by Logan Jacobs
Celeste still looked terrified, but Adelina wrapped a reassuring arm around the teen’s shoulders, so I knew she was in good hands. Sarah and Caelia spent some time practicing climbing up and down the trees, and soon their arms were covered in scratches from the evergreen branches.
Everyone dressed in dark clothes paired with hooded cloaks, and I made sure they were all armed just in case, but I knew this time I was going to stop all the would-be assassins before they reached any of my people. Despite their reluctance to stay out of the fight, everyone exhibited wonderful teamwork as we prepared for the attack, and while we wouldn’t get much sleep that night, we’d be closer as a group by the time the sun came up the next day.
When it grew closer to the time of the attack, everyone scurried up their chosen trees, and my archers hauled their bows and quivers full of arrows up the branches of the evergreens. We’d cut away some of the limbs in an effort to create vantage points, but everyone was still completely out of sight, so I was satisfied.
I sat alone at the dying fire with my daggers in my hand while my heart pounded in my chest. Adrenaline coursed through my veins, but my bloodlust hadn’t calmed since the last attempt, and I focused on that feeling as I waited.
A twig snapped behind me and alerted me to the presence of another person, but I held my breath and stayed where I was. I wanted them to think I was sleeping until they got close enough for me to go super Saiyan on their masked asses.
I could feel the presence of multiple people coming toward the campsite from behind me, and it was almost more than I could take, but I worked the muscle in my jaw as I stayed frozen in place.
Suddenly, I heard an arrow zip through the air from the direction of the tree to my right, followed by a thud and a gasp, and I cursed under my breath. I tossed back my cloak as I stood and faced my enemies, and the group of masked men blinked in surprise at my sudden movement.
I grinned. That was satisfying.
Then my grin turned into a bloodthirsty grimace, and I dashed toward the closest figure as I repositioned my daggers in my fists. I punched him with my weapon gripped in my hand, and I heard his jaw crunch beneath my knuckles. His head flew backward, and I took the opportunity to slash my left hand’s blade across his Adam’s apple.
Blood sprayed out and struck me in the face, and I spat it out as the man fell to the ground. Two more men rushed to fill his place, and a moment later, I was surrounded by the masked men. Arrows filled the air around me, so I ducked, and one man took a projectile to the neck.
If my men weren’t careful, they’d hit me with their arrows, but if that happened, I’d just reset back to my save point and try again.
While I didn’t want to spend the rest of eternity reliving this single battle over and over again, I would do it as many times as it took to get it perfect. I wanted one-hundred percent completion of this video-game-like fantasy world, after all.
I jumped up from my squat, stomped my foot to activate the fleetness ability of my griffon feather boots, and then ran toward the two masked men directly in front of me at full speed. I jumped at the last possible instant, and I opened my arms wide with my daggers angled downward. I landed with a blade in each man’s chest, and all three of us fell to the ground.
I was on my feet an instant later, though, and I wrenched my daggers free before I spun my leg out at the next guy. He hopped over my foot, landed in a squat, and then lunged toward me with a malicious look in his dark eyes.
I scrambled backward to gain some distance, but I stumbled over the dead body behind me, so I raised my feet as I fell over. The masked man ran into my feet, and I launched him into the air over my head. He landed in a roll and scurried into a standing position, but then an arrow shot across the distance and dove into his eyeball.
“Great shot!” I wasn’t sure who shot the arrow, but I laughed out loud as the masked man’s body crumpled to the ground like it was made of Play-Doh, and then I turned to find someone else to kill.
Five men moved to swarm around me, and I grinned.
This was going to be fun.
“Come on.” I beckoned to my enemies with the fingers of one hand while maintaining my hold on my dagger. “Get closer. I dare ya.”
A confused expression flashed across their eyes, but then the look was replaced with murderous intent once more.
