The Legendary Warrior (Book 5) (11 page)

As he approached the Old Sage Academy room, he unsheathed his eidolon and slowly walked toward the entrance
, trying to sense any kind of movement. He stopped walking for a moment once he realized that there were several people inside, hiding near the water. One was actually under the water. What were they doing there? Wait…it was Kent!

Bastion went against his better judgment and sprinted through the entrance, somersaulting forward in the air just as a couple of eidolons went flying toward his legs.
His Sage robe snapped into place around him, and he sheathed his eidolon in mid-air, diving into the water with his hands stretched out. He swam as quickly as he could to get to his friend, who was chained to the floor like an animal. No matter how much he expanded his muscles and thrashed against his restraints, he couldn’t break free. Once he saw Bastion approaching, his eyes went wide and he stopped moving. His face said it all—it was a trap.

Bastion refused to look behind him. He just kept swimming, and once he reached Kent, he realized why Kent was having such trouble breaking free. The
Langoran’s body was black and blue with bruises, and he was still bleeding in some areas where he had been cut mercilessly. Bastion tried to suppress his anger as he reached out, grabbed a chain and yanked it apart with all his might. The rest of the net fell apart around Kent and they both began swimming back to the surface. Bastion made sure he was the first to emerge.

Jumping out of the water, a few eidolons flew at his chest, but he was able to swat them away easily with the back of his hand, sending them down to the water beneath him. His feet was just about to hit the water again when he felt something jump on his back. They crashed into the water together and he felt his attacker wrapping an arm around his neck. Bastion didn’t care though. There were no strength behind it.

Bastion swam up to the surface with his attacker in tow and this time he leapt for the platform by the entrance, where six boys were waiting for him with their eidolons drawn. Bastion grabbed the boy’s arm around his neck and wretched him off of his body, chucking him at the other six. He went crashing into the group and then Bastion got to work.

With his bare hands, he hit the boys one by one, hitting them in the stomach or the chest, knocking the wind out of them and ensuring that they weren’t going to be breathing properly for a few days. Kent climbed up slowly to the platform behind him as he finished off the last boy. Bastion shook his head.

“Why is Mason doing this?” Bastion asked in disbelief. “Why would he do that to you?”

“He has Daisy too,” Kent said through his raspy voice. Bastion turned around and saw him rubbing his throat. “I don’t know where he’s taken her though.”

“That’s right,” a boy said from the entrance, having just arrived to the scene. He and the other five he brought with him surveyed the area and scowled once they saw their friends lying unconscious on the floor.

“This is ridiculous,” Bastion said. “
Mason can’t hurt me. None of you can hurt me.”

“If you want to see Daisy again, you’ll let us knock you unconscious and take you to Mason.”

“Or I could beat the information out of you.”

“Yeah,” Kent grinned. “That sounds better.”

“Good luck on that,” the boy replied. “We serve the future Order Master. We won’t tell you anything. We’ll die before that happens, and I know you won’t kill us. Your resolve is too weak.”

“Mason’s been here for one day,” Kent groaned. “How did he brainwash you so easily? And so quickly?”

“As the Order Master, he has promised us Paradise in exchange for our allegiance.”

“He’s not the Order Master yet. He doesn’t have that authority.”

“His father is though. So our reward is a surety.”

“Tell us where Daisy is,” Bastion snapped, clenching his fists. He wasn’t sure if he would be able to restrain himself if he had to retrieve the information by force. He had never tortured anyone before, and he wasn’t sure he could stop if he started. When would he go too far?
And when would it begin to take a hold on him afterwards like it had with Hakin? Would it creep into his soul slowly, or leap upon him like a coughing fit?

“No,” the boy said firmly. “And if we don’t go back to Mason with all of us in good health, then Daisy will be murdered.”

“That won’t stand in Allay. Not even Mason has that much power.”

“You underestimate our master. While he may not be as strong physically, his tactical mind more than makes up for it. Now, what is your answer? I would consider your next words carefully.”

“I could go to Master James. He wouldn’t allow this.”

“Master James is a confused and broken shadow of the past. His classes haven’t seen him in days. But again, you won’t get a chance to go look for him without putting your friend in jeopardy. You leave, and it will be seen as a refusal to come with us.”

“Fine,” Bastion said quickly, stepping forward. The group took a step back instinctively, but then they saw Bastion turn and face Kent, with his back toward them. The boys looked at one another with surprise, but no one was in more shock than Kent.

