Paladin 4: Chapter 53

The representative of the Order of the Rod glared at Darren. The scowling man’s golden wings shimmered in the sunlight like he was flexing both pairs contemptuously. Darren had only been using one set of wings for his landing, so he focused on making the second set appear. That wiped the smirk off the representative’s face immediately.

He turned his head to the side and jerked his chin at the other Order of the Rod members standing behind him, and they ran forward to flank Darren on all sides. Each of them was clad in the distinct armor of their order, though curiously, only six were seraphim. The other four, who were only third order paladins, were all humans.

Not to be outdone, Darren’s companions appeared even more suddenly and dramatically. Morgana materialized from the shadows at Darren’s side. She held a pair of daggers in her hands that gleamed menacingly.

Sasha didn’t even bother unfolding her wings. Instead, she simply jumped and landed with a massive thud. Her Might of a Giant spell was already in full effect, and she towered over the town square, even taller than Darren, as she glared down at the Order of the Rod.

Cassandra and Thalia fluttered down shortly after that, soon joined by Callum, Blossom, Audrey, and much of the Order of the Rose.

Then Kilean and Natashiel arrived, and the Protectors were present in force.

“We aren’t dead yet, no matter what you’ve been told. And Prime Saint Horon is no traitor!” Kilean shook his fist at the Order of the Rod representative.

By now, the Order of the Rod representative was scowling. This clearly hadn’t been how he’d expected things to go, and he wasn’t happy with the recent events.

He glared at Darren, eyes trying to bore holes into him, but without effect. Eventually, he spoke again.

“I am Sir Gustav of the Order of the Rod. And who are you, fellow seraphim of the Fifth Order?”

Darren chuckled inwardly. The way the man spoke made Darren suspect he had also been a human until recently. Likely an archpaladin unused to his new level of power.

“Darren,” Darren replied. He said nothing more, but watched Sir Gustav’s nose twitch in annoyance.

“Well, I say Horon is a traitor. You say the just and honorable Prime Saint of Valor is a traitor. Let’s settle this like paladins — or rather, seraphim! We’ll fight a duel to first blood.” Sir Gustav’s voice was filled with haughty pride. “If you defeat me, my forces and I will leave the city in your hands. If I beat you, then your forces shall do the same. The two of us are the fifth-order fighters here, so our victory or defeat would determine the fate of our subordinates, anyway. This will just mean having this contest with minimal bloodshed. What do you say?”

“Very well. I agree,” Darren extended his hand to seal the deal, empty palm up.

“Begin!” Sir Gustav shouted, drawing his sword the moment he finished speaking. He looked at Darren’s outstretched hand like a target and sliced at it. While doing so, he channeled Divine Aura through his body to bolster his speed and strength.

The blow came faster than an eye blink, and it was no doubt meant to catch Darren off guard. But Darren had fought Kalaziel himself. This underlying was no match for him.

Darren caught Sir Gustav by the wrist, holding his sword arm at bay. Looking at the blade up close, he noticed the tip glistened with a suspicious, watery sheen. That was no oil on the tip. From the dense Demonic Aura lining it, it was a powerful poison, though not nearly powerful enough to hurt someone like Darren.

But Morgana must have seen the poison when Darren did, because her eyes went wide, and she looked like she was about to dart in to save him.

Darren held up his free hand to stop her, but Sir Gustav still took advantage of the moment. “Betrayal! They’re trying to team up on me! Quickly men!”

Darren tore the poisoned sword from Sir Gustav’s wrist and tossed it to the ground. He’d hoped participating in this duel would help him get rid of Sir Gustav a little faster, but he was quickly growing tired of the man. There wasn’t an honorable bone in his body.

“You’ve shown your true colors, Sir Gustav,” Darren said. He swung Inevitability, knocking Sir Gustav’s forehead so blood dripped into his eyes. Anyone looking could tell at a glance that Darren had won their little contest. “I saw the poison on your blade.”

“I’ll gut him for you, Darren.” Morgana hefted her dagger and took a step forward.

Sir Gustav scrambled to his feet and turned. He touched his forehead and felt the wet blood there. He stared at his scarlet fingers for a moment and shot a glare at Darren.

