chance.

"Get out of here!" Elsa yelled at Tracy and Peggy as Janus carved his way through the four men like a seasoned butcher would do with a slab of meat.

"We're not leaving you!" Peggy shouted back. Before Elsa could stop her, she lunged just as Janus finished killing the last soldier. Janus saw her coming and faded, dropping his sword and bow to grab her arm as she passed him by. But surprisingly, she was incredibly slippery. Peggy spun, quickly twisting Janus' arm as he grabbed her, then hooked one leg over his arm and tugged him down. Unfortunately, Janus was far stronger than the average combatant. Still tangled in her hold, he lifted Peggy - who looked half his weight - and prepared to toss her over the roof to her death.

"No!" Tracy threw black magic at his exposed side, forcing him to loosen his grip on Peggy, who slipped free and dropped noiselessly to the roof. In the same move, Peggy used her legs to sweep Janus' footing out from beneath him.

Janus broke his fall and rolled backwards into a crouch. Peggy's running knee crunched into his mask and sent him pitching backwards, but before Peggy could capitalise, his left leg lashed out, kicking Peggy away to put some distance between them. Like a wild animal, he rose swiftly and sharply, staring round at Elsa, Tracy and Peggy. His gaze landed on the four remaining Vodarian Eagles still perched on the rooftop and shooting at the Blitzguard below.

"No, Janus! Don't!" Elsa shouted.

Two daggers slipped into each of Janus' hands and he whipped them straight at the four men on the roof. All four blades sunk into the backs of their heads and their rifles toppled over the edge of the roof.

Again, Peggy charged him and dropped to her knees, sliding across the snow as Janus lashed out with a vicious roundhouse kick to floor her. She grabbed his other leg and tried to tackle him off-balance. Janus kicked her with his free leg and grabbed her by the collar of her dress. Peggy broke his grip with an ear clap to the sides of his hooded head, and landed gracefully in the snow, her feet landing on Janus' jaw as she executed a reverse somersault.

Dazed and discombobulated, Janus stumbled backwards but quickly regained his balance, boot grinding against the snow. With almost supernatural speed, he lashed out at Peggy with a series of well scouted feints that she just managed to react to, and finished with a roundhouse kick to the ribs that had her stumbling sideways. Janus drove his boot into Peggy's stomach, catapulting her straight off the roof.

"Peggy!" Elsa gasped in horror.

"I got this!" Tracy dove towards the edge of the roof and reached a hand out. Her black magic formed into a purple-tinted hand, scooping Peggy out of mid-air and holding her in abeyance.

Deflating ever so slightly, Elsa turned back to Janus who was now advancing towards both her and Tracy, falchion brandished in hand menacingly.

"Get her down to the ground," Elsa dropped into a fighting stance, hands hovering by her waist. "Yourself too. I'll stall him."

"What? No!" Tracy protested as she kept her concentration on keeping Peggy from falling to her death. "You can't stay and fight him! It's suicide!"

"I'll be right behind you! Go now!" Elsa darted forward to intercept Janus, an ice sword forming in her hand to parry a lightning quick downward cut from the falchion. She heard Tracy beginning to clamber down the roof after Peggy, and turned her full attention to Janus, her ice sword grating against his blood stained blade.

His gaze locked with hers, and though his features were hidden behind the mask, Elsa could feel his cold, impassive eyes penetrating her. His stance emanated pure, untampered viciousness as he leaned into the attack, forcing her to slowly backpedal. Looking into the eye slits of his mask, Elsa was reminded of their first encounter back in Arendelle when he'd looked at her with the same eyes of a remorseless mercenary. All she saw before her now were the same eyes of that ruthless monster, hell bent on getting the job done at any cost.

With a grunt, she pulled away from him, clearing a wide berth as he pitched forward but recovered his footing almost instantly. Before he could spin round, she charged him, sword raised in one hand and the other extended towards him. A short, non-lethal blast of ice slammed into him, stumbling him again. He blocked another blast with the broad side of the falchion sword, and struck at Elsa as she came within range.

She parried and feinted, using what Janus himself had taught her against him, and then riposted so quickly that her ice cut into his arm, drawing blood. Her first instinct was to withdraw, but she had to remind herself that this was no longer the same man she'd opened herself up to, the man she'd slept with and shared her life with over the past year.

Janus used that moment of hesitation to slam his open palm into her chest, and tackled her to the ground before the wind was even knocked out of her. He straddled Elsa in a way that would've been very arousing had it been under different circumstances, pinning her under his full weight, his sword raised to deal a fatal blow to her skull. Her ice sword came up like lightning, parrying hard as his blade came down, and she gritted her teeth as his strength began to overwhelm her.

"Your allies have failed," He spoke for the first time since he'd arrived, his tone dispassionate. "The emperor's men are sweeping through the house and the Crimson Order will be here within moments."

"Janus, I know you can hear me in there!" Elsa shouted in desperation. "Fight it! Come back to me!"

