"I DO FEAR DEATH! I DO-" Allen's sudden outburst shocked Allessa to life, both caught in an interchange of all manner of fearful, incoherent cries not worthwhile (nor even remotely possible) to repeat.
After the two had concluded their banter of screams perpetuated purely by the other's scream, they finally took an awkward moment to survey their surroundings.
Clearing his throat in an endeavor to preserve what little masculinity Allessa perceived in him, Allen thanked whatever God there was his helmet was still on to conceal his crimson blush. "Ahem, yes, well." he stood up, drawing his blade. "What manner of sorcery is this?"
His manly way of saying, "Where the heck are we?"
With little time to wonder, a ghastly fiend of sorts emerged from around the stone corner, shrieking an atrocious, almost pitiful cry.
His knightly training clicking into gear, Allen at once engaged it, raising his shield to block the brute's savage blow. Allessa gasped, fear chaining her in place as the two stood interlocked in a test of strength. With trained speed, Allen bashed the humanoid monster with his steel aegis, stunning it just enough for him to perform a series of expert slashes, showering him in red as the creature slumped to the ground.
Allessa could naught but watch, horrified, staring mouth agape, first at the monster, then to Allen, who sheathed his sword as coolly as he had dispatched the foe.
Silence drew on, almost in recognition to his victory.
Then, Allen slumped suddenly to his knees before his dead opponent.
"Allen?!" Allessa dropped the halberd she clenched, overcoming her fear enough to hasten to the knight's side.
"I... I'm alright..." Allen looked at his shaking hands, awash with the blood of the monster.
Examining the creature, it appeared much like a man, albeit thin and pale to an unnatural degree. It wore armor not unlike a soldier, but it's face was drained of all semblance of humanity.
Was this thing once human...?
"I've... never killed anyone before." Allen's weak voice was barely audible through his helmet.
Allessa spared another glance to the creature. "I don't think you have yet. That... thing isn't human. It can't be..." her voice trailed off, half attempting to convince herself more than him.
Clenching his fists, Allen pushed to his feet. "Come on, I've wasted enough of our time."
Allessa thought she detected a tinge of guilt laden in his gruff words.
As suddenly as his episode had started, he was off, longsword in hand once again.
Still struggling to sort her thoughts, Allessa followed by absentminded reflex. How did they even get here? What was that thing? And that voice... she heard it clear as day just before blacking out, unlike the faded whispers that had guided her hence. Come to think of it... did Allen hear it too..?
She at last caught up to said Allen, who marched onward with an uncharacteristic determination. "Slow down! We don't even know where we're going!" Allessa reprimanded, staring with innocuous awe as he cut down another of the monstrous creatures deft as though he'd done it a thousand times before.
"All the more reason to keep moving." Allen kept his pace, armor jolting his body with each step.
Allessa followed close behind, a holy talisman clasped against her armored chest. These creatures Allen fought seemed human in most aspects... they even wore the armor of proper Boletarian soldiers. What could possess trained soldiers to attack them so...?
They continued on in silence, not wanting to give themselves away, of course, but more for the fact they were both engrossed in thought. Allen's training had kicked in again, overriding any lingering doubts or fear with his banausic machinations, calculating every move with a precision beat into him from nigh endless hours of training.
Glance left, then right, listen for anything suspicious; watch the corners, round them on the far side, shield up... Wait! What's THAT?! Oh, just Allessa.
His mind checked off each step, duteously repeating them at every corner.
Allessa, in turn, feared any noise on her part might spur the knight to turn and run her through purely from his soldierly instinct. Still, this hypervigilance of his allowed her some freedom to think and observe. The labyrinth in whence they trudged was... off, crooked, somehow. Giant cauldrons bubbled with a sickening brew she dared not speculate upon, but judging from the blood crusting its edges, she ventured it to be an offering to whatever terrible demon ruled here. The place itself seemed to be—or, used to be, more like— a sort of castle, or fortress perhaps, with spiraling wood staircases eaten away by decay and neglect; long decrepit hallways shivering with unnameable, aberrant malice... In any case, she could only pray they made it out alive—something of a habit she'd developed since the fog's siege began, more so since she'd entered it.
They proceeded on through the halls of perpetual stony grey, Allen's frightful, nigh atavistic skill proving more than enough to slay the sentries posted.
