From the Ruins

Chapter Six: "Truly Righteous Man"

     The man before her appeared not worked and righteous. His bones did not creak like the ones of his prisons mates. The dirt smeared on his face was orderly, like he had swiftly swiped a handful of dirt off of the man standing next to him and onto his own face. He wore fur lined boots and an old blanket around his shoulders. But his eyes were lit up with something burning and he seemed to be shaking with excitement instead of the cold.

     Another prisoner behind him sneered in the cleaner man's direction as he stood up to the gate.

     "Well then, your plan? In as many details as quickly as possible" she commanded. The guards would rotate soon and she had more cells to get open.

     "Of course, right after you let me out." He smiled slyly like she was in on his secret goals here tonight. His fair-hair caught light as he raised his chin to meet her gaze but flinched back when he caught sight of the ruins engraved into her skin.

     Me? She thought. Laekonus knew this man was a joke the second he appeared in her line of vision but she never assumed he was also going to try to get everyone killed. So he could live to tell the tale. People like him did not care about the mission in front of them. Ever willing to switch allegiance or sacrifice their company for wealth or ill-gotten glory.

     "Of course, how could I be so daft. Right away." She made no movements towards the cell door. Just squared her shoulder and crossed her wrist behind her back, swinging a blade in one hand. The muscles in her shoulders were tense at the disrespect and the need to correct it was as deeply ingrained into her as the magic in her veins. The restraint she held towards the latter rose from a simmer to a horrible burn underneath her skin and spread like a web catching flame.

     The man sighed expectantly but gave a nervous glance towards the assassin's swinging wrist. He saw that she made no effort into releasing him.

     The confused prisoners stood watching, shivering . Their leader promised them that a personal ally was coming to save him and as a favor for him, the rest of the prisoners. They had done his work in the mines for him so that he would be healthy enough to lead them to freedom. But the hostility steaming off of the shadowy figure in front of them was nearly palpable

       A young girl from behind the man stepped up and grabbed him by the wrist, trying to pull him back away from the bars, so she could reach Laekonus to speak. The mans hand gripped her elbow tightly as she tried to pass and pushed her back into the shivering and huddled group.

     "Anaelyth, step back. She could be dangerous," he excused.

     "As dangerous as I truly am, I am actually not a wild animal, so if you want to be freed you are going to have to listen to me and listen very well." Laekonus reached down to remove the large ring of keys from the dead man's waist and headed towards the gate. "You all have to be silent and quick if you wish to make it through the night. Once the other cells are open repeat this message and then say no more. Stick to the walls, stick to the shadows, and do not form groups. Once I open those gate, run. Run straight for the woods. Do not look back for your friend. Do not stop until your legs give out."

     She unlocked it but before she could open it William tried to shove his way through. No regards to the young girl who was stood at his side. Laekonus had him by the collar of his shirt the moment the fragile bone of the girl's shoulder banged against the side of the cell. The rusted metal rattled in it's holdings and everyone collectively flinched as the noise echoed in their ears.

     "What are your true motives? Working for that king? Or just for yourself?" The man's eyes were wide with faux surprise after a moment of true fear. But it was all Laekonus needed. She opened the gate and allowed everyone inside to exit. She tossed the ring of keys to an aging man as he passed by her and nodded her head at him to tell him to quickly get to work opening up the other cells.

     "I'm here for the cause."

      "Of course you are. An honest, hardworking, and truly righteous man." She let go of his collar and turned towards the old man who was clutching a tall young man to his chest. "As cute as the family reunion is, we have seven minutes before the next guard rotation. Assuming they do not come barreling in early after all the noise your beloved leader was making."

     "Let's be serious for a moment." she grabbed William by the collar of his shirt again. "Since I am here to keep the rebels indebted to me, this is important. And you are a threat to this whole operation."

      She gave a five minute warning to the group of people trying to open the last cell before moving her hand on the man's collar to the back of his neck.

     "And given that you are a threat to what I need to accomplish right now, I will deal with you accordingly." He scuffed and looked at her confused before the cell bars closed in his face. He stood frozen for multiple moments before a smirk lifted his lips.

     "Alert the guards and you will regret it." Her eyes flickered to a soulless silver and the man felt a nauseating grasp around his throat. The ill feeling spread from the skin under her palm on the back of his neck to his windpipe a constricted.

     The flames under her skin returned back to a simmer at the diffusion of the element trapped under her skin. The man fell to his knees desperately digging his nails into the side of his neck for relief but to no avail.

     There were barely more than a hundred captives waiting for her command, to be free of this place. She would get as many of them to the cover of the forest a good distance from the fort as she could. A majority of them wouldn't make it. They were heavily malnourished or injured. Many were being carried on the shoulders of others or assisted to walk. The assassin knew this would end poorly for them but in reality she did not come here to free the captives. She came to burn this place to the ground. Any of the captives that survived the night she would allow to accompany her back to the shore to meet Nas. Anyone that survived the journey to the coast was welcomed wholeheartedly to find refuge in NovaMana. If they could survive this they were worthy of the effort and time this would take from Laekonus no matter how much she lived for battle.

     She pointed to a path that led to the front gates- that would be heavily guarded. Nobody moved. Irritated, she turned and led them in the direction. As she led them through the fort, they tried to remain silent but their starvation left them clumsy and awkward with their movements. In the process of approaching the gates she saw a group of soldiers huddled around small fire.

     The winds breathing in from the field before them prevented them from hearing the movements behind them. The assassin pick up the abandoned archer's bow and holster of quivers from the post beside her. The archer on watch had abandoned his weapon along with his position atop the north guard tower to join his fellows by the warmth of the fire.

     After instantly securing three arrows on the string of the bow she released them into three of the five guards on duty. She retrieved a throwing dagger from the leathers on her thigh through it into the neck of the fourth. By the time another dagger had cut off the yelled warning of the fifth guards arrows were flying from the back two guard towers. The clamor of heavy metal crushing snow and whatever else lay in its path soon reached her ears.

     Laekonus darted for the lever, giving it a swift kick to release the locking mechanism causing the gate to be pulled open.

     Like a crippled stampede, the captives ran as best as they could towards the tree line but the slower ones were quickly picked off. The last man running past her was shot down in the back before he could get his foot past the threshold. Laekonus was quick to tear the arrow out, secure it on her acquired bow and launch it into the heart of the soldier playing a stressful game of target practice on the ledge above the gate.

     With haste, she retrieved her dagger from the guards at her feet and used one to cut the rope holding the gate up. The heavy gate slammed hard back down onto the cobble stone path below. reattached them to her thigh.

     Adjusting the quivers left in the holster on her back, she crept into the shadows of the corner. Laekonus readjusted the hood over her head and shook out her shoulders in preparation for the battle moments before her. She quickly fired off arrows at the archers that had taken root on the closest guard towers.

     Mindlessly, the soldiers crashed into the gate desperate to right the disaster taking place before The King made them the replacements for the prisoners that had escaped.