Chapter 6: Warring Souls

Chapter 6



         I slowed my running down to an angry march, glaring ahead of me. I was outnumbered again, and I was close enough now to see who I was up against. Sever stood a little ways back from the other four members of Guardian with him. They were all walking toward me in the same fashion that I approached them. Five against one isn’t normally very good odds, but this time I didn’t have the disadvantage of having someone to protect. Besides, I was angry, furious even, that they would still try and bring even more hurt upon Natalie. She was just a girl, one who probably had no idea about what was happening in the world, and certainly wouldn’t be an influence on it. Still, Sever was so intent on killing everyone in the town that he’d come all the way out here himself, along with a small group. He must have wanted to be able to brag about no one from White Meadow escaping.

He wasn’t going to get that privilege.

         Two of the soldiers broke off from the others, running toward me in wide arcs. One of them kneeled down, and I saw him partially transform his body, his hair growing out into a leonine mane, sharp, powerful looking claws protruding from his fingers, and wicked looking fangs sticking out from beneath his lips. He ran toward me on all fours like an angry wildcat. The other soldier drew a short sword from a sheath at each side of his hip, then lowered his head and charged toward me.

         I quickly lunged to my left, streaking toward the sword-wielding Guardian. He raised his swords to attack, but I don’t think he expected me to charge him, because I formed a blade of my own and shoved it through his throat before he could try and strike me. As I withdrew my blade, I reached out and snatched one of his swords from his hand, then turned and hurled it toward the clawed soldier, who was rapidly approaching and not more than ten feet away. He raised a claw and batted aside the short sword with a contemptuous snarl, clearly not threatened by it.

         Good thing that was just a distraction.

         In the instant he swatted the sword aside, I closed the distance between us, dashing by him with a slash of my sword. I didn’t bother to look. The two distinct thumps and utter silence afterward told me my attack had succeeded. I turned back toward Sever and continued walking. A towering man in thick armor charged at me as I approached. Donning heavy armor and charging straight at your foe is a fairly commonly used tactic among the larger, more physically powerful members of my race. It is also one of the more easy tactics to counter, if you know how.

         I formed a bomb in my off hand and hurled it at him, blasting it right in his helmeted face. It didn’t do much damage, and he grunted in anger and annoyance, for a moment blinded and stunned by the strike, but still charging forward with a great deal of momentum.

         The important part was that it blinded him. Men like him tended to charge through whatever is in their way, even if it means taking some hits along the way. While he surged forward, I leapt over him, flipping in the air once, and landed in a crouch. I sprang backward, sword out, and thrusted my blade into his back, through his armor. I’m not quite sure if I managed to get his heart, but either way it did the trick. His rapidly moving body seized up, he made a quick, pained scream, and he fell to the forest floor, sliding several feet from the momentum he’d built up.

         I continued walking, now close enough to make out all the details of the remaining two. Sever’s arm had been bandaged, and likely mostly healed by soul arts. The other had wild, unruly black hair with a headband over his forehead, a sleeveless shirt under red and black armor, and a pair of trench knives that he drew from his belt. He hunched his shoulders and moved toward me, bobbing a little to each side to make it harder to read his moves.

         I didn’t have the time or patience to dance with the idiot, so instead I twisted my body and hurled my blade up into the air over his head. I quickly formed another one, then put a look of shock on my face when his gaze never left me.

         He gave a small grin. By not looking toward where I threw my sword, he believed he had avoided my distraction, intended to give me an opening. There were a few loud cracks overhead, and my fake look of shock returned to my normal glare. His eyes widened as he realized his mistake, but before he could look up, a large branch crashed down on him, slamming him to the ground.

         He’d seen me use a small attack as a distraction already twice against his allies, and figured I’d do the same to him. Which, in a sense, I suppose I did, but not in the way he expected. He thought he was smarter than me. I used that against him. As I walked past, I drove my sword down into his back through the log, and he suddenly stopped struggling to get the log off.

         Sever charged forward in a flash of green, his speed every bit as impressive as what I was capable of, as he formed his blade and raised it to swing at me. I rushed forward as well, slashing my sword in a horizontal strike.

         Our blades clashed with a sound that resembled lightning striking a tree, and the both of us stood in place, pushing against each other for all we were worth. My eyes glared into his, and I saw the hatred, the wounded pride, the growing need to prove his own superiority that drove him against me, and fed the power of his blade. Our blades shook, green and blue sparks falling to the forest floor as we struggled.

         When energy forms like us fight, it isn’t just a test of physical prowess versus physical prowess. It isn’t all in the mind. It isn’t just about proper preparation, and it isn’t fickle chance. It’s all of those things at once, but most importantly, it’s a test of wills. There are so many aspects to a battle that people don’t realize. What it often all comes down to is discovering who’s will, who’s belief, who’s sheer desire to be victorious is greater.

         My blade, the extension of my will pressed against Sever’s. Neither would budge an inch. At the same moment, we leapt backward away from each other, then began to walk in a slow circle.

