Herald of Shalia

by Tamryn Tamer

  He dashed out of the crowd of people and pulled out his bow while twisting his body. He was faster, more accurate, and more aware of the elements. As a fighter he treated a bow no differently than he would a rock. He was just aiming and firing.

  As an archer, everything changed. He wasn’t just aiming and firing but anticipating his targets movements. He could see the various paths available to them and with his first three shots he began guiding their paths.

  The holy knight deflected the central arrow as the assassin and elementalist took shelter behind him to avoid the ones coming from the sides just as he’d planned. Frost was already rushing to the crowd but rather than weaving into them he picked out a sturdy looking villager and used him as a springboard to launch himself upward.

  The assassin and elementalist were hiding behind the large holy knight. Their lines of sight were momentarily blocked delaying their reactions and the holy knight was a plate wearer making him slow. Frost was already airborne and drawing his bow but then he could feel it. Six arrows coming toward him.

  That was right, snipers. If he could predict movements, so could they. Thanks to his dodge ability he could sense it but no matter how well he twisted and contorted at least a couple of those arrows were going to hit him.

  “I just need an inch!” Frost snarled as he accessed his dodge tree and put a point in air maneuvers. It wasn’t enough, even the next level wasn’t enough, but at level five he could do it. Frost contorted his body almost like a spring as he pushed off against the air launching himself a few inches higher. “Fuck!”

  “Lookout!” the snipers screamed in unison as Frost infused his bow with enough strength to destroy it ten times over.

  “Die,” Frost said while nearly twenty feet in the air and upside down. He loosed his arrow causing the bow to shatter as the arrow flew through the assassin’s forehead and landed in Sir Thomas’ chest.

  “Dominik?” Sir Thomas patted the assassin’s shoulder while staring at Frost through the hole left in the assassin’s head. His eyes traced the route as he looked down and saw the arrow in his heart. “Oh, this isn’t funny…”

  The two collapsed as Frost landed on the ground and moved to evade the incoming arrows. The crowd was rushing away desperate to keep him from merging back with them but they didn’t need to worry about that. His next targets were the snipers.

  “Danni! Danny! Run!” Sir Vance yelled as he, the holy knight, and the dragoon chased after Frost.

  “Fuck,” the snipers said in unison while dashing away from each other.

  Frost immediately focused on the one with the longbow while shifting his class back to fighter and pulling out a new sword. The one he didn’t follow already joined up with the others but if the longbow user wanted to join them, he’d need to go through Frost.

  If the sniper stopped for a moment, he was dead but if he didn’t stop the others wouldn’t catch up with him and Frost. In a moment of clarity, the sniper must have known he was going to die but also realized he could still help his friends. He threw away his bow and turned to face Frost.

  The mistake he made was throwing away his bow too early. It triggered a dodge response in Frost that caused him to leap upward just in time to avoid the perfectly performed tackle. Before Frost knew what was happening, he was using aerial maneuvers offensively to adjust his body midair and came crashing down on the sniper. His sword landed in the sniper’s head as Frost’s feet crushed his fragile body.

  “Danny!” Danni screamed while firing off several arrows in a second. Frost pulled out a small buckler and swapped classes to squire before the arrows arrived allowing him to deflect them. Whatever he couldn’t block he dodged as he dashed backward.

  The dragoon, holy knight, unholy knight, and sniper were left and he was nearly running on empty. He was becoming painfully aware of his own mortality as his body began to burn like he was being cooked alive.

  His options were running out. Ranged weapons weren’t going to be useful against the plate wearers and if he attempted to fight close range it would be him versus three melee and a ranged support.

  “Choke!” Sir Vance roared as Frost felt his esophagus close. “Now!”

  Another mistake. An unholy knight was a magic using knight, he knew that. Sure, the exact type of magic used changed depending on the game. But they always used magic. The holy knight as well, he could likely use protection or recovery magic.

  “Now die!” the dragoon roared as he came crashing down.

