The Alter of Sacrifice

Breathing heavily and sweating rivers from running nonstop, Amadeus finally reached the village. Walking through the once bustling streets, he was relieved not to see any dead bodies, which calmed him a little.

Reaching his home, he called out and looked for his family but found the house empty. Suddenly, realization hit him. "I was so focused on getting home that I forgot about the party," he muttered, then started running towards the party place.

Time passed as Amadeus reached the party place, his heart calming at the sight of his family. "Father... mother... sisters... brother... you're all still alive," he said before someone pulled him into the bushes and covered his mouth.

It was Esme. She put a finger to her lips, signaling him to stay quiet. "Esme, what are you doing here? Well, it doesn't matter, I'm just happy you're safe," Amadeus said in a low voice, his face serious.

"I was getting some stuff from the kitchen we forgot, and I heard the explosion. I ran here and found these strangers. Your mother signaled me to stay hidden," Esme whispered, remembering the events.

"So, what do we do now? Just hide?" Amadeus asked, frustrated.

"Do you trust me, Amadeus?" Esme replied.

"Of course, I trust you," he affirmed.

"Then we wait and see what happens. We act at the right moment," Esme advised.

"Fine, but you have to tell me where you got all these war tactics from," Amadeus teased.

"No, I won't. It's my little secret," Esme said with a playful grin.

At the party place, everyone was gathered, afraid of what was in front of them. Isabella and Seraphina were being hugged and comforted by Genevieve, while Leonard, with Maximilian by his side, stood fearless, looking straight at danger as he should since he was the chief.

In front of them stood two giant minotaurs. They were huge, with big muscles and fierce eyes. Chains were wrapped around their necks, keeping them in place. The minotaurs looked ready to fight, snorting and pawing at the ground.

Behind the minotaurs, there were about 100 soldiers, all fully armored. Their shiny armor covered them from head to toe, making them look like a solid wall of metal. The soldiers stood in perfect rows, their faces hidden behind their helmets. They held their weapons ready, looking strong and disciplined.

Leading this group was a paladin with a giant sword on his back. He looked very powerful and important, with his armor decorated with fancy designs.

Beside the paladin stood a priest with noble features and silver hair that flowed gracefully around his shoulders. His eyes were closed, as if in deep contemplation or silent prayer. The priest's robes were similar to those of Priest Alaric, but far more luxurious and expensive. The fabric shimmered with threads of gold and silver, and intricate embroidery adorned every inch of the garment. Precious gemstones were embedded in the priest's sash and collar, catching the light and adding to his royal appearance.

"No need to be afraid. We are followers of the sovereign of the beginning, Alpha. We don't intend to hurt any of you," said the priest.

"Did you say you were a priest of Alpha?" asked Priest Alaric, walking to face him.

"Yes, I am the high priest Archibald, and this is my paladin Baldwin. Behind us is the army of the sovereign of the beginning," said High Priest Archibald, pointing at himself and then at Baldwin.

"It's good to meet another priest, and for him to be a high priest is a great honor. Alpha must be smiling at me," said Priest Alaric, bowing down and thinking to himself, "They can't be lying. All of them have sovereign of the beginning Alpha emblem on their armor and clothes. It has never happened before that someone impersonates a priest or they would face the wrath of the sovereign."

"So, you are a priest then. That makes it a whole lot easier. First, we are sorry for destroying your village. You see, we are on quite a tight schedule, so we helped ourselves to your supplies. But thanks to Alpha, you were all here and not in the houses," said High Priest Archibald.

"And why do you need our supplies, High Priest?" Leonard asked, moving forward towards him.

"And who are you to question me?" High Priest Archibald retorted.

"I am Leonard, the chief of this village," said Leonard with confidence.

"You are the chief, so we have the priest and the chief in one place. That's called good luck, don't you think so, Baldwin?" High Priest Archibald said with a smile.

"We are on a holy crusade to exterminate demons, so we ask that you follow our orders," said High Priest Archibald.

"So, what do you need from us?" Leonard asked.

"Actually, we need you to direct us to the rest of your supplies so we don't have to destroy what's left of the village," said High Priest Archibald.

"I don't have a problem giving you the supplies since it will be a great honor to help in the crusade of our sovereign," said Leonard, then explained where they hide their supplies.

"Good, thank you for the information," said High Priest Archibald, then he waved his hand for the minotaurs to go get the supplies.

Time passed, and the minotaurs returned with the supplies. "I think now you can leave," said Leonard.

"I said that I need both of you, and as for your part, chief, you delivered us the supplies. Now I need the help of the priest," said High Priest Archibald, looking at Priest Alaric.

"So, what do you need from a humble priest such as myself?" asked Priest Alaric.

"It's quite easy if you think about it," said High Priest Archibald, then lifted his head and his smile turned from gentle to demonic.

"I demand SACRIFICE," said High Priest Archibald, and silence filled the place with everyone shocked at his demand.

"You say sacrifice, but why? We are all loyal followers of the sovereign Alpha," said Priest Alaric, shocked by the demand.

"And that's why I need your sacrifice. Because you are loyal followers, and our sovereign loves loyalty. You should know this better than anyone," said High Priest Archibald.

"But for what reason?" asked Priest Alaric.

"To tell you the truth, our crusade hasn't been going well. We started with 10,000 soldiers and many monsters like these two, but now all that is left is what you see. So, if we want to complete our mission, we need to get our sovereign's blessing. What better way to please a sovereign than giving him a sacrifice?" said High Priest Archibald with a face full of shame, but it was all an act to make the villagers believe him.

