The Forsaken Hero

Very few warriors ever had the chance to fight someone at a higher level than themselves, and even fewer survived. But that was exactly the odds we faced. My guards were all at the peak of fifth level, some even relatively close to breaking through, and yet now they were asked to fight several soldiers above that. The elite of the Dead Wing Legion, Alpha team, as Barron called them.

”Kill the soldiers and that mutt, but leave the filthblood alive,” Commander Barron said.

”Alive?” one of his soldiers, a woman with a viciously curved dagger, asked with a raised eyebrow. ”After what her elementals have done to us?”

Barron’s face twisted in a scowl. ”As much as I’d like to feed her to the wyverns, the Storm Hero said she needs her alive.” Suddenly, the lasciviousness of his earlier taunting returned. ”But she didn’t say in what condition. Whoever captures her gets to use her first.”

”Publicly? Roughly?” A scarred man asked hopefully.

Barron shrugged, and the sixth-level soldiers all leered. Even the woman’s lips curved up in a lewd smile, sending a shiver down my spine. For some reason, this threat felt far more visceral than their earlier taunting, and I took an unconscious step back. I almost collided with Jenna and upset the Sunpurge, but she steadied me with a surprisingly firm hand.

”Don’t worry, my Lady,” Jenna said, her flirtatious voice serious for once. ”They may be sixth-level, but without their magic or wyverns, we still stand a chance. At the very least, we’ll hold them back until the Commander can send us reinforcements.”

I nodded, but my twitching tail proved her words brought me no comfort. Before the wind mage could say anything else, the elite of the Dead Wings were upon us.

The first to reach us was the scared man, blessed with a huge stature and wide, broad shoulders. His acceleration was near instantaneous, catching us all off-guard. No matter how powerful Luxxa and Orion were, they were still only fifth level and completely unable to compete in raw speed. Be they even realized he’d moved, he’d dodged past Orion and swung his sword in a wide arc toward my head. I cried out but didn’t even have time to stumble away, watching with wide eyes as his sword collided with the Blade Ward. Magical sparks skated off the impact, a single jagged crack snaking across the golden ward.

The man grinned at my fear, but before he could strike again, a low growl reverberated through the air, swelling to a deafening crescendo. His eyes widened, staring in shock over my head, before he raised his sword. A massive paw slammed down on him before he could ready the parry, crushing him into the ground.

Time seemed to slow for a split second, the battlefield growing eerily silent, before a shockwave exploded from Fable’s attack. A pained shout tore from the scarred man’s throat as his legs buckled beneath the force of the blow. Blood followed the scream closely, spurting between his lips in a thick, viscous splatter.

Still shaking with adrenaline at the close call, I managed to raise my head and look up at the titanic wolf towering above me in the air. I was as much shocked as grateful for his help, having completely missed the moment he had returned to his full, fifty-foot size. He’d been at my side just seconds before, only moving when the enemy soldier lunged at me. Just what kind of reaction time had he developed?

Unfortunately for us, the victory was short-lived–less than a second, in fact. A super-charged arrow slammed against Fable’s head, cracking the Blade Ward and forcing the wolf back from the bloodied warrior. A warrior moved up to cover the scarred man’s position, allowing one of their mages to begin casting Life Magic on his wounds.

But before the spell went off, Luxxa was upon them. She let out a low shout and imbued her shield with a magical technique before slamming it into the standing warrior. He defended it awkwardly, barely tripping as vines exploded from the ground and grasped at his legs. She pressed her advantage, her sword flashing in the dim light as she aimed for his throat.

A heartbeat before her sword dug into the vulnerable flesh, Luxxa abruptly turned the slash into a parry. The motion confused me, and I jumped, startled, as a loud clang split the air, a curved dagger appearing on her sword. Its wielder materialized a second later, having moved so quickly that my eyes failed to notice her approach.

”Not bad,” the woman said, grinning at Luxxa. ”But can you handle this?”

