An Angel is Crying

[Rok the Blade]

Closed.

Note: Bunnying of both parties has been approved.


*}_Prologue_{*


Innocence... The one thing that protects a mind from the evils of corruption. It is a person's single defense against the reality of mankind. A force strong enough to cure the wickedness of a thief, show a murderer his wrongful deeds, or maybe even make an evil Lord realize his sins. More reviving than religion, more motivating than any speech. It is what drives a mother to take up sword and shield, and protect a son from a horde of goblins.

The holders of this Divine Power are the very ones we cherish and spend our lives protecting: Children. - Rokusho Wulfenbraz

Commonly referred to as a Forested Haven, Concordia has been a place of peace for years. Peace so profound, even the Corone Civil War hadn't yet reached its borders. At least not that Rok has seen over the past few days, though. Stories of banditry and murder are scarce, maybe once in a while in the famous town of Underwood. Justice is upheld without a doubt, and it served as a great resting-place. Especially for weary adventurers such as Rokusho.

Beautiful in the mornings, Rok had woken up at the crack of dawn to witness the glorious sunrise. Though the sunlight is filtered through the canopies of the tall oak trees that filled the forest, what light that did creep in walked on the ground and made it all the more wonderful. It was as if the angels themselves danced, celebrating the beauty.

The knight had nothing to do in the day but walk through the forest and eye all the things that went on within. Animals pranced across mossy rocks, drank from the clear streams. The birds sang, epitomizing the peace. A whole day spent strolling across fallen leaves. The sunsets were something to talk about as well; the fleeing sun created an orange glow that cascaded throughout the forest. Sadly, though, with the rise of the moon came the need to return home.

But, that wasn't all that came with the darkness.

[Rok the Blade]

The knight kept his gaze locked on the full moon, or whatever parts he could see through the leaves and branches of the tree, as he practically skipped down a dirt path that led north. The moon hovered in the night sky, casting its silvery glow across Althanas. The stars twinkled, the angels above waving at those who took the time to watch. It was surely mesmerizing.

He took a deep breath of the cool and crisp air of the night and looked down to the path ahead, a peaceful smile on his face. He saw a light, a dot of yellow in the far distance. It was a light belonging to the small, unnamed village he had strolled through as the sun was setting a couple hours back. It was about a quarter of the way between him and the town of Underwood he had been staying at recently. He was glad he could pass through once again, for it was a very calm place. Children roamed about, laughing and playing, it was the one thing that caught his attention. Back in the city of Radasanth he barely saw any kids playing outside on the streets.

The village was completely sovereign, uninfluenced by things surrounding it, such as the Civil War. This was different, he noticed, from that of Underwood. That town had practically become a rebellion headquarters, basically, with thought that the government wouldn't dare attack a Coronian town with full force, let alone burn it to the ground to find the rebels. If it weren't for the fact that this unknown village didn't have an Inn, Rok would have preferred to stay there.

After he realized he had been deep in thought while he was walking, he noticed he was looking at the moon again. How beautiful it was that night, words couldn't explain. He took another deep breath, it was a pleasure to have the serene air fill his lungs, and it was refreshing. But the inhalation forced him to cough. Did he just breathe in... Smoke? He hacked and spat on the ground, looking forward again with eyes widened. He was able to see most of the village this time, but it had been engulfed in flames. He was still far, and saw figures running frantically within. He could already hear horrified screams, and saw villagers running in all directions away from the village, mostly adults... Where were the children?

He began to jog towards the village, but soon began to sprint - he ran as fast as he could while wearing his armor. "Curses! Why did I bring this stuff along?" he thought to himself, regarding his equipment. A village woman was running frantically towards him on the same path, her arms flailing wildly in the air. She was looking back at the flaming village, and practically ran into the knight when she turned around. He held her by the shoulders firmly, forcing her to look at him. She was a beautiful girl, young, with long brunette locks that were wildly strewn about her head and face. Tears were streaming over her cheeks.

"What has happened!?" Rok shouted, he realized that the girl was obviously traumatized, but her eyes widened when she saw him, recognizing him from before.

"S-s-soldiers!! They're searching for -" She started to hyperventilate and sob. Despite Rokusho's realization that she was emotionally hurt, he shook her wildly anyway, he needed to know what was going on. Eventually she calmed down for a moment, "They - they're searching for the rebels!" she finished, shaking from Rok's grasp. He nodded and pointed in the opposite direction she was headed.

"Head towards Underwood! Try to gather as much of the other villagers as possible and head there, tell the authorities!" Rokusho responded. She nodded, calmed a little at the sight of the knight, she turned to run but stopped.

"The children! We had them boarded up in the schoolhouse for safety, but they began to attack us! We had no choice but to run! But one stayed." She quickly finished then broke into a frantic sprint, yelling towards another group of fleeing villagers. Rok turned his attention on the path ahead, towards the village. The thought of soldiers attacking a schoolhouse sickened him... He began to run again towards the village.

But who was the one who stayed behind?

[Iriah Caitrak]

It was madness.

Heat beat against her from all sides as a thousand flames burning a hundred homes danced against the blackened sky and threatened to burn her skin. Frantic thoughts spun around in her mind as quickly as the fleet feet of the fleeing beat against the ground. It was a drum with no rhythm that pounded in her ears. Only one word could form itself in her mind, one, cowards. She hated thinking it, she hated using it and she hated the fact that it was true. They all left to save themselves but no one else. Yet she could not blame them, surely they would only get in the way and surely they would only die as a result. Better they run to live another day then fight to die. She would have told them to leave herself, but not without the children. Such foolishness. The haven they had once used to hide and protect them was soon going to turn into their tomb if she couldn’t do something quickly.

Ira Shinkara, foreigner to this land and now sole protector to a people she had no ties with ran amidst a scene of chaos. She ran towards one of the few buildings in this small village not yet burning to the ground. Within it more than a dozen children huddled together, scared crying and holding one another for support. All around her was an army of men meant to protect the weak ravaging the homes of those who relied upon them. Their goal was unknown to her but mattered little. What was important were their actions and just what they planned on doing next.

“Burn every building to the ground!” It was a call from nowhere and everywhere carried on the wind and over the sounds of crackling wood and distant screaming. “Flush the rebels from their hiding places!” The tone of the voice indicated authority and every soldier in range hollered back as if rejoicing in their newfound job to destroy this once tranquil place.

And how tranquil it had been, how different in had been. Clenching her fists in anger, Ira finally made it to the schoolhouse. Flames from the other buildings were licking the wooden sides, threatening to catch at any minute. She moved into the shadows of the buildings around her, trying her best to avoid detection. The longer they ignored the building and her the better. Her silver and ever swirling eyes couldn’t help but look from the leaping flames to the dead eyes of a woman that she had not too long ago been talking to. Her body strewn on the ground in the haphazard way that only the dead took on, her face turned to the side and her eyes unseeing staring straight at her. The reflected the flames, but nothing else. No life or recognition shone within them. Ira had been around death too much in her life for it to jar her now. The woman was in a better place but she still felt sadness at a life cut short.

Concordia still amazed her. She had been walking through the low hanging branches and deep dark crevices for some time now but no matter how long it was; it still took her breath away. So different was it from the desert she grew up in. It seemed much more alive whereas the desert was such solitude. Villages in Concordia were few and far between, but they always seemed welcoming to strangers, including this one. It was a name she didn’t quite get and so small she might have walked passed it.

The forest was cut away a large distance from the village to allow for crops to grow and the houses rose from the ground like large brown rocks, each of simple design with probably no more than three or four rooms. Her eyes scanned it, taking in and observing all she could in a single glance. It was a bi-product of the training she had done with Malagen. She noted the paths to and from the villages, the houses and their placement, she calculated the distance from the first house to the tree line and she made a mental note of the lack of defences. Sometimes the things ingrained in one’s brain were hard to turn off, especially to someone who just learned them. Here of all places she knew she wouldn’t need them.

