Catherine slapped her.
Remi cocked her arm back instinctively and punched Catherine in the face. She staggered back and groaned as she rubbed her cheek vigorously.
“See?” Catherine moaned. “You’ve got plenty of fight left in you.”
“You’re not concerned at all that I’m a liability?”
“The opposite actually,” Catherine sighed, patting her wound one last time. “You’re an asset, and the way I look at it, you’ve just gained some invaluable battle experience against a formidable enemy. It was bound to happen at some point. Now cut the pity party and let’s keep moving. He could be fighting my friends right now, and I’m not going to just let them die.”
Catherine took off running as Kace reluctantly followed. Remi felt like she was losing her mind. What was the point of her being a part of the fight? What could she do?
“Shut up,” she told herself suddenly. She closed her eyes and tried to slow her breathing. “Just shut up. I’ve got this.”
She opened her eyes, took a deep breath, and then focused on where Catherine and Kace had gone. She chased after them, and she didn’t allow her thoughts to get in the way of what she had to do.
She was determined.
Chapter 20 – Impossible
She didn’t catch up to them until they had stopped running entirely.
And she noticed that they were no longer alone. They had found what was left of Allay’s elite warriors. Catherine, Kace, Talia, Zhou, Daisy, Achan and the two remaining young Sages were all standing side by side on a rooftop, looking down at something below.
As Remi approached, she noticed that all but Kace were wearing their Sage robes. All of different colors, their robes blew in the wind like a beacon of hope. She also noticed that none of them were clean. Dirt flew out of their hair. Mud caked the back of their clothes. She could only guess as to what their faces looked like.
Regardless, the facts were there.
All had engaged the enemy at some point but her.
“Shut up,” she whispered, walking forward. She stepped next to Kace and stood there with them all, as if she had been there all along. He smiled at her and then nodded towards what they were all glancing at below.
She looked down and tried not to panic.
There were three of them below. The monster from earlier, a skinny man with beady eyes and clothes that were three sizes too big, and a toned warrior, outfitted with thin armor around his limbs, chest and thighs. Just from looking at him, he appeared fast.
“Are we ready for this?” Catherine asked with her voice full of determination. Remi noticed the morale rising from the others as they steeled their faces and cast fear aside. “Good. Let’s go.”
Catherine leapt down first and headed straight for the armored man. He took out a sword from his sheath and clashed with her, sword against eidolon. They parried and exchanged blows as the monster began barreling toward the young Sage who had dropped second. The thin man stayed in the background as much as possible. He used the monster’s weight and size to protect him.
Remi glanced to her right and noticed that she was the only one still on the roof. They had all leapt down but her, and she didn’t want to feel left out. She unsheathed her eidolon and pointed it towards the thin man. If everyone else was preoccupied with the others, she might as well focus on him.
Her eidolon hummed and she frowned at the information she was receiving.
There was something weird going on with the air.
No, not the air. But there was something strange…what was it? She waved her eidolon around in a small circular motion, reading the battle before her. It was the Sages. They were…they were getting weaker…but it was on a small scale. Were they just tired? Were they…NO! It wasn’t that at all!
Her eidolon stopped on the thin man, who had his hands raised towards the battle before him.
He was sapping their strength!
Remi watched in horror as he picked up the intensity, especially increasing it whenever someone got hit. The Sages wouldn’t think that anything weird was going on. They would just think that the blow they received was harder than they expected, or that their enemy was stronger than they thought, when that wasn’t necessarily true.
“HE’S TAKING YOUR ENERGY!” she shouted, but no one listened. They were all in danger, and their senses were devoted solely to an all-out defensive or survival. Remi leapt down from the roof and hit the ground hard, nearly falling face first. Luckily, she only landed on one knee, and she immediately propelled herself forward.
She heard a cry coming from her right and watched as Zhou was punched in the chest so hard that his body immediately went limp. His Sage robes vanished around him the moment he hit the dirt. The dead body of another young Sage was already lying next to him.
She turned to the left and watched as the last young Sage was cut across his abdomen by the armored man. Catherine roared in anger and redoubled her efforts, attempting to fight the armored man once more, but she only received a cut down her right shoulder for her efforts. Talia defended her while she nursed her wound.
I have to get the thin man, she thought to herself as she began running towards him. The thin man shouted out to the monster in another language, and the monster turned on her. She prepared to face him with all she that had, gripping her eidolon tight, when someone tackled her from behind. The monster barreled past her as she looked to her protector.
It was Kace. He was breathing so hard that he started coughing. She helped him to his feet as the monster began hitting Achan. Achan tried to cut through the monster’s limbs but his blade couldn’t break the skin. The monster pounded on his body long after he crumpled to the ground.
“STOP!” Catherine screamed. The monster ceased his ruthless attack and turned towards them all. Catherine’s tears flowed freely as she turned to look at her comrades.
“Retreat,” she whispered, and they all obeyed. They leapt to the roof from which they had once stood united, and immediately they noticed that not everyone had come back alive.
Zhou.
And all three of the young Sages were dead.
