The strange relic was laid out onto the table between the three men. Axus lifted the old silver-chained necklaces up from the table.
As the commander studied it under the light, the jet black stoned pendant on the necklace sparked with a grimacing light.
"This thing doesn't seem like anything unusual." Commented Axus.
"Let me see that." Complained Daren before snatching the jewelry out from the short man's uncultured hands.
"Huh, this is extremely old. Probably by a couple centuries at that. Look at the unique engravings on the chain." Said Daren who studied the relic like an old scholar.
Strom peered over the general's shoulder to get a closer look at the details the man had pointed out.
The silver chain had intricate carvings embedded in its small silver links. But, what caught Strom's eyes the most was the ominous red pulsing gem housed at the bottom of the necklace. The strange gem was jet black with sparkling red veins, that looked like ruby, dotting its surface.
"What about the jewel?" Asked Strom.
"Hm, I'm not really sure. I've never seen anything like it. Not even the jewelers at the capital of the empire have such a strange gem." Explained Daren, dumbfounded.
"Whatever, we will hand it over along with the royalty when the legionnaire comes." Said Axus with little interest.
"A legionnaire is going to be coming here?" Asked Strom in surprise.
"Yes, I guess I never really told you about that before. But, after the conquest of a kingdom, a legionnaire will be dispatched from the empire to rule over it until our management is set into place." Explained Axus.
Strom had heard stories of the legionnaires from his parents. According to his father, the legionnaires were god-like beings who could topple kingdoms single-handedly.
"Which is why you're even here to begin with, right? The commander here is going to be the next legionnaire." Teased Daren, who placed the necklace back down on the table and elbowed the short man.
"It is inevitable." Acknowledged the Axus without any emotion.
Strom wasn't surprised that his commander was a candidate for a legionnaire position. The little man was indeed a terrifying creature.
However, right now, Strom did not have any time to wait around and celebrate with the men over his commander's promotion.
If he did not reunite with Marcus to retrieve the children or find his brother soon, then Strom would not be able to relax.
"Alright, I'll leave those mercenaries to you guys then. I'll head back and regroup with Marcus. Where should we meet you then?" Hurriedly asked Strom.
"Let's rendezvous at the palace. I should've scared off their commander earlier, so we should be able to push back these bastards until then." Replied Axus.
"What about Amira?" Asked Storm in confusion.
"You didn't know? There was some sneaky bastard mixed in with their troops and it was pretty obvious he was in control of them." Explained Axus.
Strom felt a headache at the thought of someone else working alongside Amira. Especially one with such strength as to go against his commander.
"Alright, well we will meet you at the palace then." Agreed Strom before departing from the two men.
"Do you think he'll be alright without the help of any of our men?" Asked Daren to Axus.
"He'll be just fine. Why do you think I recruited him to my legion in the first place?" Responded Axus.
"What do you mean "your legion", you're not a legionnaire yet." Joked Daren.
"Should I take care of some more of those bastards so that it's guaranteed?" Quipped Axus.
"No! And there better not be any more demolished buildings or districts either, you asshole!" Angrily replied Daren as he slapped his forehead with his hand.
Strom finally arrived back at the building where he had left Marcus to protect the kids. But strangely, Marcus was no longer standing in front of the small building.
'Shit, what did that idiot do?' Worriedly thought Strom.
He quickly kicked down the door to the residence and entered into the small abode.
He found Marcus sitting in a chair at the small table by the kitchen with the man's back facing him.
"Hey! What happened to staying on guard?" Asked Strom as he smacked the burly man's back.
The large warrior slumped forward with his face hitting the table.
"What the-"
"Welcome back, Strom." Sweetly drifted a voice from behind him.
Strom turned back towards the now blocked doorway of the house.
"Amira." Cursed Strom.
"Don't worry about Marcus. He's just taking a break while I cover for him." She said while laughing.
"Where are the kids? No, where's my brother?" Strom angrily asked.
"Don't worry about the kids. They're just fine, so long as you help me out with a little something." Replied Amira as she ran her fingers through her hair.
"What do you want?" He begrudgingly asked.
"Nothing much… I'm just searching for a lost necklace of mine. It's very dear to me and I think I misplaced it back in the palace." She explained.
Strom reached for his sword at his waist at the realization of what was the item she was searching for.
However, a small dagger was implanted into the wooden table next to him, just grazing his hand and stopping his movement.
"Let's be civilized about this. I want my necklace and you want the kids. Actually, it's a losing trade for me when you think about it." She slyly persuaded.
Strom removed his hand from his scabbard.
'The necklace of the king… What is she planning?' He thought.
"I don't have all day, you know. You Roman bastards have been making this whole ordeal a lot tougher than it was supposed to be. Let's see, if the necklace is not brought to me at the front of the palace in two hours… then you can forget about your little friends." She promised.
Strom glared at the spiteful woman but there was nothing he could do in this situation. The woman was clearly more deadly than he had anticipated her to be as he looked back at the dagger embedded in the table beside him.
It wasn't a huge surprise that Marcus had fallen to one of her traps, but currently not having his strength available to him left Strom without a choice but to accept.
Strom begrudgingly walked back towards the door of the building and stopped beside the cunning woman.
"Does Aaron know about your little secret?" He whispered.
