Teutoburg [4]

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Teutoburg Forest
Frontier of the Roman Empire
September 5th, 9 αAD

We rode through the dark forest for some time.

The rain - now a thunderstorm - makes it even harder to see in the darkness. It appears we both were used to this sort of travel at least, and the narrow path was clear enough to keep a quick pace despite the weather.

After approximately an hour or so, as it was difficult to really tell in the blur of the night, Arminius had gotten a decent distance ahead of me while I had not noticed, until he vanished a moment into the swirling wet darkness of the path ahead. I called out to him, but could not be heard above the thunder and wind.

When suddenly, as if my horse sensed something amiss, it ground to a halt, sliding in the mud and I nearly got thrown from the saddle. I chastised the creature a moment before dismounting to see what had caused it to do this. When I noticed just ahead on the path, now thanks to the light of some sort of sizzling and smoky flame. I realized that before me on the path, laid a massive tree that had been split and destroyed by lightning, and now blocked the way. It was charred and on fire, though the rain was keeping it low and smothered. I glanced at the ground and saw the other set of horse tracks in the mud belonging to Arminius and his steed, leading directly for the tree. I slowly circled the massive smoldering tree and ahead laid his horse, it had not stopped in time and tumbled over the obstacle violently, and seemed to have been impaled by multiple charred branches.

I approached closer and saw Arminius had been thrown a few feet from the horse, laying on his stomach in the mud. He remained there unmoving. I went over to him and knelt down, rolling him onto his back. Interestingly, due to his cloak, I had not noticed he had a Centurion helmet with a face plate smithed in the image of the stoic face of a man. Looking something akin to a Greek marble statue, had it been moulded from dark iron instead. I went to remove it to see if he lived, when he violently jolted and grabbed my wrist tightly, and twisting it away.

I moved back and stood, staring down at this strange man who changed the world, or is yet to. The things he does to those men, the ungodly barbarism, the horrors. With the Lord as my witness, I cannot let this come to pass.

I will slay the Daemon of the Rhine.

It seemed Arminius had some inkling of hostility, or he was rattled from the hard fall, I could not tell through the unmoving metal face with hollow black eyes staring back at me. But his movements however, did show this, they were cautious, he did not look away from me. Even as a particularly explosion of thunder occurred in the sky above us. He slowly pushed himself to his feet, and lowered his hood, further revealing the full headpiece he wore. I lowered mine as well, the heavy rain making quite the cacophony on the cool metal of my own Helm.

We both stood in silence for some time in that storm, unmoving.

Arminius broke the silence first.

"The horse is dead." He spoke.

"It would appear that way." I replied. 

"I know these forests, I shall take yours and travel more quickly." He continued.

"I apologize Arminius, but that cannot happen." I said flatly.

Silence.

"You side with Rome?" He asks.

"I side with God." I reply.

Silence again.

"Jupiter." He states, a hint of some long suppressed distaste.

"No."

I drop my shield from my back into the mud with a wet clang.

"Must we do this? Can we not part ways and allow fate to decide our ends on the battle field to come? What loyalty do you have to those men?" He asked in a much colder tone.

"My loyalty is to God, to those who fight against barbarism and savagery. *Fate* is why I am here in your way."

Loud thunder booms again.

I pull my sword from the scabbard and drop the scabbard near my shield. 

Arminius picks up his Gladius from in front of him without looking away.

I raise my sword in the air a moment with both hands, before leveling it and widening my stance.

To my not-so-surprise, he gets into a more low, open stance, with his arms out in front of him, Gladius in hand. The animalistic, vicious pose of a wild man preparing to fight for his life, rather than a more noble Roman combat style that I would've thought to be a better match.

In an incredibly swift moment, he is charging at me. Completely silent but for the mud, wind, and rain. The disparity of his emotionless faceplate, barely lit by the smoldering tree and intermittent lightning, and roman garb, with the wild unpredictable German movement is quite a strange sight.

I brace myself and lean into a large swing of my great sword to where he is about to be, but he dodges wildly. Going to his knees and sliding in the mud from his momentum, leaning until almost on his back and glides directly under my swing. Immediately trying to swing his Gladius for my knee, but I let the momentum of the swing pull me instead of stopping, just enough to spin me an extra quarter turn, and I lift my boot and kick him in the chest down into the mud, halting his slide.

He made no sound as he unbuckles his legs from under him and swings for my leg again while trying to roll back. I step back and turn, swinging my sword down in his direction but he slides again. This time jumping into a crouch and jumping as my sword slams into the mud in the place he used to be. He lands next to the sword and swiftly lands a blow to my helm with the Gladius, causing a great and awful ringing in my head, stunning me a moment. 

I stagger and he jumps again, kicking me in the chest with both feet and sending me to my back having knocked the air from my lungs. My sword stayed stuck in the mud where I had been standing as I tried to regain my breath.

He did not wait and stabbed at me where I laid, but I managed to roll multiple times as he also tried to slash and stab multiple times, missing me by a thread each time. My cloak now weighing me down immensely, being water and mud-logged.

Arminius dove on top of me and I struggled, punching him in the chest and stomach with my right hand and stopping his arm from bringing the Gladius down with my left. I reach out as he pushes both of his hands down on the pommel of the sword, putting his weight into it and kneeing me in the side. Apparently we'd gotten much closer to the smoldering tree where my right hand grabbed a burning splinter of a log. I rammed it with all my might up under his armpit where he lacked chainmail.

He made no sound as his left arm went completely limp and blood started pouring from the wound. Making a hissing sound as the burning splinter was extinguished, smoke now rising from under his arm. He staggered, falling off of me onto his back as I gasped a moment, staring up and the crackling, dark sky of this foreign place.

My head ringing and filled with fog from the heavy blow I was dealt prior. I made my way to my feet, tearing off my burdening cloak, wincing in pain as I realized he must have damaged a rib or two with that kick and the kneeing as well. I made my way for my sword that still stuck out of the mud nearby. 

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