Nygrune~

I finish the spell with a splash of focused energy. The ground cracks and moves like something under the surface waking up. The soil crumbles, and I pull the simple, unstrung longbow out of the earth. 

"Whoa, where did that come from?" the girl asks.

"I made it. Magic. Took a lot of my ingredients..." I dig around a little and find the set of arrows. Stringing the bow, I stand, nock one and spin around to shoot the cause of another scream from the girl.

She's down for good this time, a hatchet stuck deep in her chest. I fire--a kill, it was nearly point blank, and both the bow and the arrows are enchanted--grab my shield, check her vital signs. Already gone. I push aside the swirling rush of emotion, pull a pebble from another belt pouch and place it on her body. A small golden flash indicates that the spell has taken effect. No enemy will be able to touch her. Pity it only works on the dead.

I've dropped the bow. I pick it up now, pushing the shield all the way onto my forearm so my hand is free. I'm carrying a lot now... The bow will be useless once I use all the arrows, though, so now I just have to spend them. Preferably on Catastrophe. I look up, but he's gone. Invisible, or somewhere else. 

I curse under my breath and start shooting at some of the closer enemies. Another arrow from the enemy sniper takes out someone to my left, and I decide that's my new target. As soon as I use these arrows, can't let good magic go to waste...

And finally they're gone, six arrows to six enemies, all hits thanks to the magic. I unstring the bow, drop it, putting my back to a tree and my shield in front of me as I wind up the string and stow it away. String is always useful.

Another arrow whistles past, another scream. And now the emotion returns, in a flood. I let it engulf me. She was alive, she asked me a question and now she's dead and they killed her and I killed them, they didn't even have a weapon, death and death so close. She could've become a friend. They both probably had friends. Blood. The blood. I was the cause of some of that blood. I was the cause of blood and screams and death.

I lean over and vomit.

When the rush finally subsides enough to allow it, I straighten up and resume some semblance of calm. I somehow avoided getting sick on my shield or my bag, although there's a few spots on my boots. I rub them off on the ground and go to inspect the person who once used a hatchet.

Bile threatens to rise again, but I force it down. I turn away without searching the body and slowly, silently walk several yards away through the dark forest. A distant crashing thump reminds me of the sniper. 

I can use my shield as a weapon, and close quarters will render their bow useless. I take five to renew the spell on my goggles (night vision, an easy spell not dissimilar to light, the most basic) and another ten to cast stealth. Double-check that my ingredients and satchel are well secured, and I'm off to hunt.