Once they were all crowded around me, I stomped my foot again, and I ran in a tight circle as I slashed out at them with my daggers. It was like a buzz saw tearing into their flesh, and I was sprayed with a fountain of their blood as my blades found major arteries. Then I slowed just enough to make sure I was landing fatal hits. I struck a jugular, spun to stab an eyeball, and swiveled back around just in time to bury both my daggers in a third man’s chest.
That caused me to skid to a halt, though, and I stood there catching my breath for a moment as the life faded from my enemies’ eyes. I yanked my daggers free from his chest, and my gaze flicked from side to side in search of another target.
I was drenched in my enemies’ blood, but I didn’t see any more dark-clothed figures standing around the campsite.
Had I killed them all?
I scanned the bodies scattered about the campsite, and I quickly discovered several of them were porcupined with arrows. My team had killed their fair share of the would-be assassins, but I was just glad they were all dead without anyone getting hurt.
Just to be certain, I went around to every ninja-like asshole and slit their throats since I didn’t want any of them getting a second wind and sneaking up on me when my back was turned. I made a new save point since I’d taken out all of my enemies, and then I signaled for everyone to come down from the trees.
Kylor, Corvis, Bron, and Jeron immediately began to strip the small daggers off the corpses, and then the four men started to pull the bodies away from the campsite. There was still blood everywhere, but it was nice to see how efficiently they worked to clean up the battle.
Then the ladies started to climb down from the trees, and a scream pierced the air.
“W-W-What happened to you?” Celeste wailed as tears sprang into her eyes at the sight of me.
“What’s wrong?” I frowned. “I’m fine. I’m not even injured. Why did you scream?”
“Bash…” Elissa hurried forward and flashed me a warning look. “You’re covered in blood from head to toe.”
“Oh.” I blinked, and then I looked down at myself with a grimace. My wife was right. My entire person was soaked in my enemies’ blood, and I probably looked like I was about to die or something. “I’m sorry. Let me go clean up.”
I trotted over to the wagon while all the women surrounded Celeste in an effort to comfort her, and I shook my head as I searched for a water canteen among the supplies in the back of the cart. I needed to be a little bit more careful about things with a teenager among my entourage, but Celeste seemed so mature for her age it was easy to forget she was still a young girl.
If I was going to be a dad someday, I needed to be able to handle a teenage girl without scaring the daylights out of her.
When I returned to the rest of my entourage in clean clothes, everyone stood and blinked at me for several long moments without saying anything.
“What?” I asked as I glanced around at my companions’ awed expressions. “Did I miss a spot?”
“You… You killed them all…” Caelia’s face paled, and she shook her head like she was dispelling a dream. “So fast…”
“I knew ye were powerful.” Jax frowned. “But I had no idea ye were that fast.”
I grinned as understanding dawned on me. They were basking in my glory, not terrified of me.
“Bash is the God of Time,” my wife pointed out, but her emerald eyes filled with desire when they landed on me. “What else did you expect?”
“I expected enemies of that skill level to be a challenge,” Jeron said, and the woodsman’s eyes were wide as he gazed at me. “But you sliced through them like warm butter.”
“I have to give credit where it’s due,” I laughed. “Jax makes some fine daggers.”
“It was more than my blades,” the blacksmith countered. “And you know it.”
“Well, I don’t know what to say.” I raked my hand through my hair in a self-conscious gesture. “I just did what I had to do.”
“And looked damn good doing it,” Eva added with a wink.
“You are so powerful,” Caelia breathed, and her dark eyes were unfocused.
“You’ve done it again,” Mahini chuckled as she took in the store owner’s reaction. “But that’s not surprising.”
“Who sent those men after you, Great One?” Bellona asked in a worried voice. “Will they send more?”
“It’s possible more attacks will come.” I nodded. “But as you can see, I am more than capable of keeping you all perfectly safe.”
“Could this be the work of another duke?” Riondale frowned. “Maybe someone who knows you’re responsible for Arginold’s death?”
