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Chapter Forty-Three
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2021-12-30 03:06:30Alex suddenly jolted awake, gasping in shock. He immediately remembered somebody blindsiding him and knocking him unconscious. He recalled a strange red light, but never felt anything hit him. He figured the Domineers had captured him as he tried to hurry back to the campsite.
Alex tried to move, but realized that he was wedged into a tight alcove in the side of a dead tree. A quick look around revealed that he had not been taken anywhere after he was knocked out. He was still out in the woods bordering the outpost, but someone must have placed him in this tree. Who and why, he had no idea.
As his senses quickly started returning to him, he soon became cold, as he had been lying out here for far too long. It was still nighttime, but the sound of the chaos in the distance was gone, telling him that the fight was over.
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Several miles away, at the Iron Furnace, Caine was isolated in his private quarters, which was hardly more than a large tent he built adjacent to the furnace tower. It was dimly lit by a single torch that stood on the ground near the back of the tent. Caine was standing in front of a single shelf hanging suspended on one of the beams supporting the tent’s frame. On it sat several old-looking wine bottles, all of which were filled with the clear-colored alcoholic drink.Caine poured the wine from one of the bottles into an old, aluminum cup and drank from it, wincing as he did so. One thing he learned from these outsiders when they established themselves in his territories was how to make wine for himself, which he had done over the course of the summer for when the colder months arrived. Though he had never quite grown accustomed to the taste, in the back of his mind, he felt a very distant sense of
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Less than an hour had gone by since Alex recovered Malachai from the debris. He still hadn’t woken up yet, and the nighttime sky did not lighten at all. Alex’s sense of time had been completely disoriented since he was knocked out himself. All this time he spent stealthily patrolling the shattered remains of the outpost, hoping that the Domineers in the area would not be coming back to scavenge the campsite, or that the Ravennites from the Citadel might come to his aid.Despite enduring the winter weather for weeks now, Alex was feeling colder than ever; not just on the outside, but in his mind and heart as well. In the span of less than a single night, it seemed that all of the efforts they had made in the name of hope had been ripped away. Everyone was gone; either captured or killed, and only Malachai remained. Rowan was gone, and he blamed himself. He abandoned his post, and for all he knew
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Frustrated as he was, Alex had to admit that, for the first time, he and Malachai were on the same page. Knowing this, Alex composed himself and proceeded to catch up with Malachai. “Then I’m coming with you.”“What?” Malachai retorted. “I don’t want you with me!”“But you need me. You can’t do this by yourself.”“You really think I need you?” Malachai snickered. “The Ravennites have gotten along perfectly fine without you here, and especially without the scum that came before you.”Alex was on the verge of snapping. He was so sick and tired of Malachai’s attitude toward him. “Stop blaming me for what the Morennos did to you. I’m nothing like them!”
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Sensing that he had been knocked unconscious once again, Alex opened his burning eyes. He was staring at the same mysterious vision he had seen before, but his mind was so dazed that he could not think anything of it. Just as before, he was looking at the shrouded figure of a man cloaked by a bright light in the distance. The man was holding the same massive, sword-like object. Alex remained motionless with a mixture of fear and curiosity running through his head as the vision repeated itself.“Who are you?” The echoing voice of the man spoke up again.This time, the vision did not end. At first, Alex thought the man was speaking to him, but suddenly he heard the sound of a woman's voice respond to him.“My grandfather’s grandf
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Zak never moved from his spot. With Alex unconscious and Malachai gone, he had no choice but to wait for him to wake up. What they were going to do after that was unclear. If the Domineers were at the Iron Furnace, then they wouldn’t have a chance of saving their friends without Malachai’s help. Zak wanted all of this to end just as soon as the rest of them did.To his surprise, Alex woke up sooner than he expected. For a while, Zak was contemplating picking him up and hiking all the way back to the Citadel. Alex had woken in a brief fit of panic. He quickly sat up on the ground and looked around hastily for Malachai before realizing that he was gone. Alex caught his breath and saw Zak sitting against a tree adjacent to him, looking back at him silently.“What happened?” Alex asked, catching his breath and putting a hand to his forehead,
