Part VIII: The Death Company
Nex's footsteps grew heavier as the sun began to set in the west, casting long shadows toward the Chief's house. He stood silently atop the hill, staring out at the fading light. The sun slipped lower and lower, and with it, the warmth and color of the world seemed to disappear. He remained there for hours, unmoving—unable to look away from the darkness swallowing the horizon… and, perhaps, something within himself.
As Nex's face disappeared into shadow, the trees and everything around him followed suit, consumed by the coming night. Eventually, without a word, he turned and made his way toward Varya—and the infant.
"He's been standing there for hours," Oryin said quietly.
Tazan, his voice tinged with guilt, muttered, "Maybe… maybe we could've put things more lightly."
Actaeon didn't look at him. His tone was firm, almost cold. "No. He needs to understand."
He folded his arms across his chest, eyes fixed on the darkening sky. "We swore loyalty to him. That means protecting him—even from himself. If he goes out there, against seasoned killers who enjoy torture and death… he won't come back the same. He'll lose whatever humanity he has left."
Actaeon's voice grew harder, but a faint tremble ran beneath the surface.
Oryin picked up where Actaeon left off, his voice quiet and grave. "Even if he just sees what they've done… it'll haunt him."
Tazan turned, his gaze locking with Oryin's—two hollow stares meeting in the dying light. The Chief sat in silence, looking out the window at the silhouette of the young prince.
"He's seen his fair share of death," Tazan said, his voice rising as desperation crept in. "That day in the Grand Bazaar—"
With each word, Tazan grew louder, conflicted between trying to defend his prince and trying to comfort his friend in need.
Oryin cut him off, his voice heavy with pain. "Whatever happened that day… it's nothing like what they did to the first villagers who disobeyed."
He took a breath, jaw clenched so tightly it looked painful to speak. "They split them in half vertically. And then… they made the children perform a theater play using their bodies. Puppets made of their own parents."
Oryin's eyes dimmed. "They made us watch."
His voice lowered, almost to a whisper, but the words were razor sharp. "The children were wearing what was left of their parents. Half for each child—stitched into them. Forced to confront each other with swords too large for them to hold. So they tied the swords to their arms with rope… tight enough that they couldn't drop them."
He exhaled shakily. "And when the play ended… they didn't untie the ropes. They just cut off the children's hands to remove the swords. Easier that way, they said."
He finally looked away, disgust and pain etched deep into every line of his face. "How… how could a human being do that?"
A heavy silence fell over the room, broken only by the faint rustling of wind through the trees outside and the quiet weeping of old Oryin.
"I will gather the men we have until sunrise to ready them. Tazan, you head to collect swords and bows from the blacksmith," Actaeon said in a low voice before stepping out as well, going in the opposite direction from Nex.
Tazan stood tall in front of Oryin and placed his hand on his shoulder. "What happened to them was awful—it was inhuman—but we need you to collect yourself and be a strong leader to the villagers while we are away. Now we need to protect the ones living in this village, even if it means shedding blood."
Oryin slowly and weakly collected himself. "I will never forget what they did to my people."
"Go... go make sure he never harms anyone anymore. I want you to stick a knife in his throat," he said as he wiped his weary eyes.
"A knife is too small for my hands—I'll use my axe instead, if that's alright with you, Chief," Tazan replied with a chuckle, then broke into a faint smile as Chief Oryin laughed.
Tazan stepped out, heading to the blacksmith, as Actaeon gathered the refugee men, elderly, and young boys who were able to carry weapons. Meanwhile, Oryin pondered his inability to defend his own people and family.
The hours melted away as Actaeon gathered the defenders of the village. It did not take long to convince them to protect themselves and their loved ones—they had been waiting for someone to come and give them guidance on how. It just so happened that one of the best hunters in the empire and the biggest man they had ever seen alive was in front of them, arming them with blades, shields, and for the few young boys and elderly men, whatever chainmail armor the blacksmith kept hidden from the soldiers who searched his shop every few days.
"They're all gathered here and armed, Actaeon... now what?" Tazan let out a sigh as he looked to his side, waiting for the cross-armed Actaeon to answer—waiting for another plan.