         “You know, Freak, I can’t tell what’s more irritating.” Sever said with a snarl. “The fact that you so often manage to get in my way, or the fact that you honestly go around calling yourself an energy form, like you were one of us.”

         “If it bothers you so much, you could always just kill me. But, since you hid behind four of your men and let them throw themselves at me like fodder, hoping they’d slow me down and give you an advantage, I’d say you aren’t very confident in your ability to do that.” I replied.

         “They want you dead almost as much as I do. Might as well give them a shot.” He said.

         I shook my head slowly. “Sounds like a coward’s excuse to me, Sever.”

         He bared his teeth and brought his sword up. “Shut up and die!” He rushed toward me, and I charged forward in reply. We struck countless times at each other, each slash met with a parry, each thrust met with a dodge, each step or spin or subtle movement countered. Our blades struck again and again, echoing around the forest in a din of noise that sent any nearby animals scurrying away. Neither of us tried for a distraction or a feint. We were dueling at full speed, striking for all we were worth. It was all I could do to defend myself while keeping the pressure on him, and I had no doubt he was in the same situation. This fight wouldn’t be decided by who outsmarted who. It was a head-on duel between swordsmen.

         Just like always.

         We both leapt backward, planting our feet on the trunks of trees, then leapt at each other, blades again meeting in mid-air. I landed on the tree he sprang from, as he landed on mine, and we jumped at each other again. Our blades clashed again, neither one of us able to land a hit, and I caught a branch and swung myself up onto it. I looked behind me and jumped straight up an instant before Sever’s strike cut through the branch where I had stood. I landed on another branch, and he jumped up at me from the side of a trunk. I hurled a larger energy bomb down at him, and he answered by firing a fist sized sphere of green energy upward. The two attacks met and exploded in a brilliant flash of blue and green. Sever was still soaring toward me, and I leapt, hurling myself down toward him. Our swords struck again, and for a brief moment we had canceled out each other’s momentum and hung suspended in the air with our blades pressing against one another. As we fell, we continued dueling, and when we landed and hopped back, still neither of us had landed a hit.

         We glared at each other over about fifteen feet of ground, both panting slightly. We had both been fighting at top speed, both putting as much energy into our attacks and movements as we could, and we were both starting to wear down. Neither of us had had the chance to really rest and recover our strength from the previous night, and it was clear neither of us could keep going much longer.

         As I said, what it comes down to is who has the stronger will. Who can keep standing, keep fighting, when noting but their own desire to do so is keeping them able.

         Sever growled and fired another wave of energy at me, and I hurled my sword forward in reply. The attacks met, and again exploded spectacularly, sending a massive amount of dirt and debris upward, and causing a nearby tree to lose most of its trunk and begin leaning. I formed another blade, dashed forward, and leapt over the point the attacks met, and saw Sever had done the same.

         We slashed at each other again, but this time no clash of thunder rang out. Instead, there was the searing, tearing sound of energy striking through something. I landed on my feet, but hunched forward and gritted my teeth, willing myself not to fall despite a sudden tide of burning agony. My right arm still held my blade outward, but my left arm was dangling uselessly at my side.

         Behind me, I heard Sever slam to the ground, clamping his teeth shut over a wail of pain. The smoke and dust cleared, and I relaxed the energy of my blade, allowing it to vanish. I couldn’t have held it much longer anyway. I cringed and looked at myself, and saw a long, deep cut running from my left shoulder down to the center of my chest. Seared bone and muscle were visible, and I shuddered a bit as I saw it. My coat had protected me from most of his attack, but I still had an agonizing, burning, debilitating wound… It was better than being cut in half, I suppose, but I could feel my body trying to give out and collapse.

         I turned and looked to see Sever on the ground, one hand beneath him holding his mid-section, his entire body shaking. I’m not sure how deeply I’d managed to slash into him with my attack, but it didn’t seem he could get up. Despite the fact that the heat of our blades tend to cauterize wounds, I had cut him deeply enough that he was bleeding onto the forest floor. I knew his coat was armored with energy resisting metals, but it wasn’t as strong a defense as mine, and I wouldn’t have been surprised if I’d managed to get to his vital organs with my attack.

         If he didn’t get help soon, his body would die. As weakened as he was, it wouldn’t have been difficult to finish him off. But as weakened as I was, just the thought of conjuring another soul blade made me want to pass out. I may have been able to do it, but using the soul art I would need to shatter his soul after his body was killed… Given my injuries, and just how much energy I’d expended in the last twenty-four hours, it was just too much. So, I let the battle end as it always had.

         A draw.

         

         I left Sever where he was, shaking and semi-conscious, and began trudging toward Mirada. I couldn’t move very quickly. My body was fatigued, and even if I fed more energy into it, one can only push their body so far before it starts pushing back. Besides, my soul was exhausted as well, and my entire focus was going to keeping the pain from my injury held back, and putting one foot in front of the other. After a while, walking in that blazing heat, I kicked myself for not getting my damn water vial back from Natalie, so I could have at least relieved my thirst and had one less problem for my body to complain about.

