Chapter 29: Ready
The following days were rocky.
After the assault on the next fortress, some people disobeyed the order and absorbed a shard or two. They were chided, but there wasn’t much more Lucas could do about it.
They continued scouting and uncovered several more fortresses across the Obsidian Forest. Using their fire tactic, they relieved as many goblins as they could of their lives. A few wielded Relics, but none dropped after their deaths.
From time to time, someone suffered a serious injury, but nobody died.
Their raids finally ended with only four days remaining in the task.
As planned, the six had been funneled a substantial number of shards, while everyone else was allowed to claim a few for their own safety.
Zayn had absorbed the most at fifty-six. Axel followed with fifty-four, then Maks with fifty-two. Ryon and Connor had each absorbed fifty, while Claire had forty-two.
Beyond raiding fortresses, the Summoned had surveyed the castle and gathered as much information as possible.
They discovered that the only entrance was through the open courtyard. They tried to create a breach, but Claire’s fireball barely scorched the walls, and the blue stone possessed some strange self-repairing property.
Next, they investigated whether they could scale the battlement walls.
Short answer: no.
The goblins had vats of oil and piles of rocks waiting above, ready to rain down. The Summoned lacked the necessary tools to defend themselves against either.
Worse, if whatever they used to climb the wall was destroyed, any sacrifice made during the ascent would be in vain.
That left only the front gate... and, well, things weren’t looking good.
They had discovered stairs leading from the courtyard to the battlements and possibly even entrances to the watchtowers.
Lucas and the others considered sending only the chosen six, but they had been strengthened under the assumption that they would be six against one, not six against many.
That left them with only one viable plan: storming the courtyard. From there, they had two choices: charge straight into the castle or seize the battlements.
It didn’t take long for the Summoned to choose the battlements.
If they rushed the castle, they would have to confront whatever lurked inside while also fighting the goblins pursuing them from behind.
Then, there was one last decision: left or right.
Maks made the choice, declaring:
"Right is always right!"
With that settled, they set out for the castle as the sun began to sink.
They would attack at night, when the goblins’ vision was at its worst. That would lessen the danger posed by archers and those wielding ranged Relics.
Normally, once night fully fell, the goblins’ superior hearing would give them the advantage. However, torches lined the battlements, preventing complete darkness.
There was one other advantage: the trees seemingly couldn’t reach the castle.
So, if their initial charge took too long and dragged on past midnight, they’d be safe...
Probably.
***
While waiting for nightfall, Axel couldn’t help but remember all the faces of those who’d died.
His damn curse.
He hated it.
Yet the same condition allowed him to perfectly recall sleeping shoulder to shoulder with Leora.
That was the only part he liked: being able to see those pleasant memories forever.
Axel felt a tap on his shoulder.
"Leora?"
"Huh? It’s me, Maks."
Maks stepped up beside Axel and teased him:
"Don’t tell me you’re daydreaming about her right now. Are you in love with her?"
"Ha, I think I am," Axel said without missing a beat. "Gonna laugh?"
Maks looked momentarily stunned by the sudden confession. He wasn’t going to make fun of Axel; he had his own blossoming love, after all. He and Claire had started dating a couple of days ago.
Maks smiled.
"Nah, I think it’s a good thing. Extra motivation. I have Claire, and she motivates me. As long as you don’t say something like, ’I’ll confess to her after this is all over,’ then I see no problem."
"Why?" Axel asked, confused.
Maks shouted:
"That’s as good as begging for death! It’s a death flag!"
"I guess... I’ll confess to her when this is all over!"
Axel mockingly threw the phrase back at him, but...
The more he considered it, the more he liked the idea.
"Stop!" Maks shouted in a panic. "Even the strong are not immune to the curse of the death flag!"
Maks sure was an odd one. For the past week, he had ventured into the forest during the hour before midnight and had lately begun acting as though he was watching over Axel.
Axel had come to see him as a good friend. A little weird, perhaps, but a good friend, albeit one he didn’t speak with often.
Axel confidently proclaimed:
"Well, Axel Hart is immune!"
Maks jokingly scoffed.
"Your funeral."
"Hahahaha."
They both laughed, but then Maks, with his usual quirkiness, switched from joking to serious in an instant.
"But no, seriously, take it back."
"Now that you put the idea in my head, I refuse to. I quite like it."
"It seems I’ve messed up... Think you could leave me all your shards in your will?"
"I wouldn’t, even if I could."
They laughed again. Each doing his best to smother their nerves.