Another explosion rocked the street as the tall brick building in front of them was struck by one of the cannonballs and sent a deadly rain of stone and wood down, threatening to crush the poor civilians whom were fleeing for their lives. Alastrom knew he shouldn't have tried to save these people because it would cost him and that it would benefit him and Alanna better to let these people die so that he could reserve his mental strength but...he saw Alanna's fearful eyes watching and made up his mind.
"Run, both of you. " Alastrom growled.
Alanna's mouth fell open , "But-"
"I said go!" Alastrom snarled at her angrily and then turned his back on the women, facing the oncoming tide of people that rushed past them. He focused his thoughts on the falling debris , pouring every bit of his mental reserve into slowing their descent until it stopped just a couple feet above the people who hardly noticed as they continued to run for their lives. The weight of debris on his mind was excruciating and he knew that he only had a few precious seconds to reverse the course of their descent and direct it elsewhere. With a cry of pain and defiance, Alastrom raised his hands and made a sweeping gesture towards the incoming soldiers that charged their way as if he were hurling something enormous at them. And, well, he was. The stone debris came crashing down on the first dozen soldiers that drew close , crushing them to death before they could scream.
This slowed the oncoming soldiers now whom eyed the mage warily, but this didn't deter them. The bastards were still coming though much more cautiously now. Alastrom turned around only to see that neither Alanna nor Kella had listened to him and he was pissed, "You – I told you to- !"
"Kill the mages! Shoot them! "Their captain shrieked the command, drawing his sword and pointing the glinting steel with murderous gusto at Alastrom. Surely, the mage couldn't stop every bullet no matter how powerful he was! And , he wasn't wrong!
"Shit! Run!" Alastrom got behind the women and shoved them stumbling forward. And run they did , bullets zipping past them and missing by a generous range . As they ran , Alastrom turned and thrust a hand out toward one of the buildings, causing the top to crumble and topple down into the leaders of his charging foes. Half a dozen men screamed in unison and before they were crushed.
"Well, if they weren't going to kill us before, they're DEFINETELY going to kill us now!" Alanna panted as they ran. Though she feared for her life, she and Alastrom were used to running with soldiers (usually mordecai) snapping at their heels. They'd come close to death so many times, she considered, that it was like some big running joke that Ansgar just wouldn't stop telling. The bastard.
They were following the other fleeing civilians but Alastrom suddenly veered left and headed east. Alanna skidded to a stop and turned to move after him, "Where the hell are you going!? Everyone's going THAT way!"
Alastrom kept moving but he reduced his pace a bit to allow the slower women to catch up, "Exactly."
"What?! Are you insane!? "
She paused to consider that. Yeah. What was she thinking? Of COURSE her guardian was crazy!
"Those people are running towards a dead end. There's another force lying in wait for them on the other side. "
"WHAT!? " Alanna called after him incredulously. "You're saying they're going to run right into a trap?!"
"Yeah."
Alanna shook her head angrily, "We should help them, Al! We-"
Alastrom turned into a deserted alley and followed it, suddenly pausing at the end and holding a hand up to signal the women to be be still. He followed up with a gesture of silence and nodded ahead, watching half a dozen soldiers run by. He waited a few moments before turning to them slightly, "Clear. Move. "
They continued running until they reached a quieter section of the eastern side of town. Soldiers still prowled the streets but in far greater numbers here for it seemed that nearly everyone in this section of town had been massacred. Countless bodies littered the streets. Men, women, children and the occasional soldier but it was mostly unarmed people that lie dead. Many of the buildings and homes lining either side of the street were mostly untouched, however . Only a few burned and Alastrom, carefully stepping over the bodies made his way over to one house and tried the door. It was locked .
Alanna followed closely behind him, trying not to pay attention to the bodies and the faces of the dead that she walked over. But she couldn't help it. She looked and ...she'd almost made it to where her guardian stood when she doubled over and started retching uncontrollably, the sight and smell of the slain finally having taken their toll on her mind and senses, making her sick beyond imaging.
Alastrom growled and kicked the door in. He paused before the doorway and glanced back over his shoulders, searching for any sign of watching soldiers. So far, so good. This could serve as a temporary hiding place, "In here. Quickly." He instructed.
