Town Centre Falls

The gates didn't hold long as Tomoe, Centurion Octavian and the first Century charged in to the foyer of the Town Centre, after breaking the doors down with brute force. Dom soon followed them in, flanked by his Forbidden Guard who were not on the back of Sabre Tooth Tigers, with Hua Rong beside him, his bow held aloft and ready to let loose at any one who came nearby. 

As Dom entered the Town Centre, the sounds of fighting could be heard from all around, with the orders of Centurion Octavian reverberating from the walls of the Town Centre. The Foyer was wide, with a tiled floor and beige coloured walls. The rear of the Foyer led to the open garden that was in the middle, where as the sides left to a staircase each and corridors both on the lower and upper floors, where bedrooms and meeting rooms were positioned. The Foyer was currently busy however, with weapons clashing and the sounds of grunts and groans. 

Dom quickly dodged as a sword swung at him, a gap in the line before him as the Legionaries were all in small battles of their own. He quickly swung his spear and caught his foe, a Tongpai Shang Swordsmen, with the side of his spear, as the Forbidden Guard beside him followed through and stabbed him. 

A couple other Tongpai Shang Swordsmen ran through the gap that had appeared in the central line, as Tomoe and Centurion Octavian split the Legionaries between them. The Forbidden Guard ran past Dom and engaged them, their thick armour and years of training easily allowing them to deflect the incoming enemy and dispatch them quickly.

Hua Rong let loose a few arrows here and there, taking unsuspecting foe's at short range as they fought around him. Dom looked around saw the enemy being defeated and pushed back at every angle. Tomoe was swinging her sword aggressively and decapitating any enemy that was near her, her Legionaries creating a shield that protected her flanks as she calved a path towards the left side. Centurion Octavian's half seemed structured, following the usual Legionary tactic and taking it step by step. Dom wondered where Aelfred was, as he was on his list of targets, along with Bagoas and the Leader Da Qiao. 

"Retreat!" Dom heard someone shout as the enemy forces attempted to retreat down the Corridors that were at the sides of the Foyer. He wondered where they could retreat to, and hoped that some of them would have the sense to surrender. 

The first Century had split up across the two corridors on the ground floor, whilst Dom stood in the centre with Hua Rong. Centurion Octavian had taken the right ground corridor, where as Tomoe had taken the left. As Dom was looking around, Pullo and his second Century entered, and starting heading up the stairs to the upper levels. 

"Why haven't we pushed in through the garden?" Dom said to himself as the sound of battles echoed down the corridors now. On the floor of the Foyer were the bodies of some Eastern Mercenaries and the Tongpai Shang Swordsmen that had been trying to protect the Foyer from the invading Riverside forces. The Forbidden Guard that stayed by Dom's side were trying to clear the area, to make it easier for the entering Riverside Warriors. 

"It's a good tactic to take the corridors first." Hua Rong replied, "As a defender, I would have used the central garden as a kill zone and shoot arrows or throw javelins at any attackers in the centre. This way we can control the building step by step and not expose ourselves."

"Thanks Hua Rong." Dom replied seriously, having realised that he wasn't the expert and even though he had been at a Military Academy and an avid Virtual Reality Gamer, he was still just a student. He didn't have any real actual battle experience other than what he had gained in World Conquest Online and other less realistic games, and he had a long way to go. 

"I am happy to help. Attacking through the centre is also a good tactic in it's own right, as we could clear the area much faster, it's just a higher risk that I believe Centurion Octavian had decided against." Hua Rong said honestly, "Where should we go next?"

"Let's wait for an update here." Dom replied, as the four different routes of the Town Centre were all being cleared. 

He stood at the entrance to the central garden and looked out across it. The garden was well built, with a small pathway that circled around a short grass section in the middle. There were several planters placed around the circle with well kept multicoloured flowers filling them. 

He could see the crests of the Legionaries helmets from the balconies above and the open corridors on the same floor as him. He heard the screams of a woman and turned his head to the left, where he could see some action from one of the rooms being cleared. The people inside were surrendering and the six Legionaries that had entered where pulling them out and throwing them in to the garden in the middle. One of them, that Dom recognised from Octavian's Century, was ordering the screaming woman and the others from her room to stay silent and still.

Further down the corridor, Dom could see the main force of that column fighting a retreating foe, whilst the other Legionaries continued to clear the rooms behind so that they couldn't be ambushed from the back. 

"You would think they would all just surrender by now." Hua Rong commented after a few minutes had passed, "It's a waste of life."

"And time, but I doubt the Warriors of Riverside would surrender in a similar situation." Dom shrugged, thinking back to the real world and his mother, "It's a matter of honour."

