--- Roric

The silence was unreal. For at least half a minute, the only sound that could be heard was that of the pouring rain, along with the occasional thunder. Roric stood there, right in the center of the clearing, waiting in a defensive stance. A shiver of fear ran up his spine, but the young warrior forced himself to ignore it.

There's no turning back now. I returned to save them, and I intend to go all the way.

All of a sudden, four enemies rushed forward at the same time. It seemed like they wanted to hit him together so their momentum brought them too close to each other, to the point where they were basically obstructing their respective ways. Disoriented by that, the criminals took a moment too much to decide who was going to strike first, and that moment was everything Roric needed.

The boy stepped sideways, avoiding an axe by a close measure, and cleaved its owner in the guts. The man's intestines hadn't even touched the ground and the boy was already dashing towards the next enemy, who lost his right leg in a flash of steel. The other two were dispatched with the same speed and brutality, before the eyes of their companions who clearly couldn't believe what they were witnessing.

Meanwhile, the young warrior went back in guard, ready to fend the next assault.

I've faced men of Ekhar, crazed cultists and even walking corpses. You guys are nothing in comparison.

A good part of the bandits, after one brief moment of confusion, began charging towards him. Without their leader, anyway, they were all doing their own thing.

During the last split-seconds Roric could waste thinking, he was suddenly reminded of his late mercenary friends and almost smiled as he wondered what kinds of faces they would have made seeing him now. Would have Tolwin been proud of him? And what about his father? The kid they all knew had grown and it was finally time to prove that he possessed the strength to change things for good.

The horde reached him and everything went down to instinct. A mixture of the paladin's teachings and those fine, nearly instant Elemental reflexes was all the young warrior could use in order to stay alive.

I can't stop moving, not even for a single moment, or the crossbowmen will make a quick work of me.

Roric's body ran, crouched and slid around erratically, trying to hide his silhouette behind those of his many enemies. It was the only way to make use of the chaos to avoid giving the deadly weapons a clear target.

There!

With a clean, powerful swing, the boy chopped off the forearm of a man who held a huge knife. After grabbing the weapon from the ground Roric threw it towards one of the snipers, who was already taking aim, hitting him in the chest. Then he buried the sword deep inside the torso of another opponent, too slow to block it. As he extracted the blade, with a wide circular arc, the bandit was nearly torn in two parts.

Someone managed to cut Roric on one thigh, then a spear tip pierced his leather jerkin and grazed his ribs, but at that point nobody could stop his fury. His overly developed senses were working in full swing, rendering him completely aware of every small detail in the expressions of his enemies. In the heat of his fight, the boy couldn't help but noticing that many of them looked scared.

I'm making it. No matter what, I-

A wooden shield came crushing on his back, forcing him down in the mud. When the young warrior turned around he found a man towering over him, ready to smash his head with a heavy mallet. From that position, all Roric could to do was rolling to the side, grabbing the criminal's ankle and unleashing the power of lightning. A scorching pain erupted from the palm of his left hand, because it had gotten drenched in the fall.

Nonetheless, the man crumbled like an empty sack. The boy regained his feet right in time to block the assault of another opponent, who was trying to catch him off guard, all while fighting back the unbearable toll of his power.

My body feels heavier... I don't think I can even see clearly anymore. But I'm still here...

Because his mind was all hazy, Roric was also slower and eventually a crossbowman managed to hit his left arm. Knowing he was going to be hit way before it happened, he had to suffer through the injury while keeping all his focus on the immediate danger, a bandit with a short spear right in front of him. After parrying two blows, Roric's sword went deep through the man but got stuck between the bones, just as another enemy was rushing forward. So, the boy gritted his teeth and pulled the dart out of his own arm, tripping the criminal and stabbing him multiple times.

I'm. Not. Stopping.

The rest of the bandits were now clearly afraid of getting close, eying Roric with uncertainty like he was a cornered animal. With a grunt, the young warrior freed his weapon from the corpse where he had left it and stood once more, painfully wielding it with both hands. He could clearly feel a drip of warm blood running down his face and the burning from the rest of his wounds. The arm was probably broken somewhere but he didn't have the time nor the need to think about it.

Mother... Father... I will save these people...

With a roar, Roric charged.

***

--- Elise

Thud.

That noise, again. Something hitting the doors.

Thud.

What if they had broken in? Elise couldn't bear the thought.

Thud.

She covered her ears, because she didn't want to hear. Not the bandits trying to barge in, but the voices of the people all around. Scattered inside the temple, the villagers were waiting for their fate. Crying women were holding to their children. Elders were praying to the altar of the Makers. The last, few men who still able to carry weapons all gulped and looked down to the floor, in despair.

Being in there was a death sentence. A sentence that would have been avoided, had Elise simply chosen to be a regular girl. But no, she had to meddle with fate. Gardn and the others would have never challenged the criminals if it weren't for her.

It's all my fault. I thought I was doing something good for them. I thought this was what Dominic wanted from me. I was wrong. I've always been wrong. I even made Roric abandon me... And all of us.

A man crouched in front of her. It was Gardn, the one that was almost as responsible as her for the crazy idea of fighting back. To be truthful, many were already glanced as if to blame her for the deaths of their loved ones. Yet, the carpenter didn't seem to think the same.

“Courage, little girl,” he whispered. “You still want to protect the village, right?”

“Who cares,” replied Elise. “Everyone will be... Dead. It's just a matter of time. And the fault is mine. I should have listened to Roric and-”

Gardn grabbed her from both shoulders.

“Don't you even dare to say it,” he scolded her. “It is also because of you if we lay in this dire situation, it's true. Some people might be judging you as we speak, deeming you responsible for the fate of their husband or son, but not me.”

