Chapter 11
In which defeat is imminent.
Ryonai weaved around the wounded as they awaited treatment from the healers with an angry look on his face. They'd come to rest in a grove of palm trees, near a pool of fresh water. Everyone was battle weary already, their energy spent trying to fend off forces greater than their own. The casualties were few luckily, and mostly from Catalyst's side.
"What do you mean you're pulling out?" he demanded angrily, coming to stop in front of Inderhoven. He knelt beside a Dark Elf ranger who went by the name Morning Star, talking to her in a low voice as his girlfriend Espy healed a burn wound on her shoulder. Inderhoven glanced up at Ryonai before excusing himself politely from Morning Star's conversation and stood.
"It means what it sounds like. We can't win this with our current numbers, and I sure as hell refuse to fight alongside Catalyst. We'll get targeted by every major alliance that's out there if we continue." Inderhoven said seriously, walking away so the women wouldn't hear their conversation.
"I never cared about who hated who for what reasons; they're a powerful group, even this tiny slice of them and we need the extra firepower." Ryonai said heatedly, glaring at the older man. Inderhoven sighed heavily and shook his head.
"We can't do this Ryonai, I'm sorry. I'll give my clan a choice, but I think most of them feel the same way." He gave Ryonai an apologetic look and patted him on the back before turning away and rejoining his girlfriend and Morning Star. Ryonai groaned deep in his throat and gripped his hair, upset with this turn of events.
"Leading a clan's not all it's cracked up to be, huh?" Leon asked, leaning against the trunk of a palm tree. Ryonai sighed and shook his head, too aggravated to answer his old classmate.
"I never understood the politics behind who hates who for simply being what they are. Nobody but the clan we're fighting should be upset that we're siding with this Catalyst clan, because they're the only ones who have a right to be." Ryonai said in aggravation. Leon shrugged, and then pushed himself away from the trunk.
"Petty clan politics. It's the way of the world." He said with a shrug, as if it explained everything.
"Hey Ryonai, we need to come up with a better plan." Damascus called. Vlad stood next to him with a scowl, obviously they'd been talking about something that didn't go in a positive direction. Ryonai nodded, knowing that a new plan had to be made to adjust the decrease in numbers both from death and Forgotten Order's retreat. He waved lightly to Leon, ending their conversation, and jogged over to the two battle-hardened men.
"Leon, can I talk to you for a minute?" Sharmin called as she approached him shyly. Leon, mid step back in the direction of Tithania's recovery spot, turned to look at her with eyebrows raised. She fidgeted nervously in front of him, wanting to get what was on her mind into the open so she would stop concentrating on it.
"What is it?" he asked gently. Noticing her fidgeting, he smiled nervously and pointed to a patch of bushes. "I think that's where they decided the ladies room was." He offered. Sharmin stopped fidgeting and stared at him in shock, color slowly rising in her face.
"No! That's not it!" Sharmin almost shouted, embarrassed that he'd think her nervous squirming was an urgent need for the bathroom. Leon didn't bother to hide his relief, and smiled at her normally.
"What is it then?" he asked. "I don't want to rush you, but I really need to go see how Tithania's doing…" This was all Sharmin needed to secure her nerve, and she took a breath of air.
"What is your relationship to her?" she asked in one breath. The smile melted from Leon's face into a look of surprise, and he blinked at her several times, unable to comprehend her question.
"Why do you ask?" he inquired, his expression unreadable. Sharmin glanced away from his blue eyes to stare at the sand below their feet. She shifted in it, making a little hole with her heel. Seeing her from a distance, Gatz approached with a frown, never liking to see her standing near Leon. He had just made it to the tree several feet behind her when she finally found her voice again.
"Because I love you!" she said louder than intended. Leon's surprised look softened and his lips parted slightly. Hearing her words Gatz froze and plastered himself to the trunk of the tree, out of sight. He suddenly felt sick to his stomach and was stricken with the disbelief that she still liked him, after all of this time. "I've always loved you, since I first saw you as a girl on Talking Island." She looked up at him hopefully, her eyes shining. The smile of knowing and acceptance that she had hoped would be on his face was not, and her heart fell as he smiled sadly at her.
"I'm sorry." Was all he said before walking away, returning to Tithania's side. Sharmin stared at him as he left, suddenly feeling very cold. She swallowed hard against the lump in her throat and let out a short laugh.
