Teleka: Dawn of a New Age

Chapter IV: Desperation (2/2)

"Ellis! What the HELL is going on?!" Shona asked in a trembling voice.

"Quiet!" the man ordered.

"Bastard! Get your GODDAMN HANDS OFF MY SISTER!"

Ellis's anger had pushed him a step forward, but the man who held Shona at knifepoint took a single step back to maintain the same distance.

"Hey!" he yelled as a warning, still visibly tightening his grip on the blade against her throat. "Everyone, calm the hell down! I did not come here to kill you, but I will not hesitate to do so should you leave me no choice!"

"If you dare bring any harm to her in the slightest, you won't be alive to make a choice!" Ellis replied.

"Speak as though you have leverage here if you wish, but you don't. I did not come here alone,"

"Let her go! She has nothing to do with this!" Gentry demanded. "If you must have someone to point a blade at, then point it at us!"

The man stood still for a moment to contemplate his next move. Slowly, he slightly lowered the silver blade from her throat, yet still held it close enough to change his mind at any instant.

"Fine," the man said as he further lowered his knife, prompting Shona to run forward to stand behind them with hands upon her knees as she quietly panted from the fear and adrenaline.

Not a moment longer, both Gentry and Ellis quickly reached down to retrieve their weapons in response to the abandoned leverage, which had then prompted the hooded man's use of the wisp to levitate his in front of them.

"Should you choose this battle, heed my warning, you will not survive it. Even should I fall, the soldiers outside these walls will clearly outnumber you. I am giving you an alternative choice here."

"How gracious of you," Ellis remarked. "It was you who chose this battle when you came to this town to steal sterling from its people and now you show up here with a BLADE against MY SISTER'S THROAT and expect me to NEGOTIATE?!"

"I've not come to steal anything. You kidnapped the man I was spying on. The others who work under him would have only grown more suspicious of me if I hadn't shown up here."

His response made Ellis and Gentry stand frozen with a quiet, yet noticeable confusion.

"The hell do you mean 'spying on'? You work for him," said Gentry.

"As a ruse. The man I am actually loyal to has soldiers of his own. That's why I've been trying to convince Cedrick to take him and his sellswords and leave this place in order to give us a chance at subduing them without making a scene or bringing any potential harm to the townsfolk. That was precisely the plan..." the hooded man replied, then turning his head to Ellis, "Until some ginger-bearded, psychopathic bastard kidnapped him."

"Why are you telling us this?"

"More importantly, why should we believe you?" Ellis added to Gentry's question.

"Because this situation may provide us with a way to avoid further unnecessary bloodshed: for our men, for their men, and yourselves."

"And how is that?" Ellis asked.

"Nearly all sellswords of Cedrick's have a bounty on their heads; many may not feel as compelled to fight out in the open with a village full of guards who'd no doubt benefit from such rewards. With that in mind, the envoy I've been speaking with may be able to use this as an opportunity to peacefully arrest Cedrick out in the open with as little resistance as possible."

"And we're to believe the village guards will 'peacefully' comply? They don't typically take sides in these matters," replied Gentry.

"The lot of them were once close friends with Idris. I've made them well aware of my contact with the envoy, and I can assure you they hate Cedrick just as much as we do."