A few minutes prior, the group had reached a consensus allowing Strom to have a private conversation with the slum's king. Currently, Aaron and Marcus were leading the group to the King's private chamber where most decisions were made.
"You can't be serious Aaron!" Whined Sigexe who walked behind the group while rubbing his sore neck.
"Oh really? And which idiot led this guy down here again?" Shot back Aaron.
"Hey, I'm just here to have a friendly chat, that's all." Strom reiterated to calm some of the apparent malice in the group.
Marcus didn't add anymore to the conversation besides the occasional head swivel to keep an eye out for any sudden movements from the Roman.
Strom simply smiled in response while scratching the back of his head.
'Yeah... I figured it would be something like this...' He thought while detaching his attention from the current group to study the subterranean surroundings.
As he had seen when he originally gazed past the metal door, the sanctum and haven for the slums was quite large. The sanctum seemed to only be accessible from the gate he had previously entered. On the ceiling and walls there were only small cracks providing a small amount of ventilation. However, with the number of heads continuing to increase in number, Strom was certain such accommodations would not last very long.
It seemed like a majority of the total Zephyr populace was down here in these old catacombs fighting for survival.
This scene reminded him of his other purpose for meeting with this Aaron.
"Looks like you guys have a lot of people siding with your rebellion down here." Tactfully commented Strom.
Aaron's eyebrows hidden behind the cloak lifted slightly in surprise as he stopped before the door to his chamber.
"You seem to have some knowledge of us Roman. Are you that confident on making it out of here alive afterwards." Responded Aaron thoughtfully while pushing open the door and beckoning the Roman in with a conflicted smile.
"I guess we'll find out who walks away after our little chat." Shrugged Strom while confidently pushing past Aaron into the chamber with the flick of his own cloak.
Marcus's hand drifted towards his sword wrapped in rags at his waist and started to move forward, but Aaron's hand blocked his approach.
"It's alright, it doesn't seem like he has any ill intentions. If he did... Sigexe would not still be standing." Nodded Aaron towards the impulsive teenager.
As if on cue, Sigexe awkwardly laughed before shrinking away from the group to avoid any more possible punishment.
"Stand guard at the door and make sure no one disturbs us." Ordered Aaron as he patted Marcus's shoulder and gestured towards Sigexe; He followed after Strom into the chamber and closed the door behind them.
Strom scanned the small room and noticed the chamber for this "king" was housing more than one person. Noting this in the back of his mind, he kept on high alert in case more people tried to pop out of nowhere and surround him when least expected.
Looking back towards the cloaked king, Strom raised his hands from beneath his cloak to show he came without aggression in mind, unless necessary of course.
"As I said before; I'm just here to talk." He said with his hands still raised.
The cloaked king did not respond this time and instead walked over to a broken desk in the one corner of the room and sat down.
Finally the king answered after a moment of silence.
"I can somewhat guess as to why you're here, but tell me yourself. What is it that you have come down here for?" Questioned the king without removing his cloak or rags obscuring his features.
Instead of answering the question, Strom walked over to the desk and stopped beside the king without looking at him, but at the crates beside them.
An uncomfortable feeling crept into Strom's senses from the stack of nearby crates at their end of the chamber.
"I'm sure your more curious as to who I am, but before we introduce ourselves, let's make our intentions known first." The king pressed again after seeing the Roman unwilling to respond.
Taking his attention away from the crates beside them, Strom snorted.
"I thought you wanted this chat to be private but apparently not." Mused Strom.
The king sighed before calling the kids out.
"Alright you two, leave us."
Suddenly, a young girl and boy in their early teens appeared from behind some other crates on the opposite side of the room.
"But Aaron! It was just about to get good!" Complained Seri as she climbed over the crates along with Jin.
Jin merely huffed and dusted off the book firmly held between his hands.
The appearance of the two kids shocked Strom.
'Now thinking about it there were four of us in our group back then...'
Thinking back to the kid he had caught above the underground slum's headquarters and now these two familiar faces, Strom was more sure that the man under the cloak might be his Aaron.
