Author's Note: Hi, thanks for clicking on my story. The description basically says it all, in that it's a massive battle scene featuring Fire Emblem Fates characters. I tried to combine aspects of gameplay, story and realism for it, so I'd love some feedback on how it went. Second story on this site. Here we go.
The White Woods
Laslow
The wintry winds blew forebodingly throughout the woods as the army continued to march through them, the deep but soft snow sinking beneath their feet as they marched. Snowflakes fell from the exposed cracks of the darkened sky that peaked in between the large frost-covered trees, cloaking the woods in darkness. It gave the woods an eternal night feel, and made any march through them feel longer than it should. The dark trees and shadows rose and fell, each small noise piercing the ears of the soldiers, each of them jumpy and cautious in their steps, clutching their weapons tightly. The rumours of monsters in the woods that had spread through the army like wildfire hadn't helped either, and Laslow had to admit even he had been spooked by a couple of them.
Like the Faceless rumours. Unlike the evil spirit and zombie rumours that sounded like Odin's spiel that had been equally as prevalent, this one actually had the possibility of being more than a rumour. Laslow had heard of the Faceless, and had decided he'd prefer his contact with them to remain in rumours. Large, hulking beasts who would attack anything in their path that could be identified by the mysterious holed masks they wore, they were the creatures that plagued every Nohrian soldier's nightmares.
And here they were, trekking the White Woods, where the Faceless were rumoured to be at their strongest and most monstrous that not even the strongest dark magic practitioners dared to attempt to control them. The cold climate caused Laslow to shiver every so often, which did nothing to help his nerves as he walked alongside a collection of lancers, Nohrian soldiers who aptly wielded lances. Their hushed murmuring of new monster rumours and about the cold and the dark was starting to get to Laslow, even if he preferred it to the distant sounds of the White Woods.
Laslow strolled charmingly, doing his best to ignore the cold that his shirt and vest did barely anything to mitigate, past the soldiers, who hushed their complaints once they caught a glimpse of him. Behind him, horses snorted and wyverns gave snaps and low growls, each probably from the cold or hearing some suspicious noise that Laslow hoped would result in nothing. He came up near the frontlines, interrupting a conversation between a group of lancers and axe-wielding fighters, who were complaining the most due to their rather exposed choice of dress.
"...these soddin' woods and the bloody Faceless cries in the distance. We're going to run into them, I just know it," declared a lancer. He paused once he caught eye of Laslow, and hurriedly turned to address his secondary commander. Laslow waved a hand and sighed. The lancer relaxed a bit and his teeth chattered.
"How much farther 'til Nestra, sir?" asked a fighter hopefully.
"Shouldn't be much further," answered Laslow, trying to smile, even if he in fact had no idea how much longer the march would be. Still, better to give the men some hope than none at all. Laslow then added, "Soon as we reach Nestra, I'm sure it'll be worth it." To Laslow's relief, a lancer agreed.
"Yeah, I've heard that the Opera House is worth visiting for alone," he spoke up, getting a hearty agreement from the surrounding soldiers.
"Still," said a fighter bitterly. "I honestly wish I were a mage right about now. Fire tome, robe, that would be the life." The surrounding soldiers agreed again, voicing a few more grievances.
"They were the ones complaining when we had to go through Macarath," revealed Laslow, catching the attention of the soldiers. Laslow continued, putting on a whiny voice, "It's so hot here. Why can't I be one of those shirtless axe fighters?", drawing a laugh from the soldiers who'd heard Laslow's impression. Laslow gave a chuckle and smiled to himself at seeing them happy for one of the few times on the trip. However, at the back of Laslow's mind, the thought of meeting a horde of Faceless in the woods remained.
Something whistled past Laslow's ear. He froze, his eyes wide. They darted about, looking for the source of the noise, the surrounding soldiers having barely noticed his alarm. He gazed up into the trees, looking intently for any source of the noise. Now that no threat had been identified, his mind started to make excuses for the noise. Maybe it was a snowflake. Maybe it was just his imagination. Maybe it just a lump of snow having fallen from a tree. It could've been anything. Absolutely anything.
But it gave Laslow no reassurance. Then the whistling came again and Laslow wheeled around just in time to see an object coming toward him at a rapid speed. Laslow drew his sword instinctively and its steel blade collided with the object with a metallic clang. The soldiers around him exchanged shocked glances as Laslow sheathed his sword and bent down to get a look at the object. Laslow felt his heart skip a beat and his eyes widen as he saw what was lying in the snow.
It was a sharp, star-shaped object that was slightly larger than Laslow's outstretched hand. He picked it up to inspect it and felt the familiar weight of steel in his hand. He was wary of the razor-sharp edge of it as he turned it over in his hand while examining it. There was no denying it. Laslow knew what this was and what it meant for the situation.
It was a shuriken, a weapon most commonly associated with ninjas from the neighbouring land of Hoshido. Few others could utilise them efficiently, which meant there was an almost certain chance that Hoshidan ninjas were here in the White Woods. And worse, ninjas were renowned for their ability to remain hidden from view, which meant it was likely the ninjas would be able to see the Nohrian army while they wouldn't be able to see them. Laslow gave a few useless gazes around, up and down which likely proved his theory.
The soldiers around him raised their weapons apprehensively once they got a glimpse of the shuriken in Laslow's hand. Laslow discarded the shuriken and gestured a hand to the soldiers around him, mouthing for them to relax. The soldiers looked confused yet they obeyed his authority, reluctantly lowering their weapons slightly, though many of them were still looking around. The army halted at Laslow's command and he stepped forward gingerly, senses on high alert in case of another shuriken. He came to a stop a few steps from the soldiers behind him and looked up at the treetops, holding his hands in a non-threatening manner.
"Um, hi," he said awkwardly to what he hoped would be the ears of the Hoshidans' commander. Laslow straightened himself up, shaking away his nervousness, before speaking to the darkness above again, "May I meet your commander and perhaps smooth this misunderstanding over?" Laslow aimed a smile upward in a vague attempt to get the Hoshidans' commander to agree to his proposal. He was more partial to getting this sorted out without a battle. Mostly for the potential it had to completely ruin the Nohrians' goal of reaching Nestra and for the cost it would have on both armies, but also slightly for what a certain man might do to Laslow should he come up to him with the news he'd started a full-scale battle with Hoshidans. Laslow had no wish to part with his flesh over this, or ever, for that matter.
Laslow glanced behind him briefly, before turning back and almost jumping out of his boots when he saw a pair of ninjas, one male and the other female, waiting there in front of him. Laslow was drawn to the woman, who had long black hair which was tied up in a white bow at the end, with a thick portion of her hair covering her left eye and the left half of her face. She wore yellow and brown clothing that was light and rather discreet. Definitely a ninja. She didn't carry any visible weapons, yet Laslow was certain a collection of shurikens resided hidden up her sleeve or anywhere else he could imagine.
The second and male ninja was a little less subtle. He wore rough-looking black and blue clothing, complete with a mask that hid the lower half of his face. He had untidy dark brown hair and made no secret of the shuriken that he held threateningly in his hand. Laslow saw his reflection in the steel and barely suppressed a gulp. The most intimidating thing about this ninja though, was the ugly, jagged scar across his face and through his left eye that was forced closed. Laslow would've hated to see the other guy.
Once he'd gotten over his initial shock of seeing the ninjas seemingly appear out of thin air, Laslow recomposed himself, and smiled invitingly at the two ninjas. While the female showed no emotion at this gesture, the male seemed agitated at it as his brow tightened and he glared venomously at Laslow. Laslow shifted about a little uncomfortably after this display of hostility.
Laslow turned at the sound of a horse next to him and his heart dropped as her recognised its rider. Peri. Her blue pigtails with pink tips shook around as she dismounted her horse, her pink armour shaking and the iron sword strapped to her hip clanged against each other noisily. Her unsettlingly wide-eyed smile was plastered on her face.
Peri was not the ideal negotiation partner Laslow had been expecting or hoping for. This was due to her three primary thoughts consisting of stabbing, blood and murder. In that order. This was heightened by her childlike demeanor and speech that caused her to declare her killings in the voice and words of a five-year old, which Laslow never failed to find utterly disturbing. Laslow gave Peri a half hearted smile before turning back to the two ninjas, the male looking extremely unamused, with Laslow giving a subtle shrug. He clasped his hands together and tried his best to appear friendly toward the Hoshidan ninjas.
"So," he began. "It seems we've encountered a slight misunderstanding here. We mean you no harm here. All we want is to pass through." The male ninja eyed Laslow with his single eye suspiciously.
"I don't trust you, Nohrian," he growled. "Why are you here?" Laslow eyed the shuriken that the ninja twirled nervously, before going over the question in his head. It was quite difficult to answer truthfully, unfortunately. Common sense told Laslow that travelling to Nestra to discuss a potential secret pact with the Nestrian leader was about the last thing this ninja wanted to hear. Laslow hurriedly wracked his brain for the least offensive yet believable thing he could respond with.
"We're travelling to Nestra to watch a performance in Cyrkensia," Laslow lied adeptly. He shot a quick look at Peri beside him to keep quiet. He hoped she'd understood. The ninja raised the eyebrow of his good eye while the female's face remained in neutrality.
"Hmph," scoffed the ninja. "Like I'd believe that Nohrian spiel-", though the female ninja put out an arm to restrain her comrade, staring intently at Laslow, probably looking for signs of a lie. Laslow kept as straight a face as possible.
"Control yourself, Saizo," Laslow heard the female ninja tell the male in a low voice. "My name is Kagero. This is Saizo. We are currently in command of the southward fort," she introduced, indicating behind her. Laslow was relieved that Kagero seemed more level-headed and less likely to incite a battle than her comrade. Though, on the other hand, she might be harder to convince of his story.
"Laslow," Laslow introduced himself, extending his hand in greeting. Neither ninja moved and he withdrew it dejectedly after a couple of awkward seconds. He indicated Peri, "This is Peri."
"We will allow you to pass through as soon as you present proof of your intentions," Kagero continued evenly. This wasn't good. They didn't exactly have an official invitation or anything to present to the two sceptical ninjas. Then again, Laslow could think of an excuse.
"I'm afraid the nearest invitations to the performance are far at the back of our army," Laslow admitted. He really hoped Kagero would swallow this lie. The female ninja gave no sign of whether she'd believed or disbelieved him. Instead, she continued her interrogation.
