The woods! I must escape through there! 

Those were the only thoughts that raced through Lloyd’s mind as he ran through the bodies that littered the ground, ignoring the cries of help that echoed all around him. When he left his room the situation was beyond deteriorating. It was chaos with isolated groups of Templars fighting against a numerically superior army. He had rallied several Templars to defend the walls but they were taken out with some vile explosive soon after. It was then he realized the fighting was a lost cause. The fortress was completely overrun, the thousand footsteps of the enemy was also close behind; he didn’t even know if any of his superiors were even alive and staying around to help anyone else was suicide. Tonight’s attack completely blindsided the Order. News of this carnage must reach the others. Someone had to be a messenger.

It was miraculous that he found time to even put on his armor a set of reinforced leather armor overlaid with mail that offered modest protection. More importantly, it did not slow him down. With his sword sheathed, Lloyd held his staff with both hands. He arrived on the outskirts of the castle walls. A jump down would be his escape.

Out in the distance he saw electricity firing out of the ground three times. Unmistakably, it was a signal to rally survivors. It would also draw attention of the enemy. He briefly considered turning back to meet them back came to realize the futility of such an action. “I can’t get there in time, there’s too much of the enemy between us.” He searched his mind, frantically trying to remember the nearest village. If there were any survivors, they would likely go there first. All the other survivors would rally there. Of course! He remembered now, there was that village not too far from Starguard past the woods.

He climbed the stairs to the top of the wall. A steep drop; not a problem for someone who could make ice. Channeling his mana into his staff, he aimed it at the ground below and blast it with ice, creating an ever rising mound until he deemed it sufficiently high enough to help him get down from the walls. 

As he prepared to slide down the ice mound, a most sickening sound came behind him. The Halls of the Conclave burned and the fires raged like a tornado. Lloyd cursed and averted his eyes from the flames. Through the smoke, he only caught a glimpse of a the terrifying creature that roared triumphantly in the dark sky. Today marked a dark chapter in the Order’s history, and with it the beginning of a new and dark age.

Sliding down to the ground, Lloyd ran, never looking behind him into the safety of the woods. He would meet others in the village. The name came back to him now. There had to be others in Starwood Village. Perhaps the one who shot the signal of electricity were headed there too.