“Wow look at her hair!”

The whispered words brought her out of her musings. Looking to her left and down Ira noticed a group of children stopped in the field beside the path she was on. All their eyes were trained on her as she continued to walk, their little feet scurrying to keep up.

“It looks like a flower!” One of the little girls said and none too quietly.

“Shh! She’ll hear us.” A boy with dark brown locks covering his head glared at her.

“Her skin is so dark, did she roll around in the mud?”

“Why do her eyes look like that?”

“Do you think she’s a wizard? I hear wizards can change their appearances to look like whatever they want.”

“She’s not a wizard, she doesn’t carry a staff!”

Ira couldn’t help but smile at all the things they were saying. She didn’t find them offensive, they were after all just children and living in such a remote place she doubted they’d ever seen someone from Radasanth let alone someone from Fallien. Stopping, Ira turned to the group of children and was just about to say something to them when a beautiful young woman who clearly was the mother of at least one of them appeared behind the group.

“I apologize for that, they’re not used to strangers in our town.”

“It’s no problem.” Ira said to her, smiling. She rather liked their curiosity.

“That’s quite some accent you have there, you must have travelled for some distance.”

The Calerian nodded her head as the woman smiled at her and the children all gathered around close asking for stories of her travels and the far away places she’d seen.

That face didn’t smile at her any more. It lay lifeless in the dirt and the children no longer wanted her stories but her protection.

“You there!”

Spotted

Her heart jumped around in her chest, fluttering like a caged bird. She stepped forward into the light of the flames and looked calmly upon the soldier. She could not properly see his face or any distinct features about him. He looked uniform, like one of many. His armour mostly leather with dented yet still shining steel protecting his shins and forearms. His tunic looked black but may be another colour in the light of the sun. In his hand he carried a steel sword, the sheath of which lay at his hip and in his right boot she also noted a dagger sheathed along the outside.

“Step away from the building!” His voice left no room to quarrel.

“No.” But she did anyway.

[Rok the Blade]

Minutes had passed before the knight reached the village, he cursed at himself for taking so long. Who knows how many lives could have just been lost to the fire?

The flames welcomed him to the lair of Death that was a peaceful village only hours ago. He was forced to cover his face with his arm as he passed a house, wrapped in a blanket of fire. He heard nothing but the crackling of the flames, devouring anything they could. Houses, trees, even some villagers had succumbed. As soon as he rounded the house he stopped, eyes wide. He was gazing at the main path through the village, from one side to the other. The very path he had taken himself earlier that day. Memories washed through his mind, almost reliving the moment:


"Good day to you, Knight!" Came a voice from the side, Rok looked over to see a young woman inside her house, with the door open. She had a broom in her hand and had paused to greet him. He returned the greeting with a warm smile. How tranquil it was there, so much so that the people felt like they didn't even need to have their doors shut...

His daydream was interrupted when he heard a snapping sound, he realized he was looking into the same house he was daydreaming about. The inside was engulfed in fire, the young woman nowhere in sight... Hopefully she had escaped. He grunted as he leaped to the side, the wooden door almost bashing his head in. "If you want to dawdle, at least wait 'till you're dead!" he silently scolded himself.

He turned his attention forward again, his senses back on alert. The street ahead was now filled with dead villagers, fleeing villagers, and soldiers killing villagers. Wait... Soldiers killing villagers? If this were some sort of book or story, the knight assumed he would have broken down into tears at that moment. But that wasn't the case...

This was real.

Rokusho's hands reached back and clenched the handle of Redeemer; he pulled it out of its sheath and swung it to his front in a wide arc. He looked at the blade, concentrated on the blade, became the blade. A moment later the very metal itself was surging with bluish-purple electricity. The he looked ahead at the schoolhouse.

He was not but twenty yards from the house, and a single woman stood in front of the it, facing in Rok's direction, slowly and cautiously increasing distance from it while a soldier stood in front of her, his back turned to the knight. He looked like every other man running about, fitted with light armor and an intent to kill. He had his blade out; perhaps he was going to attack the woman? Without waiting Rok started off into a dash, his sword held low with both hands, the tip of the blade almost skimming the dirt ground. He leaped over a short pile of flaming debris with his greatsword held high, he thrust it into the ground just beside the soldier and let go with both hands, leaving the sword upside down in the dirt, looking like a totem pole to worship some god of lightning.

The sound of the impact made the man flail around, only to be met by a punch in the jaw, followed by an uppercut to the gut and an armored knee to the forehead. The lightly armored knight fell instantly, leaving Rok and the woman to stand facing each other.

[Iriah Caitrak]

Indignation spread across his face as if he couldn’t believe the simple word had slipped passed her lips. But it had and the thought that it might not have been such a good idea flitted through the Calerian’s mind seconds too late to make any kind of difference.

“I said, step aside, woman!” It sickened her the way he snarled the word, as if by sheer definition of her sex she was nothing to him. She was something that should be commanded to do as he said. If only he had been born in Fallien, where women were leaders and chose the way for men such as him. If only he knew true respect towards the opposite sex. But that was neither here or there and had nothing to do with the situation.

“And I said, no.”

She tried her best not to look menacing. She tried her best to appear as just another woman wanting to defend her home but it wasn’t working. The warrior within her was on guard and even though no armour or weapons adorned her, it was in the way she stood and conducted herself. Her feet were apart, most of her weight was shifted to the left leg and her arms though hanging limply at her sides were ever on guard. The hands now balled into tights fists and digging hard fingernails into her palms wished to feel the familiar weight of her half swallows. But she resisted the urge to call them. Instincts said she would have to, for he was not going to back down by simple words, yet the Calerian knew she would wait until the last possible moment. Fighting was an option she did not want to explore. As skilled as she was, there were many of them and only one of her and no way she could last for very long.

Her eyes caught the sudden way his fingers flexed around the hilt of his sword. The grip was too tight. The shining steel, reflecting flame and death raised its point from the ground and angled directly towards her. Still she didn’t move and no worry crossed her face.

“What do you hide within that building, wench?”

She hated that word. Malagen had once used it on her and though she still did not comprehend its full meaning, Ira could nonetheless gauge how derogatory and demeaning it was.

“I hide nothing. Instead I protect the children of this village and lay within.” There was no point in lying to him. Perhaps with the truth he would see reason and not burn the building to the ground like so many others.

“Lies! I bet you’re hiding the rebels in there.” A sick smirk spread across his face as he took a step towards her but never made it any farther. Not by her intervention.

From nowhere a sword impaled itself within the hard soil near to the soldier’s feet. In surprise he spun around only to be on the receiving end of an armoured fist sailing directly into his face. The action was quickly followed through with a punch to the stomach and a knee to the head once more. The soldier fell to the ground, leaving Ira alone to stare across a flaming battlefield at a man dressed in armour looking straight back at her. Too bad she’d never been read stories at night about knights in shining armour coming to the rescue of a fair and helpless maiden. Then again, she might have thrown up if she had.

----------------------

They had to be here! Their intelligence couldn’t be wrong!

Captain Emeril snarled his frustration into the smoke filled air. The tension in his body that had no way to escape was a growing fireball waiting to be unleashed at any given moment. So far three quarters of the town had been thoroughly searched and there yet remained any trace of the rebels that should have been here, that were here. He knew it, deep down in his bones he knew they were here and he wasn’t going to give up until every house was a pile of burnt and charred wood and every rebel found therein was dead or dying under his own blade.

