A flash of metal halted the blade in its tracks. Varg whipped Frost Fang and knocked Alastor's sword out of the way, but the latter retained his grip. Shara hopped up and grabbed her blade. She joined Varg and they both charged.
“There, now we're even,” Varg remarked. “Now let me help you defeat him.”
Shara shot ahead of him. “I'd rather die than accept the help of a human.”
Varg cursed under his breath as Shara blindly rushed towards Alastor.
Milea nocked another arrow as the enemy advanced closer to the line of archers. She shouted orders to the others to fire again. The enemy drew closer. Milea drew her blade and rushed forward to stave off a pair of Eastwold soldiers. The rest of the archers followed her example and rushed into battle.
Milea held her bow in one hand and her blade in the other. After dispatching one foe, she held her blade with her last two fingers and retrieve an arrow with the other. An arrow flew. She sliced through another soldier. She loosed another arrow, then another into two more. It became almost rythmic as she charged further into the enemy lines until she took a hit to the head.
Milea's helmet took the brunt of the damage, but flew off with the force of the hit. With no time to retrieve it, she sliced her way through her attacker and continued forward. She blocked an attack by holding her bow out as a shield and returned the gesture with her blade. She fell another opponent, then another, until a flash of white caught her attention.
Milea looked up and spotted Varg and Shara barreling towards Alastor and a spark ignited inside her. She cut and sliced her way toward them, her blade already tasting the blood of the traitor of Fellen.
Varg charged for Alastor. The latter whipped around and knocked Shara towards him. Varg narrowly avoided a collision with her and they both charged for Alastor again. He smiled and met them head on. He blocked Frost Fang and brought his elbow to Shara's mouth. Blood spattered and she grunted with pain, but it did little to slow her down. Shara returned fire with a vengeance. Alastor swung around and used Frost Fang to block Shara's attack.
Varg yanked Frost Fang away and brought it around for another swing. Alastor spun around, missing decapitation by precious inches. He parried Shara's attempt. Varg shot an ice bolt again. It missed Alastor, but struck a Whitspire soldier attempting to flank Shara.
Varg's heart began to race as a familiar feeling set in. His body ached. His muscles expanded. His thirst became insatiable.
Shara charged. Alastor met her strides. Their blades clashed.
Varg could taste the steel. He lusted for battle.
Shara screeched as she swung again and missed.
Varg felt a stray arrow strike his cheek. The smell of fresh blood only added to his hunger.
Alastor charged at Shara, forcing her on the defensive.
Someone attempted to strike Varg, but he caught their arm. His gaze never broke from Alastor as he twisted the offender's arm, snapping the bones. He thought he heard a scream as the offender fell to the ground, but he paid little mind.
An arrow flew past Alastor's head. Milea charged for him. Alastor swung for her and missed.
Varg's feet began to move before he willed them. He roared like thunder. Alastor turned to block again. Varg barreled into him and knocked him to the ground. Varg brought Frost Fang down. Alastor barely rolled out of the way in time. Frost Fang left a trail of ice on the ground where it landed. Varg picked it up again and charged with blind fury.
Shara came up on Alastor's flank. He spun around and met her blow. Varg sliced through the air just above Shara's head, but Alastor ducked to avoid it. He locked his blade around Shara's and launched her forward. She fell on her back and Alastor brought his blade down on her. Milea shot another arrow. It bounded off his armor long enough for Shara to roll to freedom. The elf princess rebounded, but Varg reached Alastor first.
Varg poured his full strength into one last swing. Alastor attempted to block, but his blade blade was knocked from his grip. He barreled towards it to retrieve it only seconds before Shara met him. He blocked her swing. She attempted another hit, then another, but her efforts were futile. Alastor evaded another arrow from Milea, then ducked to avoid another swing from Frost Fang.
Milea rushed underneath the swing and brought her own blade around. She struck Alastor's pauldron, but barely put a dent in it. Alastor brought his leg around and delivered a kick to Milea's gut. She flew onto her back. Eastwold soldiers took notice and charged towards her.
