VI
Percy looked at Arthur with a confused face, not knowing it was serious or not, Arthur was deathly serious, Merlin was staring at Percy, wondering how he would respond. Percy pondered over this, thinking if he should risk it and quit his bartender job in exchange for doing guard duty, although Percy did like to fight monsters, it was pretty calm and serene working at the bartender job, other than the occasional ruffians, it was normally a pretty straightforward job. Percy turned towards Arthur, the said person himself waiting for an answer.
"So, what do you say mate?" Arthur asked with a raised eyebrow, Percy sighed, giving off a shrug and nodding, Arthur instantly brightened, Merlin smiling a little. Arthur turned towards Percy placing a hand on his shoulder.
"Great, we'll start around about a few days from now, but first, we need to focus on that barrier thing Merlin's talking about." Arthur said, instantly brightening up, Percy couldn't help a smile forming in his face.
A Few Years Later
The villagers were all running around in a panic, some of them lying on the ground, sir body sickly pale, lifeless, multiple buildings were set ablaze, people screaming in agony and fear. Percy looked around, clutching a sword in his hand, even though the barrier worked for the monsters, it was ineffective against this new threat. Percy gripped his sword running towards Merlin and Arthur who were assisting the injured townsfolk.
"Goddamn it, I didn't think about this." Merlin said clutching his staff.
"Me neither, monsters aren't the only threats in this world." Arthur said, helping one of the injured children up, the children instantly ran towards their parents who were running away from the village. Arthur turned towards both Percy and Merlin.
"This is a bloody nightmare." Arthur said with a cold voice, Percy nodded in agreement.
"We need to gather all of the remaining guards and defend this city to our dying breath, our main priority is to defend the townsfolk." Arthur said, Percy nodded, Merlin was still deep in thought.
"Rally all of them up, I need to do something, buy me as much time as possible." Arthur said instantly running off into the woods, Percy sighed turning towards Merlin with a raised eyebrow.
"Let's hope he doesn't bloody ditch us, if he does, I'm gonna beat the crap out of him." Merlin said, Percy gave a thumbs up and instantly darted off to gather the remaining guards. Percy saw a bunch of them clustered among a certain house, freeing the remaining townsfolk from a burning building. Percy turned towards them, seeing the townsfolk already out and heading towards the woods where it was safe from the invasion.
Percy beckoned the guards towards him, although not being able to speak was communicating to them non verbally. They managed to finally understand Percy and follow him to the front lines, Percy stopped seeing Merlin already there with the remaining guards. Percy pointed at the rest of the guards Merlin has convinced, the guards Percy had nodded, going to the front lines, making a straight wall of guards, Percy estimated about seventy or so guards, it paled in comparison to their army.
Percy walked towards Merlin who was in the very front, looking at the army with insecurity, and anxiousness. "Do you think we will survive?"
Percy raised an eyebrow, turning towards Merlin with a confused look, Percy shrugged, not knowing what to answer, to be honest, Percy wasn't having high hopes for this battle, but Percy had to stay calm and have hope, if it was Percy's last breath, it would be a glorious end to say the least.
Percy looked at the army, in the number of thousands, Percy gulped a little, their war banners up in the sky, blowing to the wind. Their flags were a crimson colour, the symbol of the sea dragon or the wyvern is what they called it. They were the Saxons, all of their soldiers were clad in iron armor, all of them either holding swords, shields, or bows. They still weren't physically attacking yet, they sent a volley of flaming arrows before to cause at least some damage, but they were still rooted to their spot, observing the battlefield.
Percy gulped, turning behind him, seeing all of the guards pale, deathly pale, they all gulped in both nervousness and fear of what was to come, the battle seemed impossible, Percy had to admit. Percy turned towards the Saxons who were now slowly approaching the small numbers of guards. Yet, they stood strong, nervous, yes, afraid, absolutely, scared, most definitely, but yet, they stood there, ready to die for the village they held so dear.
Percy turned slowly towards the now approaching Saxon army, Percy clutched his sword, gripping it rather tightly, the Saxon army was now charging with a sprint, all of them running towards the seventy guards, Percy gulped, going into a stance, Merlin was clutching his staff, mumbling under his breath. Percy estimated the moment the two armies would collide, the Saxons screamed their battle cries, charging in with ferocious speed.
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Merlin finished chanting, a giant blue transparent wall appearing just in time, stopping the Saxons from getting any closer.
"Quick, attack, that barrier won't hold off for long." Merlin screamed over the fight, Percy was the first to snap out of his trance, instantly charging towards the barrier, clutching his sword and doing multiple slashes at the barrier, Percy had to thank Merlin if they managed to survive, it was a barrier that completely prevents attacks from enemies, but allows any attacks from what you considered an ally, basically a one sided mirror.