Those rebel scum were going to pay for what they were trying to do to Corone, and for taking the life of his youngest son. They were going to pay. If it was the last thing he ever did in this life than so be it.

“Captain!”

Emeril turned to a group of three soldiers approaching him. This entire platoon, every soldier in it had been hand picked by him for this mission and not a single one had let him down. They all had exceptional skills and almost all had lost something due to the war the rebels had started.

“What is it, Feron?”

Feron stood in the middle, though most of his features were hidden in the darkness and by the uniform he wore, Emeril could still barely make out the fresh scar on the side of his jaw. It would make a fine story to tell his children one day.

“We’ve searched the last of the buildings lying on the outskirts of town and have found nothing.”

Still nothing, “Burn them to the ground. Leave nothing for them to come back to. Take what animals you can and slaughter the rest, burn the crops as well.”

“Yes, sir!”

The three men left and Captain Emeril turned back towards the town. Flames licked towards the heavens, silent witness to the events this night. The East section of the town was the last place not yet searched and not yet burning. The rebels had to be there unless they already escaped. But Emeril could not allow such a thought to echo in his mind. He would return with good news for the General when this day was done.

-----------------------------

She didn’t say anything to him. It wasn’t that she didn’t feel grateful for having a companion to fight through this hopeless battle, but because the word ‘thanks’ just sounded too dead on her lips right now. Besides, she could have taken care of that guard just as easily if not more so than he had.

“I hope you know what you’ve getting yourself into, siahd. Her voice was heavy with implications of the mess he’d just involved himself in.

[Rok the Blade]

The knight's attention hadn't been focused so much on the woman that now stood before him, obviously strong-minded and capable of taking care of herself, it wasn't her he was worried about. But more so the reason why this was happening. What could the people of this village have done to bring that upon themselves? The 'rebels' had been mentioned more than once, one time by the fleeing woman he had met only minutes ago, and now again he heard the soldier he had just pummeled speak of them. Who were these rebels? Was there a war going on in Corone? He had no idea; he had only recently come to this region but a few weeks ago, and only for the sake of travel.

He looked down at the beaten soldier; he was doubled over, clutching his face. His eyes were frantically wide and staring up at Rok's face. The knight didn't know how to respond, so he simply smiled. He chuckled a little inside at the fact that the dancing shadows as a result of the flames, performing a mad waltz with his broad features, made him look demonic. Even though he was indeed just the opposite.

It was at the moment when he looked back up when he heard the woman speak; she had quite the accent. Her skin was also dark; maybe she wasn't native to this region. Nonetheless, she was here, and looked to have no intention of running away. He didn't respond to her remark, maybe he didn't know what he was getting himself into. From the looks of it this was more than just a simple bandit raid but something much bigger. He didn't even flinch at the word siahd, he didn't know if it was insult or what. His blue eyes, which seemed to shine even brighter with the flare of flames raging all around them, darted to the steel sword that lay at the fallen soldier's side. He had passed out, or maybe just clenching his eyes shut to compensate for the pain. He had gotten some good hits in there.

"Use that." He said, motioning for the sword. When all of a sudden he heard a roar from behind him and instinct forced him to move. Without time to look back, Rokusho leaped forward, over the fallen soldier, and dove into a roll. His armor moved with him, but threatened to hinder his roll. He was successful, and he ended up on his feet, almost side by side with the woman he met moments before. He heard a clang of metal on metal, spinning around to witness that a broadsword had struck the blade of Redeemer, near the wrist guard. Rokusho silently thanked the assailant for roaring, or he would be in need of a new hip.

The action, apparently, wasn't about to slow down.

[Iriah Caitrak]

“Rebel scum.”

The words jarred her. She was not a rebel and she had nothing to do with what was going on. The man beside her, well, she couldn’t really speak for him and for all she knew he could be a rebel. But she had nothing to do with this and she didn’t really want anything to do with it! Ira only stayed behind to make sure the children were survived and no more innocent blood was spilled upon the ground.

“I am not a rebel.” She tried her best not to growl the words at him, but was a little unsuccessful.

The accent the words were spoken under more so than the words themselves were what probably made the soldier pause and give her a thorough look over from her head to toes. It was all she could not to cringe to disgust though as his eyes roamed over her, making her feel like he was stripping off every bit of clothing she wore in the process. She wished that Malagen were here solely so she could watch him beat the crap out of the man for looking at her like that. And he probably would too, knowing her barbarian.

By now two nearby soldiers had noticed the situation and hurried over to his side. Their swords were at the ready, gripped in fingers that held them too tightly and palms that sweated just a little too much. They hid their inexperience behind a uniform and glaring, cold faces, but she could see it in their eyes. Training they may have in abundance, but training could only take you so far. There came a point when training had to end and real life experience needed to take place, where one starred death in the face and even at times became death. Ira herself still had a problem with the latter, she had only killed once in battle and the memory haunted her to this day. But seeing what these men had done today and knowing it might come down to her or them, she could possibly live with the guilt to rid the world of their kind.

“You are not from these lands.” Way to state the obvious, “if you indeed have nothing to do with the rebels then you should step aside!”

She felt like screaming at their stupidity! None of them were going to believe her no matter what she said to them, foreign or native. It didn’t matter.

“I can’t do that! There are children in this building and I will not stand by and watch you slaughter them.”

“Liar!” Here we go again. Anyone else feeling a little repitition? “No more games, woman, step aside or be forced aside.”

Why couldn’t he just listen to reason? There were no rebels in this village and there definitely weren’t any rebels in this building. Instead there were children, scared children who were probably huddled together crying and wondering if they were ever going to see their families again.

He took a single step towards her and Ira knew there was no more time for talk. She was going to have to let her weapons speak for her. Her legs tensed and she sprang forward. There were only several feet between her and the soldiers and she knew she could cover it in a few seconds. In her once empty hands a pair of Half Swallows appeared, their perfect blades catching the light of the flames. She watched the eyes of the soldiers as they widened for that brief instant when she took off towards them. And as she approached, she calculated their stances and knew exactly how they would defend themselves.

The middle soldier immediately attacked her. He couldn’t put much strength behind it though and only managed to move his blade in a horizontal slash towards where he thought her stomach was going to be. She knocked his blade away from underneath, throwing his stomach open. Lowering her stance, the Calerian shoved her shoulder directly into his gut, the impact of her blow lessened slightly by the leather armour he wore. Still, he felt it and she felt the rush of air on her back as the wind was knocked from him. But she didn’t stop there; she let her running momentum keep her going. It forced the soldier to double over and lean most if not all of his weight onto her back. Dropping one of her half swallows, Ira grabbed the belt of his pants and then used her physical strength as well as the position to heft him off the ground and throw him over her back.

He landed with an audible thud on the hard dirt packed ground, creating a small cloud of dust.

Malagen’s training really did pay off.

Spinning on her heel, the Calerian turned to face the two remaining soldiers. In the light cast from the flames, her eyes caught the glimmer of steel. Instinct took over and she managed to raise her remaining Half Swallow just in time to block the oncoming attack. Forming her other Half Swallow, she slashed towards his stomach, but the man simply jumped back and away from the attack.

[Rok the Blade]

Rok's eyes widened and his body tensed, ready to have the soldier press the attack. But to his surprise, he was standing in the same spot, in a weird battle-ready stance. He eyed the lightning-powered Redeemer, still buried headfirst into the dirt. He doubted he could reach forward and rip it out without alerting the guard, thus provoking him. So the knight simply stood at the woman's side, almost as if he knew her.

Then, while the broadsword wielding soldier and the tanned woman beside him exchanged a couple words, two more men came with their swords at the ready. Obviously they didn't have the courage to advance. He chuckled, who would? He was a robust man with charming looks, beautiful hair and was wearing shiny plate mail! The visage itself must have made them reluctant. One of the men saw a fallen comrade sprawled on the ground, letting out a low growl from his throat.