  CHAPTER 14

  Commander Grey was pissed. In fact, he was fucking pissed. He was just a simple soldier that protected his country and put bastards in cells. Every now and then he needed to knock some heads but those heads deserved knocking. This wasn’t that. This was shit.

  As far as Ziran officers went, Commander Grey didn’t rise to his position because he ran around acting like an asshole. There were thousands of soldiers that were higher level than him, better fighters than him, and more capable than him. But he had something they lacked, sense.

  While other officers raised their levels by engaging in battle every chance they got, Commander Grey had a tendency to only battle when absolutely necessary. In his experience, an enemy surrender was the best possible outcome as it meant no losses on either side and no bad blood.

  Unfortunately, politicians hate people who have sense and after a while his attempts to prevent loss of life caused nobles to question his loyalty. His career stagnated and he settled into his position as a commander in Prince Erik’s army.

  It wasn’t the position he desired but it allowed him to raise a family in Blackwater, a relatively peaceful city located in the southwest of the Zira Kingdom. He just had to patrol small villages, take care of bandits, and return home safe to his family.

  If only he weren’t surrounded by a bunch of senseless shits.

  “I refuse,” Commander Grey said as the holy knight held a sword to his neck. “Listen here son, if you cut my throat, you’ll be the man who killed Commander Grey. While some nobles might suck your cock for it, you’ll be dead in a month by the hand of your fellow soldiers.”

  “It’s an order,” Raullon said furiously. “And you are a soldier Commander Grey.”

  “I wish to speak with the prince,” Commander Grey said.

  “The prince gave the order,” Raullon said disdainfully.

  “That’s why I need to talk to him,” Commander Grey replied. “I’m telling you right now that this is a mistake. On the off chance that man lives, you’re bringing death to Blackwater.”

  “He’s not going to live,” Raullon sneered. “If the giants don’t kill him, the heroes will.”

  “You’re vile,” Priscilla said while spitting on the ground in front of Raullon. “The villagers had a deal with you.”

  “A deal with elves is no deal,” Raullon growled as Hansel silently documented everything. “They’re no different than wild dogs. We allow them to live as long as they’re obedient but if they bite, we put them down. And these ones follow that cursed goddess.”

  “They’re not wild dogs!” Priscilla said while struggling to escape the clutches of the soldiers holding her back. “They’re elves! They’re intelligent! They’re no different than us!”

  “Sir Frederick,” Raullon gestured at Priscilla. The large holy knight punched her in the face immediately knocking her unconscious. Raullon turned back to Commander Grey. “No different than us? Disgusting. Now listen here Commander Grey. You’re going to follow your orders or your daughter will be executed for treason. Am I being clear?”

  “Duke Raullon,” Commander Grey knew he was powerless to prevent the situation but he could mitigate the damage. On the off chance that monster herald survived, he needed to at least make sure that none of the elves died. “I’ll collect the elves, I will deliver them to Blackwater, but I’ll do it my way with soldiers selected by me. Understood?”

  “You’re in no position to make demands Commander Grey,” Raullon said with disgust. “But fin
e. As long as the vermin are brought to the square for extermination. But if they’re not, I’ll have your daughter humiliated and killed instead. Understood?”

  “Understood,” Commander Grey said while pushing the blade away from his neck. He nodded at one of the holy knights hiding behind the others with his hand on his blade ready to strike if need be. “Sir Malcom, get me a dozen or so good men.”

  “I expect you there in two days,” Raullon smirked knowing full well that two days was cutting it close.

  “Three would be better,” Commander Grey said. “The elves will be on foot and there are children amongst them.”

  “Kill the slow ones then,” Raullon said snidely. “It’ll encourage the others to move faster. I expect you in Blackwater in two days. If you’re not, your daughter will suffer. Am I being clear?”

  “Clear as the summer sky,” Commander Grey answered.

  “Sir,” Sir Malcolm stepped forward with twenty armed men. “We’re ready.”

