Seth quietly stood behind Billy near the entrance of this dungeon's armory as Guan Yu stood in their opposite direction, waiting for the guards inside to come out of the room just to ambush them without getting spotted beforehand in their attempt to catch these unfortunate enemies off guard.
"What's taking so long?" The blue-shirt boy asked in anticipation, clearly annoyed at waiting for a while for their plan, "And what are we supposed to do?" His impatience started to show through his growing irritated expression, "to—"
With one index finger, he placed it on his own lips just to shun Billy for being quiet. He slowly pointed at the door, signaling that soon enough, the guards would walk outside, giving them a chance to jump at this perfect opportunity.
Breathing out softly, he closed his eyes in concentration before focusing intensely on his task. Billy grunted in low volume, glaring daggers at the large man for having the nerve to silence him. His annoyance grew more than before as seconds passed by.
Finally, the sound of approaching footsteps echoed behind the door, alerting everyone in their group of the impending attack coming towards their location at this current moment. Taking a deep breath, the warrior's eyes snapped open with fiery determination burning through his pupils.
One silver-armored man exited the door, and then the second, not noticing three escaped prisoners that were hiding from them, stood out like open thumbs while leaving the door wide open, allowing two different choices that would lead to a specific outcome.
"Have you heard of those new prisoners?" One of the two asked, standing right at his friend's shoulder, "The king was pretty pissed off today." His comrade then frowned in disagreement, "Of course he has; why wouldn't he? After what happened to his daughter, it is natural for any loving parent to be enraged," he retorted in annoyance while the two continued speaking among themselves.
Billy and Guan Yu glanced at each other for a second before nodding in confirmation as both moved away from their spots before making their action, sneakily walking towards them until suddenly, the old warrior made a headlock behind a guard.
Caught by surprise, the first silver armor man tried to yell only to be easily strangled by a strong arm before falling into unconsciousness, surprising his other comrade who saw the whole ordeal, making his mouth open widely as he backed away in fear from realization, just to quickly turn into dread when he felt a small pebble hitting behind his head.
Knocking out the man completely from the painful impact, Billy dusted his hands with a satisfied grin. He looked at the armored body of a man that lay on the ground unmoving, whistling in amusement. "Ha! That'll teach you for stealing my gun, ya dirty thief," she laughed in delight.
Guan Yu congratulated him with a smile, "Excellent job, boy," complimenting how well the gunslinger child executed his role to apprehend the enemy, "For someone as young and lean as you, it is very impressive to knock out a man who is significantly larger than you," and giving praise to his companion, who had accepted it graciously.
"I was trained by the best," his arrogant response came from a smug smirk. "Never underestimate me, old timer, for I have seen more than you can imagine." His boastful statement earned another chuckle from the old man who approached him and patted his head fondly like a grandfather would to their grandson.
"Make sure to not let your anger get the better of you next time," advised the young boy as he turned to his right where the door is, glancing at the moments where Seth entered the armory with an indifferent expression. "It is one thing to fight with courage, but foolishness can lead you to death," pointing out the mistakes that must be avoided during a fight.
Shrugging his shoulders uncaringly, "Whatever," the blonde then went to the room where their weapon might be stored and said, "Let's hurry and retrieve our items; I want to get the hell out of here," speaking out loud before following after Seth, who had already entered the armory.
Watching him enter, Guan Yu stood there like a statue, contemplating whether he should scold the youth for disrespecting him or allow such behavior to slide because he lacks maturity for his age. But then again, it isn't his role to correct an individual's faults; simply address them and let the person improve himself or herself.
Closing his eyes for a second, he sighed tiredly of having dealt with difficult teenagers' stubbornness throughout his early years as a guardian since becoming a guardian. He was once the only child of a family who never wanted to be taught by an elder and always preferred learning from his peers and mistakes that could result in serious injuries if he was lucky.
Opening them back, he sighs from his overthinking of different things before deciding to follow them, wanting to find his weapon that he held for so long throughout his battles of war that he fought for nearly all his life ever since he became a young man.
Shaking away these thoughts, he then proceeded to walk towards the room where others are searching for their items. Once he arrived, what greeted him wasn't just the sight of them looking through weapons to find their precious artifact but rather the very room in itself.
The armory is a vast space filled with all manner of weaponry: spears, swords, bows, axes, halberds, and muskets. The walls are lined with armor and shields, all of which look polished and well maintained. In the center of the room sits a table where various tools lie: hammers, nails, and sandpaper to smooth out the rough edges of the armor.
Its rocky surfaces were also covered in a layer of sawdust, which makes it easy to slip and fall. It is a risky move for anyone who walks into this room without being careful. There is also a small window near the top of the room that allows the moonlight to come through, which is also an entry point for anyone who wants to break in and steal things.
In the corner of the room is a stack of wooden crates containing more weapons. There is also a set of shelves with various items ranging from leather belts to holsters and straps used for holding weapons. Overall, the place looks organized and well maintained.
