The whole tribe was in chaos. People were dying, tents were burning, children were becoming orphans one by one. George and Argus fought the assassins together.
"There are too many." Argus sliced a masked man. "We can't win."
"I would rather die than surrender to a bunch of thugs." George blocked an attack, counter-attacked, and decapitated a masked man.
Tyler - the clean shaven brown-haired guy tried to fend off the enemies alone. He stood in front of a small child like a protective shield and fought the assassins one by one. "Shit, there are too many." An enemy charged, but he stabbed the enemy before he could hurt the child with his scimitar.
Joseph, on the other hand, was on a peril. He could neither stand nor fight properly in that condition. He also had someone to protect, so he could not escape either. "Damn it." He gritted his teeth while figuring out the ways to get out of the situation.
The masked woman waited patiently for her answer. "Tell me where The Sphere is and I will tell my men to stop. You people made a mistake taking it from us. You brought this upon yourself."
"So you are their leader," Joseph said.
"So what? Would you kill me and save everyone?" She mocked him. "Or would you take me a hostage and force my men to stop?"
"The second option has become null now. I can't leave you alive after what you have done." The woman noticed the murderous aura Joseph emitted.
"You can do nothing, boy. Just give me The Sphere and I will leave, but if you continue to be stubborn, I am afraid I would have to take some extreme measures." When she spoke, she had her eyes on Liliya who looked too frightened.
"Do not tell her, Joseph," Joseph heard Mogu's voice. "I do not know how but if she takes me, everything will be over. I have a feeling."
Joseph panted and tried to think of the ways he could get out of the situation without letting more people die. "Damn it." But he could think of nothing. He only had one choice now.
The woman was getting impatient now. "I know how to make your kind speak." She grabbed Liliya's arm and pulled her to herself. She placed her blade on Liliya's throat. "If you don't want me to slice her throat in front of your very eyes, you better tell me. I know you know The Sphere's location, else you would have clarified it a while ago. So, denying to know would be a foolish move now."
"Do not let her take me, Joseph," Mogu spoke again. Joseph looked at Liliya's teary eyes with which she looked at him, and came to a decision. He clenched his fist when he spoke.
"Okay. I will tell you, but let her go first."
"No, Joseph!" Mogu said.
At this, Joseph shouted. "Shut up! My people are dying because of you!" He could hear the screams of women. "I have to tell her. I have no other choice."
The woman could not comprehend to whom he said it all. "Have you lost your mind? Who are you talking to?"
"I will tell you where your sphere is. But let her go first," Joseph said in a defeated tone.
"Fine." She removed her blade from Liliya's throat. "She can freely leave." But Liliya did not want to leave. She stood there and did not move an inch.
"Leave, Liliya." Joseph struggled to stand up. Liliya wanted to help him but he stopped her. "Just leave, please." Now, she had no choice. She had to leave even if she did not want to.
"Aww… Such a lovely couple," The woman mocked them again. "But I don't have time to watch your melodrama." Joseph somehow stood up when Liliya left unwillingly.
"It is in my tent," He said. "I will show you, but you have stop your men first."
"Very well." She clapped over her head and ordered her men. "Men! We have found it! Stop now!" All the assassins paused wherever they were. George, Argus, Tyler and others were at their limits. They had received wounds on various parts of their body. They all would have died if they had resisted a few minutes more.
As soon as those masked men stopped attacking, Tyler ran to Kyther. "Kyther!" He leaped to his friend. He checked his pulse and felt a bit relieved after finding out that he was alive, barely. He needed treatment at the very moment or he could die. "We have to treat him!" He shouted while supporting Kyther's head on his lap.
George, on the other hand, sprinted towards his tent. He wanted to make sure his wife was okay. Although dozens of guards protected his tent, and they had survived multiple raids to thier tribe, but he was too scared this time.
Joseph had difficulty walking, but he somehow led the woman and some of her masked followers to the tent. He took Mogu and brought him to her.
Her eyes expanded in surprise when she saw the rusty iron ball looked different now. "This is not the sphere I am searching for."
"You are doing wrong, Joseph," Mogu spoke.
"This is the one. It changed by itself after that old man died," Joseph responded to the woman, ignoring Mogu again.
The woman was puzzled. "How could this be?" She muttered. While she still tried to comprehend the changed condition of The Sphere, someone attacked her with a scream. "Aaaa…" She side jumped and dodged the vertical up to down swing of the blade.