Rokusho smiled to himself, realizing the truth about these men. For he knew that any experienced soldier would have seen a hundred fallen friends, comrades in battle, and he knew that after time the emotion that came from seeing such a scene would have fled. That reaction itself gave away the fact that he was young and weak. Well-trained, perhaps, but weak nonetheless. This trio was nothing more than a group of expendable sword arms. They were almost as innocent as the children held captive by the flames in the schoolhouse, truth be told.

The knight's mind wandered while the woman babbled with the trio, trying to explain herself. He, on the other hand, wasn't worried at all about what they thought, what they believed or even what they were about to do. He was only worried about the flaming schoolhouse behind them, for every minute they sat there chatting the flames closed in. But right now he couldn't make a run for it without being chased down. But then things heated up again.

The lady beside him tackled the middleman, a strong one at that, and then she quickly engaged the other two with a pair of weapons that he didn't see appear in her hands... Weird. He let out a little smile, disregarding that fact, and looked at his sword. It was his time to move, too.

Rokusho dashed forward, eyes locked on the hilt of Redeemer. He clutched the handle with both hands and heaved. With a titanic effort and a groan from his leg muscles, the knight managed to pry his sword free from the earth's clutches. Immediately then, he spun around and ran like a madman to the school, he was holding Redeemer up with one hand resting it on his shoulder. The House was only a couple steps behind the crew.

He heard someone shout 'Hey!' from behind him, probably one of the two teaming up against the woman. He assumed that he had been spotted, unsurprisingly so. Rokusho sprinted up the short flight of stairs, dodging a falling piece of flaming timber - one of the supports that were on either side of the door - in the process. The door was slammed shut, and without time to try the handle, Rokusho brought his free hand up to grab Redeemer's hilt, then hefted it off his shoulder, using that momentum to slam it's broad side into the door, which collapsed inward instantly - right off it's hinges.

[Iriah Caitrak]

Letho, what has happened to Corone?

Ira deftly ducked under a wide arch meant to cleave her head from her shoulders. She could feel the air shift above her head and ruffle her short purple hair. The fire all around her was intensifying and as the loud cracking sound of breaking wood echoed into the darkened night she couldn’t help but steal a glance towards the schoolhouse. Half of the building was now beginning to burn and a piece of the doorframe had broken off, blocking the door. But the man who’d appeared from nowhere to help her was even now smashing through it.

Lashing out with her left leg, Ira knocked the soldier off his feet. His body hit the ground with an audible thud and grunt that escaped his gritted teeth. Using the flat side of her blade, she Calerian hit him along the side of his head, right in the temple. He was unconscious before he even knew what had happened to him. Turning back towards the building, she noticed the third of the soldiers steadily approaching the siahd.

“Katsam!”

The Half Swallow Uriahd slipped from Ira’s right hand and in it’s place she quickly formed a four-inch throwing dagger. Unlike the other weapons she had already called forth, the dagger’s entire body glowed with a light, luminescent blue. Taking a deep breath and hoping her aim didn’t let her down, Ira pulled back her right arm and then sent the dagger sailing through the air.

Her aim was true.

The dagger went straight through the back of the Corone soldier and then out the otherwise of his chest, leaving not a single scratch on him. It’s travelled continued until it embedded itself into the wood on the burning schoolhouse, then vanished two seconds later. The soldier immediately dropped face first into the ground. By almost all appearances he seemed dead, except for the fact that his heart still beat in his chest, though very slowly and his back did rise and fall with breath but only if one looked close enough. Ira did not need to see these things in order to know he was still alive. Her attack could not have killed him even if she had wanted it to. The dagger had been enchanted to attack the soul and not the body, which was why there were no marks upon him. It was just her luck that she had hit his Thread of Fate, the spiritual bond between body and soul. Hitting it with her weapon had caused his soul to be ousted from his body, only for a short amount of time though. And if he were lucky he probably wouldn’t remember the experience either.

Rushing passed his fallen body and the confused soul standing above it, Ira hurried up the steps after the stranger, who had only turned around for a fraction of a second. Long enough to notice her quickly following behind him. Inside the schoolhouse the air was hot and dry and filled with the ash of so many burning buildings. In fact, the Calerian had become covered in the black substance, which stained her skin and clothes and mingled with the now fine sheen of perspiration covering her.

The building itself was only one large room, with multiple chairs and tables set about that Ira imagined the children sat and learned at. There was also a larger table and chair at the front most likely for the teacher. Every last one of the children was huddled in a corner of the room. Dirty, soot covered and tear streaked faces looked toward Ira and the siahd beside her. Some scared, some hopefully, but every one of them was clinging to another.

They had to get these children out of here…but how?

---------------------------

“Captain Emeril!”

The Captain turned in the direction of the voice. Along one of the many paths throughout this small village, the Captain saw two of his men running towards him. He could barely tell who they were because of the black soot covering their faces.

“What is it?” He growled at them.

Frustration at having found no evidence of the rebels was beginning to show on his face.

“It appears two rebels have been cornered in the schoolhouse, sir.”

The frustration melted away as a sick and twisted grin spread itself from ear to ear. “Finally…” He breathed. He knew they were here and he knew if he pushed hard enough he’d find them. Two was better than none.

With the smile still plastered upon his features, the Captain followed his men back to the schoolhouse.

[Rok the Blade]

There was no way to describe it.

It was like a hell on Althanas. Red fire roared as it ate the schoolhouse, ripping it apart from the outside in. He even felt the fire trying to eat away at his flesh; the heat was so intense. His armor suit had literally been transformed into an oven, cooking the poor soul underneath.

The house was doing no better; Smoke had filled the large room, a byproduct of the flame's greed, and it forced him to cough and cover his mouth with one hand. He also had to squint, the light from the surrounding fire literally burning them. He saw the warrior-woman from before come beside him, immediately noticing the children huddled in the corner. It was as if the angels themselves were looking upon them, for the fire hadn't seemed to get quite near them yet. He looked across the room through squinted eyes, through the flaming desks and other school paraphernalia, searching for the best way to get to the kids.

Rokusho was sweating profusely, the coolant dripping from his face and stinging his eyes. It forced him to sheath Redeemer and wipe them, brushing his wet and grimy hair to the sides. He looked over to his unexpected companion and nodded, beginning his trek across the flame-ridden room.

Slowly but surely he trudged his way through the room as best he could, avoiding the flames. They were tearing down two sidewalls at an amazing rate, he could hear the wood cracking and screaming, fighting for its life. A small portion of the wall opposite the children had already broken off from the whole. He pushed a desk over to the side and kicked another out of his way, not taking his time to meander through the room. The thuds were barely audible amongst the other various noises - despite the falling of a couple other desks as a result. The kids’ were looking at the two adventurers wide-eyed, whether it was from fear or hope he couldn't tell. He heard a girl cry out "Save us!"

"Don't worry, I’m coming." Rok thought to himself. But about staving off the raiding soldiers, that was another challenge.

[Iriah Caitrak]

She followed after him, her feet unsure on the wooden floor of the schoolhouse. The Half Swallow gripped in her hand, fell away to the floor. The sound of it clanking against the floorboards was lost to the roar of the fire. This was not the first time she’d been in such a situation, sadly. Ira had been inside a structure once before while it burned all around her. Only it had been a ship and instead of the children waiting to be saved at the other end she’d been surrounded by zombies, with no way to escape.