Varg's head cleared in seconds as he realized the danger Milea was in. He shouted her name and rushed towards her. He cleared the foes with a single swing and pulled her to her feet. They turned to charge for Alastor again, but they were too late.
Alastor charged for Shara. She attempted to block, but was thrown off balance and fell to her back. Her blade tumbled from her grip, but before she could grab it, Alastor's blade came down upon her. Had she moved a fraction of a second slower, her heart would have been the target. Instead, Alastor's blade plunged straight into Shara's left shoulder.
Shara shrieked in pain. Alastor pulled his blade out for a second shot, but Milea's arrow slicing his cheek halted him in his tracks. Before he could respond she nocked another, this one aimed for his temple.
Varg launched himself towards Shara and scooped her into his arms. He sprinted out of the immediate area, towards the edge of the battlefield, and out of the fray. In spite of her protests, Varg didn't stop until he was well past the archway and in the protective covering of the crystal-covered trees.
Milea caught up to Varg just as he stopped to rest Shara against a tree. He held pressure on her shoulder to help slow the bleeding, but Shara's skin still waned and her body trembled from blood loss.
“Stop...” she said, “let me...get back out there...I have to defeat him...humans...they...”
“That's enough,” Milea barked. “You might not value our lives, but we value yours. Now let me check your wound so I can heal it.”
Milea began to unlatch Shara's armor, but the latter tried to move away.
“No,” she uttered, “I mustn't...be seen...by a man-”
Shara winced from the pain, and Milea said, “Now isn't the time for modesty, I need to heal your wound before you bleed to death.”
“It's all right, Shara,” Varg said. He then turned around to face away from her and give her privacy.
“Thank you,” he heard her mutter.
Varg then heard the unmistakeable sound of Milea's healing spell and figured all he could do was wait.
Moments passed, then Shara said, “You both saved me...I'll never forget it.”
“It was nothing,” Milea said. “Besides, you can't fight like this.”
“I have to return to the battle once you're done,” Shara said. “I can't abandon my men.”
“They'll understand,” Varg said, “and besides, I don't think there will be a battle to return to.”
“What do you mean?” Shara asked.
“I mean don't you hear that?”
They paused, then Shara said, “Hear what?”
“Exactly. The battle is dying down.”
Just then, they heard feet trampling through the forest and Varg went to the edge of the clearing to see what was going on. With his sharp eyes, he could see a faint flash of pale green and silver rushing through the trees far ahead, on the trail as it looked like.
“The elves are retreating,” Varg said.
“What? No!” Shara cried. “We cannot let the Crystal Wood fall! We must go back out there.”
“Shara, you going out there to die won't save the Crystal Wood. In fact, the city will be lost if you don't return to defend it,” Milea said.
Shara wanted to argue, but she finally conceded. “All right, let's go.”
“Good, just remember, we may have lost this battle, but we still have the city. As long as we hold our ground there, we still have hope,” Milea said.
Suddenly, Varg perked up and listened more intently to the sounds
of the forest.
Milea noticed and asked, “Varg, what is it?”
“Milea,” he whispered urgently, “the enemy is pouring into the forest. We need to move before they catch us.”
“But Shara isn't done healing,” Milea protested.
“I'll be fine,” Shara said. “Let's move.” She tried to get up, but Milea stopped her when she winced.
“Don't be a fool,” Milea said. Then she turned to Varg. “Just keep watch and warn us if you hear them moving to our location.”
“All right, but I hope you know what you're doing,” Varg said.
As Milea continued her healing magic on Shara, Varg watched for anyone coming their way. The spell seemed to be working, for soon Shara could move without wincing. When Milea was done, she helped her stand and allowed her to put her armor back on.
Shara stumbled, so Milea set her down again and said, “You need to rest a bit before we move.”
