They were out numbered, out muscled, and out smarted, even after his thorough preparations to make sure they wouldn't be. 

But this new great Chief and his caution, his strength, was something he hadn't, and couldn't have expected. 

Their main objective to free the hostages was in the mud, with almost ten of his men dead to Kevan's shame and guilt. The rage was still within him, to avenge them, but then who would he be if he couldn't follow his own words he had said to Avin, just a few hours ago.

‘I would–No I am a fool, I miscalculated. I expected this to be some form of power grab by the Ulov, but this Reven, he clearly has greater ambitions.'

Seeing everything that had unfolded, Kevan could only come to one course of action that was for the best, for him and his men. He gritted his teeth, and turned to meet Avin’s panicked eyes. 

***

Avin's breath was ragged and his elbows and shoulders ached, he deflected one attack after another. He was inferior to the Ulov warriors by half, maybe even less in terms of weight, and strength. Which he of course made up with his superior skill and flexibility. And it was exhausting.

He dodged a swipe at his face, and thrust with his sword into the Tulok's chest, blood spurted out from the wound but Avin was already moving away, avoiding attacks with speed, and delivering counters with precision. 

Almost four, out of the five attacks he made, landed, even though he was constantly forced to move, to avoid being pinned and surrounded. 

An Ulov caught Avin's blade between the hook-like axe and it's shaft, yanking it at an awkward angle like a sword–breaker. Two more figures came at Avin from the back at the same time. One aiming his spear at his shoulder and the other swinging his axe at his side. 

More figures were visible beyond these immediate threats, beyond them, they moved in a blur as the world seemingly slowed down around him and came to a crawl as sweat trickled down Avin's nose. 

Chaos unfolded around him, around him… ‘Chaos..’

His pupils dilated as Avin saw it, the spark pulsing in front of his vision like a ghost. As if it was there but at the same time, it wasn't. Like a dream.

Avin heard the song of chaos he had always sung, coming back to him like a ghostly melody from that pulsing. 

The world became sharper, and the chaos around seemed to have a feeling to it, something he couldn't explain, like a lost blind man feeling the wind on his skin, and trying to use that to find directions. 

But he could feel the chaos and its components like one would feel winds on their skin. And so the world that seemed to have been in a crawl snapped back to its pace, and Avin moved by instincts. 

He let go of his sword and spun, catching the spear shaft, the third attacker's axe swung past where Avin was mere moments ago. 

Avin kicked the spear wielder under his thighs, and followed it up with an elbow to his nose, then pulled the spear free, shoving the long weapon, into the Aidar warrior who had trapped his sword in his axe's chest. 

The one who had missed Avin with his axe spun, but stopped as Avin's dagger found its mark in his neck. 

Avin bent down and retrieved his sword and turned around. About ten of the fifteen that had come with Kevan were dead, and Avin cursed. 

He seemed to have been holding the attention of most of the Ulov's which seemed to have taken the strain off of the Krimzon guards, but it wasn't enough, they were outnumbered three to one, probably even more. 

Korli kicked one of the enemies he was engaging with, and stepped back, their eyes met before a blinding flash of light blew the darkness of the night away, and put even the lights coming from the bonfires to shame.

After the light was gone, the sound of horns came, and Avin turned to the south from where he had come. Guards–more Krimzon guards were emerging from the woods, led by Chief Pevena– who was preparing for a charge. 

Avin turned his eyes away from her and looked at the chief, he seemed to have used that moonlight blast to attack, the Elemental chanelers like him– the chiefs could do. It was a trump card Avin knew, meaning if he had been forced to use it, meant the situation was dire. 

The monster of a man Kevan was fighting, Avin noticed was standing up. The ominous armor on his body did not look like good news. The chief turned towards Avin and their eyes met. 

Kevan's voice reached him, “Retreat! I'll hold him off.” 

The firm command, seemed to push the Five Krimzon guards of Delsy to move back, before the next wave of the Ulov reached them. Avin jumped back, dodging attacks, and kicking anyone who got in his way. 

Avin spun in the air, doing a front flip as an Aidar swept at his feet with a pole axe, Avin landed and swept his sword in a wide arc, his blade dug into the Ulov's shoulders, and Avin had to kicked the screaming man at the chest to jerk the sword free, the motion however, sent Avin sprawling on his back. He saw after getting up that he had stepped on blood, blood coming from the severed head of a Krimzon Guard, he knew that face, 'Olrik'. 

Avin cursed, but kicked at the ground as he got up, and then bumped into another Ulov who was chasing after Korli, the huge Ulov turned to regard Avin, but his sword was already in the Ulov's back. Avin got it free by the kicking the warrior away again, and started running. On his way, he saw Chief Pevena dash past him–in the opposite direction to meet the charge of the new Ulov warriors. 

