Chapter 5: Jack; Vagril 6th, 343SR; 07:10
Jack's heart was pounding. 'He's here, what do we do?!' He looked around the cellar frantically. There was a small stack of wooden boxes covered by a cloth, a broken pickaxe handle, and a rusty spade. All junk that wouldn't make a difference. Carol took off her coat slowly, trying to stay as quiet as she could.
"Carol... What do we do?!" Jack whispered.
She used her coat to cover the unconscious man's body. His upper torso and head were still exposed. Carol turned to her left and right. Jack waited for a response, but she walked past him instead and lifted his larger coat he left on the ground. She threw that over the man's body as well. Then hurried for the cloth on the boxes, and covered the rest of the body with that. Carol took a deep breath, then turned and looked Jack in the eyes with fierce determination.
"We're gonna take him down, obviously," Carol whispered confidently.
Carol gulped, her eyes shook, her hands trembled. Jack could even hear how heavily she breathed.
"Here's the plan, when I open the cellar door they shouldn't hear us, you head to my house, go through the back," Carol instructed as she took the key to her house out of her pocket and handed it to Jack. "I'm gonna get Alexander Rael in front of my house, and then when I give you the signal arm the explosives in the basement and get out of there," Carol explained as she placed the key in Jack's hand.
"Signal? What signal? How are you gonna get Alexand-" Jack asked frantically but Carol simply reached into Jack's pocket and took one of the purple crystals. "What are you going to do? You can't fight-"
"Open. This. Door!" Alexander ordered and cut Jack off.
Carol grabbed Jack's arm and pulled him to the cellar door.
"We don't have time, just be brave and we can both get through this, we'll take him down now and prove to the people of Logos they don't need to fear the angels!" she declared with a nervous passion in her eyes.
Carol slowly pushed the cellar door open as quietly as she could. She looked both ways before she gestured for Jack to come up. 'This is insane!' Jack climbed out of the cellar, his heart was beating out of his chest. He ran towards the back of the house as Carol slammed the cellar doors shut. He turned back to see her charge forward onto the street where Alexander Rael waited. Jack turned right and ran parallel to the houses.
'What are we doing? What am I doing?!' The possibility of being beaten, punished, or even worse killed made his heart beat even faster. He shook his head as he ran past the houses, reaching the back door. He stuck the key in and opened it quickly, he turned and was about to shut it, but took a deep breath. 'Okay... I'm here...' Jack slowly closed the door.
Jack turned and looked down the hall of the house, the silence made him anxious. He quickly made his way to the front room through the kitchen and crouched down by the window. 'It's so quiet...' Each of his footsteps creaked through the house and made Jack even more anxious.
He opened the door to the basement, the other three devices filled with logorite were exactly where Carol left them. He made his way down and lifted one, then walked back up and placed it in the hallway at the top of the steps. Jack looked down at the device and remembered the explosion it made. 'More...' He ran back down and got the rest, placing the three explosives in the middle of the hallway. 'Okay... The signal.' Jack made his way to the front window.
He eagerly watched the dirt path in front of the house, squinting at a crowd of people near his own house. 'What's going on, where is Carol? Where's Alexander?' His bounced all over his brain. All of them came to a sudden stop as Jack heard a crash a few houses down, most likely from his own. 'Is Carol okay? What do I do? What's the signal? Wait... Why did he even come to my house?!'
Jack's thoughts stopped as the crowd moved down the dirt road towards Carol's house. 'They're coming this way?' He looked back to see Carol being held captive by a woman with black hair. 'Someone from House Rael?' She wore simple black pants, and a white shirt with green decals around the edges. He felt relieved to know Carol hadn't already been killed. However, that relief quickly faded as he realized who walked down the dirt path.
Short green hair with the sides faded, a defined jawline, and his muscles visible through his clothes. The insignia of a green fist on the left side of his chest, the green greatsword he effortlessly held in a single hand. 'He's huge!' Jack's heart started to beat quickly again, regret slivered up his spine. Alexander Rael was massive, he stood over the tallest people in the crowd. 'How is he so tall! That's like eight feet?!' Among the angels, Alexander was a monster unlike any other. His menacing green eyes squinted at everything, he glanced at the window and Jack ducked out of sight.
'Shit! That was close-'
"Jack do it now!" Carol yelled.
Jack briefly turned back to the window and hesitated, before immediately scrambling across the floor to the devices. He quickly turned the round knobs on each device. The catalyst started to pour into the containers. Jack activated the last one, then hurried out the back door.
