Vernara and Arcadius walked to the village center, where they met Avon and Sara. Sara waved and ran to them, and Vernara rushed to meet her. Alvion turned to Souldan.
"We will rest here for a moment, then we'll leave," Alvion said.
"Alright, sir. Should we put them to rest?" Souldan asked.
"Yes, we should," Alvion replied.
Sara hugged Vernara, and they chatted for a bit. Arcadius and Avon shook hands, both looking relieved to see each other. They took a seat around the old well.
Avon looked to his left and saw a dead man with many arrows in his back, as if he was trying to hide or save something. Avon stood up and pulled one of the arrows from the man's back. An Old Guardian soldier with a golden hammer came to see what he was doing. The arrow had a demonic shape.
"Look at this," Avon said. "What do you think?"
The Old Guardian took the arrow and examined it. "It's a vampiric type. It's not poisonous."
"What does poison have to do with it?" Avon asked.
"Poison means they are scouts, assassins, or scavengers," the soldier explained. "But this type is military. A military type isn't meant to hunt; it's meant to kill on sight. It means a vampire army was here."
"A vampire army?" Avon asked.
"There's so much more," the Guardian said, placing a hand on Avon's shoulder. "Once we reach the old city, you'll find all the answers you seek: what happened here, who attacked you, and everyone else who participated in this slaughter. Just have patience."
Arcadius, who had been listening, walked over, his curiosity getting the better of him. "You said a vampire army was here? The succubus swarm annihilates any living creature—demon, devil, elf, human. Are you telling me an organized army was fighting alongside them?"
"I didn't say they fought together, but that's what we assume," the Guardian replied. "There's no other explanation. No other clues that they fought each other, no mixed blood, nothing. Everyone who was here fought against humanity."
"The old city," Arcadius said, his voice tense. "Does it have all the answers?"
"Yes, it does," the Guardian promised. "That is my promise."
Arcadius was frustrated, but he nodded and stepped back.
"Are you okay, brother?" Avon asked. "You seemed to lose control for a moment."
"Y-yes, I'm fine, thanks," Arcadius said, his voice softening. "Brother?"
"I'm here."
"Once we find the answers to all this, I promise you... I will kill every last one of those fucking creatures," Arcadius said, his voice stuttering. Avon hugged him to calm him down.
"I know," Avon said. "I know. Do you think I'm any better than you? I'm just holding it together until I find the answer that satisfies me."
"You mean an excuse to kill them?" Arcadius asked, and they both started laughing.
The Old Guardian soldier overheard them from afar. "You will both be great leaders one day," he said to himself before turning and walking away. "One day, this world will be a wonderful place for humans."
After two hours, Avon remembered something important. He walked over to Sara and whispered, "Hey, Sara."
"Yes?"
"I think we missed something."
"Something?"
"More like someone."
Sara was confused, then her eyes widened in a sudden realization. "No way! How could we?"
"Keep it down," Avon said. "Alvion and the others don't know about her yet."
"Should we at least tell Arcadius and Vernara?" Sara asked.
"Yes," Avon said. "We have to find her before we leave the village."
Sara walked toward Arcadius and Vernara, a forced smile on her face. A Guardian on a rooftop saw her looking around suspiciously but decided not to alert the others, choosing to keep an eye on her instead.
"You're either smiling because you've finally gone mad, or you're hiding something," Vernara said, smirking.
"How can you tell? Maybe I'm just happy," Sara replied.
Vernara wasn't amused. "Sara, dear, we've lived together for 15 years. I know everything about you. Cut the act. What's going on?"
Arcadius also saw that something was wrong. "We kind of forgot something," Sara finally said.
"Something? Like what?" Vernara asked.
"More like someone."
Arcadius's eyes widened. "Minerva!" he whispered.
Vernara's face didn't show surprise, but she felt a wave of guilt. "Minerva... I can't believe it."
"What's wrong? Didn't you miss our little friend?" Arcadius asked.
"It's not about that," Vernara said. "I don't forget faces, names, or voices."
"Hate to tell you, sis, but that guy over there says otherwise," Arcadius said, pointing with his head to the Guardian on the rooftop.
The Golden Guardian waved at them, then leaped down from the roof into the rubble, making a smooth landing. He walked slowly toward them.
"Tell me," he said. "Who's this person you're talking about?"
"Even from afar, your hearing is impressive," Avon said.
"Thanks. To be part of the Order means you have to be good at something," the Guardian replied. "But that's not the matter now. Who is the girl you're talking about?"
"Should we?" Vernara asked.
"Do we have any other options?" Arcadius said.
"No," Sara replied.
"Long story short," Avon said, "we came to this village as five people. We are now four, so we're missing someone and we have to find her before we leave."
The Golden Guardian's eyes narrowed. "Does she perhaps go by the name of Minerva?"
Everyone was shocked.
"H-how did you...?" Sara stuttered.
"Bullshit! How the hell did you know?" Arcadius burst out. "We never mentioned anything!"
"Calm down," the Guardian said. "I mean no harm. I want to keep the rest of the story for the old city. Now, you have the right to know, so follow me."
He led them to a building that used to be a fancy restaurant, and they all sat down to listen.
