Chapter 5 - Escape

At first, neither party reacted. The appearance of the flare was simply too unexpected.

When the light eventually disappeared, and darkness enveloped the forest once more, Michael snapped out of his stupor and sped off as fast as his legs allowed him to. There was no time to regret his actions as any moment counted. He heard some shouting in the distance and numerous glowing lanterns slowly closed in on him. Although most of the guards were still inebriated from drinking alcohol and were wearing heavy mail armor, that disrupted their movements, it didn't hinder them much from chasing Michael down. He had put on more muscle and stamina over the time he was working, but it was laughable compared to the training and battles these veterans had gone through.

Michael's mind raced at the fastest speed it was possible of. He would rather die than return to the mines but more so than that he wanted to live! Finally, lead a normal life! This thought alone kept his gradually exhausting body going as he ran straight into the unknown forest, hoping for a miracle. He prayed to Ilyaesta, the Goddes of Fortune and Ryeka, the God of Judgement. He begged them for justice and fairness as he noticed the lanterns steadily approaching him.

What had he done to deserve this? Whatever sins he had committed in one of his past lives, weren't they already repaid by his torturous suffering? Surely he had earned himself some fortune now, no?

“NO!?” Michael shouted out, desperately towards the sky, but he was only met with silence. Most of his strength began leaving him and the lights were almost upon him. However, refusing to give up, he pushed himself past the bush ahead of him with the last of his strength.

There, he collapsed to his knees; his wobbling legs no longer able to support him. The burning screams of his muscles and lungs were only overshadowed by the deafening sound of falling water in front of him. He had probably been too flustered to hear it earlier, but subconsciously he must have noticed the sound of the waterfall for some time as he had headed towards it.

Michael gulped down his resurfacing fear as he looked down the chasm in front of him. The darkness of the night prevented him from seeing the depths of it and he could only make out the bottom by the sound of water colliding. He turned around, seeing the lights almost in front of him. The nervous shouting of the guards became louder over time, warning him to stop resisting lest they'd kill him. Confronted with the two choices in front of him, Michael's eyes quickly shone with determination. A life of slavery was no longer something he could accept. Forcing himself off the ground, he took one last step and silently plunged into the darkness.

Only moments after Michael disappeared from their sights, did the guards arrive at the spot. They looked down at the place he'd decided to take a chance and shook their heads in distraught.

“Can't follow that, can we?” One of the guards grunted.

“Just report him dead... Great. Really fucking great. The new Captain arrives in hours and the first thing we'll have to report to him are two almost successful escape attempts. I'm sure he'll be happy to hear that!”

The guards continued arguing among themselves before they returned to the mines with an unconscious Arthus on their shoulders.

Darkness. One he wasn't familiar with. A much wilder and untamed darkness that tossed him around like a helpless child. No amount of struggle could contend with the might of the river waters, even if he hadn't already been tired. Whenever he reached the surface, he coughed up some of the water in his lungs only to swallow more of it. It was already a miracle he'd survived the fall without any serious injuries. Yet he was now at the mercy of the river torrent that carried him to parts unknown. More water entered his lungs until he finally lost consciousness, with his last thought clinging to life and a hope for the future.

The village, Reydenes, was named after the only magus that was ever born in this rural wilderness. It was both an advantage and disadvantage of living several days worth of travel away from the nearest city. On the one hand, they were spared the theater of power-hungry politics and the atrocious taxes the larger towns suffered from. Still, the problem it brought with it slowly became unmanageable. The small village was very dependant on the few merchants that traveled the country, placing them at the mercy of their extraordinary prices.

“Two gol' coins for som clove for the winder!?” A furious man argued with the merchant that had just arrived in Reydenes. Their argument heated up until the merchant could no longer take it and took off with his cart while the villager cursed something about highway robbery. No longer enduring the pent up frustration, the merchant immediately turned around in a rage, leading to another considerable dispute.

“Robbery!? Me!? Sure you can joke about this, you dimwit asshole!!” The merchant dropped any pretense of courtesy and hopes of making a sale. At this point, he was ranting and letting off the steam that had accumulated over the recent weeks.

“Three times! Three times I decided to take the risk and travel out this far from Hayden! What did it get me? Bandits at my door and not a copper worth of money in my pocket! I don't know what devil possessed me to do this shit but no more! And you can bet that I'm not the only one who'll stop trying to help you out!”

Besides hoping to make some money, he was actually quite fond of this region. His father had taken him on numerous trips in the past and when he'd heard that the villages this far out would soon have to migrate to the towns due to the lack of trade, he'd figured he'd take a chance and see what he could do. Boy, oh boy, was that a mistake.

“Help!? You stinkin' merchants are only after money! Tha's all you care about!”

And this man was clearly not helping his newfound impression of this backwater shithole. To top it off, this wasn't a one-time thing! For whatever reason, these entitled villagers apparently expected the merchants to just bring them some gifts and leave again. Yeah, what a surprise this region is dying down. Must be the weather.

Whatever. The merchant couldn't bother himself with this anymore. All he wanted was to take the fastest road back to Hayden and end this horrible, horrible idea of his and get an earful from his father. He'd much rather deal with that than this, and that meant a lot in his case.

“Where are you going so fast? No time for reunions?”

Oh, for Amir's sake! Not again!?

“Hey... there... I wonder what the mighty Tyrant Lord Karzek might want from this lowly servant?”

The merchant turned around and cursed his own misfortune. How could he not notice five horses approaching him with dozens of people in tow? Not that it mattered of course. Even if he had spotted them earlier, there was no leaving with his goods today.