  “That was fast,” Commander Grey smirked as Raullon glared at the well-armed squad. Raullon was likely surprised by how many volunteers there were from within his own trusted soldiers but he shouldn’t have been. Serving with him was a right of passage for many men and although he was a bit of a cunt, he was a cunt that kept them alive. That earned him their trust which was more fucking valuable than a title.

  “Ready for anything,” a soldier grinned while glancing at Raullon. “Just like you taught us sir.”

  “Well,” Raullon sneered as his remaining guards loaded Priscilla onto a horse. “Better hurry commander. Your daughter is counting on you.”

  “Yes sir,” Commander Grey scowled as he gestured toward the horses. “Let’s go men. We have some elves to round up.”

  Commander Grey hoped that the elves would be rational. All of his knights and archers were in the high thirties and capable of destroying that village in a matter of minutes. If they decided to fight, there was no doubt some of them would be injured.

  That was his biggest worry. If he knew the herald, and was pretty sure he did, it didn’t matter if one elf were injured or all of them, he’d kill them for it. The man terrified him in a way he hadn’t felt in nearly twenty years.

  “Commander,” Sir Malcolm rode next to him. “Some of the men are expressing concern over the situation. Specifically, your order not to harm a single elf.”

  “What’s the confusion?” Commander Grey asked as they arrived at the edge of the forest.

  “Well,” Sir Malcolm sighed. “They’re elves. And you want us to prioritize their safety over our own. Specifically, there was that one comment.”

  “The one where I told you if you have a choice between losing your balls or harming an elf, say bye-bye to your boys?” Commander Grey asked.

  “That’s the one sir,” Sir Malcolm said. “And then there’s the matter of your daughter’s affiliations.”

  “Halt,” Commander Grey turned to stare at the soldiers. He glared at them. He didn’t like it when the men talked about his little girl. “I want to make sure you all understand my point of view but more importantly this herald’s point of view. First and foremost, I’m not my daughter. I don’t give a rat’s ass how many elves die any given day of the week. Are we clear?”

  “Yes sir,” several soldiers said loudly.

  “My loyalty is to humans and humans alone,” Commander Grey said proudly. “Sure, elves are cute like bunnies but I’m not about to fuck a bunny or marry a bunny, am I?”

  Several of the soldiers laughed.

  “At the same time, I’m not going to go around torturing bunnies, kicking bunnies, and spitting on bunnies,” Commander Grey snapped. “What type of sick son of a bitch behaves like that? Sir Drake, your little girl has a puppy, right?”

  “Yes sir,” Drake answered.

  “How would you react if some surly bastard came and kicked your daughter’s pup?” Commander Grey asked. “Hell, what would any of you do if you came across a group of boys beating on a stray in an alley? Would you join in? Or would you knock those little bastards upside the head?”

  “Knock ‘em,” a soldier said.

  “Exactly,” Commander Grey said. “To me, the demis are a punch of pups. I don’t like seeing guards kicking and mistreating pups. And sure, if a wild dog bites a guard that dog needs to be put down. But the type of man who kicks pups for fun isn’t the type of man I want to be around.”

  The soldiers nodded in agreement.

  “So, I want you to think about the elves as pups. As for why I’m prioritizing these pups over your safety, I’m not.” Commander Grey gestured toward the woods. “Those elves in there are pups that belong to a fucking herald. He crushed a knight in his plate cuirass with his bare hands. You all weren’t there when we had to carefully peel the plate from that man’s crushed chest. If the herald hadn’t held back, that knight would have popped like an overfilled sheep’s stomach. Put a sword in the hands of a man like that, he’s no longer a fucking man. He’s a fucking monster. You dense fuckers think you understand, but you don’t. He nearly crushed a knight on accident, what do you think he’s going to do to the stupid cunt who kicks one of his pups?”

  “We understand sir,” Sir Drake nodded along with the others. “But the eight slayers of Blackwater…”

  “I know,” Commander Grey interrupted. “But what if they fail? That man, he attempted to make peace even after we tried to kill him before. He wasn’t scared either. I’ve sat across the table from a man like that before and I’m telling you, he’s not the type of cunt you fuck. And I imagine he’s already going to be pretty pissed off about us trying to kill him again, don’t you?”

