Legacies of light

Turning to the humans, I say, “Please you need to calm down the situation is too dangerous.”

But in response to this, they look at me with fright and move away. Then one of them screams, “Monster!”

Ferdiad noticing this situation says, “Do you see this humans your famous black warriors are all beastkin! That’s the reason they have let so many of you die today because they are simply trying to use your bodies as shields so they can escape and be heroes.

They ask for your trust just so they can stab you in the back for their own benefit, these soldiers betrayed all of Louernia due to their own greed, and now they plan to do the same to you.”

“IT ISN’T TRUE!” I shout in response to the accusations, but my voice is completely destroyed by the sound of the panicked humans who now have lost all those they can trust.

Throughout the battlefield I see the humans are now running erratically, attacking everyone, or just crawling into balls on the ground. All of this behaviour makes it far harder for my allies to fight, and soon it starts to cause some of their deaths.

Is everything we have done, all of the hardship we have faced for the humans going to end right now just because they have seen that I am not a human-like they are?

Hearing Ferdiad I turn my head around dejected, and I see his spear my inches away from piercing my eye.

But then before I am struck another spear intercepts Ferdiad and knocks him away, then covered in robes I see a beastkin, a woman with a horn on her head, and say, “Leader.”

Turning her head back to me, she says, “Craig what are you doing laying all on the floor like a beaten down animal.”

She instantly turns her head to face forward, because Ferdiad dashes towards her trying to pierce her head, but blocks him in time and after knocking him away, she says, “I told you that spirit energy conducts better through natural material rather than armoured, if you had just trained that more and covered yourself in robes like me you wouldn’t be in this situation.”

Ferdiad continues to attack her but my boss swats him away each time and as she does, I droop my head to the ground and ask, “This mistake is my fault, but you know deep down inside I thought it wouldn’t matter, after all the time we have spent together I thought they wouldn’t care.

But many of them who covet their lives are now fully prepared to throw them away out of disgust with us. For what reason have we left our entire lives behind if we can’t even progress past this stage.”

Ferdiad uses clover at my leader, which takes her a good bite more effort to block, but after she does, she says, “The greatest plague on the mind that caused this whole war is thinking the actions of a small group of people is indicative of the remaining group you fool, take a second to look around.”

Suddenly I can hear it, someone screaming, “What is wrong with the rest of you fools!” Is that David?

“Are these men and woman not allies who you have spent great amounts of time with? They have protected you out of the goodness of their hearts, and even now as you cower and look down on them they still fight solely to protect you from people who are their own.

You all cry here wondering why god hasn’t saved us, but we so casually ignore his precepts without actions of hatred. Remove all the foolishness and hatred in your souls and understand that you should trust the people you have met rather than the words of a false prophet who wishes for your deaths!”

Throughout the battlefield, I see changes. The human soldiers who were around, and even those leaders brought with her have started to fight more in line with us.

The humans are no longer acting erratic and are far easier to defend, and for the first time since the battle has begun, we are on the offensive.

Leader says, “You see that my foolish little soldier, that’s why we fight against our homeland, so stop being a little baby and get to work.”

“Right!”

Φ Facing me, the old lady says, “Now young boy in the name of the leader of the eternal moths, I Aoife will undo all of your foolish education.”

She smirks as she says this, not a single bit of herself believes I could lose to her. The sheer confidence she has in all her actions shakes me a little bit.

Right now the battlefield has turned for the worst. The humans were walking in a very long line with forces spread out evenly throughout the area, but the vast majority of them were at the front.

The line of humans fleeing is so large that I don’t even think the people at the front would be able to see an attack at the back, so we thought we’d have some time before they send reinforcements back.

But no for some reason this woman and others rushed a large among of men back and we are being overwhelmed. They have surrounded us and soon we might be stuck in between the humans we used as shields.

Ibar is free, and Setanta should be coming from the southwest, so if we flee there we should accomplish all our goals.

I instantly look at Téad and signal him with my eyes, and moments later on his horse, he starts to scream instructions for retreat. It will take him a few moments, so right now I need to hold her off.

Aoife says, “You are rather strong for someone your age, I am sure you would grow up to become a great warrior, so I think it is a shame your life ends here. Join me.”

“Never, I have sworn my life to Setanta Ó Faoláin.”

“So the offspring invokes the same admiration as the parent, no maybe even more. As someone who understands that feeling let me put you down now.”