“What are you doing?” Kent said with wide eyes. “You’re going through with this?”

“I can’t risk Daisy’s safety.”

“You think they’re just knocking you out so you won’t see where they’re taking you? Bastion, they’re going to have you chained up and defenseless.”

“I know. But it’s a risk I’m willing to take.”

“You can’t do this,” his friend pleaded. “Daisy wouldn’t want this.”

“Daisy’s not here to say otherwise. And besides, don’t you remember what we talked about when we met? We’re here to help each other out. I’m supposed to protect you both. We’re supposed to get strong together.”

“No, this isn’t right. I think—” Kent’s words cut short as the leader of the new group hit Bastion on the back of the head with the hilt of his straight sword eidolon. Bastio
n barely acknowledged the blow—the only movement coming from him being the reflexive twitch of his head snapping forward. Bastion readjusted his stance and took a deep breath as he stared at Kent.

“I’ve got to do this,” Bastion said, as the boy behind him scowled and hit the young Sage in the back of the head again. Then again, and again, and again. With each blow, Bastion’s eyes grew heavier thoug
h he felt no pain, and Kent watched in horror, clenching his fists and closing his eyes, being forced to listening to the sickening thud of steel against skull.

It took a few minutes, but finally Bastion staggered and fell to the floor unconsciousness. Kent’s eyes fluttered open, and he glared at the group of boys before him, taking mental pictures of them in his mind,
and doing his best to remember their faces for the future. As he studied the leader of the group—the one who had knocked out Bastion, the hilt of an eidolon came flying at his face, hitting him in the forehead.

“This is how it should be,” a muffled and distant voice repeated. “This is what you were made for. To be a soldier. An obedient and subservient warrior. Not one that kicks against your superiors.”

Bastion groaned and tried to put his hand to the back of his head, but he couldn’t. His hands were bound to his feet and he was lying on his back like an animal about to be put on a spitfire. His eyes gained focus and he saw Mason standing over him, wearing an Order robe over his shoulders. Bastion looked around him the best he could and saw Kent in the grass to his right, also on his back and tied in a similar manner. He was still unconscious.

“What—where are we?” Bastion winced as he felt a sharp pinch flash from the back of his head. He could only imagine what the wound looked like. While he waited for Mason to answer, he concentrated on healing whatever damage had been done.

“Back of the Academy,” Mason said. “In the dirt and grime. Where you belong.”

Bastion did his best to suppress a chuckle. Instead he opened his eyes completely and took in his surroundings. There were thirty boys behind Mason, all of them watching with smug faces, filled with satisfaction.
There was a bonfire roaring behind them, and Bastion could barely make out the back wall of the school behind him. The night air was chilly and filled with the smoke of the fire. The stars shone brightly above him, and the moon was full. In different circumstances, it might have been a peaceful atmosphere, but there was blood in the air, and Bastion knew that it would have to either be Mason’s or that of his friends. There was no other way…right?

“Where’s Daisy?” Bastion asked low, with such authority that it made Mason shiver for a moment.

“She’s here,” Mason replied. “Don’t worry. No harm will come to her. As long as you do what I say.”

“And what do you intend on having me do?”

“I want you to be my right hand man. My bodyguard and warrior.”

“Pass.”

“You’re not even going to consider it?”

“Nope. That’s not going to happen. I am no one’s slave.”

“You are Lakrymos’ slave.”

“That’s debatable,” Bastion said, testing the ropes by stretching his arms a bit. They nearly fell off of him so he stopped. Mason clenched his jaw and stormed away from him. When he came back, he was pulling a scared and bloodied Daisy by the hair behind him.

“Would her death change your mind?” he asked, but Bastion ignored his question.

“Daisy? Daisy? Are you awake?”

“I’m here,” she whispered, and that was all he needed to hear. He grit his teeth and disintegrated the ropes around him with his strength. He rolled backwards and onto his feet, then he reached out for Mason but one of his minions got in the way. Bastion threw the meddler to the side, but another one stood in his place. Growling in frustration, he knew the moment to get Mason was lost. Kent and Daisy would surely be in danger by now. Bastion roundhouse kicked a few of the boys to the side and ran over to Kent who was being watched over by Daisy. She had broken free of her bonds and now she was swinging her red eidolon hook swords wildly, keeping her attackers at bay. Bastion rushed over and relieved her, taking out his eidolon and smacking them one by one in the face with the surface. Daisy staggered from exhaustion and fell to one knee.

