Where they stood was in the center of a gallows, around their necks was a tightly tied rope. Their hands were tied together behind their backs as if they were under arrest. They stood eerily still and silent, their breath barely enough to indicate vitality. Around the crowd and the two waiting to die were a dozen knights who stood prepared for anything.
Each individual turned to their left and their eyes immediately lit up with the light of a blazing inferno. As soon as they laid eyes upon him, their crowd cheered with a gigantic uproar. Who they looked upon was their general, he was General Gallows. Fists rocketed up towards the sky in many random spots in the crowd, everyone was delighted to see him.
He climbed up the stairs of the wooden gallows, the eyes of those about to die following him heavily. He stood in front of the two and raised his hands into the air. The crowd cheered for him as if he were the star in a carnival show. "Settle yourselves," ordered Gallows out towards the crowd. Once his voice gave the command, the crowd immediately complied.
The applaud silenced swiftly, the crowd now listened and watched Gallows with eagerness. Gallows recoiled his hands from the air and down to the shelter behind his back. They folded into each other and dangled loosely. Gallows' sky blue irises gazed upon the faces of his people, his feet taking one step closer to the edge. "Now, do you see the scum that stand behind me?" Gallows questioned the crowd.
Gallows turned to his left, his front now facing where his left once faced. The crowd was now able to see the humans that once hid forcefully behind Gallows. The air was charged with excitement and avidness. Gallows' eyes kept their glance upon the jungle of people who were voracious for the final act.
"These humans have run away from the Imperial Kingdom for ten years," Gallows stated. "They together have slaughtered our servants and insulted each and every single one of our names!" The crowd suddenly erupted into a volcanic fury. They vented their ire towards the two by hurling solid rocks at them.
The atmosphere snapped with wrath, the sound of insults and boos steal the sound from the world. One of the rocks thrown by a group of three children hit the young man right on the right side of his forehead, splitting a wound open that was about the length of a quarter. Blood then quickly rushed out of the wound, pouring down his face.
The man's face became a grimace, his right eye tightly closing shut. The three children jumped up and down with glee once they saw the damage one of their rocks brought to the man. Behind them were presumably their mother and father, they seemed extremely proud and joyful at their sons. The father was rubbing the head of the boy who threw the rock, telling him what a good job he did.
Gallows' face was a mask of joy to see the pouring of outrage from his people, he seemed almost proud. Little did the contented general realize that four hooded figures were standing inside the belly of the crowd, their eyes watched with disgust at the treatment of the two scapegoats. Raphael was in the center-left of the four hooded people, his purple irises gazed with grief upon the two.
He seemed saddened by the hate that was being slinged towards the man and woman. He was concerned, worried about the two and the horrible feeling that only they must be feeling. Anabel, the hooded figure to the leader's left turned her head towards her master. "Everything will be fine, sir," she mumbled confidently to Raphael, grabbing his attention. "Miss Elena will stop this madness."
Raphael took in the words spoken to him by his comrade and put them to his heart. He paused for a moment, thinking of what could happen today. He then flipped his eyes back onto the brutality show in front of him. "You're right," he responded, corresponding with Anabel. His voice sounded stretched with pain. "I just hope she does it quickly."
Gallows pulled his left hand out towards his left side, it reached out towards the two. "The worst of their crimes have yet to be revealed," the general stated. The crowd hid the knife of their piercing indignation as soon as they heard their general speak. "Along with slandering his very name, they conspired to assassinate King Balor!"
A huge explosion of hatred shot like a cannonball towards the two, some people going as far as spitting upon the two. The two took all of venomous amount of rancor that was spewed at them with their heads down. Above the ground and on top of a tall building to the right of the gallows glittered the point of a sharp bullet.
The hooded female archer of the resistance was at the edge of the building along with her brother who stood behind her. He seemed ready to kill anybody who hindered his sister's focus. Elena had her bow pulled out in front of her and her arrow pulled back on her bow's string. Her arrow pinpointed towards the very small line of rope that was tied to the top of the gallows that was above the man's head. If she launched her arrow now, it would surely hit the ground so she was merely inches from her target.
Gallows swiftly launched his left hand up towards the two, his left index finger lashing out at them. "These heretics have rejected the gracious opportunity to serve us and instead have chosen the life of a criminal scum," angrily spoke the general. "As pathetic as they may be, we must show the inferior race that whatever your crimes may be, whether petty or serious, WILL result in punishment! Now for your disobedience, you have been sentenced to death without a chance to speak your last words. To death with-"
Just before Gallows could finish his words, his attention is suddenly taken when his eyes capture the picture of an arrow zooming across his view. The arrow sliced right through the rope that bounded the man to the gallows. Gallows watched with widened eyes as the crowd behind him gasped with shock.