Actaeon looked desperate. The chainmail armor was too little—fewer than half of the seventy-nine men, elders, and boys gathered in front of him wore chainmail armor. All of them had no experience on a battlefield, and they were about to go attack the squad of one of the most ruthless and evil people alive... experienced in killing, fighting, and defending themselves from the law. Cruel men who thought of killing as a sick joke—former criminals, some said—and with the words of Chief Oryin, it seemed likely each of the fifty could take on ten or so of the villagers in a fair one-on-one fight. With the empire's advanced armor made from Useg material, making it hard as steel and light as leather, it made Actaeon unable to think of a weakness to exploit against them.
"Actaeon, please tell me there's a way we can win this fight without losing too many of them," Tazan said nervously, almost expecting the hard truth as the answer.
"We would be lucky if we can keep some of them alive..." Actaeon replied grimly. "We have a way we can win once I and a bunch of others are given up as hostages. We will free the hostages inside, growing our numbers—if even by one more person, it's good for us. Then we await the signal of the frontal attack... and right now I'm not sure how the frontal attack will work."
Actaeon's words were cut short as the crowd made way for Oryin heading toward him and Tazan, holding a paper tied with rope in his hand while being pushed by Nex.
"Actaeon, take this. You will need it," Oryin said. Actaeon took the paper from his hands as he locked eyes with Nex, not shying away from his gaze to look at the paper in front of him.
"It's a map of this village's surroundings. When Andras and his men asked me for one, I gave them a fake one... it's almost identical, but there's one big difference. There's a cave no one knows about except the people of the village. It used to be a way to smuggle goods into the village when we were occupied by the Kingdom of Stella seventy years ago. Head inside and keep going till you see a light, and at the other end you'll be right behind them, between the bushes and tree line. They'll never see it coming," Oryin added.
"I can't thank you enough, Chief. I was just wondering how we would approach them to ambush them—everything seemed impossible, but now..." Actaeon paused, then screamed to rally the crowd, "NOW WE SHALL PUNISH THE EVIL DEEDS OF ANDRAS AND HIS MEN!"
But he had forgotten these weren't soldiers... some of them were hardly even men at this point in their lives. Some reacted well, screaming and urging others to do the same, but most were silent, still hesitation in their eyes, as Actaeon had feared.
Tazan worried for the people—his lips quivered with sadness and nervousness. Actaeon was annoyed at first, then slowly fell back into desperation, trying to think of a way to salvage the situation he was in. Oryin looked down in shame.
Nex looked back into the eyes of the men, then read the faces of Actaeon and Tazan.
Nex left Oryin's wheelchair and moved forward, standing atop the small hill where Actaeon and Tazan were positioned. He stood in front of both of them, then looked back at the people.
Everyone was whispering about who he was and why he was standing in front of them until he lowered his hood, revealing his angelic white hair and sea-deep eyes. Everyone recognized it immediately and started panicking.
"It's the Prince of Death..." one boy shouted as he was hit on the arm by his grandfather. "Shush, boy, not out loud," the old man hissed. Another started saying a prayer while others fell into more desperation than they already were in.
"What are you doing, Nex?" Actaeon asked in annoyance.
"Wait, let him speak," Tazan said, stopping Actaeon from hiding Nex by standing in front of him.
Nex looked at Actaeon for a moment, then said in a low voice, "Do you trust me, Actaeon? I trust you to finish the mission because you are my trusted bow... do you trust me to convince these men to lay their lives down for you as your prince?"
"But how, Your Grace?" Actaeon asked.
"I did it with you and Tazan and Sao—don't you think I can do it now? Please step aside and let me lead these people from the back, at least, if I am not qualified yet to lead from the front," Nex replied.
Actaeon moved away silently, looking down in guilt and shame.
Nex started by yelling with a loud voice, hushing all the whispers and movement in the crowd: "YOU ARE NO SOLDIERS!"
Everyone stood still. The men who had reacted to Actaeon's words gritted their teeth, hands placed on their belts, expressions growing more frustrated. The elderly men and grandsons laughed a bit, and many others too. Some were ready to drop their weapons and spend the last few days with their families.
Some of the men remembered the winter when Andras's squad stole their entire grain harvest, leaving children to starve while they watched their stores burn for the raiders' amusement.
"Some of you are not even men," Nex continued.
"All of you have never held a blade in your hand, let alone killed a man."
Others recalled finding their fathers and brothers left rotting outside the village gates—Andras forbidding them burial, forcing families to watch loved ones feed the worm-eating birds which many call quinns.
Many of the men grew worried at Nex's words.
