SWOOSH...
A cold whistle of air followed the blade. Something huge and round went flying.
THUD...
It crashed on the floor and rolled until it bumped against Ajax's knee. Ajax looked down; he knew this face. It was his father's head, the features locked in a mask of murderous fury even in death.
THUD...
Grom's headless body collapsed, blood gushing from the neck.
The Prince didn't stop. He continued walking toward Kael, his golden boots striking the stone like the slow, steady beat of a funeral drum. Kael looked up at her husband's remains, then at the golden killer, and finally, she turned her eyes to Ajax.
"Ajax, sweetheart, listen to me. I want you to run, okay? Run and hide. I love y—"
SWOOSH.
The sentence was cut short as Kael's head was sent flying. It rolled and came to rest right beside her husband's, her face still wearing that final, warm smile.
'i can't have mercy on them, they're all evil and vile. They need to be exterminated' Calvin's eyes were fixed on the scrawny kid.
He found it odd that the boy didn't cry or scream; he was just silent, his head bowed as he stared at the heads of his parents resting together.
'is he mute? Doesn't matter I have to end him. Death is a mercy for filth like you. Don't worry I will give you a fast and painless death,'
Ajax didn't run. With trembling, blood-stained hands, he slowly picked up his parents' heads, cradling them against his chest.
Calvin swung his sword down. The golden steel shrieked through the air.
CLINK....
At the final microsecond, a heavy iron edge met the golden blade. The impact sent sparks flying into the dark. Calvin leaped back, his eyes narrowing.
Standing over the boy was a goblin clad in scarred armor, a sword in one hand and a massive, blood-stained hammer in the other.
"How could you?" Gallagher's voice was a low, vibrating rumble that seemed to shake the cave walls. "How could you?"
Images of his own lost wife and child flashed before Gallagher's eyes, overlapping with the tragedy on the floor.
"You guys are monsters and need to be exterminated. It doesn't matter if it's a child or not; that same evil runs in your blood," Calvin adjusted his stance, gripping his sword with both hands. He could feel the pressure coming off this one; this goblin was a true warrior.
"You call us monsters, but look," Gallagher pointed his hammer at the two heads. "Look at what you did. You slaughtered parents in front of their child. You think you're a hero? You're a hypocrite. You humans are all the same. And with that gold and those eyes... you're royalty, aren't you? The highest of the hypocrites."
Gallagher didn't wait for an answer. He charged, his heart a furnace of rage.
BOOM.
The collision released a violent shockwave that tore the moss from the walls. Golden and reddish auras flared and clashed, grinding against each other.
Ajax was tossed backward by the sheer pressure, his small body sliding limply across the stone. As the two masters of war traded blows, the shockwaves continued to ripple out, pushing Ajax further and further into the dark, silent depths of the lower tunnels.
Ajax faded in and out of consciousness.
"Load this dirt into the wagon."
Ajax slowly opened his eyes but was forced to shut them fast as a beam of light flooded into his eyes.
"Make sure that they are all bound."
Finally, his eyes adjusted to the light; he slowly opened his eyes.
"Mom? Dad?" he called out.
Ajax slowly sat up; his body ached all over. In the wagon, the air was thick with the smell of iron, sweat, and despair.
Beside him, several goblin children, teenagers, and women lay huddled together, shivering with their hands and feet bound. They all sobbed as they were carted away.
Ajax looked back as he saw a heap of goblin bodies; at one side, the goblin who fought with the golden-armoured man's body laid.
"Make sure you extract their cores and put their bodies in a space bag; we don't want it to rot and turn useless," a man in black armour barked as people rushed to carry out his duty.
"Mom, Dad," Ajax saw the bodies of his parents being opened and their cores extracted.
A small tear finally fell from his cheeks. "Mom! Dad!"
"Ugh! Who's this? Can you shut him up?"
The guard stepped towards the wagon, his heavy boots kicking up a cloud of dust. He reached through the metal slats and grabbed Ajax by his hair.
"I said shut your little mouth, you little freak."
"Dad! Mom!" Ajax continued yelling, uncaring for the guard who was pulling his hair.
"Shut it, shut it!" The guard grew impatient; he took an iron rod and hit Ajax.
....
"Little prince, congratulations on your win," Zarek bowed as he offered a wide smile.
