Citadel - Valkyrie Pad - Aiden

Aiden walked toward the east pad with his retinue of Coldmar soldiers, a Valkyrie waiting to evacuate Mary and him to Coldmar. A deep sense of dread. He and Mary had barely made it from the throne room, he had left his bodyguards behind to help with the defence of his father, but the way those savages in white armor were tearing through the city guard, he still worried about the fate of his father. At least he and Mary were together, they could rally at Coldmar and find out what had happened, who these userpers were, and they would be together. He gave her hand a tight squeeze and she smiled at him. As they neared the Valkyrie that would take them to their refuge, he heard a shout from behind. “Aiden!” He stopped and turned. And there stood Jack, at the Y conjunction to the west pad, pad two. It was the first time he had ever seen him looking so ragged and exhausted. He had made it back, but was the timing coincidence? Why was here now, at this moment? His doubts touched his thoughts but he responded without uncertainty. “Jack, brother, you have gotten back just in time, come with us, we are enroute to Coldmar to rally and regroup” He saw a flicker of something on Jack’s face, was that worry? “Of course, but you and the princess should ride separately, in case something should happen, come with us, we will take pad two.” Jealousy reared its ugly head again, and he wondered why he was trying to separate him from Mary. He looked at his love and she shook her head. She also didn’t want to leave his side. “Nay, brother, but the Valkyrie has room for one more, come with us, have your team follow behind.” For the first time Aiden noticed no sign of Sug and Cro, his brothers long-time companions and teammates. “Where is the rest of your team?” He called. “Prince Aiden, I need you to come with us, we can debrief you on the way.” No worry and fury surged through the prince, he squeezed Mary’s hand and looked at her, she frowned, squeezed back and then pulled her hand away and stepped behind him. Aiden would not be told what to do in front of his beloved. Not by a man who served him. “I will as I will, Commander, and you will do as you are ordered!” He shouted in anger. Then he saw a flash of horror on the guards with Jack’s faces, Jack shouted “No!”. He had a brief moment of confusion as his head was pulled back by the hair, and his neck was sliced from ear to ear. He heard Mary whisper in his ear “such a fool” and then he dropped to the cement, the last of his blood flowing freely from his veins.

Citadel - Valkyrie Pad - Jack

Jack stared in outrage at Mary. How could he have been such a fool. From the very beginning it was there. She had asked him to be her king! He hadn’t thought she had meant that literally as she coup d'etat the whole god damn kingdom. They stood for a moment in silence, each side waiting for the other to act, no one willing to make the first move. Jack did the math in his head as his prince bled out on the ground, Mary had a handful more guards with her but with him and his two remaining teammates, he could take her, they could stop this now before this destroyed the kingdom. He motioned his team forward “Take the-” he didn’t get to finish as Chad rolled onto the landing platform a hundred yards behind them. He wasted no time in moving forward with his troops, and arrows started flying. “Retreat to the valkyrie” Jack yelled. As his team started moving away so they would be crushed in between Mary and Chad like a hammer and an anvil. Mary’s guards moved forward as well, as Jack and his team started their retreat. Arrows were flying back and forth but Jack knew they had to flee. It burned, and stuck in his craw, but they were outnumbered three to one now. Jack was at the back, letting the Sergeant lead his younger recruits to the Valkyrie. The valkyrie was a large metal bird with rotating blades facing the sky on either side, that could fly them out of here. It would move faster than a Zephyr but didn’t have the range. They could address that problem when they came to it. As they got closer to the Valkyrie, Mary and Chad’s forces combined behind them. Jack could see the Valkyrie crew prepping the landing pad for take off. “Rook, get to that bird and make sure she’s ready to depart the moment we're on board, and for damned sure make it clear they don’t leave without us.” Rook saluted, and took off in a sprint toward the metal monster. “Xyla, give us cover fire, try and take out some of those damn archers.” Xyla nodded and adjusted her aim from the center mass of soldiers to the archers. “Sergeant, that bird is gonna need another minute or two to prep, we hold this line until we hear the whirl of propeller blades.” The sergeant nodded, he knew his duty, and he had his guard make a line across the platform, shields at ready, and spears up. His line of archers firing in between the phalanx frontline. The Coldmar mercenaries were pushing forward, shields up, crossbows shooting over them. Jack looked over these boys, no, men, who would hold the line against three times their number. Two minutes, they only had to hold for two minutes.