Then Darren sensed him use another skill far more devious than the first. Sir Gustav’s eyes seemed to glow for a moment, and the world at the edges of Darren’s vision faded for a moment.

But it was only a moment. Mental Fortitude kicked in a moment later.

Absolute Analysis: Skill Analysis

Sir Gustav has used the skill: Enchanting Words (Epic)

His words are exceptionally irresistible. If you succumb to his skill’s effects, you will follow his next suggestion as though it were your own idea. You must resist this effect! Due to your difference in orders, this effect is dramatically lessened against you.

Due to the skill [Mental Fortitude], this skill’s effect is completely nullified.

“You want to test the poison,” Sir Gustav said. “Pick it up and prick your finger...”

Darren did pick up the sword. But instead of pricking his own finger, he stabbed it into Sir Gustav’s thigh.

“Agh! Seven Hells!”

“I wanted to test the poison,” Darren replied.

Sir Gustav looked like he was going to curse a few times more, but his face abruptly drained of all blood. A moment later, he slumped down where he lay, body quivering and twitching unnaturally.

“Whatever he had on there seems like it was pretty strong...” Morgana reached out and snatched the bag of holding on the dying paladin’s waist. “Let me just put whatever it is in a safe place...”

Meanwhile, Darren turned to the remaining representatives of the Order of the Rod. Face dour, he let them all get a good look at their commander. “Fight or surrender. The choice is yours.”

The Order of the Rod members glanced at one another and fled. Morgana moved to chase, but Darren held up his hand.

“Let them go,” Darren ordered.

Morgana looked at him askance. “You know they’re just going to rejoin their friends. This was the best chance we could have gotten to get rid of those guys. If we let them go, we’ll have to fight them again later.”

Sasha and Thalia arrived at Darren’s side with similar looks of confusion and interest.

Darren shook his head, guiding Morgana back.

“There is a reason I only showed the power of the Fifth Order,” Darren replied.

Thalia’s eyes widened. “I see you. You’re luring them to Calabor. You want them to gather all their friends and come here with their strongest fifth-order fighters. That way, you can take them all out at once.”

Darren gave Thalia a small smile. “Yes.”

Cassandra ran up and hugged Darren’s arm. “Darren’s brilliant, and I never once doubted him!” She patted her belly, and the child grew within it. “You hear that, baby? Your daddy’s very clever when he wants to be. I bet you’ll be clever too.”

The others rolled their eyes at Cassandra’s antics and set about helping the Protectors and Darren’s forces restore order in the city.

***

The next day was spent integrating the Protectors into Darren’s army. All the while, more and more humans climbed the mountain and settled in Calabor.

The clash of cultures was amusing for a while, with the humans basking in awe at the amount of Divine Aura in the air and the downright mystical appliances the seraphim had access to around every corner.

Housing ever created some trouble, but Asuriel had accrued quite a bit of wealth in Darren’s account on his behalf, thanks to all the demons she’d been selling before his climactic battle with Kalaziel.

He checked in on their old apartment, and everything was still there, including a note left by Asuriel in case anyone came by the place.

To whom it may concern. Don’t rob our apartment. My boyfriend can totally track you down and beat you up if you do!

Darren chuckled at the note. So the place hadn’t been robbed, whether because of Asuriel’s threat or just because of a good lock. He wasn’t sure. But he, Thalia, Cassandra, Morgana, Sasha, and Ashe settled in all the same.

They packed tight into one room while the Order of the Rose set camp in the rest of the house. Being an all-female order these days, they weren’t interested in sharing the other houses Darren had gotten for the rest of his troops. His apartment with Asuriel turned into the designated female barracks, with the sole exception of himself.

Rumors started spreading among the seraphim about the humans in their midst. Darren’s troops didn’t know how to hide their human nature as he once had, so being discovered was inevitable for them. Darren didn’t bother trying to hide it, though.

Seraphim quizzed Darren’s men left and right to figure out what was happening. According to Ashe, information was spreading wildly through the ophanim network.

But as Darren planned, the Order of the Rod responded to his action.

The battle for Calabor was coming. Ashe started to sense rumors of the Order of the Rod redistributing assets. Calabor wasn’t the only city they had sent people to take over the Protectors’ former position as peacekeepers. They were everywhere now, and the mystery around their suddenly swollen numbers was just as sought after as the mystery surrounding Darren himself.