“The Duke of Edinburg was plotting with Arginold against the king,” I pointed out. “He could be the person responsible for tonight’s attack. I will have to see for myself once we reach Vallenwood.”
“That’s true,” Eva said in a thoughtful tone. “With every noble present, it will be easy enough to figure out who is working against us.”
“That’s the plan.” I grinned. “Think you all can help me with that?”
“I would do anything for you, Great One,” the duke’s daughter insisted.
“As would I.” Mahini nodded curtly.
“I would love to do my part,” Caelia murmured in a quiet voice, but the words rang loudly in my ears like she’d yelled them.
“Your time will come soon enough.” I stared deep into her milk-chocolate eyes until she blushed and looked away.
“Wasn’t there another god tryin’ to kill ya a while back?” Jax asked as he scratched his jaw thoughtfully. “God of Dyin’ or somethin’ like that?”
“The God of the Purge is still at large, yes.” I nodded. “I don’t think this is something he would do, though. He tended to use more psychological warfare than physical personal attacks.”
“I wonder what happened to Sarosh sometimes,” Sarah mused. Her husband wrapped a comforting arm around her shoulders, and she flashed him a sweet smile.
“Me, too.” I smiled as my thoughts turned to the silver-haired priestess of the Purge. I hoped she was alive and well, but I’d released her from my following the last time I’d been in Vallenwood. Her life was in her own hands now.
“We should get some sleep,” Riondale pointed out with a tired sigh. “The faster we reach the walls of Bullard, the better.”
“I’ll keep the first watch,” I suggested, but everyone immediately shot down my offer.
“Nonsense,” Bellona admonished.
“Won’t hear of it,” Jax growled.
“You just fought off all those men!” Adelina protested.
“Alright, alright,” I laughed and held up my hands in surrender. “I’ll get some rest, but I want to be woken up at the first sign of anything weird going on.”
“You’re always able to predict anything before it happens,” Corvis reminded me with a smirk. “If there was going to be any more danger, you’d know it before us anyway.”
“True,” I chuckled before I quickly bade everyone goodnight and made my way to my tent.
We got back on the road early the next day, and the next few days of travel were completely uneventful. We passed through a couple of small villages that laid outside of Castle Bullard, but we didn’t stop. I still waved at the townspeople as we rode through, and they cheered like we were a grand parade.
The sun was almost to the mid-day point a few days after the assassin attack when I spotted the white-washed walls of Castle Bullard, and I let out a breath of relief and pulled our procession to a halt.
“Bullard is up ahead,” I informed my companions with a broad grin. “We’ll all get baths and soft beds tonight.”
“We are definitely in need of a few hot baths,” Bellona agreed, and she sniffed Riondale with a sour expression.
The young lieutenant flashed her a hot glare, but then his expression softened.
“You’re smelling pretty ripe yourself, seamstress,” Riondale teased back. “We better hurry. I’m not sure how much longer I will last.”
“Funny.” I shook my head in amusement, and then my gaze returned to the walls of the castle town.
It had multiple towers and turrets along the walls, and everything was lit up like a Christmas tree. The road widened and led up to the drawbridge, and the huge wooden plank was close to fifty-feet long and twenty-feet wide, so I knew we could all ride side by side across the barrier.
Eva rode her horse up beside mine, and her eyes welled up with emotion as she looked upon her hometown.
“I didn’t think I would be back for a long time,” she admitted in a soft voice. “I wonder if my father is expecting us…”
“He’ll have gotten the king’s summons as well,” I pointed out. “Maybe we can travel together for a time so you can catch up with him.”
“That’s not necessary.” The duke’s daughter flashed me a grin. “I’d rather have our privacy.”
“Good point,” I laughed, and a self-conscious heat rose to my neck as I pictured Eva’s father listening to her moans of pleasure through the thin tent walls.
Yeah, there was no way that was going to happen.