Shara conceded, and said, “Thank you, I don't know what we would have done if you two hadn't been there. It's bad enough that our forces retreated, but without your help, it would have been a slaughter.”
“We did our best, Milea assured, “but we still need to drive Alastor and the Shadow Hand out of the forest.”
Just then, Varg's ears perked at the sound of rushing foot steps. His eyes darted back to Milea and Shara and he said, “We need to leave, now.”
“What? Do you hear something?” Milea asked.
“I said now,” Varg urged.
Before either Milea or Shara could react, however, over a dozen Eastwold soldiers poured into the clearing and surrounded them. Shara stood up and nearly fell over, but Milea helped her stand. The princess tried to grab her sword, but Milea wouldn't let her. Varg rushed to their side to protect them as the soldiers closed in on them.
After the soldiers ensured that neither of them could escape, they stood their ground with their weapons drawn. One of the soldiers, presumably a captain due to the fact that he wore more armor and had a cape on his shoulders, walked towards the three of them. “By order of Lord Alastor Rainald, surrender at once.”
CHAPTER 22
With the thrill of the battle subsiding and his lust quenched for the time being, Alastor scanned what remained of the battlefield and smiled. The ground was littered with the bodies of countless soldiers, man and elf alike, and the surviving soldiers ran off into the forest to find any stray elves that had not yet made it back to the city.
“You certainly do have an unsettling love for war.”
Alastor didn't have to turn around to know who the voice belonged to. His smile faded as he said, “What do you want, Jin?”
“Now I am offended,” Jin said, and his playful tone only annoyed Alastor more. “Here I am, helping you complete the conquest of a lifetime, and you snap at me so...rudely.”
Alastor turned around and faced Jin, who still wore his robe that was so white and pristine that Alastor wondered how it had ever seen a battle, and said, “I'm not here to be polite and I certainly couldn't care less if I offend you.”
Jin stuck his nose in the air and huffed. “Well if you must know, I was going to tell you what I learned during my observation of the battlefield.”
“And?” Alastor asked.
“Well for one thing, the elves retreated not long after their beloved general was wounded,” Jin said. “Well done, by the way.”
Alastor didn't allow Jin's flattery to get to him. “Go on.”
“Well it's obvious, isn't it?” Jin said. “She's the pillar that keeps them standing. If you kill her, their army will crumble.”
“Could the elves truly be that weak that the loss of one soldier would make them lose all hope?” Alastor wondered.
“Regardless, they will still be unorganized without their general,” Jin said. “If we can enter their city, we can get inside and use the key.”
Alastor eyed the dagger that once hung on his belt, but now rested on Jin's. He only kept it before because the half-elf had been so fond of it and he presumed that it had some sort of value, but he never imagined that something so ordinary could ever be the key to an entire kingdom.
Alastor soon found himself wondering just what that old dagger could possibly lead to and why Jin wanted it in the first place. If he was so adamant about bringing about this 'Dawn' of his, then whatever he was after in there must be something of tremendous power. Could he really trust Jin to obtain such power, then simply allow Alastor to live once he had what he wanted? He had already begun to question Jin's motives. What was the Dawn, and what exactly did it mean for those who didn't follow him blindly?
“Something on your mind, Alastor?” Jin asked.
Alastor must have been staring, so he quickly corrected himself and replied, “I was just thinking that I do hope you intend to keep your promise and allow me to expand my rule to the Crystal Wood once this whole ordeal is finished.”
Jin gave him a wry, unsettling smile and said, “Of course. Once I have what I want, you can have the Crystal Wood all to yourself.”
Alastor wasn't sure what the intent behind that smile was, but he ignored it for the time being and said, “Good, then I presume we will be moving out soon?”
“I would advise waiting until morning to allow our side to recover for a bit. We must tend to the wounded,” Jing said.
“Wouldn't that give the elves time to recover as well?” Alastor asked.
“One mustn't take unnecessary risks in a war,” Jin said. “I would have thought you of all people would understand that.”