"Perhaps you can explain why common Nohrian soldiers are given the esteemed honour of visiting Nestra?" she asked, looking expectant for an immediate answer. Luckily for Laslow, this one was much easier to answer.
"Why, we also have the honour of escorting Crown Prince Xander of Nohr himself to this performance," Laslow explained. He then continued, eagerly, "Obviously, our prince requires only the finest of Nohr's extensive protection. He will one day succeed King Garon as the King of Nohr, after all." What a wonderful day that would be. Sadly, Laslow would be likely long-gone before that would happen.
"Hmph. 'Finest'," insulted Saizo moodily, and Laslow heard a low growl emit from Peri next to him. Laslow motioned with his hand for Peri to calm down, which might or might have not worked. Laslow opened his mouth to speak, yet Kagero continued.
"We will allow you to pass as soon as you yield proof of your endeavours," she said with the kind of finality that Laslow knew meant she wouldn't take no for an answer. Laslow rushed to think of something that could stall the conversation a bit longer, until he could think of something that might pass as proof.
"Your prince must be a pathetic coward if he needs this many men to protect him," Saizo taunted maliciously. Before Laslow could say anything, Peri spoke up.
"You leave Lord Xander alone, you big bully!" she said aggressively in her babyish voice that somehow still sounded threatening. Or perhaps more so. Laslow turned to Peri to tell her not to aggravate the Hoshidans when Saizo gave a verbal barb back.
"Hmph. Especially considering you people are the kind he employs in his service," he spat back, especially venomous on the mention of 'you people'. Laslow could see this negotiation was going south very quickly and hoped that Kagero saw the same thing. Unfortunately, Kagero didn't seem to be doing much to restrain her partner this time.
"Oh yeah?" Peri retorted savagely. "You'll regret that once we start the killing!" Laslow could swear that underneath his mask, Saizo was smiling at this. Meanwhile, Kagero simply retained her neutral mask.
"Killing?" questioned Saizo, before turning to Laslow. "At a performance?" Laslow tried his best to keep himself sounding truthful.
"No, that's not-" Laslow started, though Peri interrupted him.
"We're gonna go talk to the Nestrians about killing you," Peri blurted out happily, smiling ear to ear. Saizo and Kagero both eyed Laslow fiercely. Laslow tried to think of something that would make the conversation civil again, though he quickly realised there was no salvaging this.
He turned to see Saizo brandishing his shuriken, his single eye aggressive, before he shot forward towards Laslow. Laslow instinctively drew his sword to block the shooting thrust, metal screeching against metal as the force of the blow pushed him back. Behind him, Laslow heard shouts and cries from the soldiers. Sounds of weapons being raised and battle cries filled Laslow's ears.
Then the Hoshidans emerged. They'd been hiding in the snow and they all revealed themselves together, all of them holding katanas, naginatas or clubs, charging at the incoming Nohrian army. Saizo continued to slash away at Laslow with his shuriken, who did his best to parry the ninja's vicious assault. Out of the corner of Laslow's eye, he saw the forces meet, an enormous screech of steel and screams as the first soldiers fell to lance, axe, katana, naginata or club. Laslow saw Peri gleefully stab a katana-wielding samurai in the neck with her sword, before mounting her horse and giving a loud shout of something about killing. He couldn't see Kagero anywhere, though his vision was obscured by Saizo's incoming attacks.
Laslow lost focus for a moment and Saizo capitalised, slashing at Laslow's exposed shoulder, and went in for another which Laslow was able to block better. He ignored the now bleeding cut in his shoulder and matched Saizo's shuriken attacks with the blade of his steel sword, turning it over skilfully to intercept the leaping, lunging attacks of his opponent. Saizo's attacks were fast and deadly, and Laslow barely dodged a glancing blow aimed at his head, blocking a thrown shuriken with his shoulder guard, the shuriken bouncing off it, though the impact was not lost and stunned his shoulder briefly. Laslow brought his sword back around to deflect a second thrown shuriken, before taking a swing at the now in-range Saizo, who dodged Laslow's rather sluggish attack with ease, before attacking him at melee range again. Laslow raced to deflect the fast incoming attacks, the odd blow cutting him open. Laslow gripped his sword with both hands and his next block resulted in a blade lock that had him wrestling for position against Saizo. Saizo glared at him furiously, before using Laslow's force to push himself back in a backflip, before tossing a pair of shurikens at Laslow. Laslow ducked the two of them, before looking up to see an airborne Saizo headed for him, shuriken in hand. Laslow evaded the downward strike with side flip, landing acrobatically on his feet, before slashing away a shuriken thrown at him.
Laslow heard a whistle above him to see a flock of arrows overhead, suddenly remembering the Hoshidan fort that Kagero mentioned. Laslow hid as best he could behind his shoulder guard, shielding his face and making himself as slim as possible. The arrows fell like rain, and Laslow heard anguished and surprised screams behind him, yet miraculously no impact hit him. Laslow almost breathed a sigh of relief before a shuriken in his peripheral vision jogged his memory. He took the shuriken's impact with his shoulder guard, the star bouncing off the guard noisily. Laslow wheeled around to block an attack from a reappeared Saizo, caught in a another blade lock against the ninja. Laslow pushed with surprising strength that caught Saizo off guard and the ninja was reduced to his knees. Laslow wrestled determinedly pushing his sword downward, trying to crush the ninja. Then the ninja sweeped him.
Laslow gave a surprised cry as his legs were taken out from underneath him and he fell with a plop in the deep snow. Laslow rolled over instinctively as Saizo plunged a shuriken into the snow where he'd been. Laslow scrambled to his feet, getting to his knees before being forced to block Saizo's strike, and found no hilarity in the irony of his current situation as Saizo pressed downward against his sword. He could see the blade of his sword gradually move closer to his neck.
In desperation, Laslow rolled backward, his sword's blade scraping against the shuriken, and the shuriken's plunge only barely missing him. Laslow rolled through and pushed himself to his feet as he struggled to block Saizo's new onslaught, blocking the slashes with desperation instead of skill. He took a glimpse of his surroundings, seeing the battle rage around him and Saizo, and becoming aware that a tree was right behind him.
Seemingly, Saizo became aware of the tree at the same time because he booted Laslow forcefully in the chest before he could block. Laslow went hurtling back into the tree, his back slamming against it, the tree shaking and releasing snow from it, which fell down onto Laslow's head. He resisted the temptation to shake it off and immediately sidestepped to evade Saizo's lunging attack. Laslow had hoped the shuriken would be stuck in the tree trunk, yet Saizo pulled it out with ease, and Laslow dodged the shuriken as Saizo threw it at him. Laslow gave another glance behind him and turned back to block Saizo's capitalising slice.
Laslow forcefully kicked Saizo in the chest, making some space between them that Laslow used to recover. His eyes darted around as he leaned against a short mound nearby. Laslow sprang from his leaning spot as a stray spirit of a dragon flew plast, gnashing its jaws. He turned back to see Saizo had recovered and was back to tossing shurikens at him. Laslow evaded them precisely, before stepping back as his adversary produced a new shuriken and charged at him like a bull. Laslow deflected his attacks, being forced to step back and almost tripping over as he realised they were now ascending. He risked a glimpse backward to see they were now fighting while ascending a small slope that was very quickly gaining in steepness. Laslow felt himself begin to sink in the deep snow, though knew he could also use this to his advantage. Once he blocked another blow, he kicked a mound of snow into Saizo's face. The surprised ninja spat a collection of curses aimed at Laslow as Laslow started to attack Saizo with slashes, dips and thrusts, the recovering ninja dodging and evading them. Soon, he was back on the attack and Laslow and Saizo continued to trade blows with each other as they ascended the slope. Laslow kicked another load of snow forward, which Saizo was ready for this time, dodging and blowing past Laslow, slicing at his side with his shuriken. Laslow gave a gasp of pain, before wheeling around to begin attacking Saizo, who blocked his advances with his shuriken.
As they advanced, Laslow realised they were now on solid ground, atop a cliff with fighting going on below them. Laslow looked away and focused on his adversary, dueling intensely against the ferocious ninja. Laslow blocked a downward slash with with a raise of his blade and for a few seconds the two were there, arms raised with weapons screeching against each other. Then Saizo launched a surprise kick to Laslow, stunning Laslow and sending him stumbling backward precariously close to the edge. Laslow stopped himself, waving his arms wildly, before sidestepping Saizo's attack and continuing the duel blocking strikes and slashes and countering with thrusts and slices with his sword, a few hitting their mark and slicing through the ninja's drab clothes and cutting his flesh. He showed nothing from it, though, and simply continued on the attack, unswayed by anything Laslow could do to him. Laslow ducked and dodged his strikes, ever mindful of the edge, while the ninja seemed reckless enough to risk it. And it was working. Laslow found himself pulling out far too many last-second blocks and parries for a lifetime, and even yielding a few hits, the shuriken cutting into his flesh with only a glancing blow yet a blow all the same. The shuriken was doing its job, however, and Laslow felt the power of his blocks and blows gradually weaken. After several agonising minutes, a weak slash put him open for Saizo to quickly slash him across the chest. Laslow gave a gasp of pain that barely got out before Saizo kicked him.
Laslow went flying, suddenly aware his feet were no longer on the ground and he was falling. Then came the impact, somewhat muffled by the snow, yet he could still feel the ground below, solid ground that his entire back had just fallen on. Laslow's back was in agony, and he writhed around on the ground, rolling over, as though it would somehow make the giant area of pain on his back go away. Laslow could barely feel his ribs either, clawing at the snow with his hands, his sword somewhere only the gods knew. Laslow let out a cry as he tried to crawl away, outstretching his hand, trying to get away.
A strike of pain went through him, and to his horror, he saw a shuriken embedded in his hand. Blood was starting to leak out and Laslow gave a shocked and anguished cry, yet didn't stop. He kicked with his legs, trying to force himself to his feet. Laslow kicked up to his feet only to charge forward and fall over again, face first into the snow. Laslow growled, gritting his teeth as he heard a whistle of wind and knew that Saizo was throwing shurikens at him. Laslow used his good hand to force himself up and started to run.