Percy felt bad about doing this, Percy never wanted to harm a fellow human, monsters were different, but Percy had to remind himself, if he hesitated, if he freezes, the Saxons would instantly kill him, that was their training, kill or be killed. Percy went to work, going soldier after soldiers, Percy could feel the anxiety building up in him every time he killed a human, it was not in Percy's nature to do that, Percy was very conflicted about it all.
Percy didn't have time to ponder these thoughts, Percy shut his mind and kept on slashing and slashing, desperate to protect his home, it was the only thing he considered home, after, he was cursed. Percy shook his head and kept his mind at keeping the Saxons at bay, Percy kept slashing and slashing, slowly the number of Saxons were deflecting, the rest of the guards were now lending their swords too, slashing and dicing towards the Saxons who were slashing ferociously at the wall, only for it to bounce off aimlessly.
Percy began to grow anxious, the wall slowly flickering on and off at random times, occasionally letting a single Saxon in, to be massacred by the guards, Percy was still feeling nervous, it was a sign that the barrier was slowly fading. Percy clutched his sword and did as many slashes as humanely possible, going full force, trying to take down as much Saxons as possible in the remaining period of time.
The blue barrier slowly started to flicker more and more, the barrier wearing, a sword passing through and more soldiers managing to break through the barrier. Percy gritted his sword, it was starting to break. Percy instantly ran back to Merlin who was clutching his own staff, the rest of the guards followed suit, running back towards their original line. Percy clutched his sword, a lone bead of sweat dropping from his forehead, anxiety and fear gripping onto Percy tightly.
Finally, after a few agonizing seconds, the barrier broke, shattering into almost nothing. The Saxons stared at the remaining guards, all of them bearing a few injuries and wounds, but there were still no casualties on Percy's side, Percy didn't know if that would remain in a few seconds. The Saxons instantly charged, screeching like banshees, screaming to the top of their lungs a battle cry.
Percy instantly charged whilst the rest of the guards were there having their life flashing before their eyes flashback, Percy kept rushing through the Saxons, clutching his sword and swinging with accuracy, every swing killing one, Percy needed to block out what made him human, the ability to feel compassion, all that was left now was a killing machine. It was what Percy needed to do, it was his home for more than ten years, and Percy was not taking kindly to some people taking it over.
Percy kept slashing and slashing, plowing through each and every Saxon, Percy didn't know how long he would hold out, Percy needed to leave a mark, to make a stand that would at least make him remembered, the guards snapped out of their dazed and instantly charged, giving a valiant war scream that could potentially be their last, if it were to be the end, then it would be a glorious one. Merlin clutched his staff, raising it in the air and bringing it down onto the ground, creating multiple blasts of blue light around the area.
Instantly, a blizzard cloud formed above the battlefield, raining sharp shards of ice, killing all of the Saxons in a particular area. The commander of the army looked at the battlefield, pealing little bit, the commander though that this battle would've been easy, considering the number of men that they had, the commander was left with a surprise, to see a skilled warrior with a weapon, and a very powerful Mage safeguarding the village from any attackers. The commander looked at his numbers, about twenty five percent of the Saxons army were killed, their numbers were still pretty vast, but not as vast as it was thirty minutes ago.
Percy clutched his sword, taking a breather for a second, not swinging as much as he did as before. Percy could see multiple guards, lying dead on the ground, their body unmoving, major wounds in their chests, blood spilling from their wounds. Percy clutched his sword angrily and kept slashing, his anger towards the Saxons for invading their land fueling Percy's adrenaline, making Percy much more active and a more deadly foe.
Slowly the guards on Percy's side started to deplete against the sheer number of Saxons on the battlefield. Percy gritted his teeth, wishing he could use his voice to tell the guards to retreat, yet, he had none, it was almost as if he didn't even existed. Percy shook those thoughts aside and pointed towards Merlin, Merlin turned towards Percy, as if reading his thoughts. Merlin nodded and planted his staff on the ground, a giant earthquake shaking on the battlefield.
Percy took this time to retreat back to Merlin as a sort of action to retreat, the guards instantly followed, retreating back to Merlin who was trying to sustain the earthquake which schooled the Saxons, the guards were pretty adapted now to Merlin's magic. Percy clutched his sword, looking at the remaining guards, they were once seventy, now they were around thirty to forty, Percy didn't like those numbers.
Percy sighed in defeat, the situation was starting to worsen every second. Percy didn't know how and what to do now, he was having a blank. Merlin couldn't fuel the earthquake anymore, the earthquake stopping, giving the Saxons resting time, that was until they started charging again like barbaric monsters, Percy clutched his sword, they seemed to approach the remaining guards like hungry monsters. The Saxons ran and ran, the guards weren't even fighting anymore, it was as if they were accepting defeat.
Suddenly, a bright yellow light shone against woods, the Saxons immediately stopped, looking at the light with confusion, Percy turned towards the light himself, not knowing what was happening. A figure of a man came walking out of the woods, yellow light sir rounding him, giving him a powerful glow, Percy widened his eyes, a small smile tugging on his lips. It was Arthur, Arthur Pendragon.
