"So. It would seem that Lord Erwin Gloucester is beginning to make a move against Riegan. We knew that he was power hungry, but I never thought he would go all in with the Empire," Yuri pondered as he sat at a table in The Gilded Rose with a tankard in his hand.
"Not only that, but he's trying to strong-arm Count Ordelia into supporting him too. Bastards probably trying to get Margrave Edmund on his side too," Balthus sighed, leaning back on his chair with his arms crossed behind his head.
"Is there any side in Fódlan that we can join to be free from this war? The Alliance wishes to stay infighting, Empire's obviously a no-go and the Kingdom is in full support of the Church," Hapi asked with her arms crossed.
"Us?" Balthus answered with a shrug of his shoulders.
"Perfect," Hapi rolled her eyes.
"I must admit that allies are in short supply right now," Constance sipped from her teacup at the table.
"Well the only source of troops available to us are mercenaries. But any allies we hire will be a risk of them discovering you know who," Yuri pointed out, putting down his tankard and interlocking his fingers, his index fingers raised and pressed against his mouth in contemplation.
"Speaking of," Hapi nodded towards the entrance as Byleth walked inside. Once he found the Ashen Wolves, he approached them, taking a spare chair from another table with him.
"So, what's the good news?" Byleth asked as he sat at the table next to Constance.
"Well... I beat up some bandits trying to extort this guy. Turns out it was the owner of another tavern. Cause I got into his good graces, he gave me some information," Balthus grinned as he leaned forward, resting his arms on the table. "Bandits have grown a lot in the Ordelia territory, but they seem to be appearing more frequently close to the border of Gloucester. Aside from guard patrols though, there's talk of this mercenary they call 'The Brass Bull' that is fighting against them."
"The Brass Bull? Why do they call them that?" Constance asked, resting her cheek in her palm.
"He has this bull helmet on that hides his face. No one knows what he looks like, but he charges head first into a fight like a bull seeing red," Balthus grinned as he grabbed his own tankard. "I wouldn't mind seeing how he holds up against the King of Grappling, you know?"
"Let's not try and fight a potential ally here Balthus. I would like to know more about this mercenary though. Knowing he's strong enough to hold back bandits is one thing, but when it comes to mercenaries and loyalty it can get fickle," Yuri stared down at the table deep in thought.
"Lord Gloucester sending bandits this way to apply pressure on the Count and his family does line up with rumours that he wants to get Ordelia on his side," Hapi nodded her head as she leant on the table, resting her head on top of her crossed arms.
"The rumours are true. I've been told that Gloucester has been pressuring the Ordelias to side with him. He wants to join the Empire," Byleth explained what he had learnt.
"And with Lord Gloucester building up an attack force. He could be planning to attack Deridru," Constance gasped with a hand to her mouth.
"Who told you this?" Yuri asked Byleth, curiously peering at the mercenary across the table. Byleth eyed Yuri for a moment, knowing that he would not be happy with what he was about to say. But to hell with what Yuri wanted. Byleth had made up his mind.
"A friend told me. They'll be here soon as I've agreed to help them with a job," he finally said.
"We got a job?" Balthus grinned as he drank from his tankard.
"Woah woah woah, back up. You revealed yourself -again-?" Yuri stood up, hands resting on the table as he glared down at Byleth.
"She recognised me. When she proved she wasn't a threat we spoke. She'll be accompanying us on this job," Byleth continued.
"You cannot just casually reveal yourself to people and sign us up on jobs when the entire point of coming here was to lie low and keep you hidden!" Yuri shouted his frustrations with Byleth's inability to stay hidden mounting after the events of Myrddin.
"So I'm to sit around and do nothing when people need my help?" Byleth glared back at Yuri, clenching his hand into a fist.
"Until we know the place is safe and not filled with assassins after your head? Yes!" Yuri swung his arm out to the side. "Your actions not only endanger you but us too. Constance was captured because you endangered us all by going through Myrddin. If you weren't there she would have died too. You cannot continue to endanger us with your impulses!"
"I didn't ask you to follow me, I willingly parted ways with you so that you wouldn't have to face that risk. You all decided to follow me," Byleth stood up, matching Yuri's glare and not backing down.