The girl sobbed.

“Why?” she wondered. “I've doomed us all...”

“You haven't. We all chose to follow your lead even if it wasn't the best thing to do. Do you know why?”

Elise gulped, and let him go on.

“Because you love us. Me and these people. You love us so much, you can't stand seeing us under that kind of domination. The moment you didn't want to run in the tavern, Elise, I felt like a light was burning inside me.”

“A... Light?”

“You have shown how important is for us to be proud of ourselves and value our freedom. Many have left us, but we are still here. No matter what, we won't let them touch our families.”

The girl was suddenly relieved. At least someone wasn't pointing his finger at her for that mess, but she still didn't see a way to get out without dying.

“Do you want to do something, Gardn?”

“It's not like I have a plan. I say we resist to the last man. Our dead friends deserve more than tears of desperation.”

With those words, the carpenter stood up. His massive figure lured the eyes of everyone in the temple.

“Hear me, friends,” he began. “The enemies are right out there. We are few, and the chances of victory are really slim.”

One of the council members of the opposing side stood up and answered. “It's your fault, Gardn. And beyond you, that damn girl. You all listened to her nonsense and fought this battle like-”

“This is not the time nor the place to turn on ourselves, old man,” the carpenter chilled him. “For we are all a family. And like all families, we need to support each other in the moment of need. This is why I ask for your aid.”

Elise couldn't believe her ears. Gardn, a man who had been concerned with little more than his job until a few weeks before, was acting as a leader. That lit a spark inside her heart too.

“He... He is right,” she announced. “We can still fight back. Everyone who can lift a pitchfork, stand here by the door. The moment they come in, we'll show them. We'll show them that Fradot isn't afraid of them, and they'll have to kill us to make proud people like us bow!”

Her growing tone seemed to have a great effect, despite her words being questionable. Proud people, in Fradot? Still, even the women stepped forward and obeyed. Their desperate looks shifted around and filled with determination. Blind determination, but still determination.

Why are they listening to me?

It was at that moment that Elise noticed something was missing. She didn't know since how long the pounds against the doors had ceased but no matter how much she struggled, they had disappeared. The bandits had stopped.

With trembing hands, the girl got closer to the exit. The surrounding people looked at her, expectantly. The situation was so unreal that nobody knew what to do.

It can't be...

Someone had to be outside. If it was a friend or a foe, Elise didn't know, but she couldn't imagine another reason why the invaders could have retreated, especially while so close to their goal. If they had retreated.

It's a trap... Isn't it?

Elise felt drawn towards the wooden door with unresistable force.

“Open the door,” she suddenly said.

“What?” asked Gardn. “Elise, are you mad?”

“Can't you hear? The noises have faded.”

And it was true. The people inside the temple waited for a couple of seconds in silence, but there was really no sound. Only the rain. One of the more unforgiving council members, an elder, walked forward.

“Screw the girl. It's obviously a trick,” he exclaimed. “What if they are just waiting for us to go out?”

A choir of murmurs followed his words.

“Yeah, this must be a trick,” the man continued. “And if you keep listening to this girl's words, you all will fall for it. She has already brought to the brink of destruction and-”

“Shut up, old man,” yelled the carpenter. “We all chose to follow her guidance. I doubt you would have done a better job than the girl you despise so much.”

“You madman! We just had to pay them, wasn't it hard?”

“Yes, it was.”

Everyone turned to face the person who had answered. It was Jordo, Enn's husband.

“An entire winter with half our usual supplies...” he said. “It meant many of us dying anyway. The weakest first, the strongest next. And the following year, the same thing would have happened. We just want a better future for Fradot than that. We are not listening to Elise mindlessly.”

The elder councilman tried to reply, but couldn't. He retreated inside the crowd and didn't speak again. Meanwhile, the girl was still staring at the doors.

Stay calm, Elise. I know what you are thinking, but there's no way he has returned and fought against all of those bandits by himself. It's just impossible. I made too many mistakes to be worth this much.

Yet, she couldn't help but believing it.

“Open up,” she ordered. “I want to see with my own eyes.”

“Please, don't do it!” cried a woman, who lay on the ground. “They are just outside, and you want to let them in-”

“Close it behind me, if you want. I'll go out and face the consequences.”

“Are you sure, lass?” asked Gardn “Nobody will be able to protect you.”

“It's just a feeling,” replied Elise. “But somehow I know that the danger has passed.”

After a few moments of hesitation, the man nodded and helped a couple of other farmers lifting the wooden bars. They opened the door just enough to let the girl slip through and she did it without even looking ahead.

Please. Makers, be merciful. I want this to be over.

When she opened her eyes, Elise needed a couple of seconds to figure out the situation.

There were corpses literally everywhere in the plaza. Fradot had been turned into a battlefield, and in many of the bodies she could clearly recognize the farmers who had helped her holding the enemies earlier. But the bandits lay there too. All of them.

Right in the center, under the rain, stood a single person. The only one who still drew breath in the entire village, stumbling left and right, staring blankly like he was searching for the next opponent to face.

Roric was there. Drenched in blood, barely wielding his sword in his hands. He was visibly limping, and two crossbow darts were stuck in his torso. Still, around him, were dozens of dead opponents.

This isn't possible. Just who is this guy?

The boy noticed her presence, turning his head towards the temple. He looked exhausted, but when his gaze focused onto Elise she could see a spark of life inside his eyes. She raised her left arm in his direction, already feeling warm tears runing down her cheeks.

“Roric!” she sobbed.

“Elise,” said Roric.

Then, he coughed up blood and collapsed to the ground.