- - - < ooxxoxxxx > - - -

Their movements became a maelstrom. Kleinnard attacked, spiraled slashes, a slithering coil of wind – leaves swirling around him as he swung his blade. Siebea countered with a barrage of crackling strikes, her daggers streaking straight, angled like arcing bolts of lightning shattering the darkness.

Siebea, a blur of purple and lightning energy, vaulted into the air. Kleinnard mirrored her, a whirlwind of fury. The trees became their stage, branches snapping beneath their feet. With a roar, Kleinnard lunged, his blade slicing an arc. Siebea countered, a backflip carrying her over the attack. She landed, daggers flashing, and struck. The forest echoed with thunder, sparks showering where their weapons met.

They traded blows with dizzying speed, neither gaining a clear advantage. Siebea's lightning was swift, but Kleinnard's wind blade deflected each strike. She parried, twisted, and danced around his spiral assault. His attacks were relentless, yet Siebea's footwork was like quicksilver, finding fleeting gaps in his defenses. A graze here, a glancing blow there – the fight was a whirlwind of near misses and desperate counters.

The escapees, battered and weary, eyes darted to follow the deadly dance. The wind whipped their hair back, their eyes stinging from the swirling dust. Every few seconds, the clashing blades would separate, only to erupt again in a flurry of sparks and wind.

Kleinnard snarled, his attacks growing more frenzied. Siebea unleashed a crackling flurry. Kleinnard's wind blade flickered but held. The air thrummed with volatile energy, a storm on the verge of breaking as lightning and air energies danced on the edge of destruction. Then…

Their weapons met with a resounding boom, the force of the impact sent tremors through the ground.

- - - > xox K•A xox < - - -

Kleinnard grinned right in her face. This newlight just got interesting.

His Wind Hanger wailed as he channeled his energy, forcing her back. The chit had some bite, he'd give her that, but beneath that tough act, he saw the same scared pup he'd cornered all those years ago. Sparks showered from their locked blades, the goggles in her forehead glinted. Her straining arms and trembling grip fueled his growing smirk.

With a yank, he wrenched his blade free and leaped back. "Siebea, you worm! Finally showed your ugly mug, huh?"

A snarl ripped from his throat as he lunged, his blade a twisting blur aimed for her neck. A violet flash, ozone stinging his nostrils, and the blighted annelid was gone. Empty air where her head had been a moment ago.

His fingers dug into the hilt as he activated the Direction attribute. He willed more energy to the Wind Hanger, the roar vibrating through his arms, eager to rip and tear. “Felid Noise: Leonine Roar!” The wind obeyed, a cyclone swirling around the blade. Let the worm try to hide in this.

A sharp pop to his left, and he barely had time to think before whipping his blade up… The impact rattled his teeth, and he gave ground, a predator momentarily on the back foot, but not beaten.

"Heh! Not bad –" The words choked off as a violet blur zipped past his face, close enough to shave him. He twisted, a hair’s breadth from getting his ear lopped off by the annelid’s blade.

He swung, a roar of wind, like a beast unleashed from his sword. The annelid scrambled back, shredded lichtwyrt leaves marking her retreat. The sharp sweet tang of the crushed herbs hit him – the stench of his coming victory.

"Go!" Siebea barked at the rats. "Move!"

He lunged towards the vermin, but the blighted worm slammed into him, forcing him back. Rats! They even got that badger girl! Where’d those slippery vermin disappear to?

Heh! Who cares? He threw his head back, a sound like a predator's victory cry ripping from his throat. "You'll bleed for your rebellion, annelid." His blade roared, a hungry predator scenting prey as he leveled it at her throat.

That smug smirk - the worm always thought she was better. One heartbeat she was in front of him, the next a blur of ozone stinging his nostrils as he whirled away, her dagger hovered a whisper away from his skin. "Kleinnard Argus," she purred, voice dripping with false sweetness, "What brings you here? What games are you playing now?"

Pivoting mid-dodge, he lashed out with a vicious swipe of his blade. Got you now, annelid. He pressed his advantage, the wind roaring around his sword. Blades clashed, sparks exploding where their weapons met. She scrambled back, putting distance between them. "Wahahaha!" He cackled. "Sharp teeth, still got a bite, eh? Plans? You think we share scraps with the likes of you, grub-eater?”

"A filthy traitor to the Miers Empire!" He snarled, teeth bared. His hand flicked across the blade, stroking from hilt to tip. “Serpentes Noise: Viperine Hiss.” The Wind Hanger shimmered, elongating, and curving into a crescent. "The hunt ends here, annelid." He struck, a viper in a coiled rage. His blade, a fang, darted through the air with a deadly hiss.

Snarling, Siebea's lips twisted. “Ad Hominem!” The feint was obvious – a clumsy shuffle to the side, a desperate attempt to distract. He didn't flinch. Her daggers zigzagged, a flash aimed straight at his heart.

A violet bolt split the air, but with a flick of his wrist, he brought his blade up in a blur. It met her dagger with a satisfying hiss, deflecting it harmlessly past him. A curse escaping his lips. Feisty little…

“You dodge the issue using insults, Kleinnard! Can't you address the point itself?” the worm spat.

He coiled. With a hiss, the crescent blade, a serpent's fang, flashed upward, poised to pierce her heart. But with a viper's strike, it coiled back, aiming to gut her like a fish.

Weapons crackled. Sparks exploded, momentarily blinding him. He tasted ozone, sharp and acrid on his tongue.

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

His grin wavered. Eyes narrowed, fixated on the blade. Was it…shrinking? He blinked, trying to clear his vision. A growl ripped from his throat, swallowing the last of his laughter. Gotta finish this.