Achan was not far behind.
“I didn’t even get to say good-bye!” Catherine roared as she slammed a fist into the rooftop. Talia was the only one that watched their opponents leave together. As they left, they began tearing down every house they came across, killing or seriously wounding whoever was inside. When people started running out of their homes, they would give chase, and quickly ensure that they could run no more.
“Those people need us,” Daisy said. “Everyone they kill will be gone forever, just like the ones we…” Her voice trailed off as they all thought of their fallen comrades.
“They had just gotten back,” Catherine mumbled. “And now they’re gone. And for what?”
“We have to do something,” Talia replied.
“Yeah,” Catherine said. “But if we don’t come up with a plan, the results will be the same.”
“I wish Marie was here.”
“We couldn’t risk her being targeted,” Catherine sighed. “What do you think we should do?”
“We were separated,” Kace suggested. “So that means we should compare notes. Does anyone have any knowledge on those three that could help?”
“The armored man,” Talia said. “He’s the one that got the drop on me and one of the young ones earlier. He can copy techniques. Maybe not eidolons or special abilities, but the way you fight. He adapts to you the longer you combat him. I think he has the armor on him so he has extra protection until he learns how you operate.”
“The thin man,” Remi said. “When you were all fighting I noticed that he was draining everyone’s energy. Eidolons were losing their density. You all were getting exhausted quicker. The thin one might not be a fighter, but he’s arguably the most dangerous.”
“The monster needs to be hit in the head,” Catherine said. “Plain and simple.”
“They obviously work together,�
�� Daisy said. “And we won’t get anywhere unless we do the same.”
“Any ideas?” Talia asked, but no one spoke up.
“Send me,” Remi spoke up. “Just me, until the rest of you can get into position to make one, coordinated strike.”
“Why you?” Kace wondered.
“Because they don’t want to kill me,” she said. “That monster back there had every opportunity to hurt me back there, but he didn’t. And I think it’s because Cimmerian briefed the three of them on who I am and what I mean to their endgame. They don’t want to destroy one of the Sorcerers’ weapons.”
“They may not kill you,” Talia warned. “But that doesn’t mean they can’t harm you.”
“Regardless, I should be the bait.”
“It could take a while until we’re in position,” Daisy said. “To make it count anyways. You sure you can handle things until we intervene?”
“Your friends died defending this Kingdom and all of us. The least I can do is extend the same. And to be clear, I want to do this alone. I need to do this alone.”
“But why?” Kace asked. “You don’t have to.”
“It’s because anyone that comes with me right now will die,” she said. “And it will make the precision strike meaningless because they’ll be on alert even longer. I want them to think that the rest of you aren’t coming. That no one’s going to save me. It’s the only way we have a chance at beating them, and who knows? I might even be able to take one of them out in the process.”
“That’s a lot to ask of you,” Catherine said. “And remember that you don’t have to go all-out. Stalling is the key here, not winning.”
“All I have to do is not faint,” Remi said, giving Catherine a wink. “Got it.”
A tiny smile came upon Catherine’s lips.
“Then show us what a weapon like you can do.”
* * *
“Excuse me,” Remi said as she stood behind them. All three of her enemies turned around in unison. She must have looked so unassuming standing before them, not even wearing her Sage robes or keeping her eidolon at her side.
Immediately they looked for the trap. The monster and the armored man scanned the area as the thin man started backing away, taking his spot in the background. Remi made a mental note to stay as far away from him as possible, and if she felt the least bit tired while they were just standing there, the battle would have to start, whether she was ready or not.
“Where are your friends?” the armored man asked, his silver eyes narrowing at her.
“They’re gone,” she said. “You killed too many of their friends.”
“Then what are you doing here?”
“I’m here to kill you,” she said, clenching her fists. He noticed the motion.
“If anything this is a trap,” he said.
“Not at all,” she said. “It’s just me. I’m not going to run away because the odds aren’t in my favor.”
“That’s surprising,” Dominic said, appearing from behind one of the houses. “Especially considering how weak you are.”
Remi tried to keep calm once she saw him though she was screaming on the inside. There were four of them now?!
“Ah,” Dominic said, pointing his red eidolon towards her. “That’s what I was looking for. That fear. It’s right there, bubbling up inside of you. Didn’t expect to see me so soon, did you?”
“How did you get out?” she asked as he circled around her at a distance.
“I could have gotten out whenever I wanted. And ten minutes ago, I wanted to.”
“Is Tyuin okay?”
“I don’t know where he is, as far as I know. But the real question is, are you? I’m sorry, you were saying something about not running away. Please continue.”
“I was going to tell your teammates about my experiences.”
“To stall,” he said, tapping his eidolon against his leg. He stopped circling to face her directly.
“No, to make a point.”
“Which is?”
“You know nothing about me. I grew up in an encampment that lived to steal from Cimmerian. They were merciless in their pursuits, and they killed anyone that got in their way. You have no idea what I’ve seen and what I’ve done. You know nothing. Think about it. When have I ever backed down since you’ve been watching me? When?”
