As the sun was setting, this team of 13 finally spotted the castle. “THERE SHE BLOWS,” Kurjakovic shouted. “It was my great-great-great-”
“It’s alright, now we are here. But it’s a big climb and the horses are way tired,” Sigismund said.
“We’ll leave them,” Wenzel suggested, “…just as a suggestion. This is your team, you are the leader. But I will give my best advice since I am Emperor after all.”
“Alright after Wenzel is done sucking himself off, we should come up with a plan.”
James stroked his single beard hair on his cheek, “should Kurjakovic not simply throw Tamasi on top of the castle? And then he can teleport us up there instead of us climbing.”
“HE WILL NOT THROW ME!”
“I could absolutely throw you.”
“I don’t think it was a question of could, Hercules,” Jan said.
“What’s the worry? We’ll armor you so the fall won’t hurt,” said Besenyo.
“I- I should not be thrown like that!”
“I don’t see any harm in such a plan,” said Perenyi. “It is not even emasculating, we’re going to save our Queen with it.”
“Then you do it.”
“I don’t know the Hermes spell.”
“I’ll teach you real quick.”
“He’s resistant, brother,” Sigismund said to Wenzel. Wenzel whispered into his ear. “Ah a blindfold.” Wenzel facepalmed.
But anyways, eventually, Kurjavoic did simply through Tamasi on top of the castle. The boys were waiting across the water so they weren’t even that close but Kurjavoic was that strong. He made his symbols and then teleported back to their spot. “Okay but also I did not feel too much mana in there. It may be lightly guarded as they used those men to fight us in Zagreb.”
In the dungeon, Maria stuck her face in between the bars. “I haven’t seen any guards today.” She looked at her mom who shrugged. “Maybe because they need them to fight off Sigismund…! We’ll be saved today!”
“Doesn’t matter, we simply go in, find the girls, and come out,” Wenzel said.
“Yeah yeah let’s go hunting,” Sigismund said and they teleported to the castle’s rooftop. Instead of sliding down the wall, Kurjakovic then punched through the ceiling and they fell through completely surprised.
Well, minutes before, Ivan Horvat and Palizna headed down to the dungeon and opened the bars for the girls. “Elizabeta, it had already been decided, you know.”
Casually she responded, “Ah. But no confession from me? Your brother could-”
“I do not mind if you die in a state of sin.”
“Don’t commit regicide in your alternate life,” Palizna said.
“This is sinful of itself, to prevent a child of Jesus from returning to him.”
“Yeah!” Maria said, rising. “Go get your brother-”
Horvat kicked his foot deep in Maria’s stomach. Elizabeta shouted and reached out for her but then Palizna grabbed her by the neck and held her against the wall, with one hand. Maria fell face first on the floor and blood left her mouth. Horvat then kicked her against the wall. “Shut up, Pretender.”
Elizabeta was kicking at Palizna’s body and scratching at his arm but he just stared coldly at her as he choked her harder and harder. Horvat turned Maria’s head and asked, “should we blind her?” but all Maria could look at was her dying mother.
Palizna said, “no, women don’t have good eyes anyway.”
But it would be ingrained in Maria’s memory, the last exasperated look Elizabeta gave before expiring. Her hand reached out to Maria one last time and Maria reached out for her. Then her grimoire fell to the floor and turned to dust. Palizna curbstomped her corpse and walked out of the cell. Horvat closed it saying, “a simple insurance by killing her. The last person with sovereign authority. You will be kept perhaps as a bride for Ladislao or simply killed if he doesn’t like you.” Maria mouthed empty words. Her breath was still catching up. Then the building shook. Horvat reacted calmly and walked away. Maria crawled over and clutched onto the corpse of her mother, Királyno Erzsébet Kotromanic.
Up above, on the second floor, the gang fell through the ceiling in great surprise while Kurjakovic shouted fighting words. The 5 remaining Chevaliers (Loys, Bozzuto, Montalto, Marzano, and Tomacelli) were there lounging but dropped their jaws. They landed on their feet alright so Sigismund said, “good, all according to plan!”
Miklos Garai looked at the others for agreement as he said, “no it wasn’t! What kind of plan do we even have??”
Stibor balanced on the end of his lance and said, “just five of us need to stay here and fight these men.”
“Kurjakovic! The ground that I mark needs to stay intact so we can teleport,” Tamasi shouted.
“SO!?”
The knights quipped their swords and spears. Loys asked, “how did you Luxembourgs get in here?”
Jan answered, “Wouldn’t you like to know, Napolyi Boy?”
“Going back,” Tamasi said and then Maroti grabbed him and they teleported together.
“Witchery?” Tomacelli wondered.