"My name is Prometheus," His mechanical voice sent chills down her spine even as his blade inched closer towards her head. "Yield now and save yourself some dignity."

"You won't kill me," Elsa grunted desperately as she pushed back hard against him with all of her might. "Hans wants me alive. And you know what he intends to do with me. Are you prepared to let that happen?"

Behind the eye holes of the mask, there was a mild flash of emotion in Janus' eyes, though it disappeared almost as quickly as it had surfaced.

"You could at least remember me!" Elsa cried. "After all we've been through together? You were the one who sacrificed yourself to save me, damn it!"

Something crossed his features more clearly this time. His sword arm loosened and his weight on her chest lightened slightly. "Elsa?" His voice softened in familiarity, now holding urgency and despair in place of cold ruthlessness. "You have to get out of here. The Mage Slayers, they're coming. We-" He froze for an instant, then the moment of enlightenment passed.

But Elsa had seen her chance and she took it. With all her might, she rolled sideways, forcing Janus off her. She slammed the pommel of her ice sword into his gloved hand, knocking the falchion blade out of his grasp and kicking it away. Like lightning, his other hand flew up and grabbed her throat, and he stood to his feet, holding her above the roof.

Her feet dangling above ground, she struggled against his iron grip. But before she could will her sorcery to freeze his hand, he tightened his hold on her neck and she felt her throat closing up. Desperately clawing at his grip, Elsa wheezed, her face turning blue. She tried to kick his shin but missed, and felt her senses growing duller by the second. Her vision was blurry, the masked face of an emotionless killer watching his prey slowly die. As she began to fade, she was consumed by only one thought. I'm going to be killed by the only man I've ever loved.

Black magic punched hard into Janus' flank like enfilade fire, forcing him to relinquish his grip on Elsa's neck. Gasping and choking, she dropped onto the roof, clawing at her throat as cold air rushed back into her lungs.

"Elsa! Move your ass!" Tracy screeched as she threw another round of sorcerous energy at Janus who brought his falchion sword up to deflect it.

Instinctively, Elsa's hand went to Janus' belt as he was distracted by Tracy. She fished out a bunch of pellets from a specific compartment and hurled it at their feet with all her might. Smoke burst from the pellets, engulfing them both in thick, dark clouds which rose from the rooftop.

Willing her body to move, Elsa dove away from Janus' wild grabs and dashed towards Tracy, who was frantically beckoning her at the edge of the roof. As she reached Tracy, the girl looped her arm beneath Elsa's and over her shoulder.

"Hold on and don't let go!" Tracy stepped off the edge of the roof, taking Elsa with her. As they plummeted, Tracy stretched out a hand and black magic surged out of her. Long purple tentacles extended from her back, grabbing the rooftop and lowering the two girls to the ground.

Touching down safely on the ground blanketed with snow, Elsa looked round. The remaining Vodarian Eagles who'd survived were fleeing from the rear of the house and retreating into the woods. All around the estate, rifle cracks still went off, signalling the dying defiance of the last few defenders.

"This way!" Tracy pulled Elsa towards the stable, blasting her way through a couple of Blitzguard soldiers who tried to cut them down with their bayonets. A couple of horses awaited them, Peggy already mounted on one.

"Saddle up!" Peggy shouted. "We need to get out of here now!"

Still half dazed, Elsa swung herself into the saddle and grabbed the reins.

"Follow me and stay close. Hyah!" Peggy whipped on her reins and her horse galloped off towards the woods.

Elsa did likewise, squeezing her thighs together against the animal's flanks. It gave a loud bray and shot off after Peggy, with Tracy's mount close behind. The three of them rode into the pitch dark woods, flanked all around by Vodarian Eagles who were also escaping. Behind them, they could hear the shouts of the Imperial Blitzguard.

"We did it," Tracy sounded happy to be alive. "Bloody hell, we actually made it."

"But Janus," Elsa choked, nursing her neck which felt sore. "He's one of them now." She'd been confident that with time, she would've been able to eventually come to peace with his sacrifice and death. But things were much worse now. He was a Mage Slayer - just like Jade, hell bent on destroying her and everything else in his path. Janus was no better than a mindless monster now, and there was nothing she could do to save him.

"That trance he was in," Peggy shouted over her shoulder as they rode deep into the woods, leaving behind the fading shouts of the Blitzguard. "It was induced by a…a Mage Slayer?"

"Basically a demon assassin," Tracy explained. "Hell, there's a lot to catch you up on. And you've got a lot to explain yourself."

"I will, but not now," Peggy leaned forward, spurring her mount to quicken its pace. "There'll be time later. Stay close, this part of the woods is tricky."

Doing her best to still her emotional turmoil, Elsa tightened her jaw. There would be time to think later. There had to be a way to still save Janus. There must be. Blinking away unshed tears, Elsa followed Peggy, leaning forward and feeling cold air beat against her cheeks as the trio raced deeper into the woods.