Laslow ran fast, holding his chest with his uninjured hand, his mind not focusing on his warrior's pride of never running from battle and instead was on survival prospects. Of which they were not good. He was injured and unarmed. Laslow ran through the woods, not encountering any battles though passed a few corpses on his way, sunken in the snow. The cold, which he'd been able to ignore during his duel with Saizo, caught up with him now, and he started to shiver as he ran faster and faster. He only half-remembered where the battle had started and prayed that a Nohrian garrison had been established in his absence by some smart soldier. Because Peri wasn't the sort of person to think of that kind of thing.
Laslow's heart leapt when he saw set-up tents and convoys hidden away in a small clearing in the woods. Laslow sprinted for it, praying to the gods it was the Nohrian one, scanning it quickly to confirm. The emergence of a lancer from one of the tents confirmed it and Laslow almost sobbed with joy, at the prospect of living. The lancer stopped suddenly as soon as he saw Laslow before recognising him and racing to him as Laslow sprinted into the Nohrian camp.
"S-sir!" he exclaimed, surprised. "Are you alright?" Laslow turned to him and the words fell right out of him.
"Get me a sword or two!" he gasped desperately. The lancer didn't need telling twice and raced off to what Laslow hoped would be the weapons convoy. Meanwhile, Laslow examined him hand and winced as he saw the shuriken still pierced in it. Laslow moved his fingers gingerly, before gripping the point of the shuriken with his good hand and closed his eyes. Laslow had never done this before, and now was not the time to make the 'first time for everything' statement.
Laslow tore the shuriken out of his hand, ripping the bloodstained star right out, probably slicing through a few more important things and threw it to the ground, barely resisting a roar of pain and instead falling to his knees with an anguished gasp, holding his hand, clenching his teeth tightly. Laslow panted, eying the shuriken that now sat harmlessly in the snow, splattered with red. The lancer returned with a collection of three swords and Laslow rose to his feet, still holding his hand that screamed in agony. Laslow unclenched his good hand and took tore off a section of the bottom part of his shirt, the material threading and he snapped it off once it was large enough. Laslow wrapped it firmly around his injured hand, whispering to himself this would make the pain go away. The lancer stood frozen, mouth agape, looking at him with wide eyes. Laslow tied the material up, pulling it tight to make sure it would stay on his hand, before turning to the lancer, forcing a smile on his face that probably looked far too anguished to reassure anyone.
"All better," he breathed reassuringly, mainly to himself before taking the three swords that the lancer had gotten him, thanking him as he took them. The lancer asked him whether he needed a vulnerary, which Laslow denied, despite the eternal agony that his body was in from the fall off the cliff. Laslow spat out blood as he strapped the three swords to his belt, two on one side and another on the other. They were useful, the young lancer certainly knew his swords. Steel, silver and a vicious-looking, jagged-edge blade by the name of killing edge. Sounded like one of Odin's ridiculous names, though Laslow knew the sword was renowned for its lethality, so perhaps the name fit.
Laslow thanked the lancer again, before turning back around, beating his ribs in a vain attempt to numb them to the pain. He moved the fingers of his injured hand, checking them carefully, before listening to the sounds of the battle in the distance. Laslow found his bravery once again and ran toward the sounds from the Nohrian garrison, more determined than ever. Round two was about to begin.
Peri
Peri rode through the battlefield and through anyone in her way, a fetish grin upon her face as her lance separated a nearby samurai's head from the rest of his body. Her horse neighed moodily as she directed it around toward anything that moved and skewered her lance though distracted spear fighter's head, helmet and all. Peri removed the lance, letting the blood spray, relishing the wondrousness of it all. This had turned out better than she'd hoped. Not only would they be going to Nestra for some super-duper important meeting, but a whole army of Hoshidans had showed up, ready right as Peri's slaughter itch had met its most agonising. Bloody-faced and smiling ear-to-ear, Peri targeted a samurai who clipped his shoulder upon her lance as he tried to dodge with a backflip. Peri glared at him, and buried her lance within his stomach as he looked up her from her horse-mounted porch above him. Peri giggled as blood spattered about. It was like a bloody wonderland for her.
"One and two and three and four," Peri sang merrily as she swung her newly-drawn sword around as she cantered through the battlefield, lopping off whatever got within her reach. Some brave and stupid oni savage wearing questionable clothing for the wintry conditions charged at her, emitting a loud battle cry, hoisting his club above his head. Peri snickered, before rearing her horse up, causing him to halt his charge, stumbling to a halt in the snow below her horse, before Peri brought her horse and sword down upon him, crushing him, his head giving the most wonderful flattening sound as it went under her horse's hoof.
A whistling caught her ear and a dink sounded near her shoulder. Peri turned around fascinatedly to see an arrow poking out of shoulder, having pierced the armour, yet barely. It didn't hurt, yet Peri looked around for this soon-to-be wrongdoer.
No archers in sight, but a quick look upward showed Nohrian wyvern riders and Hoshidan pegasus whatevers doing battle. Peri smiled appreciatively as a wyvern rider wielding an absurdly broad axe cleaved off the head of a pegasus, the headless corpse and its rider falling to the battlefield below in the distance. That guy deserved a promotion in Peri's eyes.
Peri's eyes now snapped to focus upon a female mounted on a strange golden bird, Hoshidan bow aimed at a wyvern, letting the arrow fly and at once another wyvern crashed into the snow. Peri grinned gleefully. She knew it instinctively. The weird bird woman would be her next victim.
Peri giggled, sheathing her sword, before unsecuring a javelin from the side of her horse and gripping it tightly. Peri hummed to herself as she lined up the javelin to the offending bird woman, twirling the javelin in a casual manner. She broke into a smile as she locked on, ready to let the javelin fly true to dispel this most annoying bird woman.
A shock at her side caused Peri to lose focus, almost dropping the javelin, and Peri turned, looking around, pouting. She resecured the javelin, drawing her steel lance and spun the lance to deflect two incoming stars aimed at her. Peri squinted menacingly at the female ninja who dared interrupt her killing time.
It was the same female ninja that she'd seen before, at the overly-long negotiations, clad in grey and yellow with long raven-coloured hair. Kagey-something, Peri thought. She'd have to do, then. Life simply wasn't fair sometimes.
Peri made the best of a bad situation, and charged toward the ninja, lance drawn, ready to skewer her. The ninja didn't move until the very last minute, where she vanished right before Peri's eyes. Peri pulled her horse to a halt, confused. The ninja had been right there, she was sure of it. Then she wasn't. Peri turned her horse around and gave a yelp as she ducked a shuriken coming for her head. She reemerged, pouting at the ninja who stood there, oh-so serious. Peri charged the ninja again, not taking her eye off of the ninja, would surely get her this time...
The ninja disappeared again. Peri fumed, frustrated. How was she supposed to kill the ninja when she kept disappearing?! Really, the nerve of some people. Out of the corner of her eye, Peri could see another incoming shuriken, and ducked her head. The ninja was just out of range, yet Peri stabbed anyway as a warning blow, before bringing her lance upward, taking a bit of snow with it. She signalled for a small burst forward from her horse before the ninja could recover, and only just missed her with another stab. Peri swung her lance across, yet the ninja dodged it with an immediate duck, hand springing over to get herself out of Peri's range. Peri tore her javelin from its holder and lobbed it forcefully at the ninja.
Another bare miss. Peri charged forward in another stab with her lance at her irritating enemy, only for the ninja to dodge once again. With her free hand, Peri snatched her javelin poking out from the snow, resecuring it, and turning around to face her disappeared opponent. Shurikens flew targetedly toward Peri, and she turned to make herself slim to barely cause the shurikens to miss her. Peri hoisted her lance and charged again at the reappeared ninja, whose face had not changed.
"Stand still this time!" Peri whined irritably. The ninja failed to obey this, and ducked as she dashed forward, leaping up in a flip toward Peri. Peri's eyes widened as she raised her lance and the ninja slashed downward as she flipped through the air over Peri's head, the shuriken slashing against the lance. Something struck Peri in the back with a jolt before she could turn around, and Peri gave a cry. She turned her horse around angrily. No more games now.
Peri charged at the ninja, extending her lance to its maximum range and getting within a hair's breadth of the ninja who dodged in a more desperate manner than before. Peri brought her lance across in a sweep that cut through air with a swish. Peri stabbed forward, this time getting tear at the female ninja's clothing, pulling back and slicing through the yellow cloak she wore. Peri gave the ninja a slasher smile, before she temporarily discarded her lance in favour of drawing her iron sword and brought it down heavily. The ninja blocked it with her shuriken in desperation, her teeth gritted as Peri looked down at her gleefully. The defiant ones were always the best.
Peri started to laugh maniacally as she watched her sword gradually tilt downward toward the ninja, who struggled with her shuriken, clutching it tightly with two hands. Suddenly, the ninja shifted her weight to let Peri through and slipped away from Peri's downward sword. She chucked her shuriken at Peri's face forcefully and Peri's eyes widened. The shuriken glanced right past her exposed eye, piercing her face, and Peri shut her eyes instinctively, feeling blinded, dropping her sword to clutch her wound. Two impacts shot in Peri's back, crunching against her armour, before a more focused and narrow impact exploded in her shoulder. Peri gave a series of screams, nearly biting her tongue, before slumping over her horse. Instinct let her keep a tight grip of the reins to avoid falling off, and Peri tentatively moved the shoulder with two arrows lodged in it. Peri turned around, spitting blood and glaring hatefully at her adversaries.
Not only was the infuriating yellow-clad female ninja she'd fought there, but so was the strange bird-riding lady who'd shot at her twice now. The golden bird had landed on its two skinny legs and gave a squawking roar from its beak at Peri, while the rider, a scar-faced woman, aimed a bow at Peri. The male, one-eyed and surly-looking ninja from before was also there, the one who'd been mean to Lord Xander. Rage coursed through Peri's veins as she stared fiercely at her enemies.
"Your screams was divine," said the bird-riding woman gleefully. "Simply divine." Peri pouted at her.
"Oh yeah?" Peri fired back. "I'll make you scream, and it'll be way diviner!" The bird-riding woman chuckled amusedly, while the male ninja muttered something.