We rode across the drawbridge with my flag waving over our heads, and the guards at the entrance to the castle town signaled for us to stop. I clicked my heels against Goliath’s flanks to nudge him to the front of the caravan, and I gave the guard a friendly smile as he approached me.
“Hello, there,” I greeted. “I am Sir Sebastian, Archduke of Bastianville, and I am on my way to the castle. Why do you stop me?”
“I see armed men approaching my city,” the guard responded as his eyes swept over my companions. “Archduke of Bastianville, you say?”
“How dare you question my lord,” Eva hissed as she trotted her horse up beside mine. “I am Evangeline Bullard, daughter of the Duke of Bullard, and the mistress of the man you are currently insulting. You may know him as the God of Time. Move out of our way.”
“Yes, my lady,” the guard gasped, and he scurried backward with his head hung low. “My apologies, my lady. I’ll send a runner to the castle to alert them of your arrival.”
“Well, that was easy.” I smirked. “Now, let’s go see your dad.”
“Let’s do it.” The duke’s daughter flashed me a cheeky grin before she clicked her tongue to her mare, and she rode forward with her chin lifted proudly.
Evangeline was always so humble around me, it was easy to forget she’d been raised as a noble, but it came in handy sometimes when I wanted to skirt past formalities and get straight to the good stuff. I’d have to show her just how much I appreciated her presence later, but for the moment my goal was to sink into a hot bath as soon as possible.
This time, I approached Castle Bullard as an Archduke, so I rode straight up to the castle courtyard. A small army of stable hands rushed out to meet us, and they quickly grabbed the reins of all of our horses.
I made a new save point just in case I did something wrong, and then I signaled for my companions to dismount.
Riondale was all smiles as he hopped down from the wagon’s bench, but he turned to help Bellona down before he approached me.
“It’s a little strange to be back as your follower,” the young lieutenant said with a wry smile.
“I bet.” I grinned. “Just make sure you take some time to visit your grandmother while we’re in town.”
“I will.” Riondale nodded. “I’m sure she’d love to meet you, as well.”
“I’d like that.” I jerked my chin toward the castle entrance. “Look, someone’s coming.”
A servant dressed in the Duke of Bullard’s colors appeared as th
e doors pulled open, and he had short-clipped blond hair that matched his goatee. The man bowed stiffly to me with his hands locked to his sides.
“Your Grace, we were not expecting you to visit us,” the servant said in a cautious tone. “Please forgive our tardiness in preparing rooms for you and your people.”
“No worries.” I grinned. “You can take me to the duke first.”
“Unfortunately, His Grace is not here,” the servant informed me. “He is on his way to the summit of nobility in Vallenwood.”
I should have figured Duke Bullard would have already left town, but I’d hoped to catch him before he departed. It didn’t seem like his servants would have any objection to us staying in the castle that night, but I didn’t want anyone to think I didn’t know something already, so I reset back to my save point.
Chime.
“A servant is about to come tell us the duke has already left for Vallenwood,” I informed my companions.
“Oh, no.” Eva’s face fell into a disappointed pout. “We must have just missed him.”
“You’ll see him in Vallenwood,” Elissa pointed out with a sympathetic smile.
“She’s right,” Caelia murmured in a soft voice. “And you’ll be on the arm of the God of Time with a retinue of servants behind you. You’ll be sure to make quite the lasting impression on your father.”
“Thank you,” Eva sighed, and her expression softened into a sweet smile. “You are too kind. I do miss my father, but I know I will see him soon enough.”
“I feel fortunate to have my father so close to me,” Elissa mused.
“You are both lucky to have such loving fathers in your lives,” Mahini said, and a pained look briefly flashed across her ice-blue eyes. The desert goddess had a hard life so far, but all that had changed when she bonded with me. Whatever pain was in her past could remain there since I was more interested in her present and future.
The servant led us inside the wide double doors of the castle, and he marched straight to the same wing of the castle we’d stayed in previously. Then Eva cleared her throat, and she paused in the middle of the hallway with a hand on one hip.