The room was stifling and quickly beginning to fill with smoke. Ira was forced to cover her mouth with her shoulder wrap to help filter out the smoke, but it wasn’t really working. It stung her eyes as well, making them water and blur the images all around her. The siahd in front of her became nothing more than a mix of silver and tanned skin. Blinking away the moisture didn’t help much either as more would quickly replace it. The heat she could handle, Ira was after all from a desert region, but the smoke was really hindering her progress across the room. It even choked the air from her lungs causing her to cough and gasp for fresh air more than once. But as bad as it was for her she could only imagine how bad it was for the children.

It took them no more than a minute to push their way through the crowded room towards the children. Rushing over to the group, Ira knelt down next to them.

“Are any of you hurt?”

Scared eyes and faces looked back at her, but each one shook their head. Good. They’d be able to move faster.

“We’re going get you guys out of here.”

“Where’s my mommy? I want my mommy!” Ira couldn’t tell where the call came from and even if she had, there was nothing she could do about it. Her mother was either safely away from the village or she was dead. She could do nothing but ignore the question for now, not wanting to give the child any false hopes.

“Siahd!” Ira stood up and turned towards the stranger beside her, “We’ll have to start taking them back out the way we came.” She turned back to the children. “C’mon kids, let’s get you out of here.”

They were hesitant, but one by one they stood up. Including a small boy close to the front who reached his tiny arms up to her as if he was expecting her to do something. Ira was not particularly good with children and had very little if any interaction with them. So she didn’t really know what he wanted.

“Up, up!”

Up? Oh.

The first thought that came into her mind was to tell him to walk on his own. He was old enough and he should be brave enough to do it. But she paused as she opened her mouth to say so. It’s what Malagen would tell the child. And that thought alone changed her mind. Kneeling down, Ira allowed the little boy to wrap his arms around her neck, then she grabbed him with one hand and picked him up. He wasn’t really that heavy but he was a little hindering.

“Stay close to me!”

The fire was quickly spreading through the wooden structure, eating away at it bit by bit and making it that much more unstable. The groan and cries of the wood all around her were a testimony to that. Holding the child close to her breast, Ira began making her way back through the schoolhouse. Halfway across the room, the Calerian caught the sound of snapping and breaking wood. Looking up, she caught the sight of a support beam falling from the roof. With enough time to draw in a single breath, she turned her back on it and kneeled down, doing her best to shield the child in her arms.

Splinters rained all throughout the room as the heavy beam crashed through the floor, bringing a quarter of the ceiling down with it. The sound was deafening. Ira’s back was pummelled with shards of wood that thankfully did nothing more than bruise and create small, superficial cuts along her bare skin. Opening her eyes, she looked at the ground of children huddled in front of her, all shielding themselves. With the last of the wooden fragments falling to the floor, she loosened her hold on the little boy.

“Everyone all right?”

All she received from them were nods and a few tiny voices that did little more than squeak. Turning on her heel, Ira cursed in Fallien as she looked about the room. The floor just a few feet in front of her was collapsed, with no visible way across. They had to find another way out.

[Rok the Blade]

Rokusho baked in his iron suit while he stood behind his companion after reaching the bundle of children in the corner. His body was weary, and one could see that the knight was slouching. One of the little girls watched as the woman snatched up a boy in her arms, then looked at the knight wide-eyed and beckoned for him to hold her up the same way. Rok shook his head in return, knowing that he wasn't able to carry a little girl anywhere far, plus knowing that his armor was probably hot, looking down and even seeing the reddish glow on his chest plate. Sooner or later his clothes beneath would be set aflame... They had to get out of there!

The knight held out his hand for the girl to hold, the leather over his palm wasn't so hot, and motioned for the rest of the troupe to follow. They all turned and walked towards the exit, he could hear the wooden planks beneath his feet groaning, threatening to break. The woman he was partnered with was ahead of him, carrying the little boy while Rok held a little girl's hand, the rest of the kids behind him. They had gotten about halfway through the room after slowly edging around the fiery walls, the tongues of flame almost licking the flesh of the people trapped inside, when suddenly a wooden beam crashed in front of the boy-holding woman with a deafening crash! The leading woman knelt and turned her back in response while he himself turned his back to the crash, shutting his eyes in reflex and throwing his armored arms out wide to protect the rest of the kids.

For the most part, everyone was okay, albeit a few cuts and pricks. Rokusho's suit of armor had prevented any damage. He did feel a couple pieces of wood fly into his sweaty blonde hair and get stuck. If he lived through this, he would definitely need a shower. His blue eyes opened to see the kids shriveled with fear, "It's going to be okay!" The knight assured them.

He turned around to notice that his companion was fine, as well as the little boy. But unfortunately their only exit had just caved in, making the front half of the school inaccessible. Frantically he looked around; they had to find another way out. Another door, a hole in the wall... Nothing. He looked for the hole he had seen before, but remembered sadly that after the cave-in that hole was on the other side of the House. He closed his eyes, thinking, his free hand slowly trembling up to Redeemer's hilt. Then he opened them: This was worth a try.

He looked down and smiled at the girl, motioning for her to join her fellow classmates who were closely behind, then his other free hand went up to his greatsword's handle. Then the knight pivoted, facing a flaming wall, and ran towards it. He could physically feel the heat rising as he approached, practically walking in the fire. Though, if this were a success, they would be able to escape. He ran in between a pair of desks and roared, a feral growl that tapped into his strength's last reserves, and hefted Redeemer off of his shoulder with all of his might, slamming the sword's broad side into the wall. He put so much momentum into it that he almost fell forward and bashed his head into the wood, but rather ended up stumbling forward. His eyes were clenched tight, and he heard wood splinter and crack.

With hopes risen, he opened his eyes, but only to see that the wall still stood strong before him. "WHAT!?" he thought to himself, screaming in his mind, how strong could a schoolhouse's walls be, after all? The knight quickly regained balance and leaped backwards, having been literally in the fire. His face was brown with smoke and ashes, his eyes watering and squinting constantly. He was beginning to worry about himself more than the kids. After all, he barely had enough strength to sheath Redeemer back on his back again, let alone run up and bash the wall again. The same girl he had been holding before came up again and grasped his hand. Rok looked over at his temporary companion with a face of worry.

_______________________________________

"They're in there, I can almost smell those foolish rebels!" Captain Emeril yelled as he and a contingent of soldiers arrived at the front of the schoolhouse. He looked over to his side and pointed to a couple of his men, "You two! Go inside and take care of business!" He said, a lust for blood could be clearly seen on his face. The two he pointed at saluted and proceeded to run up the stairs and enter the house. Then all of a sudden the roof collapsed and with a boom, shut the soldiers outside, forcing the two men to raise arms and shields to protect themselves. When they lowered their protection, they looked back at Emeril.

The Captain cackled, "Serves them right! Now they'll either be crushed or be roasted alive! Anarchist scum."

"Does this mean we can leave now?" Came a weary voice from behind. Captain Emeril was reluctant to answer. He was happy that the rebels had been killed, but still sad that he couldn't plunge his sword into them himself. He slowly turned around when he heard a loud thud coming from the side of the House. He whipped around, wide-eyed, half-angry and half-relieved. He started to march around the house while waving his men to follow.

"Come on, soldiers! This isn't over yet!"

[Iriah Caitrak]

Ira watched the vain attempts by the siahd. He wasn’t strong enough to knock down an entire wall, but was she? In this form the answer was a definite no. She could slam her body against that surface over and over again until she was black and blue and broken but no good would come from it. Not unless she had a sudden longing to cause her body physical harm, which didn’t. But what if she turned into Abhrapatha?

Her stomach turned at the thought and her mind tried to reject it as well, but she forced herself to consider it. Using her fusion was quite possibly the only way they were all going to get out of here alive. Otherwise Ira could see no discernable way out. Why should she allow herself to die in such of a way because of her pride and fear? Better yet, why should the children suffer because of her stupidity?