Allessa hated seeing him like this, those blue-green eyes dilated in wild savagery, running on pure instinct, however well trained it was; his body twitching with uncanny reactivity to every sight and sound. But that wasn't the only thing off about him. Why was his armor so dented, so worn—as if it'd seen a hundred battles? Didn't he say he hadn't killed anyone before...?
Allessa just about collided square into Allen as he came to an abrupt halt. Ever ready to lecture him, she very nearly did so before realizing his reason for stopping.
A knight ahead, more heavily armored than the rest, more so than even Allen himself; it's eyes were aglow an unnatural azure hue, gleaming with a power that impelled even Allen in all his cold reticence to stop and strategize.
"Looks tougher than the others... More armor... And glowing eyes can't be a good sign..." Allen voiced his jumble of flitting thoughts between breaths, half for his own sake and half for Allessa's as he scanned the sentinel for weaknesses.
Several grueling moments crawled by.
"Hm." he finally surmised.
Allessa turned to him in eager anticipation to whatever ingenious plan he might conjure from his trained evaluation—from the strategic mind of such a peerless knight.
Allen's stance slackened. "I got nothing."
Allessa's shoulders, hunched with enthusiasm and hands clasped likewise; dropped—just like her hopes. "...Seriously?" She resisted the overpowering urge to smack him.
"Latrian knights are trained to fight, not study." he shrugged.
"Oh Mird..." Allessa sighed.
Her saintly way of saying, "We're screwed."
A sharp gasp emanated from Allen's helmet. "Okay, I have a plan." he glanced back at the knight, ensuring he still hadn't detected them. "Alright," he clapped his gauntlets together, apparently sure in his newfound stratagem.
"This should prove interesting..." Allessa fought back a chuckle.
"You bash his shield with your halberd from a distance. I'll protect you with my shield if he gets too close, and once there's an opening, I'll strike." His sharp animations in laying out the plan expressed his conviction quite well.
Pride gleamed in his visored eyes as he awaited his companion's say on it.
The blood suddenly drained from her face, eyes widening as a cold chill shivered through her body. "I... kind of..." her gaze darted about as her paling complexion flushed to crimson. "...forgot my halberd." she winced, pulling down her helmet over her red face.
Allen's entire body sagged with despair at the revelation. "You... forgot your halberd?! Your only weapon?" his gestures were exaggerated, even borderline dangerous, from his flailing blade and shield. "Do they train Temple Knights to be useless?!"
Smacking away the gesturing blade with an armored gauntlet, Allessa wasted no time in firing back, "It's only because I was worried about you, stupid!" her blush spread ear to ear, a dark curl of hair peeking from her now almost cutely misaligned helmet.
"Well, you shouldn't-"
Her amber eyes widened, looking past him, "Allen! Behind you!"
The blue-eyed knight, apparently having grown tired of the escalating squabble, now charged square towards the two, Allen at the fore.
His battle instincts sparked to life, adrenaline pumping through him, the world sharpening to peak clarity.
But it wasn't fast enough.
The blue-eyed knight's blade sunk into Allen's armor. Leaping back in an already failed attempt to dodge the thrust, Allen pushed through the pain as he swung his blade in desperate attempts to counter his foe. His blade met only the unyielding steel of the knight's shield with thunderous clashes.
"Not good... Bleeding... Have to end this quick..." Allen hinged his shield to his back, bringing down his blade with both hands against the shield arm of his opponent again and again. Drained of its stamina as well as its patience, the azure knight gauged a slash, nicking the grooved edge of Allen's chestplate as he backstepped. Weary as he was himself, Allen collapsed against the wall, his extremities growing cold as he felt the sticky warmth of blood seeping onto his clothes.
He looked up at the knight, blurry to his fading vision and narrow visor, lacking the strength to escape. Allen could've sworn he heard a hollow chuckle as it raised its sword to finish him. This was it, his coup de grace, his final act. He was sure of it.
Yet he could not but help his resignation's turning to spite. How could he have been so careless? Maybe it was Allessa's fault... Yes, yes that was it. But to let such a feeble foe best him? And for such a failed act of self-sacrifice!
He couldn't die. Not now, not yet... He wasn't done... Was this really the end?