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Malachai had told Alex that the Iron Furnace lay on the other side of the hill, but he did not expect it to be so literal. They had crawled through the snow to the edge of a sudden drop almost steep enough to be a cliff. The drop descended about thirty feet, and just at the bottom, they could see the beginning of a wall, built about a dozen feet high and wrapping around the valley in a huge circle.Alex examined the Domineers’ fortified camp. It was at least three times the size of the Ravennites’ destroyed outpost. There were torches lined all along the wall, just like the walls at the Citadel. Looking out, near the center and toward the left, Alex could see the large, rock tower that he assumed to be the Iron Furnace. Dozens of people could be seen walking all around the fortress. Along the wall bordering the hillside, a large structure was built that stretched halfway around, and a sho
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On the level just below him, Malachai and Zak were still being led down the corridor by a small company of Domineers, both of their hands bound behind their backs. The whole time, Malachai was wiggling his arms around very subtly, hoping that their captors would not notice. Zak was scanning around and observing his surroundings. As he looked up at the ceiling of the hallway, he noticed something that caught his eye. Along the left wall, just under the ceiling, Zak thought he was looking at a long, thin rope suspended all the way down the corridor. He narrowed his eyes, wondering what it must have been for.The Domineers took them to the end of the hallway until they arrived at a closed sliding door that was guarded by two more men armed with swords. The Domineers escorting the two of them told the guards that they were taking them to their prison hold. As Malachai continued to shift his arms around,
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Malachai continued to hold the Domineer guard at the point of his sword as he forced him to lead him and Zak through the complex. After some quick and convincing interrogation, they had learned from the guard that the Domineers rigged an impressive system formed by a series of rope tracks running throughout the structure. Along the way, the guard told them that the system was primarily used in the prison area to help keep the cells doors tightly secured so that their prisoners could not break out on their own. He proceeded to mention that the method of controlling the doors was by use of a lever planted beside each cell, but that they had also constructed a central hub where all the wire systems in the structure met and could be controlled from one place. That was where Malachai and Zak were forcing him to take them to.Though the two Ravennites were at a total loss for understanding of this seemingly adva
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Robert Morenno and his personal guard stood on their hill aside the fight and looked on hopelessly. Caine was visibly afraid and seemed to know that the battle was already over. The arrival of Darowe’s forces was the last thing he expected. He gave his leader a serious look. “Morenno!” he urged him desperately. “It’s over! We need to retreat!” Robert did not respond to him. He turned his attention toward the bridge and saw Malachai and Alex fighting their way across. Suddenly, he reached over his shoulders and pulled two, curved swords from the scabbards harnessed on his back. With a furious glare on his face, he ran down the small hill and charged into the battle. Caine was shocked and bewildered by his actions. “YOU FOOL!”Malachai had completely forgotten how tired he was. All that mattered to him right now was finishing off their enemy. It had become enti
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The sun was beginning to make its ascent as the sky started to lighten. It was at that moment, when all the Ravennite warriors were being overwhelmed by the immense loss of hope, that a great sound suddenly rang throughout the mountains and over the Citadel. It was a deep sound, loud and echoing, originating nearby from the hills south of the plateau’s land bridge. Alex opened his eyes and gazed up curiously. All the fighting had suddenly ceased everywhere, and everyone turned their attention toward the source of the noise. There was no mistaking; it was the sound of a horn.As it rang up, Robert and Caine looked over to their left. The sound of the horn was originating about a hundred yards away, from the hills skirting the mountains surrounding the Citadel. Caine took a step back in intimidation. “Oh, no,” he muttered, a look of genuine fear on his face.
