-Legend of the Twin Swords-
By: Kratos the Judgment

Chapter 5: Trial by Shadow and Flame

The words of the giant man before me caught me off guard. Did I hear him
properly? If so, then he intended to murder Lyndis, and there was no way I would ever let that happen. But how could I take on a man who is most likely my
superior in every manner pertaining to the sword? Even if I were to attack, I
doubt would I have the strength to penetrate his armor.

Slowly I backed away; one hand on my scabbard and he other loosely grasping
the hilt of my blade.

"Are you a swordfighter?" he asked, a mocking tone filling his voice. "Come,
show me your skills. But first, answer my question. Do you know where I can
find the woman who wields the Sol Katti?"

My temper, usually kept in check, got the better of me. "You will never find
Lyndis, ever!" I retorted, venom seeping out of every syllable. As soon as I
spoke, however, I realized my mistake.

"Really now?" My antagonist seemed almost bored, but his eyes were riveted on
my every move. "What makes you say that? Do you know my prey? Are you…
close?"

His words stung me deeply, but I had to remain in control. My tactician's mind
raced to find any advantage I had, but my opponent was proving himself to have
greater wits than I. But then again, it is easy to remain cool when you have a
glowing red sword in your hand.

A spark…

He was playing all of his cards at once. Perhaps I could turn such confidence to
my advantage. Slowly I loosened my stance to disguise my skill. I must not give
him any more critical information. I had to play my role well if I was going to fool
him.

The large man continued his musings. "I wonder how your dear Lyndis would
react if she were to find out that you were my captive? This has been a fortunate
meeting for me indeed." He laughed a sickening laugh that sent shivers up my
spine. I only growled as a reply. "What?" he asked, "Do you have nothing more
to say to me? Come, show me your bravado!" That laugh again, I can't stand it
any more. Things could not be any worse

They got worse…

From behind me, Ernst's voice came thin. He addressed me and said, "We're
surrounded"

And then another terrible thing happened. The ringleader had overheard the
boy's comments. "Thank you, young lad!" He sounded almost jovial, if jovial and
evil could mix, "You have given me a wonderful gift" A lump rose in my throat as
his meaning sunk in. He had the one piece of information that made me and my
young companions expendable.

He addressed me again, but this time using my
name, "It appears I won't have to torture your identity out of you after all,
swordfighter. With this tasty bait, that woman will surely come running, only to
find out that you're already dead.

I had to act now. If I died here, I couldn't protect Lyndis from whatever horrible
fate this man had planned. Her face flashed in my mind and I pictured her as I
had seen her last: her blue eyes filled with sadness and tears and her endless
turquoise hair flying loose in the wind. She must have been resting when she
heard of my departure because she hadn't even bothered to put her hair up in its
usual long ponytail.

I never should have left.

I knew what I had to do. Placing my weight on my right leg, I tapped twice with
the toe of my left. The three children caught my motion and looked at me, and
the giant before me stared right at my foot…

…instead of my sword.

My dash was so fast it surprised even me. In two steps I closed the gap and
used the same sword drawing technique as I had against the other man from
earlier in the day. As I had feared, my opponent was fast enough to pull his
sword up for a last second block. However, the power of my momentum forced
the blunt edge of his blade into his side and propelled him off of his feet since he
had not been in a fighting stance.

"Run!" I called to the children, but they were already in motion. Thankfully they
put their prides away and simply ran, not wanting to stop and attack the villain.

I ran too, pushing past my larger opponent as part of my attack. I stumbled a bit
on the exit but still managed an escape. Before long, I was running side by side
with the kids, but as we tried to flee, we found many paths blocked by more men.

Quickly I turned and headed for the center of town where I hoped to find the
villagers. Thankfully, everyone was still there. "Run for your lives!" I cried at the
top of my lungs. "Get out of here now!" It worked. As soon as I spoke, the
people of the village scattered in every which direction. I hoped that in their effort
to find me, the raiders would be too busy to stop every villager.

To the kids I said "That way, go!" holding my finger out to a crowd of screaming
peasants. "I'll meet you at the field where we first met if I can!"

The three ran off immediately. I turned and ran the other way. After all, I was the
prime target, not the children. There was nothing to do but to run.

A barking order came above the clamor. "Burn it!" the deep voice said. All of a
sudden, the raiders pulled small objects from their pockets and threw them at the
houses. Wherever the stones landed, sparks flew up. They must have used
some sort of charm stones empowered with a mage's fire, for they were very
effective, and soon, every building was ablaze.

As I hurried along, a high pitched voice calling my name stopped me dead in my
tracks. Rayne had followed me. There was no time to think, raiders were
everywhere. I took a risk. Quickly, I scooped her up, wrapped my cloak around
us both, and lunged into the cover of the smallest building around.

Reviewers will be welcomed – Flamers will be spammed.
Kratos