"Hey, guys let's reel it back a bit yeah?" Balthus stood up, ready to get in between them.
"And if we didn't you would have been killed by Bernadetta! What is going on with you, ever since you started your new light magic you've been off your game," Yuri gestured to Byleth's black dyed hair. Yuri wanted to get to the bottom of this now. "You want to stay hidden from the world, then you show yourself to old acquaintances. Just what is it that you want?!"
"I don't know!" Byleth snapped back. "I don't know what I want any more okay?"
Byleth turned away and took a few steps from the table. "I'm tired... I'm tired of these assassin's coming after me, I'm tired of being on the run, I'm tired of not seeing the people that brought me joy. For five years I've tried to live as the Ashen Demon. To go back to how it used to be... but I can't."
He turned back to them. "I hate it. Not feeling anything. How people look at me as if I'm a monster when I just switch it all off. Back then I wondered if there'll ever be a time when I could feel like a normal person... Then I became a professor at the academy."
Byleth reached out his hand, almost pinching his finger and thumb together, but leaving a small gap. "I was this close to feeling that. I grew close with so many people there... you four included. I learned to care about someone else other than my father. I cared about all of you and your problems."
Byleth pointed to Balthus, "Your debts." Then to Hapi, "Your sigh." To Constance "Restoring your house." and finally to Yuri, "And your commitment to all those under you in Abyss."
"We care about you too you know?" Constance spoke in a whisper, looking at the others at the table. "All of us."
"We all agree that you sneaking through Myrddin was a stupid idea. We all might still be a little mad over it too. But that's cause the thought of you dying hurts. You know?" Hapi stood up with her arms crossed, looking the most sincere Byleth had ever seen the usually apathetic girl.
"You came to our aid when Aelfric took the Chalice of Beginnings. We'd be dead if it weren't for you. I may have a lot of debts to pay back... but yours is one I'll gladly take priority to repay," Balthus walked over to Byleth with a grin, slapping his hand down on his shoulder. "As far as I'm concerned you're one of us, and I look out for all of us."
"You all have put your faith in me... and all I've done is block you out," Byleth shook his head. "And not just you either... I did it with everyone."
Byleth walked back to the table and sat down, his elbows on his knees as he looked down at the floor. "I had never felt that way before... to care as much as I did back at the academy. I was happy... but then I lost my father, I lost So-... I lost someone special to me, Edelgard betrayed me, Rhea turned on me, and everything I grew to love and hold dear fell apart around me. My home. My family. I couldn't take it anymore. So I left and switched it all off. I wanted to return to the shadows and forget it all as a dream."
Byleth looked down at his hands as they began to shake. "But knowing what I know now... that shutting away from my students and you... it just causes more hurt. Not just to me... but to you all as well. I don't want that any more."
He looked up to the Ashen Wolves with tired pleading eyes. "I don't want to forget and block out what made me happy any more. I don't want to be... the Ashen Demon any more. I want to be the Professor again. And I'm sorry... I'm sorry that I hurt you when I left five years ago. And I'm sorry for worrying you, and risking your lives because of my actions."
Byleth didn't get the chance to say anything else as he felt someone crash into him, tilting the chair onto its back legs. Constance had wrapped him into a tight hug. But before the chair could tilt back down, another body crashed into Byleth, red hair flowing behind her as Hapi too, lunged forward to hug Byleth. The extra push caused the chair to fall backwards, sending the three to the floor. Byleth blinked his eyes as he looked down to both girls hugging him on the floor, head on each shoulder.
"Apology accepted. You dunderhead," Hapi hid her face in his shoulder so no one could see the blush on her face.
"You'll never have to be alone any more. We are here for you," Constance smiled up at Byleth, then tilted up to give him a peck on the cheek. Balthus came into view as he looked down at the three with a big smile.
"Damn man, almost had me choked up with that. You should know I'd gladly jump into danger for you again. As far as I'm concerned there's nothing for you to apologise for," Balthus reached down and with both his arms, wrapped them around Byleth, Constance and Hapi, and pulled them up into a bear hug.
"GWAK!...Can't...breathe!" Hapi gasped out as she felt her back click.
