The warm feel of the morning sun did nothing to uplift the villagers spirits. Their grief became so close to being mistaken for a Banshees wailing hex. One way or the other, they had each lost an integral part of their fold; be it limbs or loved ones, things were lost.
For some it was a parent, parents, siblings, children, a child and at the very worst; an entire clan was struck off thanks to Dregbane and his band of vicious blood seeking beasts.
Their spirits were drained completely, showing no observable difference between theirs' and the faces of those they were about to lay to rest.
"Sister Karen, what's going to happen to us?, are they going to come for us too?. Are they going to take us like they took mummy and daddy?" A quivering voice whispered admits squirms and tears.
Karen lost all feeling in her knees, her legs buckled. Thankfully Annie caught her just in time.
'Of course not" she choked on her tears, needing sheer willpower to not sprawl on the floor in an attempt to lay her grief bare
"I..I- I.....I" she was unable to get any words out of her mouth, they just laid there, blocked behind a thick lump of grief
"No Lilly, of course not. No one is going to bother us anymore" Annie crouched down to better comfort her
She held her gaze as well as her hands before pulling her into a tight embrace. She could feel the poor girl still shaking, her teeth chattered away even as she hugged her.
"Everything is going to be alright Lily I promise. Everything is going to be alright" she said, more to herself than the little girl in her arms.
đź’Ť. đź’Ť. đź’Ť
"Well the morale is quite low, are you sure this is the best time to do this?. I know we ought to make haste, but shouldn't they be given more time to grieve their dead?" Ember said in a low register. She too had lost someone - her son to be exact.
Derick was but a few years of age, but the bamboos rod impaling his petite figure didn't seem to care, and neither did the Pike's of rubble which she had to sort through to find him.
Her gaze lowered even more when recounting the scene of his bloodied body. Nothing held meaning to her anymore. She had long list her husband during the war, and now her son too was gone form this world. She was alone and she hated the feeling even more than she hated the Hexi for causing her loneliness.
"I'm afraid we can't. We leave at first light tomorrow, so we must sever our ties with this place as well as the ties in our hearts. We must match on and prosper, otherwise all this would have been for naught; their deaths in vain" Intake said in a monotonous voice
Anyone hearing him would assume he held no grievance over loss with the Hexi after the aftermath, but only the Saints as wells as the Order knew just how much he had lost...
…....
House Konga had suffered the most from the attack. Inake's clansmen, including his mother, father, aunts and uncles, nephews and nieces as well as his siblings, all burned to ash from the first volley of fireballs.
Before he could attempt anything reminiscent of a rescue, he was summoned by Asake alongside other members of the Order.
Soul vision showed him that their lives were beyond saving even before reaching Asake's side, so he did the only thing he thought logical, which was to defend the rest of the village with every bit of stamina his complicated physiology allotted him, but alas Dregbane, for some inexplicable reason targeted him first before he could reveal his trump card.
When the Order learnt of his Clan's downfall, they imagined that his hate would grow into something eclipsing that of a Herbenger, but to everyone's surprise Inake still had that look of indifference; prompting those who occasionally teased him of being of artificial creation to cement their affirmation to their once believed wild speculations.
"The others need a proper orientation before we begin our march" Agamemnon pointed out
'No we mustn't tarry. The Hexi have successfully dwindled our numbers, If they attack again, you can be rest assured that the Ring lineage would end with us. Leave them to their loved one's for now, this is the last bit of peace they will be opportune to, so I suggest you allow them to enjoy it while they still can; need I remind you of life behind academy walls" Inake glanced one last time at the sorrow of his people before turning to take his leave.
" But Inake, they haven't had time to mourn their dead. You of all people should understand" Akila moved closer, aiming to comfort him.
" I do mot understand" he replied
"you said we are to leave them to their loved one's right, so who shall you be with?" Shawn asked uncaring for the eyes of rage from some of the other Ring leaders which had locked on him shortly following his statement.
He had known Inake the longest, so he knew that indirect questions and roundabout meanings weren't his strong suit. One had to be direct and without feeling if they wanted to have a decent conversation with him
" I still do not follow, you are all aware that everyone in my clan is dead, so I am not privy to such social interactions anymore"
The way he said it; no stutter, no hiccups and no grunts from trying to dissuade his pain.
The Order were a few inches away from a frightful experience.
How can someone be so out of phase with his emotions to say with a straight and almost flat tone, "all my loved one's are dead".
They began debating inwardly on the nature of his origins,trying to check if per chance check if they had missed the part about him being stripped of feeling by the Witchmaster himself or maybe he had Derc blood in his veins, all but one anyway
"if we remain here for even a day longer we may likely join them. So what point is there in grieving those who we will soon join if we choose to stay" Zelius shared Inake's disposition, so his thoughts as well as that of Inake were along the lines of whether the others had been hexed by Dregbane or perhaps they all had concussions which severely dulled their minds to the point of amnesia
The others turned to him, noticing no trace of grief or torment laced in his voice or plastered on his face. A chilling calm was all they perceived while trying to discern his intentions.
