Hunter Sky

B2: Chapter 44 - The Third Crimson War

Sir Caldwell turned to a formation of archers that stood at the back of the army near the village awaiting orders.

"Archers! On mark!" he yelled, and several other knights repeated his words forming a chain of command around the camp so the others far away could hear the orders.

Hundreds of Altean archers pointed their bows to the skies while all the paladins mounted their horses. Nia's ears were deafened by the roaring squeals of the horses as she rushed to put her helmet over her head, joining the formation of infantrymen who gathered at the frontlines before the horsemen.

Once everyone settled into their positions, a nerve-racking silence of anticipation covered the snowy battlefield. The tension could be felt in the air, and it was as if everyone held their breath. Even the horses remained still, snorting clouds of frost every now and then to break the silence.

Every knight froze in their stance being ready for combat, adrenaline and resolve pumping through their veins as they waited for the Yliseans to emerge from the forest. Nia's heart beated faster than a drum as her eyes scanned the battlefield through the eye-slit holes in her helmet, anticipating the fighting to begin any second now.

Her hands trembled as she held her sword, and a drop of sweat slid down her cheeks behind her helmet, the cold metal armor biting her skin as it touched her when she breathed in and out. This silence was driving her mad, and the pressure to not only survive but win the battle was crushing her morale.

She wished they would just come and be over with it already, as anxiety was crippling her arms to the point where she began to worry if she would be able to use her sword. If she had to wait any longer she felt like she would just burst out screaming and charge into the forest herself.

Kelly saw her sword shaking from the corner of his eye, and stretched out his hand to her with the beer bottle bearing a stern look on his face, "Cmon on now Nia, drink this. If we're friends, then trust me. It will make you feel better."

Nia looked at him with a wary stare, then at the bottle in his hand. If she failed to survive this battle, then she could at least share one last moment with a friend. It wouldn't hurt to break one of her morals just once, would it? She sighed, then took the bottle from him. She lifted her helmet and placed it under her arm, then with a reluctant sulk, she closed her eyes and raised the bottle to her head.

Her face contorted as she forced down the beer, tasting a malty yet bitter flavor on her tongue, while feeling the warmness run down her esophagus into her stomach. It burned her throat a bit, which made her hiccup and cough with a wince, causing Kelly to pat her back to alleviate the symptoms. She held the bottle away from her face and held her chest. Good thing she hadn't drank too much.

After the burn passed, she felt a sudden surge of energy in her body, paired with a slightly tipsy yet unexplainable feeling that made it difficult for her to focus on her worries, or anything else for that matter. She looked down at her hands and realized they stopped shaking, so she placed her helmet back over her head and formed her Brawlhalla stance, more calm and collected than before. What in the world did Kelly give her to drink?

Kelly gave a cocky smile at her, "I told you it would help, didn't I?"

Nia reluctantly responded with her reddened cheeks hidden behind her helmet, "I suppose it did. Are you not going to wear your helmet?"

Kelly formed his stance while looking ahead at the forest, his nose and his cheeks red from drinking too much, "Naah, I don't like that old clunky piece of metal. It's not my style."

It baffled Nia how he could drink that stuff and still be able to focus, much less fight. Drinking it calmed her anxiety, but she was barely able to focus or think, and her body felt a bit light. Maybe this was a bad idea? She thought with a worried frown. She opened her lips to ask him about it, but froze at the sound of the earth shaking. The snow under her feet laid still, but it sounded like an avalanche was coming from the forest, as even the trees at the entrance of the forest began to shake with snow falling from it.