"It's nothing serious; it's just a small win," Calvin responded, his voice cold and icy.
"A small win, but a win nonetheless."
"Tch," Vark snorted as he looked to the side with a bored expression.
"Vark, is anything on your mind?" Calvin shot him a look. "Why don't you air out your thoughts?"
Vark stayed silent for a bit before answering, "When are we going back? I'm already hungry."
"Sir, I'm here with the numbers of deaths."
Calvin turned as his eyes fell on his subordinate. "Let me hear it."
The man looked at the piece of parchment in his hands.
"We have a hundred and two dead with several injured, sir."
A hundred and two? Calvin felt a pang in his chest; these men had gone into battle with him and died; they would no longer see their loved ones. How unfortunate for a child not to see their parents again.
"Sir, to be honest, I think this is worth it compared to the numbers of those demons we killed."
Calvin let out a sigh. "Alright, make sure that when we get to the capital, the victims' families are compensated and..."
"Mom! Dad!" A sharp cry rang out in the surroundings.
Calvin turned his head towards the line of transport wagons. "Who's that?"
"Probably one of those devils," the subordinate spat to the side. "Don't worry, he will be silent real soon; I bet our boys are dealing with him now."
Calvin nodded as he continued talking with Zarek.
Several minutes passed, but the cry was still echoing through the surroundings. The constant hitting was now clear, but the cry refused to fade; it only got louder and louder.
"I'm going to check it out," Calvin said as he began walking towards the sound of the noise.
"No need, my prince; we, your subordinates, can take care of this."
"Clearly, you have shown how incompetent you are," Calvin dropped that cold line, making the man recoil.
"Yes, my prince, I'm so sorry," the man bowed as he quickly scurried away.
.....
"Are you possessed, kid? Why don't you shut up? Alright, you wanna die, right? You want to meet Mummy and Daddy in hell, right? Then be my fucking guest." The guard was already fed up; he took out his sword, ready to slice Ajax up.
The other goblins flinched as they saw the guard drawing out his sword.
"What is going on here?" a cold voice asked.
The guard froze and quickly turned around. Seeing who it was, he quickly gave a bow. "I'm sorry, my prince, but this little prick wouldn't stop shouting, so I decided to teach him a lesson, but he is so stubborn and refuses to keep shut."
Ajax looked up; the first thing he saw was golden armour; he immediately shot up to his feet.
"You," his little hands pointed at Calvin.
Calvin turned as he gazed at the little goblin with a raised eyebrow.
"You killed Mom and Dad. Why? What did we do?"
"Shut up, you devil!" The guard hit Ajax with the iron rod, making him tumble and fall.
Ajax slowly stood up again, his legs shaking.
"You, why?" Tears ran down his face."Why?"
Calvin walked closer to the cage.
"My prince, be careful."
Calvin stopped right at the front of the cage, his cold eyes meeting Ajax's.
"Do you think that this little thing can harm me?"
"No, tha... that's not wh... what I meant."
"Back to your duty."
"Yes, sir." The guards quickly ran away while silently cursing themselves. 'What were you thinking? Were you kicked in the head by a bull? He's the prince, the son of the mighty ruler of the humans.'
"Why?" Ajax repeated again, his lips quivering.
"Because you guys don't deserve to live."
"Why?"
"You guys are devils."
"Why?"
"The sins of your ancestors have stained you all, so don't blame me, but your ancestors."
Ajax stared at the man.
"But my dad and mom didn't do anything to you guys; they have never harmed anyone."
"Like I said before, the sins of your ancestors have stained you all; you carry that same blood. Your parents were sinners and so are you." Calvin turned around as he began walking off.
"I'm going to kill you for that! I'll be the last thing you see! I will kill you, do you hear me? I'm gonna kill you!" Ajax screamed.
Calvin stopped as he turned to Ajax. "What's your name, kid?"
"Ajax. Remember that name, 'cause I will end all of humanity." Ajax finally fell on the floor; his body was battered and covered in injuries.
"Ajax," Calvin breathed in. "I like your fighting spirit. If only you were born a human and not a monster." Calvin shook his head.
"Did you hear that? How can such a vile thing come from a child?"
"He really is a descendant of a devil, vile and evil."
"We are in the right to kill them all; if not, they will bring destruction," a group of guards discussed.