Avin and his five companions met up with the new Krimzon warriors and Avin noticed that they were just as ragged and disheveled, as Avin and his companions.

Avin turned, he saw Pevena and Kevan, hold off the Ulov warriors, and the powerful Armored monster. Avin's gaze however was fixed on Kevan who danced like the wind, but the man he faced seemed to be the storm itself. Their clashes like a hammer hitting another hammer, with harsh metallic thrums. Kevan seemed to stumble back from a clash, and fell to his knees, his enemy dove towards him, his sword raised upwards to deliver a downward stike.

Avin cursed, he had already taken two quick steps to run towards the chief, but there was another blinding flash, and the Ulov monster was flung backward, soaring through the air–blasted away from the explosive attack. 

Kevan rose to his feet, and dashed towards Avin and the Krimzon guards. 

Another white blinding flash followed– this one like a shower of spark descending upon the dozens of Ulov warriors, in a different direction. Avin turned and saw the Ulov stepping back in fear, whoever the white light struck burned with white flames as the flames fed on their flesh.

In mere moments both Pevena and Kevan met up on their way, and started ordering their men to retreat, Avin waited a moment, looking towards the hill where so much had been lost.

‘Can’t be…’ Avin wanted to curse and charge back at them, but Korli pulled him back with the rest, and Avin let him. His fist bunched up as everything he had just been through crashed down on him. 

***

After about half an hour's non-stop march they stopped in the forest where they decided to rest after the long dash. Avin was sprawled on the ground, breathing hard, and his heart beat like drums, his vision blurry from all the adrenaline rush and exhaustion. 

People around him cursed, and sprawled on the ground, their breathing hard, and passed around water-skins. Especially the ones who had survived from Delsy, the five alongside Avin. 

Korli and Genfi seemed to have survived alongside some of the other guards Avin knew. Yeban however, Avin couldn't find Yeban. He had died, and Avin was too preoccupied to have even noticed. He groaned, and slammed his fist in the ground. 

But he couldn't stew on it for now, he needed to know what had happened. Accepting and drinking from a waterskin, one of the Flery guards had offered to him, Avin stood up and walked towards the captain who was talking with Pevena a distance away, Korli stood beside him. 

“Crone’s balls, I aimed for his head but the bastard brought his arm up just in time, and the stranger armor’s gauntlet took the attack. This is…” The chief trailed off as he saw Avin approach. 

“Chief!…” Avin began loudly with, angry at himself and everything that had happened, but trailed off after seeing the mood around him. He paused, and sighing, sat down on a rock beside Pevena.

“What happened?” He asked, his voice barely more than a whisper this time.

“What happened? Well about everything I didn't expect.” Kevan replied.

“The plan was for Kevan to carry out the rescue, and we came as a back up, in case of an ambush or trap.” Pevena continued on Kevan's behalf. 

“But…” Avin asked.

Pevena sighed “But we were attacked by… I don't know. Shadows? Figures moving about in the darkness like ghosts–they attacked us, a couple of my men died in the initial attack but then, I feel like they weren't serious about fighting us. They were just delaying me, and my men, and then..” she turned towards Kevan, who looked back towards the direction they had come from. 

“Reven, he called himself the son of Kezen and he is probably the one who has united the Tribes together… he is dangerous Pevena, way more dangerous than a man who is just physically strong. He is cunning and knows us well, and… I can't help but feel like we've been compromised–” Kevan snapped his mouth shut and looked around, fortunately nobody had heard them as Kevan wasn't loud enough for the guards to notice his voice over their exhaustion. 

Avin considered those words, the plan was good enough, it's just that nobody had expected this new Reven guy and… “who were those ghosts that attacked you though?” Avin asked Pevena.

She paused, turning towards Kevan who gave her a complicated look, so she just shook her head, “I don't know, I've got no Idea.” 

Avin saw something between them, and could sense that the chief's definitely knew something, but they weren't willing to say it out loud. 

But Avin's attention was pulled away from the discussion as he remembered what had happened to him… his spirit was close to awakening. Avin could feel it, he could almost hear the Willsong in the back of his head if he focused on it. He could see that spark in the distance by just closing his eyes, he didn't even have to focus or meditate to isolate his consciousness from all the noises. 

“We should find the Oracles, this needs their attention.” Pevena said soberly.

“They should be busy with the trial of spirits, Elizei is supposed to enter the spirit sanctuary right about now, we'll have to wait for tomorrow.” Kevan told her. 

That soured Avin's mood, and scowling he turned away, and then sometimes later they began the March back to the Delsy colony again.