Jack ducked as a silver blade swept above his head, snipping off strands of his blonde hair. Sweeping his leg, he managed to clip his enemy, causing them to fall. In a smooth motion, Jack drove his sword in the assailant's chest, piercing through their leather vest.
Beads of sweat slid down his face as he quickly scanned the area.
Tens of bodies lay scattered across the road. Teressa swung her blade as the blood that dripped from it splattered across the wall. With a clean weapon, she sheathed her weapon.
'She's... no. I've done good too.'
Jack stopped himself from comparing the two of them. He knew she had proper training, and it was only natural for her to be stronger than him.
Someone placed a hand on his shoulder, causing Jack to turn his head.
It was Amber.
"You nearly got your head sliced off. Pay more attention to your surroundings."
Amber told him before she smiled at him.
"But you did not, so I guess you did well."
Jack was unsure how he was supposed to take this. Was this her way of complimenting him?
Teressa motioned with her head for them to follow her.
"There are a lot more than we originally imagined. This is driving me insane, how they are helplessly tossing their lives away!"
Teressa spoke aloud but did not speak to anyone specifically.
"To us, it is helpless, but to them, this is what they believe in. We are all fighting for something. This time, we just happen to be on separate sides."
Amber replied.
Jack had to agree with her. Not that long ago, he was fighting for his own life and that of his lords. He believed in honoring his word and staying loyal. However, that did not turn out the way he had hoped. He could have died, and he was glad he did not. His lord betrayed, killed them off, and even left Jacob for dead.
It was not right, but nothing was right in this world.
"It's all meaningless. You know that. We are skilled, true, but there are people on a higher level than all of us. Do they honestly believe they can take the Marshal down with their skills?"
Teressa asked.
"Vulcan seems to think so."
Jack spoke up, causing Teressa to glance back at him for a moment.
"Why are you so confident in his words? It is not like the lord is all-knowing."
Amber questioned Jack.
"It's just a feeling. I do not truly know if his words are real. I just know he is different, ever since I met him."
Jack answered.
He could still vividly recall how he met Jacob. That strange fighting stance he took up and the flow of battle. Jack was afraid to admit that he was only lucky to have won that fight. If the current Jacob fought him, Jack was sure he would lose.
He only won because Jacob back then was skin and bones. There was no real power behind his punches.
It was strange how someone that came after him had already surpassed him.
"I agree that he is different than others, but that has nothing to do with him thinking that these people can go against the empire's forces. It would take a miracle for them to win."
Teressa said as she suddenly stopped.
Jack and Amber paused as well as their group of three spotted a large group of people fighting. It was the city guards facing off against the rebels.
"Are the guards lacking, or has the standards gone down? There should be no way they should lose."
Amber said as she took note of the battle before them. The city guards were being pushed back ever so slightly. Every inch they lost cost them in blood.
"Let's help them then figure out what is going on. The watch commander should have this under control, but I fear that's not the case."
Teressa said.
Like an arrow, the two young women shot towards the group without wasting another moment. Jack couldn't help but feel respect for them both. The strength they possessed was not something to be taken lightly.
He, too, darted in their direction but at a much slower pace.
All he could do was watch as the two women nimbly weaved in and out of the enemy ranks. No matter how they swung their blade, someone always fell.
Knights were powerful, and Jack was starting to regret not taking Jacob up on his offer. To learn the secrets of those movements would be worth more than he could give.
When Jack managed to arrive, there were only three foes left standing.
"W-who are you? Did Dauntless send you guys?"
One of the guards stuttered as he asked his question. He was looking at Jack as he spoke.
Jack saw the last remaining enemy cut down and removed his hand from the hilt of his blade.
"No, we belong to Lord Lezhalt. Where are the rest of your forces?"
Jack asked.
The man shook his head.
"Lord Lezhalt? I do not know him, but thank Nessa! There are still some nobles willing to help us fight. Are there more of you?"
The man asked.
"Where are the rest of your forces? We should meet up with them to secure this district."
Jack said.
The man shook his head.
"We..."
He seemed unable to say what was on his mind as he looked down towards the ground.
"We don't know."
A woman with dark black hair said as she stepped forward.
"The watch commander is not at the watchtower, and we don't know who we can trust."
"What do you mean?"
Amber asked as she approached.
The dark black haired woman sighed deeply.
"These rebels have somehow managed to disguise themselves as us. We fought off a group before we retreated here and ran into them. That's why we could barely hold on. Our stamina is already being pushed to the limits."
The woman said as she clenched her fist, recalling what happened to her squad.
Amber looked at Teressa, who was shocked by this revelation.
"How did this happen? Don't tell me someone is conspiring against you all?"
Teressa asked as she was still stunned by what she heard.
The woman shrugged her shoulders.
"I don't know; it could be. They could have just as easily stripped the dead of their belongings. Whatever the case may be, it is impossible to tell friend from foe. This whole situation is fucked."
Amber put her hand on her blade.
"What proof is there that you guys aren't one of them?"
Jack lowered her blade that was beginning to point towards the guards.
"Why would they fight their own allies? That would not help their cause."
Jack looked at the woman.
"Tell us, how do we fix this? We can't just go around accusing all the guards, can we?"
She shook her head.
"You can't fix it. There's no way to tell them apart, not like we have a code..."
The one paused as she seemed to come to a realization.
"That's it!"
She shouted.
"Why didn't we think of this sooner. We can use the Night's watch secret code to tell if someone is an actual member or not. Only true members will understand the code."
"Well, what is it?"
Amber asked.
"The king can only sleep when the night is under watch."
The woman spoke frighteningly fast that none of them could make out a word she said.
"What?"
Teressa asked with furrowed brows.
The woman sighed.
"The king can only sleep when the night is under watch. I know, its... not the most creative... Anyway, say the first half, and if they respond with the second, you know they are allies."
The woman told them.
Amber laughed a little.
"Maybe we should come up with a code too. What do you think, Jack?"
Teressa rolled her eyes, and Jack shook his head.
"We will continue to secure this district. Any more guards we find, we will send them this way. Recover your strength and make sure the civilians are ok."
Teressa told the woman, who nodded her head.
"If you find the watch commander... can you inform her that we are sorry."
"What for?"
Jack asked curiously.
"W-we did not make it to the south gate in time. When we got there, it was already taken over by the hostile forces, so we were forced to retreat. Her son was there, and I fear he is already dead."
Amber nodded her head.
"If we find her, we'll let her know. Take care."