Bray Hyrian, Kivi B. [best summer reads txt] 📗

the Lieutenant said and dashed to the other side. I followed him.

 

We trotted onto the solid ground, leaving the bridge behind us. Our enemies had already regrouped and the Sergeant joined our rank.

 

Apparently intimidated by our superiority, the Goblins trembled and exchanged frightened looks.

 

"Keep it together, you maggots! We still have the numbers. All-out attack, go, go!"

On that note the whole group sprinted off. Xodin was preparing his counter attack, when Jeik lifted a hand.

 

"I shall make this quick and painless."

 

All of a sudden, pressure was beginning to tense the air. Distortion, even. A visible, yellowish energy surrounded Jeik. He closed the gaps between his legs and stood straight, lifting his sword over his head with both hands.

After a short while I heard him muttering just this single word:

 

“Visolvo.”

 

Xodin grabbed the collar of my armor. Staegers' overflow of energy, discharged in an immeasurable rate, nearly sent me down the mountain. The shockwave was so strong, it knocked off every Goblin in their raid group. Xodin struggled to keep us both on our feet. The blast subsided and I glanced upon Staeger and my jaw dropped.

 

A winged helmet surfaced on his head from the energy. The cheek protections of the helmet were curved and very elegant in appearance. His chest piece underwent changes as well. Also, a royal blue cape emerged from the back of his shoulder.

 

The chest plate now bore a new, but strange crest on the plate. Inside a circle were two shapes. An inverted traingle which's top line coincided with the second shape, a cuboid. In the midst of all these shapes was a symbol, which signified the Deity of Thunder, Gyondir. 

I wondered, how I was able to identify that symbol, since it wasn't written in Sensylai.

 

Jeik's knightly longsword even gained more length. A lightning bolt shaped slit appeared within the blade and the edge glowed in the same yellow energy as his entire form.

 

    “Legatonitrus”, Jeik said quietly.

 

He swung his sword back, while more yellow aura appeared and surrounded his sword. He lifted it over his head, before seven tiny energy spheres manifested near the tip of his blade. With every passing moment the spheres grew in size and density. They enlarged themselves until they were about as large as a human’s head.

Our opposing creatures got even more restless as the pure Anima orbs floated above Jeik.

 

    “Fulmen; Caepoena”, Jeik muttered.

 

Ear pounding noise pulsated from the orbs as they charged with a kind of energy, which is only seen in thunderstorms. Lightning. Several stray bolts started to strike anything near them. Cracks began to form in the ground, bricks busted out of the mountain walls due to wild, uncontrollable element.

Staeger eyes now radiated with the same yellow aura caused from his Anima. He swung his arm around, then pointed at the Goblin forces.

 

    “Begone.”

 

With that said, the orbs flew towards the group, causing an explosion of a massive caliber. Xodin pulled me down with him as he landed on his stomach, shielding the back of his head with his hands. I mimicked him, just to be safe.

Such an anomaly. Such raw power. It all happened so fast, I couldn’t keep track. I slowly raised my head and peered over to the aftermath of Jeik’s magical annihilation.

Large, multiple punctures were carved into the stone ground, nearly all Goblins simply disintegrated, except one.

I frowned at the sight of the chieftain’s weird bubble shield that embraced its form.

 

    "So, it can use Anima too, huh?"

 

Xodin grunted and lifted himself to his feet and swung his axe onto his shoulders, letting it carefully rest across them.

The bubble shield shattered into countless light particles, being blown away by the strong wind. A long wooden staff was now revealed by the leader of the Mountain Goblins. His lips and knees quaked.

 

    "Y-you're Jeik Staeger. I yield! This Form ...  it's-"

 

    "Yes, you foul fiend. It's my Visolvo - Legatonitrus", Jeik boasted.

    "Now, run."

The chieftain turned around.

   "My name is Krashulk. Remember it. You will not see the last of me."

He climbed down the mountain wall, until he was out of sight.

Staeger turned to face us. The strong pressure, which his Anima level caused, disappeared. His magical armor and sword all returned to their original state, in a shiny process.

 

    "What was that?" My voice seemed shocked and buzzed at the same time.

Xodin and Jeik glanced at each other.

    "No time for explanations. We have to continue our mission", the Lieutenant said and walked off.

The Sergeant unquestionably followed him. No other choice was left, except joining them.

Our group dwindled down the mountain pathway. The steep journey took its toll on our stamina and the sky already had faint signs of dawning. Every now and then, Staeger groaned and grumbled something about shortage of time.

We descended in a rapid pace. I started paying attention to the upcoming terrain. A green, healthy forest which projected several kilometers downhill and across the landscapes was right beneath the pathway.

     "The main reason for our delay, were those poor excuses of living beings. I despise them with every fiber of my soul”, Jeik said as we entered the forest. Both Xodin and I didn’t react, as Staeger kept on complaining.

It was dense and pitch-black, but still we travelled swiftly and without any light source. The moon disappeared behind the mountain chain that we left behind us. We focused on the narrow forest road, rushing through bushes and jumping over stumps and fallen trunks.

My steps started to get heavy and my stamina depleted.

