Chương 587: Chapter Five Hundred and Seventy-One - This Knight is Dark and Full of Violence

The knight grimly approached us, and I felt myself almost involuntarily stepping back. There was something terribly intimidating about a man in full plate armour stomping towards you with no sign that they were going to slow down"Sir, please, we can come to an understanding," Caprica said.

I was happy to see that some of my friends were willing to try and negotiate through a bad situation before jumping right into violence, though Caprica was raising her shield and sword and was slipping into a stance even as she spoke.

"She's right, mister knight," I said. I wasn't sure if it was really a mister, what with the armour, but it felt that way based on the deep gravelly voice.

"We're friendly."

"What is friendship and what are oaths in the face of fallen Solace?" the knight muttered. Before I could try to find an appropriate answer, he lunged forward, moving so quickly that I gasped and stumbled back. Launching herself into his path, Caprica slammed into him with a burst of magic, catching his blade on her shield and breaking his charge. The knight rocked back, foot hammering down as he reset his stance, then swung straight for her neck. Caprica's wings beat the air, dragging her backwards in a flash.

The sword split empty space.

"He's pretty strong!" she warned, as the knight shot forward again.

"Got it!" I answered. There was a bang as Caprica took another blow on her shield.

"I'm sorry Sir Knight!" I shouted, hefting Weedbane, "We're, uh, going to be beating you up a little now!" Bastion darted in to do just that, stabbing up at the knight's armpit, where there was only chainmail. Lowering his shoulder, the knight deflected the strike off his pauldron, then raised his sword while sidestepping Caprica's attack. The knight's blade descended like lightning, slicing through Bastion's afterimage, then immediately cut to the side, and Caprica only kept her legs by leaping straight up.

I bit my lip, wavering. I wanted to help, but-- From midair, Caprica tried to kick the knight in the head, the knight tried to grab her leg, and Bastion forced him away with another strike. --But I wasn't even sure how to help without getting in the way. I scanned the room quickly. It was a big space, and I kind of expected to find more monsters here, but for now it looked like it was just the one knight. Hopefully it stayed that way.

"On my call, disengage," Amaryllis shouted over the sound of steel meeting steel.

"Now!" Caprica and Bastion slipped back, clearing the space around the knight for just a moment. A moment enough for Amaryllis to cast alongside Desiree. A bolt of lightning met the knight mid-chest, followed immediately by a dozen roiling balls of fire that bloomed into small explosions across the knight's front, each one sounding like a firecracker going off inside of a pan.

"That wasn't enough," Caprica warned. In the glow of our lightballs, I saw the knight straighten back upright. His armor might've had some scorches on it, but it had already been the blackened color of steel straight from the forge, so it was hard to tell. The only real sign of damage were shallow dents where Desiree's fireballs had exploded. I bet it was hot in that suit, but the knight didn't seem to mind it all too much.

"I'm gonna try to Clean him," I said.

"Go ahead," Amaryllis replied. I raised a hand, blasting out a wave of Cleaning magic that rushed through the knight and across part of the room, burning away dust and polishing the floor to a mirror shine. The knight's armour lost many of its stains and scuffs, but that darkened colour remained. The knight himself shook his head, then he lunged. Not towards Caprica or Bastion or even me, but towards the back where Amaryllis and Desiree were stationed. Caprica and Bastion were just out of place.

They were able to follow and slice at his back, but weren't in any position to really stop him. I was. I leapt forward, gripping Weedbane in both hands and grunting as the knight's overhead blow came down on my weapons shaft like a sack of bricks. I felt it all the way down to my knees and almost buckled under the weight.

"Perhaps you will find your own Solace in death," the knight said.

"No thanks," I replied. My arms strained, swinging Weedbane around in another ear-splitting deflection, then I hopped back in time to feel as two spells shot past me and rammed into the knight's front. Lightning coursed through his armour, and I was, for a moment, able to see within his visor'd helm. It was empty, save for two small, glowing things that may have been eyes, then the magic receded and the interior was dark once more. This book was originally published on Royal Road.

