The bodies went cold one after another. In the small room the watchmen entered, five prisoners were put to rest without so much as a struggle. Tucker wiped the murky blood off his blade with eyes that seemed to gaze off into the distance. Despite how many battles he had taken part in, there was nothing more revolting than what had happened in this room.

  He hated and despised everything that the Emerald Tower stood for. No longer would he pray that their legacy be forgotten forever. Instead, Tucker vowed to extinguish every trace of their history. To drag the mages that watched from the safe havens of their towers down to the very pits of hell they created. Anger wasn’t a strong enough emotion to describe the feelings that had grown inside of him. It was a cold, rational sensation—born from a wound that constantly bled out emotions of those who have suffered under their domain.

  “They didn’t deserve to get treated like this… even if they were prisoners,” Tucker said. “Even if they were from the Empire.”

  “No one deserves to be treated like this… except for the bastards who did it,” Alex said, holding onto the plaques that were thrown onto the desk. He stared at the carved wings surrounding a single spiraling tower. “They were mages of the Skyward Tower. Mages who were against the Emerald Tower.”

  Tucker stared at the man who answered his questions. “They must have found out what the Emerald Tower was doing and tried to stop them. It shows that not everyone is on their side. That some still have a shred of humanity left in them.”

  “It’s a damn shame that they ended up like this,” Ray said.

  “Indeed…” Alex slowly sighed while shaking his head. He grabbed the robes that were thrown on the floor and walked over to the corpses, gently covering their bodies one after another. “Not a proper funeral or burial for these kindred souls, but it’ll do.”

  “Is there anything else we can do for them?” Ray asked.

  “I’m afraid not,” Alex replied. “In all my years of service… I have seen nothing as diabolical… twisted… and outright revolting as this. To make death their only embrace while prolonging their misery in ways beyond imagination… how despicable…”

  “That’s all the more reason for us to stop them.” Tucker stared at the tome in Ray’s hand. “Did you find anything else of value?”

  “Besides some maps and other weird notes scattered on the desk, not much else,” Ray answered, handing the tome towards Alex.

  The veteran held onto it and flipped it over, staring at the violet magic circle humming along the surface. “The tome’s locked with a spell of sorts; we’d need Charles to take a look.”

  Alex handed it back to Ray, watching the lad shake his head.

  “Yeah… no, I don’t think I want to hold on to something like that,” Ray said, motioning a simple prayer.

  “Never pictured you as a man of faith,” Tucker said.

  “I convert fast when it comes to the unholy,” Ray said with a grin. “Now we’ve got what we need, let’s finish what’s left.”

  Tucker gave a nod as Alex and Ray stood beside the metal door. He grabbed onto the doorknob as Ray’s fingers curled around his dagger. Alex held onto his sword, and with a soft turn, the door clicked. Tucker slowly pushed the door open as they peered into the next room. The groaning hinges echoed off the walls as the dim white glow from the magic lanterns entered their sights.

  His spirit essence crept through the thin opening, scouring the entire chamber. Yet not a mage was there. Tucker locked eyes with his teammates and firmly nodded, causing Ray and Alex to move in. The three entered the next room and scanned the area. Countless prisoners covered in rags were before them. Their wrists were bound together just like their ankles. The only thing separating them from freedom was the iron bars of their holding cells.

  Ray stood there in disbelief. It wasn’t just children, but men and women of all ages. Just like what they had seen in the sewers. He gritted his teeth. “What exactly were these bastards doing?”

  “Nothing good,” Alex replied.

  A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

  The veteran glanced at the men trapped behind the cells. They were injured, but nothing compared to the ones in the room behind him. He walked over to the cell and stared at the man who weakly smirked at them. His long red hair that stopped at his shoulders and sharp golden eyes were the first features to stand out. Then it was his dark skin and bruised, muscular body.

  “You don’t look like mages to me,” he said, leaning against the cold stone walls while crossing his legs.

  “We’re not, we’re here to free everyone here,” Alex said.

  A glimmer of hope flickered across the man’s eyes. Even the prisoners trapped in the other cells stood up and limped to the iron bars. Yet as the man stared at them, his eyes narrowed. “You aren’t from the Empire, are you?”

  “Afraid not, though I doubt those bastards would ever free you,” Alex said.

  The man stared at them, noting the black iron armor that completely covered their bodies. Their helms were of a unique design with owl-like masks and a wide brim that blocked the light from entering their eyes. The pitch-black clothes and tabard that covered their legs were unlike anything he had seen before, but the subtle clues were enough for him to make a guess as a single word came to him.