"And they'll be blood!" Peri added in a one-upping manner. "Lots of blood!" That brought her smile back and the bird-riding woman laughed again before letting her arrow fly. Peri ducked it reactively, bending down and snatching her sword, buried in the snow, before repositioning herself and letting loose a cry as she charged at the three Hoshidans. The bird-rider woman's bird thing flapped its wings and soared into the air, a smile upon her scarred face. The two ninjas frustratingly disappeared, as Peri struck with her sword, wheeling her horse around and slashing at a shuriken in mid-air. Peri charged at the male ninja as soon as he appeared, bringing her sword down strongly. The male ninja dodged the blow and continued to evade Peri's repeated sword swings and slashes with a quick series of acrobatics. After a tightly-landed backflip, he charged forward slashing at her horse's legs with his shuriken, causing the horse to rear up and neigh loudly. Peri clutched the reins, almost falling off from the unexpected rear up, catching the ninja incoming toward her. The ninja struck her across the back, scratching his shuriken across a chink in her armour, slicing her flesh. Peri gave another cry as her horse landed and Peri bared through the pain, tearing her javelin from its position and tossing it at the ninja. He dodged it, shooting a shuriken into injured shoulder, lodging it in there. Peri gave a pained growl, before brandishing her sword and charging toward the ninja with a thrust, and he blocked it with his shuriken, ensuring it sailed past his face before he leapt up kicked Peri in the side of the head.
Peri felt low pitched screech around her, hearing nothing else, and felt dazed and confused, barely clutching her sword and the reins. A shuriken to her chest snapped her back into reality. Peri skipped groaning, and ordered her horse forward quickly, catching the ninja off-guard and nearly trampling him as he side rolled out of the way. Another impact in Peri's back and a head turn showed that the female ninja hadn't forgotten her.
Peri turned her horse around, still feeling woozy from the kick, and was now aware her ear was bleeding as the familiar tiny roll of blood dripped down the side of her face. Peri shook her head, trying to focus, sending the blood spattering everywhere. Peri searched for her javelin, yet it was nowhere to be found, probably buried under the snow or a body. Peri attacked the nearest ninja, the female one, with a sword slash, yet the ninja quickly dodged it, and Peri quickly turned to deflect a thrown shuriken from the male. She turned her attention back to the female, deflecting her melee jumping slash and pushing her away. She looked back at the male, only to see nothing.
Then the male ninja emerged like he were shot from a ballista, and aerially charged into Peri, tackling her mid-air. Peri gave a cry as he collided with her, knocking her off of her horse and sending her flying to the ground, rolling in her armour and blood in the snow.
Peri stopped rolling, flopping over on her back, blood running from her ear and mouth, staring up at the dark treetops. That image was cut out as the male ninja appeared, grasping his hand around her throat and lifting her up with that arm, shuriken in the other hand while Peri dazedly looked on, her breath faltering.
Then Peri fell to the ground, sinking into the snow. She rolled her head over to see the male ninja beside her, face down in the snow, though still moving. And then she heard the suave and passionate voice.
"Miss me?"
Laslow
Laslow regretted his heroics once Saizo rolled over through the snow and sprang to his feet, with a one-eyed glare of fury. Maybe the sneak attack and dashing one-liner wasn't the best idea. Laslow raised his steel sword to block Saizo's incoming shuriken attack, parrying the strike and letting the ninja run right past Laslow. Laslow went on the offensive immediately, nearly beheading Saizo when he ducked the swing at the last moment. Laslow thrusted forward with his sword, jabbing at Saizo who dodged with dips and leans, before Laslow swung low, forcing the ninja to jump. Laslow caught him with a foot sweep as he landed, planting him in the snow. Laslow jammed the sword downward toward Saizo's chest, yet was met with snow as Saizo rolled out of the way. Saizo performed several consecutive backflips as he sprang to his feet, getting distance between him and Laslow.
Laslow stood his ground as Saizo leapt high into the air, snarling, "Die!" at Laslow as he came downward like a falling meteor. Laslow could only barely block the crushing blow with his sword, pushing Saizo away with a well-placed kick to his chest. Before Laslow could catch his breath, the familiar whistling sounded in his ears and leapt for cover as two shurikens flew over his head. He scrambled to his feet to see Kagero the one responsible - the female ninja revealing two more shurikens from her sleeves that appeared in her hands. Kagero tossed the first as Laslow ran toward her, halting to dodge the lethal star, before stepping over and spinning his body and bringing his sword around to catch her in the waist. She blocked it shakily, the blades barely missing her waist, before Laslow, wasting no time, brought his sword downward, forcing her to block again. He pressed downward, though Kagero then showed unexpected strength to push Laslow back, almost causing him to fall over. Recovering quickly, Laslow stuck out his hand to her.
"You know, milady," he began, trying not to sound desperate. "I'm certain this matter can be resolved if we simply talk it out. Preferably over a good cup of tea." Laslow smiled at her genuinely, though Kagero seemed to be unamused.
"That ship has sailed," she said tersely. "This was your doing, Nohrian. Your lies and your murderous intent. Hoshido will not stand for it." That wasn't the answer Laslow was hoping for. Even the enemy females refused to go out with him.
"Wait," he said, trying to keep his voice in its friendly, inviting and charming performance. "You and I are the only sane people here. No one needs to die." Kagero glared at him with the kind of look that Laslow recognised. It was when a girl wanted to punch him in the face. Or kick him in the shin. It varied.
"Your compatriot seems to disagree," Kagero said icily. Laslow turned to see Peri, remounted upon her horse, yet still worse for the wear, locked in visceral combat with Saizo, a psychotic grin on her face. Laslow turned back to Kagero, wondering if he should say that Peri is a prisoner being escorted or an unwanted hitchhiker.
"That's-" he started, yet Kagero didn't let him finish the sentence, already in the process of dashing forward, shuriken in hand. Laslow raised his sword quickly, the two steel blades giving a screeching clash. Kagero yet again showed her surprising strength as Laslow felt his feet slip back through the snow. Laslow threw his body to the right, the edge of Kagero's shuriken catching his arm as he flipped sideways out of the blade lock. Laslow adeptly parried Kagero's quick strikes, matching each of her powerful strikes, yet he could see they didn't quite have the finesse of Saizo's. A gap in her offense revealed itself and Laslow took it, Kagero barely blocking his opportunistic blow to her chest. Laslow attacked her proficiently, targeting her weak areas, and landing a few glancing blows to her side.
Out of the corner of his eye, Laslow could see a Nohrian knight, greatshield in hand, warding off a samurai with blow to the gut from his lance. Laslow decided to try something new, and, after landing a glancing slash across Kagero's stomach, cutting her uniform open, he hopped toward the knight's shield. He kicked off of it and flew into the air, spinning his body and his sword. The move caught Kagero off-guard, and Laslow brought his sword down upon her shoulder, likely breaking a few bones.
Kagero gave a cry of pain, and collapsed to her knees, clutching a jagged, bleeding scar across her shoulder. Laslow knew now would be the best opportunity to finish her off, and gripped his sword tightly. He gave a glance around to get a feel of how the battle was going. It still seemed rather even and certainly very bloody for both sides. Laslow blocked a shuriken meant for a dark mage with his shoulder guard, before deflecting a second shuriken before the ninja responsible took had an arrow shot through his head from a hired outlaw. A wyvern rider flew over Laslow's head in hot pursuit of a sky knight, axe at the ready. Laslow's eyes zeroed in on Peri, still battling Saizo. Peri missed with a blow from her steel lance, and Saizo peppered her with shuriken shots, most hitting their target and embedding themselves in Peri's armour. Laslow took a brief look at Kagero, before clenched his sword and ran towards Saizo, ready to slay him with a running stab through the chest. Saizo's good eye caught side of Laslow and he leapt up and rolled over Laslow, who was forced to duck as Saizo used him as a platform to evade his attack. Laslow skidded in the snow, wheeling around and deflected a thrown shuriken with his sword. He moved to attack Saizo, swinging and spinning his sword as Saizo parried them all with frustrating finesse.
Now Saizo attacked Laslow, nailing him with a kick to the side, before dodging to the side as a lance-wielding Peri charged in. Laslow himself only just got out Peri's lance's range, before resuming his battle with Saizo once Peri shot past. Laslow blocked Saizo's strike, gritting his teeth as Saizo leaned in, murderous intent in his one eye.
"You're a coward, Nohrian," Saizo spat savagely. "Your death will not be a gentle one. You and that crazy girl can rot in hell." Laslow couldn't stop himself grinning and firing back at his adversary.
"Well, you have one part right there," Laslow smirked. "I think you two would be a perfect match." Saizo's eye flared with rage, and Laslow's smile fell as the ninja roared angrily and broke away from the blade lock, flipping backward. He then looked upward, and Laslow looked at him, confused, before Laslow heard a sliver of wind behind him. Laslow dived down as an arrow flew over his head, looking up to see Saizo mid-air, ready to impale him while he lay on the ground. Laslow rolled away desperately, trying not to cut himself with his sword while he rolled. He got to his knees right before Saizo attacked him viciously, forcing Laslow to block a hard strike. Laslow rolled backward, briefly feeling the freezing snow coat his hair, before he stood up, shaking his head to release the snow. He blocked Saizo's shuriken attack, and this time he managed to block Saizo's kick with his sword, hearing the ninja emit a growl of pain as he kicked the blade of the sword. Laslow heard the sound of galloping close behind and dived out of the way, catching a glimpse of Peri assault Saizo with a heavy blow from her sword. Laslow scrambled to his feet before he felt the now-familiar feeling of a shuriken shooting itself into his back, wheeling around and being greeted by an unwelcome sight.
Kagero had recovered, still clutching the grievous wound Laslow had inflicted upon her, yet now armed with a jagged-edge throwing knife. Laslow clutched his sword tightly, ready to engage the angry ninja.
An explosion blew snow around battlefield, and Laslow felt himself launched away by the shockwave. Laslow was thrown back, landing in the snow, barely missing colliding with a tree. He looked up, shaking snow and ice from his vision and hair. The place where the explosion had taken place was completely desecrated. It was like Valflame itself had come down. Small patches of flames surrounded the area the explosion had taken place, and all in the area had taken the blast. Likely dead Nohrians and Hoshidans lay scattered about, most of them looking badly burnt. Peri lay facedown near the centre of the blast, in a pool of blood, her purple hair all over the place and messy, her pigtails having come undone while her armour had taken a beating, crunched, cracked and burnt. Her horse also lay nearby on its side, likely dead. Saizo, too, lay bleeding and hopefully dead, on his back, a large hole in his clothes and his exposed chest a black, burnt mark.