Jack turned right as he exited the house, running along the edge of the town until he reached the south entrance of Logos. He turned and crouched behind the house at the end of the path. 'What now... Carol didn't make a plan for what happens after...' He saw the crowd of people, and Carol was in front of them. She was laughing about something. He couldn't hear what was going on. 'What are you laughing about?! Get out of there you idiot!'
Jack looked down and reached into his pocket, he pulled out one of the purple crystals and held it in his hand. Alexander tossed his sword to Carol.
"Huh?" Jack uttered out loud.
Carol looked down at the sword in front of the crowd. Jack watched as her expression turned to fear, the thumps of his heartbeat grew louder as he listened to the silence. She reached down to pick up the green great sword. She lifted the handle but even Jack could see from a distance that the sword was too heavy for her.
"What is she doing?!" Jack stressed from where he stood. "The device will explode soon! Run! Get out of there! Before-" Jack froze as he watched Alexander roll up his sleeves.
"This is why you non-unified..." Alexander pulled his arm back. "Should be grateful!" Alexander roared as he threw a ruthless punch at Carol.
Jack flinched as the fist struck her, the echo alone sending shivers down his spine. His thoughts completely stopped as he watched Carol stumble backward. The people in the crowd moved out of the way as she fell on her back. Rather than help her, they just watched. Jack didn't hear her scream like the last time she was beaten in the mines. Her body curled up as she held her nose. She struggled to her feet, only to end up back on the ground after Alexander slammed both his fists into her back.
"Stop..." Jack shook his head.
Jack felt his head throb as the world seemed to slow down. Alexander threw Carol into the house like she was a rag doll.
"Stop it..." Jack begged with grit teeth.
The noble quickly got in front of her and punched her in the stomach. Then lifting her head, for a moment Jack saw the pain on her face, only for Alexander to swing his fist into it once more. Each beat of Alexander's fists made Jack wince despite not being the one hit. He looked away as he skipped a breath, but looked back and watched in horror as Alexander just kept going.
"Stop it already..." Jack continued pointlessly.
Alexander grabbed her entire head with just one hand, hoisting her up to the crowd. Her legs flailed weakly, trying to kick the noble in vain.
"Stop you bastard!" Jack whispered with grit teeth as tears flooded down his face.
Jack tried to leave his cover. 'Huh... I can't move my legs...' His legs shook, his arm had goosebumps across the surface, and sweat dripped off his face. His attention was drawn back as he heard Alexander yell. Tears ran down Jack's face, frustration made his head throb, and his cowardice was making everything worse. But his eyes went wide as he saw Alexander raise his greatsword. 'Stop-' The noble stabbed his greatsword into her torso, smothering her body in green flames.
Jack stood behind the house motionless, he remembered the portrait of his parents as he stood up. He walked forward out of his cover, taking small steps toward the violent scene even though he felt his body shiver. 'Carol...' Alexander looked around frantically as if he expected him. Jack quickly darted behind another house.
'Run, run, run, run, just run...' Jack begged himself, but he felt unspeakable rage brewing within him. He looked back at his leg and noticed he didn't shake, his head throbbed, and his hands stung. A violent drive fueled Jack's will.
Alexander suddenly ran into Carol's house and barged in. After a second of silence, an explosion blew the house open. Jack curled up as the sound shook his ears and rumbled the ground. He peeked around the corner. Alexander's silhouette flew out of the green explosion that engulfed the house. The townsfolk suddenly entered a frenzy. Many screamed in terror, others turned and stormed off, and few remained just to finish watching the spectacle.
"Sir!" Vivian screamed.
Jack's senses suddenly shot into action, and he ran forward to help Carol amidst the panic. Alexander's body writhed on the ground a short distance away. The large man grunted and screamed as his clothes caught fire and burned at his skin. Jack ran forward to save Carol. 'I have to save her- I-' Carol's body was burned from the waist up, beaten and pummeled, and then stabbed through with a greatsword. She was already dead, with a smile on her face.
Jack's rapid heartbeat came to a stop, a chill ran down his spine as his shoulders slumped weakly. Jack stood there as tears poured out of his eyes. He dropped to his knees and the tears flowed faster, splashing onto the dirt. He sat still, between multiple flaming pieces of debris, Alexander Rael's smouldering body, and the house that was set ablaze.