"Release...me...you...brute!" Constance wheezed out as she felt the air pressed out of her lungs.
Balthus placed them back down on their feet. The three wobbled for a moment before straightening out. Byleth smiled at the three of them with a nod as they released him from the hug. He turned back to Yuri who stood there with his arms crossed.
"I've failed my students... I cannot fail them again. Not when I know I can help them. I may not know what I want completely... but I know this is the right thing to do," Byleth explained as he could feel Yuri's gaze bear down upon him. After a moment's silence, Yuri sighed and walked around the table, leaning back on it.
"So what's the job then Professor?" Yuri finally asked. Byleth gave a small smile to the trickster and gave him a nod of thanks.
"Marianne Edmund is missing. Lysithea has asked for help in finding her," Byleth answered as he looked at the others.
"Helping out little lady Ordelia? I'm in," Balthus proclaimed, slamming his fists together.
"Ly-ly needs help finding Blue? Sounds simple enough," Hapi nodded her head.
"Helping out the nobility would help gain their favour in recognising the House Nuvelle name," Constance declared with her head held high.
"Lysithea knows where to meet us?" Yuri inquired as he looked to the entrance of the tavern.
"She was to pack for the journey then meet me here," Byleth nodded his head.
"Then I guess we wait," Yuri went back to his chair and took up his tankard. Which he then took a drink from. A long drink from.
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Something was wrong Byleth concluded. Three hours went by and Lysithea still had not shown up. Everyone agreed to wait in The Gilded Rose to meet with Lysithea and discuss where they would begin the search. But three hours was too long for her to pack up for the trip, and Byleth knew Lysithea to not overpack when she joined the Black Eagles on missions. Now the sun was setting and the tavern was more packed. Which meant Byleth had a cloth mask covering half his face.
"She should have been here by now," Hapi muttered from his chair at the table.
"No, she should have been here over an hour ago," Byleth shook his head as he paced in the tavern.
"Something delayed her or what?" Balthus leant against the wall, with a hint of concern in his eyes.
"Unless... she doesn't plan on coming. Instead sending guards to intercept us," Yuri pondered aloud at the table.
"No. She wouldn't do that. She cares about Marianne to not have my help," Byleth shook his head.
"True. But who's to say she won't use us as a bargaining chip to get her back?" Yuri countered, holding up a finger.
"She's not like that," Byleth argued back with a frown.
"Isn't she? Five years is a long time Byleth. A lot can change in that time. I am merely considering all options here," Yuri held up his hands. Byleth shook his head again and turned away. The tavern door opened suddenly and a small figure wrapped in a brown cloak and hood stumbled in, heavily panting. They looked around until they laid eyes on Byleth and the others. Rushing up to them was an out-of-breath Lysithea who grabbed onto the furs on Byleth's mercenary garb.
"We need to... to go now... quickly!" she managed to get out, holding onto Byleth for support. He quickly held onto her arms to keep her up.
"Take it easy. Tell us what's going on," Byleth calmly asked.
"Yeah little lady, take a seat," Balthus walked from the wall, grabbing a nearby chair and placing it down beside Lysithea. But the Ordelia heiress shook her head, refusing to sit.
"We can't stay. There are Alliance soldiers all over the place. We need to get out now!" Lysithea insisted as she pulled on Byleth's jacket.
"Guys," Hapi called, pointing to the tavern's windows. They all turned to see a group of Alliance soldiers walking down the path outside, making their way to the front door.
"Upstairs, my room now!" Yuri ordered as he made a brisk walk towards the stairs. Everyone in agreement, everyone made their way to the stairs and quickly climbed them, with Byleth assisting Lysithea. Once upstairs they followed Yuri to one of the room doors as he opened it for everyone to enter. As they all filed into the room Yuri shut it and turned to the Golden Deer girl.
"What's going on?" Yuri made his way to the window and, while pressed to the wall, took a peak outside.
"When I got back to my parent's manor, soldiers of Gloucester arrived. Saying that a dangerous fugitive to the Alliance was on the loose. My father argued against their arrival but they said they were under orders from Lord Erwin Gloucester. My father's trying to get them out of Ordelia but the soldiers are already searching the place," Lysithea opened her brown cloak and took out a parchment from its pocket, holding it out to Byleth. "They've already started putting wanted posters up."