Laslow crawled to his feet while he soaked in the apocalyptic scene, wondering what on earth had caused this and whether it would happen again. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Kagero on her feet, mutter a nasty curse under her breath, before running to the ruinous site. Around them, the Nohrian and Hoshidan soldiers had stopped fighting, most with gaping mouths of shock at what had taken place. Laslow watched Kagero rush to the side of Saizo's body, before yelling a command.
Instantly, the ground beneath Laslow exploded, and he let out a cry, though wasn't lifted off of his feet. Instead a wide barrier of smoke rose from the ground, obscuring Laslow's vision and making his eyes water. The smoke reached his throat and he coughed, almost keeled over, dropping his sword. Laslow waved a hand at the smoke as noises ringed in his ears, some sounding human, others not. He waved more, trying to clear it from the air, before it finally started to clear. Laslow blinked rapidly, before noticing the battlefield was now empty. The Hoshidans had completely disappeared, probably having retreated to the wayward fort Kagero had mentioned. Laslow ran a hand through his hair, the confused Nohrian soldiers around him all standing idle, looking to him for what to do. Laslow glanced around, before shrugging.
"Establish a garrison here," he said, his voice sounding more strained than he remembered it. "Retrieve the convoys and tents, and set up here. Anyone who knows how to use a staff, heal the wounded. Then take a break," Laslow added, forcing a smile, which seemed to go over well with the nearest soldiers, a few lancers and fighters dropping their weapons in sweet relief. Laslow sheathed his own sword and caught a glimpse of Peri, still lying in a pool of her own blood, bloodsoaked and burnt. The humanity in Laslow overwrote the number of times she'd tried to kill him and he raced to her side. He knelt down, beginning to strip off her burnt armour when she awoke.
"Laslow!" she said brightly to him, seemingly unaware of the fact there were two arrows poking through her shoulder and that her bleeding body was littered with shuriken cuts. The cynic in Laslow was only slightly disappointed Peri was still alive. Then again, every life counted, even Peri's.
"Did we win?" asked Peri, smiling with blood over her face.
"Um, I think so," answered Laslow. Technically, the Hoshidan army had retreated. Of course, it didn't seem likely they would just give up and let the Nohrians proceed through the White Woods. But they'd cross that bridge when they came to it.
"Yay!" exclaimed Peri. "That was a good workout," she said happily.
"Yeah, sure," replied Laslow uncertainly. He looked around a motioned a troubadour over to him and Peri. She rode her small pony over and dismounted, Laslow moving out of the way while the troubadour checked Peri's wounds. Laslow was tempted to ask her about his still-sore hand, yet the bleeding seemed to have subsided now. In the distance, Laslow could see the convoys incoming. Turning around, he looked in the direction of what he believed would be the Hoshidan fort. Laslow sighed. Hopefully they'd be able to defeat the Hoshidans before Lord Xander arrived. It was likely reports of the battle had reached him by now, yet Xander wasn't the kind to recklessly charge into battle. It seemed Laslow and Peri would be on their own for this one. Unless Peri was deemed too injured to continue. Then it would fall to the hands of Laslow. He sighed again. It was going to be a long day today.
Kagero
Kagero eyed the recently-healed and awakened Saizo with great disapproval. She'd known him a long time, and this wasn't the first time he'd pulled a stunt like this. Yet now Kagero knew he'd gone too far. His large explosion, triggered by hidden pyrotechnics beneath his ninja uniform, had killed members of both armies, and though it was likely he'd slain the sociopathic Nohrian girl, the cost was absolutely unnecessary to both sides. Many Hoshidan soldiers had died in the explosion, being skewered by the ensuing shrapnel. Kagero herself had landed on her injured shoulder when she'd been knocked back by the shockwave of the explosion.
She flexed her recently-healed shoulder uneasily. The shrine maiden had told her it would be completely healed by now, though she could still feel a tingling in it and it was quite stiff and rigid. She remembered how it had happened. The Nohrian commander, Laslow, had kicked off of his own soldier's shield and delayed his attack to strike her at her most desperate. It was both impressive and despicable. And before that, he'd had the gall to try to renegotiate with her. After he'd openly lied. Albeit, the sole evidence he'd lied was from the sociopathic and bloodlusted woman, Peri. Kagero hadn't trusted either of them the moment she'd seen them. Yet she'd given them a chance. And they'd lied to her.
Kagero shook her head and refocused her gaze on Saizo, who had sat up in his bed and was now looking around aimlessly, before focusing his sole eye upon her.
"Hello, Kagero," he said, his thick voice no longer slightly muffled by his mask. It had been blown off in the explosion.
"Saizo," Kagero replied thinly. Then she took a breath, "What were you thinking?" He replied by avoiding her gaze.
"I am always prepared to die in combat," he answered finally, still not meeting her gaze.
"That's not what I'm talking about," said Kagero, drawing a raised eyebrow from her partner. "This conflict could've been avoided. Yet you attacked first and thought second."
"Hmph," replied Saizo. "I knew they were lying. And I was right. They should've never come here. I attacked him before he could attack me."
"And that stunt with the pyrotechnics," continued Kagero. "Was that worth it? Just to kill one of their commanders and a few Nohrian soldiers? At the cost of your own life and our soldiers' own?" Saizo still refused to look at her and, after a few moments, removed himself from the bed. Kagero watched him as he stripped off his ruined and ripped shirt, before he left the room, presumably to his own quarters. She shook her head, before exiting the room herself.
Kagero walked down the hallway, refocusing her mind on the Nohrians, who would surely attack the fort soon. She passed doorways of recovering Hoshidan soldiers, as well as more than a few fresh reinforcements who hadn't been present for the initial attack. They were a valuable advantage they had over the Nohrians. Most of their archers - yumi-wielders who could snipe targets from afar, and diviners - magic-wielders who drew upon the power of spirits in combat through ancient scrolls, had been uninvolved in the conflict, which meant they were plentiful. And now one diviner who Kagero knew well approached her.
"Orochi," Kagero greeted her friend with a smile. Orochi returned it, though hers contained her ever-present mischievous edge.
"Kagero!" Orochi said, clearly elated. "Are you alright? I foresaw you would be involved in a great battle here." Kagero gave a small, forced chuckle.
"I wouldn't call it 'great' but yes, I have," Kagero replied. Then, when she saw her friend's immediate concern, she added, "Don't worry. I'm completely fine." Relief flooded across Orochi's face.
"Delightful!" Orochi exclaimed happily. "And how is my second favourite ninja?" Kagero thought about this for a second, before realising who Orochi was referring to.
"Saizo caused this battle by attacking one of the Nohrian commanders. Even if it was clear they were lying," Kagero replied, casting her gaze away. "Then he triggered his explosives and nearly killed himself." Orochi laughed cheekily.
"Sounds about right," Orochi smirked. "We'd better fix up this mess, shall we?" Kagero nodded.
"I'll assign you command of the diviners division. Focus spirits upon the Nohrian wyverns first, then assist the back ranks. Inform the archers to do the same. Could you also tell Reina to focus on the air at first? Hopefully she and her kinshi bird will be able to give us control of the skies," Kagero finished laying out her orders, and Orochi smiled again, drawing a scroll from her sleeve.
"Yes, ma'am," she said. "I'm sure Reina will be delighted."
Laslow
Laslow wasn't particularly happy when, right in the middle of drafting his letter to the very rear legion to tell Xander everything was going well, Peri burst in, sword in hand, tearing a hole in the entrance to his personal tent. In truth, he almost jumped right out his boots at the sight and only barely withstood the urge to scream in panic and probably lose much of his dignity in the process. Laslow carefully rose to his feet, as calm as he could, unable to take his eye off the glint of Peri's blade and the (many) memories of Peri spontaneously trying to murder him out of sheer boredom.
"LASLOW!" squealed Peri in a voice that Laslow thought would qualify as 'excited'. Then came the last two words Laslow wanted to hear, "I'm bored!"
"Peri..." said Laslow, trying to manage his voice into his usual friendly, charming tone. "Good to see you're feeling better."
"YEP! I feel sooooo much better!" said Peri gleefully. Then her voice changed to a more malevolent one, "And I just realised: I've gone nearly two hours without killing anyone. So I really need to get it out of my system. Right. Now." Laslow felt his hand reflexively go to his sword at his hip, which caused him to remember he wasn't dressed for combat. Fortunately, he'd had some success with talking Peri down from murder before. It had a fifty-percent success rate. Laslow gave a gulp.
"'Now' is a little excessive, Peri, and I'm sure you could use a small rest first," Laslow reasoned, darting his eyes around for the nearest blade he could use.
"Nope!" said Peri with murderous glee. "I'm fine right now and I need to do my thing right now!" Laslow racked his brain to come up with a good excuse that would satisfy Peri. Likely it would have to involve murder. Fortunately, there was an enemy army still in the way of their objective. Even if Laslow didn't feel morally right unleashing Peri upon the Hoshidans.
"I'm glad you're here and saying that, Peri," spun Laslow. "Because we still have a Hoshidan fort to break through on our way to Nestra. And they'll be plenty of soldiers for you to... kill... there. In fact, we'll be marching soon, so we'll probably meet their defenses soon." Laslow really hoped Peri bought this. Her face morphed into an expression of consideration, clearly thinking while Laslow stood before her dumbly, still looking for a nearby weapon.
"Ok, fine..." said Peri reluctantly. "I'll rein it in for now. But we better march soon!" Then Peri made a new hole with her sword in the wall of Laslow's tent and stepped out of it. Laslow looked at the two holes depressedly, before wondering for the thousandth time why Lord Xander had chosen Peri as his retainer.
Now dressed in his military uniform once again, a thick grey shirt and navy vest over it, gloves, pants and boots, as well as an elegantly-crafted shoulder guard on his left shoulder. It had certainly taken a beating during the last battle, though it was still in good use fortunately. Strapped to his belt was a collection of swords, the steel and silver swords he'd used in the last battle, though he'd had them sharpened and oiled a bit to give them a better lifespan. The killing edge he'd found had weighed him down a bit too much and he preferred to be lighter on his feet. He patted the pearl chain attached to his belt and felt a small twinge of homesickness. He wondered how everyone was doing, back home, probably still wondering where he, Owain and Severa were and how they'd seemingly vanished out of thin air. All three of them had promised to tell the others the full story once they returned home. Yet that future still seemed so far away. And it didn't feel like they were any closer to achieving their ultimate goal.