"Of course…I should've known." She said, mentally kicking herself. Years of building herself up to be close to him suddenly crashed down around her, and she rushed away from the group to the edge of the plateau. All of those years, all of that pain…she never truly wanted to be a swordswoman, not really. She just wanted to be close to Leon, to be a part of what he was. Now it was all for nothing, she was still a coward, and Leon didn't like her! It wasn't Leon who saved her that night, it wasn't Leon that she had been almost positive she'd slept with as well!
Falling to her knees on the edge of the plateau that overlooked the ocean, Sharmin let out a keening wail, letting all of her sorrow out in one great burst. Her heart felt broken in a million pieces, never to be put back together. That one simple word, 'sorry', had said more than an elegantly put together rejection speech ever could. No need to tell his reasons, he just simply didn't like her and was sorry. She covered her face with her hands and bent over to rest them on her knees, and continued to cry while balled up, her voice echoing in the cave of her legs and hands.
"Leave her alone." Ryonai said from behind a tree as Gatz approached her. He glared as Ryonai leaned casually against the rough bark, his eyes shut. His battle planning was quick, they only needed a slight adjustment in tactics. He'd heard Leon's apology and followed after her to make sure she didn't fling herself from the cliff.
"Why?" Gatz demanded angrily, frustrated that he was being denied going to her after finally having the courage to be there when she needed someone.
"Because she needs to be alone right now. She'll latch onto the first person she sees in a rebound attempt. She won't even realize she's doing it either." Ryonai said, not looking up. "Believe me, it's hard for even me to hear her cry like that, and I used to bully her all the time. If only Komugi was here, she'd be the best medicine for her right now." He stood and put a hand on Gatz's shoulder. Gatz had his head ducked down, his hair hiding his expression.
"You don't know anything, anymore." Gatz said in a low voice, trying to control his temper. Ryonai frowned at him curiously, never hearing such hatred in Gatz's voice before. He lifted his head, his face contorted into hateful rage. "You don't know what she's been through." Gatz rose to his full height which was several inches shorter than Ryonai, and glared angrily into his face. "She was RAPED, Ryonai. Raped by that fat lard Montavious from the Island and left alone for who knows how long before Leon found her. Being alone is the last thing she needs right now!" Ryonai stared at him in shock, this news chilling him to the core. He took a step back in disbelief, feeling ill all of a sudden. Sharmin was…?
"I'll go to her then." Vuylay's voice came. She had been lingering behind some feet, and had overheard their conversation. Gatz and Ryonai looked at her in mild surprise, one face still angry and the other bewildered as she breezed past them and over to Sharmin's weeping figure. Vuylay put a hand on her shoulder and spoke to her in a low voice, and Sharmin latched onto her in a fierce hug.
"Who among us but Vuylay understands what cold rejection feels like?" Gatz spat, shooting another glare at Ryonai. Ryonai swallowed, his heart feeling like stone with his friend's words. Satisfied that he'd said enough, Gatz stalked away, trying to leash his anger and save it for the upcoming fight.
Ryonai fell back against the tree in shock. It suddenly felt as every carefully built wall in his life had come crashing down, leaving him in a mess of rubble. Reality hit him at full force, and every mistake he'd made in his life came back to haunt him in full color. He slid to the sand limply, staring like some doll as his will to fight left him.
"Are you ready to go?" Vuylay's smooth voice came, penetrating the deafness of shock. Ryonai lifted his head and squinted at her, the evening sunlight hurting his eyes. He felt as if he'd been sleeping, but he couldn't remember falling asleep. Concern crossed her face at the mournful expression he wore, and she knelt in front of him. "It's not your fault." She said gently, resting her hands upon his, which were on his drawn up knees.
"I'll be ok." Ryonai said in a raspy voice, leaning his head against the palm tree trunk. He swallowed, his throat dry and shut his eyes as he tried to lasso reality back into the fence he kept it in. He didn't wish to talk about all that had been said earlier, and tried his best to forget it now.
"Do you want to call it off?" she asked, staring intently into his hazel eyes. He shook his head without hesitation and rolled to the side slightly as he pushed himself to his feet. He felt embarrassed by Vuylay's attention, suddenly nervous around her after Gatz's harsh words towards him. He could never understand why people were so snippy with him about Vuylay, he had a girlfriend, why did everyone seem intent on making him a polygamist? Even Shizuka herself would encourage them to sleep together, almost too joyous about it when he finally relented.