As Byleth took the wanted poster from Lysithea he could feel his heart drop in the pit of his stomach. He already blamed himself for it as she showed the wanted poster to the others. A portrait of his face and his name were written on it. Dead or alive for 25,000 Gold coins.
"We haven't even been to Gloucester land yet. How is he even wanted there?" Constance exclaimed at the sight of the poster.
"Because Gloucester obviously wishes to garner favour for the Empire," Yuri sighed as he saw another patrol crossing the street in the distance. "He was seen crossing Myrddin, so they know he's in Alliance lands. I'm sure the Empire isn't too happy that Byleth thwarted their schemes during the invasion. Especially Those who Slither in the Dark."
"Lord Gloucester was building up a large force. We thought he was going to launch an attack against the Sovereign Duke. You don't think it's..." Hapi began.
"It's a manhunt. And I'm sure any other lord in support of the Empire is joining in on it," Yuri opened up the window and ran towards the cupboard swinging it open.
"Damn it... this is my fault," Byleth slammed his fist into the bed.
"We can throw blame after we're out of Ordelia. Since we cannot go south back into the waiting arms of the Empire, we head north," Yuri pulled out a line of rolled-up bedsheets tied together to form a makeshift rope. Yuri as always, planned for a hasty escape. He quickly tied one end to the bedpost and tossed the rest out of the window. "Balthus you first. Everyone else on the bed."
As everyone bar Balthus sat down on the bed, the big man grabbed onto the makeshift rope and vaulted out the window. Despite the extra weight, the bed's corner turned towards the window, causing Lysithea to yelp.
"Big lug..." Hapi mumbled as he climbed all the way down. A second later a stone was tossed through the open window.
"Byleth, your next," Yuri ordered. Byleth patted Lysithea on the shoulder and quickly vaulted out the window, climbing down next to Balthus who was keeping watch. Byleth tugged the sheets twice and stepped back. Constance climbed out of the window and started to climb down.
"Advert your eyes Balthus!" She snapped as she pulled her legs up halfway down.
"Sorry sorry," Balthus held his hand up and looked back down the street again. Constance slowly made her way down to the street and signalled the next one. Hapi then made her way down the sheets. Suddenly there was a knock on the door. Yuri quickly ran to it and pressed his back to the door, nodding for Lysithea to go next.
"Open up in the name of the Alliance!" the soldier outside shouted as Lysithea ran to the window and tried to climb out. But as she got her foot out, her heeled shoe slipped, causing her to tumble out the window before she could grab the bedsheets. She let out a shriek before she was suddenly caught and held in large muscular hands.
"Got you, little lady," Balthus said as she gently put her down.
"Don't call me that," Lysithea grumbled with a blush of embarrassment. Suddenly Yuri vaulted out the window and quickly slid down the bedsheets to the bottom. The sound of a wooden door being broken down echoed out of the window.
"Move out," Byleth ordered and took off down the streets. They kept to the alleyways as they progressed through Ordelia. Every time they had the chance to see a path to the main streets they saw more soldiers standing guard.
"There's no end to them," Constance exclaimed as they pressed themselves against a wall in the shadows. They rested at a turning where they could continue straight, further into the alleyways towards a possible dead end. Or turn right down another alleyway towards the main street.
"I don't think we're going to slip out without knocking them down a peg or two," Balthus concluded.
"It's as if Lord Gloucester has locked down the town... I wonder how my mum and dad are..." Lysithea worried, taking a few deep breaths. Byleth placed a hand on her shoulder when he saw her struggling. Lysithea never had the best stamina due to her condition. Byleth wondered that he must have pushed herself to get to The Gilded Rose, and now they were running through alleyways.
"Take it easy, slow and deep breaths, okay?" Byleth whispered to her, She nodded her head and tried to follow his instructions.
"Come on Yuri-bird, this is where you come up with a plan now," Hapi tilted her head towards the schemer.
"Working on it," Yuri peered down the alleyway. "If we're going to have a chance then we need to draw them somewhere else. We need a diversion."