Her soul exploded with mana and a sixth-level magical technique manifested on her dagger. Luxxa took the attack on her shield this time but was forced back several steps. A long, glowing gouge traced along the front of her shield where the blade had landed. The woman made to gloat again, but abruptly dived to the side, narrowly avoiding an arrow from Gith. The ranger circled to her flank, coordinating with Luxxa to flank the agile thief-like solder.

The battle raged around me, a whirlwind of steel, magic, and snapping jaws. Fable fought two of the Dead Wings to a standstill, their battleground overtaking nearly half of the inner courtyard and occasionally onto the keep itself or the towers. Any soldiers or guards unlucky enough to be in their way were crushed without thought, casualties in a battle between forces far beyond their control.

On the other side of the courtyard, Orion and Jenna battled a third sixth-level warrior, which, when added to the thief fighting Luxxa and Gith, left three unaccounted for. I looked around helplessly for them, afraid they would join one of the battles and overpower my allies, discovering them only as their auras locked onto me.

A chill ran down my spine as I realized their intent. I was their prey to begin with, and now that my allies were fighting for their lives against foes they had little chance of beating, I was left with only a single ice spirit for protection. My soul was already strained with the burden of maintaining my connection to the shard, making casting anything at this point impossible. I could sever the conduit to try and destroy their souls with the Oracle of Eternity, but even if I were strong enough, doing so would condemn the soldiers in the canyon, not to mention Sari, to certain death at the hands of whoever won the battle at the city gate, be it church or demon.

My agitated tail stilled as I realized my circumstance, a strange sense of calm settling over my rapidly beating heart. This wasn’t just about me, right now. My life wasn’t the only thing on the line. The Last Light Company had fought and died for me many times before. It was time for me to return the favor.

With that conviction, I faced the advancing trio with an unwavering spirit. Commander Barron the other two toward me with unhurried steps, seeming to glide through the various battles raging around them with the utmost of ease. One was a young mage with a gnarled ruby wand while the other was a hulking man covered in heavy steel armor and carrying a flanged mace. The head of the weapon was larger than my torso, yet he held it casually resting on his shoulder.

”Seems you’re all alone now,” Barron said with a smirk. ”I’ve heard a lot about the ’Forsaken Hero,’ but now that I’ve met you, I’m rather disappointed. You’re nothing but a shivering slut good for nothing but warming a begar’s bed.” he spat on the ground before my feet, and I took a step back, grimacing as he continued. ”I’ve had the honor of fighting beside real heroes, you know. Even the Life Hero has more of a spine than you. At least she can fight like a real warrior and defend the things she cares about. All you can do is watch them die.”

As though to emphasize his point, a sharp cry from Luxxa made me flinch. The woman they fought had managed to break her Blade Ward and landed a hit on her arm. The powerful, curved knife had cut through armor and flesh like it were butter, leaving a cut deep enough it scored the bone.

”Enough. I will not allow you to stain the Star Mother with such vulgarity,” the ice spirit said, raising its sword.

The elemental’s rich voice caused the three to halt in alarm, staring at it like it were some kind of freak, which, of course, it was. Everyone knew elementals didn’t possess anywhere near enough intelligence to have sentience, much less speak. Even I had barely come to accept the being that was the anomaly, and the more I learned of it, the more fitting that title became.

”What the hell is that thing, Gray?” Barron asked, eyeing the spirit carefully. ”I thought you said they were just ice spirits.”

The mage regarded the elemental beside me, as well as the ones currently battling the wyverns, with something close to fascination. ”Absolutely fascinating. They are summoned creatures, and yet...” his gaze rose to the winter storm above, and the gate it emanated from, and his face grew pale. ”That’s...not possible...The filthblood must have–”

The ice spirit disappeared and the mage’s words vanished in a wet gurgle. I stepped back, grip tightening on my staff, as the elemental reappeared just beyond the mage, his sword still out in a brutal backslash. He held the pose just long enough for the mage’s head to drop to the ground before turning to face the remaining two warriors.

”I warned you,” it said emotionlessly, meeting their horrified faces with an icy glare. ”Do not disrespect the Star Mother.”