A Bastard's Allure-Chapter 119: Outsmarted

"The city is under attack!" A captain reported to Gabriel.

Rising from his seat, Gabriel walked towards the edge of the highest room in the keep and saw a hoard of vampires running towards the city gates. The bells tolled at the same time to send an alarm within the city.

From afar, he could spot Brandon on his horse. For a brief moment, he felt as if their eyes met and a smirk danced on the vampire’s face.

"How are the defences?" He asked, descending the flight of stairs.

"We have a hundred archers by the wall and around two thousand knights within the city," the captain from earlier reported.

"Who’s in charge?" Gabriel enquired.

"You demoted the last general, Your Highness. The new one is yet to be introduced to the soldiers."

Gabriel hissed, realizing the mistake he’d committed. "Let the demoted general take command. Gather every man in the city who can wield a sword. I’m afraid arrows will do little to stop a hoard of vampires."

"Until then, the walls can hold," he said. Fetching a sword, Gabriel took a horse and rode towards the gates. Darion joined him on the way.

"Just when I was about to get a kiss. Bloody timing," Darion complained, riding alongside Gabriel.

"Just so you know, I’ve relinquished your title to the former general," Gabriel informed.

"Thank God! Humans are a pain in the ass," he said before they raced towards the gates.

*****

Tieron rode closer to Brandon as they watched the humans rain arrows on the approaching vampires. These did little to stop them in their tracks. What they didn’t know was these weren’t just any normal arrows. Their tips were laced with tears of lease, a poison that weakened a vampire in seconds. This would make it easier to land the final blow.

The arrows descended on the hoard when they were close enough. The vampires who were struck removed them from their bodies as if they were scratches against their skin, before continuing with their advance.

But this would change minutes later when they started falling on their knees one by one. Just by the closed gates, the knights were quickly gathering with Gabriel at the front. Darion was on top of the wall, waiting to give a signal.

The vampires were falling one by one as they neared the gate. The few who were left standing were the ones lucky enough to evade the arrows.

"Now!" Darion yelled.

Gabriel nodded at the knights by the gates.

"Open the gates," the general commanded.

The double gates opened before the army raced into the battlefield. Gabriel swung his sword severing the head of the first vampire from its shoulders.

It was a massacre for the weak vampires. The Mysthaven army rode through the sea of vampires, easily slicing through their flesh. The once vibrant road into Mysthaven turned into a bloodbath!

Brandon swallowed hard from his vantage position as he saw his army being slaughtered. Tieron on the other hand remained calm. His plan was working perfectly.

"He’s exactly where we need him," he said when Gabriel arrived at the center. "Should I give the order?"

Brandon’s eyes narrowed at his half brother as he sliced the head of another vampire.

"Let him pay for every life he’s taken!" He said between his teeth.

Tieron rode back towards his army. Hidden just behind the hill was three hundred vampires, their eyes bloody red. This group had been starved of blood for a week. The very scent of human blood was enough to make them go berserk.

There was nothing that could stop a hungry vampire from getting what they wanted, not even tears of lease!

"It’s feeding time," Tieron said.

The first vampire shot near him, limping into the air. The rest followed, descending down the hill crazily.

Gabriel was the first to notice a new hoard approaching. This, he could tell, was different. He looked up to see Brandon wearing a smirk on his face. The bastard had outsmarted him!

Arrows wouldn’t work at the moment as most of the humans were in the battlefield. The first vampire from the new hoard sliced through his horse’s leg. The beast neighed before lifting its forelimbs in pain to shake Gabriel off him.

With his sword a few meters away from him, Gabriel could only rely on his claws. Another vampire launched on him but he was quick to roll sideways before his head was turned to mush.

Giving him little to no time to compose himself, the vampire sliced his claws aiming for his neck. Gabriel was faster however, sidestepping the attack. His claws sliced through the vampire’s back to scatter a thick red liquid on the ground.

The vampire’s healing abilities were slow especially now that he was blood starved. Gabriel took advantage of this, inflicting as many injuries as he could until the vampire bled to death.

The other humans were not faring too well either. The vampires leapt on to them, taking them off horseback and bringing them to the ground before giving them the most gruesome death ever.

Roars of queched thirst filled the battle field as piles of human bodies scattered everywhere. The vampires grew stronger the more they drunk.

Gabriel wasn’t having it easy either. He had picked up his sword now and was fighting two of the vampires that attacked him.

These ones were stronger but he had the speed. Moving in what could be termed as a blur, Gabriel evaded a claw, slicing through the hand of the attacker before he flipped to a standing position.

The vampire’s hand fell on the ground but his bloodthirst made him incessant in his attacks.

’Not the best decision,’ Gabriel thought as he dodged the one armed attack and plunged his sword into the vampire’s gut, spilling its contents on the ground.

But the casualties on the human side was too much. The general, on seeing this was a losing battle, decided to retreat.

"Fall back!" He ordered.

Gabriel looked around to see he was the farthest in the battlefield. Even if he ran, he couldn’t make it to the gate!