         I knew grumbling about it wouldn’t help, so as I focused on keeping myself able to move, I put my mind toward planning ahead. I hadn’t made any plans besides going to White Meadow, and after that, none besides saving Natalie. I had to decide my next move. I was severely injured, and needed to rest and recover my energy. I could hide out in Mirada for that, provided they didn’t figure out what I really was. The soul art for concealing our true selves is one of the easiest ever created, no more difficult than clenching one’s hand into a fist. With training, an energy form can even maintain that state while unconscious. I would have to do that. Given that they were humans, I could safely assume that their healing abilities weren’t exactly the best. It was likely that even the healing spell Natalie had performed on me, with no real training or experience, was the most the townspeople of Mirada could hope to match.

         Regardless, it would take time for me to heal. Taking Sever down, if only temporarily, would likely give me the time I would need. I doubted any of his troops would haphazardly attack Mirada without his command. The humans of that town were known to be worthy foes… for humans.

         I stopped for a moment and leaned my right arm, the only one I could still move, against a tree, trying to catch my breath. I hated this plan. I would have to go to a bunch of humans for help, and just hope that Guardian stayed away long enough for me to recover before they tried to attack Natalie again, which no doubt Sever would order them to do. He’d never let this blow to his pride stand. It was my only choice… but damn it all, I hated it. I hated needing to rely on someone else. I hated needing to leave things up to chance. I hated having to rely on someone using magic on me to heal me.

But above all else, I hated that it would be humans I’d be relying on.

         I’ve had several experiences with them. For the most part, humans are idiotic, shortsighted, selfish, self-destructive fools. They fear anything they don’t immediately understand, and then try to destroy anything they fear, as opposed to trying to understand it. They gather together in little groups, going on about things like family, and friends, and loyalty, but all of that nonsense only goes as far as their comfortable. Take any given human and put them in a situation where they have to choose between living the way they want, and keeping true to all that loyalty and family garbage. Much more often than not, they will choose the selfish option. It’s just how they are. They act like they’re somehow special, or better than others of their kind, and use that as justification for doing the very same things they judge and curse others for doing. If it’s something they want, then clearly they deserve it, and anyone in their way is obviously in the wrong. I’ve watched humans invade land and kill their own kind, not out of necessity, but out of greed and a lack of concern for anyone but themselves.

         I loathed them. I loathed everything about them. But it didn’t change that they were my only option at the moment. I spat a bitter taste out of my mouth, pushed myself away from the tree, and kept walking.

         

         I reached the edge of the forest in late afternoon. The sun was beginning to descend, casting amber light through the trees. I dreaded what came next. If the humans saw me with my energy released, it would start a panic, and I couldn’t fight my way out of it. I doubted the humans could actually kill me, but they would be able to destroy my body, which, as I told Natalie, is a massive inconvenience, especially since I didn’t have time to waste getting a new one when she was still in danger.

         So, the only thing I could do was conceal my energy and walk forward, hoping I made my way to their hospital. When I did that, however…

         The more I thought about it, the harder it would be to do. So I sealed away my energy before I could talk myself out of it. With it, most of my ability to control the inner workings of my body went away. The wound along my chest and shoulder shrieked with pain, as if molten metal had been poured all over it. It was beyond debilitating, beyond crippling. The pain sent me to my knees, and I screamed before I could stop myself. My entire body shook, my legs felt like they had lead weights attached to them, each breath was labored and painful, but I gritted my teeth and managed to get back up. I took a step, then another, then… I think I kept walking, but I’m not really sure. I couldn’t see or hear well, but someone had seen, or possibly heard me and was running toward me. I saw someone pale and blonde, shouting something I couldn’t understand. Then things got weird.

         Someone tall, covered in black, loomed over me like the reaper itself. I felt myself being pulled, or carried, or maybe just brushed against, and I tried to push away. I didn’t know what was happening through the haze of pain and exhaustion, but I was apparently trying to fight back. A few times, everything went black and I stopped feeling, but I always struggled out of it and kept trying to get free from whatever was holding me.



         A while later, I let out a pained groan and tried to sit up, managing only to wriggle in place.

         “Shhh, it’s okay. Calm down.” I heard a woman’s voice say. It was gentle, serene, like a soft wind blowing through an open field. I felt a cool, delicate hand brush my hair back from my forehead, stroking me in a calming gesture. “You’re alright. You’re safe. You don’t have to fight anymore.”

         I smelled something. Flowers? Why did I smell flowers? Why did everything feel so soft and comfortable? I tried to open my eyes, but I couldn’t focus them. All I was able to make out was a blurry image of something green. “Rest. Everything is alright.” The voice said. Apparently that was all it took to convince me, because my eyes eased closed, my body relaxed, and my consciousness faded.