Watching the boys eagerly and patiently looking for their belongings, Guan Yu took time searching through the many items that were placed inside these various places, eventually finding what he was looking for after a long search: his trusted weapon.
Without his Green Dragon Crescent Blade, he felt bare and vulnerable for losing this prized possession. Having a close bond with it during his numerous combats, the old warrior must find his prideful guandao once more to complete their escape, reuniting with it once more.
This isn't the first time he was captured and lost his beloved weapon; it happened during his time of war, where he was taken prisoner by one of his enemies during their battle. The same enemy would always have his weapon taken away from him.
But in the end, he always escapes with it and the company of his warriors, who fought valiantly by his side, always escaping from the jaws of death. However, there are times when not everyone will make it alive after every single time they leave and enter the battlefield.
It's just the reality of being in war and losing friends along the way, but such is life that requires sacrifices in order to win or survive in a dire situation. Guan Yu understands it better than anybody else as he continues forward while carrying on with his life.
"Yes!"
Exclaiming loudly as the blond boy pulled out his revolver he had been searching for so eagerly from the pile of weaponry, spinning it around with ease for a few seconds, he holstered the pistol around the belt before loading the chambers. "Oh yeah, now this is what I call style," his remark caused Seth to sigh under his breath from this news.
Seth has been looking for his beloved handheld cross for a while, trying his best to ignore his companion's remarks about how happy he is to find his gun, but he, on the other hand, is seemingly having trouble, unable to locate it despite having all sorts of equipment piled up against the walls of the armory.
"Where is it? Where is it...?" He searched through all the random items on display in the hope of finding something useful—anything that will make this frustrating situation a little less stressful. "This has to be the right place," he said in desperation while continuing with his frantic efforts to find his lost relic.
Then finally, after many minutes of searching, he saw it on the floor: His golden crucifix, the very object that has brought him hope and strength to continue living even though everything around him constantly falls apart, says, "There you are!" Gently lifting it from the ground and smiling in satisfaction, he carefully held it between his palms.
He feels joy to know that Seth hasn't lost his holy weapon that was given to him as a parting gift by the priest. Having remembered what he promised himself of having something to hold onto just for something to fight for in a world that isn't his own,
Or lack of purpose that he will live for, like doing something special or accomplishing a goal he has always wanted to achieve for a long time. It is a powerful reminder of his promise to not let go of this trinket despite facing great hardships during his travels through an unknown world filled with terrors beyond human imagination.
As Seth held the crucifix with deep concentration, he didn't notice Billy's hand grasping his right shoulder, which made him slightly jump from startle. "Finally found that cross of yours, eh?" He asked teasingly, smirking at him. "Glad that it managed to find its owner," said the cowboy in a sarcastic tone.
"I don't get why you always have that around," he said, retreating his hand as he spoke, his attention focused on the crucifix. "There are plenty of them in the churches," Billy's voice was slightly annoyed and exasperated after saying that. "So why bother keeping it when it's just a useless hunk of metal?"
The old warrior, who had listened to their conversation, was interested in the curious question, even though he already knew the answer. He is willing to wait for the boy's response to this inquiry, wanting to see what his reaction will be.
"Because it is important to me," Seth replied with his right fist gripping the golden crucifix while turning around to face his friend, "and you probably already know why." His voice was filled with emotion that made the sharpshooter stare at him with agitation along with curiosity and understanding mixed together.
Just as Billy was about to speak, loud and sprinting footsteps outside of their armory room caused all of them to glance at the noise's direction in alarm. Knowing what they were going to get themselves into, Billy and Guan Yu managed to find his guandao as the two pulled out their weapons.
Putting in a fighting stance, ready for whoever will show up at this moment, "grab your things and follow my lead," the elderly man ordered in command of getting out of this place with all haste in their escape while he also held the grip of his sharp and deadly weapon firmly.
Rows of guards entered the armory, swords and spears drawn in preparation for an attack: "surrender now or we will take you down by force," shouting with hostile intent, their orders clear for all to understand: "any act of resistance will lead to your capture and immediate execution by the royal decree," explaining the situation at hand.
Billy let out a grunt. "Bring it on, you son of bitches!" His revolver aimed at the rows of armed soldiers with a confident smile plastered across his features: "I'm going to put every single one of you back into your place," provoking the guards, knowing full well that many of them will die today.
Seeing how this will be a bloodbath, Seth couldn't bear to see any more deaths after losing his best friend. Promising himself from now on that he will keep everyone alive from dying or getting hurt as long as he breathes
Without any hesitation, he brought his crucifix above his head with the single belief and faith of the almighty, whose name will protect and save everyone around him: "protect us and bring peace to all living beings, father." Immediately, a blinding light enveloped the area of the armory and its occupants in intense holy energy that seemed to have burst from within the cross itself.
As their vision was consumed by the yellow light of pure white radiance, no one dared move or blink in fear of what would happen next, where they would either lose their lives or survive from this mysterious attack. It felt like hours before the light faded away, having completely disappeared into thin air.
Leaving the guards in confusion of what had transpired.