Citadel - Valkyrie Pad - Mary

Mary was displeased. This was her shining moment, she had planned this for years. Making bribes, promises and threats without her father or the king getting a whiff of her plot. And then Jack had to go and ruin it. She would have had the prince as her prisoner, and the last of the dukes would have bowed to her whim, but when Jack had shown up, she had seen it in his eyes. He had known. She couldn’t chance Aiden slipping away, so she had killed him. Then moments later her worthless brother had shown up, if only he had arrived a candle breath earlier! Now they had Jack pinned, she was at quandary as to whether she wanted to just let him leave, but deep down she knew she couldn’t. “Chad, kill the Valkyrie!” She screamed pointing as the metal monster began to twirl its blades. He looked at her and nodded, then the man next to him handed him a long metal tube. A fireball wand, it would shoot forth a metal ball that would explode on impact. He raised it to his chin and sat in the Valkyrie, then he smiled and adjusted his aim. It only took Mary a moment to see where the adjustment led. “No she shouted as she shoved the wand. But it was a moment too late, it had altered the path some, but not enough. Chad’s hated enemy had been the target, and Mary knew deep down she should have let him end it, but a spark of sentimentality still burned in her breast. The rocket hit the ground right next to Jack, he hadn’t seen the want in time to react. The explosion caused everyone a quick flash of blindness.

Citadel - Valkyrie Pad - Jack

Jack was on the ground. Everything hurt but he was alive. His ears were ringing, his vision blurry. He reached out moaning and felt a hand, he grabbed and pulled and it just slid up to him, there was a moment of confusion, when he realized it was his own left arm. Around him he could barely make out the screaming of the young guards who had also been hit. He felt arms lift him from under his armpits and start pulling him back. He looked up and saw a beautiful angel. She was screaming and pointing. He knew this celestial. He just could remember her name, his mind was fuzzy.

Citadel - Valkyrie Pad - Mary

Chad was on the ground with soldiers around him as he yelled in anger, an arrow was in his right shoulder. He was a pain in the ass, and she might have to kill him, but now she needed to focus. One of his personal guards had set down a long rifle. Weapons that only fired bullets were an antique rarity, but in the coup d'etat, they had brought a few in to take out strong threats from a far. It was probably the same damn rifle that they had used in the faux assasination attempt at the betrothal ceremony. She lifted it and held it to her shoulder, she wanted to see the carnage. She saw him there, and he didn’t look like the warrior god she had always held up high. He looked kind of pathetic with his left arm missing and both legs gone from the knees down. But even then, his soldiers fought to get him to the safety of his Valkyrie, to carry him from battle. Then, in that moment, she saw his eyes. She saw the look that she had waited, and longed to see. But it wasn’t for her. It was for that tattooed bitch with the bow. The rage that flared was blinding, and in that moment she pulled the trigger.

Citadel - Valkyrie Pad - Jack

He stared at Xyla, he remembered her now. He remembered he loved her. And now they could leave, maybe they could try and cross the ocean, or make a home in the outlands and grow old. Even half deaf he heard the roar of a rifle. As he watched his angel who was covering them with her bow, like a warrior goddess of old, her face went white, and her chest exploded. “Noooo” Jack screamed. He watched her fall to her knees. The bow fell from her hands. And life leaves her eyes. “Noooo” He screamed again. He felt them pull him into the bird. He started to struggle, his right hand reaching out and striking someone. He dimly heard someone say “Hold him down” Jack screamed again “I love you!” As her face and body hit the ground he felt a pierce in his chest as someone stuck needle in him” Jack grabbed them by the face and squeezed as he stared at Xyla “I love you, I lo-” His whisper faded away, and he didn’t hear the person gasp for breath as his grip released. I love you was his last thought as his mind faded to black.