Reith and Marcus ended their long discussion as the opening sound of the door to the basement interrupted their conversation.
When Kellen saw the kid again, he was surprised by his changed appearance. The kid did not have any astounding physical differences, but he still felt a completely different atmosphere emitting from him when compared to before.
'I wonder what the hell happened here...'
Strom quickly paced over towards the two.
"Kid! Do you know where or who your king was meeting before the war?"
Reith stole a nervous glance towards Marcus but settled down after seeing the soldier nod his head.
"Well besides those foreigners or his own men there wasn't anyone else he met with as far as I'm aware of." Replied Reith while scratching the back of his head.
"I mean every time he discussed anything related to the war it was usually at the palace in the council room. Ah! But usually the foreigners would just sit off in the back and not engage in the discussion." The kid complained.
"The only one that actually said anything was some old man wearing some tattered robes. He was pretty strange..." He continued.
"And where is this old man now?" Said Strom trying to probe for more information.
"I'm not really sure. Although, I don't think I ever saw him actually leave the palace before. He seemed more like an advisor or old uncle that led the foreigners."
Strom looked towards Marcus and nodded his head before turning towards the others in the shop.
"Let's see if that old man is still enjoying the king's hospitality at the palace. First we will reconvene at the café to gather the rest of the men. You all witnessed what those foreigners are capable of..."
The group quickly left the shop and returned to the café. Although some slight repairs had been made to refortify their position, Kellen could tell it was not much better off than before.
The only difference was the number of soldiers that were now gathered.
'Hopefully this will be enough..'
Both Kellen and Strom had similar thoughts.
"Alright, everyone prepare to storm the palace! If those who are injured believe they can still fight then follow me! The rest will hold down the fort while we are gone!" Strom commanded as he led the group of roughly thirty soldiers towards the palace.
Kellen closely followed Strom and the few elites in anticipation for the impending battle that loomed before them.
'This time I need to gain some more experience!' He thought as he rested his hand on the sword slung next to his waist.
A shuffling sound from the doorway to the palace balcony alerted the old man.
"Did that old fool reveal anything?" Questioned the old man still stationed there.
"No, death greeted him before anything other than his own blood could be spilled." Replied the shadow.
"Good."
The flames and chaos still continued to rage throughout the city as the old man contentedly took in the scenery. Screams continued to echo out but they were now beginning to be drowned out behind the chinking sounds of marching metal.
"Looks like we will still be expecting company." Stated the old man as he caught glimpse of the Roman armor reflecting the flames in the streets.
"Tell the others to get ready we will be leaving soon." He instructed.
"As you instruct elder. But... What about the legionnaire?" Asked the shadow.
"I believe he will be arriving a little too late unfortunately. I'm sure you will get another chance for a greeting in the near future." Answered the old man as he tossed the bent crown from his hands over the balcony railing.
"We're finished here." The old man said as he smiled at the ring on his finger.
The entrance to the palace was rather large and lavish even with the subtle signs of crumbling debris and scorch marks from the flames of the city surrounding it. Kellen paused for a moment to truly inspect the massive structure.
'So this is what a palace looks like... I wonder if that ruin I first found myself in was once of this magnitude...'
Kellen could understand that most kingdoms could not last forever, especially after seeing that map of the Roman Empire. However, he did not think that within the first couple days of his arrival in this world that he would see the downfall of one so quickly.
At that moment a crown clanked down the stairs leading up to the palace and continued its warped roll until stopping at Kellen's feet.
'What's this?'
Kellen kneeled down and picked up the strange warped piece of metal.
Strom noticed Kellen had stopped his movement and was staring at something he held in his hands.
"Ah... Looks like we really were a lot later than I thought. Those bastards must have been planning this for ages."
Said the captain as he walked over to Kellen and put his hand on his shoulder.
"Come on. Even if we are late, we still have a job to finish."
Kellen nodded his head in response and let go of the now useless crown.
As the soldiers began their assault on the palace the crown continued to roll down the last set of stairs alone. The flames from the surroundings glinted and reflected off of its parts that remained shiny.
Finally it settled on the cobblestone street as citizens continued to rush about in panic. No one paid heed or even noticed the bent crown as it was kicked about and finally found its resting place in one of the filthy drainage ditches lining the edges of the street.
After the doors to the palace were finally smashed in Kellen followed the others into the large hall.
"These bastards..." Strom muttered through clenched teeth as all the soldiers took in the scene before them.
Bodies littered the hall. Their blood was already beginning to dry and coagulate. Kellen had grown used to these horrors yet was still surprised by the scene.
He looked up towards the banisters above and noticed that they were in a similar state. He noted that all the bodies here adorned fancy garments.
"These must be ministers, politicians, and wealthy patrons of the kingdom. Too bad these fancy clothes, gaudy rings, and excess amount of money cannot even save their pathetic lives."
Strom nodded his head in response to the cold words.
'I wonder if this is how the scientists back at the laboratory felt after everything was destroyed.'
Kellen wondered whether these nobles also attempted to abandon the kingdom, their life's work, when they discovered the coup.
"Search for any survivors and be careful. We don't know if any enemies are still lying in wait."
Strom ordered as the soldiers began to spread out.
"Kid, follow me to the throne room."
Kellen removed his eyes from the scene surrounding them and followed after Strom and Ceric, who was also beckoned.
The path to the throne room was no different than what had greeted their entrance. Dead officials and a few guards were slumped against the walls and floor they passed. However, Kellen noticed a new element.
"Footprints..."
"Aye, and I'm sure they lead to what we are looking for." Responded Strom with a grim expression.
"Stop, stop, stop! We need to clean this up! Look at the bloody mess they left! Couldn't they have simply written us a sign or something? Like "Hey! Were waiting over here for you ya bastards" or something!" Complained Ceric as he kicked over one of the dead guards leaned against the wall.
"Ceric how many times do I have to ex-"
Strom was unable to finish his sentence as he was interrupted by more madness.
"Yes, yes... Fucking criminal scum don't care about the messes they make." Said Ceric emphatically as he shook his head and clicked his tongue.
"R-right..." Mumbled Strom.
"Anyways, let's hurry up so I can litter these filthy bastards up with arrows. They never learn; It's the only way to stop them from spreading their disease."
Strom smacked his head with the palm of his hand.
"What disease? Are they using chemical warfare too?" Asked Kellen in confusion.
'I didn't even imagine that it could possibly exist here too...'
"No don't say that! You're just gonna get him goi-" Began Strom again.
"Chemical warfare? I don't even know what that is... But it is a warfare of sorts! A war of cleanliness! With me, the spotless archer as its vanguard! Ridding this world of the disease known as criminal filth!" Ceric exclaimed while smacking the helmet off another dead guard with the edge of his bow.
'He sounds like the Rambo version of Mr. Clean...'
Thought Kellen as he watched the ridiculous theatrics of the "spotless archer".
However, the theatrics soon died down as the trio finally found themselves before the door to the throne room.
Kellen's excitement began to increase as he noticed the bloody footprints led beyond the door as well as some handprints and claw marks around its handle.
"Looks like this is it." Muttered Strom under his breath as he sighed.
"I'll barge in first along with Kellen following closely behind me. Ceric... You know what to do. Just don't fuck this up "Vanguard of Cleanliness"!"