“Seryn, my friend. You know what I want.”

The man called Karzek answered from atop his horse. His steed was just like his armor jet black in color. In fact, all of his followers wore a mixture of black leather and mail armor. Karzek himself donned a black cape over his armor that flattered in the warm summer breeze. His armor was made of full plate, except for the helmet that seemed to be missing. The neck area was somehow 'cut' out to leave more room for the movement of his head in exchange for lessening the protection at the spot. A full beard covered the entirety of his face, rivaling the lush facial hairs the dwarves were very fond of. If his broad stature wasn't accompanied by a height that towered over any regular human, you'd surely mistake him as such. His dark-brown hair was combed to the back and held in place by a hairband so it wouldn't obstruct his vision while also allowing his fierce expression and gaze to intimidate the weak-minded.

“Sigh... I'll be leaving then.”

Seryn resigned to his fate and left his entire carriage behind. Thankfully, the bandit boss didn't ask for the horse he was relying on. As long as one was obedient, Karzek was lenient towards his victims, despite the Tyrant that he was in this region.

Tyrant Lord Karzek, one of the many reasons the region was in decline. With the Empire in constant disorder and attending 'more important matters,' the rise of bandits was a matter of course. Obviously, this resulted in a lot of dissatisfaction towards the current Crown but the populace this far out was minuscule and could be ignored. The several bandit groups, on the other hand, were quite thankful for their current situation. Karzek's group stood at the top and was already big enough to build his own village while their numbers only continued to increase. Even the regular villagers in the region realized that becoming a bandit was nowadays more profitable than being a farmer. Thus, those less restricted by their morals gradually joined him, basically making him the overlord of the region.

“That's enough.” A loud voice disrupted the short conservation they'd had. Although Karzek's fame had already spread far and wide, people were still trying to overthrow him. Vigilantes and bandits alike hoped to topple him, but there had yet to be any success. Ever since he appeared, not once was the man in any serious danger. Seryn knew what was about to happen and posthaste left the area. He knew any aggression towards this tyrant would end in bloodshed. And he wasn't foolish enough to believe anyone in these parts could actually defeat that man in a fight.

Karzek completely ignored the voice and didn't even turn around to face the man who had spoken up. Instead, his followers took a closer look at the fools who had come to commit suicide. A group of ten armored men appeared from behind several houses. Most of them wore heavy plate armor that barely left any openings, supposedly guarding the entirety of their body. Only two seemed too poor and settled on shabby chainmails that had already begun rusting.

“I'm Koros, envoy of the Church of Judgement. Karzek today your atrocities will come to an end! Repent to Ryeka for the atrocities you have committed!” The man at the front shouted in exasperation when he was confronted with the lack of reaction from Karzek. Yet, the latter still didn't register their existence. He seemed far more interested in the distant river as he was pondering about something.

Koros finally lost his patience and charged at the bandits together with his comrades. But before the man arrived in front of any of the bandits, he suddenly stopped. Horrifying screams of agony escaped his lips but quickly ceased as his armor he began whistling with an ear-piercing screech. Like a kettle, this sound announced the man's miserable demise. Slowly, the armor began to melt, together with the body of the man that had resided within, ending in a puddle of melted steel and human.

Not once had Karzek given the man a shred of his attention, yet it was as easy to kill him as turning over a hand.

“Maybe it's time to hold back a little... An actual envoy would spell trouble...” The man muttered to himself but quickly dismissed the thought. It's not like they'd bother with someone minor like him.

“Kill anyone present. Leave none alive.” Karzek gave the order to his bloodthirsty minions that without hesitation ravaged the entire village and the rest of Koros' frightened companions. The villagers were punished for hiding the 'ambushers,' and none would be shown mercy.

Meanwhile, Karzek took his trusted steed and arrived at the river close to the village. It didn't take long to find the person he had sensed earlier. The man looked fairly young with long disheveled hair and a full beard, not much different from his own, albeit less tended. He was on the verge of death, but more important than that for Karzek was the uniform he was wearing. A very familiar uniform. After some more pondering, Karzek proceeded to help the dying man. Without lifting a finger of his own, the water inside the man's lung flowed out. Afterward, the man slowly levitated off the ground and was turned onto his back. Seemingly through Karzek's will alone, air traveled in and out of the man's lung to reinstate his breathing. Slowly but surely the man began breathing on his own again and eventually regained consciousness.

If Karzek was exhausted, he didn't show it on his face. Only the drops of sweat on his forehead told the truth behind this seemingly effortless display of magic.

It took the injured man some time to regain his bearings as he looked around in confusion before focusing his gaze on Karzek.

“Thank...you... for saving me.” The man stammered slowly, still overwhelmed by exhaustion.

“What's your name? Where are you from and what happened?” Karzek asked concisely, not bothering with the gratitude the man showed. If the answers weren't what he expected, he'd decide on a whim whether to leave the man alive or kill him - simply because he could.

“I'm Michael... I was a worker in one of the mines... I don't know which one.” Michael answered, apprehensively. The gaze of the man in front of him filled him with a terror he'd never felt from a single person before.

“So you were a slave,” Karzek concluded, affirming his suspicions with an evil grin.

“Boss!” One of his minions ran over to inform the deed was done. None of the villagers were left alive and they had looted the entire place.

Karzek noticed the fear rising within Michael and with a burst of wild laughter that resembled a beast more than a human, he looked at him like a cat toying with a mouse.

“W-What are you going to do with me?” Michael asked, fearfully.

“You have one of two choices,” Karzek answered him after ceasing his laughter, but the sadistic grin on his face didn't disappear.

“Join me or die.”