“Why aren’t you cutting them?” she asked, kneeling over Kent.

“I don’t want to accidentally kill them,” Bastion replied, slamming the surface of his eidolon into one of their attacker’s stomach. The boy crumpled onto his knees and then went face first into the grass. Bastion looked around and made sure everyone was unconscious while Daisy smacked Kent in the face.

“Wake up!” she shouted, and then she winced, grabbing her wrists. Bastion came to her side.

“Are you okay? What did he do to you?”

“Nothing serious. Just a beating I’ll never forget. Where’s Mason
, and what are we going to do to him?”

“I don’t know,” he said, casting his eyes down at Kent. He knew that he probably could have caught up to Mason, but he was afraid of w
hat he would do if he did. With Hakin, his death was essential to the mission given to him. He thought of himself as a soldier in the midst of war, carrying out the wishes of his general. But if he went after Mason and took his life…it would be of vengeance. Of passion. And he wasn’t sure if there would ever be an end afterwards. He couldn’t just kill everyone that sought to harm him because he had the power to do so. That’s how he would lose himself, stop growing, and ultimately become the villain he had fought so hard to keep at bay. If he killed Mason, there would be nothing holding him back from killing the Quietus for what they did to his childhood, Orchid for being a threat, the Yama for their perceived ill intentions, and anyone else that irked him.

He would be alone. Empowered and feared. But utterly alone.

“What do you think we should do?” Bastion asked as Kent began twitching his fingers.

“I know what I want to do,” Daisy said, refusing to look into his eyes. “But I don’t know if I could do it. If you…never mind.” Bastion closed his eyes and tried to suppress the weight that came upon his chest. He knew what Daisy wanted to ask of him, and he wasn’t sure if he wouldn’t carry out the request.
He was grateful that she didn’t keep talking.

“Do you think Orchid would handle the problem if we told her?” Daisy asked, but Bastion shook his head.

“No, she would relish in it, thinking of it as training.”

“He won’t be so merciful next time, you know. He wanted you to join
him, and beating us up was simply a display of his power within the student body.”

“I don’t understand why they would follow him.”

“He seeks out the weak and gives them hope of power because of his future status. Honestly, I don’t know what to do. We can’t attack the same way he can.”

“I’m not going to stay here at this academy while he torments us,” Bastion said. “But I’m not going to run away either. Every time he tries to attack us, whether it’s personally or through someone else, we let him know that we can’t be broken.”

“We might be better off leaving him alone and going about our business. He’s the type of person that will push back if we go against him.”

“
But I killed Lakrymos,” Bastion replied flatly. Daisy nodded her head and cast her eyes to the ground as Kent sat up and rested his massive arms over his knees. “Lakrymos is gone, and he was one of the greatest Sages that ever lived. Mason will be lucky if he ever gets to win a fight.”

“So what are you saying?”

“Are you two going to be okay by yourselves for a little while?”

“Where are you going?” Kent asked, and Bastion refused to look his way.

“You already know.”

“He might be counting on that.”

“Don’t care.”

“We’ll be fine,” Daisy said, giving him the biggest smile she could manage. Bastion waited no longer. He took off running in the direction of Mason, knowing that the coward was probably beyond his eidolon’s sensing capabilities. It didn’t matter.
Bastion ran around the exterior of the academy until he came to the courtyard and the entrance of the school. It was eerily quiet, and a dense fog had set over the area so he stopped running. Bastion took out his eidolon and let it shine brightly, making his path visible. The moment its blue radiance lit up the courtyard, he saw his enemies. Four of them. And they were adults.

“Wait,” Bastion said in confusion, but one of the adults swung at his neck with a regular standard-issued sword. He was able to dodge it easily with a step back
wards, but seeing an adult swinging at him without warning reminded him too much of his foster mother. He could already feel his nerves unraveling. He hadn’t expected this.

“Hey, wait,” he said again, and the adult behind him stopped. Bastion held up his hands and spun around, examining the area and making sure that everyone had heard his request. “What’s going on? Why are you attacking me?”

“You’re the one that broke the Young Master’s eidolon, aren’t you?” someone asked from the shadows. Bastion wasn’t sure how to answer the question. “That’s what I thought,” the lady replied. “We were unable to confirm your involvement in his attempted murder, but since he has come back to us, he was able to identify you easily.”