"Well, if we need to, then we will have to choose one of..." started Priest Alaric, but was cut off by Leonard's scream.

"Are you really thinking about who we will sacrifice?" Leonard shouted.

Priest Alaric replied to Leonard, "We don't have a choice. Our sovereign has given us a lot, so it's our time to give back." Their talk was interrupted by High Priest Archibald coughing to get their attention.

"I think you misunderstood my words. I don't need one sacrifice; I need six sacrifices," said High Priest Archibald, raising six fingers. "And if it is too hard for you to decide, we will have to choose the sacrifices ourselves," he added with a sorry face.

"We have to choose six of us to die?" Leonard said to himself, then a loud noise of people talking to each other began, each trying to sacrifice the other. The once united village was ripping itself apart, and Leonard the chief just stood there, not knowing what to do.

After some time, High Priest Archibald moved forward to Leonard. "It seems like no one is ready to take the great honor of being sacrificed to our sovereign, but aren't you the village chief? Shouldn't you be the one to step up first to protect your people?" said High Priest Archibald in a low voice, but loud enough for the villagers to hear.

Suddenly, silence filled the area, and all eyes looked at Leonard. "Yes, he's the chief, so it's his job to protect us," said one of the villagers.

"Yes, it is his duty," said another villager. Soon, everyone agreed that Leonard had to be sacrificed.

"How dare you! After all he did for you!" Genevieve screamed at the villagers.

"Genevieve, stop. They are right. As much as I hate it, it is my duty to protect them," said Leonard, moving forward to face High Priest Archibald.

"Now we need five more," said High Priest Archibald, leaning his head to look behind Leonard. "The woman who stood up to the villagers is hugging two girls, and the man who was standing beside you the entire time... are they by any chance your family?" asked High Priest Archibald, looking back at Leonard, who froze in place.

Before Leonard could answer, a villager spoke up, "Yes, they are."

Leonard looked back at the villagers with a shocked and rageful face. "I understood why you chose me, but my family, you bastards!" he screamed at them.

"Now we need one more sacrifice. Do you have any more family members, Chief Leonard?" asked High Priest Archibald.

"Yes, he's got a 15-year-old son, but he's in the forest," said one of the villagers that came forward.

BANG!

The villager was hit in the face with a punch, making him fall to the ground. "You human trash! And you call yourself a man?" said Arthur, who had just arrived. "Sorry, Leonard. I was late. I was out of the village looking for ores when I heard the explosion," said Arthur with a smile.

"No need to be sorry, old friend. Even if you were here, you couldn't have done anything," said Leonard, making a depressed smile.

"If you need a sacrifice, then I am ready. No need to touch the boy," said Arthur, coming forward, proud of his action.

"Sorry, but your sacrifice won't do," said High Priest Archibald. "Sacrificing a whole family of loyal followers seems better," he added with a sadistic face.

"Look for the boy in the forest and around the village. He might be hiding somewhere," commanded High Priest Archibald to the soldiers.

"You bastard! You already have me and my family. Don't you dare touch him!" Leonard roared, his rage propelling him toward High Priest Archibald.

With a flick of his wrist, High Priest Archibald cast {Chains of Heretics}. A glowing magic circle appeared beneath Leonard. From the center of the circle, chains full of razor-sharp spikes shot out like serpents, wrapping around Leonard's limbs and torso. The spikes dug into his flesh, causing excruciating pain.

"AAARGH!" Leonard screamed, his voice filled with agony as the chains tightened around him. Blood trickled from the wounds where the spikes had pierced his skin, but he refused to look away. His gaze remained locked on the High Priest, his eyes burning with unyielding rage and defiance.

"Interesting. I admire people with strong determination. That's why you'll make an amazing sacrifice," High Priest Archibald remarked coldly. His voice was devoid of emotion. The priest watched with fascination as Leonard writhed in pain, the chains binding him more tightly with each passing moment.

In the dark domain, the Noble Shadow sighed, "That's what I hate most about this curse."

The Assassin Shadow smirked and replied, "Apart from making us suffer before finally killing us?"

The Noble Shadow turned to the Assassin Shadow and asked, "What are the chances of a crusader army stopping by a nameless village and demanding sacrifices? One in a billion, yet here we are. How is this even possible?"

The Assassin Shadow remained silent. The Noble Shadow continued, "Exactly. The odds are astronomical, and yet it happened."

The Slave Shadow spoke gently, "You seem distressed, General Shadow. Do you have anything to add?"

The General Shadow responded with a menacing tone, "It's irrelevant now. What concerns me is that paladin. Even though he threatens to kill the villagers, I don't sense any killing intent from him."

The Assassin Shadow mocked, "He doesn't see them as humans but as ants, unworthy of his killing intent."

The Mage Shadow, trembling with fear, said, "I don't like that man. He's even scarier than the High Priest."

Finally, the Beggar Shadow, with a depressed voice, concluded, "There's no need to overthink. Let's just watch and see what happens."

"I am going out to face him," said Amadeus, who had been silently watching this whole time, his expression unclear.

"Have you gone mad? They will kill you!" whispered Esme, her eyes wide with fear.

"Hiding is meaningless. The man with the big sword knows we were here from the beginning," Amadeus said, determination etched on his face as he stepped out of the bushes.

Amadeus screamed, surprising everyone from behind, "You're looking for his youngest son, right? Well, here I am!".