Melody of Mana

I looked around as the girls went off, there were a few things that needed settling. I took my brother's blade, adding the scabbard to my belt as the other men picked up the weapons from the fallen. I call them men, but most were old, far too old. The others were close to my age.

"So, we just all initiated a revolt. I'm sure we all understand what that means," I started.

"We know lad, we're all dead men," the elder spoke, looking around at all of us. "But the women didn't touch any of those we killed did they? If any gets caught he ought to at least be able to remember not seeing them do that."

All of us nodded.

"We might be all dead men, the... Malke, he said something about a commotion in town?"

"Yeah, he was going on about an attack," one of my friends Malcom chimed in.

"Then maybe we're not dead men. I say we kill all these bastards and let whoever is attacking take credit. Let's kill them too. I'm damn tired of people invading my home." My proposal got a round of nods.

"We should ask the other hamlets to help," our elder decreed, to some consternation.

"You think they will?" Malcom asked.

"They will," came his response. "We've got about fifty spears stuffed away in Mystien's house for something just like this."

"Won't be enough for everyone, but it'll help. I propose two groups, we circle around opposite sides and meet up once we've got everyone who wants to come. May even figure out what's going on." This was my best idea at least, nobody else had any counter points.

The run from hamlet to hamlet gave me a chance to work a few things out. Dad had told me that I would probably manifest physical magic, but he didn't know exactly how. So I made a list of what I noticed had changed. I was much, much faster than I'd been this morning. I could now sprint forward like a thunderbolt, surreal. I was also far stronger. A few experimental jumps, and one pull on a tree trunk and that was clear. I thought my body felt... tougher, but I couldn't quite test that right before a fight. My senses and reactions were also cranked up. If I focused I could see the wings on a fly fifty feet away.

We managed to get a glimpse of what was going on in the village. This information was added to what we could see. There were men at the main gate, perhaps a hundred or so Ermathi soldiers. This group seemed to be trying to break into the village. They had other, small groups stationed around the walls in fives and tens. Seemed like they didn't want anyone to escape. One of the hamlets near the main road had seen around thirty of the kingdom's finest blaze past before the opposing unit had appeared. So the village had been reinforced.

We had perhaps fifty volunteers, few of which could fight worth anything. What we did have was knowledge of the land, and that both sides were currently ignoring us. It was good that they were ignoring us of course, as either would almost instantly crush this gathering of peasants.

"So, are our goals to aid the village?" That question from one of the elders got mixed reviews.

"I think our goals are to kill the outsiders. Or better yet have them kill themselves," I pointed out.

"Alright, so how do we deal with them?" Another man asked, scratching his chin.

"Hmm, we hit the surrounding groups. Pick off as many as we can," our elder proposed. His motion was accepted.

Less than half an hour later I found myself crouched in the grass beside three others. One was an older man with a crossbow he'd 'retrieved' from a soldier back home. One was around thirteen, he had a weird staff weapon; it had a sling on the end. Something his dad had taught him he said. He also claimed he could put a fist sized rock into a man sized target at three hundred paces. I was dubious on his claims, but even if he failed he had a big stick. The third was just older than myself, dressed in mail, and even had a shield to go with his spear. I was hoping man number three knew how to fight, he'd be our defender.

Before us were five men looking towards the village. They didn't worry about peasants, not with their numbers and training.

I slipped off to the side, ready to flank when it went to melee.

The slinger and crossbowman loosed simultaneously, both hits. My concerns about the weird staff were gone. Now I just wanted one; he'd completely pulped a man's spine. Four of the five were still functioning; the quarrel had missed by inches.

They took a moment to orient themselves before finding the direction of the attack and charging, shields up, swords out.

Our slinger aimed for the left side. He got one more shot off, a miss, before both got behind the heavy. Everyone readied for the incoming melee.

Well, everyone except our opponents. I flew out from my hiding spot as they passed, meeting their right flank by slicing through the closest man's neck. His neighbor didn't have a chance to respond before I'd buried a blade into his gut savagely. As their last two met our frontline I met their back. It was over in an instant. With that I was beginning to realize just how much I'd gained.

We continued on like that a couple more times before all the groups began to pull back, forming two groups of twenty. We'd managed to take a good few, and gain some more actual weapons from it. Even if we all went in at once, twenty would still be too many. Even if we won, they'd have reinforcements before we could take them all. With that in mind those with ranged weapons continued to harass them as best they could.