So I'm back and I'm just going to jump in, if y'all don't mind.

~~~~

I ride through the trees, pursued by the enemy soliders who also happened to have horses. How convenient. A thin branch lashes at my face, and I feel a faint trickle of blood that is blown away by the cold stinging air. 

"Hurrime Brego, hurrime*!" I shout in Elvish before turning around and feeling the feather of a released bow whip past my cheek and hit a closer pursuer. 

I turn back around and grasp onto his mane as we suddenly burst into the river before the clearing of a battlefield. A worn battle. 

Brego whinnies and launches his front legs up. I soothe him in Elvish before we gallop through the water. I hear the steps of more horses behind me, and realise that the enemies have caught up to us. We reach the other side and the rest of the enemies start to cross the water when I shout, "Nen!"**

The water comes in the form of galloping horses that quickly swallow the figures of people on horses.

I shake my head and exhale sharply, turning around while Brego gallops away without looking back.

"Let's go."

I stay in the dense thicket, observing the battle before jumping in.

The Resistance is getting the upper hand, but every time they do, more soldiers of Catastrophe stream in. How? Where do they come from?

I suddenly look towards the hills and realise a man that signals something over the hills, where more troops pour in from.

I take a deep breath and draw out my Elven bow, slowly stretching the arrow back and exhaling silently while aiming.

I inhale sharply and release, and I see the bow go flying before it hits the man right in the chest. I instantly tell Brego to gallop away but go in the direction of the hill. Luckily, the forest continues to conceal us. 

Before us is ridge, and on the other side, the hill. I smoothly leap off Brego and tell him to stay while adjusting my bow.

I climb up the rocks and carefully place each step in order not to go tumbling back down. My hand reaches the top of the ridge, and a soft grass greets my hand. I hoist the rest of my body up, only to go darting back down. I slightly poke my head up and realise that there is a large camp and several ships spread at large across the lodging site. So. This is where the troops are coming from.

I don't think it'd be wise to take out an army on my own, so I devise a plan to get rid of them. 

I shiver. There is darkness everywhere. I mean, yes, it is night, but it's a different kind of darkness. The darkness that even the light has a hard time penetrating.

I let out a shaky breath. I'm going to die. If I do this, I will die. 

But if I don't, many more will.

"Galad," I whisper. 

At first, nothing happens. I look in dismay towards the darkening blood red sky. But suddenly, I feel a whisp of light leaving and dancing it's way through the air and through the darkness.

I smile and watch it slowly engulfe the camp in light. I see many people scream, fleeing. There is too much light going into their hearts to control it. 

"ELVES!" I hear someone scream. I look towards the other hill, and see an army of elves come from no where and begin to make their way, organised, into the camp. The Elvish Resistance has finally arrived.

The last of my light drains from me. I am half human. I am half elf. I have a darkness inside of me that will not hide forever.

I feel myself go limp, and I slowly and surreally fall back, and the world goes even darker than it already is as I hit the ground. But I hit it with a smile. Darkness will always be defeated, for it can only lurk for so long. 

*hurry in Elvish. It is pronounced, hur-EE-may. 

**water in Elvish. Elves are known to be able to control it in some circumstances. Besides, it was an LoTR reference.  

The rush.

This is why I keep going. On new adventures, to new world

For the rush of danger.

As I bring my foe to justice, the question I've been asked time and time flashes before my eyes.

When will you settle down? 

I honestly don't know. It's weird, the time I do most of my thinking is when I fight. While the adrenaline rushes though me.

I cut another one down. A man more muscled than Tobis Draco... ah the ol days. I remembered back when I first open the Doorway.

Let's hope you'll help me, Catastrophe.

Wow. Help me and Catastrophe in the same sentence.

 Almost there..

"So you are the punk I've been hearing about" Catastrophe gives me a smile, I check his SOUL, Hate, absolute Hate. I shake my head.

A Lv 20

This should be fun.

I smile back "And you must be the **** that killed a friend of mine... say Hi Heather!"

She glows slightly in the necklace.

"Now Catastrophe I like to show you something."

*Pulls out a Big gun powered by a kind of plasma*

"Say hello to the BFG 9000!"

"That... is the most stupidest name I have ever heard"

"Apparently the military was bored with the most simplest ways of murder so they made a gun that explodes people and demons alike by vaporizing their water content with a ball of lighting plasma at at least 7 gigajoules." I smile evilly "Now you are lucky that you vaught me on a day where I need my rush from battle so I won't use it on you. I'll use it on your corpse. I will slay you with the Sword my Pater had or die in combat like him. Then when you are on your last breath, plasma will be the last thing you see!"

"Lot of talk for a dirty mouth fox."

"The name is Alexander Animus Richerdson. And that will be the last name you hear!"

"Fool I have the Sword, what can you do?"

"More than you think!"

I leap into the air, and blades were grinded against each other. I fall back and hit the dirt.

Such power, he didn't even flinch!

This is what I have been waiting for since I got here! I have been given my rush!

"TiMe tO DaNcE CaTaStRoPhE!" 

I need to get new shoes. I can feel all of the rocks of the road beneath my feet, and I can see my sock through a spot on my toe. Oh well. They will just have to wait until I can get new ones. Which we be when I get a job. After I'm done with what I came for.

Several wagons and transports speed by me. I look up, startled. The road had been mostly empty before, a couple of foot travelers maybe. Nothing like this. Huh. That's weird.

A dull beating sound slowly worms its way into the surrounding area. I stop, tilting my head to try and place it. It comes from the east, too far away for me to pick up individual sounds.

I continue on, then stop. I pause for a second, then turn around and head back towards the sound.

Curse it curiosity.

Twigs snap underneath my feet, and immediately I step lighter. If it's one thing you learn on the streets, it's never to let someone hear you're coming. Trees tower overhead, casting dark shadows on the forest floor. I never liked the trees. To mysterious.

As I near the source of the noise, seperate sounds start to come to me. Screams. Gunshots. Explosions.

I'm walking near a battlefield. The thought scares me slightly, but I brush the thought aside. I was going to find out what was happening. Maybe even help.

The forest begins to thin, and I quicken my pace. The noise becomes a cacophony, drowning out the forest sounds.

I finally reach the tree line and look out over a clearing. What I see makes me gasp.

The burning ruins of a large building smoke towards the north. It's too far away to make out details, but it looks like some sort of meeting center. Spread out before me is a battle, with Command and Healing tents set up on the edges. In the middle is the fight, with thousands each battling for their lives and their cause. I see the flag of the Resistance raised over the Command tent to the north, and the flag of Catastrophe to the south.

The Resistance. I cast my mind back to the wanted poster. That is who she is with.

A swarm of lights on the edges of the battlefield catches my attention. Several groups of transports pour out over the opposite hill, crashing into Catastrophe's right flank.

My mouth drops as I realize they are automatons. Not transports. Automatons.

Yes. This is where she is. 

Connie doesn't know that Trixie knows where the Shield is. No one knows who knows where it is, unless they know where it is. (AKA, the protectors of the Shield and only the protectors of the Shield know where it is and who knows where it is.)