" Saints! We're surrounded by eldritch terrors'" Felix gasped, in no way was he being too loose with his words as the others shared the same train of thought
" But your family is gone, you don't have to pretend to be strong just because you are our leader. This event has been nothing if not devastating" Sinbad was many things: a narcissist, murderer and even a demented madman, but even he would break down if anything were to happen to Annie. Now his comrade had lost an entire generation form his family; dozens of "Annie's", and yet still looked okay. The only reason he could think of was Inake trying to cement his new role as Leader Of The Rings by displaying an iron will. But there was no need to, no one was more fit to lead them than he was.
"By any chance are you all feeling okay, did Dregbane leave a wandering curse or…?" Now he was completely sure something was amiss. If even the mad doctor showed him empathy, then the curse had to be strong enough to target an Omega. He had to be cautious
Zelius caught on and he too prepared for a scuffle, using the most noiseless of movements to place his hand on his swords hilt
"What say you Sinbad, are you feeling-"
"-I won't allow it" Ember shouted, silencing their thoughts of escape
"Whatever do you mean?" Inake said, although he had a quizzical expression on his face, he was already mere moments away from unsheathing his sword
"If you are to wallow in grief, then we will all mourn with you. And no, you haven't lost all you're loved one's Inake. We are still here" Ember stated admist tears before moving closer to him
Before he could decipher her intent, Ember's hands had already wrapped around his lean figure in a warm embrace.
The others seeing her action, followed suit for more than a couple of contradictory reasons; Between Sinbad's fear of loosing Annie, Zelius thinking that what hey were doing was yet another social etiquette he was unaware of, together with the rest of the Order whose thoughts were of normal origins.
They all knew how dangerous their lives were, so they found comfort in knowing that they weren't alone in the journey. Although their thoughts were a spectrum of conflicting wills and worry, but at that moment they cared solely for Inake, because to them, there were more than just colleagues or he their leader.
They were something more to each other, something eternal - Family
…....…
Arthur could feel his heart pounding though his chest with each step he took towards the pedestal where his father's things were kept. They were yet to find his remains even after two days of searching, so instead, his most personal items took the place of his corpse; a simple cone pendant that bore the Pendragon family crest, a fiery red scabbard and a garland made of red string,
Although his body was never found, the Thunder Emperor confirmed his death as did a handful of onlookers who bore witness to his charred corpse
Tears welled up in his eyes, but he quickly stiffened his gaze to interrupt their flow. The four days before The memorial were spent in tears, and so today of remembrance; no sad undertones, just he and the memories of his father were to reign, and they did for about a dozen minutes or so before salty sweet tears finally won the challenge.
He looked towards the sky and reaffirmed his faith
"I AM ARTHUR PENDRAGON AND I WILL END DREGBANE!!!!"
His voice choked and once more the sobs took him charge
…....….
Location - Dark Plains
The eerie skies of the Dark plains held no light or truth, they were just that - Dark. The skies above, the ground below and even the air, all held a strong sense of death.
Bards told tales of the once glorious country, but alas the present reality left much to be desired from memory. The illustrious home of the Destroyer was a place no mere mortal could traverse except of course those seeking to be released from their mortal coil
Every nook and cranny of the scorched barren lands held realities as wicked as the creatures that graced their grounds. This was the dwelling place of the Hexi, creatures so frightening that even Gods forbade the sun to shine over their home for fear of them choosing a new kingdom high above the clouds- or so the story went
Travellers were told to abandon all hope if they sook refuge in its lands since no redemption could undo the tyranny of its ruler.
But maybe all these warnings were merely old wives-tales, told to children to halt their rebellious nature, as presently in a dark and ghastly tower, the "Destroyer" laid on the floor with a ghastly cut that threatened to sever his morta - or more accurately, his immortal coil.
"My Liege, I bring reports from the Isles, the Gn - By the Dark one, are you alright my lord" Liastria one of Dregbane's generals flashed towards his body
"Still yourself daughter, I merely aim to rest my wounds" a low ghastly boom filled her ears restraining all thoughts from her mind,
"Wounds?, my liege your last known raid was in a ring village and whether in a thousand years or at this very moment, those radicals do not possess the power to cause you such pa-"
A strong gaze drained the undeath from her mouth. And the next words were said in so much hate that she feared her death was certain
"Call on my Wardens, it is high time those Rings came to know the meaning of the word - Despair
"My lord, The Wardens?, I could just as easily lead a team of Omegas an-" Another glare cut her short
"I do not presume to be a merciful God, so I can guarantee that the next time you think it in your place to interpose on my plans, will be the last eventful thing your many years of living grant you"
There was no hate this time around, no aura, no intent. To the untrained ears it sounded more like a casual remark which would gamer an arbitrary response from it's intended, yet it had the opposite effect on Liastria; maybe it was because only she knew how much he loved to keep to his promises, "daughter" or not, she was sure to meet her end on her next attempt at counsel
Her hurried steps and batted breaths exosed the terror in her heart but she made no reservations to hide it
"The Wardens huh?, It seems the extermination of Ring-kind is at hand"
Meanwhile scenes of Arthur's movements shook Dregbane to the core but his pride drowned those thoughts until one crept past his facade
"If those Runic fools are back, why hasn't the Dark one spoken to me?"
"No matter, they shall meet their end as swiftly as those who choose to oppose him, I'll litre the Desert plains with bodies, shade a portion of Xander in blood if i have to, but I will see my lord reunited in this planeof existence