"Listen…" he began, starting a slow walk back to the group, "…don't think I hate you or anything but…I'm with Shizuka, you know? I don't mean to reject you like I do, but she's my girlfriend, you're not." Vuylay's eyes widened in surprise and hurt, and Ryonai instantly felt like an ass. Gatz was right, there he went again, coldly rejecting her and this time she hadn't done anything but show concern for him.
"I'm not sure what prompted this conversation, but I already know that." Vuylay said slowly, looking away from him to hide her eyes. Ryonai had been in her presence long enough to know that was her way of hiding tears that were threatening to spill. He clenched his teeth as guilt kicked him in the stomach with a shod horses' hoof. Still, something puzzled him about Vuylay, at times she looked like Shizuka, even sounded like her. The few times he'd bedded her, it felt like Shizuka, and he'd never openly admitted it, was almost better than Shizuka. Vuylay seemed to know when he and Shizuka were together, and would show up, like clockwork, while they were in the middle of making love.
"After this is over, will you explain to me the connection between you and Shizuka?" Ryonai finally asked, stopping her from walking ahead of him as he paused. He put his hands on her shoulders and lifted her face up by placing a finger under her chin. "Please don't cry, I've had enough of girls' tears today. I'm sorry." He said gently, giving her a feeble smile. Vuylay tried to echo it, the tears she'd been resisting to shed finally spilling over her eyes and trailing down her cheeks. No more followed after they dropped, and she laughed shortly in embarrassment.
"Yes, I'll tell you." She promised, knowing that Shizuka would never properly explain their connection to anyone. She seemed to like the secret, since Vuylay was the only one affected by it. Ryonai's feeble smile turned genuine and before he gave it any thought, stooped down to kiss her. Vuylay's eyes widened as their lips touched, surprised he would do such a thing after what he'd just told her.
The kiss started tentative, just a soft, uncertain touch of lips, and then quickly grew heated. Vuylay, starved for attention after going nearly a year without, eagerly fell into it, refusing to question why he was suddenly kissing her. She fell against the tree that Ryonai had previously been seated against and arched her back as he lifted her from the ground enough to wrap her legs around his waist. It was a very compromising position, and if anyone decided to glance in their direction from the group, they'd get quite a show.
This isn't Shizuka. Ryonai's logic finally said loudly as he began to kiss down Vuylay's neck. This isn't Shizuka. It repeated. It wasn't until he lifted a hand to touch her chest that logic finally won, as her glamour was still in place, making her breasts much larger than Shizuka's. Normally they were the same size as the Light Elf's, but for some reason she wore glamour to make them bigger. He broke away from her lips with a gasp, and looked into her eyes, blushing in embarrassment. Lustful hunger shone in them, turning them from the color of springtime leaves to pools of liquid opal. Shizuka's eyes were the same color, and Ryonai often found himself daydreaming while staring into them.
"I'm sorry…" he apologized, breathless from the kissing. What is the matter with me, she isn't Shizuka! He kept firmly saying. Shizuka is behind you, in the group. Go to her and fix this mistake, NOW. He backed away from the tree, gently helping Vuylay stand on her own feet again. He cleared his throat and looked away from her. "We shouldn't speak of what just happened." He said, adjusting his gauntlets.
"Of course, why would we talk about it." She said in a haughty voice. Again another defense mechanism to hide sore feelings that Ryonai had come to recognize. Regaining her composure she gave him a curt smile and smoothed her hair back into it's high ponytail. "Don't worry, I understand these things sometimes happen. I'm not hurt." Ryonai gave her a half smile, knowing she was lying, but let it stay at that.
The group's size had shrunk, Ryonai noticed as he returned. A few of the wounded had refused to return from the Abyss and lay with white cloths over their faces. Mourners crouched over them, crying for their friend's fate. Inderhoven and all of Forgotten Order save for Oscuro, Leon and Junk Pixie had retreated back to Heine.
After speaking briefly to Damascus (and making sure he ducked behind a tree to kiss Shizuka in the same way he'd kissed Vuylay), Ryonai gave the command to advance, the group marching back towards Innadril Castle. Ryonai still wasn't certain he could win the castle with their current numbers, but he was going to try his damndest.