However it was too early for a possible reunion.
"You guys heard me, out!" Ordered Aaron sternly from beneath the cloak as he pointed towards the door.
The two young kids hung their heads but obediently exited the chamber before closing the door behind them.
"Alright, now it's just us." Calmly stated Aaron.
But Strom surprised him again.
"Hmmm... Not quite."
In the blink of an eye, Strom unsheathed a sword hidden underneath his cloak and stabbed into the crate beside the two young men that gave him the uneasy feeling.
A loud yelp resounded from the crate with blood shortly exiting the hole after Strom pulled his sword back out of it.
"What!" Exclaimed Aaron as he unsheathed his sword as well.
"Calm down, it isn't one of yours." Coolly waved Strom as he forcefully kicked the poked crate down from the top of the stack.
Another surprised yell came from the falling wooden crate before it splintered on the floor. A grimy man in rags was revealed amongst the broken pieces of wood, clutching a deep wound running through the side of his chest.
"Say your affiliation!" Threatened Strom as his sword pricked the crouching man's neck.
The man with a narrow face resembling that of a rat smirked with his stained teeth.
"The council... Knows of your sins... If I were you... Blaaggghhh... I'd be more worried about the people outside..." Laughed the rat like criminal as blood trickled from the corners of his mouth and painted the floor with every cough.
Aaron and Strom quickly turned their heads as screams erupted from outside the chamber.
"Shit! They moved sooner than I anticipated!" Angrily cursed Aaron under his breath as he rushed back towards the door.
Strom watched as the king rushed out to help defend his kingdom. Turning his attention back to the rat bastard at the tip of his sword he asked one last question.
"How many!"
"Enough for all of your dea-"
The rat's words were silenced as Strom pierced his sword straight through the bastard's throat.
"I figured..." He sighed while racing after the king to discover the source of bloodshed.
Screams echoed off the walls of the sanctum as frail people in rags were slaughtered left and right. Flames from the small fires scattered around spread, as the embers that were kicked about in the panic ignited on makeshift shelters and rags, littering the large enclosed area.
The armors of the Zephyr kingdom's soldiers glinted in a grimacing light from the fire as blood splattered across the proud designs on their chests.
Strom's eyes burned as he strained his eyes to find the king through the smoke beginning to suffocate the space. After crouching to avoid the screen of smoke, he found the familiar tan skinned warrior he had met at the gate amongst some other smaller figures.
Strom rushed over to the group resisting a group of Zephyr soldiers.
"Stay behind me!" Shouted Marcus to the three kids as he and Aaron slayed any soldiers blocking their path.
The large man grimaced as stray embers burned parts of his skin that were exposed under his rags.
However, the speed of his short sword never slowed as he continued to cut down any soldiers approaching the group. Likewise, Aaron was cloaked death itself as his saber and dagger slid between the armors of the soldiers confronting him.
"Need some help?" Asked Strom as he sliced straight through the armor of two soldiers rushing towards the preoccupied Aaron.
"Do what you want! My only focus is the kids!" Grumbled Aaron as he countered the incoming sword aimed for his face.
Strom slew another soldier trying to move past their front towards the kids behind them.
"There's too many of them in here! We need to push towards the gate if there is any hope of escape!" Strom yelled towards the other two men as they continued to press forwards.
"Alright! Marcus open up your side more! We'll go straight for the gate over there!" Ordered Aaron after acknowledging Strom's strategy.
"Let me through I can help!" Yelled a young voice from behind them.
"What and end up like our older brother? Stay right behind us you little shit! We'll handle this!" Barked Aaron at Sigexe who tried to press forward with them.
Strom's ears twitched after hearing Aaron's words but there was no time at the moment to press anything else other than the soldiers in front of them.
The group slowly made their way closer and closer to the metal door leading into the trapped sanctum.
Seri began to cough uncontrollably behind them as Jin offered his cloak to help cover her face from the thick smoke.
"The smoke is getting to unbearable for the kids! We need to get out now!" Yelled Marcus who heard the coughing fit behind them between the ringing of metal blades.
