The Quetali kicked the ground beneath him, springing him forward and closing the distance between him and Helbram in an instant. The commander followed his leap with a kick, his leg wrapped in a maroon light as it struck the armored man in the ribs. Helbram’s vision went white as the blow landed, only returning as he hit the ground a fair distance away from the Quetali. He struggled to his feet as the larger man walked towards him, a wheeze echoing from his helmet as he fought to take back the wind that was knocked out of him. He’d somehow kept a grip on his weapons, but the blow had left a dent in his armor deep enough to rub against his shirt as he breathed, a realization settled in with a chill down his spine. The Quetali drew his last sword as he walked towards Helbram, his posture relaxed but eyes hungry as he looked down on the armored man.

“Quite sturdy in that armor aren’t you? But you are indeed fortunate… I’ve decided to give you a second chance after all,” he hunched forward, weapons held out from him again, “Do not disappoint me again.”

Helbram grit his teeth and slipped back into a stance, taking in a deep breath as he did so. His vision cleared as he focused on the Quetali, his body tensed as the pressure grew between them.

The commander moved first, blades flashing as he closed the distance within the span of a breath. Helbram stepped back, deflecting two of the blades with his shield and catching the others with his sword. He flicked his sword to the side to knock the blades away and countered with a slash aimed at the man’s chest. The blade traveled across the Quetali’s skin, leaving only a scratch that beaded with blood.

“Good… good,” The Quetali growled.

He swung his blades inwards, forcing Helbram back as he dodged the blow. The blades crossed over, trails of maroon energy flowing behind them as he crossed his arms. The Quetali lunged forward and swung his blades outwards, the crossing swords striking Helbram’s shield at its center as the armored man failed to dodge. A burst of energy followed, knocking Helbram back and into a tree.

“Do not falter!” the commander roared, “Show some spirit before I cleave you in two, make it worth my while.”

Irritation flared in Helbram’s mind as he righted himself once again. He grit his teeth and bent his knees as the Quetali slipped into a stance. From the position of his crossed arms the man was planning to perform another cross slash, and Helbram charged to meet it head on. The Quetali's arms twitched, signaling Helbram to stop his charge as the blades crossed in front of him. As the man’s arms spread Helbram lunged forwards, driving his sword into the commander’s chest. Only the very tip of his blade managed to break skin, but he continued the assault, delivering a slash across the man’s chest before hopping to the side to avoid the counter.

“Yes, finally some sport! Then let us drop the theatrics, shall we?”

The Quetali pursued, his strikes becoming more focused compared to the wild swings from before. His arms moved separately from one another as if possessing minds of their own, minds conditioned by clear practice and form. It was a far cry from the reckless style from before, and one that pressed Helbram on the back foot as the armored man struggled against this more focused assault. Every blade he blocked had another hidden in its shadow, striking at the openings in his form as he kept his sword and shield moving against the dancing swords. His armor gained many scratches as the Quetali’s weapons struck his torso, the force behind each blow enough to cause his body to tremble. Whenever an opening presented itself Helbram’s attack was either deflected or interrupted by a blade aimed at his own openings, forcing him to cut his attacks short.

“Is this it? Is this all you can muster?”

Helbram kicked himself to the side, breaking free of the Quetali’s assault as the bandit’s blades sliced into a tree behind him. The armored man quickly righted himself, the beat of his heart ringing in his ears as he struggled to catch his breath. The Quetali readied himself into a stance again, eyes flared with hunger. A chill traveled down Helbram’s spine as they peered at him.

Could he really win against such overwhelming force?

He shook his head and took a deep breath. Now was not the time for such thoughts.

His vision focused as his heart started to calm. He was not going to win this fight with blind reaction; he had to learn the Quetali’s movements as much as possible. To that end he beckoned the Quetali, which brought a grin to the larger man’s face. The bandit charged, a large, muscled mass of red that screamed towards Helbram, blades flashing. The armored man kept his shield up, blocking the two blows that struck simultaneously. The attack persisted as the Quetali’s swords continued with their dance. Helbram abandoned any attempt at offense, keeping his shield and sword moving to repel any attacks as he studied each blades’ movements. The man’s upper arms always struck first, delivering their blows with power meant to rattle and create openings that the lower arms would move to strike at with quick, precise attacks. This cadence continued as Helbram kept his guard up through the assault, looking for a pattern to the Quetali’s form.