'Why didn't you run...' Alexander suddenly rose from within the inferno of green flames, he writhed and struggled in pain. Jack glanced to his left, the rush of anger returning as he glared at the noble. 'You... You!' Jack stood up and reached into his pocket, he clutched the purple crystal in his fist as he saw Alexander getting up.
Alexander stood up and a green light engulfed his body, his figure appeared to become larger in the fire. He fell forward out of the flames and donned silver armor with green gems embedded in it. Alexander rolled around in the dirt, frantically trying to put out the remaining flames.
Jack looked past Alexander and noticed the townspeople couldn't see what was happening. Pieces of debris ignited by green flames surrounded the scene. 'Die!' Jack whipped the purple crystal at Alexander, and it exploded into a purple flame on impact. The noble let out a blood-curdling scream as the fire engulfed him. The force pushed Jack back, but he held his ground and stepped forward. He pulled another crystal out of his pocket.
"Die!" Jack screamed.
He quickly grabbed another and whipped it.
"Just die!" Jack roared.
The shadow of the noble continued to writhe within the purple and green inferno of flame. He grabbed another crystal and got ready to throw it as hard as he could, but a hand grasped his wrist before he let go.
"Huh!?" Jack huffed.
Jack turned to see an angel around his height with black hair and piercing red eyes. 'When did he get behind me-' Jack looked at his white coat with red lines and knew immediately he wasn't some nobody. He was from a noble house, and his chest had the insignia of a dragon coiled around a spear on it. He tore the purple crystal right out of Jack's grip effortlessly, then walked toward the burning Alexander. Jack struggled to break out of his grip but felt his body get yanked upwards as the man suddenly jumped. Jack felt himself get pulled off the ground by the arm.
"Wha-!" Jack uttered as he looked down and noticed the angel had jumped high into the air, a red trail of light seemed to follow him.
'What the!?' Jack stopped trying to pull away from his grip and held onto the mysterious angel's arm. Jack felt his smooth skin turn to rough armor, a black gauntlet formed around the hand that held his wrist. He looked up as pieces of black armor materialized and wrapped around the man's body. The armor felt rough, it had hundreds of black scales layered on top of one another. The black-haired angel lifted his other hand and a black spear appeared with a curved black blade at the end of it.
"Balakin!" he suddenly yelled.
He pointed the edge of his spear at the flame. A red light flashed behind Jack, and a gigantic black snake-like lizard with wings materialized out of thin air just like the armor. It flew high into the air and circled him. The angel landed on the creature's back and let go of Jack. 'Wait!' Jack immediately fell onto the creature, but grasped a jagged scale. 'Ah!' Jack held on to the beast for his life, the scales on the creature seemed like the scales on the man's armor. Jack's stomach turned as felt the beast head straight down to the ground in front of the crowd of people, before bellowing out a guttural roar. The dragon's roar was strong enough to push the flames off Alexander Rael, revealing the unconscious noble. He was on the ground with his skin charred black and his jaw wide open. 'He has to be dead...'
"Vivian! Head back to Helios and alert my squad and House Lightbringer's squadron to get down to Logos, Alexander needs treatment immediately, tell them it's an emergency and it's my order!" the man on top of the dragon demanded.
'Did he say my squad?' It slowly sunk in who this person was. He recalled the rumors he had heard while he was in Torovince, about a man who became the youngest noble in history. 'Arthur... Pendragon...' Jack felt a chill down his spine when he realized that a noble just caught him.
"All of you get to work, anyone who was assigned to mining, go clear out the debris blocking the mine this instant, you've wasted enough time standing here, go! Farmers get to work, those of you assigned to the northwest farms, I want you to avoid the burned crops for now, so you can just split yourselves among the other farms, we'll have personnel there to deal with it appropriately, now go!" Arthur ordered strictly.
Arthur stepped off Balakin. His armor, spear, and the dragon all dissolved into red particles of light. Jack fell a short distance, landing on his side as Arthur landed on his feet. 'Agh!' Vivian covered her mouth as she looked at Alexander's body.
"S-sir..." Vivian uttered.
"Vivian, I gave you an order!" Arthur scolded.
"Y-Yes, sir!" Vivian snapped out of her shock.
A pair of black wings sprouted out of her back, and she flew north towards Helios. The crowd of people scattered as they looked back at the noble's burnt body. It had been the first time they saw one hurt to that point.