There was silence among the group as they tried to think of something together. They would need a big distraction to draw the Alliance soldier's attention. But there wasn't much they could do sticking to alleyways and trying to remain hidden.
"What if I sighed?" Hapi suddenly asked.
"That could work," Yuri nodded his head to the side in contemplation.
"No. The Beast you summon could attack and kill the civilians," Byleth shook his head quickly.
"So you need a beast to cause enough damage on the soldiers alone to draw them from you huh?" Balthus unslung his bag from his shoulder and knelt down opening it. Inside was his prized gauntlets, Varja-Mushti. "I'll give them a beast."
"B, no!" Hapi pushed off the wall, in shock. He wouldn't do something this stupid.
"Tell me I'm wrong Yuri. The group as big as us, we ain't all going to get out of here without a fight. With the soldier's numbers as they are. We're probably all going to get caught. Unless I cause a big distraction," Balthus slipped on Varja-Mushti and grinned at Yuri. "Tell me I'm wrong?"
"...You're not wrong," Yuri conceded with a sigh.
"You can't take on them all by yourself B!" Hapi rushed to him and slapped him on the chest in anger.
"Maybe not. But I'm itching to find out how many of them I can," Balthus slammed his gauntlets together. "You just get yourselves and the Little Lady out of here okay? If I don't meet you guys later, go on without me."
"You really plan on dying so we can escape?" Constance shook her head in disbelief.
"Come on you guys know me better than that. I'm a fight and flight kind of guy. If things get too dicey I'll make a run for it. With all the debt collectors after my head, I know a thing or two about avoiding capture," Balthus grinned and hopped from one foot to the other, warming himself up.
"B... don't do this! Yuri-bird will think of something. Right?" She turned to Yuri who remained silent, he looked down gritting his teeth. "Yuri!"
"Hey..." Balthus lifted his gauntlet gently to turn Hapi's face back to him. "There's no other way. Besides, I'll be fine. Trust me?"
Hapi looked furious as she slapped his chest a few more times. She then turned around with her fists balled at her side. "Fine. Go get yourself killed. Idiot."
Balthus could see Hapi's shoulders shake as she refused to look at him. He knew she didn't mean that and gave her a warm smile.
"Balthus," Byleth called out to the big man with frustration, though it was directed at himself. "I'm sorry."
"Come on, didn't you listen to anything I said earlier?" Balthus kept a grin on his face as he held one gauntlet up as he would a fist. His grin would change to a genuine smile as he looked at all of his friends before him. He then gave a wave to them all as he turned around. "See you later."
Byleth watched on as Balthus ran back down the alleyway they came. He hated feeling powerless. If he was careful crossing Myrddin none of this would have happened. Why did he have to be seen? Who was it that told the Empire? Ferdinand? Bernadetta? Or was it someone in the Alliance that told them? Ignatz? He couldn't know. But because of it, he's endangered everyone and forced Balthus to make a sacrifice to ensure his and his friend's safety. Another failure to add to the list.
"This sucks!" Hapi snapped as she rubbed her eyes, leaning against the wall.
"It's the cards we've been dealt. We will see him again, I'll make sure of it," Yuri promised, he peered down toward the main street again. Alliance soldiers armed with swords and spears gathered together discussing something he couldn't hear.
"I'm sorry. I didn't expect this to happen when you agreed to help me," Lysithea spoke in a whisper and kept her head down.
"If you didn't come we would have had a fight on our hands in the tavern. Which would have alerted the rest of the soldiers of our position," Yuri answered quickly.
"Things would have been a lot more difficult if you hadn't shown up Lysithea," Byleth told her, causing her to look up at him. "Don't blame yourself for this."
"I just... I didn't want you to think that I sent these soldiers after you," Lysithea explained, a hand to her chest.
"I know. But with how things are right now... are you sure it's okay for you to leave?" Byleth asked softly. Lysithea took a moment to think about it before shaking her head.
"Probably not. But if I stay, I'll just be arguing with my father against Lord Gloucester. That will last for weeks on end. If I don't leave now... I feel like I won't ever see Marianne again," Lysithea fully turned to Byleth with a nod. "The Golden Deer stick together, no matter what. That's what Claude taught us, and I don't want to break it."