Laslow made his way through the new Nohrian garrison, doing his best to ignore everyone staring at him expectantly, awaiting his orders. He was still getting used to this whole 'commander' gig, and it certainly wasn't easy for him. He now knew the pressure that Chrom and Robin had felt in leading an army, being responsible for every life, every decision counting. It was a pressure he didn't like, and he greatly preferred when it hadn't been him giving the orders.
Laslow shook the thoughts of doubt from his head and resumed his customary smile as he strolled through the assembling soldiers. Yet still the thoughts of doubt persisted in the back of his mind. Every time, telling him how many times he'd nearly died today. And there would be many more times. One might not be nearly.
Laslow reached the front of the army, and caught sight of Peri near him, mounted upon a new horse and in a spare set of armour and greatly cleaned up from her previous wounds. Traces still existed, a faint outline of the scar near her left eye barely visible. She looked at him expectantly and impatiently. He gave her his best reassuring grin, which he'd admit was more for himself. Laslow cleared his throat and faced the army, trying not to let his nervousness show.
"Alright, on the horizon is a Hoshidan fort. If we can break through the fort, we'll be victorious and we'll be able to continue onto Cyrkensia," Laslow spoke, hoping the soldiers would react positively to this. None reacted, and Laslow's nerves grew. "Anyone with armour, protect those less armoured, remember to work together. Fliers; be wary of Hoshidan arrows and spirits, good job repelling the pega- I mean, sky knights last time. Mages, keep the frontlines covered with magic." Laslow finished, hoping this worked. He really wished he hadn't skipped so many strategy meetings in favour of visiting the town to pick up some girls. Especially since he'd somehow been less successful there.
"March!" Laslow commanded and the Nohrian army began its tread toward the fort, Laslow marching near the front. Beside him, Peri was smiling ear to ear in anticipation, and he almost felt sorry for the Hoshidans. The sound of marching feet in the soft snow filled the air, the occasional metallic clank of a weapon ringing out from somewhere. Other than that, it was silent.
Laslow kept his eyes sharp, on the lookout for the Hoshidan fort, or rustling up in the trees. He knew Hoshidan ninja liked to hide up there now. Snow flew gently along the cold breeze, and the trees surrounding the army remained stark and still. The eerie silence was beginning to get to Laslow, and he could tell the soldiers (and Peri) were getting restless from the constant anticipation. Laslow's eyes darted about paranoidly, looking for any trace of an enemy. The wind whistled.
Laslow wheeled around and barely dodged a shuriken aimed at his head. It whistled right over his head, and Laslow's senses went on high-alert. He looked around desperately for the source of the attack, only to be attracted by a scream behind him. He wheeled around to see an armoured knight collapsing, the light leaving his eyes as he slumped over dead. As he fell over, Laslow noticed, embedded in his chest, a small yet extremely sharp, pointed needle-like knife. His eyes widened as he realised what it was, a Hoshidan weapon he'd been debriefed on, known as the sting shuriken. It was specially designed to penetrate heavy armour, and, also commonly featured a fast-acting poison. That was the first bad thing about the current situation. The second was that it meant that the Hoshidans had surrounded them again, and worse, their forces would be made up of ninjas equipped with those lethal knives.
Laslow growled, before remembering he was the commander, barking, "Take cover!" to the Nohrians and diving out of the way as the whistling filled his ears once again. He plunged into the snow face first, before rolling over to see a falling ninja above him. Laslow rolled out of the way and pushed himself to his feet, having no time to draw his weapon before the ninja began slicing away at him with his shuriken. Laslow ducked and dodged before catching the ninja with a well-placed kick, sending him tumbling backward. He drew his steel sword and ran toward the collapsed ninja with it, bringing it down upon him. The ninja responded with a roll to avoid the would-be lethal blow and gave Laslow a shuriken to his ribs for his troubles on his way out. Laslow gritted his teeth through the brief pain and stayed on the offensive, attacking the ninja quickly, before landing a glancing blow upon the ninja. He quickly used this to slash open the ninja's stomach with a ruthless slash. The ninja gave a scream of horror as he collapsed over, continuing to scream as blood rushed out of the wound.
Seeing the ninja suffer like that made Laslow feel sick to his stomach, and he raised his sword to mercifully finish off the ninja. He plunged the blade into the ninja's chest and the ninja stopped moving a few moments later, Laslow withdrawing his sword, looking at the ninja's corpse with pity.
Laslow looked around, realising the bulk of the Hoshidan army had attacked once again, not just the ninjas. Samurais, spear fighters and oni savages had taken to the battlefield and were now making war with the Nohrian lancers, fighters, cavaliers. Above, sky knights clashed with wyvern riders, Laslow catching eye of a scarred Hoshidan woman not riding a pegasus but instead a large golden bird, armed with a yumi, a Hoshidan bow. He briefly recalled the name of the woman's mount, a kinshi, a great mystical bird native to Hoshido. They were apparently extremely difficult to tame and train. The woman's yumi, however, would be the real problem, as wyvern riders were dropping like flies before her.
Laslow ran after the kinshi knight, cautiously avoiding the falling wyverns and their riders as they collapsed and crushed any inattentive soldier, Nohrian or Hoshidan. He watched as a lancer and samurai, locked in combat, were both taken out by a fallen wyvern, the dragon landing with a large splat upon the two men. Laslow sidestepped an incoming spirit in the form of a tiger, roaring at him as he dodged its path. He halted as the kinshi knight turned and swooped low, a naginata poised. His eyes widened as he assumed himself her intended target, though he didn't feel any better when he watched a nearby lancer be skewered by her, blood spraying. Laslow caught a glimpse of her face as she flew by and his stomach dropped when he saw she was clearly enjoying it. He should introduce her to Peri. They'd have a lot to talk about.
Speaking of Peri, Laslow heard her sociopathic laugh in his ears over the sounds of the battle nearby, and turned to see the purple-haired cavalier impaling an unlucky oni savage in the chest with her lance. She withdrew her lance, and beckoned a bloodstained grin at Laslow. He forced a reluctant smile back at her, leaping between her and spear fighter ready to slay her horse, blocking his scooping attack. Laslow traded weapon blows with the spear fighter, the naginata-wielder's superior range giving him an advantage. Hearing galloping behind him, Laslow sidestepped quickly and revealed Peri behind him who gleefully punctured him in the chest with her lance. Laslow turned away from the execution scene and blocked the running spirit of a rat with his shoulder guard. Now he looked up, remembering the kinshi knight.
The arrows came flying in, Laslow racing behind a nearby tree and hearing the dangerous thud of an arrow hitting the tree. He peeked out from behind the tree and raised his sword to deflect an incoming arrow. He hoped a wyvern rider would be able to slay the kinshi knight, yet his hopes for that were dashed as one tried only to miss with a swing of the axe and promptly fall to an arrow to the wing. Laslow cringed as wyvern and rider fell like stones to the snow-covered floor. He turned and blocked a slash from an opportunistic samurai, briefly dueling him, sword and katana clashing and scraping against each other. Laslow surprised the samurai by spinning away from his thrust and cutting through a large portion of his neck with his sword. The nearly-headless samurai was dead regardless and fell into the snow, Laslow cringing as blood spilled out of the large gap in his neck.
He barely had any time to celebrate as he barely avoided another arrow poised for his neck. He shot a look up to see the same kinshi knight, yumi in hand, presumably had her heart set on him. This would normally make Laslow delighted, though it was unfortunate that it wasn't the kind of attention he was after from women. Another arrow scraping against his shoulder guard was what snapped him out of his daydreams.
Laslow whirled around and ducked as a blade flew toward him. The shocked-looking samurai nearby was quickly skewered through the chest by Laslow's sword. Laslow looked at him, wondering why on earth he'd ever throw his sword when he noticed the samurai's katana, poking out of the snow. He picked it, surprised at how light it was, feeling almost weightless in comparison to his heavier steel sword. The katana was much shorter than regular swords, which would make it next to useless in proper melee combat, and the blade didn't look very strong. Laslow thought back to the samurai who'd thrown the sword at him who now lay dead in the snow and realised the sword's true purpose. He glanced up at the kinshi knight above, still raining down arrows upon unlucky Nohrian soldiers and let a smile come upon his lips. He had a plan.
Eying up the kinshi knight carefully, Laslow gave a nervous breath. He hadn't seen how the samurai had properly thrown it, so he was rather in the dark on the sword's proper use. Even so, it couldn't be that hard, could it? Laslow gripped the katana loosely and, keeping his eye on the kinshi knight, he let the katana loose.
He missed. The sword didn't quite fly as Laslow had envisioned it would, flying off at an odd angle and falling woefully short of its target. Laslow stopped a moment to feel rather demoralised, before catching view of Peri. The purple-haired cavalier was in the middle of lobbing a javelin at the kinshi knight which frustratingly missed. Laslow stepped in to block an incoming attack from an oni savage, taking the brunt of the club's blow with his shoulder guard before delivering two hard slashes to his frame. The oni savage fell to his knees and moments later had a hole in his neck from Laslow's sword. Laslow removed his sword from the oni savage before catching a glimpse of another airborne javelin gracefully missing the kinshi knight. Beside him, he heard Peri curse loudly.
Laslow wished he had another of the throwing katanas. Fortunately, it seemed that fate had decided to give him some form of pity today as an eager-looking samurai came at him wielding a regular katana, yet at his side was a second throwing katana. The samurai came at him quickly, Laslow doing his best to parry the fast-paced slashes and slices that came from his katana. The samurai left himself open after a large slash which gave Laslow an opportunity to thrust through his chest, the formerly-confident samurai's mouth opened in shock as he fell facedown into the snow. Taking petty care not touch the blood that was seeping out from underneath the samurai's corpse, Laslow stole the throwing katana, looking around and sidestepping quickly as an arrow came down. Mentally, he tried to better think about how the sword would fly. He nervously held the katana, before shaking away his doubts. He wasn't certain the katana itself would be enough to take down the kinshi knight, so he turned to Peri who was halfway through a spear fighter with her lance.
"Peri, get your javelin ready," Laslow told her, adding urgency to his voice in the hope she'd listen. Surprisingly, this worked and Peri withdrew her steel lance and plucked a javelin from her supply. Laslow nodded to her and focused on the kinshi knight, praying that the katana would fly how he wanted it to. He took a breath and threw.
