Chapter 22

As the Baron loaded his spent pistol, he quietly whispered a prayer for the dead.

“...may you, who have done nothing wrong, feel God’s warmth coarse through your now cold body. And may God forgive me for what I have done in the name of freedom. Amen.”

A Janissary tapped the Baron’s arm.

“More are coming sir.”

“Yes, I hear them.”

The Baron returned his pistol to its holster.

“Alright then, let’s get to it.”

The squad hid in the houses around the alleyway they were in, which led directly to the governor’s mansion. It was a group of around 15 men. Soon after they entered the alleyway, the trap was sprung.

The Janissaries fired down at the men, all eight of the extremely well trained men hitting exactly where they wanted to, punching straight through their scalemail. They slung their muskets behind their backs and drew their yatagans. The Baron jumped down and stuck his saber through the neck of a guard, withdrawing his saber from the guard and slashing the legs of another in one smooth motion.

A guard swung at a Janissary wildly, missing every strike as the man dodged and deflected each strike with ease. As he reeled back to slash again the Janissary quickly stepped forward and chopped his throat, hacking halfway through the guard’s spinal cord. Another Janissary grabbed a guard’s wrist as he tried to swing and thrust his yatagan up into his exposed armpit.

The men made short work of the guards. 15 men dead in the blink of an eye. The Baron wiped his saber on the headwrap of a dead guard. The Janissaries sheathed their blades and began to reload. One of them spoke up without looking away from his musket.

“What is next, Baron?”

“Next, we’ll move on to the governor’s palace. After we’ve killed him and anyone else inside, we will set it ablaze and our work is done. If you find any valuables, well, just try to shove them in your pockets when I’m not looking.”

The Janissaries laughed heartily.

The Baron’s squad met up with a few other squads at the governor’s palace. Since it was a large and beautiful building, it made sense that others would head over to it as well. The doors were shut, locked, and barricaded. As were the windows. The Baron sat on a box and contemplated how they would enter with as few casualties as possible. Since this was the governor’s palace, the strongest soldiers were most likely there.

The Baron absentmindedly palmed the powderhorn within his shirt and suddenly had an idea.

“Would any of you mind losing your powderhorns?”

The Janissaries stared at him confusedly.

“We can use them as explosives. You know, blow open the wall or something?”

The Janissaries almost immediately set to work combining all of their powder in a nearby barrel which used to be filled with apples. The Baron added his powder happily. All together, they were able to fill the barrel about 3/4th of the way. Someone offered up a long fuze they happened to have and the men got to work moving the barrel over to the palace.

The Baron magically lit the fuze and they all scattered. The men all braced, and braced, and braced. The Baron peaked his head out and found that the fuze was intact and not lit. The Baron scratched his head confusedly.

“No boom?”

The Janissaries all looked unhappy.

“No worries men! I happen to be a mage! Get down!”

The Baron made some hand signals and punched in the direction of the barrel, sending a ball of fire flying. The Baron got behind a nearby pillar just as the explosion rocked the square. The noise was deafening and the ground shook beneath them.

As soon as things began to settle a bit the Janissaries began to shout their war cries and charged into the massive hole made in the building. All of the guards close to the explosion were dead, bodies and body parts littered the ground, blood was sprayed everywhere, and those unfortunate enough to have been caught in the explosion but were not outright killed moaned and writhed at the floor.

Guards and Jua soldiers quickly made their way over to the noise as the Janissaries rushed into the hallways and courtyards, cutting down anyone they could find, soldier and civilian alike. Kisa was to be made an example of, and no message was clearer than mutilated corpses.

The Baron locked swords with a Jua warrior. They stared at each other for a moment before the Baron punched him in the face, causing him to stumble back. The Baron slid his saber up the man’s sword and caught the side of his face, cutting deep into the man’s skull with his supernaturally sharp saber.

A Janissary cut down a fleeing worker, turning and blocking a strike from a Jua warrior just in time to avoid decapitation. As the Janissary readied himself for a duel, he was hit from behind, his simple tunic providing no protection from the arrow which pierced his heart. The Jua warrior kicked the dead man over and nodded to the archer in thanks before running off to find another fight.

Despite the Jua warrior’s valiant efforts only delayed the inevitable. The Baron swung down to finish off a fallen warrior on the stairs as he bound up in just a few steps. As he reached the top the Baron thrust his saber forward and pierced through a Jua warrior’s spine. He turned and ducked under a strike aimed at his head and cut open the man’s belly as he pulled his saber out of his first victim.

The Baron and his Janissary allies swiftly cut through the defenders upstairs, the Baron only killing combatants and the Janissaries extinguishing all signs of life they could find. Their job was to make an example of this city, not to conquer it and incorporate it into their empire.

The Baron performed a gravity magic enhanced kick, sending a Jua warrior flying through the door of the governor’s office. Inside, the governor sat calmly at his desk, flanked on either side by heavily armored Jua warriors.

The Baron made a few hand signals and sent a huge gravitational force at one of the warriors, killing him instantly with a small but intense shockwave. The Baron could feel the heat leaving his body at an alarming rate. That shockwave was a bit much.

The second bodyguard began to charge towards the Baron. He knew what was going to happen, the Jua warrior would raise his shotel and expose his armpit for less than a second. Just as the man began to raise his sword, the Baron lunged forward, stabbing through the opening in his armor, severing the major artery in the man’s armpit. The warrior slumped against the Baron, almost immediately losing the strength required to swing his sword.

The Baron gently lowered the man to the ground and turned his attention to the governor.

“You’ve lost. Kisa was conquered in just a few hours. Do you have any specific honorable way in which men are supposed to be killed in your culture? Like the Wa’s seppuku?”

The governor shook his head solemnly.

“Not really. That sort of thing is for warriors to keep track of.”

The governor stood up from his chair and gestured to the closed balcony doors.

“Allow me to gaze upon my burning city as I die.”

The Baron nodded and the governor opened the door, stepping out onto the balcony. The beautiful city of Kisa, once a rising star amongst the kingdom of the sun, was now burning to the ground. The cries of the dying and clashing of warriors could be heard all around. But the one thing which could be heard above it all was the all consuming fire.

The Baron took a moment to take in the chaos. He had never razed a city before, and he was quickly praying that he would never have to take part in it again. As the Baron placed his saber on his opposite shoulder, he whispered a small prayer.

“Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times in every way. The Lord be with you all.”

The army of General Kucuk arrived outside the gates of a town named Mokoya. He sat utop his horse close enough to be seen from the walls. Next to him was the Baron, silently praying that he would not need to raze another city.

After waiting for around 30 minutes, Kucuk’s messenger walked through the gates. The Baron gripped his saber harder, his knuckles turning white with the strength he poured into that handle. The messenger ran over and bowed to General Kucuk.

“Sir. The governor has surrendered. He mentioned what happened to Kisa and told me he would cooperate on the condition that your soldiers never enter the city.”

General Kucuk stroked his beard in thought.

“Of course. I will accept. No Janissary is to set foot in the city of Mokoya. I request from the governor of Mokoya whatever food he can spare for my men. When we receive what he offers to us, we will leave this city unmolested.”

The messenger nodded and ran back to the city. Kucuk turned and rode into the camp to spread the word. The Baron breathed a sigh of relief.

“Shouldn’t be long before we reach the capital, then it will all be over…I need a drink.”