Daniel deflected another blow from the Visgo warrior he now faced. The Dae had admirable skill, using many of the same forms he learned in his time training with Oros and Delmos. He was by no means a master swordsman, but he could more than hold his own against the average warrior. The Dae thrusted forward, using his Dunamis to enhance his speed. Daniel deftly dodged to his right, letting him pass. Using his left hand, Daniel unleashed a blast of crimson fire at him, causing his attacker to scream for a moment, then melt away into a heap of burning flesh.

“Move!” He yelled, over the cracking of rifles and blasts of Dunamis.

The last several days had been spent on the run, doing what they could to avoid open terrain, and larger patrols. The village of Vul Dema had been abandoned, and its inhabitants were on their way to Baa’Yega territory, to hopefully find refuge from the constant harassment from the raiding parties. At first their pursuers were mere observers, but as they came closer and closer to the Eastern Clan’s border, the skirmishes began, now they had attacked them with all they had.

Mounted warriors had charged them from the rear, attempting to run them all down. A quick and sturdy defense by Avria and Daniel’s forces halted their advance, and the still misunderstood human weapons kept the brunt of the attackers wary.

“Bound! I want all the squads in each platoon alternating with fire and movement as we go!” Daniel yelled again, watching Lieutenant Jori pass the command to his own platoon.

“We’re almost there, sir!” Jori said, “The villagers are in front, we just need to hold out here a bit longer!”

Another wave of warriors moved forward, and blasts of Dunamis erupted around the fleeing defenders. Daniel watched in anger as several more of his warriors were killed by the onslaught. Much of the focus was on him, but his own power was more than enough to defend against it. Suddenly there was another shout from further to his right, one enhanced by Dunamis.

“Watch the flank!” He heard Lieutenant Carassi yell. Suddenly large swaths of earth fell away, and attacking Visgo warriors sprung from the holes right on top of Carassi’s platoon.

“Shit! Get some support over there!” Daniel bellowed, knowing full well, that platoon was already lost. At a distance, their rifles were effective at killing or wounding the enemy. Up close and personal against trained Visgo warriors however, they stood little chance.

“Carassi!” Jori called, ordering his troops to support the dying platoon.

“They came out of the fucking ground!” Daniel rushed to aid as fast as he could, but as he arrived, only a few were left standing.

Daniel let out a blast of fire into several warriors who turned to face him. Two were killed by the attack, the last having barely been able to bring up a defense of water around him. Steam hissed, and Daniel leaped through it, lodging his blade into the warrior’s neck. The Dae’s helmet was knocked off as he fell to his knees, and he stared up in sheer terror, until the life faded from his eyes. As Daniel looked up, he watched as the last few warriors in his second platoon were cut down. Wiped out… he thought, holding back waves of rage that crashed against his composure. He let out a roar in defiance and swung his blade in a broad arch around him. Flame spilled from the tip and burned several enemies around him.

“You sons of bitches!” He yelled, before being interrupted by a crash of lightning.

Avria charged into the fray, blasting clusters of enemies away and dodging counter attacks. She was moving toward Daniel, surrounded by a dozen or so of their more talented warriors.

“Daniel!” She called, “We must move! We’re broken! We have to run!” She slid to his side, grabbing his cloak and pulling with surprising strength.

Daniel grunted as he was yanked toward her. Without breaking stride, they turned and started to run as fast as they could. Daniel looked behind him to make sure that Jori’s platoon had gotten the message and started running. Many of them had already thrown their rifles into the dirt, and started sprinting with all of their might. It wouldn’t be enough. The mounted Visgo warriors were gaining ground, passing those who were on foot. Daniel knew he had to do something; something stupid again. Dammit, he thought, stopping to face the Visgo.

“Daniel!” Avria yelled, “Not this again! Let them fall!”

Fire began to swirl around him as he focused his power, letting the torrent of flame consume his thoughts and actions. His enemies were bearing down on him, and dozens of lives were sure to be lost if he did nothing. He closed his eyes, letting the heat of his power blanket his senses, and Avria’s protests began to fade. He saw the line of warriors that charged in his mind, and found himself standing in the middle of the desert of his Dunem Dae Espea. Here he could feel his power, the deluge of spiritual energy he could still barely tap into. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw what looked like a glowing orb of light. The sight caused him to pause for a moment, he blinked, and when his eyes refocused, it was gone. Strange, he thought.

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“If Robert can cloak a damn Army, I can stop these assholes.” He said to himself. He raised his hands and felt the tether to his power tighten. He began to pull with his mind, exerting great effort to bring it under his will. He opened his eyes and saw the line of enemies approaching, nearly upon his fleeing warriors. He began to scream, a feral and terrifying outburst, and raised his hands to the sky. As he did, a wall of crimson flame erupted from the ground right across the line of charging Visgo. The ground below them shook with power, and screams could be heard just under the crashing explosion. Daniel’s eyes flared with satisfaction at the display, and with a snarl he pushed his hands forward, commanding the flame to flow backwards right into the pursuing Visgo. Horns blared, signaling a frantic retreat, and Daniel fell to his knees, suddenly drained of all energy.