Yuri peered down the alleyway again, seeing the group of soldiers suddenly start running down the road. As if alerted to something. "Looks like there's our opening. Let's go."
Yuri turned down the alleyway followed by everyone and they made it out. The road was clear for the moment and they did not want to waste a second of it. The five of them kept close together, as if on instinct they grouped around Byleth, knowing that they were after him. Byleth looked to each of them, fleeing and sacrificing so much for his well-being. Why was he only realising this now? After all the time he had spent with them. He would repay their kindness. And he would start with finding Marianne.
"There's a stable to the left. We could get some horses," Lysithea called out as she pointed towards the next turning.
"We haven't got time to pay. Don't mind being a horse thief?" Hapi commented as they made the turning.
"Yes! I do mind in fact!" she snapped back with a frown.
"Time to quickly get over it then," Yuri said as they spotted horses tied to a hitching post outside the mentioned stables. Yuri and Hapi wasted no time in hopping onto two of them and with their swords, cutting the rope and freeing them to the posts. Constance took a little longer in finding a horse for herself.
"I really wish there would be a Pegasus once in a while," she complained as she eventually picked a black horse for herself, using her fire magic to burn the rope. Byleth climbed onto a white horse and offered his hand to Lysithea with a nod. She took his hand and with Byleth's help, pulled her up in front of him, sitting sideways. Lysithea burned the rope also and they all quickly road down the path.
"This path should take us out of the town," she commented as she wrapped her arms around Byleth's waist as they rode.
"Then we travel north to Edmund territory and work our way from there," Byleth nodded.
"Let's go!" Yuri shouted as they continued on. However, coming up from the distance was a guard tower which four guards stationed at the top. It wasn't ideal, but Byleth kept their head down as the four horses rode by it.
"Hey stop! Stop in the name of the Alliance!" a guard shouted out. They ignored them. Luckily they were the only guards nearby and by the time they'd take to get down from the tower or alert the other soldiers, Byleth and the others would be long gone. With the lack of other guards about, it would seem that Balthus pulled off the distraction. He just hoped he would see them again soon.
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Balthus swung left. He swung right. Soldier after soldier was sent flying from his blows. He found it ironic that the tower he wanted to investigate earlier in the day with Hapi, would be where he cause the most commotion. He did not plan however to accidentally punch one of the tower's posts, snapping it into two. Which caused a chain reaction of the wooden tower collapsing down on itself. Oh well, they wanted a big distraction. Balthus chuckled with laughter as another group of soldiers came charging towards him with spears. As they charged forward and thrust their spears he used one of his gauntlets to deflect them upward. Pushing off the ground toward them with his other fist and swinging a haymaker, crashing through a line of them and sending them flying back.
"Come on! I thought Gloucester boasted about how great his soldiers were!" Balthus taunted as he hopped from one foot to the other. He saw another group of Alliance soldiers armed with swords come charging toward him. He grinned and slammed his Varja-Mushti together and they stopped in their tracks.
"You want some of this too? Think you can come to muscle your way into Ordelia lands as if you own it? Why don't you run back home to Gloucester and think about what you've done," Balthus called out and did a few playful jabs in the air. The soldier's eyes grew wide with fear and they turned around and ran. Now Balthus loved putting the fear of the Goddess into people with his prowess. He was the King of Grappling after all. He prided himself on his reputation. But we weren't dumb enough to know that his taunt wouldn't have been enough to scare them that much.
Which meant there was something else they were scared of instead of him.
And that's when he heard the horseshoes step on the ground behind him. A rider slowly approached behind him alone. He slowly looked over his shoulder and frowned. He had only seen this rider once before, and he remembered how everyone clamped up in his presence. He turned to fully face the rider. Plated entirely in black. A black armoured horse that looked just as evil as its rider with the foam around its mouth. It grunted and bobbed its head up and down. Balthus glared at the skull face of his opponent. A red glow from the eyes sockets of the horned helm.
"Huh. You know it's been a while since I last saw you, Death Knight?" Balthus called out. All joking was put aside. He heard enough to know how dangerous he was. The Death Knight Jeritza was unmoving on his horse. It let out a guttural neigh as it shook its head side to side, the foam saliva dripping from its mouth.
