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"I will turn you back.. I won't let you suffer the same fate as the others..."

She wasn't that close to Abel, but Alihi was, and the tactician had become a good friend of the nomad's. She couldn't bear to see her comrade's faces in agony.

"He'd never do such a thing." Sue answered calmly. She knew that being emotionally charged would surely be her downfall. "He said so himself, that when he suffered Mother's loss, I was all he had left until we reached Learania. Abandonment is completely out of his nature."

"The only reason grandfather is no longer with us... is... is..." She almost lost her composure when she remembered Dayan sending her and Shin away, so that he and the remainder of the tribe could hope to weaken Bern's forces. "It's none of your business." she said fiercely.

Sue parried the blow, seeing it coming. She knew that as a mercanary, Abel already had raw power behind his blade. However, she had just the gift to match it: raw speed.

"If you truly did work for Bern that day... then I will not hesitate. You will fall." she said, a completely different gaze how gleaming in her eyes, one of hatred.

"How would you know? You told me your past wasn't as dark... well.. not everyone gets to be spoiled by Ashera!" Sue replied to Alihi, but just as she was about to charge the tactician's last words struck her mind. We can't lose our focus. Not now, when everyone's depending on us...

Everyone...

Images went by. Older Soren, her father, Valter, the Host club. All of her friends...

If she fell to the darkness, they'd never see her again. For that, she was certain. Abel's not himself. Remember... remember Nils and Rei. He's not himself, he's not...

But then what was he? Who was he? What was this terrible Darkness that was slowly infecting FEF's members anyhow?

The boy stood there getting more and more annoyed at their banter. He had no idea what the nomadic girl was talking about with Bern. Nobody had even mentioned it. Apparently, she didn't understand, but that was far from important. The only thing he cared about... was that he was being ignored!!

"....Are you done chatting yet?! DON'T YOU DARE DISGRACE ME, LIKE THAT!" His eyes seemed to almost be fuming. "You'll regret trying to make me look like a fool!" With that, the boy ran forward again. This time, it was not his normal speed. He was much, much faster than he should be. Speed would not be giving anybody an advantage against him anymore.

The boy jumped up and knocked the girl from her horse to hit the ground hard. [or, if you were off your horse, he swung his blade with enough strength to push back your block and send you flying back a little] The spooked horse jumped back. The boy then turned to the other girl with the sword, and raised his hand to swing his sword down and crush her. ....But his arm wouldn't move.

.....What the-! ...Why won't I move?!

The boy's body shook and he stared down with a furious face upon the girl, but for some reason, no matter how much he tried, his arm would not swing down. The boy growled and jumped back. He looked back at the armed tactician.

....What is it about her..?! Why could I.... Bah, forget it!

He then scowled and looked away. "...You get off easy this time. I have no need to take down a pair of weaker girls to test how I would stand against him...." He sheathed his broadsword, then mumbled to himself. "Now... to find that lizard girl..." He then ran off, leaving the village and going into the forest.

Out the back door of the tavern, in the midst of all the death and chaos, a lone drunken figure staggered out, a bottle of beer in his hand. He wasn't armed or armored, but clearly had the build of a man who hefted a ton of armor around. Yeah, he'd heard some noises, heard the screams and sword swings, but really, he was 1) drunk and 2) defenseless. Yes, Ghis, a General in the Eyris Guard, could have run out there to defend the citizenry, but what was the point in that? What would he do, throw a beer bottle at the fiery youth? Worse, he might mistake the lad for a girl and actually HIT ON him. He'd done it once or twice before. Darkness and booze made everything very confusing.

Anyway. This wasn't the front entrance. Finding the front entrance meant finding the road. Finding the road meant safer travels. Safer travels meant... corpses? What?

Ghis paused, thankful he HADN'T tried to intervene. He relied on armor to get him through his battles, not finesse. No sense in going emotional over the dead--he'd have died with them.

"Ah don't know what in blazes possessed that laddie, but ah don't want t' find out."

He staggered onward. It was late... he'd better alert the castle guard about this, let them handle things. Whoever the lad was, he wouldn't be terrorizing the countryside for long.

[[Too lazy to swap accounts...]]

Blossom clung onto Ganon's arm still, staring at all the bodies as they got closer. There was so much blood. The smell of copper overwhelmed her senses. She never got used to that smell, not after all the battles to prevent a recoming of the Scouring, and not now. She didn't let go of Ganon's arm until he began to ready himself to play his violin again, closing her eyes and tilting her head down in respect for the dead.

"Ed, or Blossom, is there... anywhere we can go that will be safe, out of the way?" Blossom didn't look up until Ganon said this. Her eyes widened a bit.

"Oh! Yes, there is!" she chirped. "Fefga's house! It's here in town, we can show you there. It's a really big house, practically a mansion. We can stay there. It's enchanted and spell-worked and stuff. We'll be fine there. So, um, Alihi and Sue! Are you guys ready to go?" Blossom looked over at them curiously, still holding the Aegis sword. "We better get somewhere safe, soon. I don't like being out here..." Blossom skittered away from the dead bodies, getting closer to the group.