He slammed down onto the ground in a heavy thud, he acknowledged that he was no longer bound to his own death. Once he hit the ground, he felt incredibly weak after all that his body has gone through. Gallows glared with fury down upon the man. "You...!" he growled, quickly flipping his head up towards the source of the arrow. His vision kept the silhouette of an archer pointing her bow towards him. "Go! Kill the archer!"
Four of the ten soldiers followed Gallows' orders, they ran off to kill Elena. Raphael and the others quickly charged forward in a quick haste, pushing any single person in their way. Gallows quickly flipped his head once his ears captured the incoming stampede. His eyes then see the hooded cloaks racing forward. Gallows' teeth fastened together, pulling his sword out of it's sheath.
The crowd turned into a frenzy of fear, terrified screams rattled the air. They were all fired from a shotgun, they frantically shattered in a complete panic. Back on top of the roof, Elena was readying another arrow to free the woman still bounded by a noose. She pulled her bow in front of her, reaching her right hand to her back. Her hand recovered an arrow from her quiver, she readied the arrow for the journey.
The young archer pulled the arrow back on the string of her bow. She focused, concentrated on the extremely thin target. After a minute of focusing, she released the arrow. The arrow bolted into the atmosphere, looking for the target Elena set out for it. But the arrow was blind and could not see, it was helplessly spiraling down towards nothing.
All the blind arrow could find was the wood of the gallows, she missed her target by a few inches. The young archer's mind boiled with frustration, how could she have missed the shot? Uriel's eyes watched as the four dogs sent by their master finally arrived on their rooftop. "Elena," called the boy, taking his sister's attention. "They've arrived."
Elena closed her eyes, disappointed in herself that she was unable to hit her target. She put her bow away, putting it just behind her quiver. She then latched her right hand on the handle of the longsword made of solid steel she had strapped to the right side of her waist. She then refocuses herself for the close quarters battle.
She turned around, facing the way that her brother did. Her pale blue irises gazed upon the four knights who stood ready to serve the Imperial Kingdom. "We don't have to do this," she stated. "Flee before you destroy yourselves." Regardless of her words, the knights charged towards Elena. Their command given to them was to kill her and not Uriel. Their swords hungered for the blood and demanded satisfaction.
Uriel quickly threw his left hand out in front of him, it pointed towards the center left knight. Just as the boy's hand rested upon the knight's position, that very soldier's body suddenly combusted into a giant walking torch. The terrified screams of the knight flew into the air, he was in a great affliction. He danced all over the place, trying to cool down the flames.
Just after the knight became a human fireplace, a strange feeling took control of Uriel's left arm. It left like a great power coursed through his veins, choosing them to be a racing course. Uriel quickly pointed his left hand towards another, he felt as if a bolt of energy hammered down on top of him. As soon as the arrow of Uriel's hand pointed towards the knight to the far left of the four, a gentle wind began to blow.
That meek air quickly built it's self up to be a powerful force to be reckoned with. A small twister began to swirl underneath the knight's feet. Elena tried her best to keep herself on her feet as her eyes captured this surprise moment. The other knights looked back and watched the horror unfold. Frozen in fear and unable to react to this sudden situation, the twister swallows the knight whole.
The gale was incredible to the knight, his very armour began to forsake him and go off with the wind. As the tempest winds that blew around him at an unfathomable speed, he began to feel his very bones rip from their place. A minute goes by of this violent monsoon and the twister disappeared.
What it left behind was the shattered body of a man who was once whole. His bones were all torn out of their place, dislocated in each and every single way. Any loose armour was stripped away, his pauldrons and helmet were gone. He just dropped down onto the ground, his body was in astonishing pain.
The knights quickly get refocused after the events that have transpired, they returned to coming to kill the archer. Elena quickly lunged her sword towards the abdominal of one of the incoming knights. Her strike was as quick as lightning, giving the knight no time to react. Her sword impaled the knight, piercing right through the center of his liver.
The other knight quickly swings his blade from his left to the right, aiming for Elena's neck. She quickly leaned her body forward, dodging the blade. Her torso twirled, raising back up once the sword was safely passed. As her body returned to standing straight up, she pulled her blade out of the knight who she killed.
She then launched her right foot towards the sternum of the attacking knight. The force of her powerful kick pounded like a hammer against steel against the man's sternum, launching him off of his feet and off the edge of the building. Like a bird with broken wings, the man's body plunged down three stories.
Elena's pale blue irises gain stage fright, they disappeared under the falling curtains of her eyelids. She was saddened that it had to end that way. Her ears then capture the sound of the man's boy crashing against the ground. The sound of his armour rattling and the blunt thud that accompanied it echoed into the air.