 

    "Can we ... take a break?" I panted quietly.

    "No breaks until we reach our designation."

 

I cursed under my breath.

It took us at least one hour to get through the forest. On our way out, there were several encounters with wildlife and even wandering merchants. To our luck, none of them showed any hostility.

We finally reached the open grass field. We marched outwards, away from the edge of the forest. Staeger raised a fist, signifying a halt. He pointed at a settlement in the distance. The buildings still had lights in them. And smoke rose from the chimneys.

The palisade wall protected the settlement from unwelcomed guests. Even worse, it was located on large hill in the plains. We hid behind some rocks as we assessed the settlement from afar.

 

    "Well, this is gonna’ be fun.” I snickered.

      "We will determine our strategy once we are closer", Jeik responded, rolling his shoulder.

        "How do we even know that she's here?"
              "We do not. It is simply our objective to search out this camp."

 

"Well, what're we waitin' for?" I said enthusiastically, "Let's check it out."

  "Hold it." Jeik grabbed my arm and pulled me back into place.

 

I let out a "Tch" from my mouth, as Jeik really annoyed me.

 

    "What's wrong with you? Isn't she part of your team?"

      "Such matters are incomprehensible for a boy, such as yourself, Bray."

        "Wha'... Hey, you wanna' go or somethin'?"

 

My fist came in and stopped in front of his jaw, shaking in fury.

 

"If you had any discipline of a solider you would know that the mission always has top priority. Yes, she is in our team, however she is also the main objective of our task. Our mission is to scout of this outpost, to determine if the Princess is here or not."

 

"The longer we wait, the more they're gonna' torture or question her...!"

I squinted my eyes at him, and just simply could not accept Staeger's attitude.

 

    "You do not know that, Bray. Also, if we rush in without a plan, there might be a possibility that will result in our capture. Or even worse, the Princess will be used as a hostage against us. Or in the far worst scenario ... executed."

 

I froze and lowered my fist. I shook my head, trying to remain self confident. I let my hotheadedness get the better of me.

Xodin bumped my shoulder with his elbow. I cried out quietly in both pain and surprise.

     "Less lips flapping and more shutting up and following orders."

 

I grunted at Xodin, rubbing my shoulder. Staeger waved us down to go silent.

   “Shh. Quiet. We’ve got company.”

Chapter Four

Xodin pulled me back behind the rocks, before we heard heavy steps closing in on us.

"A patrol, dead ahead", Jeik said quietly and moved his hand to grip the handle of his sword.

 

Xodin and I also prepared for the worst. I carefully peeked around the massive stone and spotted a group of five marching in a single file. Their red and black armor reflected the rising sun in the distance. Three of them were armed with a sword, while the other two carried halberds.

I recognized their colour shades from the battle at the Gattiken Fields, where my journey began.

"Who're they?" I whispered.

"Hraygnans from the Hraygna Nation. You asked about the Great Nation War earlier. This is who we wage war against", Staeger responded in a very low voice.

 

It wasn't the right time, so I didn't bother digging deeper into their politcal debates and origins of the war. My body moved back behind cover. I peered at Jeik, waiting for his instructions. A flash of insight overcame me.

 

"How 'bout we sneak up on 'em, take 'em out and use their armor as a disguise to get in?"

"That will not work, since the Hraygnans' tongue differs from ours. They grew up with another accent and are highly trained in detecting moles within their ranks. However, I suspect that we can squeeze out information regarding flaws in their fortress", Jeik said quietly and struck his chin thoughtfully.

 

I grumbled, as Jeik shot down my idea. My proud and stubborn persona must've brought me into a lot of trouble in the past. Regardless did I nod in agreement.

 

"Our time frame to will be very short. If this patrol does not report back on a routined basis, they will suspect an attack on their outpost and initiate a lockdown", Jeik added and frowned in a pondering manner.

 

The patrol suddenly turned southwest, towards our position with their weapons drawn. Were we compromised? I hissed in a warning as both the Lieutenant and the Sergeant cursed under their breath.

 

They surrounded our position as their leader called us out.
"Surrender now, Ysoldian scum and we shall make your death swift."

 

Again, I peeked around the corner. Their leader carried dual swords and had them crossed in front of him. Silence fell after their verbal challenge and the only audible thing was a strange bird chirping. They've already assumed combat poses. Jeik stood up and pulled his elegant weapon from its sheath. Xodin followed his lead unquestionably.

 

What the heck were they doing?

A sardonic laughter was heard from the Hraygnan soldiers, as my superios revealed themselves. I couldn't abandon them, so I decided to come forth.

"Stay back, Bray", Jeik said calmly.

  "Wha~ I'm not gonna'..."

   "Do not move", Jeik snarled in a commanding tone.

I ceased moving and stood at the ready, still confused by Staeger's sudden disclosure. A thick fog started to cover the entire field. Reaching from the two confronting squads, to the forest edge a few metres south from us.

I gripped the hilt of my sword and increased my vigilance to a maximum. Our sight distance was shortenening in an alarming rate.

 

"Just stay still, Bray", Xodin said this time nearly in a comforting manner, which didn't really do much for me.

Both of them insisted that