They shouldn’t and the Calerian wouldn’t let them. She could and she would keep the corruption under her control. What happened to Malagen would never happen again. Yet even that resolution could not shake the slight tremble coursing through her muscles, making her feel as weak as a bhapudrah. Every second she stood her thinking about it was a second wasted and they didn’t have time for her to be having a palaver within her mind about the consequences of using the demon inside of her. It was either they all burn to death or she takes a chance on saving them. Personally, Ira wasn’t ready to die yet and she doubted that the children in here wanted to either, nor did they deserve such a thing.

Taking a deep breath, the Calerian set the boy on the ground and walked towards the siahd.

“You should step back.” It was for his safety as much as it was her sanity. She didn’t want to see the look on his face when it happened.

His bright blue eyes clashed with her silvery and almost cold looking gaze for but a second, then he stepped away. Closing her eyes, Ira searched for the darkness within her. It wasn’t hard to find. After all, it was a cold place within her soul that was so different from the warmth in the surroundings. It felt like nothing she could ever explain to a person, void of something innately human. The corruption was a blight on her soul and in her mind, something that always needed to be watched and controlled. Now was her time to utilize it. Ira released the cage she kept tightly locked around the demon. The moment the door was opened she felt it rush into her soul, immediately chilling her.

On the outside nothing appeared to happen at first. Then one of the Irenian crystals hanging around her neck began to glow a red colour. It was the only warning before a blindingly bright white light exploded from it and filled the entire room. It lasted only for moment, then subsided. When it did, where Ira had once been standing something else entirely was now taking her place. It was a being that looked more like a monster. Ira’s dark skin was replaced with the grey skin of a corpse. Her short hair had turned white and her eyes were now red. The shape of her body was less athletic and thinner and covering it was a long, sleeveless, dark red gown with slits up the side of each leg. Her left hand was larger than the right, but only because it looked disfigured and mutilated and on the end of each finger was a long and sharp claw.

For a second or two she just stood there, as if doing nothing. But she was. On the inside Ira was battling with the sudden onslaught of memories and knowledge that flooded into her brain. They threatened to overwhelm her as she turned from not only being Ira Shinkara but into being Abhrapatha as well. No more one than the other. The urgency of the matter forced her to go forward without properly adjusting to it though.

Opening her eyes, Abhrapatha extended her right arm and began drawing energy towards her hand. Several areas around her hand soon began to distort as the air began moving at incredibly high speeds. Smirking, the demon sent them flying towards the wall. They travelled through the air as nothing more than a blur barely caught by the normal eye. In fact, it was almost as if they travelled from her hand straight into the wall as the sound of them splintering and crashing through wood was nearly drowned out by the sounds of the fire all around her. But it wasn’t enough to bring down the wall, only dent it. Growling something far too inhuman, the demon began to channel energy into her hand once more.

The smell of ozone soon began to permeate the air around her. Sparks of blue began to emit themselves around her hand, accompanied by a sound that could only be described as a sizzle crack. With a quick movement of her fingers a stream of lightning erupted as if from nowhere and smashed into the wall. The sound of the wood snapping and succumbing to the powerful magic drowned out the noises of the fire around them. Once the stream stopped, Abhrapatha lowered her arm and surveyed the damage and the large hole with a rather pleased smirk. Then a bright light filled the room once more and when it subsided Ira was once again in her normal state. The less time she spent as that creature the better.

[Rok the Blade]

"Mother of Trisgen!" Rok exclaimed, mouth agape as he witnessed the slim, lithe woman before him morph into a horrific demon. Reflexively the knight's free hand crept up towards the hilt of Redeemer, ready to protect him and the kids if this new beast proved to be hostile. The children around him shuddered and crawled closer to the metal brute, eyes wide in fear while glued onto the demonic visage before them.

Soon enough, though, they watched as the she-devil raised a hand and obliterated part of the wall ahead of them without an effort. A wall of dust and red pinprick embers erupted from the impact along with a loud and thundering crash!, forcing the crowd to step back and look away. But quickly things settled, and when they all looked up the warrior-lady was herself again. Rokusho knew that it would take a little bit of time to trust her again... Could she really control that thing? Or was it controlling her? Now wasn't the time to find out.

Flames raged all around them, inundating the schoolroom with a bright orange-red glare that forced everyone to constantly squint. To one side: A gigantic wooden pillar lay, fallen and engulfed in blue and red fire, and on the other side: A dead-end wall half-covered in blue fire. There was no way out except for the one that the demon had just created in the knick of time. The only noises present were the loud roars of the flames easily eating through wood and the cracking and splintering sounds of the building falling apart outside in.

The floorboards beneath the troupe creaked and practically screamed in pain, Rokusho looked forward to the woman, her back turned to them, and motioned for the kids to run for the newfound exit. He opened his mouth to yell but guessed that the effort would be futile regarding the rumble of everything going on around them. "The flames are destroying the structural integrity of this house, no doubt we have only a couple moments to escape!" He thought to himself as he gestured for the students to go out before him. He would stay back with the woman and make sure everyone got out okay. Rokusho looked ahead to the hole, through the brightness of the surrounding flames, and saw nothing. The night had gotten darker, and he could see nothing beyond the light given off by the fires.

As soon as the last little child dropped down the little ledge off the side of the house, including the one that was being carried by the demon-woman, Rokusho cautiously walked toward the portal as well. He saw that there was no section of wall on the ground outside, no remnants of the wall that was blasted moments before. A powerful energy... But could the woman control something like that? Perhaps the demon was her true form and that human woman form was just a guise. He wouldn't ever find out, Rok presumed.

The knight dropped easily down the ledge, plopping as lightly as he could onto the dirt ground with a clank of his armor, and felt a rush of cool air wash over him. A cold breeze of the night, thankfully blowing their way. It felt good, but the one side of him facing the flaming house now behind them still emitted heat that licked at his back with every flicker of fire. He looked around and saw the kids huddled together, shivering with fear and all gazing out into the darkness wide-eyed. Rok's expression was one of confusion, for when he looked out beyond the firelight he saw nothing.

But then he saw them.

His eyes quickly adjusted to the new light, and he was quickly able to make out outlines of armored figures, creating a semi-circle around the group and closing them in. One of the men stepped forward, into the light. A robust man with a wicked grin on his face and a hand tightly gripped around the handle of a sheathed longsword at his side.

"Greetings, foolish rebels." Captain Emeril hissed, his voice dripped with acid.

[Iriah Caitrak]

Denying the lying
A million children crying
For lives in strife
For hope beyond the horizon

A dead world, a dark path
Not even crossroads to choose from
All the blood red darkness before me
Behold this fair creation of God!

Nightwish – Planet Hell

Finally, he had them right where he wanted them. They were cornered. With their backs pressed against a building falling apart under the assault of the fire he had his men set, there was no where else for them to go. Finally he could get the revenge he wanted, the satisfaction of knowing that he could smother the life of a few rebels in exchange for the life of his son’s. The son they had taken away from him. He knew it would never bring him back. No matter how many men died at his sword, it would never bring his son back, but that wasn’t about to stop him.

“It ends here.”

There was that familiar feel of leather beneath his fingers as he tightened his hold on his sword. It was an extension of himself, that’s what his sword was. Just another limb. He would use it to cut them down, one person at a time until no rebels remained to threaten Corone and it’s people. Normally Emeril would not kill women. It was such a distasteful thing to destroy something that could not defend itself. Something as fragile and beautiful as a female, but if she was going to align herself with the rebels then he would have no choice but to kill her. Even if her skin told the story of another land, a foreign land. She had already made her choice and would have to live—or die—with the consequences.