Arthur watched the crowd intently, he made sure they each left the scene while Jack was on his knees. He couldn't take his eyes off the young noble who was probably going to execute him on the spot. 'This is it... I'm dead.' Too focused on his impending doom, to register the dragging in the dirt behind him. 'Huh...' Jack turned and his eyes went wide. He felt a sudden rush of fear as he slowly looked up at the figure that loomed over him. 'No... There's no way...' His suspicions were confirmed as he saw Alexander Rael on his feet, his veins lit up green and his skin began to heal.
"There you are," Alexander croaked with a rasped throat, his eyes wide with rage.
Alexander Rael's skin was charred from head to toe, scraps of his clothing drifted in the wind. His hair was burned off completely, and his was face scarred with a deep red burn that traveled down his neck and burned most of his chest. His skin was still slightly lit purple along the burnt parts of his skin, and his veins pulsed green. Even though he looked like a corpse, he still walked forward. 'Why...' Jack was frozen in fear, his legs didn't move, and his mouth hung ajar as the noble stood over him. Alexander raised his hand weakly into the air, and his greatsword appeared.
"Jack!" Alexander roared.
Alexander charged forward and swung his blade, but Arthur got between them and blocked the strike with his spear. Arthur's feet dragged against the dirt. He grit his teeth, grunting as he held the strike back. Alexander let go of his blade as he fell to the ground and panted heavily, the damage from earlier seemed to do more than Jack thought.
"Arthur... You fool, that boy... Kill him... Kill Jack... Or he'll kill... All of us," Alexander uttered in a weakened state as he struggled to keep his head up.
'What... What did he just say...' The noble fell face-first into the dirt. Arthur knelt next to his body and put his finger on his neck.
"He's still alive... Why did he say that just now..." Arthur asked himself. "No, there's no time for that," he said as he suddenly turned to Jack and looked him in the eyes. "You... I know what you did, don't bother trying to hide it. Where is the body?"
Jack froze. "H-how do you-"
"Shut up and tell me if you want to live! The other angels will be here soon, hurry up and tell me!" Arthur cut him off.
"H-He's in the cellar... A-at my house... My friend... Carol she..." Jack stuttered.
"Show me," Arthur ordered.
Jack stood up, shaking in fear as his eyes were glued to the young noble.
"I'm not going to kill you now please hurry up, you're embarrassing yourself," Arthur asked impatiently.
Jack led him to his house not too far from where they were. The two walked silently, Jack continued to glance back to the scene.
"That girl... Was she your friend?" Arthur asked.
Jack turned and looked at him but he kept his pace. His heart beat heavily as he believed he could die at any moment.
"Yeah..." Jack's voice cracked.
The two of them reached the house, Jack led him around the side to the cellar. He opened the cellar doors and walked in, Arthur followed behind. Arthur glanced around the cellar, his nose twitching at the dampness.
"The moment the first purple explosion happened, I saw you and the girl dragging a body through the fields from the mountain, and you left tracks back at that thing in the woods," Arthur explained.
Jack lifted the cloth revealing the unconscious man. Arthur tilted his head as he crouched next to him.
"The crystals, where did those come from?" Arthur asked calmly as he observed the man.
"They came out of his blood... But his wounds closed while we dragged him here," Jack explained.
"While you dragged him here? There was blood all over the place back in the forest with crystals sprouting out of them, how bad was the wound?" Arthur asked.
"I don't know how he's alive... We could see right through him earlier. What are you going to do with him, is he an angel?" Jack asked with a nervous tone.
Arthur put his hand to his chin and thought for a moment. "Did anyone else see him?"
"No..."
"If those crystals are that powerful, and they are coming out of his blood, he has a gift from the Celestial and a powerful one at that. It's good you got him here without being seen," said Arthur.
"What? What do you mean that's good?" Jack felt even more confused.
"You're going to help me, and you don't have a choice in the matter..." Arthur suddenly declared. "You're going to keep this guy here, and make sure no one finds out he exists. No one. Not even other slaves."
"Huh..." Jack shook his head.
"I'm sorry, this all must be very sudden... I don't have time to explain why I am doing this, but just know... I am on your side..." Arthur told him as he turned toward the exit of the cellar.
"What? Wait... You're working against your own?! Do you know who- Or what he is?" Jack asked.
