Across the expanse of the forest outskirts, two human silhouettes moved sharply, under the shadows of tall looming redwoods.
The leading figure walked without a care in the world, while the other followed quickly almost trembling with fear.
" Jaxon haven't we reached yet, why shalt we drop it here and leave." Istria said fearfully. The charismatic orange head before her turned to look at her with his glittering amber eyes.
His dead eyes blinked at her request, " Rest easy Istria nothing would shall take place in my presence, let's walk a bit further." She sighed and followed reluctantly.
Silently they traversed the forest outskirts going deeper and deeper than intended. Suddenly Jaxon stopped and dropped the leather bags he held. " Dump them at the bark of that tree." He ordered.
" Aren't we too further in, this couldn't be numbered as the outskirt." Istria said emptying her bag. Jaxon stretched himself, " We are being followed. "
In a panicked gasp Istria tugged his cloth, " Shouldn't we have returned, the squadron would protect us. Why did you take us deeper, you aren't even armed. "
" I need not tools of damnation, what master would trust his loyal bond slave with a blade. " He said in a sarcastic tone, calmly observing the area around them keenly.
Istria offloaded his bags and asked, " So shall do we do. Let us run back as fast as out feet carry." Jaxon didn't respond. He turned to face Istria, " You'll die the moment your feet…"
Before he could complete his sentence, an arrow flew past his head. He caught the projectile a few millimeters away from Istria's eye.
She yelped falling gracelessly and landing on her butt. Jaxon didn't bother to help her, instead he started at a group of men exiting their hiding places.
" Oy, it been a long while ain't it, Laposis. Because of the masters of these pitiful slaves we had gone hungry for days." One of the men said.
They were dressed in a strange crude leather armor and had animal fur scabbards hung on their waists. ' Lesser tribes, their tongue betrays them. They are Gothic scouts. '
Istria rose and hide behind Jaxon, " We are merely slaves of your enemies, we were once from tribes like yours." Jaxon said, trying to negotiate an escape.
However his luck was out, mainly because of Istria's presence. ' A battle is inevitable, I smell the malice in the very ether. ' The men quietly conversed within themselves while throwing dubious gazes at the teen duo.
" You may flee lad, the lass stays with us." One of the scouts said with a disgusting smirk. Jaxon kept mute, he looked at the three archers perched on three tops and five armed men surrounding them.
He clapped loudly thrice, " My life holds no meaning without her, if she is not with me, I am of no use to my master." The scouts looked at each other, " She is a slave like you, is she not? You Master can always attain another."
" Very well then, say not I didn't warn you, my treachery is boundless." As his last sentence left his lips, one of the men unsheathed his blade and charged at him.
Jaxon calculated his steps with relation to what was about to happen and once the first man stepped into his proximity. He bent over.
A feral roar echoed through the forest outskirts as a beast lunged above Jaxon's being; pinning the man to the earth. With a single bite the man's head lay lifeless on the ground, leaving the earth to drink greedily of his blood.
Fear shown in the eyes of the Gothic scouts, ' Take the ones high up, I would clear the rest. ' he gave a mental command, the beast wasted not a single moment before scaling a hiding tree in mere seconds.
Jaxon looked at the blade on the ground and stretched forth his hands towards it. It flew as if obeying the call of his master an landed perfectly into his grasp.
A metal cuff fabricated around his wrist, stretching further passed his wrist by a little margin. Then links of metal connected it to the blade's hilt.' Practice makes perfection. '
He lunged forward moving with lethal precision. Emotionless, purposeful. The earth groaned with each step leaving dust to further exaggerate his movements.
His first strike was parred, almost perfectly, immediately he had to back step to avoid an attempted disembowelment.
Metal rang, sparks flew, and the daunting sight of four grown up men trying to put down a teenage boy continued.
Although an astonishing feat, he was still at the losing end. If he battled one person, it would have been a different case as he was naturally stronger than mundane mortals.
But against four men, nothing he learnt under Serph in seven months could cover up his weakness. All which he could use to survive was mere luck and his wit.
' Mistakes aren't optional, I need to stretch them out, battling them one by one would lead to their vanquish. ' Narrowly dodging a devastating slash a tiny gash appeared on his neck.
He was only still alive with his ability to keep all of the scouts before him. If they surrounded him, he wouldn't survive a moment. But still that didn't save his flesh from being pierced.
Other strikes followed still and more gashes emerged, some small others big enough to be a bit life threatening.
" Quit cowering like a hare, face your end with dignity." One said.
Jaxon sneered," How pitiful are thee, four men against a kid, pathetic." His words seemed to ignite the men and they stopped attacking.
" Leves and Anen retrieve that…" Blood splatted on the faces of the living scouts. The speaker was dead, chest pierced.
" Never turn thou back on the enemy, did thee underestimate me?" Saying this as he lunged to the nearest man. But that wasn't his mistake.
With his hands raised high, his body lay open and he paid the painful price. A blade exited his left shoulder. Yet his face remained eerily reposed.
This stunned the attacker, a critical flaw in battle. A moment wasted might be ones last, of course they didn't know. They were merely scouts and didn't have to survive each day, under the blade of someone who wanted you dead.
Shrugging of the pain, Jaxon's blade flew in a perfect arc. So fast and perfect, it took seconds before the man's head fell, yet the sword wasn't even the best in terms of sharpness.
A pained yelp bounced on his eardrums, for a moment he was forced to throw a glance at Istria's location. He paid for that also. The enemy's steel was forcefully thrusted into his abdomen.
Jaxon tried to intercept, but succeeded only into diverting the blade away from this vitals. The pain was harrowing, however he didn't show it…, he couldn't show it.
' This one seems to be stronger than the rest, I am not sure getting him distracted would be my savior. In that end, hold fast Istria, for both our sakes.'
The blade was retracted from his body and then he was fully engaged in merciless battle for murder.
Echos of steel rang through out the forest outskirts, birds scattered from the tree tops and beast fled the meaningless battle of mortals.