Sharmin plodded along next to Narlafayn, only half answering the Elf when she asked conversation prompting questions. She had her eyes downcast, and her shoulders drooped. Vuylay had been of some comfort to her, but her heart felt heavy and numb, and she couldn't focus on what it was she was supposed to be doing when they arrived at the castle again.
Narlafayn didn't know what happened, but she garnered an accurate guess with how Leon avoided eye contact with Sharmin. He walked next to Tithania, and spoke in a low voice, concern over her condition clearly written on his face. She'd been healed, but seemed physically exhausted by the weary look she wore. She was too inexperienced technique-wise for the battle they were about to face a second time, but her eyes seemed to have seen more wars than Narlafayn's had.
Leon had alluded to Narlafayn that he'd met Tithania during a fight within the last year. He hadn't said what passed between the two, but it was something born out of the need for reassurance that the other was living, and the heat of the battle they found themselves embroiled in. It sounded lewd when Narlafayn thought about it, but since it was Leon, she doubted it had gone past more than an uncertain kiss or sleeping next to one another for comfort.
"So you joined up with this clan now?" Damascus asked, matching his pace with hers. Narlafayn grinned nervously and scratched her arm under the sleeve of her tunic, unsure of how to respond to him. "I think you made a good choice this time, this guy seems to know what he's doing." He gave a nod to her Dwarven Chain armor next, and patted her on top of her head. "I see you're moving up in the world, good for you." He complimented honestly.
"Thanks." She said shortly, still nervous to be in his presence after their last meeting. Damascus and one of his clan mates had attacked her, Vuylay and Terebel on the road to Death Pass, and she'd heard that he actually killed Sharmin and Leon from Junk Pixie, later on that day. She was sure Sharmin would react to his presence now, if she was focusing on her surroundings, but she still walked in a daze, looking at nothing. Damascus didn't seem to recognize her, and Narlafayn figured Sharmin had just been another tic mark on his list of kills, nothing more.
"I'm sorry about that last time we met. It was clan politics, nothing more." Damascus said easily, as if it excused everything. Narlafayn froze, trying not to loose her temper at someone who was helping them now.
"I won't say I understand, but apology accepted." She said woodenly, trying to make her voice sincere. Damascus pursed his lips for a moment and inspected her face. Narlafayn lifted an eyebrow at his intense stare. "What is it?" she asked, uneasy at being leered at.
"Do you have something possessing you?" he asked bluntly. Narlafayn shivered despite herself, her reaction inexplicable to her own mind.
"Not that I'm aware of." She answered honestly, unnerved by his question. Silence passed between them and Narlafayn looked for something to break it. "So…go to many wars?" she asked dumbly. Damascus laughed heartily, amused by her attempt at conversation.
"Not anymore. This will be one of my last I think." He said, smiling at her. Narlafayn gaped at him in surprise. Damascus not be embroiled in battle? Was he sick? "I'm getting too old for the constant stream of blood now. I've been doing this a bit less than a hundred years. I want to settle down for awhile and do other things." Narlafayn blinked once, still staring at him with large eyes. She realized Damascus looked weary, as she stared at his face long enough. He almost looked like he was starting to show signs of age and exhaustion. Narlafayn had never known Damascus to be anything but strong and unshakeable, a pillar of strength and brutality, and the news of him becoming tired with life saddened her.
They marched up the hill leading to the large outer courtyard of Innadril castle just as the sun began to sink into the western sea. Ryonai halted them as soon as the castle was in view, his eyes large with shock. The clan inhabiting Innadril had divided their forces, and a formidable army waited for them in the courtyard.
"Don't loose your nerve, just stick to your plan." Damascus murmured, coming up behind the younger man. Ryonai nodded, reassured by the Orc's encouragement. He took a breath and unsheathed his sword, raising it into the air to shout the advancing command, when a rain of arrows shot into the sky pelted around them. Several people were hit, some fatally so, and everyone scrambled to cover themselves.
"Don't panic! Advance now!" Ryonai shouted, realizing in horror that they'd lingered too long in one spot and given the ground force an easy target. Ryonai's army dashed into the courtyard, dividing and coming at the ground force like herding dogs to cattle. The plan was, if another force had appeared outside of the castle, to corral them like beasts and pick them off as they were driven closer together in the center. This plan would've been one hundred percent successful if the original numbers were still waiting for them, but the force had increased, and Ryonai feared another retreat was imminent.