We both take our stances, and from her stance, I can tell she uses Red branch battle arts, but still right now thanks to this energy around me I am the strongest I have ever been.

We both begin and start to clash with each other, one after another and as I do I am sweating as I feel like if my concentration slips once I will be killed.

In contrast to this Aoife is smiling and then she says, “Didn’t anyone tell you not to beat up an old woman like me.”

“You have already taken up enough time on this planet, so just vanish into the ground!”

“Red branch battle arts; Star flower!”

As I charge towards her, she says, “Red branch battle arts; Camellia japonica.”

I pierce her body, but to my surprise the body I just pierced disappears, and I say, “What.”

From my side, I am hit with her spear, and she says, “You seem to not have all of the forms down.”

“Tch.” I continue to attack her, but she knocks me into a crowd of humans.

“Right now I need a shield.” I scan around and find a human child.

So I grab her, and as I do the child cries and screams for her life. Seeing this I stop for a moment, but soon after an image of the House of Faoláin pops into my head and I throw the child at her.

Then says, “Red branch battle arts; Clover.”

But Aoife is not only able to grab the child out of the air, but deflect my attack, and she says, “I wasn’t fond of that, if you use such tactics don’t use this style you talentless freak.”

“DON’ T CALL ME TALENTLESS!”

I begin to move faster and clash with her more and more, whilst I do I use my spear to break some ground and send the rock to cover eyesight then, I quickly get behind her and try to pierce he kidney.

But my spear doesn’t go through and she says, “Spirit energy flows better through cloth, and with my level of control, this fabric around me is harder to break than their armour.”

Seriously!?

She turns around and strikes me in my gut, so I grab it and say, “Thanks for the information I will surely use it in my next battle.”

“Funny how you think you might walk out of this alive.”

We go back to clashing again, and as we do, she says, “Good form, and technique. You’re also a wolf beastkin so a good combination of power and speed is within your body, all in all, I would say you are strong, especially with spirit arts, but still the way you fight is too formal.”

I thrust at her head, and she completely collapses her body and crouches towards the ground, then with her spear she tries to pierce my belly, but I am able to get my spear between us.

The force from her attack sent me into the air, and then she throws her spear at me which I deflect, but doing so caused my left arm which holds my spear to be in a bad position leaving me open.

Before I even have time to twitch the muscles in that arm, she has already planted a kick in my gut, then with her other leg she strikes me in the back of the neck sending me towards the ground.

Feeling my head shaking, I look up and see that she is already in front of me, and before I react she kicks me into the air towards her eye level. Then says, “Red branch battle arts; Star flower,” Then with seven quick punches she strikes me in my gut.

As I fly back from these blows I am caught by Ibar who says, “We are ready to go.”

While he rides I see most of the cavalry have broken out of the human crowd and are all preparing to run away at full speed, so I say, “I am glad you’re ok.”

“Thank you for coming for me, but please next time don’t do something stupid. If everyone died here all of my amazing achievements would have gone unknown.”

“I know, I am sorry, will probably happen again.”

Annoyed, Ibar says, “Don’t admit to such things.”

As we all ride away I look back at Aoife who is jumping up and down on one foot, and whisper, “What is that woman doing.”

Suddenly she stops holding and as she does that all my sense starts telling me danger is coming, “IBAR MOVE!”

Φ “Red branch battle arts Ultimate art; Morning glory.”

Φ Aoife instantly move towards Téad with a single thrust so powerful and forceful that the pressure she creates as she moves blows everything in the area away, until her spear hits Téad.

Φ Holding Ibar, who I caught on the ground, I look up and there I see both Téad and his horse have been utterly annihilated. With the rest of our men knocked to the ground from their horses, and behind us, we hear the footsteps of the enemy soldiers approaching us.

Standing over my body, she says, “That’s the end of this battle.”

“I get up and say, “Not a chance.”

But then she knocks me down and says, “I happen to be a wonderbeast beastkin, yet you didn’t even make me use my abilities once. This battle is over you don’t have the strength to overcome even me at this point don’t go sending these men to pointless deaths, and we may reach a compromise.”

“We won’t ever bow our heads to traitors.”

“I wish I could say I thought your answer would be different, but as someone who was once much the same, I knew this was coming.”

Raising her spear, she says, “I will make it quick.”

“Go ahead.”

“YOU FUCKIN MORON!!!”

I hear a familiar voice scream. Turning my head, I see that riding towards us is Setanta and Laeg.