"What brings you all the way here into Alliance territory?" Balthus called out, pointing his gauntleted fist at him. No one saw or mentioned him at Myrddin. Which could only mean that he must have travelled across one of the bridges into Ordelia from Hrym. But how would he have been able to pass the Ordelia guards? It was then that when the Death Knight lifted his scythe up, pointing it at Balthus did he notice the blood already dripping from its black blade.
"I hunt... Byleth Eisner," his distorted deep voice called out to Balthus. The war monk shut his eyes and let out a sigh.
"Well, maybe you should go search somewhere else. No Byleth here," he called back to Jeritza.
"Then I will torture the information out of your companion. Constance Nuvelle," The Death Knight simply responded. Balthus grit his teeth in anger. So he knew of Constance too. Which meant he knew enough to know that the rest of the Ashen Wolves would have been with him. It looked like there was no getting out of this.
"Well... you are going to have to go through me before I let you near them," Balthus held up his gauntlets, now done with talking.
"I hope the King of Grappling offers a decent challenge," the Death Knight charged. His horse galloped toward the war monk. Balthus let out a roar as he charged also. As the rider approached he jumped into the air toward him and sent forth a right hand. Jeritza rose his scythe up and from the pole, he managed to block the punch by slipping it down the three spikes of Varja-Mushti. Before Balthus could send another punch Jeritza twisted the scythe around, forcing Balthus to spin with it or break his wrist. Balthus spun until the Death Knight swung his scythe to the side, sending Balthus crashing down to the dirt ground hard.
Balthus forced himself up with a groan and quickly brought his gauntlets up. The blade of the scythe swung down and crashed into his guard. Balthus was shocked at the power he had as the strike was enough to knock him flying back into the air again. Luckily Balthus landed on his feet this time and charged again. He had to be smarter this time, so when he approached again he kept one gauntlet ready to deflect an incoming blow from the scythe while punching the other into the horse.
What he didn't expect was for the horse to turn and attack him instead. It spun its head around and attempted to gouge him with its horned helmet. This made Balthus back up, using the punch to knock back the turning head than skewering it's body as he planned. That's when the Death Knight swung his scythe again and slashed across Balthus's chest. He let out a grunt of pain as he could already feel the blood spill from the line across his chest. But Jeritza did not let up, extending one hand out, he conjured a fireball and sent it hurtling towards Balthus.
Balthus held his gauntlets up to block. But even with his guard up he didn't expect it to explode as much as he did. He felt his arms and his shoulders burn as the flames licked at his big form. He could smell his flesh burning from the fireball. Before he could lower his guard and assess his situation Jeritza was on the attack. He charged forward and swung his scythe across. Balthus held the gauntlets up to block the slash, but that was what Jeritza wanted. His scythe hooked onto the gauntlet and with his swing, it pulled Balthus off balance and yanked the left gauntlet off his hand.
"Shit!" Balthus watched as the gauntlet rolled across the ground. His eyes then widened when he saw the scythe swing back around again towards him. With his remaining gauntlet, he blocked the scythe by the pole, slotting it in between the spikes. While his other hand also gripped the pole.
Balthus shouted as he pulled on the scythe in his slashing motion. The force and strength of the brawler was able to pull Jeritza up from his horse and swing him down onto the ground. The Death Knight landed on his shoulder and rolled onto his back. With Jeritza on the ground, Balthus pulled forward on the scythe so that he propelled himself on top of his downed opponent. Balthus pushed down on his shoulder with his free hand while sending his gauntlet to land as many punches as he could into Jeritza's skulled helm.
Blow after blow, he could see the mask begin to dent bit by bit. He grinned wildly as he laid into the infamous Death Knight with his fists. Suddenly with both hands, Jeritza grabbed a hold of the gauntlet by the spikes before he could punch again. It was a battle of strength as the two pushed against one another. What surprised Balthus was that his gauntlet was slowly being pushed back. Jeritza's strength was proving to be more somehow than Balthus's. Just how strong was this psychotic knight?
