The Winter Tyrant-Chapter 81: Article Two

The absence of Marcus and his crew could not be avoided forever. There were other captains who were beginning to speak. And Aidan knew that if he didn’t answer their concerns, they would begin to mutiny.

He had also confirmed that this was not an accident. They were ambushed and blown apart by what appeared to be the act of barbarians.

No... That wasn’t right... Their methods were cruel, and their disregard for brutality was certain. But to pull off what they did, it required a degree of professionalism that Aidan and his men had not come across.

This is what haunted Aidan during the night, looming over his dreams, preventing him from getting proper sleep.

Until now, he and his men had acted largely with impunity.... Nobody existed in the region that could challenge them, they were too many and too aggressive. Mobility had been their greatest advantage, and most people would rather surrender and pay tribute than fight.

Well.... That wasn’t true... In the earliest days of the long winter, following the immediate collapse of the old world. There was one man Aidan could consider his rival.

He had commanded the most men and had torn apart the region, but Lorenzo had met his end before he and Aidan could ever fight for dominance.

There were rumors, whispers. Many claimed to have witnessed the event from the sidelines, but few whose testimony was trustworthy.

But among those who could be considered reliable witness, they spoke of Lorenzo’s end as if they had provoked an organized and disciplined army. The use of drones, small unit tactics, and terrain advantage had seen Lorenzo and his merry band of raiders obliterated to the last man.

And if rumor were to be believed, then Lorenzo and a few others survived until the end, their ultimate fate was a firing squad at the edge of the neighborhood they had dared attack.

It was because of this that Aidan had led his men as far away from Paradise Falls, and in doing so found this location that currently acted as their fortress.

Paradise Falls.... If the rumors were true, they were the only ones he could think of that remotely had the capability to pull off an ambush like this.

And the way they had ruthlessly gunned down Lorenzo and his surviving men... It spoke of their brutality.

But a firing squad was different from what awaited Marcus. This was an act of mutilation and intimidation, not execution.

There was a hierarchy of violence that intrinsically existed in this world, and one may be willing to engage in a swift, albeit ruthless summary execution of hostile combatants. But still be opposed to what had been done to Marcus.

For a while, the term that Aidan and his men had used for Paradise Falls was "monsters." But this spoke to their terrifying capacity for organized violence.

There was something far worse about what had been reported to him. And perhaps the term "demon" was better suited towards those monsters he had feared provoking for so long.

Either way.... He couldn’t keep this information hidden from his captains forever, and because of this he sat in a section of the foundry that had been turned into a round table court.

There he waited for the captains to arrive, one by one, to his summons. And wait he did....

While Aidan was considered by many, at least unofficially, to be the first among equals. His summons was only as valuable as any given captain gave it credence.

It took an hour after the designated time for each captain to finally arrive. And when they did, the one who had found Marcus, a man by the name of Mick, gave them the evil eye.

"Took you long enough to show up... We have all been waiting here for your arrival for the past hour!"

This wasn’t entirely true... Some of them had even arrived within the last five minutes. But none dared speak to this. Because from their perspective, as long as they weren’t last, they weren’t the last in line they weren’t the problem.

The last captain to arrive had been Aidan’s foremost rival in becoming the "first among equals."

His name was Jack, and Jack sat down at the table at his leisure, not the least but concerned with his tardiness.

"Save your breath.... I’m only here because Aidan said this was a matter of security. So tell me what it is you have to say so we can all be on our way."

Mick raised from his seat, red in the face, but before he could do so, Aidan raised his hand silently. Forcing the man to sit back down, which only prompted another snide remark from Jack.

"Good dog...."

Mick wanted more than anything to pull out his pistol and shoot Jack in the face. But he couldn’t do so.

And Aidan simply ignored the man’s anger and instead addressed the room.

"Reports came in last night. Marcus is dead... so is his crew. They were ambushed on their normal route. His head was severed and mounted on a spike, with the words come and take it written in blood on a nearby wall.... Someone out there has taken it upon themselves to declare war, which means we are now all in their crosshairs."

The room fell grimly silent... Some shook their heads, others performed a religious gesture. But Zach simply crossed his arms and scoffed while rolling his eyes.

"So?"

One word... it was all it took to infuriate Mick out of his seat again.

"So? That means all of us are in danger now! Whoever did this knows our routes and is trying to cut us down one by one!"

Jack however seemed unconvinced and simply smirked at Mick.

"Some of us aren’t so foolish as to take the same root over and over again. It’s an easy way to be tracked. Marcus was an idiot and an amateur. His death is entirely because he got too comfortable. If you’re so stupid as to follow his lead, then you’re the only one in danger. If this is all you have to say, then you’re wasting my time."

He was about to stand up and walk off when Aidan spoke again. His voice was subtle but filled with gravity.

"I am calling the brotherhood to honor Article Two of our federation’s charter. If one of us is attacked, all of us are attacked. Marcus and his men were ambushed and torn to pieces by an unknown adversary. He may not be alive to call upon us all to his aid, so I shall do so on his behalf, as is any of our rights per Article Two section three."

For a moment, nobody spoke. Because invoking the charter meant one thing. This wasn’t a raid anymore, it was war.

Jack sneered in disdain. He wanted to reject this notion, but he had to admit, for the time being he still needed the backing of the other captains.... He glared at Aidan intensely and silently until finally speaking just before walking off.

"Fine... So be it... We’re at war... But until you find out who the hell it was that ganked Marcus, I have more important shit to do."

With that said, Jack walked off, and several of the other latecomers followed him out the door.

Leaving Aidan and his little coalition of captains to deal with the fallout of Marcus’s death themselves.