Chapter 64: War of Deceit (Final)
Aaron looked over towards Amira in confusion and noticed the woman biting her lip in frustration.
"Find him!" She ordered as the remaining mercenaries quickly ran off down the hallway.
Aaron walked over to the frustrated woman and laid his arm around her shoulders in comfort.
"What's wrong? We've done it... The kingdom can now finally start over." Consoled Aaron as he tried to uncover his lover's concern.
Amira shrugged off the man's embrace and walked towards the bloody scene beyond the doorway.
"It isn't over until we find that man." She angrily seethed as she ran her fingers through her dark long hair.
Suddenly, the door at the other end of the council room, where the group had originally barged through, opened again to reveal another mercenary out of breath.
"Captain!" Puffed the breathless mercenary as he carefully hopped over the slain guards' bodies on the marble floor.
"What is it?" Irritatingly asked Amira who turned back to the council room.
"The Romans have begun their attack." Bowed the messenger as he relayed his message.
Amira clicked her tongue and followed the mercenary back to the front of the palace with Aaron and Marcus following closely behind.
"Did my brother tell you anything of this?" Suspiciously questioned Aaron as the group exited the palace.
The mercenaries out in front of the palace had finished their mission, with any remaining guards sitting on their knees, with their unarmed hands behind their heads.
Marcus shook his head as he lowered his eyes in response of his leader's interrogation as they were greeted by this scene.
"Strom..." Muttered Aaron who paused and looked back towards the palace behind them.
Currently, with neither brother knowing the situation of the other, Strom raced back to the intersection where the group had first split up.
'Dammit! Why did I split us up in the first place!' Angrily gritted Strom to himself as he stopped at the intersecting corridors.
While he had been running over to the intersection he could hear the sounds of a struggle coming from the corridor his brother took previously. But now there was nothing but silence.
"Mister! Mister! Go this way!" Tugged the little princess who Strom had brought along with her brother against his better judgement.
If not for the current panic or situation Strom currently found himself in, he would not have brought them along.
But if what they told him was true, then this situation could be on a scale far greater than he had originally anticipated.
"What? I need to go this way though... My brother..." Muttered Strom in confliction.
"But our father!" Whined the younger sibling who finally caught up to the pair at the intersection.
Strom longingly stole one last glance in the direction of where his brother would be, before shutting his eyes and turning his head.
"Alright, but we need to be fast!" Cautioned Strom as he picked up the small boy onto his shoulders and followed the boy's sister down the center corridor.
This corridor was practically identical to all the others in the palace, with the only difference being what awaited them at the end.
As the trio drew nearer to the end of the leading hallway, frantic grumbling and the limping sound of slow footsteps brought them to a halt.
"Is there anyone else supposed to be down here minus your father?" Quietly questioned Strom to the boy on his shoulders.
The young prince resolutely shook his head while his sister tugged on the rough leather at the bottom of Strom's chest-plate.
"It's just Kellick. He's the head councilman." Whispered the princess.
Strom looked down towards the princess with surprise.
"What? Aren't all the councilmen always in the council room?" Seriously questioned Strom.
The young girl shook her head while explaining further.
"Yes, they had a meeting today but Kellick usually leaves early because of his bad leg." The girl explained.
Strom nodded his head before signaling to the two children to remain quiet while placing the boy down next to his sister.
"Wait here, and don't make any noise. I'll be back in a second." Ordered Strom before sneaking off down the corridor to figure out the situation.
'Their meeting should still be happening right now unless my brother and the group already interrupted... Why is he here?' Wondered Strom as he carefully stopped at the corner of the corridor and peered around its edge to the hallway it connected to.
"Bloody idiots! They all deserved to die there, those fools!" Complained the old man hurriedly hobbling down the hallway.
Under the dim light provided by the torches, Strom could see the edges of the man's robes stained with blood and the man's hands covered with a similar color.
Strom leaned back around the corner while quietly unsheathing his sword and pressed his back against the wall in order to not be found.
As the old councilman neared the intersection, Strom pounced onto the man, with his sword raised against the elder's wrinkly neck.
"Wha- What's going on!" Choked the elderly councilman as he raised his hands in surrender.
Strom pressed the sword closer to the scheming man's neck.
"What's an old man like you running about so hurriedly in the middle of the night? Shouldn't you be resting?" Whispered Strom from behind the old man as he gripped the elder's shoulder with his other hand.
"Huh- Ah- Yes, Yes, I was just returning to my room after a stroll! You know how the bladder of an old man like me gets at my age." Nervously chuckled the cunning councilman.
"Uh huh... I didn't realize how messy one gets when growing older as well." Pried Strom as he released the old man but kept the end of his blade pointed against the elder's neck.
The old councilman chuckled nervously again before opening his mouth to try and slither out of the situation.
"Ah, not so fast you so slimy bastard." Pointed Strom with his sword as he pricked the old man.
The councilman sowed his mouth shut immediately after the encouragement.
"I'm not in the mood to hear the singings of a senator. Just tell me what happened to your little meeting tonight." Suggested Strom as his flicked the edge of his blade to glitter its dangerous edge in the light of the torches.
"Yes, yes, the meeting! It just ended! We-"
The old man bit his tongue as the blade pricked him once again.
"I said no bullshit." Sternly stressed Strom without wavering from his stoic expression.
The councilman's farce immediately fell after he could find no leeway in the conversation.
"Those fucking backstabbing mercenaries! They've taken over! If it weren't for my fortunate escape, I would have been slain as well! Like the other councilman they killed! You Roman! I always vouched for the empire, but no one ever listened to me!" Chirped the councilman rat as he finally noticed the roman armor his capturer wore.