"And to make things worse, you are about to face—from what I heard from my friends and advisors—the worst human beings you have ever encountered... experienced in killing, torture, and they enjoy them as much as you enjoy the company of your wives."
Some of the men chuckled.
"As for a chance to return from this alive... you have none. And even if you do, who knows if you will be back in one piece or a shell of your former selves? Killing is not easy, nor should it ever be... not to anyone or anything that is even slightly human. Yet Andras and his men murder, steal, and commit unspeakable things to human beings like you and your families without losing an hour of sleep."
The memory of captured refugees being dragged back in chains flashed through their minds—neighbors handed over to empire slavers for a handful of coins and Andras's cruel laughter.
All of them had a serious look in their eyes, pondering whether they should fight or go back to their families and flee back to the empire, even if it meant slavery or at least a normal death.
"So how can we consider them human beings? Are we going to allow our families, our people, to keep dying at their hands for their amusement? Because at this very moment, the only people who have even half a chance at stopping them are us. The empire will not help, neither will a neighboring kingdom. You and your village never belonged to either of them, and now that you are at risk of dying, neither of them stand behind you to help you. You have yourselves and your families to belong to—no one else and nothing else."
Oryin's eyes filled with tears as memories of his wife's body being split in half, then his children's arms being cut off after they danced with his wife's half corpse for their amusement, flooded back.
The men started standing more firmly and steadily.
"So tell me what you are going to do," Nex challenged them.
"Run away back to the empire and embrace death," someone called from the crowd, which grew with some chuckles and laughter before another added:
"And why are you not helping? Prince of the empire, with a royal command you could have an army here helping us, so why are you not doing so?"
People's voices quieted down, waiting for an answer from Nex.
"Because I am dead... as dead as you are," Nex replied. "If you do not fight here and flee back to the empire, you will be met with slavery or death for you... and your family. And if you choose to lay down your arms and surrender, you will wish death on yourselves and family. So you tell me—if you are dead whether you flee, surrender, or fight, would you not at least die trying to save your families? Would you not give your death to save the people you care about... the ones you wanted to give a better life by fleeing this corrupt empire? You were willing to risk slavery and death for you and your entire families—now I only ask for one from each family to die for their families to remain safe. Or those who want to die, come and die for your families... come and die for me as I am dying for you when everyone abandoned you."
Actaeon was smiling before hearing that last line. He sharply turned around and looked at Nex, surprised. Before he could question Nex's words about dying for them, he heard the swords drawing from their sheaths, the first one being Nex's. The black sun on the hilt looked large as it covered the moon from the perspective of the men in the front rows... the sigil of House August, known to be great fighters and leaders throughout history. The men were filled with hope.
"Do you accept death?" Nex asked before a massive roar unexpectedly came from the men: "YEAH!"
"DO YOU ACCEPT DEATH?" Again the same roar without losing any power: "YEAH!"
"THEN YOU HAVE ACCEPTED ME AS YOUR LEADER, AND FROM TODAY ONWARDS YOU SHALL BE KNOWN AS THE DEATH COMPANY... MY COMPANY HEADING TO CERTAIN DEATH."
"DEATH COMPANY!" the people started chanting as Tazan looked on with some pride, yet a flicker of worry remained on his face. Oryin's teary eyes looked in awe and happiness. As for Actaeon... he was a raging bull.
"Can I talk to you, Your Highness?" Actaeon stepped in front of Nex. "Alone," he added as he gritted his teeth.
They moved away from the crowd as the men started calming down and preparing for the journey with torches, fire makers, food, and water to last at least half a day.
Away from the crowd, where Actaeon led Nex, Actaeon grew more frustrated with every step. "What the hell was that, Nex? I thought we agreed you are not fighting, and suddenly what—you are dying for some poor villagers? I mean, what were you thinking? You should have talked to me and Tazan about it. I mean, you said it yourself—we are your advisors and you can't make a decision like this one without consulting us, which you already did, and we agreed FOR YOU NOT TO FIGHT."
Before letting Actaeon continue with his rant of rage, Nex interrupted him by being louder than he was. "I am not going to FIGHT..."
"What?" Actaeon asked. "But what you said to the people atop the hill—you said you would die for them."
"Yes, I did... why do you think I showed my sword?" Nex replied.
Actaeon pondered for a bit, confused, before answering. "You plan on having someone else wear it, don't you... your hood."
