Sunrise Gate

Chapter 32

Chapter 32

I turn from Athair and Mark, staring through the clashing men and beasts on the field, over to where Demi and Aaron are. It’s difficult to tell what exactly is going on at first as swords and shields and arrows flash in my line of sight, men falling over or beasts leaping through the air. Anything is a target for everything, and what was supposed to be a two-sided battle has evolved into a three-way chaos. Did Siafi ever expect this? I wonder but I hear fire erupting intensely and I see Demi and Aaron engaged in a full on duel, the two of them separated by a distance in a clearing.

My eyes are locked on the display, Demi throwing shards of ice at Aaron but his mists leap from his side and knock them away effortlessly, diverting and impaling several Sabres. He retaliates by throwing a ball of his mists at Demi but she her hands glow a blue flame and she throws them forward. A wall of flame, a massive cone, shoots from them that consumes the projectile and reaches further, grazing Aaron and causing him to throw an arm in front of him in defense. Aaron smiles and throws his arm downwards, a sonic blade releasing from it and flying towards Demi. He repeats this again with his other arm and begins to form a stream of blades traveling to Demi rapidly. She attempts to dodge one but it scrapes her in the back, causing her to wince, and she turns with one arm spraying ice at Aaron, raising the other to blast fire at him. The two streams meet and fill the air with a burning fog that flows to Aaron, but he spins and forces the wind around him to dissipate the fog, rushing towards Demi now but Demi slams her fist into the ground and sends a shockwave rampaging towards Aaron, the ground breaking from under him and tripping him as well as knocking several soldiers to their knees.

My attention is pulled away as I remind myself of Lynx and I look for him nearby. I scan the armies around me but their bodies blur as they clash, molding as if one mutant being with many limbs and heads. I draw my swords and dig in, fighting my way for a better viewpoint. I rush a group of Sabres from behind as they fight several Guardians head on and I stab and impale two, ripping my swords from their backs and slashing the other two in the neck. Several more fall in and the group of Guardians reform, fighting the additional Sabres while I make a break, pushing further into the battle.

As I run, swords and claws lash out at me but I duck and slide my way past them, running faster and faster as I break for open air. In front of me I see the ground fall off and I prepare to leap, lunging myself over the crater and landing on the back of a Sabre, my swords digging deep into his ribs. I turn and see wooden shrapnel and realize, that was a catapult. The Bomb Maker really made those strong…

I continue moving towards Demi, searching for Lynx. Demi and Aaron are straight ahead, Aaron wielding some spectral staff now, using it as a weapon against Demi, who has summoned her hammer now. Demi raises her hammer high overhead and leaps, crashing down with her hammer on Aaron, but Aaron raises his staff and the two collide, exploding, and throwing them apart from one another. Demi lands on her back but Aaron maintains his stance, kicking up dust as he slides on his feet, coming to a stop. He lifts his staff and runs towards Demi while she is down, slamming the staff down on Demi but she rolls and the staff hits ground. With one hand on her hammer, Demi raises the other and a burst of wind shoots from it, throwing Aaron off of her and giving her the chance to stand once more, lowering hammer and uppercutting Aaron into the air.

I find myself staring and rip myself away, looking over to the hillside where I see Lynx surrounded by Sabres, his horse dead and bleeding next to him. “Lynx!” I shout, pivoting on the ball of my heel and sprinting away from Demi. She can hold out, I reassure myself. As I run closer I see more and more going on. Sabres attack him head on while Separatists lunge in and out from between the Sabres, taking stabs at him as they can.  He can’t hold them off longer!The urgency builds as I watch him slowly backing away with his shield held up, each blow sending brutal spikes of pain down his arm and he cringes.