by Jake Taylor
Bella turned to face her, lifting her hands again. “Probably because we’ve been doing this for hours!”
The monk caught her next punch and spun her around, embracing her from behind and kissing her neck. “We could do something else…”
Isabella smiled, leaning back against her. “Ah… I… really need to keep training… I need to stay in shape.”
Haruka grinned against her skin, placing her hands on her stomach. “There are other ways of getting exercise.”
The knight closed her eyes, tilting her head to the side. “Well… I guess I do… need a break…”
Haruka smiled, having already known it wouldn’t be a tough argument. “Mhmm,” she responded as she moved down her neck.
“Masters Saito, Enyo!”
Both of them groaned as the voice interrupted them from outside of the tent. “What?” Haruka barked out sharply, reluctant to move to the tent flap.
“The General is asking for you. A scout just returned with news of an approaching military force!”
They looked at each other and Haruka answered for them over her shoulder, “Tell him we’re on our way.”
“Ma’am!”
Haruka looked back at Isabella, who smiled at her and laid a hand on her cheek, kissing her softly. “Later.”
“I swear we’re cursed,” the monk said gruffly, drawing a laugh from Isabella as they left the tent.
The camp was dark and quiet, as it was late at night. They moved through the tents towards the one in the center, entering to find Dalgus waiting for them with Ophelia and several of the higher-ranking mercenaries. He waved them in, spinning the map on the table so they could see it. “They’re about here, to the northeast. My scout said that given their pace, they’ll be here in two days.”
“How many?” Haruka asked.
Bella stepped forward. “And are they from Areya?”
Dalgus nodded. “Their banners are definitely Areyan. As for numbers, the scout estimated about a thousand.”
“So we have the number advantage,” Ophelia continued for him, “but given an open fight, we’ll lose a lot of men.”
“So we avoid an open fight,” Isabella said. “Or at least, we don’t just charge in.”
“They don’t know exactly where we are,” Dalgus said with a nod. “There’s a forest here,” he said as he tapped a spot east of them on the map. “There’s a cliff in the center of it that would be perfect if we can get them there.”
“They’re after me. We can use me as bait.”
“That’s… risky,” Haruka interjected, looking at her. “I’d prefer a false traitor.”
Isabella met her eyes. “Oh, give information on where we are-“
“-And how to ambush us-“
“-at the bottom from the top?”
“Right.”
Bella nodded, looking at Dalgus. “Do you think it could work?”
The werewolf rubbed his chin. “I like the misdirection. We could set up a good false camp at the bottom of the cliff.”
“I’ve a way to camouflage our army in the forest,” Ophelia said. “If we set up to the south of the cliff, it should work.”
Isabella looked at both of them. “You’re putting a lot of people in danger just for me-“
Dalgus waved his hand. “We’re mercenaries. We put our lives on the line for money or a cause all the time. This isn’t like you’re putting a town in danger by being there, this is an army. Fighting is what we do.”
Bella sighed. “I still don’t like the taste of it, but if you’re willing…”
“We’re willing. We leave in the morning for the forest.”
Haruka nodded at them. “You have my thanks. We’ll retire for now and be ready to leave in the morning.” She left the tent and turned to Bella as she followed her out. “I need to ask – will you be fighting?”
Isabella sighed. “I have to, don’t I? They’re coming for me.”
“Bella… How long can you even fight for? Are you going to transform? You’ve only now gotten a little better after a long break without doing it at all.”
“I don’t know, Haruka, okay? I don’t know.”
Haruka stopped her, turning her to face her and putting her hands on her shoulders, studying her eyes. “You’ve been in enough battles. You only have a few months left as it is, there’s no…” She looked away and swallowed, and her voice was quieter when she continued, “There’s no point in shortening it further.”
“Hey…” Bella gently took her face in her hands, turning her back to look at her. “I won’t fight. Okay? I won’t fight.”
