Lightning and thunder filled the sky as a battle raged on the ground below, and Sully had to keep wiping the rain from her race to keep it out of her eyes. They had been tracking a group of bandits that had been terrorizing a village that they had visited, and had finally caught up with them.
Sully let out a yell as she impaled an attacking bandit with her lance. She gazed around with narrowed eyes. She had managed to lead a group of the bandits away from Lissa and the other healers, but now she found herself backed up at the edge of a cliff, with a large river raging far below.
"Time to die, woman!" one bandit yelled as he charged at her with his sword. Sully raised her lance to counter, but she didn't need to as an arrow pierced through the back of the bandit's skull, killing him instantly. Sully grinned as the bandit's lifeless body fell to the ground, and she looked up to find Virion nocking another arrow.
"My, my, what a mess! I do hope you lot make this fight more interesting than that fellow did. I want the bards to sing of the glory of this fight!" Virion said as he fired the arrow, striking another bandit in the chest. As the rest tried to regroup, Virion made his way to Sully's side as she clobbered a retreating bandit upside the head.
"'Bout time you made it, Ruffles. I didn't want to have all the fun by myself." Sully said with a grin. Virion laughed and ran a hand through his hair dramatically.
"My dear, radiant Sully! I couldn't just enter the fight haphazardly! I needed to wait for the perfectly spectacular moment, of course." he said, winking at her.
Sully laughed and rolled her eyes. "You're always so dramatic, Virion. I think you'd up and die if you couldn't find something to be a drama king about every gods damn hour of every day." she said. Virion chuckled and shrugged his shoulders.
"You wound me, Sully! I would surely find a way to live on, for I have a beautiful woman to wake up to every day, and that is more than enough to keep this noble heart beating!" he said as he took Sully's hand in his, raised it to his lips, and placed a kiss on her knuckles.
"Jeez, you're embarrassing me here! And if I'm all that's keeping you alive, that's kinda pathetic-" Sully began, but she was cut off as she quickly swung her lance up to block an incoming arrow.
"Ah, it seems our friends are back. Oh, and they brought mages with them, how titillating!" Virion said as he nocked an arrow in his bow. Sully gripped her lance tightly and grinned.
"Let's show them how really warriors fight!" she said, letting out a war cry as she charged at the incoming bandits. Arrows whizzed passed her head as Virion picked off a few before Sully reached them. They fought pretty damn well as a team, Sully thought.
She had never really paid any mind to it before, but now that they were dating, she found herself noticing how well they synced on the battlefield. Their relationship was mostly physical at this point in time, and she now knew that he had indeed earned his good reputation with the ladies. She had been skeptical at first, thinking that he may have been exaggerating about how good he was in the sack, based on his boisterous and flaunting personality. Sully had never had a good first time experience with any of the men that she'd had sex with before, but her first time with Virion had pleasantly exceeded her expectations. He was a perfect gentlemen, making sure to tend to her needs before his own. Damn it, she didn't even know it was possible to orgasm more than once before a man did but he had managed to disprove that theory rather quickly.
Despite how much she enjoyed their intimate encounters, Sully also found herself to greatly enjoy just being around and conversing with Virion. His dramatic personality could get annoying at times, but he was a very smart man, and she always loved listening to him tell stories about his home country, and the many places he had visited on his travels. She thought their relationship was very one-sided in this regard, and she wondered constantly if he really gained anything intellectually stimulating from her as well.
Sully channeled her frustration into a killing blow as she cleaved off a bandit's head with her lance. She turned to fend off another attacker, when she heard Virion yell her name. She easily killed her target and turned in the direction of Virion's voice, and the blood drained from her face.
Virion had moved in between an attacking assassin and Sully, and it looked like the assassin's sword had cut right through Virion's chest armor, cutting him diagonally from his shoulder to his hip. Blood was leaking from the wound and dripping to the ground, mixing with the wet soil and rain water. The assassin fell to the ground, dead, from a point-blank arrow shot to his head.
"Virion!" Sully yelled as she moved to catch him as he fell forward, but she was knocked to her knees as an enemy mage fired a wind spell at them. She managed to keep from side too far, but Virion was launched from his feet and slid across the wet, slippery ground, right towards the edge of the cliff.
"Shit!" Sully cursed as she scrambled to her feet and raced after him. She managed to grab his arm as he slid off the cliff, but the weight of his body made her lose her balance and she fell off with him. She reached up with her free arm and managed to catch the edge of the cliff with her fingers.
"Fucking hell..." Sully growled as she looked down at Virion. He was gripping her arm tightly as he dangled below her, and she could see the river below flowing at a dangerous speed. She tightened her grip on his arm and she tried using her other arm to pull them up. The rock under her fingers was slippery, however, and she could feel her fingers start to loose their grip.
"Sully..." she heard Virion whisper, and she felt him loosen his hold on her arm slightly. She knew what he was thinking and she didn't like it.
"Don't you fucking let go. I won't let you die here Virion." she growled through gritted teeth. He ignored her as he tried to loosen her grip on him. She couldn't let him fall with his injury. If he didn't drown, he would probably bleed to death without someone to help him.
"God's damn it!" Sully yelled, and as she felt Virion let go of her arm, she impulsively let go of the cliff.
"Sully, no!" Virion exclaimed as they both fell towards the river below. Sully ignored him as she wrapped her arms around him securely.
"Don't you let go of me, or I'll fucking kill you." Sully growled as she closed her eyes and braced for impact. They hit the water hard. Sully managed to hold her breath as she fought to keep a secure hold on Virion. She pushed against the current and managed to get them both above the water's surface, with Virion on her back holding onto her for dear life.