"Master?" Joseph was shocked to see that it was George.
George got surrounded by the masked men, but it seemed like he did not care for his life. His breath was in rage and his eyes were in pain. His wife had been killed by one of the assassins. He looked at Joseph with a sad smile. "I can't live with this shame. I am sorry, Joseph." He turned his head around and looked at the faces of his people. "I am sorry, everyone."
"What are you doing, master?" Joseph asked with a shocked face. "You will die."
"I don't care, Joseph. Zenda is no more." Tears flowed down George's cheeks, and it shook up everyone equally. Joseph was devastated. Zenda filled the place of a mother in his life. To think that it was empty again was too big of a blow to him. But he could not afford to lose his master as well.
"Master, stop!" Joseph cried when he saw George charging at the woman.
George was tired and wounded. He bled from his abdomen. Yet he insisted to fight. He engaged with the assassins and killed some of them while receiving more cuts to his waist, thigh, and finally… chest. "Master!" Joseph cried when he witnessed George puking blood and almost collapsing to the ground. But somehow, he balanced himself and managed to remain standing.
The others wanted to help, but they had blades on their throats. They could do nothing but watch with tears in their eyes. Joseph tried to help him but received an arrow on his other thigh and received a blow to the back of his head, forcing him to collapse to the ground. "Master…" His vision was getting blurry. He was about to pass out.
The sword fell out of George's hand before he collapsed on his knees as he could not take the wounds now. He breathed too hard, and still tried to get up, but a blade went through his stomach. He fell after the assassin pulled the blade out…
Tears rained down everyone's cheeks. Sobs and moans covered the entire tribe. Joseph passed out after witnessing the scene.
"Come on, we have little time. Let's go." The woman walked towards the exit with her assassins. Argus and others ran to George.
"George!" Argus slapped his cheek lightly and shook him to wake him up. George coughed blood before he spoke in an uneven voice.
"Argus…"
"George, yes, I am here. Nothing would happen. We would treat you," Argus responded. "We need to treat him!" He shouted.
"No… wait…" George grabbed Argus's arm. "I have no time." Tyler, Liliya, and others were having tears in their eyes. "Now… the tribe… is in your hands… Argus," He added.
"No, George. We need you," Argus argued.
"Take… care of Joseph… Tell him… I had no son… I considered… him as my… own." George coughed blood again.
"Don't speak. Save your energy, please," Argus insisted.
"It is… already too late. Take care of… everyone…" Suddenly, the grip of George's hand around Argus's arm loosened, and it dropped. Argus stared at those open eyes, but they were lifeless now.
"George?" He shook him again, but there was no reaction. Everyone cried. The tribe had lost its protector. Its father.
Joseph, on the other hand, found himself in the middle of the tribe. The sun was scorching above his head. He looked around until he heard a child's voice. He followed the voice and saw that his younger self trained with Master George. He had a wooden sword, and he continuously did the futile attempt of beating his master.
"Hahah," George laughed after hitting young Joseph on the head. "You are slow, Joseph."
Young Joseph got irritated. "I will beat you the next time." He ran towards the leader's tent and went inside. Joseph followed his young version and entered the tent. There he saw Zenda, a middle-aged woman in plain clothes, caressing young Joseph and taking care of him. He rested his head on her lap and slept in peace.
Joseph did not realize he had tears flowing down his cheeks. His surroundings changed suddenly. He was at the exit of the tribe. Someone touched his shoulder. He turned his head to find out it was his father. Joseph was his split image.
"Take care of yourself," His father said with a grin. He found George and Zenda standing behind his father. They too were smiling. They then suddenly disappeared. Joseph looked around in search for them and found them going far from the tribe.
"No, wait. Don't go!" Joseph called to them, but they did not respond. He ran behind them but found himself unable to catch up. "No!" He screamed before they finally vanished from the sight.
"No…" He suddenly woke up while breathing heavily.
Liliya had waited for him to wake up since the night beside him. "Joseph?" She finally smiled when he opened his eyes. "Thank God, you are okay."
Joseph found himself lying inside his own tent. His upper body was partly covered in bandages. Tyler and Argus entered his tent to find him conscious. "You are awake. Thank God," Tyler said with a relieved face.
Joseph did not react. "What happened to Kyther?" He asked coldly.