  “Yes sir,” Sir Drake nodded.

  “So,” Commander Grey shook his head and gestured toward Pluma Forest. “The way I see it, there’s a chance if he finds his pups alive and uninjured, he doesn’t kill us.”

  “Sir,” Sir Malcolm interjected. “If we truly believe he’s going to come back alive, shouldn’t we use the elves as hostages?”

  “Hostages only buy you time,” Commander Grey said while thinking of what he was going to do Raullon once his daughter was safe. “You can’t hide behind them forever.”

  “Point taken,” Sir Malcolm said. “So, how are we taking these elves alive?”

  “I want you boys to surround the forest,” Commander Grey answered. “Move in slow. They have scouts that’ll report to their priestess. I’m going to go in alone while you all maintain a perimeter. I’ll try to convince them to go peacefully.”

  “Commander,” Sir Drake gestured at the group. “Wouldn’t it be smarter for one of us…”

  “Nope,” Commander Grey answered. Sure, they were all higher levels than him but the elves knew him the best. If he was going to convince them to come quietly, he was going to need them to listen. “I’m going. Any more questions?”

  “No sir,” Sir Malcom answered as the other knights formed a line.

  “Then let’s go,” Commander Grey said while gesturing at the forest.

  The soldiers quickly moved to establish a perimeter while Commander Grey made his way through the forest alone. It wasn’t long before he saw an elf run back to the village to notify their leader of his presence. By the time he arrived his men already had it surrounded and the high priestess was outside waiting.

  “Commander,” the high priestess nodded politely. “I assume you’re here to take us captive.”

  “That’s right,” the commander answered. “I’d like you to come as peacefully as possible, for your own well-being.”

  “I believe it’s just as much for your well-being,” Lysandra said surprising him.

  “Fair enough,” Commander Grey grinned. The high priestess was surprisingly savvy for an elf. “So, will you?”

  “Of course,” the elf priestess answered while walking to the temple. She opened the door and shouted inside. “Everybody, please assemble yourselves immediately. We are going to be escorted to Blackwater by Commander Grey to b
e sacrificed to their goddess.”

  “Like hell,” a voice yelled from inside of the temple. “I’m not being sacrificed.”

  Commander Grey sighed as the high priestess rolled up her sleeve and marched into the temple.

  “Don’t you dare paralyze me!”

  “Ena! If you don’t want to be paralyzed then line up with everybody else,” Lysandra shouted back.

  “I’m not going to go peacefully like a lamb to the slaughter!” Ena yelled furiously.

  “Get in the line before I make you!”

  Sir Malcolm looked at Commander Grey hoping for approval to handle things, but the commander shook his head no. It seemed that the elves might come peacefully so Commander Grey was willing to wait a few minutes for the high priestess to sort things out.

  Sure enough, after about five minutes of fighting everything was silent and Lysandra exited the temple with the other elves in three orderly lines. One of the elves was bound, gagged, and being carried by the others like a large package.

  “Commander Grey,” Lysandra gestured at the bound elf. “Would you mind if we took the time to prepare a wagon and couple horses. It would help in transporting Ena and the children.”

  “I don’t mind,” Commander Grey answered somewhat relieved by the suggestion. Lysandra nodded at two elves who rushed to the animal shelter. After a few awkward minutes a wagon being led by a pair of strange looking horses rolled out of the shelter. The elves quickly loaded up the children and the bound elf. “Is there anything else?”

  “No,” Lysandra answered as several elves loaded up food and water onto the cart. “I believe that’s everything.”

  “You seem awful calm about all of this,” Commander Grey said. “I sort of expected a fight.”

  “We would lose a fight,” Lysandra said politely. “Besides, our herald will save us.”

  “You seem awfully sure about that,” Commander Grey grumbled despite feeling the same way..

  “As do you,” Lysandra nodded as the commander’s officers took positions beside and behind the lines to ensure none of the elves tried to escape. “That’s why you’re choosing to handle this peacefully, is it not?”