Kurjakovic shouted, “KING-MARGRAVE! If you have ‘dibs’ on Horvat then I call upon a personal duel with Palizna!”
“Uh yeah sure.”
“And he is not in this room so he must be below!” Kurjakovic readied another punch for the floor but Garai and Sigismund got in the way.
“Wait wait wait,” they begged, “he could be somewhere else on this floor!”
“Remember, just 5 of us need to stay back and then the rest can go,” Stibor repeated to no one listening.
Marzano said, “well they don’t seem well formed.”
Wenzel asked the Chevaliers, “where are your masters? Horvat, Tvrtko, and Palizna?”
Then a door burst open (there were 4 doors in the room) with Lackfi on a horse coming in as the cause of it. He cackled, saying, “surely there was one more master.” Then he grabbed Perenyi by his collar as the others jumped out of the way. He burst through the other door going down the staircase.
“That creep stole my horseman!” Sigismund announced.
“Stairs!” Garai pointed out. James smiled as he picked Sigismund off the ground saying, “my king, You should go ahead with your brothers and big ole Kurjakovic. The rest of us will be enough to defeat these five warriors.”
“Don’t mind that you think so,” said Montalto. Stibor looked on, muttering something about ‘his idea’.
“Good plan James, let’s go guys!”
So then Kurjakovic punched the floor underneath a surprised Sigismund and Garai sending them below with him. Wenzel and Jan quickly headed down the hole after them.
Stibor pointed at Bozzuto, “be so kind as to follow me,” and he went through the north door. Bozzuto followed, equipping his enchanted whip.
Besenyo then charged at Tomacelli, shoulder checking him into the next room on the south side. “You look just about my size!”
“I could never be as fat as you,” Tomacelli responded, rolling away after the hit.
“Szecsenyi men, I should leave you in this room on your own, I need a room with more furniture,” James said. “Follow me if you dare,” he said with a devious smirk.
“I’ll go,” Loys said, “I dare to even dance over your grave, Magyar.”
The Szecsenyi Brothers, Simon and Frank, flexed their muscles at the remaining two. Montalto said, “well, don’t complain about being outskilled after dividing us like this.”
Marzano said, “forget that, those with the most honor will always win. We were knighted by King Carlo giving us high prestige. We have also trained long together, building cooperation! Cooperation that you Luxembourgs seem to lack.”
Together, the brothers said, “you will see no greater cooperation than between the two of us!” The Italians were indeed intimidated by this.
Out across the gap, Tamasi and Maroti were a bit worried. “My new mark that I made was destroyed…Kurjakovic!”
Maroti silently wondered and then said, “if they are all fighting, who is saving the girls?”
Tamasi looked around, “surely Sigismund can handle that.”
“But we should leave the king with the least amount of troubles.”
“Well, I have nowhere to teleport to!” Maroti placed the man on his back and then started walking toward the castle. “You’re crazy!”
And still in the dungeon, cried the princess. Horvat and Palizna walked into the cafeteria where Kurjakovic and the others landed. Tvrtko was on the other side of the room and said, “look at what has gathered here.”
“From the ceiling? Did they fall from the sky?” asked Horvat.
Palizna said, “good, time to take out the main problem.”
Sigismund jumped to his feet, “yeah, you guys! The way Lajos would’ve wiped you out by now, I’ll never forgive you guys!”
Jan stepped to his side, “get ready Horvat, you dumb Croat.”
Wenzel then threw Garai back up the hole, “go help the others, this won’t be your issue.”
Kurjakovic suddenly appeared in front of Palizna and swiped him through the wall. He fell outside where Kurjakovic dove after him. They crashed upon the side of the hill until they rolled down to the beach. Water crashed upon them and the cliffside. Kurjakovic rose immediately shouting, “you’ll never rule Croatia with me around.”
“But you think you’re strong enough to stop me?”
“I am already faster! And you’re still obviously injured.”
“Yet I’m still the strongest, right now.” Palizna equipped his halberd. Kurjakovic cracked his knuckles.
Back in the castle, Wenzel pointed at Tvrtko, “your rebellion ends soon.”
“I guess so,” he equipped a spear which had a blue cloak wrapped near the point. On that were tiny yellow crosses. “But how grand, it is not everyday a simple ban fights the Emperor of Christianity.”
“Actually, I have to fight low lords all of the time,” Wenzel corrected. Tvrtko dropped his smile.
Walking through a door was Bishop Pavao Horvat who Ivan immediately stepped next to. “Brother, let’s take out these Luxembourgs.”
Jan asked Sigismund, “aw man, is it a sin to fight a priest?”
“God will forgive us! And this guy’s fighting us! Let’s start,” and they charged. Pavao sighed.
….continued in the next post for convivence!
tdwriter 