“By the Spirits…” Avria said, walking beside him, her focus on the billowing torrent of death that covered the landscape. “This… is unreal.” She turned to him, reaching her hands down to grab his arms. “Let’s go, they might be back.”

Daniel grunted, but his sight began to blur. “Can’t… move my legs…” He croaked. Then his vision faded to black, and he fell into unconsciousness.

~

Daniels eyes fluttered open to see a starry sky above him, and he felt warmth on his right cheek. He blinked and turned to see a small ball of electricity humming to his right, with Avria tending to it with a finger. He groaned and tried to sit up, but felt immense pain shoot through-out his body. “Shit…” He said, sliding back to the ground.

“You’re awake.” Avria said, the pale light of her electricity giving her face an eerie glow. “Welcome back…”

“What happened?” Daniel asked, turning to his side to look at her.

“You won the battle.” she said, shaking her head. “Spirit’s know how you were able to muster that much power, but you wiped out most of their force in a single blast.”

Daniel said nothing for several moments, then took a deep breath and answered. “I dug deep for that one.”

“Well now we know that you humans really do possess amazing power.” She stood and walked to sit beside him. “Robert is said to have done similar things… the rumors of how he was able to conceal the attacking forces might actually be true.”

“It doesn’t matter at this point.” Daniel did his best to look at her. “We have to assume he did, and is that much more of a threat.”

Avria nodded, then held out a bit of cooked meat and bread in a bowl. “You must be hungry.”

Daniel graciously accepted the food, grunting as he scarfed down the small meal.

“The Visgo haven’t followed us after the attack.” She continued. “I have scouts covering all our flanks. It seems we’re now more trouble than we’re worth. Thanks to you.”

“I aim to please.”

“We will be in Baa’Yega territory tomorrow morning. We must immediately do what we can to muster a counterattack and invade.” Avria handed Daniel a water skin, and he drank deeply from it.

“Why haven’t they done anything to help yet? The Baa’Yega clan supported us heavily at the beginning.” Daniel asked, “Now they’re doing what? Protecting their borders?”

“Why wouldn’t they? They are afraid of Alektor’s power now, and want to ensure they aren’t the next target.” Avria clenched her fists. “He knew they would react like this; and is benefiting from their inaction. But if we can turn the tide in Baa’Yega, and convince their clan to commit warriors… we could probably push them back into Rexun.”

“Thats assuming he doesn’t kick our ass again in an all-out battle.” Daniel struggled as he sat up, putting his hand on Avria’s shoulder and looked into her brilliant yellow eyes. “We can’t let what happened to Oros happen again.”

Avria’s eyes drifted downward, and sadness etched her already exhausted face. “I know. I won’t let that happen.” She turned to look into the night, dotted with small campfires and hushed conversations of the survivors of Vul Dema. “At least these people will be safe. You could join them if you wished Daniel; you still aren’t bound to us in Lokkadonia.” She met his eyes. “You have only been here a year and a few months. There is much more for you than to be caught up in a Dae clan war.”

Daniel scoffed. “Please, spare me the speech. I came into your world, and didn’t know what the hell was going on. One minute, I’m at a convention with my friends, then I remember a bright flash of light, the next I’m lying in the mud, here in Eleutheros. Oros found us, showed us kindness, and stood up for us more than I probably know. I came to terms with my purpose here a long time ago. There’s a lot I have to make up for. I’m one of you now.” Daniel tried to smile, but found his face was also too sore for the gesture. “As for you and me? I already told you that I’m not going anywhere. We got off to a rocky start, but I think you are probably one of the most noble people I’ve ever met.”

A thin smile curved across her face, and at that moment, Daniel felt something he really hadn’t since coming to Pelemont. He saw the curve of her jawline, almost perfect compared to all he knew, her eyes that shone a golden yellow, and her delicate features that hid under a hard shell of character. He was starting to have feelings for her; more than just the admiration of a beautiful woman that came with most men in the military. This was enough to send a shiver down his spine and scare him. Daniel blocked his cogitation and with a shake of his head, the thoughts subsided. He laid back into the dirt and brought his cloak to cover him like a blanket. “I’ve got to get some rest Avria, my body feels like it was hit by a freight train.”

She grunted as she stood. “I don’t know what a freight train is, but I agree you look like you could use some rest. Just make sure you don’t slow us down tomorrow. Last thing we need is for the Visgo to get us before we reach the border.”

“Yeah, whatever…” Daniel grunted, rolling to his side to go to sleep.