Haruka blinked at her. “But you-“
“Doesn’t matter,” Isabella said as she shook her head. “My priority is you. Without changing I wouldn’t be much help, so I would have to. And I won’t do that to you unless there’s no choice.”
Haruka sighed, resting her forehead against Bella’s. “Thank you.”
Isabella smiled, brushing her cheek. “I’ll stay with you as long as I can.”
IXH
Ophelia directed the set-up of the false camp as she walked around inspecting the area, deciding on the best use of the location. They were in a large evergreen forest with an interesting geological occurrence – a massive cliff was near the center of the forest. Currently Ophelia stood at the bottom of it, looking far up to the top where she could barely spot Dalgus overseeing the preparations. Their plan was three-fold: first, they had sent someone to the approaching Areyan regiment as a “traitor”. This messenger would explain that their rag-tag mercenary band couldn’t compete with professional soldiers, and would explain their current position and how Isabella was kept within the camp.
The second step was the one Ophelia was currently directing - the creation of a false camp that the Areyan regiment would believe was the real mercenary force. The Areyans would be led to the top of the cliff, where they would easily have an advantage over the camp far below them. The third step was that the main force, led by Dalgus, would be concealed a short distance from the cliff; when the Areyans were gathered atop the cliff, the mercenary force would emerge and charge them, trapping them between their weapons and the cliff edge. Their hope was that this plan would minimize casualties by causing confusion among the Areyans and preventing them from maneuvering.
Once the false camp was complete, Ophelia headed around the cliff and up to the south where the concealment for the mercenary force was being prepared. All of the Bloodmoon Company’s mages were present, going over the spell they would soon have to complete. There were quite a few of them – mages often chose to spend some time doing mercenary work to gain practical experience in their craft, especially during the stage of apprenticeship requiring a mage to travel the land. Ophelia had been one such mage at some point, but she had never gone back to her old life. She had been in hundreds of battles of all kinds, from fortress defense to fortress invasion, from monster extermination to wide-scale war. She had discovered a talent for tactics and strategy and remained to put it to good use.
Ophelia had spoken with Suria to ask her opinion on their concealment method, and the girl had shown a special interest in Ophelia’s life. It was understandable and Ophelia expected that Suria would be back to join their company at some point, perhaps after she tired of the pirate life she planned to try out. It all depended on how she reacted to battle, as some people couldn’t take it. Ophelia personally loved it, and she knew she had some sort of darkness in her given how much she enjoyed the prospect of a battle. She watched Suria with the other mages, wondering if the young woman would take to it as she had or find it distasteful. Beside her stood the mysterious young man Able, who seemed to have grown close with Suria since their arrival. Ophelia wouldn’t be surprised if he, too, returned once their current situation was over.
As for the cause of their current situation, she was currently trying to help out any way she could. Isabella had apparently decided not to fight, which, given her condition, was a wise decision in Oph
elia’s opinion. Before the battle began she was going to return to their real camp a good distance away for the duration. Haruka had elected to stay with her in case something happened or someone else came for her; her priorities were clear. Their friends Suria and Able, however, would be taking part in the fight. Ophelia always disliked it when outsiders were part of their force as she could not predict exactly how they would act, but given that the two were potential future Company members it seemed like a good idea.
Ophelia was drawn out of her thoughts as Dalgus appeared beside her and patted her roughly on the back, nearly knocking her glasses off as he often did. She adjusted her glasses and gave him a scolding glare that only elicited a chuckle from the tall werewolf. “How’re things coming along?”
She looked back to the grouped mages. “Everything is ready but the concealment. That will have to be done less than an hour before the Areyan force arrives, as it will only last an hour.”
Dalgus rubbed his chin. “Excellent. Will the mages still be able to fight?”
She nodded. “We have enough mages that none will need to use a great deal of energy to construct the enchantment. They should be fine for battle.”
“They?” Dalgus raised an eyebrow. “Not ‘we’? What’s my best mage doing, then?”
