Clash of Captains

Chapter 13

Aneira let out an angry cry as she flung her full weight into the soldier before her. She gritted her teeth as he shoved back, his hands gripping frantically at her shoulders in a vain attempt to throw her off. She dug her heels into the dirt and smacked him upside the head with the pommel of her sword; the soldier swayed on his feet before collapsing, unconscious. Aneira only allowed herself to feel a moment of guilt before she burst forward again, motioning for the fleet of Ledian soldiers to follow her in the attack.

A rush of Dregian soldiers met them at the gate of the stronghold, weapons held aloft in the pale morning light. She caught a glimpse of the moons just above the horizon: Manaf, the smaller moon, was a tiny gibbous, its largest possible phase; meanwhile, Marr was no more than a waning wedge, as if both were competing with the other and being cast out at the same time. Aneira tightened her grip on her sword and lowered her gaze again. While the stories of the sky and its contents were interesting to her, she couldn't afford to become distracted in the midst of such an important battle.

"Charge!" She screamed, just in case some of her warriors hadn't seen her arm signals. Her words were echoed with a resounding war cry as the soldiers rushed forwards, meeting the Dregian fighters in a clash of swords and fists. Aneira watched for a moment, feeling a touch of pride at the bravery of her soldiers for agreeing to the mission, before she set off herself.

The first soldier to meet her was a young man no older than herself, with a boyish face and fluffy brown hair that poked out of the edges of his helmet. He barely kept a large broadsword from falling from his grip; his arms shook as he struggled to maintain the weight of the heavy weapon. I almost feel bad for him, Aneira thought to herself as the boy swung wildly at her. She bent out of the way of the attack, catching the edge of his sword with hers. But I'm not going to let my pity for him distract me. She knew better than to let down her guard just because she was facing a soldier more inexperienced than she would expect.

Aneira kicked at the boy's waist and he stumbled in an effort to sidestep the hit. The combined weight of his sword and armor deemed too much, and he tripped over his own feet, falling on his backside in the dirt. The blonde girl chuckled softly, trotting away as she heard the boy groan in annoyance.

The next soldier to meet her was a female, old enough to be her mother and so different from Aneira's first opponent that she nearly laughed out loud. The woman's cold grey eyes were eerily similar to her own; she would have guessed that the woman really was her mother if not for the fact that her mother was dead and this woman had midnight black hair that was the complete opposite of her own blonde locks. Grimacing against the force of the woman's initial lunge, Aneira swung her sword beneath the soldier's long saber, successfully twisting it from her grasp. The sword hit the ground with a strangely melodic clash, rolling several feet out of the way. Aneira served the woman an uppercut to the jaw, and, having managed to subdue her with the strike, dashed off.

Just as Aneira prepared herself to sneak up upon another Dregian soldier, her sword held at the ready, she suddenly felt something -- no, someone -- grab her wrist. She let out a yelp of surprise and pivoted to get a look at her attacker. It was Devyn. The girl's short dark hair was tousled, either from the wind or from whatever event had taken place before Ledah had attacked, and her deep brown eyes lit upon Aneira with a sort of predatory slyness, like that of a fox tracking its prey. Her grip fastened on Aneira's wrist like an iron clamp.

"Hello again, captain," she crooned, tilting her head. As Devyn slipped her sword from its sheath, Aneira suddenly remembered the feeling of the weapon at her throat, the way the cool metal had seemed to spell out her death. She felt a slight shiver pass through her at the thought, before the memory slipped away and her focus returned to the moment. Aneira tore her wrist from Devyn's grasp and raised her sword.

"I should have figured you'd be here," Aneira replied in as casual a voice as she could manage. "Since you seem to love following me around. Y'know, some might think you have a thing for me."

Devyn's expression shuttered suddenly, her expression turning serious. "I do have a thing for you. I hate you." Her fingers twitched around the pommel of her sword, tightening and loosening. Aneira took a cautious step back.

"I hate you," Devyn repeated, stepping steadily forward. Her sword was still held at her side, but Aneira had no doubt that the weapon could make its way up to her throat within seconds. "And I am sick and tired of losing to you, of letting you slip out of my grip, of letting you get ahead of me like you always seem to..." Her eyes locked on Aneira's, cold as ice. Aneira felt a chill slip down her spine, as if her words had spread frost across her skin. Devyn barked a bitter laugh. "I'm sick of letting you have your way, blondie." And at that, she finally struck.

Aneira was forced to take a step back as she swung up her sword to block the strike, her eyes growing wide upon seeing the determination in the enemy captain's gaze. She let out a grunt and pushed harder against their parried swords, only releasing when Devyn slipped her sword out from the fray and stepped to the side to attempt a different approach. Aneira dodged a strike from the side, sweeping her sword up to jab at the young woman's abdomen. Devyn hopped back on her feet, evading the attack before her weapon could brush a hair off her jacket. The two then proceeded to rush at each other simultaneously, their weapons clanging together with a spray of sparks at the friction. Aneira whipped up her sword to release it from the standstill. Devyn hissed, a sound Aneira only realized seconds later as one that had resulted from pain. The blonde's eyebrows twitched up, pausing for a moment in curiosity as she laid eyes on what she had -- somewhat accidentally -- inflicted upon the other young woman.

A thin streak of blood ran down Devyn's cheek from where the edge of Aneira's sword had caught her upon being swung upwards. The captain touched a finger to the scratch, appearing bewildered to find the pad of her finger coming away with a dribble of red. Devyn sucked in a breath as she stared, almost transfixed, at the crimson liquid. Then her dark eyes darted up to find Aneira's, and her lips twitched down into a grimace. Blood had been shed; this was no longer a game to her.

Aneira barely had the chance to raise her sword as Devyn lunged with newfound passion, her blade swinging for the blonde's throat at a lightning-fast speed. She managed to parry the attack and, skating her sword off of Devyn's blade, she stepped forward to stab at the young woman's stomach. Instead of blocking the attack, Devyn's leg suddenly kicked out, sweeping Aneira's legs out from under her. She landed on her back with a grunt, her breath leaving her body at the force of the fall.

Aneira tried to get up, but Devyn was upon her before she got the chance, her legs straddling the blonde's waist and keeping her pinned to the ground. The scratch on her cheek seemed even more vividly red than before, glimmering in the shadow of her silhouette as she peered down at Aneira. An amused smirk tugged at the corners of her lips as Aneira wriggled underneath her, trying desperately to free herself.

"You don't stand a chance, blondie," Devyn hissed, the edge of her blade digging into Aneira's throat. "So quit the fighting, will you?"

Aneira ignored the captain's request, bucking her hips out as much as she could in an attempt to unseat her. But the sword only bit deeper into Aneira's neck the more she struggled.

"I told you to quit it," the captain growled again. "But if you won't stop yourself, then I'll do it for you." Something heavy hit her in the side of the head, and the world drifted into darkness around her.