Battle for the Iron Mine 2

"The Corpses are coming back to life."

"He is a Lich."

"Undeads, Undead are surrounding us."

Many of Serjil's men were frightened by the dead raising from the ground, covered in blood and guts, holding weapons and attacking them.

"It's a ruse,"shout Javoc,who had figured out by noticing that the blood and guts were splattered on their bodies and not from their own wounds,"they are living disguised as the dead. Get hold of yourselves and cut them down."

"Bastards," Shout Serjil, lopping off the head of a spearman who came running at him.

"Boss, we are surrounded," Shout a lieutenant, who was being mercilessly stab by three spearmen.

The enemies were pouring in from the gate and the cave mouth and had completely surrounded the twenty-two remaining riders.

"To the gate," Shout Serjil,"Push towards the gate."

The gate was wide opened and it was the direction with the lowest number of enemy bandits.

"Use your aura to strengthen your body and armor," Shout Serjil. All his warriors were still alive and all can use their aura to a certain degree. "We will push through."

Aura was a warrior most important asset. A warrior has a sturdy and regenerative body but it was the aura that was the cause of all that abilities. Called as Qi in the Far East, Prana in the South and Aura in the West, Aura can be utilised in many ways. The two most common usage of aura in battle was to strengthen the toughness of a warrior or strengthen their weapons.

Serjil felt a sharp sense of danger as soon as he cut down two charging enemies. Instinctively, he raised his claymore to guard himself. The impending force that clash with him knock him off his horse, sending him flying to the back of his horse.

"Got you," Said a voice. Serjil looked up. A red demon mask person wielding a large, long curved sword was standing above him, the tip pointed towards his face.

"When did he get get here?" Serjil thought.

"I surr...." He never finished his sentence as the sword came crashing down on him, severing his neck from his body.

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"How many have we captured,"asked Kain.

After Kain slew the bandits' chief, the rest surrendered to him.

"Twenty-one from the Dark Bane and twenty-five from the Red Band, Boss," Said Uncle Robert under the guise of Sky Mask.

"Send them to the Prison cells,"Kain ordered,

"Stripped them off everything and leave only their loinclothes."

"You heard the boss,"Robert look at the captain of the Yellow troupe, Davos,"Yellow Mask, you will be in charge of the prisoners."

"What about the other Prisoners?" asked Davos.

There were around a hundred more prisoners in the prison cells, which were small caves barred with wooden structures. They were the villagers, who were kidnapped to mine for ores.

"Sky Mask," Said Kain, acting quickly,"You will take all the prisoners and return them to their villagers except for the blacksmiths. Take the green troupe with you. Also tell the Blue troupe to come here with my wives and the goods. After that, you are to go to the Red Band hideout and bring everything of value."

"Understood, Boss," Said Robert,"I will head out now."

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"Ah, I am tired," Sigh Kain, slipping into the bed of the former bandit chief.

After a speech of victory and a feast, he was thoroughly exhausted. The facade of a cold, cruel and weird bandit chief work it's magic on his crew. There were many who hailed him as their leader from their heart due to his recent show of strength and cruelty but most were scared of him, enough to ever think of opposing him. That was the reason he made the facade of Skinjer the Red Ogre.

"Since I have enough funds, I should make my next move," thought Kain.

The crew had looted three thousand galleons and several items inside the bandit camp. Kain had collected half of every bandit of his crew as tribute, which was a tradition of bandits,which amounted to atleast a thousand galleon. As for goods and items, he hoarded them including the weapons, armors, horses, ores and such. He also found a chest inside the Chief's tent containing two thousand galleon worth of coins. These coins including the ones he looted from the Black Dog crew will certainly help him in his next mission.

"And also, I must make this crew a formidable fighting force while weeding out the bad apples."

The mortley crew of bandits he had gathered had only few decent fighters. It was mainly because they were either malnourished or had never fought before. If it wasn't for his strategy and contribution to the battle, most will have died. Thirty of his crew were counted among the dead and more than fifty were injured, most of them were those who panicked or foolish.

It was no good because he will be using this crew to settle most of the bandit problem. The South will be easy but the other region will not be.

He will trained them to better their body and skill but not to the length where they can overpower the fiefdom army. Instead he was going for a low but efficient quality crew with large numbers.

He will not welcome the defeated bandits into his crew even though many had begged. They did not fit his plan. There was no guarantee whether they will follow him if the truth comes out. Also, Kain could not simply pardon their sins of banditry in his land.

He will use only new recruits who has no blood on their hands. They will conduct and act as bandits but not commit atrocities on his people. He will make sure of that.

If they question why, he had an answer. It will silence his crew.

In the end, what he do with the crew will decide the future of the fief....

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A horseman was riding through the eastern swamp with a hurried pace. He was sweating and panting heavily.

"Open the gate," Shout the rider, when he reach the gatehouse of the hillfort,"Its me, Swallow."

The gate open and the man got in. He look around and saw the person he was looking for by a fire. He got down from his horse and approach him.

"Boss,news from the South," Said the man, falling down on one knee.

"Is that bastard dead?" Came a growling voice.

"Yes, Boss," Said the man.

"Good," Said Alwen Khyne, taking a bite of a whole roasted chicken,"Where is Ser Almin? I have to reward him."

"Ummm, Boss..." Said the man, gulping down his saliva,"Boss Almin was killed."

The words was met with silence. The entire fort became silent. Everyone eyes were on the swallow and their chief. They thought their chief was going to explode in a fit of fury but instead...

"You are saying Almin was killed," Asked Alwen Khyne, his voice cold as ice and devoid of any emotion.

"Yes,Boss," Said the man," It was a sudden attack. Only I escape."

"Who were they?" Asked Alwen.

"They were a new bandit crew called Death Cross, the one that defeated the Red Bands."

"Almin is dead," Said Alwen, no more empathetic, anger seething in every syllable, "Then why are you still alive."

Before the man could answer, Alwen had struck him with a greasy knife to his left temple.

"Death cross, huh," Said Alwen Khyne, his eyes bulging red with anger, grief and madness, "You will pay. All of you will pay for this transgressions."

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