“You fainted earlier,” the armored man said. “Against our friend.”
“I pretended to,” she declared, keeping her gaze fixed on Dominic. “To see if he was willing to hurt one of the Sorcerer’s weapons. He’s not.”
“We just can’t kill you,” Dominic sneered. “And you’re stupid to come here by the way. We were going to go back to your friends and snatch you from them but now you’re right here. Ready to be captured.”
“If you can stop me.”
“Just stop it,” he laughed. “I can sense your power. You’re weak. You’d be lucky to take down one of us.”
“As long as I take down you alone, it will be worth it,” Remi spat back at him. “You know what I’m going to do to you? I’m going to save you for last. After I take out your little band over there, I’m going to make you my bitch. I’m going to put you on a leash and parade you around . I’m going to dress you in frilly outfits and make you bark whenever I tell you to speak. And you’re going to like it.”
“Don’t you ever talk to me like that again, you wench,” Dominic snapped. “You have no idea who you’re talking to. If you only knew you would be quivering in—”
Remi slit his throat with her eidolon and kept on moving. She didn’t want to see the blood, and so she sprinted forward, heading straight for the armored man as Dominic fell to his knees behind her, clutching his neck and gagging.
The monster stepped in front of her and tried to swipe at her head but she leapt back and dodged the attempt. She wasn’t even going to try to kill the monster because she wasn’t sure if her eidolon would cut through his hide. The thin man was the priority.
She took a deep breath and thought about how she was going to get past the monster when she felt her energy waning. The thin man was working on her from a distance, and he was trying to take her energy from her as quickly as possible.
Suddenly the draining stopped as Kace leapt upon him in full Quietus form. She nearly leapt for joy once she saw him claw away at him. Unfortunately, the victory was short lived as the armored man kicked him in the face and then grabbed him from behind, putting Kace in a chokehold and squeezing the life out of him.
The monster still stood in her way. And she could tell that he was still alert based on the way he kept darting his eyes to the skies. There was no way the Sages were going to step in now, especially after Kace’s attack.
The monster roared and attempted to punch her in the face as hard as it could, and he barely activated her armor form in time. He smashed his knuckle against her steel body and howled in rage—not at the pain, but the frustration that he couldn’t get to her.
“Let me,” the armored man said, handing Kace’s lifeless body to the monster. “Don’t break him yet. We need him for leverage.”
The armored man unsheathed his sword and examined her steel form meticulously.
“I’ve got you,” he said, getting ready to make an incision. She deactivated her form and summoned her white Sage robes as she leapt forward with eidolon in hand. Yet somehow, the armored man blocked her attack. Parrying her thrust upwards, he kicked her in the chest and she went sprawling to the dirt. The armored man sneered at her.
“You killed my friend, and seriously wounded Dominic. That won’t go unpunished.”
“Mm-hmm,” she said, jumping to her feet. Using bursts of energy, she struck at the armored man, knowing that the odds of her succeeding were slim. She would activate her armored form occasionally, right when he was about to hit her, but he would always stop, as if he could read her mind.
“You’re predictable,” he said as he kicked her in the chest again. She didn’t fall, but it seriously hurt
. She clutched her breast as he shook his head. “You’re inexperienced. Untalented. Weak. I don’t get why you’re even trying.”
“Because someone has to,” she whispered. She grit her teeth and decided to try a different approach. No more killing strikes. Just aim to wound.
She nearly stabbed his arm when she lost her left instead.
Her left arm went flying behind her as the armored man snickered.
“Was that what you meant to do?” he said casually as the pain flooded her. This pain, she was not used to. It wasn’t a dull never ending ache. It was a violent screaming baby, demanding to be fed with attention. The world around her lost all meaning and purpose. There was only the roaring sensation coming from her arm.
“It’s okay. It was a clean cut,” she heard him say, but his voice was distant. It was so soft she wasn’t even sure he had said it or if she had made it up. She tried to concentrate on his voice, in order to bring her back to reality. With a little more clarity, she began focusing on the wound, closing it up completely. She had healed minor cuts before through mediation, but not one this big. There was no way she could save her arm, and so she might as well concentrate on stopping the bleeding.
But just as she was nearly done, she felt her other arm leave her.
The pain came back.
She thought she was prepared as she had experienced it once already, but she was tired now.
She couldn’t give the pain what it wanted, and so she lost herself completely. Lost in a trance, she fell to her knees and then onto the side of her face, watching as blood left her body. She blinked rapidly as her thoughts left her. Her body went numb and soon the pain left her. It still screamed, but it was like someone had taken it away from her. She heard it, but it no longer affected her in the same way.
She nearly smiled.
She felt blissful.
Almost whole again.
It was a good feeling.
NO! her mind snapped at her. NO! GET UP! GET UP! GET UP! Remi’s eyes fluttered and she gasped for breath. She hadn’t realized she had been holding it in. Her senses were getting sharper but so was the agony. She accepted its rage and its cries. She acknowledged it without succumbing. She started closing the wound on her right arm.
The Sorcerer's Ring (Book 1) Page 19