  “Watchmen…”

  Alex nodded. “I’ll keep it short. We’re here to free you, but your survival will depend on your own capabilities. A knight like you should be capable of that much.”

  “How could you tell?”

  Alex pointed to the calluses on the man’s hand. “It’s hard to miss.”

  The man bitterly chuckled at the irony of the situation. “I never imagined this was how things would turn out.” He stared at Alex and then the metal door they had come from. “What… what happened to the mages that were dragged into that room?”

  “We sent them off gracefully,” Tucker answered.

  “You couldn’t help them?”

  Tucker shook his head. “You’ll understand once you look beneath their robes.”

  The man’s eyes fell to the ground. “It’s all my fault… if only I didn’t tell them—if only I wasn’t so rash!”

  Ray stood guard as Tucker stepped closer. The lumenite blade in Tucker’s hand glowed with a verdant energy as he brought it into the air, and with one clean cut, the bars and chains restricting the man were broken.

  Tucker met the man’s gaze as the iron shackles fell to the floor with a clang. “I won’t give you words of comfort since we don’t have the time for them. But if you’re going to start something, see it through to the end.”

  Tucker held out his hand until the man grabbed hold and pulled him up. Once he was on his feet, Tucker turned to leave.

  The man took a deep breath to steady his emotions before looking at the watchmen. “You won’t make it far. If you killed Norman and the others. Then, those Emerald bastards will be on their way here with their goons.”

  “Are they strong?” Ray asked.

  “None of them are squires if that’s what you’re asking.” The man’s eyes were filled with conviction. “The name’s Richard, son of Ryan Henderson Armstrong.”

  Tucker stopped and glanced over his shoulder. As if he had heard of that name before, but soon signaled for Ray to free the other prisoners. “Good, let them come.”

  Richard froze once he met Tucker’s gaze. The cold gleam in his eyes was filled with a rage he had never seen before. Even for a squire like himself, Richard could feel the piercing emotions swirling inside of Tucker. On the surface, it was calm, like a tranquil ocean, but beneath those waves was an invisible torrent that devoured everything below.

  Tucker walked towards the exit of the basement, glancing at the children who had been locked behind the rusty bars. It was disgusting what the Emerald Tower had done to them. Countless whiplashes scarred their pale, malnourished bodies, leaving only crimson marks that tore into their flesh like cracks in marble.

  It was something no child should have to go through, and yet Tucker was seeing it firsthand. Since when did it become a crime to just exist? To live? Tucker couldn’t—no, he didn’t want to find the answers that justified the Emerald Tower’s methods. There wasn’t a point in finding the good in the vile and twisted.

  His aura slowly spread out through the cells like vines, cradling the weak bodies that couldn’t stand. It wasn’t much, but all Tucker could offer. He knew his aura’s properties lessened the physical strain of those he wished to help. However, whether it would be enough was a completely different story.

  Despite that, he wanted to try.

  To give them the slightest bit of relief so that they could escape.

  “Tucker,” Alex called out. “Can you draw their attention?”

  Tucker looked over his shoulder. “How many do you want me to pull?”

  “As many as you want,” the veteran replied, walking towards Tucker.

  “And the mages?”

  “Leave those bastards to me,” Alex answered with a grin. He held out his fist, watching as Tucker returned the gesture with a light tap.

  “Just be mindful of their spells, old man,” Tucker said.

  Alex smirked. “You don’t have to tell me.”

  Tucker nodded and stepped toward the metal door leading out of the basement. Shadows flickered beneath the gap at the bottom, stretching across the stone floor like hands that tormented Tucker in his sleep. He could hear the footsteps echoing on the other side. Not one, not two, but several sets were heading their way.

  The handle rustled as Tucker raised his sword. The tip of his lumenite blade angled toward the door. If the gods cared for this world, maybe they would have prevented this tragedy. But Tucker knew better. That wasn’t how Solas and the other gods acted. They only reigned over the Souldom and gave freedom to the other parts of the world.

  The voices on the other side fell as Tucker’s resolve grew. It wasn’t in his place to judge the mages of the Emerald Tower or decide on their punishment. None of that was his burden, but sending the men to meet the ones who could? That was in his hands.

  Bonus chapter completed!

  Now I gotta... write tomorrow's chapter...

  Well, thanks for reading, and I'll see ya in the next one~

  If you see any mistakes, let me know! I did a quick edit, but you never know, I could have missed something.

  120 Ratings Goal - Bonus Chapter (Owed Chapters -> 0)

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