Immediately, the line of Saxons were engulfed in bright yellow light, the first row of the Saxons disappearing almost instantly, the Saxons widened their eyes, stepping back in fear of what was happening. Percy smirked, clutching his own sword, looking at the army who were cowering in fear of the powerful rays of yellow light bursting from the ground and disintegrating them, turning them into dust like monsters. The Saxons started to retreat, running back to the commander.
Percy thought it was over until Percy saw multiple clumps of rocks being hurled towards them along with a volley of flaming arrows, Percy stared wide eyed, looking at it with shock, it was from their catapults and archers. Immediately Merlin set to work, planting his staff on the ground, the arrows of fire disappearing almost instantly, Arthur who was now alongside Percy was staring at the hurling boulders coming towards them, Arthur had a sword in his hand and raised it in the air, the boulders instantly exploding in white light.
"Percival, this won't end unless you defeat the commander. Go, do what you must, Merlin and I will stay and protect the rest." Arthur said, Percy nodded, clutching his sword and running off towards the commander, Percy stopped, hearing Arthur's voice calling out to him one last time.
"Percival, be careful mate, I don't want you dying out on me." Arthur said with a cheeky smile, Percy nodded giving a salute and running towards the commander who was standing at the front of the catapults, overseeing the battlefield, the battlefield itself was littered with corpses and fire, debris and boulders were randomly scattered around. Percy rushed towards the commander who was wearing a red robe, a chest plate made out of fine gold, both his helmet and his boots were the same, made with fine gold.
Percy was kind of intimidated by him, it was almost as if he was regal, he stood at the top of the hillside, catapults at the ready, archers beside them, firing volley after volley of both arrows and boulders. Percy finally reached the hill, clutching his own sword made out of iron, it wasn't much, but it was what Percy had to work with. Percy clutched his own sword, he only had a chest plate on, his village was a little poor, but it was homely and cozy.
"So, you think you can challenge me?" The commander said in a semi monotone voice, his face was pale, a lone scar running across his eye, running down to his cheek. Percy clutched his sword, not wanting and couldn't speak, if he did, Percy would ignore him.
"So, not much of a speaker." The commander said, clutching the sword handle from his sheath and pulling it out, although his armor was straight gold, his sword was silver, Percy could feel power rolling off of it, Percy guessed it was enchanted.
"You feel it too don't you?" The commander said in a low voice. "The power rolling off of this sword."
"Still silent huh?" The commander said.
"Well, that's okay, you will remember this sword, it will be the one to kill you." The commander said, instantly launching himself towards Percy, doing multiple slashes towards him. Percy widened his eyes and jumped out of the way just in time to avoid being cut in half, if that would have happened, Percy would've died straight then and there.
"My, my, you're one of the only people that managed to survive one of my fastest moves." The commander remarked.
"Oh what a waste." The commander said lunging at Percy. He widened his eyes and grabbed his own sword, raising it in the air and blocking the commander. The commander smirked, going under Percy and swiping him in the feet, swinging him to the ground. The commander grabbed his sword and aimed it for Percy's head. Percy widened his eyes and moved his head just in time, the sword implanting on the ground beside him. Percy gritted his teeth and kicked the commander off of him, the commander was sent flying back.
Percy got up from the ground, a small trail of blood from his lips. Percy clutched his sword, looking at the commander who was smirking, tension was in the air, the tension was so thick you could cut it with a knife. Percy clutched his sword and moved just in time for the commander to go at lightning fast speeds, sending Percy a thrust with his sword. Percy rolled out of the way and sent a counterattack, doing multiple slashes towards the commander. The commander however blocked each and every one with pin point accuracy.
Percy widened his eyes looking at the commander in shock. "It's been fun, but I'm done with you."
The commander instantly lunged, not letting Percy get any free time, doing multiple slashes at Percy, Percy managed to dodge a few but most of them landed, giving Percy wounds on both his arms and legs. Percy gasped in pain, looking at the commander who was smirking with glee. Percy gritted his teeth, clutching his own sword.
"You can never defeat me." The commander said, Percy didn't want to do it, but it had to, it reminded him of his old memories, and he wasn't too fond of that. Percy clutched his sword and went into a weird fighting stance, the commander raised an eyebrow, not knowing what Percy was doing.
"I have never seen that stance before." The commander said, Percy instantly charged doing multiple slashes and backing off, repeating it with speed, going much more faster every time, the commander was barely catching up, Percy didn't let him up and kept slashing and slashing, doing a stance that hasn't been spotted for years, during the fight, the earlier faith, Percy used what they called the European fighting style, everyone knew about it, that was why the commander anticipated his moves so well.
Percy grabbed his sword and plunge fit through the commanders chest, leaving him wide eyed, Percy's face darkened, pulling his sword out, seeing a shocked commander.
"What-." The commander said in between coughs of blood. "Wh-what the h-hell was that."
Percy clutched his sword, his face darkening, it was the Greek Fighting style.
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