Genesis Code: The Genetic Awakening-Chapter 71: No Hope (1)

"Out of my way!" King Gray bellowed as he swiped his sword across one of the compromised knights.

He and Commander Lance were almost at the protective chamber but had to battle many knights standing in their way.

Some masqueraded as wanting to help them, but would quickly switch to attack once he and Lance had their backs to them.

Of course, it was a ruse on their part, and it worked wonderfully. But the king was growing impatient with the delays.

"Kill anyone who refuses to obey our orders." King Gray declared coldly. "We can’t waste any more time."

"Yes, Your Majesty." Commander Lance nodded as they continued their race to their destination.

Sometime later, the two arrived at the last corridor to the chamber. The corridor, under normal circumstances, was hidden behind a cabinet near an area less frequented.

Even if the Royal family occupied that space, their assigned knights would make sure to put the cabinet back in place, erasing all evidence of its existence.

"Shit!" The king cursed seeing the cabinet destroyed, leaving the entrance to the chamber bare for all to see. "It’s been compromised as well!"

The two men rushed inside without hesitation, the dark space slowly welcoming them.

At the end of the corridor was a large double door enchanted to open for only those with a pass.

And while it could withstand magic attacks, it could only do so for so long. But that didn’t matter as it gave the occupants more than enough time to escape the place.

"It’s been breached!" King Gray’s heart skipped a beat. "I’m going to fucking kill those bastards!"

As the commander ran beside the king into the chamber, he noticed the floors littered with the corpses of his knights.

’How the hell did so many of the king’s guards become compromised?’ Lance was very sceptical. ’I doubt the people responsible could pull this thing alone.’

A possibility came to mind, but he refused to consider it. It was preposterous to even think about.

’Demons are straightforward in their intentions.’ The commander pondered. ’Unless they suddenly decided to use schemes, this has our neighbours written all over it.’

"They’re not here." King Gray said, looking around with a heavy heart.

He thanked the goddess silently. None of the bodies he was seeing belonged to his family, and while it was tragic to see his men die, his family came first.

Naturally, the blood and smell in the air didn’t make things easier for him. For all he knew, some of it could belong to them.

Looming at the end of the hall, he knew they had escaped this place as well, venturing into a tunnel system—a closely guarded secret.

The commander’s communication artefact suddenly pulled his attention. Lance frowned at the person reaching him, his heart racing and fearing the worst.

"Iris?" He called softly, the king’s attention on him. "What’s your situation?"

"We’re in deep trouble, Lance." The commander known as Iris said gloomily. "One of the commanding demons here managed to break our line. It’s headed straight for the capital."

"What...?" His fears came true. "What of Terrance? What is he doing?"

"He’s after the demon... But the rate at which this is going, that demon would definitely reach the capital first."

"..."

King Gray and Lance turned silent, exchanging nervous glances.

However, that wasn’t the end. Another call from the dungeon unit came through.

"Please tell me the situation there has been handled?" Commander Lance asked with a heavy heart.

"I’m sorry, commander." The voice replied grimly. "Commander Grid has fallen and the demon is on its way out. I’ve sent someone to the capital to ask for help... but from what I’m hearing, things aren’t looking good."

"You’re Kennedy, aren’t you?" Lance recognized the voice. "What of Reeder? What happened to him?"

"He’s out of it, sir." Kennedy replied.

"I see..." Lance looked back at the king, putting the communicator away.

"Your Majesty?" The commander called softly. "This..."

"I know." The king said. "You’ll have to leave. I’ll go after my family myself. As for the demon coming from the front lines... leave that to me and Terrance."

Lance would have preferred to stay with the king, but the kingdom was in danger, starting with the heart: the capital.

"It’s clear the demons have adopted some kind of scheme, and our own people fell right into their trap." King Gray sighed.

"Don’t die, Lance." The king turned to him. "I still need you."

"I wouldn’t dare, My King." Lance bowed politely. "May the goddess be with you."

With that, the commander turned around and bolted towards the exit, leaving the king alone.

"Now then...." King Gray turned to the path leading to the secret tunnels.

His figure blurred as he zoomed out of the chamber, leading straight for his family.

......

Osbourne held his left upper arm with his right. That arm had sustained an injury from an attack one of the knights assigned to protect them dished out.

Had he not been alert the entire time, his head would have flown back in that private chamber.

Luckily for him, not all were compromised, saving his mother and blind sister from certain death.

"Are you sure you are alright?" his mother, the Queen, asked worriedly walking right behind him.

"I’m fine, mother." Osbourne replied with a wry smile. He looked over his shoulders where his sister was being carried on the back of a female knight.

Though blind, Celine knew something was going on. It scared the hell out of her, but she was mature and intelligent enough to remain quiet and not bother her protectors.

The knights that formally numbered in the twenties were now reduced to nine. Friends and companions had to grit their teeth as they impaled and cut down the people they knew most of their lives.

"Take the next left." Osbourne turned to the knight ahead. "We should be getting close to the exit." The prince let out a small sigh, grateful they were almost out of the tunnels.

As it was a tunnel system, there were many turns leading to different areas, mostly ending in dead ends. Even the knights accompanying them were unfamiliar with which turns to take.

’This tunnel is supposed to be used as a last resort.’ Osbourne didn’t like the new reality. ’Now that a lot of people have seen it, we’ll have to create a new escape system.’

"I see an exit." The head knight with a flame spell lighting the way beamed.

"We’re almost out, sis. Hang in there..." Osbourne held his mother’s arm and affectionately rubbed Celine’s head.

"Yes, brother." The princess replied resolutely.

The group picked up the pace, moving quickly towards the light. As they walked out shielding their eyes from the glare, a sketchy and quirky laugh resounded in their ears.

"Kekeke... They walked right into our trap." The voice hissed. "This was easier than we thought."

’Shit...’ The prince cursed, his eyes darting around. ’We’re surrounded.’ He gulped.

Osbourne instinctively moved to stand in front of his mother and sister, his intentions clear as day. The knights with them were already prepared for a fight, their swords gleaming with spells.

"Give it up." A much deeper voice, different from the earlier one echoed. "There is no hope for you..."