CHAPTER 1.1

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“We can't wait any longer here! Tyndale might have already recovered and it will only be a matter of time before he catches on to us. We need to start moving right away!”

They seemed to have similar sentiments. None differed with that decision. Although many of them knew they had left behind friends and family, it was hard for anyone to go back inside through the gates and look for them. It would be suicidal. Lora and Deryleen were nowhere to be seen. Thomas knew they were gravely injured but a malefic piece of his conscience was telling him not to pursue any intentions of locating them, despite knowing how wounded they were. He was still in resentment, recalling the past five years, how they were mistreated. Even after helping them plot their escape he still felt bitterness towards the siblings.

“Okay let's move. The rain will help cover our tracks so we better make hast and utilize it.”. So began their exodus, a muddy, cold, and wet journey across the woods, a plight for freedom and safety. Though they were thrilled to be free nobody bothered to ask about the cost of their freedom. The mysterious savior who called himself Anato Strider could not have just decided to wake up one day and free them. They lived long enough to know that everything comes at a price, so what was the price tagged in their freedom? One would have to wonder what lay ahead, hopefully, it would be greener pastures.

Lora and Jrue were lost in the woodlands, limping through puddles of mud, occasionally stumbling to the ground and taking forever to get back to their feet. Their bodies had been broken, Lora’s left shoulder was heavily swollen and her ribs made breathing one painful task. On the other hand, Jrue's leg was also not looking as good as her sister’s. He broke his fall with his lower body and twisted his right knee, the rips on their faces dripped blood that was washed away by the falling rain. They searched the woods, finding no traces of the escapees, it did not take them a while to realize they had been left behind.

“I should go help them,” Daito said.

“No. Not yet. If Lora sees you now it might ruin the entire plan. I shall go down there and assist them instead. You begin following the escapees. I shall meet up with you and slow down Tyndale’s army in the process.”

Arni said. He began his ascent, parting ways with his brother who set a course ahead, following the wandering group. Temperatures quickly dropped with each splash of a droplet, there was no ceiling to shelter the two siblings. The arctic winds blew into their soaked clothes, numbing pain from the inflammations on their skins. The god approached the two carefully. The cold seemed not to bother him at all.

Arni had no specific reason for joining the charade. He was an immortal celestial being, of course, the one who created all of nature. So why was he running around playing with the rest of The Tomasa children? A definite answer could not be derived, the only sensible conclusion would be that he was seeking amusement, nothing more. Or maybe there was a bigger picture to it. Somehow the Tomasa children’s plans were to free the god of destruction, Tomasa himself. Perhaps he wanted to see how far they would go before Arekin intervened, or any other god for that matter. Since both he and Tomasa had been banished from the heavens he wanted to have a taste of revenge, release his brother, and watch him cause chaos. Ultimately, a genuine answer could only be gotten from him, but since his alignment with the heads, he had not spoken of his intentions since.

ROYAL REPUBLIC

“So… they all escaped?”

“No your majesty, we captured a few of them and they are tied at the town square sir, the soldiers are ready for your orders sir. They are all set to be executed!”

“… and who made the orders for them to be executed?”

The room fell into total silence. Tyndale walked past the soldiers who were aligned at the entrance of the monstrous building. Each step Tyndale took drove fear into their hearts, knowing very well he might snap at one point and end their meaningless lives. Oddly enough he changed the topic.

“Where are the rest of the slaves going?”

“We saw them going East sire. We believe they might be heading to Defectors State.”

“… Ready the army. We move at dawn!”

they stomped in unison. Every one of them wanted to get out of that vicinity as fast as they could, they knew of their master’s volatile state of mind and he might decide to kill them all at a moment's notice. Especially since the turn of events was not quite idyllic at the moment. They rushed out of view, taking time to breathe away their relief once they were out of harms’ way.

Beside the tyrant knelt the saints, bowing their heads in shame.

“We apologize for our incompetence sire. We promise we will hunt them down and capture them…”

“How many souls did I give you?”

“… 99 souls master.”

“And how many did you use to rig the explosion and destroy the castle?”

“30… master”

“… and you kneel before me, telling me thirty souls were not enough to kill two swordsmen and one measly earth magician?!”

The saints could not gather a response.

“You have wasted thirty souls from my legion. That is a mistake you can not apologize for. It is a mistake you must pay for!”

As Tyndale was thinking of ways to punish his understudies a sudden thought hit him from nowhere.

“Albert, did he escape with the rest of the slaves?”

“No sir… after he disappeared three days ago we haven't been able to locate his whereabouts, or where he went.”

“So he was not part of the coupe. He did not know of the plans.”

The saints were confused. How was a mere slave to fit into all the commotion?

“I shall issue your punishment afterward. For now, your only task is to locate Albert and bring him to me!”

The saints we excused. With little to work with, they did not even know where their search would begin. Albert had vanished from existence merely days before the invasion. They had no clue where he went to.

Little did they know the mouse had burrowed its way into the forest, guided by the heads. He was well on his way towards District Dark. The cost of his freedom was his right arm, severed by Jrue. While the slaves took residence inside Royal Republic all they thought of was how the lives of the rest of the people that escaped with Alicia were. They were probably better off than them. This would soon cause a rift between the group that had escaped.

As they traversed the forest, some of the escapees began preaching a new gospel. They demanded the route be changed, that they should go to District Dark instead of Defectors State. They wanted to join their brethren there. Thomas tried hard to convince them otherwise, that their savior had better plans in store for them, that they should blindly follow Anato and see what their faith would reward them with.

It was a tough crowd to unite. Others had already set their minds to it. Not knowing of the vurhanil barrier that awaited them. A third of the group parted ways with the rest and changed their course. The rest went onwards. It seemed that Albert was a part of the Heads’ scheme. No vurhan was to attack him in the woods as he made his way towards District Dark. The same couldn’t be said for the rebellious group that split from the rest of the slaves. They were walking into their deaths and they did not even know it.

In District Dark, however, Alicia was ready to leave, accompanying Armani back to the Forgotten Temples. She wanted to learn the secrets of the spiritual dimension, information that might help her with her undying quest for revenge. The camp was left in the hands of her fellow State Guards. They were to oversee everything in her absence. It seemed like everything was sequentially falling into place. Setting up a bigger event, bigger than the invasion. It was only a matter of time before it arrived, and it would take everyone by surprise!