Chapter 351 Breaching The Defenses (2/2)
It took hiain his composure, a task at which he only partly succeeded ”This is idiocy,” he said ”Why wouldn't Rannoc be waiting nearby, ready to enter as soon as we open the gate?”
”For the same reason he didn't sneak into the city earlier,” the captain said ”If he entered the city unnoticed and slew Kadun, it would be considered murder — and worse, dishonorable But to enter the city with an arhtful conquest”
Arran looked at Kaleesh ide-eyed astonish him on Yet there was not a trace of amusement in the captain's eyes, and Arran realized that the captain was speaking earnestly
”That is the single stupidest thing I've heard in hed at his reaction, then shook his head ”You're wrong — it's brilliant The Imperium cannot afford to lose its Lords too easily, but if it forbade the each other, they would take iven a means to settle their disputes — but one that is so cuets used”
Arran was about to protest, but then thought better of it Madness or genius, it didn't matter Either way, their task remained the same And from the sound of it, it was a roaned in frustration ”Half an hour is long enough for half the city to be alerted,” he said ”And what if a Knight coht shows up, we'll have to hold hih for Rannoc to arrive,” Kaleesh said ”Of course, if hts arrive, we'll have no choice but to flee — but most of them should currently be with the army, far away from the city”
”And what if Kadun hirowing by the second
”Then you'd better be a good runner,” the captain replied
Arran let out an exasperated sigh ”If we die, I' you”
”Noted,” the captain said ”Now, the gate's only a few uards to open it You should head up the wall and kill anyone you find there With a bit of luck, that'll earn us a minute or two before Rannoc's approach is noticed”
”Alright,” Arran said Then, after a ht, he asked, ”Is this really the only option?”
He'd spentthe captain's y, and he'd been awed by the captain's plans — at least, up until this point Yet the final step holly different, seeave Arran an arinned, and continued, ”No matter hoell you plan your battles, sometimes, the only way forward is to roll the dice”
They arrived at the gate several h the streets had been empty of Darians, Arran saw that there were plenty of theuards stood near the closed gate, and his Sense told hiuardhouse
Kaleesh shot Arran a grin ”Good luck,” he said in a low voice Then, he approached the guards before theate this instant! Orders from Lord Kadun!”
As the captain set to work on convincing the guards to open the gate, Arran quickly headed to the side of the guardhouse, where a set of stone stairs led up toward the top of the wall
While there were no Rangers at the bottoate, he could already Sense that two of them stood atop the wall, starmetal weapons at their sides And with theuards
Halfway up the stairs, hidden in the shadow, Arran briefly ca, he stored the star Shadoeapon take the faainst coers, there was no real need for so powerful a weapon But if he risked facing Knight, he wanted every advantage he could get
Atop the wall, he found a broad stone ay protected by a thick battlement And behind the battlement stood the Darian troops he'd already Sensed, their eyes focused on the lands outside the city
One of the two Rangers in the group turned to Arran as he approached ”Brother, what reason is there for the commotion below?” he asked But as Arran came nearer, the le ed forward and struck with every shred of power his body held, his weapon effortlessly cleaving through the Ranger's torso And even as the second Ranger turned toward hiain, cutting the man down before he could draw his weapon
The soldiers fared no better With Arran no longer restraining his strength, they died before they could screa only seconds after he'd drawn his weapon
As he stood atop the wall, Arran patiently waiting for Kaleesh to finish his work Then, finally, he heard the loud grinding sound of theopened
Arran did nottaken charge of the soldiers, it would take some time before the first of their enemies arrived
Instead, he focused his eyes on the darkness beyond the wall, looking out over Kadun's lands ers had before him
A minute passed, then another And then, Arran saw it — torches being lit, several miles in the distance First a dozen, then a hundred, then more still Rannoc's troops And froe the city
Barely a moment later, he heard a distant call, a quarter-mile down the wall And then another, even further Already, the city's defenders had realized an attack was co no attempt to conceal their approach
Arran cast another look at the torches in the distance, and cursed beneath his breath when he saw their slow movement By the time Rannoc's forces arrived, half the city would already be upon theathered up the fallen Rangers' weapons Then, he headed back down the stone stairs to rejoin the captain
They had thrown the dice, and now, all that remained was to await the outco he knew for certain — before long, the ground would be red with Darian blood