BXBX NOVEL Chapter 171 BOOM!
Dale snapped. He had expected the lieutenant to use his discretion to handle any unforeseeable factors. Instead, he was still standing there.
"We are at war damn it! There's no time for evacuation. Blow up the buildings as instructed, after all who's to say that it wasn't the vandal who had did it?"
The lieutenant kept a straight face, saluted his superior and went out to execute the order he had been mandated to do.
Dale timed the men he had ordered to carry out his order. He kept his eyes fixed on the horizon ahead, and within fifteen minutes, he heard the ground shake like a mini earthquake was about to happen, and within a few seconds, he saw the rising smoke coming up in the landscape; a signal that it had been done. Dale breathed a sigh of relief. He had now successfully blocked the route that Xzavier had to pass. Dale couldn't do anything but wait until Xzavier reacted.
Completely unaware of the plan to block his path, Xzavier continued to progress down the path he had already marked for himself. He kept on a steady line, until the line didn't seem so steady anymore. Eventually, his tank came up on an obstacle up ahead. Dale was close by, keeping an eye on Xzavier, watching to see how he would maneuver his way out of this one.
"Got you now punk! Let's see you wriggle your way out of this one! Ha!" Dale felt like he was going mad. Who was he talking to? There was no one around but him. Totally excited, thinking that he had just successfully caged Xzavier like a bird, he lied in wait as he waited for Xzavier to play his own cards.
Dale didn't realize just how shortsighted he was. And because he was deficient of any kind of imagination whatsoever, he kept missing the full extent of Xzavier's capabilities. It didn't even cross the Silver Knight's mind to think that Xzavier might actually be able to forge a path through the mountain of rubble he had installed in his path. He was just so focused on taking even a small win, for Dale had known nothing but defeat and loss all night long. It was starting to affect his foresight as a leader.
Babara was in the tank with Xzavier, and she also saw that they were trapped. The demolished buildings before them now looked like a rocky hill that looked unclimbable. But surprisingly, Babara found herself relatively calm. Normally, by this time, she would have been freaking out at the sight. But after coming such a long way with Xzavier, she now knew enough than to worry. Babara truly wondered what frighteningly unbelievable stunt Xzavier would pull off this time.
Xzavier kept his face twisted in a joyless expression. He was clearly not in the mood to be toyed with. He saw the ginormous obstacle and didn't even blink an eyelid. He was determined to move forward, and not even a childish move like this could stop him. With a stern countenance, and with mechanical movements, his danced reached across the dashboard and took out a large cannonball. There was a hole by the side where it was to be fitted in for launch. So, without hesitation Xzavier slid it inside, and placed his eye on the scope.
Babara followed his every movement curiously. Seated in the belly of a high-tech armored tank, she couldn't tell what Xzavier was doing. But one thing she was sure of though- he was going to take care of business as usual.
Having took careful aim through his scope, Xzavier fired. The cannonball responded with a blast and took off out of the long end of the tanks barrel, rushing straight at the middle of the obstacle in question. The loud bang resounded, causing the ground to quake, sending bits and pieces of debris flying all around. The poor soldiers who were too close to the scene were temporarily rendered blind by the cloud of dust and smoke.
Those who weren't so lucky were struck down with either random pieces of stone, or some building material. Either way, they all got a small taste of the destructive power of Xzavier's canon ball. Dale was flabbergasted. He felt and saw the blast, and instinctively knew in his gut that that was something terrible. His suspicions were tugging at the sleeves of his mind, but he ignored them and instead leaned in to a more optimistic opinion.
"Maybe it's our demolition team still destroying buildings…"
It was a hopelessly optimistic supposition. Dale was seriously reaching, and deep down, he knew it. But of course, he was desperate for a win, and he would do anything to feel like a winner at all. Even it mean denial in the face of a glaring truth. No matter how hard he tried to ignore it, Dale knew that this last blast had been at least ten times more dreadful and more impactful that that of his own men's demolition.
He felt it in this bones. He was starting to realize the truth when the rising smoke started to clear up, revealing the truth that he already knew.
"No way…"
It was an impressively shocking sight! (That is for Dale anyway). As the smoke cleared up, Dale saw that not only had the brilliant Xzavier managed to obliterate the seemingly insurmountable mountain of rubble and debris before him, he had actually managed to advance even farther during the thirty seconds of smoke and dust. The weakness that seeped into Dale's mind was inevitable. Here he was, a glorified knight in a medieval era, facing the awesome technology that was light years ahead of him! He stood no chance!
Quaking in his boots, Dale saw the sheer destructive power that was available to Xzavier and suddenly, the commander realized that Xzavier had actually been taking it easy all this while. He didn't like the thought of it, but with what he had just seen, it was evident that if Xzavier had wanted to turn on them in bloodlust, they wouldn't have stood a chance. In fact, it was probable that not even bones or flesh would remain as evidence that they had been attacked.
With every moment, and at every stage in this battle, Dale got some more clarity than before. The governor had taken in a monster under his roof this whole time!
"No wonder he had been so comfortable with handing us those measly weapons!" Dale thought to himself bitterly. Sure, the pistols Xzavier had given them looked 'measly' now compared to what Xzavier had been hiding this whole time! But only a few weeks ago, they had been the most incredible thing either him or his governor had ever seen.
"Of course Xzavier had something a hundred times more powerful!" Dale mocked himself; "And to think he had been dumb enough to give up the secret of his abilities! This guy has been playing us from the start! Damn!"
Dale was only just realizing all of this now, in the heat of battle, and in direct view of Xzavier's full wrath. But the fact was that all the signs had been there all this while!
For starters, Xzavier's terrifying reputation was enough. Maybe Dale had been cooped up too much with politics and the city lifestyle that he had actually forgotten what life was like in the field. Xzavier had killed the chief orc for heaven's sake! The chief orc! He had managed to take out an entire band of goblins and sent a whole tribe of orcs skipping! What kind of person was that?! It was a bit too late, but amidst the blood, smoke, destruction and the trail of dead bodies, Dale could see it all now. Xzavier was a madman!
But of course, since Xzavier didn't fit their view of what a mysterious and 'powerful' man should look and act like, they had been deceived by his placidness and gainsaid nature. And ultimately, they had paid the price for their folly. This was the truth, and Dale hated himself for not realizing it sooner, (not like he could have done anything about it though.)
While Dale entertained his cathartic thoughts, Xzavier on the other hand had virtually cruised his way through the city and was now close to the broad gates. It was truly looking like it was the end. There was no stopping him. His enemies had tried the best, and their best hadn't nearly been enough.
By now, the petrified Dale had come to the conclusion that little to nothing could be done. He and his men were lucky that Xzavier wasn't a bloodthirsty monster. Because if he was, their greatest bother wouldn't be how to stop him, it would be how they could escape for their lives. Dale was very much stunned by the power of the tank. He couldn't completely wrap his head around its working mechanism, but it was evident that Xzavier still had a lot more tricks up his sleeve. There was only one thing to do now.
With a heaviness of heart, and with an unparalleled bitterness, Dale raised his hands up, and gave the order;
"FALL BACK!! FAAALL BAAAAACKKK!!!"
His usually powerful and confidently authoritative voice was now fraught with doubt. His lieutenants echoed his attack across the ranks, ordering the soldiers to abandon pursuit. It wasn't that he thought continuing the siege was pointless, but he didn't need a seer or a psychic to know that his soldiers were stunned. Not even he as a Silver Knight could dare to stand in the way of such a powerful weapon, talk less of his subordinates who were far weaker in strength and skill than him.