"Seems like the mercenaries weren't the only ones getting their hands dirty." Commented Strom as he eyed the man up after getting a better look from this closer distance.
The old man gulped nervously as he tried to persuade the Roman.
"This kingdom isn't worth it! I'm telling you! If you escort me out of here then I'll definitely reward you! A councilman has some of the most wealth in the kingdom! Please!" Begged the old councilman who fell to his knees.
Strom smirked at the pathetic acting skills of the old snake.
"Where's our father!" Shouted a young female voice from behind.
Strom and the old man glanced back at the intersection to find the princess shaking while walking towards them with tears in her eyes.
"I think I'll take you up on that offer." Muttered Strom as he turned back to the old councilman whose eyes had grown wider after the appearance of the young girl.
Strom forcefully hoisted the old man up onto his feet with his sword now back against the man's throat as before.
"S-Sicilia! You have to help me! I was a close friend of your father! Remember" Pleaded the old man desperately.
"No! You took him away! Where is my father!" Angrily shouted the princess.
Strom smacked the old man's chin with the flat top of his blade.
"Lead us to him. I've already been told about everything so it's no use." Instructed Strom coldly.
"O-Of course! Of course I will... But only if you promise the safety of my life!" Frantically plotted the fallen councilman.
Strom sighed before pushing the crooked old man forward.
"We'll see after you lead us to the king."
The group of now four walked down the corridors of the palace until they came across a descending staircase.
Strom paused while gripping his hand into the old man's shoulders to inflict some pain.
"Where does this lead?"
"To the dungeons! There are no guards; I had them all back at the council room for protection. I swear!" Explained the panicking councilman.
Strom pushed Kellick towards the stairs to lead them down.
"Don't try anything funny or I'll strike you down right where you stand." Warned Strom.
"I would never!" Indignantly recited Kellick as he guided them through the dungeon.
The dark and damp dungeon was quite similar to the prison Strom had first been thrown in when he returned to the Zephyr kingdom.
'Although... The smell is a lot worse here...' Confirmed Strom as he raised his arm up to cover his nose and alleviate some of the putrid smell emanating from the sickly dungeon.
Kellick led the group deeper into the dungeon with a torch. They passed many cells until they reached the final one at the end of the foul dungeon.
The sickly smell seemed to be profusely wafting from this last cell in particular.
"Father!" Shouted the two young siblings, who ran past Strom and Kellick and held the cell's cold bars with their small hands.
A man that had sunken eyes and cheeks ever so slowly lifted his head from the cold floor and gazed at the two children.
Strom could see that the king was far from his once proud and strong self. The man's hair was now mostly grayish white with little to no black strands remaining and his arms were now roughly the width of a brittle stick.
It seemed as if just the free and fresh wind outside would be too much for the man to endure and would cause him to crumble like ashes blowing in the breeze.
"Sicilia... Thomas..." Rasped the sickly man.
Kellick flashed the torch as he turned towards Strom with an expectant look in his eyes.
"Well? I've brought you to him. Now your end of the bargain..." He uncomfortably muttered.
Strom kicked open the cell door as blue strands of lighting lit up the dark dungeon more after the door gave way.
The children rushed in and embraced their father who was clearly burning at the final end of his wick.
Tears streamed down the siblings' faces as they hugged their frail father who was once king.
"I-I love the both of you... You are and always will be the heart of this kingdom... Reme... Rememb... Remember..." The king's words trailed off as his raised finger that pointed at nothing but the rock wall of the cell slowly fell to the floor.
"Father! Dad!" The children wailed through sobering tears.
Strom glanced at the wall the king pointed towards with narrowed eyes.
As he let the children mourn, Strom traced his fingers along the rough edges of rock lining the cell's walls. His skimming hand stopped after finding a small hole with the small opening being no wider than a small sword's edge.
He unsheathed his sword, causing Kellick to step back away from the cell in fear, before he inserted it into the thin crevice. The irritated sound of a mechanism and halting of the sword caused Strom to retrieve his blade in defeat.
Glancing around the cell, Strom could find no other solutions to the strange puzzle until his eyes rested on the small thin dagger, supported by a noble cloth, wrapped against the princess's waist.
Finally, walking over to the children, Strom placed his hands on top of their heads and softly ruffled their hair.
"It's alright. I'm sure he's in a much better place. At peace..." Murmured Strom in solace.
Carefully grabbing the princess's shoulders, he turned her to face him and wiped her tears.
"Did your father give that to you?" He asked while pointing at the tiny blade on her waist.
"Ye-Yes... He gave it to me... On my tenth birthday. He said it was tradition as the eldest." Sniffled the young princess as she fondly unsheathed the blade and held it in her hands.
"May I borrow it? Just for a moment; I promise to return it to you in a second." Softly asked Strom.
The grieving girl nodded her head and bestowed it to the soldier.
Walking back to the strange crevice, Strom admired the intricate markings forged into the small blade.
"In death we are free... In life we are loved..." Strom whispered as he read the small text etched into the ceremonial like blade.
Fitting it into the slot, Strom pushed the blade deep into the crevice and removed his grasp as he felt the blade turn on its own.
The small dagger spun slowly then quickly in the wall before stopping as the tick from the hidden mechanism clicked along like an old tune.
Shortly after, a small stone protruded from the wall like a hand from behind had pushed it. Strom inspected the strange stone and discovered a small cavity in its center.
He reached in his hand and when he pulled it out and opened his fist, he discovered a strange object.
"What is this?" He murmured in confusion at his discovery.
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