Ophelia smiled slyly. “I won’t be partaking in the battle physically. I have a much better idea in mind for the use of my power,” she stated as she opened the book she held and showed him a page within it.
He peered at the drawing of a circle of symbols, squinting at it. “Wait, I recognize that… Explosive runes? What are you planning to…?” He blinked, looking over at the cliff. “Oh… Ohhhhhhh.” His expression widened into a grin.
Ophelia chuckled. “Suria and I came up with the idea last night. We’ll plant them near, but not on, the edge.”
“You sure it won’t bring the cliff down? That would kill the men we’re putting in the false camp.”
She shook her head. “We’ve modified the spell – force only, directed up and out. All it will do is blow a good chunk of the army off the edge. I’ll be placing them myself, which will leave me with little power for the battle.”
“And Suria? Is she placing them too?”
“No, she’ll be saving her power for the battle. I want her to get some real combat experience. Besides, her fire abilities will be far more useful there.”
“I’m a little worried about her lack of experience for this,” Dalgus said as he folded his arms. “She might injure a lot of our men if she just flings it about.”
“I’ve given her some training since she arrived; I have faith in her.”
“Well then that’s good enough for me.” He looked at his second-in-command. “What do you think about Isabella staying out of her own fight?”
Ophelia sighed, removing her glasses and cleaning them with a soft black cloth. “I do not believe she has any real choice. In her condition she’d only be a liability, unless she utilized one of the ‘transformations’ we heard about from Freya. And from what Haruka said, that would make her condition worse once it ended.”
“So you think she’s making the right decision?”
“I do, though that is not the only opinion among our forces. Some are wondering why we’re fighting her battle for her.”
“Are they?” Dalgus ran a hand over his hair. “I can’t say I blame them. We wouldn’t even have a battle if she weren’t here. But I think we all need to remember that we’re mercenaries; fighting other peoples’ battles for them is what we do. The only difference is that this time we aren’t doing it for gold; we’re doing it to help a friend. And I believe she deserves the help.”
Ophelia replaced her glasses, turning to smile at him. “That is one of the reasons I am proud to belong to this company and not another.”
“Let’s be honest, taking out an Areyan force is going to be good for business, too. Our reputation always needs to be renewed.”
“Such is the business world. However, I am wondering how many times we’ll need to do this.”
Dalgus sighed. “Let’s hope just once. I can only hope they’ll give up.”
“Do you think we’re that lucky?”
“Maybe, but I don’t think Isabella is.”
IXH
Night was falling. The sun was rapidly descending below the tree line, leaving most of the forest obscured in dark shadows. Suria could only catch glimpses of the deep orange sky beyond the trees; above them it had already taken on a purple tint that was nearly black. Ophelia had said this was the perfect situation as it would make their ruse all the easier to pass off, in particular the false camp. The darkness only served to increase Suria’s nervousness, however. She had never been in a battle before, had never killed anyone. She had asked Isabella about it and how to deal with it, to get used to it, but it hadn’t filled her with confidence.
“Dealing with it is different for everyone. For some it’s hard… for others it’s easy,” Isabella had answered with a sad smile. “Pray you never get used to it. The day you get used to killing is the day you question the worth of your own life.”
“Did you ever get used to killing?” Suria had naively asked, a question she now couldn’t believe she’d been stupid enough to say to the woman.
Isabella had seemed so broken in that moment, even as she kept the smile that no longer seemed anything but self-deprecating. “I wish I hadn’t.”
“So you’re used to it now… I’m just terrified.”
“Everyone gets scared.” Isabella had set a hand on her shoulder, giving her one of those smiles that reminded Suria just how long she’d actually lived and how much she’d been through. “Courage isn’t the absence of fear; it’s the ability to accept it and push on anyway.”