The air was filled with the sound of metal clanging as swords met swords and shields, sparks flying and lighting up the bodies of those who fought in red light from the sunset. The healers stayed behind those ahead of them, trying desperately to cast quick enough and keep everyone alive. Many fell to arrow wounds and spells, one being a bishop standing next to Koyori. She gasped in horror and for the first time since beginning focused on the group they fought. Catalyst forces, the larger of the two there, were being cut down quickly from lack of healer support. Koyori realized with growing dread that the defending clan was fighting with only half of their power. They were distracting the attackers with battle so that they could kill the magic users!
"They're killing us back here!" Koyori shouted, hoping someone would hear her. An arrow flew at her and she narrowly dodged it, falling to the ground. It flew towards Lavinia, it's point in direct line of her throat. "Lavinia!" Koyori screamed, trying to alert her in the seconds before impact.
In a blink of an eye the tiny creature around her neck leapt from her shoulder and elongated, taking on the form of a bronzed skinned Orc, and pushed Lavinia to the ground. He caught the arrow in one hand, snapping it as if it were a twig. Lavinia stared in shock at Oonugh's back, as the tiny Drabbit had never returned to Oonugh form before then.
"Oonugh?" Lavinia questioned in a small voice. He glanced at her slightly over his shoulder before shrinking and returning back to the Drabbit, and leaping back up to her shoulder.
"What was that?" Amari demanded, seeing the entire thing. Lavinia looked up at him with large eyes, surprised to see his face contorted into anger. Oonugh had been his friend, and it offended him to see this creature take on what Amari felt to be a mockery of his form.
"I'll explain later." She said, pushing herself to her feet. She pulled Amari out of the way as a fire spell was launched at them, hitting the ground and catching a patch of dry grass there on fire.
For almost an hour the battle raged on. Everyone was wounded in some way by the time the sun was almost set, some worse than others. Covered in scratches and burns, Ryonai winced as an Orc swung a blunt at him, slamming it into his shield. It dented the metal and made his shoulder ache, but he endured it, the thought of bringing his family out of poverty on Talking Island fueling him now. They were nearly starving there, living only off of the money that Ryonai sent them every month. His sister had married and divorced, returning to the Island to live with his mother, bringing with her three more mouths to feed. He cried out in rage, angered that this fight was not going in his favor, and thrust his sword through the forearm of the Orc as he brought his blunt axe down on him again. The Orc roared in pain and backhanded Ryonai, who stumbled backwards with the blow. He raised his shield in time to deflect another hit from the Orc, determined not to be taken down.
Sharmin was weary, and fought without motivation. She lingered behind the group now, her sword tip dragging in the sandy soil, the battle in front of her a blur. She'd cut through a dwarf that had sent a small mechanical golem after her without even blinking.
An Abyss Walker took notice of her as she plodded around to the side of the castle, her eyes glassy and unfocused. With a maniacal grin he dashed towards her, his dagger drawn and ready to cut her down with one artery severing stroke. Sharmin turned to face him as he advanced on her, and he hesitated, but when she didn't even lift her sword in a battle stance, he laughed at his good fortune and continued towards her.
A spear was swung through the air just as the Abyss Walker thrust his dagger for her heart, slicing a cut in his throat. He fell backwards in a spray of blood, splattering Sharmin's face with it and helping bring her out of her stupor. She stared in shock at the twitching Abyss Walker, dumbfounded at what almost just happened.
"What are you doing? Are you trying to die?" Gatz shouted at her. He was both hurt and angry, and tears welled up in Sharmin's eyes for what had to be the hundredth time since her return. Gatz pressed her close to him with one arm, the other holding his bloody spear. He said nothing, but it suddenly dawned on Sharmin, very clearly, whom Koyori had been angry over him still liking. It was all very clear now; she was shocked that she'd forgotten his bittersweet goodbye that night on Talking Island when he asked her to come with him. Gatz liked her. He'd liked her for almost as many years as she'd liked Leon. Her heart ached with this realization, and she had to struggle to not latch onto him and burst into a fresh set of tears. They were in the middle of battle, the time for this had to be later.
He released her slowly, his angry look melting away into one of worry, and Sharmin tried her best to muster up an encouraging smile. "I'll be alright now, that kind of shocked me back to my senses." She said, wiping at the blood on her face. Gatz stared at her for a moment to be sure she wasn't lying, and then smiled, reassured.