“They’re coming, Darren! I saw them!” Morgana burst into their bedroom with a dagger on her hand. A bit of golden seraph blood dripped from its tip onto the carpet. “I was out for a completely innocent casual stroll in one of the neighboring cities when I spotted a few members of the Order of the Rod. There were more than usual, so I found one of them in a dark alley and asked him a few questions. Turns out, they’re rallying in the city over. Soon as they have three Fifth Order’s all gathered together, they’re going to come for us. That’s how many people they think they need to take you down.”

Sasha chuckled, and Cassandra let out a little giggle.

“It looks like everything is going to plan.” Thalia smiled.

“Well done, Morgana. When will they arrive?” Darren patted the piece of the bed next to him, though Morgana ignored it and plopped right down into his lap instead.

“Best guess? Tomorrow at mid-day.”

It was less time than Darren thought he’d have to prepare. With wings and instant communication, armies of seraphim could take action far faster than their human counterparts. But his forces had become much the same as of late.

He made his final preparations, and the rest of his forces did the same. Darren didn’t stop them and made no efforts to conceal the might of his troops. He wanted the Order of the Rod to throw everything they had at him.

The next morning was tense. Several of the Order of the Rod’s most powerful members had gathered to face Darren, his forces, and the remaining protectors in Calabor. They gathered in the air above the city. The walls were useless against fellow seraphim, and both forces ignored them completely.

“So you’re the one who dares to oppose the Order of the Rod?” So spoke the leader of the three Fifth-Order warriors come to fight him.

Darren stared at the three Fifth Orders. All three of them were seraphim, but someone got the sense that they were new to that identity. The flow of Divine Aura through their bodies reminded him more of archpaladins than of the Fifth Order seraphim he’d met.

“You were humans, weren’t you?” Darren asked, ignoring the previous question.

The leader scowled. “So what if we were? What of it?”

Darren knew they were all former humans then. None of them could even tell a human was standing right in front of them. They all thought he was a seraph.

“What did Kalaziel do to you?” Darren asked.

“He freed us of our mortal shells and filled us with power from the Heavens! Unlike you, humans can not naturally reach the Fifth Order on our own, but lord Kalaziel, in his wisdom, found a way for every mortal to gain one order’s worth of power when shedding their mortal vessel. That is how the Order of the Rod will overwhelm your dogs of Horon!” The leader jerked a finger at Darren and sneered contemptuously.

Darren ran his hand along his chin. He hadn’t the slightest idea how something like that might be done. Human sacrifices were something more akin to demon magic than seraphim magic. But he was willing to believe that Kalaziel had found a way to do it anyway. It made sense, considering what he’d seen so far.

Darren peered over at the other members of the Order of the Rod. They were hovering in the air just outside the city limits as they waited for the battle to commence between their three Fifth Orders and the battle’s most powerful fighter. Darren’s fight was the one that truly mattered, after all. Whichever side had its most powerful people remaining would determine how the rest of the fighting went.

“How many men did you bring?” Darren asked.

“More than you’ve got, no doubt, dog of Horon! I bet you wish you could hide behind him now!” the Order of the Rod leader snarled. “Speak your last words because it’s too late for you to join Kalaziel. The heavens are changing hands, and the foolish old guard of the seraph who refuses to change with it must die. For Kalaziel!”

The three fifth order warriors charged, activating one skill after another. Darren read their abilities off one after another, focusing specifically on whether he’d seen anything like those abilities before.

Absolute Analysis: Skill Analysis

Order of the Rod commander has used the skill Chain of Judgement (Rare)

• The seraph creates chains of Divine Energy that bind and drain Divine Aura from their target.
• You have seen this skill in use by members of the Order of the Rod while in the Blackwind Empire.

Order of the Rod vice commander has used the skill Retribution Aura (Rare)

• The seraph creates an aura of power around himself, empowering his attacks further when attacked.

Order of the Rod vice commander has used the skill Sword of Purification (Uncommon)

• The seraph thrusts forward a phantom sword of golden light that burns all it touches.

