"My Lord, there are too many of them. We have to fall back!"
...
"Lord Sigmund!"
...
Sigmund's mind was blank. He saw himself standing in the middle of a battlefield. His men fighting for their lives against a great evil in front of them.
He stood still for a moment, until he came back to his senses. He attacks.
He lifted his sword, and swung it towards an enemy - cutting its head off.
"Sir Harlan, what's the situation?" He asked.
"Rgh!" Harlan stroke through his opponent and replied.
"The villagers were evacuated as you ordered. But we couldn't reach the outer villages. I'm afraid they were already overran."
"The structures are damaged and the men are exhausted. Our defenses will not withstand another widescale siege, my Lord."
He answered while catching up his breath.
"We've also lost half of the men in our garrison. We have no other option but to retreat."
As Sigmund was about to talk, his head suddenly throbbed.
The ache subsided after a moment.
"Any news of the emissary? Will reinforcements arrive?"
Harlan was hesitant to reply.
"I do not think help would reach in time."
Sigmund sighed of the news. He didn't know what to do.
But he needed to calm down.
"What are we to do, Lord Sigmund?" Harlan asked.
Sigmund's mind was full of thoughts. He thought by leaving the barony could they secure the safety of his people.
In his heart, he did not want to leave.
But he did not have much of a choice.
"... Order some of the men and the militia we can spare to gather resources and essentials for the caravan. We will have to depart."
"Right away, my Lord."
Harlan replied and ran with haste.
...
Sigmund looked around the town and saw how devastated it turned out.
Houses were destroyed, roofs collapsed, and corpses were all over the roads.
The skies turned dark, and a light rain started to fall.
He fell to his knees as they weakened.
"Lyndal... Father.."
"I'm sorry."
The town bells were suddenly sounded.
Then a loud voice was heard.
"Another wave has come. Defend the town!"
Sigmund stood up, filled with anger. He tightened his grip over his sword. "Those monsters..."
Someone ran towards him. Their hands and body covered in blood. Hostility was the only thing seen in their eyes.
The sight of it made Sigmund furious.
He sprinted towards the person and beheads it.
"Kill all the beasts! Let none survive!"
...
Before this conflict started, these lands were known as Lyndal.
It was headed by the House of Greville. The family ruled over these lands since the time the two kingdoms of Tanza and Ertal were under one banner.
After the kingdoms' division, Lyndal stood between their territorial borders, leaving it involved with political conflicts.
After the Grevilles have decided to join Tanza, Ertal considered it as a violation of the peace treaty they have both signed. Soon after, they became hostile to Lyndal up until a treaty was also signed between the two kingdoms.
However, despite all of these, living in Lyndal was sound.
Until the war began..
...
The battles seemed endless. The enemy's ranks are bolstered as their soldiers fell.
And Sigmund was already tired.
"Sir Harlan, are the preparations ready?"
"Nearly. There are only a few carriages left to--"
"Have them finished immediately. Are we to move while the undead are here?" Sigmund abruptly said.
"... Immediately, my Lord." Harlan replied.
*sigh*
He stood in the middle of town. His brown hair got soaked as the rain fell on him.
He saw the women and children gathered near the centre, packing their things for departure.
Some trembling in fear of death. Others were crying in panic, not knowing what to do.
Sigmund then saw a little boy crying, who's being comforted by his mother. He approached the kid kneeled down to face him.
"Hey there, kid. Why are you crying?" He asked softly.
The boy looked at him and replies, "Our house was destroyed. A-And I saw Father dead. He's dead!"
"... I-"
He couldn't utter words from what the boy said. The mother also broke down in tears after holding it in for long.
Sigmund felt the pain the boy was feeling, as he once and still is enduring that pain. Only thing he could do was to comfort the kid.
He gave the kid his coat, to warm him from the cold of the weather.
"Don't worry, son. The soldiers and I are doing everything we can to keep all of you here safe. There's no need to cry any longer."
"Lord Sigmund." Harlan interrupts.
"The caravan is prepared and ready to leave."
"Good." Sigmund replied.
He stood up and faced Harlan.
"We'll leave now. Open the Back Gate."
...
The Back Gate was meant to be an escape route during times of crisis. Its pathway was kept hidden from the public's eye.
Rumors about the gate kept circulating within the citizens.
Some say that the other side contains secrets that people are not meant to see. Others said that monsters lurk there, and the gate was created to keep it locked out.
It is why people get an ominous feeling whenever they see it before.
But now, it is the only hope they have.
People were gathered near the Back Gate, waiting for it to be opened. It was clear that the people were anxious of what lies in the other side.
The soldiers are on guard in case of any kind of attack from what lies ahead. Others were at the other end of the caravan, in case the undead return.
When the gates were opened, all remained silent.
Sighs of relief were heard as they saw the other side untainted by the undead or anything else.
The path was clear, and the people proceeded to move.
Unfortunately, the silence only remained for a moment.
"The undead are advancing! Move quickly!"
...
"Prepare the barricades!"
"Crossbows, on the ready!"
Sigmund yelled as the undead were closing in from the main gate.
"Shoot!"
Arrows began flying in the sky, targeting the ghouls and skeletons approaching. Those who weren't hit reached the barricades and attacked the soldiers.
"Load the catapults!" said Harlan.
The fiends were destroying everything in its path. Stepping on the corpses of the citizens and soldiers. Necromancers raise the corpses, turning them into the living dead and have it kill its families.
Volleys of flaming arrows killed the rampant dead. The catapults release burning rocks killing off what remained of the undead attack.
"My Lord, the civilians and the caravan have all crossed the gate." Harlan says.
*sigh* "Then we should hurry up and--"
"What the hell is that!?" A soldier exclaimed.
Sigmund then looked to the direction the soldier was pointing at and saw something horrific.
A giant - that was sewed together from different corpses - was walking towards them. Its guts were open, spilling blood. Its intestines coming out of its stomach. It was an abomination.
"Move, everyone!" Harlan yelled.
Sigmund stood there. Still. As if he was hypnotized by the dead giant.
"Sigmund!" Harlan yelled.
He snaps back to reality. He sees Harlan shaking him nervously.
"We have to go now! We can't fight that thing!"
"R-Right. Let's go." He replies as they run into the gate.
Harlan panicked, after seeing Sigmund at that state too. But he needed to clear his mind.
"Quickly, close the gates!"
They ran in as the gates began to shut.
...
Sigmund sighed in relief.
"Is everyone good?" Sigmund asked.
"Everyone's accounted for, my lord." Captain Shal answered.
He looked around and saw the kid from earlier and approched him.
"Are you alright, kid?" he asked.
"Yes, Lord Greville! Thank you." the boy answered.
He smiled at the sight of the boy. Seeing the kid cheered up lightened the mood a bit for Sigmund.
"Very well, then. Let's get a move on."