The 'Extra' Lord (Unlimited Plunder) - Chapter 84

At some point, Owen had placed Frank down onto the shelf. He used the fire in his palms to cauterize the devastating wound at his front and back. For any normal man, the injury would have killed him in minutes, if not seconds. But Frank was no ordinary man. He must be from a Lineage family. 

It had taken them well over forty minutes of careful walking and shimmying to descend the cliff. They were left with just one more flight of stairs, and they would reach the bottom. But Justin stopped. He gazed into the city. The golems were still roaming around, searching for something.

“What do we do?” Elian asked, gazing at the huge tower in the distance. “One misstep, and we’ll be swamped by Monsters in seconds.”

“Then don’t misstep,” Justin said, his voice cutting through the tension like a blade.

Owen watched the golems carefully. Most of them were on the left side. Whereas only four were on the right. It was an easy decision to make.

“We’ll have to stay on the right side,” Cruz said before Owen could. “We’ll take it slow. They’re not light on their feet. We’ll know when they are approaching from a good distance away. When they approach, we’ll hide in one of the houses, and stay silent.”

He turned to the others and said, “Make any noise, and you’ll not just end your own life, but ours, as well.”

The others nodded, their expressions serious and attentive. This was a matter of life and death.

The sun dipped behind the canyon, casting a growing shadow. Soon, visibility would shrink to nothing, but that wouldn’t make a difference; they were about to be engulfed by a crushing wave of sand.

Justin nodded. He was the first to make a move. He descended the stairs. He first harvested the core from the golem he had killed, then disappeared into the shadows cast by the nearby buildings.

He returned twenty minutes later with ragged breath. It seemed like moving through the shadows, and the fights from before were catching up on him. He looked at Owen and said, “Let’s go. Now’s the perfect time.”

The others quickly followed. None dared not to. Justin led them into the streets of the city. The buildings were made from carved rock. It was the same rock from the cliff walls, crafted into bricks. Each building had a small wind-catching tunnel built atop the roof, providing the house with an extra cool breeze. The windows had no glass; it was just a hole in the wall. Curtains blocked the sunlight and sand from entering.

Owen’s heart was smashing against his chest. He could hear the heavy footsteps of giants all around him. They were close. Or at least that’s what Owen’s worried mind led him to believe. But he trusted Justin. If he was still moving, then that meant they were still safe.

Justin stopped. Owen flinched, looking all around him—his supernatural senses screamed at him. Without saying anything, he ducked into a building on their left. Everyone followed in haste, crouching below the windows, or hiding under the stone furniture. Owen was below a window with Justin by his side.

Everyone controlled their breathing. They refused to move a centimeter. The stomps from outside were getting closer. Then a crash collided against the roof of the building. Rock fell. It destroyed the tower. Does it know we’re in here? Owen started to panic. He wasn’t the only one.

Louis was shivering. He grabbed hold of his wounded shoulder as fear glazed over his eyes. His lips quivered. They turned blue. He stood up. Owen waved at him to sit back down. He whispered, pleaded, but the young man didn’t listen. He was mumbling something.

It turned louder. He said, “I can’t do this. I can’t do this,” His muttering turned into shouts. “I can’t do this! I can’t–”

He sprinted toward the door. A smiling face appeared. Louis screamed. He scrambled to the side, to where Owen and Justin were hiding. He leapt out of the window. He made it three panicked steps before the golem grabbed hold of his torso, wrapping its massive hand around him.

He plucked him up from the ground, then started walking away.

Owen grit his teeth and stood up, but a hand firmly held him in place. Justin looked at him with a grave expression. “This time, you can’t act like the hero. You will die.”

“He’s right, Owen,” Pyris chimed in, her face serious.

Owen listened to Louis’ screams. His fingernails dug into his palm. He wanted to rush out and save him so bad that it hurt. Every fiber of his being was telling him to go help him. Rescue him. But he knew deep down that if he did, it would be certain death. Not just for him, but for the others too.

He could already hear the giants moving, chasing. He heard a crash, then a groan. It was like they were fighting each other. Then footsteps resumed, traveling into the distance.

Justin left to scout, and when he returned, he nodded to Owen. It was time to move. 

Owen took a deep breath, shook his head, then refocused on his objective. They walked for around an hour. It took much longer than expected as the golems seemed excited. Because of that, Owen and the others kept on having to hide until the way was clear.

Peering around a narrow alley that they had come from, a wide street came into view. To the right, all the way down, was the enormous gates of the canyon city. To the left, was the tower they were aiming for. The street was wide enough to fit at least six cars side-by-side. And it was what was causing the holdup.

At the tower, two smiling golems paced back and forward.

If that wasn’t enough to cause them trouble, it was getting dark. Fast. Although Owen could no longer see the sun as it had retreated behind the canyon mountains, he could envision that strange black… thing, beginning to obstruct the sun.

From memory, they had ten or twenty minutes left. If that.

“Shit, what do we do?” Frank asked, peering over Owen’s head. “Make a run for it?”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea,” Owen said. “We won’t make it before they engage. Elian and the others aren't fast enough.”

“Unless we carry them,” Frank said, taking a step back. He crossed his arms.

Justin shook his head. It was as if he didn’t need to look to know what was happening. “Even if we carry them, we won’t make it. We either need a distraction, or kill them quick enough so that we don’t attract the others.”

“I think the former would be the better option,” Elian said nervously.

“Yeah, you’re probably right,” Frank said. “The only one that can kill them is Justin, Owen, and that lady there.” He glanced at Pyris. 

“I like that challenge,” Justin said with a smile. “Let’s do it that way. We don’t have time to worry about luring them away.”

“Are you sure?” Elian asked, his voice tinged with doubt. “Are you certain we don’t have enough time? Attacking them would be risky, you know?”

“And we’re ignoring another possibility,” Owen said. Everyone turned to him as he continued, “We don’t know what’s inside that tower. For all we know, it could be filled with more golems. Or something worse.”

Cruz sighed and said, “Does it matter? If we don’t get in there by the time night hits, we’ll be swallowed by a shit ton of sand. I’d rather go out swinging than die a pathetic death like that.”

They turned silent, then Owen nodded and said, “Alright.” He turned to Justin, worried. “That means you’ll have to take care of both of them before we all die. Can you do it?”

“Oh, Owen pal,” Justin said, slinging his arm over Owen’s shoulders. “Of course I can. But the dying part… Well, that will be up to you.”

Before anyone could respond, a shout broke through the tension—Pyris had spotted something. Her voice rang out from behind them, a faint yet piercing shout. “Got movement! Golems inbound!” Pyris’ star-powered fists crackled as her body tensed, and she pivoted to ready himself for a fight. Owen couldn’t help but feel the burst of energy radiate from him. 

A shadow darted in the corner of Owen’s eye. It was Cruz, the stoic archer, with his warbow strung and his quiver full of deadly arrows. Cruz’s sharp eyes scanned the perimeter, scanning the environment for anything that could be a potential threat. "We can't afford to wait. They'll be upon us in no time," Cruz added, his voice cool and detached as he notched an arrow, readying himself for the impending battle.

Owen’s mind raced as the seconds ticked by. The decision was clear. They had no more time to waste. If they didn’t act now, they would be overwhelmed by the golems, and they wouldn’t have a chance to reach the tower.