19. Fear of Losing
19. Fear of Losing
Their arrows pierced through the thick hides of the creatures as we barged into the fight. I force Cho Cho to leave the battlefield as I didn’t want him to get hurt. He snorted and cuffed his hoof on the ground in irritation, but I wasn’t taking any chances. I slid off him and slapped his behind to get him moving. He snorts again but does what I ask of him.
The battle was intense and already I could smell the thick blood in the air. The clang of metal against flesh, claws against armor, and the growls with cries rent the heavy air with the most horrible sounds. I keep a close eye on my people as they fought tooth and nail to bring down just one of the Lycans. I breathe in quick gasps, my body becoming rigid of what was going on around me.
I see a Lycan coming straight for the young boy that had been terrified of facing these things, his back turned from him as he helps his follow soldiers. I don’t think twice as fear pierces through me as I quickly get to his side and with a strength I possessed from the blood of their leader, I take a hold of its arm and throw him hard against another Lycan that had just bitten down on one of Lucian’s men.
They collided together, the snapping of bones hard to miss as the creature howls from the pain. The young boy snaps his head over to look at me and even though I see his fear from what I had just done all I could say was,
“Never turn your back against the enemy. You must always focus on all your surroundings.”
He just nods his head and gets back into the fray. I then see Taewon trying desperately to fight off two of them all on his own. He was already bloody from scratches that he had endured. I rush to his side, bring up my sword just as a heavy claw came crashing down towards his head. I nearly falter to my knees at the pure strength of the creature.
I take a foot, place it onto the torso and push as hard as I could. The creature went flying backwards crashing into dozens of others as they flew. It went on like this for what seemed like hours with no end in sight. My people were getting tired, others were slain in pools of blood and the vision that I was shown for weeks in my nightmare was coming to life before my very eyes.
We were losing.
Lucian’s, Rudina’s and Achak’s men were slowing down, only a few of them left. I felt like this was pointless. Why did we go this far just to be slaughtered? What was the reason that we all banded together just to lose this fight?
Why did the blacked haired woman choose me to lead these people just to bring them to their deaths?
I was losing hope and I was afraid I was soon going to lose my promise to my people as they stood close to me, never leaving my sight. But they were exhausted, bloodied, and losing the strength to keep moving forward. But unlike the other tribes, I still haven’t lost a single solider. My will to keep them alive stronger than my will to defeat Lycaon.
But if we don’t win this, then we were all going to die anyways.
I searched around desperately looking everywhere to find him. It had to end with him. As long as he was down the others will falter in following his demanding orders. These creatures are also humans. Humans that have no choice but to do what Lycaon tells them too while during the full moon. If I can bring him to his knees and render him unconscious, then this battle will cease.
But try as I might, with so many bodies and large Lycans still moving around, still fighting to the death, I couldn’t spot him anywhere. Where has he gone off too? I push my way through the crowd. Throwing Lycans off those who were failing, who needed my help. I couldn’t bring myself to kill any of them as Shenzu’s words kept playing in the back of my head.
“They are just human beings like us Azure. They are just as much as victims as the rest of us. Some may enjoy the power that was thrust upon them while others are just as terrified as we are. But none of them have any say on the full moon and they aren’t able to disobey the orders of the true Lycan.”
He then turns to me with sad and yet hopeful eyes.
“I know this is a lot to ask of you. But please, when you’re faced with them out there, spare their lives. They too have the right to live as any of us does. Who are we to bring death upon them?”
Taewon and Achak both had a lot to say against that. But while they didn’t heed Shenzu’s words and pleas, I couldn’t do that. I had to spare as many of them as I can all while keeping the men protected from dying. If they are unconscious, then that will spare them and keep them from death.
It was the best that I could do, Shenzu.
So, while I thrash through the fights, that’s what I do. I hit them so hard, throw them so far, that my strength immediately causes them to black out. Dropping them down to the ground. I couldn’t stop to make sure the men all around me were doing alright, to see how badly they were hurt as I needed to keep going, to keep searching for Lycaon.
It wasn’t until I heard the most devastating cry that rent the air that I finally found him. I had just knocked out a Lycan that was mauling one of Rudina’s people, when the cry hit me. I quickly stand and stare at the scene before me with wide fearful eyes.
The dread that seeped into me was nothing like anything I had ever felt before. I watch as Lycaon rips a clawed hand out of Jacques chest, holding the young man’s heart in the palm of his hand. Pierre stood on the other side of the small clearing that was created, his face contorted in grief, pain, and rage. With wide eyes I watch the scene play out like it was slowed down. My mind not fully comprehending what was happening right in front of me.