"Virion. You good?" she asked, having to yell above the roar of the river. She felt him tighten his grip and she felt his head moved in a nodding motion. Sully scanned the riverbank for somewhere to pull them out. She spotted the branches of a tree that were spread low over the river. She gritted her teeth and pushed against the current to get closer. She managed to grab onto the branches just in time before the current dragged them away.
Sully caught something big coming towards them out of the corner of her eye and instinctively moved so that she was between the object and Virion. She cried out in pain as a large log slammed into her, knocking her shoulder out of its socket.
"Fucking shit!" she screamed as she struggled to keep her grip on the branched. She felt Virion move and he reached out and also grabbed the branches, weakly pulling as they both combined their remaining strength to pull themselves from the water.
Sully collapsed onto her back, letting a string of colorful curses pass her lips. She was panting heavily as fiery pain ripped through her shoulder. She could see that her shoulder bone was not in the correct place, and it was dislocated for sure. She gritted her teeth and pulled herself into a sitting position, using her good arm for support. She then managed to stand, her left arm hanging uselessly at her side.
"Virion!" Sully said as moved quickly to his side. She hooked her good arm under one of his and pulled him out of the rain, into the shelter of a large tree. She cursed to herself as she struggled to prop him against the tree with one arm, and she was able to asses his condition.
His eyes were squeezed shut, and his jaw was set into a grimace in pain. His breathing was ragged, and blood still oozed from his wounds. It seemed that the sword wound wasn't as deep as she had feared, and Sully found herself sighing with relief.
"Sully...Y-your shoulder." Virion breathed as he placed a hand on her arm good arm. His eyes were filled with concern. Sully gritted her teeth and moved to the other side of the tree.
"I know, I'll have to pop it back in." she said, gritting her teeth. She took a few deep breaths to calm herself before she slammed her shoulder into the trunk. She screamed as her shoulder popped back into place with a sharp pain coursing through her body.
"Gods damn it..." she growled as the pain slowly diminished a bit. She took a few more deep breaths before returning to Virion and sitting down next to him.
"How are you feeling, Virion? Lightheaded at all?" Sully asked Virion shook his head.
"I think I shall live to see another day. The wound is not deep." he said, wincing as he shifted, "Although, the fall may have broken a rib or two." His eyes suddenly darkened as he looked up at her.
"Sully." She was startled at the tone of his voice. Gone was the cocky undertones and the flowery prose. She had never heard him sound so serious. "What were you thinking? You should have let me fall alone. You could have died."
Sully stared at him, too stunned to respond right away. "Yeah, well, what the hell was I supposed to do, just let you die? Fuck that." she responded with a growl, her eyes narrowing at him. "You probably would have drowned if I wasn't here to help you. I sure as hell wasn't going to hang there on that cliff like a little bitch and just watch the man that I love fall to his death."
Time seemed to stop as they both tried to process what she had just said. Sully had let that four letter word just slip out, here of all places. It wasn't really the most romantic timing, but Sully really wasn't the most romantic person.
"Ah, my dear Sully," Virion said, the serious tone of voice gone as suddenly as it had appeared, "Do you mean it? The admission of your love for me is like the sweetest melody to my ears! I feel as if my heart will burst forth from my bosom!" He chuckled and immediately cringed as the movement jarred his injured ribs.
"Of course I mean it. I wouldn't joke about this kinda thing." Sully said, blushing with embarrassment. "I've never felt this way about any man before. I would have never forgiven myself if I'd have let you die without doing something."
A broad smile spread over Virion's handsome face and he sighed dramatically. "Oh, what luck the god's have bestowed upon me! That such a strong a beautiful woman would fall head over heels for the magnificent Virion!" He slipped his hand into hers and their fingers entwined automatically.
"I...don't really understand, Virion." Sully said, an uneasy look crossing her face as her eyes shifted to the ground. "You could have any woman that you want, why me? I'm not exactly the perfect lady. I feel like I don't have as much to offer you as you do me."
Virion frowned as he reached up with his free hand, placing his fingers on Sully's chin. He pulled her head so that she was facing him, her fiery red eyes locking with his glossy blue ones.
"My dear Sully," Virion said as he brushed away some of her wet hair that was sticking to her forehead, "You are unlike any other woman that I've ever met. You are as strong as you are beautiful. You're determination and work ethic are uncontested, and you have an admirable dedication to protecting everyone that you can. You've captured my heart like no other woman has before. I adore you, and I love you with all of my heart, Sully." He then placed a light kiss on her lips, causing her cheeks to flush to match the color of her hair.
Sully gawked at him, too stunned to respond right away. She then became flustered and cleared her throat to try and dispel her embarrassment.
"Damn it, Virion. There you go again, spouting your flowery bullshit. I've sometimes wondered if I should make an effort to be more lady-like, 'cause most men go for that shit. But hell, if being myself landed me a sexy bastard like you then fuck it. I must be doing something right by just being me." Sully said, a grin crossing her face as shes let go of his hand and ran her fingers through his hair.
"No one is better at being you than you, Sully. Remember that." Virion said. Sully nodded and looked up at the sky through the gaps in the tree leave above them. The rain had stopped and the winds were starting to die down as well.
"Ah, good. The weather's clearing up. Someone should be able to come look for us now." Sully said, suddenly aware of how cold she was as she shivered. "I hope they hurry, damn it, 'cause I'm freezing my ass off here."
"Well, my dear," Virion said, a mischievous grin crossing his face, "I may have a way to alleviate the cold for a while." The blue-haired archer wrapped an arm around Sully and pulled her close so that their foreheads touched. Sully grinned back as she realized what he meant.
"Heh, I like the way you think, Ruffles." Sully said as she wasted no time in closing the small distance that remained between them. Her lips pressed against Virion's and he eagerly reciprocated, and all thoughts of the cold were soon far from their minds.