Chapter 29: Arc 2.18

-Break-

As I start to wake up, I try to move my body. I notice my hands and feet are restricted. I feel pain from trying to move my them, so I open my eyes to see my situation. I note that everything around me is dark, with just a little light coming through what I believe are planks. My hands and feet are chained in the stocks, it was the same kind that were put on me when I first arrived. My mouth also had cloth on it, stopping me from making noise. I also felt weak. It was like my muscles had been weakened.

Unable to get out of the stocks, I use my legacy on both arms, which shatter these stocks. I then use the claws to remove the ones on my legs. After that, I broke open the top of where I was put, and it turned out I was in a storage area within the village. No one is usually here due to how cold it is.

After getting up, I leave the storehouse and walk around the village. Still, to my surprise, it is barren. There are no people, no matter where I look when I call out, I don’t get any response. Still, the most bizarre part is that the village has been ransacked, items are missing from the houses, and lots of the plants are missing, though the part of all this that makes me extremely scared is all the new scents I smell around the village.

Seeing this sight, I panic and start running around the village. Where is everyone? What the hell happened? Why did I fall asleep? These questions run through my mind chaotically until I slap both my check. Ok, Orb think about this you were tied underground with no way to communicate, so the same could be happening to someone else, so instead of blindly calling out, I should listen.

So using all my concentration, I listen in to the most minute sounds while walking around the village, and then eventually I hear something in Sequoia’s house, so I run over there and look around, at the bottom floor of Sequoias house I find a hollow part of the floor I then open it up to see that both Sequoia and Maple are locked away in a similar situation as me.

After using my Legacy to free them from the stocks, I take the tape off Sequoia’s mouth.

“Sequoia,” I say after hugging him out of relief.

“Orb, do you know what is going on?”

“I woke up in a similar situation as you and Maple, but I was able to get out. Then I went around but could not find anyone, and all the buildings were ransacked.”

“I see now. Could you tell me the last thing you remember before waking?”

“I remember Cole giving us a speech, but I got drowsy and fell asleep.”

“Same as me then; I think there was something in Cole’s food that caused this. Maple ate more food than me and you, and she is still unconscious.”

“But why would there be something like that in the food he gave us.”

After thinking for a second, Sequoia asks me, “Orb did you smell anything unfamiliar while walking around the village.”

“Yes, there were many scents I wasn’t familiar with.”

“Orb, there is something I want to check, so let’s go outside the village.” And so, following Sequoia’s instructions, we start walking, but as Sequoia gets up, he falls to his knees.

“Sequoia, what’s wrong?”

“I thought my body felt weak while I was locked away, but now I know the reason why, the way my body feels is what happens to me when I have taken a muscle relaxer, but that takes at least two to three days to take effect, and it reeks so there is no way I could have taken it without knowing.”

My body felt a bit weak when I awoke. Does this mean I had also had some, but if it reeks without a doubt, I would of smelled it. “Sequoia, I think I will go ahead.”

“No, give me a moment. I believe my body can still move, just not as fast.”

So, after Sequoia gets up, we both move outside the village with me holding Maples’s body. When we reach the outskirts of the village, we see lots of footprints and something else.

“What are these lines in the snow that move straight forward.”

“Sequoia, I think these may be carriage tracks.”

“What’s that, Orb”

“To my knowledge, it is something used to transport goods and people in the outside world.”

“Then how is it here.”

“I wouldn’t know.”

So, after a moment, Sequoia says to me, “Orb, I would like to check something, and for that, I need you.” Sequoia takes me to a marker with footprints surrounding it, which we go through. When we arrive on the other side, he asks me, “Orb do you smell anything now.”

“In that direction and the one over there, I smell a few scents I knew from the village.”

“Ok, Orb, let’s, go investigate them.”

“Are you sure you will be able to handle that?”

“I will be ok, but I will need you to hold onto Maple for me, as we are now you’re faster than me, so she should be safe with you.”

“Ok, Sequoia,” so we head off in our giving directions.

But before I leave, Sequoia says, “Orb, if you see Cole proceed with extreme caution.” And with those words, he heads off. A part of me wants to ask him what he meant by that, but after thinking about all the evidence, there is only one natural conclusion I can come to on all this. Still, regardless of that, I want to have faith.

So, after Sequoia and I split up, I went from tree to tree in the direction I smelled the scents from as fast as possible with maple slung over my shoulder. Even with my Legacy, this is hard. How does everyone in the village do this so casually, it can’t just be physical strength?

As I continue to go from tree to tree, I eventually hear voices and follow them until I reach their point of origin. I look down from the tree I am on to see five men with swords guarding another eight men with carts. When I look in those carts, I see objects from the village. Immediately I realised these were the people the ransacked our town. Looking for information, I listen in to the men talking.

“HURRY UP, YOU IDIOTS.”

“But boss, it’s cold. I can barely feel my feet.”

“How the hell do you think I feel? Not only do I have to protect you from any predasaurs out here, but I also can’t even wear any armour, or it will freeze off, so stop your whining.”

Another swordsman says, “How the hell could anyone even live in such a place.”

“That’s none of our business, but at least thanks to them, were going to be filthy rich, use the thought of that to warm you up boys.”

After hearing their conversation, I figure I should talk to one of them, but I can almost guarantee they won’t answer any of my questions willingly, so I guess my only option is violence.

The five swordsmen surround the eight carts, two in front, one on the left and right, and one on the back, with the men pulling the carts in a row of two-three-two in the middle of the five swordsmen. So, after formulating a plan, I sling Maple across one of the branches on the tree, and then I get on a tree in front of them. Then using my feet, and I slide down one of the trees until I am safe enough not to break a leg.