He noticed a slight flinch from the woman before he exited the building.
'Damn it… I need to get back to Axus and Daren so I can figure this mess out. And where in the hell is Aaron?' Stressfully thought Strom.
He didn't have time anymore to worry about his brother. With the prince and princess's lives on the line, and probably Marcus's as well, he didn't have the luxury to waste any time finding his brother. He could only hope that the Roman soldiers would capture him safely as he had discussed with Daren.
Strom ran back through the noble district but was stopped about halfway from the main plaza.
'No way, they already pushed through to here already?'
Strom was astonished by the empire's might once again as he was greeted by the scene of battle raging in front of him.
The black robed mercenaries' numbers were becoming thinner and thinner as the Romans easily pushed them back through the plaza. The Roman's line of attack continued to push forward quickly as the mercenaries in contrast began to fall faster at the ends of their blades.
"Seize the plaza!" Ordered Daren from behind the roman troops with Axus standing next to him.
Strom ran over to help his comrades finish off the remaining mercenaries who were left behind by their commander.
The skirmish in the plaza ended in the Romans' victory but it was short lived for Axus and Daren, who noticed Strom's return without the prince or princess in his presence.
"What happened? I thought we were supposed to meet at the palace?" Asked Daren in concern as Strom finally got through to his superiors.
"There was a complication." Replied Strom with a cloud over his usually optimistic expression.
"Is that so?" Said Axus who reached for the spear on his back in anticipation.
Daren stepped in front of the commander with his hand placed over the man's spear.
"Hold on, we haven't even heard what he has to say yet. Don't go rushing off and cause more chaos!" Said Daren in anguish of his relentless commander.
"So what is the problem?" Asked Daren, who finally sighed in relief after seeing the commander remove his hand from his spear.
"I went back to meet with Marcus as planned, but Amira got there before I did. She's asking for the necklace I found in return for the prince and princess unharmed." Replied Strom exasperatedly.
Axus caressed his small chin with his hand before adding in his two cents.
"So, we can just kill her then."
"No! What about the royalty?" Said Daren with annoyance.
"What? War has many casualties. What's the issue with two more?" Axus emotionlessly replied.
"I really worry about that lack of empathy of yours sometimes commander…" Said Daren while slapping his face once again.
"Well, either way, we need to figure out something soon before Amira makes another move. She gave me two hours to meet with her at the front of the palace with the necklace, and whether or not she keeps her promise, I gave my oath to watch over them…" Trailed off Strom.
"It's alright, Strom. We've got your back. Let's keep to the original plan for the most part. We'll meet this little conniving bitch at the palace and see what they want at least." Responded Daren.
"Yes, and I'll kill her." Added Axus while nodding.
Strom and Daren glanced at each other after their commander's brutish words before agreeing as well.
"She needs to be eliminated, but let's not make any hasty movements until after the negotiation." Daren said as the voice of reason.
Strom agreed with the general. He needed to get the children back safely and hopefully Marcus as well. However, Amira was dangerous. Not just for the Zephyr kingdom but the empire too. It was clear that whatever organization these mercenaries and her were from was not good. If they allowed such snakes to go free, then they could be putting the futures of the empire and its kingdoms at risk.
"So the necklace then." Said Strom as he gestured towards Daren.
"Don't worry, we still have it. I'll hold on to it and do the negotiating. No hard feelings, Strom, but it's probably best if I handle the talking." Suggested Daren.
"I understand…" Murmured Strom as he lowered his head.
He didn't like it, but what the general suggested made sense. They needed a third party, who was not emotionally involved, to negotiate in order to reap the best results. If Strom was the one who met with Amira, then there was no telling what kind of deal he would agree to.
Strom decided this was the best course of action. He still was worried about his brother, and the kids were bound to him as well. If Amira threatened their lives, he was unsure whether he could still remain composed for the overall good of their side.
At the front of said palace, Amira dragged along the two brats, who had their wrists bound by a thick rope, which had been tied between the two.
"Keep moving kiddos, we need to greet that favorite soldier of yours when he returns." She said in a cold voice.
"W-What do you plan on doing with us?" Whimpered the princess.
"Don't worry about it princess. Strom will be here. He has to be. Whether he comes because of you or his brother, he'll show up with my necklace." She replied but it sounded more like she was reassuring herself rather than her hostages.
"What about that warrior?" Feebly asked the young prince, who had remained quiet up until now.
"Marcus? He'll be fine. He's just knocked out from the drink I made him. That idiot will probably wake up thinking he fell asleep on the job." Amira responded while waving her hand as if it was of no concern to her.
"What do you want with the necklace?" Asked the princess, who began to try and piece together their predicament.
"Don't you already know? I figured your father had already told you." Said Amira in slight surprise.
The young princess shook her head. Her father had often told her and her brother bedtime stories about their ancestors and the necklace. But, not even the king could recall its actual purpose or relevance.
"Well, you will all realize soon enough." Answered Amira with her intentions still remaining hidden.
She made sure the ropes were still tight around the two children, before letting them rest on the stone steps leading up to the palace.
She stood below the steps and waited for her opponent to appear, so that she could finally end her mission.
"He's here, with friends too, it looks like…" Whispered Amira after catching a glimpse of the crowd approaching in the distance.