Check it out there for the real experience. The knight staggered. Just for a heartbeat. His sword dipped, scraping against the stone with a shrill sound that set my teeth on edge. He planted a foot, steadied himself, and inhaled. I could hear it, the slow rasp of breath echoing inside the helmet. What was he? The knight exploded into motion, sword stabbing toward Caprica. She barely got her shield into position, and the impact still hammered her back a step.

"He's not down yet," Caprica warned.

"We have him surrounded," Amaryllis said.

"Did that attack hurt him at all? Is he resistant to our spells or no?"

"No," Bastion said. In a flash, he was behind the knight, once again driving his sword toward the armpit. This time, the knight couldn't react fast enough, his movements stiff from the electrocution. The blade struck true, tearing through chainmail and scattering broken links into the darkness. With a shriek of steel, the knight twisted away, his arm whipping around in a backhand blow that Bastion ducked. I rushed in before the knight could follow up, jamming Weedbane between his legs and levering hard.

It was like trying to trip a statue, but it bought just enough time for Desiree to act. The foxwoman sucked in a deep, deep breath, then brought her hands close to her mouth, making a circle with her thumbs and index fingers. I could almost see the magic sparkling in the air as she set up a spell I'd never seen before. Then she blew out, like someone trying to blow out a candle from all the way across a table. Superheated fire erupted forward like dragonbreath, engulfing the knight in white-hot flame.

He raised an arm to protect his face, then turned to bring his sword up. Amaryllis flung a short blast into his face. Not lightning, but more like a big whump of wind. It sent my hair and ears waving back and scattered dust across the room, but it also shoved the knight back. He crashed backwards, landing with a clatter of steel on the ground that rang out across the room. In an instant, Bastion closed in, stomping a boot down on the knight's wrist to keep his swordarm in place.

He almost leaned in to stab, but the knight tried to grab at him, and so Bastion ended up pinning his other arm down with his sword.

"Take him out," he ordered.

"Aim for above the gorget." The knight started to struggle and shout.

"They took Solace from us! Unworthy worthy ones! Traitors to our oath! We are without Solace!"

"What's Solace?" I asked. He kicked out, and I hissed as his foot caught me in the shin. That hurt! It was like clunking my femur against a table leg or something. I hopped on my other foot, rubbing at my shin which was definitely gonna bruise.

"Solace is the freedom given us by our oath and purpose. And the traitors took that from us!" The knight thrashed again, armour clanging as Bastion leaned more weight onto his pinned arm. Caprica stepped in beside him, shield raised, sword angled down, ready in case the knight managed to wrench himself free.

"Please stop? We just have a few questions?"

"Our oath bound us," the knight gasped, seeming to ignore me.

"We stood watch. We guarded the path. In return, we were granted Solace. Rest. Purpose. A release from endless vigilance." His gauntleted hand flexed weakly against Bastion's boot.

"Then it was taken. The doors sealed. The call unanswered. We were left to stand… and stand… and stand! We are without Solace!" I glanced at my friends, but they didn't seem to understand any more than I did.

"We should put an end to it," Amaryllis said calmly.

"It's... suffering, I think."

"It feels a bit wrong to do that to someone we captured," I muttered, with a grimace.

"Captured?" Bastion asked. He grunted as he tried to lock the arm he was on in place.

"Hardly. This one is still trying to kill us, Captain Bunch."

"Oh." I closed my eyes and Caprica... did what had to be done. The knight, at last, stopped moving, and I let out a breath.

"So... what's Solace?"

"I have not the faintest," Amaryllis said.

"The way they speak of it, it must be of utmost importance to them," Desiree replied.

"Yeah," I agreed.

"And it doesn't sound like a root thing... whatever it is." My eyes drifted to the motionless armor of the knight. The sound of his struggles still echoed in my ears. Amaryllis said he was suffering. He... he was, right? Enough that death was kinder? I forced my eyes away, scanning the room, hoping against hope that there was some kind of explanation to find.