"Not just the kids, our people are getting worse too..." Coughed Aaron as he dodged a thrusted spear and dug his dagger into the opposing soldier's neck.
People from the slums were being killed off like flies with only a few of them able to resist. However, the smoke would soon kill off everyone regardless of the struggle.
"E- Ev- Every-"
The smoke was now even too much for Aaron to clearly yell his commands anymore as he held the rag covering his mouth to block it out more.
"Everyone follow us to the gate! We're opening a path!" Yelled Strom instead as he deflected a sword directed at Aaron who was currently having a coughing fit himself.
"Th- Thank-"
"Save it! We need to focus all our energy on getting out of here!" Strom interrupted as he stepped in front of Aaron, beside Marcus, to continue their push.
As they inched closer and closer to the gate which was now only a few meters away, people from the slums flocked behind them. Those who were more able, protected the group from the sides, while the more frail stuck together in the center of the formation.
Slowly the line of people made their way to the gate, with Strom and Marcus acting as a spearhead to clear the path in front.
Finally reaching the gate, Strom and Marcus stepped to the opposite sides of the doorway to defend it as they ushered the people through.
"Everyone go through quickly! Get out of the smoke!" Shouted Strom and Marcus as they defended their position from the soldiers now flocking back to the gate from the other areas of the sanctum.
Surviving residents of the slums, who had helped protect the people, stayed with Strom and Marcus to help fend off the tides of Zephyr soldiers. The other people of the slums rushed through the gate quickly to escape from the smothering within.
The smoke continued to thicken inside the sanctum until it left only a foot of space near the floor clear with normal air. At this point, vision was nonexistent for Strom and Marcus who now only relied on the glinting Zephyr armor and instincts to identify their enemies.
"Alright I think everyone's through!" Shouted Marcus as he kicked a group of soldiers back away from the gate.
"You go through first I got this!" Grimaced Strom as the smoke burned the back of his throat and teared up his reddening eyes.
"What? No, I got it!" Coughed Marcus beside him.
"Oh for fuck's sake!" Groaned Strom as he dove into the resilient warrior after performing a large horizontal slash to momentarily push back the crowding soldiers.
The two men flew through the gate, exiting the smoke, as they fell onto the stone floor outside of the sanctum.
"Close the gate!" Croaked Aaron next to them with a strained voice.
The screeching of iron hinges squealed as a group of people from the slums dug their backs against the door and their feet into the cracked stone floor.
The suffocating soldiers tried to push through the massive metal door but were unsuccessful as the residents began piling stones from the cracked hallway against it.
In the matter of moments the door was completely entombed with stone as the people of the slums raced back and forth to transfer more stones while others began to step away from the door after feeling less resistance.
Screaming pleas and fists banging on the metal door echoed down the catacomb halls as the soldiers, being cooked and suffocated alive by the smoke and flames, tried to escape to no avail.
As the slums caught their breath and heavily breathed in the clearer air outside the sanctum, the noise from the other side of the gate began to die down.
The momentary peace ended as the marching of boots shook the ground above their heads.
"Our haven has been compromised! Everyone follow me! We'll escape through the catacombs!" Commanded Aaron who brought the panicking people back to their senses.
In order to survive, the people all resolutely accepted the command and followed after their leader deeper into the catacombs.
Strom, Marcus, and the kids closely followed alongside Aaron.
"Alright... Let go... I don't need your help!" Grumbled Marcus who was held up by Strom's assisting shoulder.
"Whatever you say." Sighed Strom as he let go of the large wounded man.
"Th-Thanks..."
Strom pretended he didn't hear the murmuring of the proud warrior and only slightly nodded his head before rushing off to lift Seri off of her wobbling feet.
"Hey!"
"Shut up. We can't be slow even for a moment, so bear with it." Groaned Strom under his increased load again.
"It's alright. We'll rest up ahead after gaining some more distance from this area." Commented Aaron who slowed his pace slightly to check on Marcus.
"What are we gonna do now?" Quietly asked Sigexe.
But no one in the group had the mood to give an answer as they continued to run through the crumbling catacomb halls.