Back down below, the panic of people rushing to leave was coming close to an end. Telvern tore open a pouch that had a ferocious beast on it. A bright white light illuminated from the pouch as if Telvern was holding the sun in his hand. At his left side was a figure taking shape. It looked like glowing white sand was pouring down into an invisible glass case shaped like a lion-like beast.
The fearsome creature appeared before the knights, it is known as a Talon Beast. It looked like the hybrid of a turtle and a tiger, it's claws and two fangs were the size of a football. It's voice was released into the air, trembling the ground underneath it's feet as if the earth feared the wrath of this creature. The beast gazed up at it's summoner with patience, it looked like it was waiting for him.
Telvern pulled out a large book with a dark brown face, it's layers seemed ancient. "Eliminate all of our foes, my beast," commanded the young genius. "Make sure that not a single one walks away from here alive."
Absorbing the contents of his master's message, the beast lets out a mighty roar. The four knights stood firm, they tried their very best not to be intimidated by the sight of the creature. The swords and spears they wielded were at their ready, they seemed sure that they can tango with this monster. Within the swiftness of a heartbeat, the Talon Beast made the first move.
It threw it's self forward, diving towards one of the knights. The beast pulled all of it's weight down upon the torso of the knight it dived forward for, it's six-hundred-and-thirty-five pounds crashing down upon the man. He then began to fall backwards, his eyes widened by shock. His body was like a doormat to the Talon Beast.
He finally landed on the ground, creating a loud thud once he did. His armour let out a cry as if it too were terrified. The beast then readied it's teeth, opening his mouth wide. The knight's brown irises gazed into the mouth of the creature, it's front teeth alone were the size of his head. The teeth glittered like gold in the light of the day, the frightening images of the monster's mouth reflected off of the eyes of the knight.
Quickly, the beast bit down on the knight's throat, blood began to shoot out from his neck. He screamed out in tremendous agony as his body wiggled all over the place. His arms flailed like wings and his legs moved as if they were dancing, he used all of his power to tried to save himself. But his horrific struggle seemed to be in vain.
Realizing the situation, the other knights came around to help their fellow guard. They readied their arms to attack the monster. They made haste for the beast, charging towards it as fast as they could. Telvern then pulled his right hand up in front of him, his hand opened as if he were reaching out for something.
The pieces of a explosion of fire puzzle came together before the palm of his hand, unleashing the intense heat that came with it. Telvern then launched the surge of flames towards the knights. The raging tennis ball of fury was then hurled from the young genius' hand, quickly charging towards the three. The crackling sound of the popping fire came ever more clearer to the knights, they were more focused on saving their screaming comrade to pay attention however.
The world around them became very bright, it shined with the light of a thousand suns and the heat was just as keen. One of the knights ceased his motion and turned his head to his left. His green irises saw the ball of fire heading straight for him. His eyes gazed upon it at the very last second. The walking inferno collided with the man, the heat corroded his armour with ease.
The flames were now eating away at his bare flesh, he was as bright as a Christmas light. After being swallowed and then digested inside the gut of the fire, the knight is released from it's heat. His armour was almost non-existent, his body was as red as a lobster. He even had spots on his torso where he bled.
A thick cover of smoke waltzed into the atmosphere. The knight had a blank expression on his face, his body stiff with affliction. He then began to fall down to the ground, his life extinguished like a fire. He collapsed onto the ground on his front side, his lifeless eyes gazing to his right. The knights stopped their attack, appalled by the death of their comrade.
As they saw the state of their now soulless comrade, the screams of their terrified soldier now quieted as silently as a still night. This brought bad news to those who fought against the resistance. They looked forward towards the comrade who was attacked by the beast, they saw the attention of it was now on them.
They shivered out of absolute trepidation, they didn't know what they should do. Out of fear for one of the knights, his panic transformed into fury. He quickly readied his sword for the battle. "I do not fear you," he dauntlessly stated. "Come at me, you mon-"
Just before the knight get to the finish line of his race with words, the Talon Beast quickly lunged it's body forward. It targeted the knight who spoke to him. The full weight of the beast landed right on top of the beast, crushing the man. He slammed hard down on his back, the beast's teeth just about to dig into the flesh of the knight.
Raphael stood up on top of the gallows in front of the man in charge of them, General Gallows. The young leader still wore the hooded robes over his head, he alone stood in front of the general while Fionnlagh and Anabel handled the rest of the knights. Raphael's purple irises met with the sky blue godly eyes of the general before him.
General Gallows smirked, he seemed amused with the presence of Raphael. "So, you still are quite alive," commented Gallows, confirming with his own eyes the words told to him by his scouts. "It's a good thing. I really would've been disappointed if Lord Balor couldn't kill you himself."