“He never died,” Bastion retorted, and suddenly, Mason stepped
out in front of him, with a steel sword gripped tightly in his right hand.

“
It doesn’t matter,” Mason said. “You know what a broken eidolon implies.”

“I was defending Daisy.”

“By nearly killing the future of Allay.”

“I don’t want this to continue.”

“Then join me. Be my bodyguard.”

“I already gave you my answer.”

“Then there’s nothing left to talk about. You don’t understand the situation. Your only option now is to leave Allay forever.”

“I’m forbidden to do so.
Lakrymos will kill me.”

“That’s not my concern,” he said, and Bastion raised an eyebrow.

“Is that why you want me gone so bad? Because I’m supposed to be the one that will save Allay and not you? What does it matter if Lakrymos chose me or not. The people know nothing about me. You have all the prestige.”

“For now I do,” Mason said, gritting his teeth. “But not once the Yama arrive. Already the people are wondering if I’m fit to lead the Order based on how easily my eidolon was shattered. That confidence will be shattered once they see how you’ll decimate our enemies.”

“So I leave, and what? You fight the Yama?”

“I’m a strategist. I’ll figure out a way to beat them that doesn’t require brute force.”

“Like you’re about to do now?”

“You have no idea,” Mason said with a smile.

“I’m willing to leave,” Bastion replied. “Just give me a couple days.”

“No. Now. I don’t want to look at your face any longer.
”

“If I go
…what happens to Daisy and Kent?”

“They’re going with you. I don’t need dissenters in my presence.”

“They should be allowed to stay if they like. Especially Daisy. She still has family in Allay.”

“Not anymore,” Mason said, tapping a finger against the side of his head. “Strategist, remember?”

“What did you do?” Bastion asked in horror, taking a step toward Mason. Mason’s bodyguards surrounded Bastion with their hands firmly on the hilts of their sheathed swords.

“Physical pain is the most savage and simple way of breaking someone. I prefer to attack the heart and soul, which are a lot more fragile.”

“What are you saying?!” Bastion yelled, clenching his fists. “What did you do to Daisy’s family?!”

“I sent them to Paradise,” Mason said with a smile. Bastion’s shoulders sank as he staggered backwards under the weight of his enemy’s words. “Daisy is a variant that will eventually alter her parents’ path in life as the years go by. Where once they would have been in danger of Oblivion, I have sent them to bliss and
joy before that time has come.”

“And you all let this happen?!” Bastion screamed at the bodyguards. The man who had spoken earlier stepped forward, wiping his hands across his shirt.

“The young Master showed great wisdom in his decision. We are all in agreement of it.”

“And this is what Allay will become under your guidance?” Bastion asked, facing Mason. “This is how you’ll deal with the people? Sending them to Paradise if you see fit? Why don’t you send me to Paradise? Huh?”

“I’m considering it,” Mason said, but Bastion gripped his eidolon tight.

“Or is it because you can’t! You’re trying to force me from Allay because I threaten your plans. I’m not going to be bullied by you or anyone else!”

“Then watch your friends suffer for your nobility. Don’t be surprised if your foster parents meet an untimely end, and later you can marvel at how quickly Orchid and Lakrymos will turn against you once I’ve whispered a few things into their ears. You don’t get it yet, do you? You don’t belong here. And I’m going to do everything in my power to make sure you go back to wherever you came from. Your little girlfriend’s parents are dead because of you. What are you going to say to her? How are you going to explain to her what happened?”

“No, how are
you
going to explain it?! What do you think will happen when I tell Orchid and James?”

“It was made to look like an accident, and I am the son of the Order Master. No one will be coming after me. So I’m going to ask you….one. Last. Time. Will you leave Allay?”

“I said no,” Bastion spat at him. One of Mason’s bodyguards swung at him from behind, but Bastion ducked under it and jammed his eidolon suddenly into the bodyguard’s chest. He kicked off of the bodyguard to remove the blade just as the other three bodyguards tackled him from behind. Bastion was nearly forced to his knees, but he pumped his legs full of energy and kept himself erect. Just as one of the bodyguards managed to stick a blade through his side, he threw them to the right. They fell together in a heap but they weren’t his target. He ran for Mason who swung at his torso, but Bastion smashed his eidolon into the steel sword and destroyed it on impact. Bastion grabbed Mason’s collar, picked him up off his feet and then slammed him hard into the gravel, forcing the wind out of him as he landed on his back.