Chapter 65

No Rest For the Wicked

Sylas was frustrated—so much so he wanted to stuff his head into a pillow and scream till he croaked. There wasn’t a loop within which something didn't go terribly wrong. Though he should have expected it, he didn't expect it. It took him by surprise, and, more importantly, it made his head hurt. Again. After all, numerous issues popped up abruptly that he didn't have means of dealing with.

Grunting, he went through the motions and took Derrek aside to ‘befriend’ the man again. If anyone knew about the exploding zombies or the big, gruff, buff, and terrifying one, it’d be him. And if he didn’t know… Sylas knew it’d be loops upon loops of tests and experiments to see what and if anything works.

After the two ‘befriended’ and shared the initial information, Sylas paused for a moment, wondering whether he should ask the man about the bombs… or the bomb, eventually electing the latter.

“Have you ever heard of a Thrall? Specifically, Thrall of the Frost?” Sylas asked, paying close attention to Derrek’s face. The man flinched—not in the manner that implied he was hiding something, but a rather outspoken one.

"Thralls? Yes. Of the Frost? Not specifically, no," Derrek replied. "Why?"

“… one such creature will attack the castle soon,” Sylas said. “Can… can they be defeated?”

“…” Derrek frowned deeply, falling into thought. “Are… are you certain?”

“Yes.”

“Haah,” Derrek sighed. “It’s not necessarily the Thralls themselves that are the issue. Though incredibly strong and deadly, I’m fairly confident in combating one. It’s what Thralls represent.”

“Represent?” Sylas asked.

“Hm,” the Captain nodded. “They’re sort of a forewarning—if a Thrall appears amongst the Ghouls, the next invasion… will be massive. So, usually, after we defeated the Thralls, we abandoned outposts and forts and even castles, especially if Thralls themselves were difficult to deal with. I’ve personally fought three—Thralls of Chains, Fear, and Supremacy. All three were extremely difficult battles that nearly caused my death, but the invasions that followed… were truly beyond a sight to behold.”

“It won’t be just the Ghouls, then?” Sylas quizzed. “But different kinds of specters?”

"Precisely," Derrek nodded. "Ghouls can be dealt with—they are just made of rotting flesh and brittle bones. While terrifying, whoever fought them a few times can relatively easily dispatch of them, one by one. However, most other specters are different—either they have a level of intellect that makes them difficult to deal with, or they come with a body or an ability that makes them horrid opponents."

“Any… any kind that could decimate our walls, for instance?” Sylas asked, partly thankful that Derrek was so knowledgeable and partly angry to have learned just how turbulent his imminent future was.

“Many,” Derrek chuckled bitterly. “But the likeliest to appear are Infernals. That's what we call them, anyway. Unlike Ghouls, though corpses still, their skin shines in dull coral, and their stomachs are hollow—within, a ball of natural energy manifests, and can be overcharged, creating an explosion. The size and strength of the explosion are entirely dependent on the Infernal itself, mostly its age from what we've observed. Nonetheless, even the younglings can be a threat if not dispatched of safely."

“…”

“By cutting their heads off before they charge the energy,” Derrek elaborated at the Sylas’ inquisitive glance. “If they join a Thrall… the defense will be… difficult.”

“And yet, defend we must,” Sylas said. “I will figure out a way to deal with the Ghouls and the Infernals and other specters. I only ask that you take care of the Thrall. Can you do it?”

“… I will try,” Derrek replied. “As I haven’t dealt with the Frost type before, it will be difficult. But, I will manage. Should we go inform the Prince?”

“No, not just yet,” Sylas shook his head. “Sleep on it.”

“Very well.”

The reason Sylas didn’t rush back immediately was that it was pointless—the success will not come from either the first or the second or likely even more attempts than that. Though Derrek tried to hide it, Sylas heard the man's heart—he was not confident in defeating a Thrall whatsoever. It was likely that he had the help of others in his Order when dealing with the three prior Thralls, and potentially even some knowledge on what they could do.

As such, Sylas had several things to figure out—namely, the exact point and origin of the attack, how many 'Infernals' were among the Ghouls, whether it was worth trying to stop them outside the walls or just letting them blow themselves up as to not risk it(though the damage to the wall was beyond extensive, and would likely require the whole winter and perhaps even a part of the Spring to fix fully). Then, there was also the matter of figuring out a Thrall's capabilities and informing Derrek of them, and still waiting to see whether the man can defeat it alone or if he'd need help.

It was a headache, but he had no alternative. It wasn't as though they could abandon the castle—and, even if they could, with Ryne and Cyrs and many others still in there, Sylas had no intention of doing so. In the worst-case scenario, they’d be forced to use the bandits as bait and flank the Ghouls and the Thrall and simply overwhelm them with numbers. Though he hoped and prayed it didn’t need to get to that, he knew that the possibility was there.