“What is this? You taunt me and all you can do is defend?” the Quetali growled.

The commander increased his pace, but as he did so his pattern started to become predictable. Helbram started to dodge the stronger blows and deflected the quicker attacks with his shield as best he could, but allowed some of the attacks to glance off of his armor as he started to notice the openings that formed when he did so. The armored man’s blade started to slip into these openings, once again only leaving scratches along the Quelati’s skin. In the midst of the swarm of blades the Quetali threw another Ether infused kick that Helbram managed to catch with his shield. He was thrown from the ground as the blow landed, but managed to catch himself on his feet as he returned to the forest floor. The Quetali did not pursue, his breaths noticeably heavier as his now blood covered chest heaved with each intake of air. The bandit looked down at his wounds and his grin stretched out even further. 

“So you have claws… very good. I haven’t been this entertained in ages.”

Helbram settled back into a stance, his blade now pointed at Quetali.

“Oh so you mean to go on the offensive? By all means, do it.”

They lunged at each other at the same time, crossing blades and shield as their dance continued. Helbram managed to add more slashes across the bandit commander’s skin, weaving both strikes and blocks as he navigated the complicated pattern of the Quetali’s movements. His rhythm was disrupted as one of the swords flashed maroon. Helbram caught the blade with his shield and turned it to the side, but the increased force behind the blow knocked him off balance enough for another ether infused blade to strike him at his side. The sword dented his armor further as Helbram skipped to the side to lessen the blow. He caught himself and lunged back into the fray, landing another blow to the Quetali’s flank. The bandit flinched as the blade cut deeper this time and swung his blades wildly to force Helbram back. The armored man lept towards the Qeutali as the larger man tried to recover. Ether lined all of the commander’s blades as he closed in, the spike of fear in his mind smothered by pure adrenaline.

Almost there, he could -

Fire flared through his shoulder, the crossbow bolt kicking his arm back as it slipped through the gap in his armor. The shot staggered him, allowing two of the Quetali’s swords to catch him at his flank. His ears deafened from the crack that rang from his ribs, and he watched the forest fly by as he flew through the air. He landed on his back, pain flaring as the air was forced from his lungs. He wheezed, flinching as his ribs flared with pain at each breath. His vision blurred as the pain from his shoulder surfaced once again. He tried to move, but his body wouldn’t let him.

“Who attacked!?” the Quetali roared.

A bandit emerged from the trees, revealing himself as a dwarf. 

The same dwarf he spared the day before.

“I did, the bastard tied me up and -”

The commander’s kicked the dwarf in the chest, sending the smaller man crashing into a tree. The dwarf gasped for air and groaned as he struggled to get up. The Quetali walked up to him and stomped on his knee, forcing a weak scream from the dwarf’s lips.

“You dare interrupt my hunt?” the commander snarled, “And from the shadows… go on then, crawl back to them like sneak you are,” he pulled the dwarf’s head up by his hair, “just don’t come crawling back to me.”

He let the dwarf’s head fall back to the ground and walked over to Helbram. The armored man attempted to move once again but could only manage to twitch his hands. The Quetali looked down at him, a disappointment clear on his face.

“How unfortunate,” he said as he placed a blade at Helbram’s neck, “it was a good fight… and for that, you have my respect. May fortune serve you better in the next life.”

It was strange. Helbram felt a chill wash over his body, but fear had not come over him. Rather, it was resignation, acceptance of a fact that he knew to be true for so long, but he’d turned away from time and time again.

This was as far as he could go.

The commander’s blade flashed, but he felt no warmth from his neck. Instead, he saw the Quetali hop back, arrows splintering against his blades as he deflected the shots that struck in a flurry. The chill passed over him once again, like the heat around him had been pulled away by some unseen force.

Then he saw it; a small bead of light right in front of the Quetali’s face.

He rolled just as the bead exploded in a burst of fire and wind, catching the Quetali as he crossed his arms over his torso and took the explosion head on. Air and heat washed over Helbram as his strength returned to him in a burst of adrenaline. He pushed himself from the ground, ignoring the pain that pulsed from his wound. He snatched up his weapons and turned to run towards the direction of the arrows.