"Weapons call the truth, turncoat. Words are for cowards." He roared, launching himself forward. The wind hissed around his blade, a screaming, razor-sharp extension of his will. He snarled, his blade shrinking with each clash. Almost out.

"As you wish," Siebea purred. Her lightning lashed out, jagged and furious, clashing with his wind in a deafening explosion. Mid-clash, his eyes flicked to the approaching figures. 'Bout time those mutts showed up.

"Hunt down the vermin," he barked. "This annelid's mine to pluck."

He slashed, the impact jarring. She was weaker – he felt it in the way his blade met hers. What was she up to?

"Kleinnard!" The worm spat his name – a threat, sharp and venomous. "The Empire rots from within. Can't you smell the decay?” That blighted annelid slid her goggles down to her eyes. What was that supposed to mean?

He shifted his weight, the air blade hissing in anticipation. What was the worm planning? His strike went wide. Rats, he hadn’t expected that. Had to stay sharp. The cloaked man’s words—Show the Empire— echoed in his mind. To hell with the annelid’s words. He had a job to do. The reward; he craved it more than anything.

The violet light from the worm’s right dagger flared. Brighter. Hotter. Heat prickled his skin. Was she activating Amplification? What the—

He tightened his grip on the hilt and slashed diagonally. But a violet flash – Gah! It burns! – ripped through the air, forcing his eyes shut. A roar ripped from his throat, or maybe it was the night itself, he couldn't be sure. Pain slammed into him, driving the air from his lungs. His arms flew up of their own accord, shielding his face. The ringing in his ears faded, replaced by a silence so deep it felt dangerous.

He gasped, stumbled back. His whirlwind of blades fell apart, each strike missing its mark. The world swam before him, a mess of dark shapes against that blasted violet that pulsed even behind his eyelids. He blinked, desperate, but the world wouldn't sharpen into focus. And then it hit him like a blow to the gut – she was gone. Vanished. Where?

He clawed at his eyes, but the world remained a blurry mess. "Blast! That turncoat!" Vadorecht's face flashed in his mind; a grimace that'd make a canine whimper and a voice that promised pain.

"KLEINNARD!" A booming voice shattered the silence.

He spun, a strangled sound escaping his throat. Blind, he scrambled, fear, a rabid dog nipping at his heels. He lurched forward, his hands fumbled in front of him, finding something solid that yielded slightly, surprisingly sturdy. He clung to it...until a voice like grinding stone rumbled from above.

His fingers twitched against the rough fabric of a coat. He'd know that rough wool anywhere. He peeled his face away, blinking against the lingering violet haze. His throat went dry. Mother of Miers, he was screwed… Vadorecht?

“By Solus’ Light! What are you doing!" Vadorecht's eyes were like ice, pinning him in place. "Where's the spy hiding? And that infernal light..." The old boar’s grip on his spear tightened. "Explain yourself, Lieutenant."

He swallowed. Time to play the fool. He grinned, the kind that made him look harmless, like a canine cub that hadn't grown its teeth yet. "Those runts, blasted vermin, scurried off." He scuffed his boot in the dirt.

"Bah! It matters little. We fed the whelp a bellyful of lies re—" Vadorecht snapped, cutting himself off. The old swine’s jaw tightened, his eyes boring into him. "Runts, you say? But there was only supposed to be one?"

He shrugged, hoping the old suid wouldn't notice the sweat prickling under his collar. "Beats me. Sniffed out one vermin before, not three."

“Three runts? Three?!" Vadorecht's face went red as a scalded pig. "You incompetent whelp!" he roared, spittle flying. The old boar actually lunged.

He barely dodged the fist that slammed into a nearby tree. The bark exploded, splinters raining down around them.

The old suid sucked in a breath, the rage seeming to drain out of the man. "At the very least... they gained nothing."

"Heh. 'Bout that..." He drawled, flicking a speck of dirt from his sleeve. "They snatched the mustelid girl too."

Vadorecht's nostrils flared, a growl ripping from his throat. "What? The girl!? How in blazes did they learn of her?"

The old boar lunged, grabbing him by the collar and hauling him close, his grip like a vise. "You saw they had her and stood by like a witless squire? War is upon us, Kleinnard. Not some child's game of make-believe!" His voice echoed, loud enough to rattle bones. "Lord Acermanus will see our heads roll for this blunder."

His gaze darted about, finally landing on a rustle in the underbrush. "Just a girl, old man. Who cares? Think that's a beagwog over there?" He pointed vaguely, still avoiding the old swine’s glare.

“A mere slip of a girl?” Vadorecht's face went from red to the color of a rotting carcass.

His feet left the ground, the old boar’s grip like iron claws around his throat. "Our orders were crystal clear, you whelp!" Each word was a snarl, spittle spraying. "None shall harm the girl."

Another shrug. Let the old suid fume. "Maybe the badger just craved a cete of her own.”

Boot-steps crunching on twigs. His eyes flicked to the newcomer - another mutt, and by the looks of it, he'd brought a gift.

"Vorst Warden, Sir, apologies for the interruption," the soldier puffed, "but we found this. Seems the escapee dropped it."

The mutt held out a busted bracelet, the stones glinted under the Light. Vadorecht snatched it up, his knuckles going white as bone. His jaw was workin', like he was about to bite through metal. The old boar sucked in a breath and crushed the bracelet. The pieces went flyin', lost in the dirt at his feet.

"Treacherous fool!" Vadorecht roared.

His backside met the ground. He tasted dirt and cursed himself for yelping.

"Report to Lord Acermanus," the old suid spat, each word a threat. "And hope for his mercy, for mine is all spent."

Vadorecht spun towards the camp.

His gut twisted when he saw what had the old boar snarling. The gates were gone, mangled elemenium, those damn vines tore through everything. Heh! The air crackled, almost as much as the energy thrumming under his skin. Time to see some blood spill.