Chapter 72: Chapter 61 – Escape from Vitalica

"Betrayal hurts. That over a good half of the Templars my late father had personally raised chose to side with the radicals, and were now chasing after us as we fled from our own homeland, hurts even more. Men and women sworn to defend the nation, turned against it. Perhaps some of it were due to our own failings, that disappointed them and drove them to this decision, and yet, at the same time, it still remained a betrayal nonetheless.

 

What was worse than the betrayal, was the rhetorics they spouted from their mouths. They took grandfather's words, and twisted them to their own desires, using them outside of context to make it sound like grandfather had endorsed and advocated for this. I have little doubt that grandfather would have been rolling in his grave were he to witness this charade and mockery of his words, and for that I have only loathing of these radicals.

 

We know what they were after too. Gustaf's final report indicated that they advocated for a Vitalica without death magic, without "impurities", the latter of which probably referred to Diarmuid and myself. We suspected that they wanted Maebh to install as their puppet figurehead as she was the last descendant of grandfather who possesses light affinity.

 

To hell with their wants. I'd rather butcher my fellow countrymen with my own hands before I allow them to lay a hand on my niece." - Diary of Aideen Fiachna, the First Unliving, circa 61 VA

Arranging an evacuation from La Fiachna proved to be far less troublesome than what Diarmuid and Aideen had feared. Many old families chose to depart with them, as did quite a few others who had death affinity family members, as they refused to take their chances with the radicals.

 

Most of the newer residents were far more ambivalent, choosing to just watch and not to take up either side's point of view. A few tried to discourage those who intended to leave, and on a couple occassions brawls had broken out, but the loyal Templars and Death Guards kept the situation well in hand.

 

While the militia chose to remain neutral, they did not protest either when Diarmuid comandeered the wagons reserved for their use when they need to travel in haste, and a sizeable chunk of the militiamen themselves joined the exodus to be with their families, and thus three days later they departed La Fiachna in a massive caravan of wagons and mounted riders.

 

Nearly ten thousand people left with Aideen and Diarmuid, as they headed south to Ptolodecca to seek solace. Most of those were civilians, but around fifteen hundred were former militiamen who chose to join their families as well, plus the eight hundred or so loyal Templars and Death Guards.

 

It was a long trip to the Ptolodeccan border, fortunately cut short to a week and a half thanks to the wagons, and they had sent messengers ahead to inform grandpa Aarin about their predicament. On their third day on the road they received a reply that said Ptolodecca would welcome them with open arms, and to be safe.

 

They traveled at speed, unbothered for the first week of travel, but it was on their eighth day of travel that they spied a rising dust column to their north. Diarmuid took a look through his spyglass and confirmed Aideen's suspicion, that they were being pursued. Worse, by his count there were at least five thousand of them in pursuit, let by none other than the second Templars that turned traitor.

 

"How long do you think before they catch up to us?" Aideen asked her brother with some worry.

 

"By nightfall at the latest, and that's if we rush the wagons ahead," replied Diarmuid as he mirrorred her worry at the situation. "It would get ugly if they caught up to us."

 

"Then we shouldn't let them. Levisore valley is just ahead, we can probably pass through it by evening, right?" Aideen said, more a statement than a question to her brother. "You lead the rest away as fast as possible, just give me some volunteers to hold the line there. We will hold them long enough for others to drop the valley on them. That would seal the road and force them to take a detour, and you should be at Ptolodecca by then."

 

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"What? No! I should be leading that rearguard-"

 

"Diarmuid, this is not up for discussion. You can still die. I can't," said Aideen as she cut her brother's indignant words short. She understood that it would have went against his very being to run away while his little sister held the rear, but reversing their places, would in all likelihood just get him killed. "The civilians need someone to lead them ahead, and Maebh is still too young for that. You also have a wife and child to look after."

 

"I hate this, and I hate it more that you are right about this," admitted Diarmuid sullenly to his sister. "Promise me that you'll come back and meet with us at Ptolodecca, at least."

 

"That I will, brother, and nothing would stop me from that."

 

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Late that evening, Aideen eyed the caravan of wagons as they departed towards Ptolodecca. She herself remained behind, though they had left enough mounts tethered near the valley exit for the group that remained behind, though she sincerely doubted they would have needed that many when all was said and done.

 

Levisore valley, where she chose to make her stand, was barely wide enough for three wagons to pass through side by side, which meant ten people could feasibly seal one end of the valley, and with a healer in their midst, likely hold their own even against overwhelming odds.

 

Those who had volunteered to remain with Aideen numbered nearly four hundred, half of them militiamen who had experience with stonework. These men she had set to work at the top of the cliffs to set up an avalanche that would ideally seal the valley, and force the pursuers to either take a long detour or spend their time cleaning up the blockade.

 

With her at the end of the valley stood around a hundred and fifty Templars and Death Guards, all of them older ones, who had volunteered with a mentality of sacrificing themselves so the younger generation can live on. Tirya was amongst them and stood to Aideen's left side, while Stefan, an old man who had previously served as her late father's second in command on the first Templars, stood to her right, while the rest stood behind them, ready to take up the frontline should they be needed.

 

Their pursuers had not tarried overlong, and soon came into sight, as they rode through the valley. From the way they shouted about killing the blasphemers and keeping the nation pure - audible even from the other end of the valley - she knew there was no turning back, and at this point their weapons would be doing the speaking for them.

 

She looked towards the onrushing cavalrymen, and the makeshift anti-cavalry barricade they had prepared in what little time they had, and hoped it would be enough.

 

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