"I was there when the sky fell and the army of darkness marched into the village," the Guardian said. "I saw it all and fought as a loyal servant of the Order Emperor. The first three hours were a massacre. The real battle began in the fourth hour when the human army marched to the city. The army split into two: the strongest fought the darkness, and the other tried to save as many as possible."
"Trying to save as many as possible?" Avon asked. "What do you mean?"
"It means not everyone could be saved," the Guardian said. "Do you know how many we saved that day? Only seventeen. And they were all children."
"Impossible," Avon said. "I saw people walking down the road after it happened."
"My child," the Guardian said, his voice heavy with sadness. "Those were not people. They weren't even close."
"Then what were they?" Sara asked.
He looked down, holding something in his hand. "I prefer to keep that detail for the old city," he said. "What a disaster that day was. The Old Guardians were a bit late, but they did the impossible. And what shocked us was the sight of nine massive armies marching from all sides—none of them were human."
"What armies were they?" Arcadius asked.
"High elves, demons, vampires, orcs, goblins, the succubus, and many more," the Guardian said. "I wish to say no further."
"Understandable," Vernara said. "We'll get the rest in the old city, as you all promised, right?"
"That's correct," he replied.
"Thank you for telling us," Avon said.
"There's still much to be told, Sir Avon," the Guardian said. "In the old library, you shall all know the truth. The truth of everything. What you were told about this world and these creatures... was wrong."
"Wrong?" Arcadius said.
"All of it."
"Fine," Avon said. "But the real question is, how did you know about Minerva?"
"I have said enough, Sir Avon," the Guardian replied. "Like I promised, I will reveal everything once we reach the old city. Now, all you have to do is have patience."
"So be it," Avon said. "Patience it is then."
"I hope it's worth it," Arcadius muttered.
"Indeed it is."
Souldan finally found them. "What are you doing here?" he asked.
"We were talking," the Golden Guardian said.
"I can see that," Souldan replied. "The path has been cleared. We are leaving, so let's go."
They walked back to the Guardians' group and prepared to leave. A soldier walked up to them. "Sir, these horses are ready."
Avon looked around. "Wait, us?"
"Yes, sir," the soldier said. "These horses are yours."
Avon looked at Alvion, who gave him a small nod and a smile. "Thank you," Avon said.
"You're most welcome."
"Who's a good horse... who's a good horse?" Arcadius said, stroking the horse's neck. "You are! Ha-ha-ha-ha!"
"Yep, he's officially lost it," Sara said.
"I'm starting to feel bad for him after all those jokes I made about him," Vernara added.
"Ha! Sure, ladies. This is my horse!" Arcadius said as the horse bumped him in the back. "See? She loves me!"
"By the way," Vernara said, "it's a 'he.'"
"God damn it," Arcadius said, looking down to confirm. "Whatever, he's a good boy."
They mounted the horses and rode alongside the Guardians. Once they reached the village gates, Alvion said, "Now, to the old city and the old fortress."
"So they are the same after all," Sara whispered. "Good to know."
"LEGIONS, FORWARD!" Alvion commanded.
They rode out of the village. Avon took one final look at his old home. As they walked among the fallen, they saw the Guardians giving respect to those who fought back. Avon saw a soldier who had been impaled with a spear while on guard. Several Guardians were standing by him, throwing flowers on his body.
Alvion rode beside Avon. "Do you wish to put them to rest, Sir Avon?"
"Are they not?" Avon asked.
"Not yet."
"It would take days to bury them all," Avon said.
"Who said anything about burying?" Alvion said. "We're going to burn them."
"Burn them?" Avon said, shocked. "They were our family and friends."
"Then do you wish to see their remains rot, or be looted by scavengers?"
"No, I don't."
"Then allow me to put them to rest."
Alvion stopped the legion and faced the village one last time. "Those who walked among us, those who we once cared about, those we once called family. I, Lord Alvion, hereby order you to rest in peace!"
"ARCHERS! FIRE!" Souldan commanded.
A barrage of flaming arrows flew toward the village. The walls caught fire, and in no time, the village was burning once again. This time, however, it felt more peaceful. Once the village and its residents were laid to rest, they marched toward the Old City. The journey would take four days.
The first two days were normal, but on the third, they saw the remains of a convoy—no bodies, just carriages and the remains of horses. There were no blood trails, so it must have happened a long time ago.
On the fourth day, before they reached the city, they saw a group of goblins scouting. The Guardians kept marching without a care. The goblins attacked, but the Guardians charged, smashing their heads with their hammers. The fight didn't even last a minute before the goblins fell back.
"Are these the ones who attacked the village?" Avon asked sarcastically.
"Yes," Souldan replied. "Pretty weak, right? Just wait until you see the other creatures. You'll wonder how humanity lost to them."
Avon and the others began to wonder if a stronger being had participated in the massacre.
They passed a beautiful waterfall, and Sara and Vernara raised their hands, letting the pure water touch their faces. After passing the waterfall, they met a few Guardians who protected a mountain gate. They bowed to Avon and the rest as if they knew who they were.
After passing the gate, they finally arrived. They had reached the last remaining humans, who had fought for and believed in the Old Order Empire. Alvion and the others entered the city.
"My lords, my ladies, welcome," Alvion announced. "To the Old Order Empire, the Forgotten Order."
As they entered, people poured out of houses and stores, looking at them with hope in their eyes