Alastor scowled, but said nothing.
“Worry not. You will have your bloodshed and your siege,” Jin said. “Now then, I have more pressing patters to attend to at the moment. If you will excuse me.”
Jin took his leave and headed back towards the gathering Shadow Hand members. He knew as well as any warrior when he gut was telling him something, and he would stake his life on the fact that Jin had no intention to hold up his end of their bargain.
Zita watched from afar as Lord Jin walked away from Alastor as if they were old friends. She saw the way Alastor eyed that dagger, and she knew fully well that he coveted what Jin sought after for so long. She knew now that if the Shadow Hand had any hope to survive, then she was going to have to expose Alastor for what he was.
She made up her mind; that night, she would obtain the proof she needed to get rid of Alastor, once and for all.
Varg, Milea, and Shara stood in shock at what they were witnessing. The commander then repeated, “Surrender at once.”
Varg responded by doing the exact opposite; he held Frost Fang in a defensive stance. He then heard Milea's blade escape its sheath behind him.
“Last chance,” the captain said, “lower your weapons or face execution by our hands.”
“We will never surrender,” Milea said.
The captain inhaled sharply and scowled. “Very well then. Men, kill them!”
Varg braced himself to fight off multiple enemies at once, a feat he wasn't sure he could accomplish at the moment, but the fight never began. Instead, each and every soldier relaxed their demeanor and rested the tips of their blades on the ground on their sides.
The captain darted his eyes around the clearing. “What are you doing? I said kill them.”
One soldier finally drew his sword and stepped forward. The captain smiled with triumph until the same soldier lifted the hilt of his sword and smashed it into the captain's face. Another soldier then rushed towards the stumbling captain and sliced a dagger across his throat.
The captain gripped his throat to control the bleeding, but it was all in vain. He fell to the ground as his blood stained the ground around him.
Varg stared at the soldier, who stepped forward and said, “Lower your weapon, Varg.”
Varg froze, for he knew that voice anywhere. “...Conley?”
The soldier sheathed his sword and removed his helmet. Conley stood there in full Eastwold armor and he said, “I mu
st be a pretty good actor; you're the only one who recognized my voice. Even Oliva and Tain didn't recognize it at first.”
Varg's eyes fell on the second soldier who killed the captain. “Then...that's...?”
The second soldier removed his helmet and revealed himself to be none other than Tain, the water elf. With that, every single soldier removed their helmets. Oliva stood between Catrina and one of Conley's soldiers, and the rest of the soldiers were men Varg recognized from Conley's forces.
“I don't believe it,” Milea said, her face lighting up, “you're all alive!”
“You know these people?” Shara asked.
“They're our friends we told you about,” Milea explained.
Varg kept his attention on Conley and the others. “What's going on? How did you-”
Conley raised a hand to interrupt. “Never mind that. We need to get to the elf queen and warn her about Alastor's plans.”
“What are they saying?” Shara asked.
Milea then repeated everything that Conley had said.
“I can take them to her,” Shara said, now managing to stand on her own.
“Be careful, Shara, you're still...” Milea stopped when she noticed something amiss. She then turned to Conley and said in their language, “...wait a minute, where's Erril?”
Just as Milea finished asking, the girl herself darted out from behind a tree and stepped up to Milea.
“Here,” Erril said.
“Erril was too small to fit into Eastwold armor,” Conley explained, “so she stayed hidden while we moved with the army and waited for when she was needed.”
Milea blinked. “I never realized just how stealthy you were, Erril.”
“Being a thief requires going unnoticed, so I've had plenty of practice,” Erril said proudly.
“I'm just glad you're all safe,” Milea said.
“Likewise,” Catrina said. “We were worried sick that something happened to you two.”
Varg replaced Frost Fang on his back and said, “At any rate, we need to get moving before the real soldiers find us.” He turned back to Shara and, in full Elvish, said, “Can you walk now?”
The Crystal Wood (Half-Breed Book 2) Page 24