Suria sat down and pulled her cloak around herself as the night began to grow colder. She wished she could use a bit of fire to warm herself, but they’d been instructed to suppress all magic until the battle began. She now began to regret wearing a skirt, as her legs were freezing, causing her to rub them to try to warm them. She blinked as a suit jacket landed on her legs, glancing to her right to see Able seated beside her and staring straight ahead. If anything he seemed slightly annoyed having given up his jacket, so she gave him her brightest smile and whispered as loud as she dared, “Thank you.” He merely nodded in reply and kept his eyes forward. She realized he wasn’t ignoring her but was watching for the enemy, and after that she realized nearly everyone else around her was doing the same.
None of them seemed anywhere near as nervous as she was; most didn’t seem nervous at all, and a lot of them actually seemed eager. Meanwhile her anxiety rose as the time passed until the forest was covered in absolute darkness. A few runners appeared and went straight to Ophelia and Dalgus, making a report. They both nodded and Ophelia looked over the assembled army, which was 1600 strong. Three hundred men were in the false camp below, and Suria could hear the noise from them beginning to rise as they lit fires and made the camp look more crowded than it was. The last hundred members of the army remained at the real camp, where Suria knew Isabella and Haruka also were. She found herself wishing they were beside her for this battle, but she knew Isabella couldn’t and Haruka would never choose to leave her alone.
Ophelia snapped her fingers and sent off some sort of signal through the assembled army which made no noise but flowed through them all like a gust of wind, letting them all know the time was near. Suria had no need of that signal as she was at the very front of the army with Able, Ophelia and Dalgus. All mages were at the front to enable them to unleash as much as they could before the armies joined in melee, the chaos of which would force them to be far more careful to avoid killing their own men. Unfortunately that meant she was closest to the enemy.
After a few minutes, the light of torches became visible through the forest. A short time later the approaching army was visible, clad in white capes and silver armor and led by the easily-discernible mercenary “traitor” that was lead
ing them to the top of the cliff. As they grew nearer Suria felt a hand on her knee and glanced down, recognizing it as Able’s. She then realized her leg had been bouncing nervously, a habit she had picked up from days of stress-filled tests spent at a desk. She looked at Able and received a supportive look in return, and that gave her more courage for the battle that was now only minutes away. Able gestured to the east and at first she wondered what that meant before she understood it was the direction of the real mercenary camp.
He’s reminding me that we’re doing this for Isabella and Haruka… Suria pushed aside her fear with conviction, looking forward and remembering that these people were here to take Isabella back to a man that would, at the very least, kill her. They had to be stopped and if she could help stop them, she would. The Areyan army regiment was very close now, moving up along the cliff, led by the mercenary. They arranged themselves along the cliff, keeping low at the edge to prevent being seen by what they thought was the main force. Ophelia made a silent gesture and Suria knew it was time, standing along with the other mages and returning Able’s suit jacket to him. She heard the others begin casting and she calmed her own mind, drawing the energies forward from her body and focusing them through her hands, whispering a mantra as she did.
Ophelia raised her hands and watched the mercenary at the edge drop off of it to a waiting net below. There was an exclamation from the Areyan leader that was cut short as Ophelia said four words that detonated every rune she’d placed along the cliff edge, blasting a sizable number of the soldiers off the high ledge with pure force. Cries of surprise went up from the soldiers and the mages then unleashed the spells they’d readied. Suria stepped up and threw both hands forward, speaking aloud the final words of her spell. Two massive fireballs erupted into existence before her and spiraled around each other on a collision course for the enemy army. The impact sent flames and bodies everywhere, raising a chorus of pained screams.
All hell seemed to break loose then as the army rushed forward to meet the enemy and a hail of arrows flew over their heads. Suria barely avoided being swept up in the tide as some of the mages charged forward at the same time, some drawing weapons and others readying spells. The Areyan forces, to their credit, rallied quickly and charged back, fighting fiercely to avoid being pushed back off the cliff. The dark forest lit up as the battling armies were backlit by flames that spread between the trees and over the dry ground. Suria just found herself watching for a moment as the combat intensified and the screams of the dying and wounded increased.