"Yes, that is my plan," Nex confirmed. "I figured if I fought with you, I would be as much a hindrance as Oryin would be if you took him with you. The me right now can barely even carry a sword... I have been training for a while, and it looks like about fifteen seconds is the maximum amount of time I can hold it without the trembling starting."
"So you would have someone else be you and die while you stay safe?" Actaeon demanded.
"AND WHAT... and what other choice do I have?" Nex shot back. "If I had not given that speech and said I would die for them, what else would I have said? Die for me while I hide because I cannot recover from the state my sister and brother put me in?"
"You lied to them. You led them to believe you will lead them from the front while you are hiding. That is no more just for them than the empire's slavery is," Actaeon accused.
"They needed to believe that their deaths are going to carry meaning," Nex explained, his voice heavy with conviction. "Up until now they have been treated like livestock, unable to make decisions that will affect their lives, only living according to the decisions made by the empire and kingdoms that affected them.
"So if they don't control their lives, why should they not at least control their own deaths? At least if they die here, it would be to end a tyrant's rule over this village and its people and to protect their families.
"Yet if you lead them on without my speech, most would run, die of torture or fighting, or become slaves anyway. You talk to me about justice—where is the justice in them being in this position, forced to fight in the first place? THERE ISN'T ANY.
"They should not be here any more than I, you, or Tazan should. None of us belong on the frontlines... but LIFE is not just enough to keep us where we belong... so here we are, heading to our deaths.
"And I swear to you, if not for that infant in there, I would have led you guys to your deaths even if I have to kill you to change your mind... but she is too important to me to keep safe... to make sure she does not grow up and end up where we did."
Actaeon looked down, then asked quietly, "To make sure she doesn't end up fucked up like us, you mean?"
Nex's eyes filled with guilt and regret and started tearing upon hearing this. "Yes... that is what I mean, Actaeon. We are screwups that survived when we shouldn't have."
Actaeon's tears started dripping down his cheeks as he added a final note to Nex before heading to lead the men. "I suppose I will need your hood and sword now, Prince Nex."
"No, Actaeon," Nex said firmly. "Your bow is too important, and your face is too familiar to keep hidden. Instead, I have talked to a young man who will join you as soon as I step foot inside Varya's house to keep the infant company. You will explain to them that if you do not catch them off guard after you come out of the cave, you are to head back to the cave and hold your last stand there. And if that happens, Actaeon, I want you and Tazan to head back to the village."
"So much for Death Company that heads to its death fleeing a battle, don't you think, Prince?" Actaeon asked bitterly.
"Before you are a part of the Death Company, you are my sword, bow, and axe. You answer to me first, then to your death. That is an order for you and Tazan. Do you understand?" Nex commanded.
"Understood, my prince," Actaeon replied, bowing before leaving, heading back to the Death Company to relay the orders to Tazan.
Nex headed back to the house and a young boy went out in his stead after a while. Actaeon stood atop the hill explaining to the men who would be given as hostages, waiting for the right moment to free the hostages and who would be fighting from the front, when the young boy Nex was about to send to his death showed up. The hood fell back slightly as the boy adjusted the sword, and Actaeon's blood went cold. That scar on his eye... he'd seen it by firelight, teaching him to track deer. Varya's brother.
Actaeon pulled him to the side. "What are you doing here wearing this, boy... does Varya know about this... I taught you how to hunt with hopes some day you would leave this village, not die for it."
"I am avenging my family and yes, Varya does know about this—she encouraged it even," the boy replied fiercely. "At the end of the day someone has to take revenge for what they made me and her do to our parents' bodies... and as for leaving and living peacefully, we tried for a while... but the nightmare always comes back. The feeling of wearing your mother's skin will never fade from your memory... and I just want it to end... I want to sleep forever without having the same nightmare AGAIN AND AGAIN AND AGAIN EVERY SINGLE NIGHT... I hear her voice telling me she forgives me but what good does that do me when I can't sleep because of her voice."
Actaeon looked defeated as he let out a single tear before wiping it away and hugging the young boy. "I am sorry, Leto... I should have protected you... as an adult I should have never let anyone go through what you went through."
"You have nothing to apologize for, mentor. It is Andras that will have to pay," Leto said as his hand squeezed around the sword of the imperial young prince while Nex's finger was squeezed by the warmth of the infant.