Chapter 19 - I Ran

“Run. Now!”

The words struck Rose like a slap in the face.

She and her team had been so excited for their planned attack that the idea of running now took time for her brain to process.

She spun her head to look at Warlock who was already backing away towards the forest, his arm waving trying to hurry everyone after him.

She glanced to the other side of the clearing and saw three men with pale blue skin. Demons. The outfits clearly marked them as soldiers from the Viscount’s castle.

Before she could yell to her team to reinforce Warlock’s command she heard Kaelen shout from just behind her on her left.

“Why are we running?! We came to kill demons! Raaaaaah!”

Kaelen dropped his pack and charged towards the incoming demons. Rose noticed he had a large battle axe in his hands. It was clearly too heavy for him to wield properly but as he ran he cocked it over his right shoulder as he prepared to strike, almost like he was going to swing a bat.

Rose knew he didn’t have that weapon a moment ago. And he couldn’t have been hiding it. She could only assume he found it when he was checking out the burnt carriage.

“Idiot! Bring him back! We need him!”

Rose heard Warlock’s shout from behind her. It snapped her out of her confusion.

“Apex, cover fire! Ajax, follow me and block those soldiers so Kaelen can withdraw!”

She barked quick commands to her team and broke into a run. She knew she and Ajax were too far behind to defend Kaelen and she said a silent prayer that the mage would survive the crucial few seconds needed for the pair to catch up.

Oblivious to Rose’s commands, Kaelen raced towards the demon at the front of the trio. He knew demons could be difficult to kill but he also knew these weren’t any of the greater demons from the city. He would never have a chance against one of those with a mere axe, but against these soldiers…

He put all of his strength into his swing as he closed in on the first demon and brought the axe to bear with a two-handed horizontal strike.

If Kaelen had been an experienced warrior he might have noticed the soldier in front of him didn’t seemed to be phased by the incoming blow. Instead, the rage that fuelled the young mage blinded him to the soldier’s finer movements.

Understanding exactly what Kaelen intended to do with his well telegraphed strike, the soldier lowered his centre of balance as he set his stance wider, with his left leg slightly in front of his body. He brought the shield on his left arm to bear and angled it so the bottom was pushing further forward than the top of the shield and ducked his head slightly.

Kaelen’s fierce swing struck the shield with every ounce of strength he could pour into in.

But instead of launching the soldier back as expected, the force of his axe was redirected by the angled shield and sailed over the soldier’s head.

Worse, because his entire strength had been put into the blow, and that force had been redirected not countered, the momentum of the axe continued and pulled Kaelen into an unexpected twirl.

The continuing momentum made Kaelen spin in place, completely losing his footing and he tripped over his own feet and crashed into the ground. His grip loosened with surprise and the axe’s momentum carried the weapon out of his hands and to the side several feet away as it skimmed across the dirt of the road.

Rose and Ajax ran as quickly as they could, but it was clear they wouldn’t get there in time. “No!”

As she yelled an arrow flew just past her head, close enough to ruffle her soft pink hair as it propelled itself towards the soldier.

Apex had shot his bow at the soldier trying to save Kaelen. His angle was terrible given Rose and Ajax were in the way, but he figured any shot could help distract their enemy. Still, in his panic it had been closer to Rose’s head than he had meant it to be. He’d probably get an earful later. If they made it out alive.

The arrow clanged against the soldier’s shield and ricocheted away.

Still, the force of the shot, and more importantly the surprise, forced the soldier to pause the strike he was about to make with his sword onto the prone Kaelen.

In the time the soldier’s pause bought them Rose and Ajax closed the distance.

But at the same time the two other soldiers who had been behind the first when the conflict first erupted were also able to finally close the distance too.

The sword of the soldier on the left crashed into Rose’s falchion as the soldier on the right engaged Ajax.

Wary of the archer in the back, the first soldier aimed to take another swing at Kaelen who was still trying to stand.

The soldier’s blade swung down onto the defenceless mage.

But the soldier couldn’t hide his surprise as the blade reverberated in his hand and it bounced off a sword that seemed to have appeared out of nowhere.

“I told you to run.”

Somehow Warlock had appeared between Kaelen and the soldier. His sword was held high to block the incoming strike and he took the opportunity to kick the soldier in front of him in the stomach, pushing him back and giving himself and Kaelen some room as the soldier groaned for a moment and bent forward.

“Leave. All of you. Now! That’s an order.”

Kaelen scrambled to his feet finally and stood behind Warlock’s dark frame.

“No! We have to stay! We have to kill them!!” Kaelen screamed like a child and his body began to glow.

“Not now Kaelen, we don’t have the time!” Rose’s shout rang out but Kaelen ignored her as he tried to gather more magical energy.

“Idiot!” Warlock was trading blows with the soldier in front of him. He looked around the battlefield.

“You two!” He looked at Rose and Ajax in turn. “Fall back immediately. I will hold off all three while you and the archer flee.” He ignored the surprised looks on the face of both as he continued. “No matter what, get out of here and get to meeting place delta.”

“But…” Rose began.

“Now!”

His shout allowed for no more dissent. Rose and Ajax both tried to gain some distance with the soldiers they were fighting so they could retreat.

Fortunately, both of those soldiers were distracted by the aura emanating from Kaelen. Any well trained soldier knew the danger a mage on the battlefield could pose, and also knew the time it took to gather the energy needed for an attack. They were all too aware they had to close in on the now glowing mage quickly.

As Rose and Ajax disentangled themselves from combat both of the soldiers they were fighting turned and charged towards Kaelen.

“I told you to run!” Warlock snapped at Kaelen.

“I just need another minute.”

“You don’t have it!”

Warlock kicked off the shield of the soldier in front of him and used the momentum to spin towards the soldier coming on his right, kicking the man in the side of his face. The soldier’s helmet absorbed much of the blow but the force of the kick sent him sprawling to the ground.

Continuing his momentum, Warlock summersaulted towards the third incoming soldier and used his low to the ground position to sweep the man’s feet out from under him with a circular kick and the soldier fell onto his back. Warlock could hear the breath knocked out of the man and knew he had bought himself long enough to return his attention to the first soldier. He turned and deflected another strike from that man.

Warlock glanced behind him. Rose and Ajax had reached Apex and the three of them were running towards the forest’s edge. It wouldn’t be long before they were out of sight. Kaelen was still charging his magical attack.

“Last warning. Run now or we’ll be forced to leave you!”

“I can do this! Just give me more time!” Kaelen shouted as grit his teeth, willing the energy he needed to coalesce faster within him.

Just then Warlock saw another demon emerge from the woods. She was a beautiful amethyst skinned, white haired woman who hardly looked dressed for battle but she walked with the confidence of a hunter who knew she was an apex predator.

“Time’s up. That’s one demon we can’t beat right now.”

Refusing to stop, Kaelen continued to strain to gain magical power. It took him several moments to realize that somehow Warlock was no longer there.

He’d vanished.

Kaelen was alone, surrounded by three armed soldiers.

And a greater demon was calmly sauntering towards him.