Darren had seen at least one of the abilities before. If he wasn’t already certain that these people were recently former humans who served in the Order of the Rod, he did now.

Darren activated Radiant Aegis, testing the new ability and its power to shield himself and others. Truthfully, he’d gotten it to protect his women rather than himself, but he was impressed when the glowing disk of light activated and deflected the Sword of Purification like it wasn’t even there.

Darren targeted the leader among his enemies with Nullification, completely destroying his Chains of Judgement before they could finish forming. Then he hit the man with Fetters of Fate.

Controlling his new legendary binding skill took a bit more effort than Fists of Peace. First, he had to manifest chains forged from will and intent, but when they landed, his foe’s fate was sealed.

“What is this? What is happening?”

Darren bound the man’s fate to the edge of his sword, and an invisible chord formed that stretched between Darren’s blade and the paladin’s throat. Both he and Darren knew the moment the mysterious chain manifested that the man would lose his life to Darren’s sword, unless he broke free of the chains of fate.

He desperately struggled against his bonds, leaving Darren dealing with only the other two fifth order seraphs. He planned to take a much more direct method for them.

His passive physical enhancement abilities were already active, but he planned to put them to the test. Weapons Proficiency, Divine Resistance, Rapid Regeneration, Agile Movement, Mental Fortitude, Borrowed Strength, Righteous Fury, and Divine Ascendancy all went into full effect.

The two remaining Fifth Order seraph didn’t last long enough to activate the rest of their abilities. One moment, they were charging at Darren, and the next, they were dead.

The two of them plummeted from the sky. Their leader was still struggling against Darren’s Fetters of Fate, his eyes wide with fear.

“Y-you’re no Fifth Order!” the man gasped in fear. “Y-you’re a Prime Saint!”

Darren held a silent hand to his lips to shush him. In his terror, the man lunged against the chains binding him. Darren reached out to catch him, but in doing so, the man twisted, catching his own throat on the tip of Darren’s sword.

The chains wrapped around him dispersed, and he plummeted to the city below, no longer bound now that his destined fate had been realized.

As Darren’s battle with the Fifth Order leaders of the Order of the Rod came to an end, Morgana, Sasha, Thalia, and Cassandra faced off against the remaining forces on the ground.

Morgana darted between enemy lines. Her swift and silent movements took down one Order of the Rod member after another. They barely had time to react before succumbing to her lethal precision, and she was making no effort to hide her new power.

“They have a second Fifth Order! An assassin-type cleric!” A man shouted shortly before being silenced forever by Morgana’s dagger. He collapsed to the ground and convulsed in agony as he was killed by a poison that seemed suspiciously similar to the poison Sir Gustav had wielded just the day prior.

Sasha led the Order of the Rose’s charge against the remaining forces. Her battle-hardened skills, giant form, her towering shield provided a bastion of defense that soaked up all incoming attacks. She paved the way for her allies to push forward as she shattered their defenses and was completely unyielding in her own defensive efforts.

Thalia, still unsteady on her wings, provides support from a distance. Though she wasn’t as experienced in combat as the others, she kept an eye. Information skills let her pick apart any danger on the battlefield before it became too big to handle. She adroitly directed reserve forces exactly where they would be needed. She also kept one hand around the wrist of a pregnant Cassandra, keeping her out of danger where she could use her healing, shields, defense network, and glyph abilities to shield Darren’s allies.

With her connection to Darren, she had an endless source of Divine Aura to pour out. Under her watchful gaze and a bottomless supply of defensive abilities, the Order of the Rod failed to secure a single kill. At the same time, their own people died left and right.

They knew the battle was truly lost when Darren finished his fight up above. This time, Darren was no longer feeling so merciful. He cast Fetters of Fate on the remaining members of the Order of the Rod, sealing the fates of each of them. Most were helpless to see the ability that would be their true doom. They fell to lucky arrows or tripped and fell on their own swords.

The battle was over as quickly as it started. The Order of the Rose cheered at the victory, and the Protectors and the rest of Darren’s forces joined them a while later. Most of them hadn’t even made it to the battlefield.

“Another victory!” Sasha raised her fist in the air as she gazed up at Darren.

He returned the gesture with a warm smile. “The first of many more to come.”