"Stay by me." He said, facing the battle again. Sharmin nodded, and lifted her shield, ready to take on what was going to hit them. Although she didn't think she could return his feelings, they invigorated her, and filled her with strength that someone cared for her, even if it wasn't Leon.
Narlafayn fought alone, struggling to keep a hold of her senses. Each time a sword met hers, she felt as if she were slipping into unconsciousness, with how black dots speckled her vision. She couldn't understand what was happening to her, but tried to convince herself it was because she hadn't eaten that day.
As she wounded the person she fought enough to immobilize them, a strangled, watery cry sounded from behind her. Narlafayn spun quickly, afraid that someone was cutting down her side, but instead found the opposite. Terebel danced among the defending clan, his swords flashes of light glinting with the red sunset. Each of his strokes were fatal when they contacted flesh, his technique unmatched by even the Bladedancers of the defending clan. She felt fear crawl up her spine as she watched his face. The blood-speckled dark look upon it told her that he was within his own world then, a world of blood and gore and destruction, and he was reveling in it. This side of Dark Elf nature was one she'd never seen up close before, and she reeled in horror from it.
"Want." A guttural whisper said in her ears. She clapped her hands over them, wincing at the noise. She could feel vibrations from the voice in the very pit of her stomach, and it made her feel ill. She winced again as she heard it very clearly say, despite her hands covering her ears, "Want Him." Black speckles dotted her vision again and she shut her eyes hard against it. Stop it, go away! She thought hard, afraid of the voice.
"Wake up!" Broud shouted as he deflected the large two-handed sword an Orc swung at her with his spear. Sprissa, always with Broud, knelt beside Narlafayn and helped her to her feet. Narlafayn looked at her in fear, and Sprissa jumped. Narlafayn's left eye was completely black, even the whites, and her right iris was nearly engulfed by her pupil. It was frightful to see, and Sprissa had to swallow hard to keep her courage.
"We must get her to safety, she can't fight like this!" Sprissa shouted over the din of combat. Broud nodded, confident now in his half-sister's judgment and began fighting them a path to safety. Raised by Ketra, battle was what Broud thrived in, and this fight had put him in an agreeable nature.
"There are too many casualties on the other side, I suggest we retreat!" Zaren shouted to Ryonai as the two fought back to back. Ryonai made an angry noise and cut at the female Bladedancer he fought, trying to deflect both of her blades and wound her at the same time. Ryonai didn't want to retreat a second time, but he knew Zaren was right. His Catalyst backup was almost completely wiped out, and even a few from his clan had fallen. Fiona and a Treasure Hunter named Finch had answered the call of the Abyss, and Kallina was lying severely wounded on the ground.
Movement along the edge of the courtyard caught Ryonai's eye as the sunlight diminished from the sky. He turned to face it, the battle around him seeming to slow in motion. A long line of half bent figures, wearing what appeared to be tattered clothes from Ryonai's standpoint, swayed to and fro as if in a breeze. The rest of the courtyard took notice of the line of figures too, and the fighting began to diminish as all began to turn to look at them. Two more figures joined the bent ones, one tall and the other short. A blue light orb flared to life beside the shorter one, revealing a girl wearing a mischievous grin.
"Komugi?" Sharmin barely hoped to breathe as she and Gatz turned to stare at the new addition to the courtyard. A haughty look befitting Koyori on her face, Komugi assessed the battlefield without words and glanced up to the taller figure next to her.
"Kill the lords of Innadril!" Zaken shouted, pointing towards the fray. The line of stooped figures, which revealed themselves to be Pirate Zombies, moaned in response and dashed into the fight with speed quicker than undead creatures should have. Junk Pixie and Ichigo yelped as the monsters raced past them, ducking and hugging each other in fear.
"Oh my." Cesa exclaimed as a zombie began fighting the Sorceress that Celleriant had been struggling against.
"Komugi!" Sharmin exclaimed, trying to run to her sister. Gatz caught her arm and pulled her back as a spear aimed for her head whizzed past her ear. She raised her shield just in time to deflect it, reminding her that a battle was still going on.
"It's about time you showed up!" Ryonai shouted, still struggling against the Bladedancer. The ground force defending the castle seemed more desperate now that the zombies were in the mix, trying to keep their foothold. Several tried to race back to the castle and were cut down in the middle of flight. The zombies pounced upon their bodies before some were even dead and began to eat them. The sight was horrific, but welcomed to Haibane.