“Now is the time, men. Kill them.” As simple an order as that and it would end.

For seconds he stood there, his deep brown eyes staring down the distance between him and the two rebels as they looked back at him. Worry and exhaustion were etched into their faces. For seconds he stood there until he realized none of his men had moved.

“What’s wrong with all of you? I gave you an order!”

Emeril turned his head slightly to the side as he looked back on his men, all of who stood behind him with their weapons still sheathed. Had they gone mad? Disobeying the order of their Captain, what was wrong with them?

“But sir…” He recognized the voice of Feron more than he could actually recognize the man. “There are children! Clearly they were telling us the truth. They’re not rebels at all, they’re simply defending the children. We attacked this village for nothing!”

Children? He tore his eyes away from his men and back to the rebels and there he saw them. Their scared faces, wide eyed, dirty and tear streaked staring up at him as if he were some sort of a monster. But he wasn’t! He was just doing what was right, what was expected of him by his country, what was expected of a father to do to avenge his son. It had to be a lie! He couldn’t be about to do what the rebels had done to him when they took away his child. No, this wasn’t happening.

“Cowards, fools, IDIOTS! I’ll finish what you’re afraid to!”

He pulled his long sword from its sheath.

“Captain, no!”

Strong arms wrapped around him from behind, trying to pull him back. Growling, Emeril shoved his elbow into whoever had dared to touch him, feeling it sink into the soldiers side and the grip weaken. Spinning around, he kicked the soldier in the stomach, sending him crumpling to the ground.

“You would dare defy the orders of your Captain and then try to stop him as he completed something you were too cowardly to do yourself! Such treason is punishable by death, soldier.”

He didn’t say anything to him, just continued to look at up him from the ground as his hand covered the sore area where Emeril had struck him. Such a waste of a good soldier. He pulled back his to the side, and swung at the soldiers exposed neck. He would be given a quick death for his traitorous words. Instead of his blade biting into flesh and drawing blood, the sound of clashing metal rung throughout the air. His eyes shot from the exotic looking weapon to the hardened face of the women. Her eyes unlike anything he had ever seen before. They shifted like molten steel as if lit from a fire within. She said nothing to him; she just stood there starring at him.

He withdrew his weapon and struck at her again, but she dodged the attack. Again and again he tried, coming in at her head, her abdomen, even her legs and arms. All of them she dodged; evaded or simply blocked. No matter what he did she seemed able to read his next move as if it were written on paper.

[Rok the Blade]

Several of the little children screamed and cried out in fear as fighting broke out. The faces of the attacking soldiers were blank and indecisive, not knowing what to do. Rok's eyes were wide, anger, amazement, adrenaline and fear took his body over. Was this man, who by then probably knew that he was wrong about the rebels being there, truly trying to attack and fight two adventurers and a group of kids? He was glad that they weren't all mindless monsters, or else they would have probably succeeded. The knight brought his dominant hand to Redeemer's hilt and held it, testing his grip. He shook his head, his strength had been almost completely diminished. With a burning schoolhouse behind them, a burning and dying town to their right and a group of hostile soldiers in front of them, their only refuge was in the forest on the left.

"Kids, over there!" Rok whispered to the dozen kids huddled around him, pointing away from the fray. "Into the trees, hurry, c'mon - No!" He reached over and stopped one of the bigger and bolder boys from hurling a stone that he picked up into the crowd of soldiers. They were standing idle, watching in a circle as they slowly surrounded the woman and the captain fighting. The attention had been diverted from Rok and his students. He grabbed the rock and tossed it onto the hard-packed dirt ground, ushering the little ones away. They began to comply and filed away.

Rokusho wished he could keep the kids from looking at the death and destruction all around them as he saw them staring backwards at their home, burning to the ground. A peaceful, innocent village. Ruined. The weight of having to watch the children be corrupted by a simple mistake on the soldiers' part was almost heavier than that of the metal armor on his back.

"Look forward, now." He cried to them as they marched off slowly, trying to force them to look ahead into the night-darkened forest. The dark and brooding trees ahead were a passageway to safety on that night, rather than a portal into an unknown world. Rok didn't know where to take them all after this, Underwood would be his first bet, hopefully meeting with some of the children's parents there, if they followed his orders before. If not... Maybe he could find an orphanage.

Despite his attempts to keep the students from looking back, he couldn't force the whole bunch to avert their eyes. He even found himself gazing backwards, into the fight between the mysterious woman fighter and the presumed captain of the gang. He wished for her safety but could do nothing to help, he was powerless. Plus his mind was only dwelling on the kids' safety.

He wasn't planning on abandoning her completely though, he planned on waiting a moment after he got the kids a safe distance away, hoping that she lives. It pained him to leave a woman in distress like that... But it was either saving the kids or trying to save his mysterious acquaintance with his diminished strength, while leaving the students to their own devices. Perhaps if he could, he'd have the kids stand together behind a tree while he came back.

"Good luck." He quietly thought to himself.

[Iriah Caitrak]

She tried to be cold. She tried to be distant. She tried to be everything that Malagen taught her to be, but it wasn’t working. She could place a mask of stone upon her face and read his every move, but she could not be the cold person that Malagen wanted of her. Ira could not strike back at him. Though each time he attacked her she blocked it or stepped to the side, she could not find the courage to lift her own weapon against him. All his moves were easy to read. The way he always took in a deep breath before striking at her, how his legs tensed before taking a step forward and his fingers shifted upon the blade. It was all very easy to read given his state of anger.

His soldiers did nothing. Torn between obeying the orders of their Captain and the realization that they had just destroyed a village for no reason, they did nothing. Their bodies surrounded Ira and Emeril as they continued to fight, but their swords were not drawn and they dared not to intervene. Though her eyes paid them no heed, within her mind she wondered if they would truly let her leave or if they would try to stop her. She also wondered what would become of the Captain. Maddened though he was, she could feel a small amount of sympathy for the man. He was fighting for and protecting his country and doing what he thought was right. She had once done the same thing when Fallien had been in civil strife. Only she had not gone over the deep end like he had. She did not attack the innocent. There could be no forgiveness for that, no matter the amount of sympathy she felt for him. This had to end.

The singing blade of his sword cut through the air, whistling on its path to her shoulder. Ira deflected it, sending it flying without course off to the right. Before she could react again, Emeril quickly straightened out his blade and made for a quick attack at her thigh. The sharpened steel cut through the material of her pants and sliced into her flesh easily. Blood flowed, sticky and wet and began to coat her pants and slither down her leg. Grimacing, the Calerian used the flat side of her blade and smashed it against the side of Emeril’s face. Using more strength then she intended to, Ira watched as blood flew from his mouth and wouldn’t be surprised if she broke his jaw or his cheekbone. His body fell back and landed with a resounding thud upon the dry earth. Immediately three of his soldiers grabbed him around the arms and shoulders, seizing him and holding him in place. He struggled, spite blood in their faces and cursed them anyway he could, but they would not release him.

Her eyes clashed with theirs, but they said nothing. Tightening her grip on the handles of her half swallows, the Calerian expected to have to fight her way out of here. Instead only one soldier approached her. She did not know his name and could barely see his face in the darkness and the shadows his helmet cast.

“I… the Captain will be dealt with under Corone law.” He spoke softly to her, “We… we want to…”

“Your words mean nothing to the villages killed here for no reason and the families torn apart.” She felt no need to be nice to him or show him compassion. He should feel horrible for what had happened here, what he had taken part in. She hoped it haunted him when he slept and it hung over his head like a judgement that would one day come back to him. And it would, when his time came and his soul was sent to its rightful resting place.