"No, but it's for the best if he's out of the angel's hands... More importantly... I was never here, you never threw the crystal at Alexander, I saved you from the explosion, and no one ever finds out about him." Arthur pointed at the body. "I assume you did what you did to see these corrupt bastards fall. That's what I want as well. Go back to your usual life for now... And maybe... Just maybe we can change this twisted world..."
Arthur ordered Jack while he looked him directly in the eyes. There was a certain intensity to the noble, something that made him hard to doubt. Jack gulped, feeling an uncomfortable relief at the thought that he wasn't going to die.
"I'll come back and check up on him once in a while, you check on him daily, if he wakes up, I'm the first person you tell!" he ordered sternly as he walked out of the cellar. "Now go... I don't want you here when the other nobles show up..."
Jack stood there in confusion as Arthur climbed out of the cellar. 'What just happened...' Jack looked at the unconscious man, then dragged the cloth off the ground and properly covered him. Jack stepped back, then turned and climbed out of the cellar. He crouched down and closed the door, holding the wooden handle for a moment as he tried to process everything. His eyes still wide with confusion and shock. 'Why would a noble help me... A noble is working against the angels? Then why did he save Alexander...'
Jack walked back out onto the street and looked down the path. Arthur stood near Alexander and Carol's bodies, waiting for the other nobles to show up. Jack remembered his orders and walked into his house, stopping to squint at the broken down door. He walked over it, hobbling over to his tools. He picked up his pickaxe and lantern, they felt heavier then usual.
A chill ran down Jack's spine as he turned to the open door and looked at the morning light outside. 'Go back to your usual life...' He walked out of the house, then took a right and walked down the path. He turned away from the gruesome scene, looking up at the grey clouds in the sky.
'What was the point... We did all of that, and I am walking to the mines again. Alexander Rael didn't even die... Carol died for nothing...' Jack's eyes filled with tears as he walked down the path, sniffling. 'I would have rather kept living like this if you got to be-'
Jack looked up as he saw someone's shoe. Hidden between two houses, was the person who punched him yesterday peaking out. He walked toward Jack, avoiding eye contact and looking at the ground instead as he scratched his hand.
"I... I wanted to... I just wanted to uh... I'm Franklin... By the way..." he stuttered as he introduced himself.
Franklin had curly and messy hair with dark skin. He was scrawny and short, his expression gave Jack a weird impression. 'Huh?' His eyes were droopy and made him seem aloof. He pulled out the ticket he stole from Jack yesterday.
"You and Carol are awesome! I took this cause I wanted to get back at your parents, but you can have this back, how did you two mess up Alexander like that though?" Franklin asked, his tone sounded genuine.
Jack dropped his things as he felt his head swell with rage when he said that. Franklin stepped back as he saw the tears suddenly pour out of his eyes. 'Huh...' Jack stepped forward and reached for the ticket, but instead he grabbed Franklin's wrist. Jack pulled him forward and wildly threw his fist. Franklin looked away before the fist connected, getting struck in the left cheek, stumbling backward and falling. He tried to stand, but Jack pinned him to the ground and pulled him by the collar. Jack barely even straightened his fist, he just slammed his clenched hand into Franklin's face.
"Ah!" Jack cried.
A rough gasp escaped Franklin's throat as Jack ruthlessly punched him. Franklin tried to cover his head but Jack continued to beat him. Each punch was followed by sorrow grunts. Tears flew onto Franklin's shirt, or into the dirt. Jack's knuckles ached, but he didn't care.
"Shut up! Shut up damn it! You all sat there and watched! You watched him beat her to death, and you think that was cool or something?! Fuck off!" Jack roared.
The boy uttered something, but it was too hard to hear as Jack's fist pressed into his jaw. Franklin shoved Jack off with his foot, and he fell onto his back. Franklin quickly scrambled to his feet and ran. Jack got back up, but tumbled as he fell forward. He grabbed the dirt, and pathetically threw it as he tried to stand. But he fell again.
"You deserve to be killed like that! Beaten in front of all the people you expect to help you!" Jack screamed as Franklin fled between two houses.
Jack breathed heavily, his hands and feet on the dry and rough dirt. His throat was parched, his body ached. The few hours of sleep made it all worse. His head throbbed and his hands shook. He felt a rush of anger again when he considered the fact Alexander was still alive and he slammed his fist onto the dirt. He grunted in frustration, grabbing his throbbing head and curling forward until his head touched the ground. He repeatedly gasped as he sobbed uncontrollably. Carol was the first friend he had ever had, and the first friend he had ever lost.