As Dom continued to watch, a group were escorted down the stairs to the right of him by some of Pullo's Century. The group was a combination of disarmed Warriors and some young female's who were dressed in their nightwear, having not expected a night raid from an unknown foe. They were also ushered in to the centre Garden to join the other surrender members of Tongpai Town.

"Lord, you are needed upstairs." One of the escorting Legionaries informed Dom politely. 

"How is the progress?" Dom asked back, looking behind him as some of the Praetorians appeared and shepherded the surrender enemy from the earlier Town Centre attack inside. 

"We have reached the end of the corridor, the doors are barred to the main room, which we believe is where the leaders are hiding." The Legionary replied, "They have said they wish to speak with our leader and after plenty of swearing from Centurion Pullo, he asked me to politely come request your guidance."

"I'll head up there now then, can you get a message to Tomoe, it would be worth having her join us." Dom replied, before turning towards the staircase that the Legionary had come from. "let's go Hua Rong."

The Legionary passed on a message to his men, before heading down the far corridor after Tomoe and the half of the First Century that she was fighting alongside. 

Dom headed up the staircase, stepping over the corpse of an Eastern Mercenary that had been spread across the stairs in death, but had obviously been pushed aside by the Legionaries that had followed, leaving his body in an unnatural position. He walked tenderly as the stairs had become slippery from the blood loss. 

As he reached the top, he saw that doors across the corridor were all open, with around twenty legionaries at the end of the corridor. He passed the open rooms and gazed inside them as he passed. Most of the rooms were empty, where as others had the signs of battle, with enemy bodies sprawled unceremoniously across the floors, tables and window sills from the rooms. He was grateful to see that there wasn't any Riverside Legionary bodies so far, and felt that the momentum was in their favour for now.

"Over here Lord Lazarus!" Dom heard Centurion Pullo shouting from the front, causing him to increase his pace. As he passed one of the rooms near the end of the corridor, a Legionary appeared in front of Dom from the open door, catching him off-guard. 

"Sorry Lord!" The Legionary said, as he escorted a small group of prisoners from inside. Dom cast a quick glance over them, There was a young woman in a woollen tunic whose face was pale in fear. Closely behind her was a tanned old man, whose skin had started to grey in his later years. Following them both closely was a man in his late forties with a pointed moustache and olive skin. Another Legionary followed them out and directed them past Dom, Hua Rong and the two Forbidden Guard that had followed them. The corridor was tight and Dom could smell some strong perfumes from among the three of them as they passed closely. 

"Don't worry about it." Dom replied kindly, "Keep up the good work."

The Legionary nodded in thanks as Dom finally reached Centurion Pullo at the front. This side of the Town Centre was similar to the Foyer, with a large open space. There were around forty Legionaries in total, as some from the other upper corridor had joined. The majority of the force were surrounding both sides of a large double door that entered in to the room beyond. 

"They won't open up unless they speak with you." Centurion Pullo said frustratedly, "I'm sorry about this."

"It's fine Pullo, thanks for your hard work." Dom replied as he stepped forwards. 

"My men are ready to charge through the door if they open it, you will not be at risk at any point. Lady Tomoe would beat me if you was." Centurion Pullo replied with a slight grin.

"Yes, I will." Tomoe replied from behind, having also appeared from downstairs, causing Centurion Pullo to wince. There was not one person within Riverside that didn't have some form of internal fear towards Tomoe after seeing the way she fought. She turned to Dom and continued, "I have your back Lord."

"I know you do Tomoe." Dom said kindly, looking at her in her heavy armour, now red in colour from the death toll she had increased during the attack on the Town Centre, "That's why I asked for you. Let's see what the Leaders of Tongpai Town will say."

Dom headed towards the double doors that were surrounded by his men, they were made of a pale white wood and Dom was impressed by the craftmanship. Engraved in it were images of coins and boats, emphasising Tongpai Town's location as a potential Merchant haven with the large lake and access to the nearby resources that could be traded. Tomoe stood behind him on one side, her sword drawn, whilst Hua Rong was on the other side with an Arrow lodged in his bow. The Legionaries also had their swords drawn and serious looks on their faces.

There was silence for a few seconds as Dom listened to the sounds of the Town Centre. He could hear the sobs from the Garden Courtyard below, as well as the sounds of some fighting still taking place in Centurion Octavian's corridor below, most likely a group of Tongpai Warriors that were in a room and refusing to surrender, a similar situation to what Dom found himself in now.

"I am Lazarus, Lord of Riverside." Dom announced as he stood in front of the doors. "I have come to talk as requested, I advice you to open the doors and surrender so that we can speak easier."