"Yeah well, Zakie-poo had trouble striking up a deal with his other half. He's not too sociable." Komugi said, patting Zaken's shoulder. He shut his eyes into an annoyed line and tensed under her touch.
"MUST you call me that in public?" he asked in irritation. Komugi grinned and nodded, purposefully oblivious to his annoyance. "Shouldn't you be heading to the gates now? My men have things under control out here." Zaken said, his suggestion sounding more like a command. Ryonai hadn't had much interaction with the man, but he'd decided upon first meeting him that their personalities clashed. Both were leaders, and because Zaken claimed he was once the Grand Pirate, feared throughout the land, he should be allowed to command just as much as Ryonai. Ryonai however, disagreed with this, and let Zaken know first hand. The appearance of the Pirate Zombies seemed to cement his claim at being the Grand Pirate, but Ryonai refused to let himself think about that now.
"To the gates!" he shouted, hoping enough of his forces would hear him. A group took up a pace behind him, and they began fighting their way towards the castle gates. A hail of arrows from the ramparts stopped them in their path, and Ryonai cursed silently to himself. He'd forgotten the forces waiting on the ramparts in his haste.
The night sky suddenly flared to life as a flaming cannonball flew through the air. It landed behind the rampart on the left side of the castle, exploding and sending people flying everywhere, some in pieces. Again Ryonai gained a surprise as he looked behind him. Another clan had gathered along the edge of the courtyard, this one greater in number than the force that Damascus had brought. A satisfied looking dwarf stood next to a giant cannon in the shape of a wild hog. The cannon shuddered with mechanical power as it reloaded, the gears inside of it making strange noises similar to a boar's oink. Leading the group was a blonde light elf in Dark Crystal armor, a triumphant smile on his face.
"Oh thank goodness you made it on time!" Cesa exclaimed happily, looking up from where she knelt on the ground, healing Kallina's wounds. Narlafayn sat against a tree with the other healers, her eyes still mismatched, and looked up at the sound of Cesa's voice. Her lips parted in surprise and a grin broke out on her face, causing her right eye to return to normal.
"Hi Narly!" Glarawen exclaimed, beaming brightly and peering at her around Arvalo's side. She wore red Nightmare robes now, and waved vigorously at her friend. "I hope we didn't miss the fun!" Tears slid down Narlafayn's face in relief at seeing her friend again in two years, but she didn't move from where she sat.
"You're just in time." Narlafayn said, smiling despite crying.
Now wondering just how many people Cesa had summoned to arms, Ryonai turned back to the castle, focusing on the doors as Arvalo's Dwarven Warsmith fired another cannonball at the castle. It took out the other side of the ramparts in another great explosion of bodies and debris. A third cannonball hit the castle gates, splintering them and providing a hole for Haibane to slip through. The cannon broke down after that, and the dwarf climbed upon it as quickly as she could to begin fixing it. Ichigo and two surviving Warsmiths from Catalyst raced over to help without asking. Such was the way with dwarves; if you saw something broken you didn't hesitate or ask permission, you just fixed it.
"Inside, hurry!" Ryonai shouted. Those with him dashed through the hole made by the cannon, towards the inner courtyard. They jumped around the wounded and piles of rock, Ryonai mentally calculating with distaste how much it would cost him to repair the cannon damage should he gain the castle.
A gigantic ball mace swung as they entered the inner courtyard, catching Valimos, who ran near Ryonai, by the middle and flinging him into the air and over the castle wall. The two-headed creature from Cruma Tower known as Premo Prime stood with another defending force, growling menacingly and swinging the ball mace in a circle above his head. Premo was normally seen harmlessly wandering Innadril Territory in search of his master, and it baffled Ryonai as to how this clan had managed to bribe him into protecting the castle.
"Get out of here, NOW!" Ryonai shouted as the new defending force poured out from behind Premo. The giant's creation swung his ball mace again with a roar, taking out a line of Catalyst with it. Those that could turned on heel and ran as fast as they could back through the castle gates.
Up on what was left of the ramparts, the Dame of the Castle leaned over the edge and began shouting. "Those of you left alive, forget the zombies and get back in here!" she shouted, her voice rough and raspy. Both forces, attacking and defending, retreated from the battlefield, leaving only the zombies feeding upon the dead in the courtyard.