“Move your arse dammit!”

Curses echoed from the forest as the surrounding trees caught fire. The Quetali’s voice was mixed among them, but faded into the distance as Helbram cleared the surrounding brush. Leaf was waiting for him, holding Jahora under one of his arms. Her eyes were half shut, blinking away the sweat that dripped from her pale brow. They made eye contact briefly before sprinting off into the woods, praying that the bandits were not following behind them. The glow of the fire grew distant and the sounds of panic faded with it. They were alone.

___

By the time they made it back to camp Helbram could feel his left side chaffing from how much the dented metal had rubbed against it. His breath, no matter how much he tried to control it, came out rattled and hoarse as the pain in his shoulder continued to throb. When they made it to the clearing he collapsed to the ground, letting out a groan as he stared up at the forest canopy. 

Leaf let Jahora down gently. The gnome promptly sat on the ground and let out a long sigh, “Remind me not to do that again, I haven’t had a headache this large since… well since ever really.

“So that’s it,” Leaf said, “The plan’s screwed harder than a sailor’s wife.”

Helbram sat up, wincing as his shoulder flared with pain, “No, we’re pressing the attack.”

The half elf eyed him with incredulity, “The hells are you talking about? You’re halfway into the grave and stiff breeze is all it will take for Jahora to collapse.”

The gnome raised a hand to object, but dropped it as soon as it came up.

“It’s either that or -” he winced in pain “- we wait until they hunt us down.”

“You’re not convincing anyone with that sticking out of ya.”

He winced again, “I’m working on that… regardless, my point still stands. The amount of men they have out here is far more than they’ve had before. If we can make it to the town… ack, close off the gate we can cut down the amount of men we’d have to deal with substantially.”

“Perhaps you’re right about that, but look me in the eye and tell me you could even fight off a single man with that wound.”

The two men stared at each other in silence.

“I… I just need some rest,” Jahora said. Her voice was weak but there was strength behind her eyes, “but Leaf is right Helbram, can you still fight?”

Helbram sighed, “One hour, just give me one hour.”

Leaf eyed him skeptically, “Fine, but if I’m not convinced the plan’s off. Going to need to find a bloody tree to hide under when that mountain blows up…”

“Oh good, we have an hour, if you would excuse me for a…” Jahora slumped to the ground as she fell asleep.

Helbram unlatched his breastplate and tossed it next to him. His lungs felt freer, but there was still a sting at his side with each breath. He looked to Leaf, “I do need you to do one thing.”

“I suppose it’s not smacking some sense into ya?”

The armored man snorted, “No sadly, rather I need you to pull this out of me when I give the signal,” he motioned to the bolt sticking out of his shoulder

Leaf kneeled next to him, “Aye, that I can do, but this is going to help you recover how, exactly?”

“Just trust me.”

The half elf frowned but moved his hand to the bolt, wrapping his fingers around it gingerly as Helbram winced, “Say when.”

Helbram took in a deep breath, ignoring the pain that flared at his side as best he could. He searched for that small drop of Ether that he possessed and to his fortune was able to latch onto it quickly. It moved slowly through his body as he directed to his wound, taking a full minute to reach its destination. It signaled its arrival with a sting that persisted around the torn flesh, and though it was slow, he could feel it slowly start to mend.

“Now.”

Leaf pulled, pulling the bolt out in one motion. Fire lanced through his shoulder as the projectile left him. His vision went white as he tried to smother the cry that bled through his teeth, only to be replaced by an encroaching darkness as fatigue swept over him. The sting in his shoulder continued as he fell back, his consciousness slipping away.

…

He was once again in the void, the sensation of pain still at the back of his mind but dulled, unintrusive as he began to feel irritation rise within him. The Figure reappeared to his side, readied in its stance as usual, its shape continuing to shift.

You know-

 “Shut it,” Helbram snapped, “I’ve no time for this. If you’re going to torment me, show me something I can use for once.”

The Figure dropped its stance and regarded Helbram. To his shock, it nodded. Its form twisted, becoming larger, its skin becoming red and growing an extra pair of arms. It no longer remained faceless, and in a moment he found  himself staring at the bandit commander once again, swords at the ready.

“Good… then let’s begin, shall we?”