Dismissing the blades in her hands, the Calerian turned from the soldier without another word. Though the circle of them were still around her and a few seemed unsure about letting her leave, they parted anyways and allowed her passage. She hoped she would never meet any of them again. Without looking back, Ira began to head into the woods. Their twisting branches a safe refuge from the village still burning behind her. A safe distant into the trees and Ira spotted the man who had helped her before standing amongst the trees as if waiting for her. He looked like quite the heroic sight, even covered in dirt and ashes and tired as he was. With the moonlight glinting off the metal of his armour, he reminded her of the stories one heard of ancient heroes. At first she didn’t see the children, but as she got closer to him she could hear them. They were only a few feet ahead of him, waiting just as he was to see if she would truly return from her encounter with the Captain.

“I do not believe I got your name, siahd” She said to him as she stopped merely a foot or so away.

The cut on her leg was throbbing and she had yet to check the wound, but she did not feel the need. It was most likely a clean cut and it was hardly hindering her ability to walk.

[Rok the Blade]

A calm night breeze floated through the trees, towards the burning village that thankfully was partially hidden from sight by groups of trees. The forest was dark, almost pitch black, with rays of silvery moonlight that pierced the thick canopies above. The rustling of loose branches above and the quiet murmur of the shocked children in front of him was somewhat calming. After the chaos that had previously ensued, he was glad as can be that he could have done something to help those children. If something had happened to them while he tried to save them... He wouldn't have known what to do...

Rokusho had his back pressed against the wide side of a large oak tree with his head facing down, his dirty blond hair was damp with sweat and fell down over his face. Redeemer lay at his side, the tip resting on a soft mound of earth at his feet and the hilt resting on his armored shoulder. The sounds of death and burning wood were things of the past now. What lay ahead for the kids, he could not tell. But the first thing he had to do for them was get them to Underwood soon.

"What do we do now, mister?" Came a little girl's voice from in front of him, quiet and sweet. He was surprised that she could still talk like that after seeing and hearing everything that had happened.

"I... Don't know. We'll head to another town closeby and find your parents. Okay, sweetie?"

"We'll find my parents?"

"... Of course we will." Rok replied quietly. He hated to lie to her but he didn't want to say anything to sadden her. Besides, there was no telling whether or not her parents were alive, so the best thing he could do was be an optimist and believe that they are alive and kicking. The little girl, probably just reaching his thighs in height, turned and went back to the crowd of a dozen kids. They kept their chatter to a quiet murmur, but only because Rokusho had asked them to. He heard several of them sobbing. But if there were any more soldiers roaming around and they had heard them, there was no telling what they'd do. The quietude made the weary knight even more tired, forcing his eyes to lower and shut a little. They would wait a little bit longer until they headed off...

"I do not believe I got your name..." Rok heard a woman speak through closed eyelids, but didn't believe that it was real until he opened them and saw the warrior woman that he had fought alongside earlier that night.

Surprised at the sudden calmness of things, Rokusho simply stared at her for a moment. A sheen of glossy sweat mixed with ash and bruises caressed her exposed skin, but despite, she didn't have much of a tired look on her face. At least, not as tired as the knight's face probably looked right now.

"Uh... My name is Rokusho. Oh, " His eyes widened when he noticed the gash on her leg. A thick line of blood streaming out from it. Apparently she didn't come out of the battle unscathed. He wondered about the soldiers, about Emeril. Did she kill him...? It didn't really matter, it seemed that she got out alive and not being pursued by the soldiers. They had escaped death.

"Now it is time to..."

A drop of water splashed right on Rok's cheek. The raindrop felt extremely good, cold and soothing after being near all that raging heat. Then immediately the melodious sound of the pitter-patter of rain caressing everything in the forest filled his ears. Immediately drenching the thick canopies above with a torrent of rain, drops began to fall from the leaves and onto the bystanders below.

Rokusho smiled and pushed off the tree and grabbed Redeemer's hilt, hefting it up and back into it's home on his back. He heard the surprised cries of the children, varying from "Rain!" to "Water!". But he was wondering how it was raining, how at that time of the year. Then it dawned on him.

"Children, take heart. An angel is crying for your home..." Glee washed over him when he saw the kids begin to look a little happier than before, when half of them were sobbing quietly, holding their pain in because Rok wanted them to keep quiet. Rain was usually a very peaceful thing.

He was happy that it showed him that the kids weren't entirely broken emotionally, glad that they hadn't really seen any death - having been locked up inside the school house. That night was nothing more than a scary experience that would prove for a good story later in the future rather than a mournful memory that one accidentally remembered when, where and how they lost their parents or fellow classmate. Innocence had been preserved, for now. Only going to Underwood and finding out whether or not some of the parents had survived would tell.

Already soaked from the cool rain, and not worrying about getting sick due to the warm night, Rokusho looked over at his acquaintance, "Let's head to Underwood. We can talk there."

[Iriah Caitrak]

Rokusho…

The silver light of the moon was suddenly diminished and cut from the forest, leaving it in a darkness so deep her eyes could barely penetrate it. Soon afterwards fat drops of rain began to snake through the high canopy above them. At first the melody they brought was subtle and sad until they began to fall from the sky in a great multitude. They drenched everything they could reach, washing away the soot, the ash, and the blood. They destroyed the evidence of what had happened here tonight and would douse the fires of the village leaving nothing more than charred wood, broken homes and lives torn apart. And though Ira had no idea what an angel was and why it would cry for the children, she noticed how they responded to what Rokusho said. Their faces seemed a little brighter and that was all that mattered. If only they would stay that way when they finally reached their next destination and did not find their parents amongst the survivors.

Sparing a moment to glance behind her, The Calerian saw nothing but darkness, falling rain and trees. The forest hid the town from her view and the rain was a thunder upon the earth that drowned no only the forest floor but her ears. If something was happening with the soldier and Emeril she could not see it nor hear it. Turning back to her new companion and the children, Ira nodded her head and fell in step behind him. He led the way to Underwood, his steps slow and sure as he attempted to navigate in the night. She took up the rear making sure no child was left behind and nothing would surprise them. To Underwood they walked, with heavy hearts filled with hope and sadness.

[Call me J]

Total- 67

First of all, sorry for the delay. I Think you should be pleased with this core for such a simple plot line. You both are good writers, I’m especially impressed by Rok the Blade because I never knew that you had these skills.

STORY –19/30

Continuity ~ 7/10. I generally thought Ira did a better job here than Rok.
Setting ~ 6/10. It was completely legitimate to treat Concordia as a naturally calm forest area, but I thought it was an interesting take on it, seeing how many dangerous animals live there.
Pacing ~ 6/10. I felt that this thread didn’t do such a great job establishing a happy medium between continuity and pacing, particularly from Ira.

CHARACTER- 18/30

Dialogue ~ 5/10. There was nothing that made me a strong impression.
Action ~ 6/10. There was nothing that really struck me as incorrect or strange, but again, there was nothing that really impressed me much here.
Persona ~ 7/10. Rok, one thing that I really loved about your writing here was your ability to use setting and story as a way of demonstrating Rokusho’s persona.

WRITING STYLE- 25/30

Technique ~ 8/10. The use of imagery in this thread was very strong, and I liked the way that Ira used similies to show character.
Mechanics ~ 9/10. Outside of minor quibbles there is nothing negative that I could say.
Clarity ~ 8/10. This story took a bit of a while to introduce the plot, and that made it a bit hard to get into.

MISCELLANEOUS

Wild Card ~ 5/10. There was just something about this thread that was far too formulaic.

EXP Rewards

Rok the Blade receives 1360 EXP
Ira Shinkara receives 2325 EXP

GP Rewards

Rok the Blade gets 135 GP
Ira Shinkara gets 125 GP

[Karuka]

EXP/GP added!