Taking opportunity of the brawler's distraction. Jeritza raised his foot and kicked into Balthus's stomach. He felt the air push out of him as Jeritza pressed into his stomach, sending him vaulting over the Death Knight and landing on his back. Balthus shook himself out of it and rolled over onto all fours. He watched the Death Knight rise to his feet with his back to him, scythe in hand. Balthus grit his teeth and pushed off the ground towards Jeritza, sending his gauntlet punch towards him.
But then Jeritza spun around twirling his scythe in a circle around and swung up.
Balthus stood there with his arm extended. But didn't hit anything. He was confused for a moment. He was sure he was close enough to hit him. He wouldn't have made that mistake.
Then something in his peripheral fell from the sky to his right and hit the ground with a thud. When he turned to see what it was. He saw his other Varja-Musti gauntlet. But how? He would have felt the gauntlet be pulled off! He looked down at his fist.
...Where was his fist?
There was no fist.
There was no hand.
There was no forearm.
Just a bloody stump spurting out blood.
Balthus fell to his knees as realisation dawned on him. Half of his right arm was gone. He lost half of his right arm against the Death Knight. But he could still feel it. He could still feel his fingers wiggling. Only now did the pain set in. Balthus let out a roar of agony he hugged his stump to his bleeding chest.
"I expected more from the King of Grappling," the distorted voice of Jeritza sounded even more broken. Maybe his blows had something to do with it? He couldn't think. He turned away from the Death Knight and tried to crawl toward his severed arm. He could hear the heavy footsteps of the Death Knight following behind. It didn't matter. He could try to regain his arm if he was quick enough. He might be able to save it with a Heal spell!
He felt the Death Knight's boot stamp down on his back, keeping him out of reach from his arm.
"Pathetic," his voice echoed above as he felt the scythe's blade creep underneath his neck. Damn it. He promised he would be fine to Hapi. He said he was going to see them again. He failed them all. He failed his mother. He failed Kupala. He never got to pay back the debts that mattered to him. He shut his eyes as flashes of the Ashen Wolves and Byleth filled his memories.
The King is dead. Long live the King.
"Stop!" Alliance soldiers suddenly came running with their spears pointed at the Death Knight. One of them stepped forward dressed as the officer. But that didn't bother the Death Knight at all, seeing him more as a nuisance.
"On behalf of Lord Erwin Gloucester we thank you for detaining this vagabond, but he is our witness to question," the officer declared, but couldn't hide the fear in his voice.
"Be gone pest," Jeritza pulled up on the scythe, pressing it into Balthus's neck.
"Sir!" Another Alliance soldier came running over and saluted. "I received a report that Byleth Eisner and his allies have left Ordelia."
That gave the Death Knight pause. He lowered the scythe and stepped over Balthus's back and walked towards the officer.
"Where did they go?" the Death Knight towered over the Alliance officer.
"Step back knight, we act on behalf of-"
Before the officer could continue the Death Knight grabbed him by the throat and held him high into the air. The Alliance soldiers readied their spears.
"I could crush the life from you before the thought of retaliation quivers in the minds of your grunts... Then I would cut down every one of them before they can let out a battle cry," Jeritza turned his head to the soldier. "Where... did they go?"
"T-they went north... Byleth and four others," the soldier stuttered in absolute terror as red glowing eyes bore down upon him. Jeritza released the officer and he fell to the ground gasping for breath. Jeritza ignored all of the other soldiers as he marched to his horse and mounted up. Not that any of them had the bravery to do anything but watch.
"Byleth Eisner... our final duel is approaching..." The Death Knight's horse reared back and took off in a gallop down the street. It took a little while before the soldiers finally made a move. They quickly ran and grabbed a hold of Balthus's body and began to drag him away. Balthus opened his eyes briefly as he felt his consciousness slipping from the blood loss. The last thing he saw was his severed arm, as he was dragged further and further away. Until he finally closed his eyes.
A/N: Surprise! This chapter came out quicker than expected. Well, I suddenly had a lot of time on my hands as I and half my household have gotten Covid. Which sucks, so I'm making do with the free time I have.
So yeah... the gloves are off now. Literally in Balthus's case.
Did I make the Death Knight terrifying? Did I do Balthus justice in the fight? Leave a review to let me know what you think!