The good news was that the katana managed to hit the kinshi knight. The bad news was that it barely seemed to do anything. In fact, the kinshi knight looked downright insulted. Laslow was suddenly aware she was staring at him and it was the kind of piercing gaze that made stared through a man's soul. He took a step back, before the kinshi knight hoisted a naginata and flew toward him. Arrows were obviously too good for him. Laslow tore his steel sword from his belt and quickly braced himself for the impact, praying the block wouldn't leave him too damaged.
A cry sounded out and Laslow looked up as the kinshi knight flew over his head, her naginata not taking off his head. Laslow whirled around as the kinshi itself flapped one of its wings uselessly and crashed into the snow, skidding and knocking out several warring soldiers battling. He turned and saw Peri, javelin missing from her hand, and came to the rather surreal revelation that Peri had saved his life. Peri had saved someone's life. Laslow turned to Peri, his best forced grin on his face and gave her thanks. Peri beamed at him brightly and turned to the crashed kinshi knight. Laslow turned around as well and, sword still in hand, approached the downed kinshi. The poor animal was in bad shape, its wing crooked and bent at a horribly awkward angle and its cawed softly, wracked with pain. Laslow honestly felt sorry for the poor thing.
He felt less sorry once it reared up on its hind legs, using its wings for support and screeched at him before trying to bite off his head. Laslow stumbled back to dodge its deadly beak before slashing at its beak with his sword. He gave a second slash and savagely slashed its throat, almost beheading it. The kinshi gave a last screech before falling to the ground, dead, and Laslow looked at its corpse grimly before turning to its injured-looking rider. Her ankle was twisted unnaturally, probably as a result of the crash, and she looked at him fiercely, daring him to do it. Laslow was about to make good on it when a familiar impact struck him in the back, forcing him onto his knees. As he watched on while his body told him exactly how much the shuriken lodged in his back hurt, sigils appeared on the ground beneath the kinshi knight and she disappeared in a flash of light. Laslow cursed under his breath before something grabbed the back of his neck and turned him around, clutching him by the throat. And he looked into the eyes of the perhaps the last individual he wanted to see.
Eying Laslow fiercely, Saizo gave the mocking line, "Miss me?". Laslow did not appreciate the irony.
Peri
The annoying yellow-clad female ninja had returned for a second round against Peri. Good. Peri was quite determined to murder this ninja. Especially by stabbing. There would be blood. Oh, there would be blood.
Peri raised her lance and directed her new horse around to face the ninja before charging at her, lance extended. The ninja dodged adeptly, rolling to the side, Peri bringing her lance across to to pursue the agile ninja, the tip of the lance flashing dangerously near the ninja's face. The ninja avoided this with a series of acrobatics, hand springing backward out of Peri's range. Peri's horse had to recover for a second, and gave a loud, frustrated neigh. The ninja took this moment to toss another shuriken Peri's way. Peri brought the reins across and her horse spun to dodge the incoming shuriken, though this seemed to do little to dissuade the ninja, as she launched a second shuriken at Peri that hit its target. The shuriken slammed flat end first into Peri's armoured chest, almost winding her from the impact. Peri couldn't help but wonder how the ninja got that strong.
Peri drew her sword and galloped with her horse toward the ninja at great speed. The ninja seemed surprised by this, only barely sidestepping Peri's downward slash. Peri continued to attack, the ninja frustratingly dodging at every turn, somehow seeming even faster than when they'd fought last. Her frustration was starting to build at the fact that she just couldn't seem to hit the speedy ninja. The ninja now attacked back, employing a twisting flip maneuver when Peri's sword met her shuriken to flip the sword out of Peri's grip. Peri gave a squeal as she brought the reins across to dodge the ninja's leaping pounce, before taking out her steel lance again and charging at the ninja. The ninja barely recovered from her miss in time to dodge, the lance's tip scraping against her shoulder, drawing a gasp of pain from the ninja. This made Peri happy, though the lack of blood was a real downer. More work then.
Peri brought her lance's blade across, almost beheading the ninja who ducked the swing. The ninja rushed forward, evading a second swing from Peri's lance, and disappeared from Peri's peripheral vision. Peri looked around, trying to find the ninja, who'd seemingly vanished into the thick of the battle that raged around her. She pouted when her searches revealed nothing. She could just scream right now. The ninja had consistently eluded her and Peri was downright furious at this. It was like trying to fight a ghost or something.
Something came into Peri's vision. Though it more resembled a ghostly figure than an actual human. It was a freakishly huge purple head... thing that was coated in magic's ethereal aura. Peri's eyes widened as it came toward her and she braced herself for the impact, raising an armoured gauntlet to block it.
It collided with Peri, giving off an explosion of magical energy and rattling Peri's armour. However, it actually wasn't that bad overall. Her horse seemingly hadn't been harmed either. Peri raised her sword, feeling slightly shaken, yet not that bad. Peri caught a despondent-looking mage in the distance, garbed in light spiritualist clothing, various beads and trinkets covering her body with a white singlet and blue pants. Her long hair was done up in a strange fashion, in a bun of sorts that confused Peri to no end. Mage and Hoshidan fashion sense was weird. The mage held the cards of a scroll that had probably summoned the giant purple head that had attacked Peri. Giving the mage a slasher smile, Peri decided that this mage would do as far as murder went.
Peri charged toward the mage, sword pointed. The mage seemingly attempted to get out of Peri's path, but Peri was faster. She came right over the mage, grinning all the way. She brought the sword down on the mage, only to clang against metal instead of human flesh. Peri looked down, confused, only to see the absurdly frustrating female ninja had saved the mage from her grisly fate. This annoyed Peri, though on the other hand, the female ninja had revealed herself again. Now was the perfect time to kill her. Peri swung with her sword again, colliding with the ninja's shuriken which scraped against the blow to redirect it. Peri reared up on her horse and stabbed her sword downward toward the ninja, who deflected it with another clash of steel. She continued her assault, driving down the lance fiercely on her enemy, centimetres away from contact. The mage spoke something before her cards levitated and spun in the air in front of Peri. From the circle the cards made emerged a brightly burning orange shape that collided with Peri almost point blank. It stunned Peri, almost causing her to topple off her horse before the ninja, taking advantage of Peri's stunned state, attacked with a forceful leaping pounce. The ninja slashed across at Peri, the shuriken leaving a slash across Peri's armour. Peri's horse stumbled back, Peri herself nearly falling off from the impact of the blow. The ninja struck again, leaving a savage cut in the side of Peri's armour. Peri could feel herself weakening from the repeated shuriken blows, swinging wildly with her sword, getting nothing but air. The ninja leapt into the air, before the sound of a weapon clash sounded out. At first, Peri thought instinct had somehow kicked in, though then saw that it was Laslow who had intervened.
Laslow's sword and the ninja's shuriken wrestled against each other in a blade lock, before the ninja broke it with an attempted kick to Laslow's head. He saw it coming and ducked it before sweeping the ninja, causing her to fall back into the snow. The mage summoned the orange spirit that Peri now saw resembled a horse and the spirit made it's way for Laslow. Peri stepped in, slashing the spirit in half with a swing of her lance, before turning back to see Laslow battling the female ninja again. Peri reached for a javelin that was attached to her saddle and brandished it, ready to strike. Waiting for the right moment, Peri threw it strongly right as the ninja dodged another of Laslow's strikes, catching her by surprise and allowing Laslow to land a blow on the ninja, catching her shoulder with a sharp thrust. A shuriken flew in that slammed against Laslow's shoulder guard, Peri noticing first that the one-eyed male ninja had returned to the battle. She dashed toward him with her horse, lance poised to thrust, barely missing him as he shifted backward to evade. Immediately afterward, Laslow came in from the air to strike the ninja with an aerial downward slash across the torso. Peri signalled with the reins and shot forward afterward with her lance extended to impale the ninja through the shoulder with her lance, erecting a deep curse of anguish from him as he was taken off his feet and landed in the snow, facedown, blood pooling from beneath him as he moved very little. Laslow came up beside Peri, running a hand through his hair and giving a sigh.
"I think that might be all of their commanders," he said, sounding relieved. He gave another sigh, before Peri heard something nearby. She turned and saw the orange magical horse on a charge toward both her and Laslow. Peri had nearly forgotten about the pesky mage who's magic hadn't affected her like the mage had hoped. She rode up in front of Laslow, who was beginning to turn around to see the magical horse charging toward him and raised his sword instinctively. Peri sliced through the spirit as it came at her with her spear, destroying it. Quickly, before the mage could recover, Peri took a javelin from the side of her saddle and threw it at the mage. It mostly found it's target, taking a bit out of the lowly-clothed mage's shoulder, causing her to collapse with a scream and for her cards to fall into the snow, her wound bleeding heavily. Peri giggled excitedly at the sight, and turned back to Laslow, a gleaming smile on her face.
"Got her!" Peri said triumphantly. Laslow stared at her awkwardly, before recovering to his usual persona.
"Yes, you 'got her'. Thanks, Peri," he said, in a half-hearted congratulatory manner. Peri beamed at him, happy he seemed to appreciate her efforts. Laslow turned around and began to walk to the barely-moving body of the male ninja, sword drawn. Peri rode up next to him, lance in hand.
"Ooh, can I do it? Can I do the stabby?" she asked eagerly. "Please?" Laslow briefly glanced over at the ninja.
"Knock yourself out," he approved after a brief sigh. It was at these moments that Peri quite liked Laslow. He always seemed more willing to let her do the murder. What a gentleman.
Peri rode up beside the ninja, lance ready to stab him. Killing time was always the best time for Peri. There was something greatly exciting about it, it never got old for her. That, she thought, was the mark of something truly great.
The explosion was so sudden, no one could've seen it coming. It felt like being electrocuted by magic, yet was different as well, like being cut by a sword a thousand times. Peri was shot off of her horse and crashed into the snow, blood in her mouth, fading in and out of consciousness as she lay on her side in the snow, barely aware of what was going on. Her vision blurred and all sound was replaced by a high screech that started to fade as mumbling filled her ears. Peri rolled over onto her back, delirious, as she started to feel more and more tired.
Laslow
Things had gone from relatively positive to unabashedly terrible in the blink of an eye for Laslow. The lightning-like explosion that might have just killed Peri had been so loud and stunning that a lot of the fighting around him had stopped, as both Nohrian and Hoshidan soldiers simply stopped to gape in awe as an imposing figure stepped forward.