Sighing yet again, he popped open a whole bottle of wine and started drinking, not sleeping the entire night, trying to figure out the best way forward. They still had time to rush back, and he intended on informing Valen and having him usher the men forward. In fact, part of him wanted to just go back with a small, reconnaissance group, so they’d have more time to observe, but he knew that Valen would never go for it. Just the mention of a threat to the castle would have him hollering everyone back.

Putting down the empty bottle of wine and realizing that he could barely tell it was dawn—mostly by the rising morning mist rather than the rays of sunshine—he stood up and stretched, walking over to Valen’s tent.

The young Prince had just woken when he saw a silhouette standing at the doorframe—he all but yelped before recognizing it was Sylas.

“You scared me! What are you doing here so early?” he asked, wiping his eyes and standing up himself.

“I had a vision,” Valen winced at the words, a bad feeling overcoming his heart.

“A… a vision?” he mumbled.

“Yes,” Sylas replied. “The castle is about to be invaded. By the Ghouls.”

“… we must rush back!” Valen exclaimed, awakened immediately. He barely remembered to put on robes before brazenly rushing toward the exit, only to be stopped by Sylas.

“Valen,” Sylas said, deciding to at least attempt it. “Do you trust me?”

“… trust you? Of course I trust you! Now, we must hurry back!”

“If you trust me,” Sylas said. “Then you’ll listen to me.”

“Listen to you—I am listening to you! That’s why I said we must have everyone pack up and rush back!”

“Let Derrek, Tenner, and me go back,” Sylas said. “Ahead of everyone else.”

“What—what are you on? Why?!”

“Please.”

“…”

“…”

“Wil… will it save the castle?” Valen asked, clearly reluctant to agree.

“Yes,” Sylas replied confidently. “Absolutely. I won’t let our home burn ever again, I promise.”

“… when do the rest of us get to leave?” Valen asked.

"Whenever you want," Sylas replied. "I just want the three of us ahead since we'll be much faster than in a group. I suggest you first settle everything here before departing, however. Don't worry about anything—leave it all to me."

“… very well,” Valen sighed, agreeing. “Thank you. For letting me know, I mean. You could have just rushed off with some made-up excuse, I suppose.”

“See you,” Sylas said, leaving and quickly going over to fetch Tenner and Derrek. The two Captains, still in a haze, didn’t even know why they were being dragged out, given a few backpacks of supplies, and being sent their merry way back home. It was only once they were deeper through the forest that Sylas informed them. The reason he didn't depart alone is that he wasn't confident in actually making it back to the castle.

“WHAT?! We—we need to back, get the others—”

“It’s fine,” Sylas interrupted Tenner, dragging him by the arm. “Have some faith in me, just as the Prince did.” Though, that faith will quickly evaporate when they see what we’re up against…

“But—an invasion?” Tenner said. “So quickly after the previous one? That’s... strange.”

“There’ll be a Thrall,” Sylas’ words caused Derrek to wince. “I’m counting on you… Captain.”

“… f-fine,” Derrek stuttered. “Leave… leave it to me.”

“A Thrall?” Tenner quizzed. “What’s that? A specter?”

“Hm, something like that,” Sylas nodded. “Tenner, we should return prior to the invasion’s start. Your job will be to quickly form whatever defensive line you can. I know that most people who are in the castle are the weaker sort, but, at best, you’ll have a couple of days to beat them into ‘shape’. All I want from them is to not faint at the sight of the gore.”

“What about you?” Derrek asked.

“I’ll be assisting Ryne in making as many talismans as physically possible,” Sylas replied honestly as that, truly, was his plan. “Even if I have to vomit blood, we’ll have some made for the defense. Remember—all we have to do is endure. I’ve already informed the Prince and the entire army will be at our heels, just a couple of days late. The reason I wanted to go ahead was to prepare the castle for the initial defense as they are in the dark. So, you best prepare for a grueling, barely-any-rest journey.”

“Why are you telling us that?” Tenner looked at him strangely. “Just make sure one of us won’t have to carry you.”

“Hey, that’s not a bad idea.”

“It wasn’t an idea!!”

“Ah, geez, stop shouting, it’s only barely dawn…”

"Ugh," Tenner groaned while Derrek snickered lightly. Though the mood was lightened, it wasn't by much. Both men knew—especially Derrek—that a lot, if not everything, rested on their shoulders. They'd each have to do the work of ten men if they wanted to stand even a remote chance of success. Sylas, on the other hand, didn't have the heart to tell them that even if they did work of twenty, it would be meaningless. This loop… this loop was only to see everything play out from the beginning, praying he sees something that will make it easier going into the future runs.