"You can't save them all." "I can try."
The problem with wooden houses was how flammable they were.
After three casualties, the attackers got smart. Firebombs, or maybe Solar Light, rained in and forced both Guardians to evacuate the now-smoldering structure.
They were now standing in Skorri's Well of Radiance in between the town hall and the tavern, firing at anything that moved.
"I'm out of ammo!" Ema called, cracking off two final rounds from her Minuet-12.
Skorri cursed. "See if you can grab some. I'll hold down the fort here."
Ema nodded, dashing into cover next to one burnt wall of the town hall. Her footsteps barely registered, and as she peeked around the corner she saw two raiders. Her hands crackled with energy.
Two feet away from the two, she jumped into the air and landed a solid strike to the back of the neck. One collapsed, tendrils of Void jumping across the air to the next opponent. They brought their gun to bear on Ema, but she forced the barrel down and smashed a palmheel into their nose. Blood began to flow from the wound as she followed the strike with a hook punch to their jawline. Their eyes rolled back up into their head as the punch hit, nerves flaring and snuffing them out like a candle. They dropped like a sack of dirt.
Ema grabbed the gun they dropped and checked the magazine, only to feel a searing pain followed by the solid impact of something heavy against her back. She fell down and was knocked out.
She awoke with her hands bound behind her back, in the town square. A tall- no, not just tall, but big- man stood in front of her, with enough armor to make them a walking fortress. The fires of burning houses cast flickering shadows all over his ramparts.
"Iron Lord." The words dripped with sadism. "All alone. No allies. Your little Wolf is dead, and your civilians are all captured."
"I will know the name of the person who has me in their sights," Ema said. Her voice was stiffly official.
"Lord Citan. Bane of the Iron Lords," the fortress responded. "Normally, you would already be dead. But, I will give you a choice, Iron Lord."
Ema raised an eyebrow.
"You can either save yourself and condemn these civilians to death, or save the civilians and kill yourself."
"What the hell type of choice is that?!" Ema sputtered. "You can't possibly- I- we're Guardians! We're meant to save people, not kill them!"
"Choose."
Ema shook her head. "Prove you can kill them, then. I don't see them anywhere here!"
Citan might've laughed. "Is that your choice?"
"You know what? It is!"
Citan waved one hand. There was a series of gunshots that echoed in the now-dead valley. She was hauled to her feet seconds later and pushed forwards, past the town hall.
Bodies were scattered around the backyard of the town hall. At a look, Ema could identify Minda and Wavie, facedown in the red-tinged dirt.
The rope binding her hands was cut and she collapsed to her knees. For the first time, her Ghost was speechless. Magn was dead in front of her, eyes cloudy and sightless, blood staining the mud red. Citan's words passed over her, unheeded and unheard.
There was a thundering crack of a sniper rifle, and Citan fell over, then a solid hand wrapped around Ema's arm and she was hauled to her feet.
"Get up! We're leaving!" Skorri shouted, firing a hand cannon. "Efrideet, get the engines running! We're gonna have company!"
Ema shook off Skorri's hand and readied her rifle, acting on autopilot. One step backwards, then another, then another.
"I'll keep them off us! Grab my shoulder and lead!" she said, words punctuated by gunfire. Two rounds went into a building where one raider had just ducked. Three targets moved through the opening between two houses. One caught rounds and collapsed, two more rounds going into their skull to confirm the kill. Skorri's hand clamped onto her shoulder and she started guiding her backwards.
Two more targets attempted to suppress the two Lords. Three rounds killed one, blasting a triangular rent into their chest. The other had the wisdom to take cover as two more rounds soared over their head.
They reached the edge of the village as targets continued to pursue, diving into the brush. Rounds came out from behind a tree. Ema threw a grenade behind the tree in response, sending down a miniature lightning storm.
More shots, now from just inside the brush. Ema held her fire, searching for the source.
Rustling, moving bushes. Proper vector. Sight, acquire, fire, just like the Cosmodrome. The shooter stood stock-straight for a moment, then fell back down.
In and out. Keep breathing, stay frosty. Any remaining targets? None visible. Hold your fire. Go down the checklist. Targets? No. Hold fire. Targets? No. Hold fire. Targets? No. Hold-
"Sunbreaker!" Skorri shouted. Ema whirled around, seeing a Titan holding a burning hammer. Two rounds glanced off his armor.
"Ema, keep going!" Skorri shouted. There was the shring! of a sword being drawn, and Ema looked to see a burning angel of death where Skorri had been standing. An axe was held in both hands, and a radiant fire covered her body.
The Sunbreaker threw a hammer. It was knocked aside by the axe. Another two missed or were blocked as Skorri charged, the axe spitting flames as she leapt and slammed the axe downwards. The Sunbreaker slammed their hammer into Skorri's side, but she ignored the blow and delivered a devastating side cut, blocking another hammer with the shaft of the axe, before finishing her opponent with one shattering cut to the neck that sent their head rolling.
"Keep going!" Skorri shouted, placing the axe across her back. "Keep moving! Ship is just up ahead!"
The two continued retreating. No one bothered them as they went up the ramp.
There was a shuddering as the ship lifted off. Ema fell to her knees, gun in front of her.
"Ema?" the Iron Lord asked. She didn't respond for a solid minute.
"I could've stopped them," Ema whispered.
"Citan would've killed them anyways." Whether or not Ema heard her was doubtful.
All Skorri could do was place an arm around her friend's shoulders.
"Ema, are you still going to stay here?" she asked. Ema shook her head.
"I could've stopped him."
Skorri took a deep breath. "Ema, shut the hell up. I was watching you. The only thing that you could've done was die, and then Citan would've killed the village anyway. So shut the hell up."
By the end of her rant, she was shouting. Ema stood up. "I could've stayed with you! That way, I wouldn't have been captured!"
"He would've killed the village if you weren't! There is no way that Cabine survives!"
Ema's mouth opened to respond, then closed. Skorri's expression softened. "All we can do now is avenge them, okay? So let's get to avenging."
Ema didn't respond for a few seconds. Skorri stood up and moved to the door of the airlock. "I'm going to make some food and get us on-course. Join me when you're ready."
Pepperidge materialized next to Ema as Skorri exited.
"She's right, you know," the little drone said, glum. "We couldn't have done anything."
"All they did was offer hospitality, and they died for it," Ema responded. Her voice was weak.
"That's what the Iron Lords are meant to do, right? To make sure that those things don't go unpunished?"
"I hope."
"I do too."
After a while, Ema stood up and found a bunk, only to collapse. She tried to sleep and no sleep came.
Probably not some of my best work... but this is my first time writing a blatant massacre, no heroics involved. Just cruel injustice.But that's not what this ends with, is it?