I lunge at the two swordsmen in front, smashing their heads into the snow.

The swordsman on the far right says, “What the hell was that.” but in that instance, the words leave his mouth, I am already at him, swinging my right leg into the left side of his head, but he was able to use his hand to guard my kick a bit, which caused him to fly into the golden tree to his right. That blow was not hard enough to knock him out. While preparing for my next move, I hear the swordsman on the far left and behind are already closing in on me.

Their speed is unnatural, like the warriors, which is shocking since these guys are more visually unfit; unlike the warriors in the village, there must be something else going on other than physical strength.

As the swordsman in the back comes, he slashes at my feet. He is probably trying to stop my mobility, but I jump over his slash while kicking his head into the snow. That blow was also too soft, but I decided to improvise and dash into the people with carts, and when the swordsman on the left approached, I got on my hands and used the full force of my legs to kick one of the men who were moving the carts into him, and at the speed, he was going the collision causes a significant impact.

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I hear the swordsman I stepped on the head, get up and dashed towards me. I turn around, picking up snow from the floor, and we both move towards each other at high speed. I have figured out that these guys are slower than the other warriors. So, I dodge under his swing while throwing the snow I picked up in his face, as he lands and cleans the snow off his face; he turns around to see my fist already in his gut, spending him flying into the swordsman on the far left, causing both of them to go unconscious.

I hear the last issue getting up. The only swordsman who could react to me was earlier, the one who was called boss. Still, I trust everything I learn. I lunge at full speed, but he is already prepared, and my claw and his sword clash.

Φ What the hell is going on? How is this boy who doesn’t even look sixteen years old knocking us all out? He is wearing the same clothes as all the other people we have taken from that village, and is a legacy. How did the rookie miss this guy? He should have been the first one taken; I will crack that rookie’s skull open.

He uses his claw to deflect each blow as I try to slash him. Not only is he keeping up with me, but I am also being pressed. Though I still have the paralytic dust in my pocket, I will throw it at him when I find an open. The boy in front of me starts easing up on his assault. He must be tired, so I try to reach for the dust, but at that moment, the boy suddenly moves faster and cuts my left hand off.

That was a trap. He baited me into this. So, with all my strength, I swing my sword into him, but he shatters it and punches me in the face.

Φ After I take care of the last swordsman, I immediately turn around and smash the remaining people in the back of the head except one. As this person starts cowering in fear I say, “So do you want to do what I say or try and fight me.”

“I Surrender,” he says, while dropping my head deep into the snow

“Really?”

“The only reasoning, I am helping these guys is because they threaten my life.”

After he says this, I sit in front of him and ask, “I won’t hurt you. Just answer my questions.”

Φ I look up at the boy with tears in my eyes and think, what a sucker. I can’t believe he trusted me so quickly. All I have to do is keep up this act, and I can walk free.

“What are you guys doing here?”

“We came to transport anything of value in the village.”

“Please tell me what that means exactly?”

“People and items.”

“Why?”

He is getting noticeably angry. “Since these villagers have a distinct culture of their own, are quite physically fit, and are all descendants of Magnolia; they will sell at quite a high price,” as the kid thinks about what I say, his hair turns from bright red to white.

“What direction did they go in.”

“I couldn’t tell you which direction, but they headed back to the boss’s place.”

“By the boss, do you mean that guy knocked out over there?”

“No, he is just the boss of this specific group. The actual boss is still in the base.”

“Where is this base?”

“I wouldn’t know. Only members of their group know.”

“Is there any more of you guys around?”

“There is a second group away from here carrying more objects back.”

“How is that possible you guys have taken too much, only to have that small amount of cargo?”

“Well, we are the last group of people doing transport. The first group started eighteen hours ago.”

Φ Eighteen hours how long was I out? Would I even be able to catch up to them? “Now, the last question, how did you find out about this place?”

“The rookie told us.”

My chest feels tight as I say, “What rookie?”

Φ “Well, one of the newbies disappeared for an entire year, and when he returned, he was about to be punished for leaving, but he told these guys about this place, and we spent the last month formulating this plan. I am so sorry. Instead of trying to stop this plan, I went along with it to save my skin. I am pathetic,” I say while I bawl my eyes out.”

“Don’t worry; it is ok. It’s not your fault,” he says as he stretches his hand out for me to grab.

So easy, I think to myself as I grab his hand, but then he punches me directly in the stomach. “Why?”

“Throughout our conversation, I listened to your heartbeat. When I take the result I got from that, and the fact that I heard you talking all buddy-buddy with everyone, has convinced me you were lying your ass off.”

“Ok, I was, but I am sorry, I promise.”

“Well, if you are, I will forgive you.”

“Really.”

“Yes,” he says as he breaks my arm

“WHYYYY”

“Punishment and reform go hand in hand. Punishment without reform is a waste of time, and don’t you think reform without proper punishment is unfair? So I am just giving you some punishment for your reform.”

And with those words, he also breaks my leg. “What was that one for.”

“To make sure you don’t run away, but don’t worry, I am going to do that to everybody,” so, one by one, he breaks the right leg of some people and the right arm of others.

“I left all of the couriers with their arms, so you guys will be able to walk back. Just be safe. Your lives are in gods hand now,”  and with that, the boy takes off.

Φ I pick up Maple and start heading towards where I smelt the other scents. Sequioa, I need to tell you what I have found out. I also sniff around, and I pick up a few more scents. It seems that the people here earlier still left me a trail I can follow, so I should be able to get to their base after we meet up.

-Break-

Φ “Knocking out ten different armed men with your body how it is, you really are a monster Sequoia.”

“Cole, tell me why you have done this immediately.”

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