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Rowan had nearly four dozen arrows packed into her quiver before the battle, and she had just used the last one. Although she did not miss a single shot, the Domineers’ numbers were too great for her to handle on her own, but with her help, Alex was able to lead the Ravennites around him to stand their ground and keep their enemies away from the tower. Not knowing what else to do, Rowan decided that her best option was to make her way down to the tower armory and retrieve more arrows. The battle was not over yet.Even from across the distance of the plateau, Rowan’s attention was suddenly captured by a terrifying sound. She looked out with wide eyes across the battlefield and saw the Citadel’s gates being opened. She shook her head in terror, her arms beginning to tremble. It could not be true; the Domineers had taken the gates. Now Malachai and his men would be flanked and crushed, just
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On top of the tower, Rowan was shaking as she felt her restraint beginning to fail. She turned and ran back to Delmar’s map room. Altha noticed her run off.“Where are you going?” she asked, feeling worried for her. She could not believe how serious this plight had become. Even Delmar was struggling to defend his people against the onslaught of the Domineers. They were storming the ground and the long catwalks, and they had the Ravennites vastly outnumbered.Suddenly, like a blur in the corner of her eye, Altha saw Rowan rush forward and take a leap off the side of the overlook. “Rowan, no!” Altha cried.Rowan had retreated back into the map room, where she had left her bow and quiver when Delmar ordered her to take shelter. She grabbed her bow and slung her quiver full of arrows
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The battle had begun below. Wilson knelt by the cliffside of the mountain that stood to the side of the bridge leading to the Citadel. It was here, amidst the cover of the trees, that Wilson was looking out on the battle. For a while, it seemed as though they had the upper hand, but it hardly surprised him when the Ravennites defending the bridge suddenly turned the fight around, sending many of their adversaries over the edge. From the Citadel’s walls, Wilson watched volley after volley of arrows raining down on the Domineers. He gritted his teeth as more and more of his allies continued to fall. If they did not switch up their strategy soon, he feared that the battle would be lost before sunrise and their efforts wasted.It did not take long for the Domineers to realize their strategy’s utter futility. As the Ravennites continued to spear them one after another, the Domineers started scrambli
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The treelines began to lighten up before soon breaking apart completely as the Domineers closed in on the Citadel. The snow was still falling lightly and they were all shivering in the cold, but more than that, most of them found themselves to be itching for their scrape against the savage Ravennites. Robert Morenno had them all convinced that this would be the day they crushed them once and for all. He told them that they would avenge all those they lost at the Iron Furnace, and he told them, most importantly, that they would be taking no prisoners this time. They were going to have to rely on their advantage of numbers to win.The light of the torches all around the Citadel gave it away as the Domineers finished their approach and stopped several yards before the natural land bridge that Alex had described. Robert perched himself on top of a small rise of land at the edge of the treeline, joined by Caine
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The day had turned into night, and the night back into day without any signs of a Domineer presence approaching the Citadel. The Ravennites were able to breathe a sigh of relief for the moment, but after getting a brief, but needed respite in order to rest and regain their strength, Alex and the others spent almost all their time preparing the Ravennites for an impending battle. At Alex’s request, scouts had indeed been sent out to keep an eye on the perimeters around the front of the plateau, switching in and out consistently. He also took time to teach Malachai and his chosen team of warriors how to roughly execute a phalanx formation. It did not take long for the Ravennite craftsmen to make sufficient shields and spears as Alex had requested. They were not exactly iron forged, but they would work, and they practiced the powerful defensive line out on the land bridge several times. It took some getting used to, but Malachai’s men proved
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Alex walked over to the lookout point. He looked down at the many bridge-like appendages spanning from the tower to the outer wall. Beyond the walls, he stared out at the natural land bridge connecting the plateau to the mountains surrounding it. Alex nodded his head as he continued to formulate his idea.“What is it?” Matheus asked impatiently, trying to follow where Alex was looking. “What are you thinking about?”“Matheus,” Alex began. “Do you remember what I told you on my first day here, when you were introducing me to the Citadel?”He tried to think about what Alex was referring to, but his question was far too vague. “Not really, no.”“Look out there,” Alex directed their attention to the brid
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Alex’s mind was flashing back to his meeting with Robert only hours before. He recalled the sadistic and perverse manner that Robert intended to get the information he wanted from Alex. He could still hear that chilling threat replaying in his head.“Tick tock, Alex,” the voice of Robert Morenno echoed in his head. He could see him holding Rowan’s pendant in front of him. “Tell me where the Ravennites are hiding, or you can watch her die.”Alex was trembling as Robert’s ultimatum gnawed at his mind. He felt as though he was all alone now, with Malachai and Zak having been taken to a cell only moments before. Now, more than ever, he did not know what to do. He was torn between his loyalty to Rowan’s people and her own life. He despised this man for holding him by the throat with such brazen cruelty.
