The Beast That was Promised ✔

TWENTY-ONE: The Battle Of Liman

The guard was silent for a second and she could see the confusion in his face under the helmet. "Sir Cillian's," he said.

"So, someone below me then," she said and let out an exaggerated sigh. "Look, I can see you jumping whenever you hear something. You want to be out there as much as I do, don't you?"

He nodded and the other one, a woman, swatted him in the arm. "We can't let you through under any circumstances, Your Highness. I'm sorry," she said and she looked genuinely upset.

There was only one thing left to try. "Imagine if you two are allowed out there and you get injured, fatally. You will never make the distance back here. But if I'm out there with you, doing what I am supposed to do as your Princess, then you would have a chance," she explained, allowing her desperation to flow into her voice. "All I want to do is help. People are dying and I can't be stuck up here. If Cillian catches me, I'll tell him that I snuck out. You won't get in trouble, I swear it."

Both guards were silent for a long moment and she was sure that she would have to fight her way past them, then the woman sighed. "Armoury is down the hall and-"

"Down the stairs, I know. Thank you," she said and burst through them before either of them could react. "Send for the doctors, just in case people do come up here. I'll be back as soon as I can!"

She ran as fast as her short legs could take her, panting loudly. She was so tired but she had to keep moving. There were people who desperately needed help and she was the only one who could do it. She needed to find Isiah and keep him alive, wherever he was. He was the most important thing, the one person who could save them all.

There wasn't much left in the armoury and the one person still there to help those she had healed didn't bother to help her as she shuffled into it. He would get in trouble if he did. Even in the midst of battle, people still looked out for themselves instead of thinking about what was best for everyone. Was that what she had once been like? What her family was like?

It didn't matter, there were other things she had to worry about. With her armour on and a sword in hand, she ran for the entrance to the mansion as the sounds of battle grew louder. She felt like a real Warrior, even if the armour wasn't quite right. She felt like who she was supposed to be.

The guards outside the mansion took no notice of her true identity as she ran past them and down the steps into the town. She froze at the bottom, staring into the night. When she had imagined Ishin, she hadn't known what to think, but it should have been obvious, he was the God of Flame. He was giant, taller than Askarune had been at his Sanctum and made entirely of blue and orange flames.

He wasn't acting in the way Rina had expected him to. She had expected fire everywhere, impossible to avoid or put out, but that wasn't what she saw. It was the catapults and trebuchets that dealt the most damage to the town, while Ishin was stuck behind a wall he could easily step over, fighting off the remains of her army. It was strange, but then all at once, it was obvious. Harudan needed to have something to rule over, control. And he couldn't do that if he had his pet God destroy it all.

It meant there was a chance for them to survive for sure. Her and Isiah, wherever he was. She had to find him before they lost their chance. Waiting for Emrick no longer mattered, they'd run out of time. With Ishin there, they would lose, she had known that from the start, but there were still people she could save if she moved fast enough. Once she could get enough people to safety and got to Isiah, they could head for Teremtys' Sanctum. She had been stupid to think that they had had a chance at winning.

Even so, she had to keep going. She ran through the streets, passing those who hadn't had a chance to get to the boats and were supposed to be hiding in their homes, but they must have been destroyed. She healed any injuries she saw, but most went unnoticed as she sped down the winding streets towards the carnage.