Stepping into the light, Laslow realised who they were dealing with now. Adorned in red, white and gold and cutting a grandiose figure, the tall man had dark brown hair that was supported by a scarlet, royal crest. More of the long, wild brown hair flowed down behind him. Over red light-weighted armour that was no less expertly crafted and emblazoned with gold edges, he wore a white coat that matched the colour of the snow that continued to fall, even with his arrival. At his side, in his brown gloved hand, was a katana, though this was no ordinary weapon. Its hilt was white and gold and its blade an ivory silver that continually buzzed with yellow lightning. Laslow had heard its name whispered in hushed fearful reverence before, along with its wielder, and knew that he was currently looking at the legendary weapon Raijinto. Which meant that only one person could be standing before Laslow right now.
High Prince Ryoma of Hoshido had arrived.
Just thinking the name sent a shiver down Laslow's spine. When he'd been briefed on Hoshido, the enemy nation of Nohr, Prince Ryoma had been identified as the biggest obstacle to overcome in combat. A powerful swordmaster who was made even more powerful by his legendary blade Raijinto, he was said to have completely wiped out entire legions of soldiers before singlehandedly. Few had lived to tell the tale after being involved in a battle against him, and most of them had been shaken to the core by his strength. Most chillingly, they'd compared it to witnessing the wrath of the gods themselves.
Laslow was suddenly aware that his clutch on his blade was slipping as he stared down the High Prince of Hoshido himself. Ryoma caught his eye and Laslow blinked for a split second as his gaze pierced him. He opened his eyes and instinct told him to move, move fast. Laslow did, sidestepping quickly, witnessing a burst of lightning erupt where he'd once been standing when he turned around. Laslow looked at the spot, aware that Ryoma had thoroughly intended to electrocute him. The wounds he'd already taken during the battle, the shurikens that remained ever-present in his back and the cuts around his body, made themselves known, and Laslow was suddenly aware that he'd stand next to no chance against Ryoma sword to sword. Maybe he liked to talk, Laslow thought hopefully.
Laslow opened his mouth to begin only for Ryoma to speak first.
"Nohrians!" he boomed thunderously. "Surrender now, and you will remain unharmed. Refuse, and you will have sealed your own fate." That was all he needed to say. He didn't seem to be very open to negotiation. Laslow hoped sincerely he might be able to change his mind. Summoning all of the courage he could, Laslow stepped forward gingerly and Ryoma eyed him with a daggered, distrustful stare.
"Um, hello," Laslow began awkwardly, nervous beyond all belief. "Um, there's been a bit of a misunderstanding here." A blackhearted part of Laslow was glad Peri wasn't here to interrupt him this time in negotiations. He glanced at what might be her corpse briefly, before turning back to Ryoma, "We're just passing through the White Woods here. We meant for no conflict to occur, and this battle was the result of a brief misunderstanding between myself and your subordinates." Then, swallowing his and probably the entirety of Nohr's pride as well, "We sincerely apologise for the inconvenience." A quick glance around showed Laslow that a lot of the Hoshidan soldiers were giving him brutal glares. Looking back at Ryoma showed the same thing. The Hoshidan prince obviously didn't believe Laslow for a second.
"Who are you?" questioned Ryoma sharply.
"My name's... Laslow," Laslow answered uncertainly. "But that's not important," he backpedalled. "All we want to do is pass through the White Woods."
"Tell me your destination," ordered Ryoma, still glaring through Laslow, who felt like he was going shatter at any moment under the High Prince's pressure.
"Cyrkensia, Nestra," Laslow answered. "We are attending a performance in the Opera House." Laslow prayed that Ryoma would swallow this lie without question. He didn't.
"I have heard of no performance scheduled in the Opera House for today. Or in the week, for that matter," Ryoma answered coldly. Laslow's heart dropped. It was either a bluff, or he'd actually checked the timetable. Laslow decided to bank on the former.
"Um, yes there is, in fact," he lied, trying to hide his shock from Ryoma. Laslow caught a glimpse of Ryoma's hand tightening on Raijinto and knew that the negotiation was about to go south very quickly.
"No there isn't," said Ryoma, before slashing his katana upward. Laslow used his sword to block the attack and Ryoma attacked him with lightning speed, his katana slicing and slashing in a blur. Laslow desperately deflected what blows he could and felt the ones he didn't slash against his flesh. Around him, he heard the battle reengage, as the sound of metal, magic and screams filled the air. Laslow found himself caught in a blade lock by Ryoma as Raijinto buzzed with electricity while the blades screeched against each other. Gripping his sword with both hands, Laslow wrestled against Ryoma for control, before Ryoma pushed forward with supernatural speed and strength, sending Laslow flying off his feet. Laslow landed on his back deep in the snow and instinctively rolled over as soon as he could. He pushed himself to his feet to see Ryoma withdrawing Raijinto from the snow where he'd been. Ryoma shot forward with a thrust that Laslow managed to parry, before parrying more of Ryoma's lightning-quick slashes and slices, each time a metallic clang sounding off as the two blades connected. Laslow ducked a horizontal slice before taking a kick to the face from Ryoma that sent him rolling back onto his back. Laslow rolled through and staggered onto his feet, shaking off the kick and preparing himself for another attack. It came quickly, as he stepped back while parrying Ryoma's quick strikes, blocking any he could with his shoulder guard. One precise downward slice from Raijinto Laslow caught with his shoulder guard, feeling the impact and the crack against it, though he used it to try and throw Ryoma off balance. Laslow attacked Ryoma with only two strikes that Ryoma acrobatically dodged with a series of impressive flips, before Ryoma dashed forward and slashed across, forcing Laslow to defend himself again. Laslow blocked and parried more of Ryoma's strikes as they came flying at him as he tried to keep himself alive. He stumbled backward after blocking a heavy blow from Ryoma and found himself pressed against a tree. Laslow ducked as he saw Raijinto coming for him and rolled forward, brandishing his sword as he turned to see Ryoma with Raijinto embedded in the tree. Briefly, Laslow thought this was the opportunity he needed. But his hopes were dashed as he watched Ryoma tear Raijinto from the tree, slicing its trunk in half in the process. Laslow watched, unsettled, as the tree began to fall, before realising it was falling toward him.
Laslow sidestepped the tree, the fallen trunk crashing into the snow with a mighty thud, before Ryoma was on him again. He blocked more strikes with his shoulder guard and sword in tandem, before getting in a few brief strikes before Ryoma's speed forced him to go on the defensive once again. He blocked a crushing blow from Ryoma with his sword, the two blades screaming against each other in a metallic shriek. In the blade lock, Laslow pushed with all his depleted strength could muster. Yet it was clear that Ryoma was both stronger and faster. For the second time, Laslow found himself easily shoved to the ground, landing on his back. He rolled over quickly and rose to his feet, keeping his eyes on Ryoma. Ryoma flicked Raijinto and squatted briefly. The action confused Laslow, before, seconds too late, he realised what was coming.
The lightning shock was agonising. Laslow felt nothing else except the electric pain through his body for a few seconds, before somehow hazily coming to. He felt around with his hands, realising he was lying on the ground, in the snow, before remembering Ryoma.
Laslow rolled over quickly and crawled to his feet, suddenly realising his sword was no longer in his hand. His blurred vision began to form actual shapes, and the red one was now coming toward him. Laslow sidestepped Ryoma's lunge instinctively, before his hand automatically went to one of his backup swords, the silver sword. He pulled it from its sheath and it clashed against Ryoma's incoming attack, Laslow's mind still spinning and struggling to focus on what was happening. His body moved naturally, undirected by his mind, to block Ryoma's attacks lazily, before Laslow snapped back into reality.
Laslow parried Ryoma's strikes desperately, his brain overflowing with newly found information that threatened to make his head simply pop. He was still shaking off the haze from the burst of lightning Raijinto had unleashed on him, though he was clearer than he had been moments ago. Laslow used all of his strength to bash away Ryoma's strikes, and, after deflecting a hard strike from the High Prince, Ryoma looked legitimately surprised at Laslow's second wind. Laslow didn't waste Ryoma's moment of hesitation, and attacked Ryoma ferociously, the Hoshidan prince dodging and flipping out of Laslow's sword's reach. He didn't let up his attack though, and continued swinging the silver sword at Ryoma, coming dangerously close to making contact with the Hoshidan prince at times. This started to fill Laslow's heart with hope. If he could get one touch on Ryoma, maybe he could pull off a miracle. If Ryoma was defeated, the victory would almost certainly belong to the Nohrians. Newly motivated by this prospect, Laslow ignored the tiredness that filled his muscles with the weight of the silver sword and continued his attack. He was swinging it with less and less finesse each time though, and Ryoma was dodging easier and easier.
Finally, Ryoma countered with a surprise thrust that caught Laslow near off guard. He barely dodged the stab, before Ryoma attacked him with a pair of quick slices that Laslow failed to block effectively. Ignoring the new cuts freshly made on his unguarded shoulder, Laslow attacked with slashes and thrusts again, which Ryoma once again dodged with relative ease. Laslow struck with a downward slash that Ryoma dodged with a backflip before Ryoma squatted and Laslow could see the focus in Ryoma's eyes.
Ryoma then shot forward and struck faster than Laslow could even see. Laslow didn't know how many times he was hit, only that they hurt. Ryoma slashed and sliced away at Laslow's frame, before violently kicking him in the chest that made Laslow almost fall over from the impact. The Hoshidan price wasn't done and he gave Laslow a final savage slash across his entire torso. Laslow was knocked back into the snow from this last hit that was a lot harder than the rest, and he lay in the snow, a pool of blood forming around him. He choked out breaths, trying to keep himself alive as the blood ran out of him, particularly from his torso. But he was still alive. For now. Laslow rolled over onto his stomach and struggled to get to his feet, barely aware of the fact that his sword had left his hand once again. He reached his knees, one hand trying to stop the bleeding from the intense cut on his torso while he spat out blood before looking up, trying to see where Ryoma was.
He met the point of Raijinto, its blade stained with blood - his blood, looking down the sword at its owner, who looked at him steely eyed. Laslow coughed, wondering how to accept the reality that his death was moments away. Ryoma kept the blade pointed at him, looking at him seriously.
"Good," he said in a faintly impressed voice. "But not good enough. A shame one as skilled as yourself fights for Nohr. And feels the need to lie." Ryoma didn't hide the contempt in his voice on the last word, and Laslow kissed any chance he had of surviving this encounter goodbye. Ryoma raised Raijinto, and Laslow braced for the end.