From the loud noises coming from the gate I took a guess that they would soon be inside. That palisade had been built to keep out bandits and small monsters. It would slow organized soldiers, but not stop them for long.

Of greater concern was what they were doing outside. It appeared they were tired of us taking shots at them and had decided to send out fire arrows, setting the fields aflame. I froze when I saw that; the fields were too dry. They wouldn't just drive us back, but burn everything.

Within minutes the wildfire had begun to rage. It spread through the dry wheat like nothing I'd ever seen. Billows of smoke drove everyone to retreat. Our enemies were pushed against the palisade by smoke and heat. Eventually gathering all together at the gate.

I had to stand back and look as the lands turned into an inferno. I'd resolved to leave this town some time ago, but I didn't hate it. There was a very slight bit of guilt as I realized that our actions had doomed Orsken. Even if it would have survived the starvation that was coming, it wouldn't now.

Some of the other men gathered with me to watch. There was no point in trying to stop a fire of this magnitude. I heard one old man weeping, overcome with the sight of his lifelong home going up in flames.

I walked towards a nearby field where I knew some goats were normally kept, taking off my swords. The boy from my group followed.

"Hey, where are you going?" he asked.

I walked over to the trough used to water the goats. It was huge, and full of disgusting water.

"Through the fire, to kill them." I didn't hesitate as I began to soak myself with the muck, "To kill them all."

"What's the point?" The kid was persistent, I'd give him that.

"The point? The point? They drove my father away. They murdered my brother. Those two groups of bastards all deserve to die! That is the point!" I saw him shrink away as I yelled at him, good.

As I dripped, wet as I could be I started to make a plan. Going in through the main gate was not going to be possible. While I could now jump pretty high, not that high. My only hope was to climb.

"Hey kid, you got a belt knife?" I looked at the boy who's eyes were still wide. He pulled one out and handed it to me. "Thanks."

I went far from the gate, far from the fighting. I was fast now, I'd run through the flames and use the knives to hold me to the wood as I climbed. That seemed like something that was possible.

So I found the place where the fire looked thinnest and bolted, my knife and the boy's in my hands. As I hit the fire I could see the water steaming off of me. Even speeding as I was it took a few seconds to pass through the blaze. My skin stung as wisps of fire brushed along it. I took one breath only and almost coughed, barely managing to keep it in as I moved. As the wall approached I jumped with all my might, and made it about fifteen feet up. The knives held true into the wood as I planted them.

The problems were many though. I coughed, and the hot, stinging air only made me choke. My knives had driven into the wood deeply. I tried to pry one out, but the blade was stuck. Eventually I managed to free it, and after nearly a minute of coughing and pulling I managed to drag myself over the edge.

I layed down behind the wooden wall, sputtering for air. What I had done was foolish, insanely so. I'd nearly died from overestimating myself. I could never do that again. I felt like I'd been out in the sun too long without a hat, my face and hands stinging. There were angry red patches on the backs of them just forming.

As I stood a man came running up to me, one of Orin's.

"Hey, you're one of the kids from town." He laughed for a second. "Thought you were an enemy soldier there for a second. Looks like you're dressed for battle though boy. If you're ready to serve the king, head to the ga..." He looked down to where I'd shoved the boy's belt knife into his chest, gasping.

"Fuck the king," I whispered as I pushed him over the edge of the wall.

Part of my mind was screaming. I'd just killed a man who'd greeted me as a friend. He was no threat. He didn't even know what had happened. Another showed me images of the hungry villagers, poor fields, and my brother, laying beheaded at the feet of men just like him. It slowed me for a moment, but only a moment.

When I arrived at the gate I found that the fighting had already moved to the streets. I waded through them, taking any man I found in either army's regalia. I was swift and brutal, slicing limbs and stabbing deep. I didn't count how many I took, letting my anger drive me on and on, towards the center of town.

There at the village hall I was truly surprised. It had been surrounded by torches, twenty feet out, and haphazardly painted large on the walls was a circle containing a shield. Dad had told us of the sign. The priest had designated this location a sanctuary. He stood at the door in a suit of armor, in one hand a shield the other nothing.

As I blinked at the sight I saw a girl perhaps fourteen fleeing a soldier of Ermath, screaming as she ran past the torches. She ran towards the door and tripped, landing hard. As the soldier crossed the line of torches Rosk said nothing. He only lifted his hand, allowing an angry red light to fly towards the intruder.

The man died screaming. I had no idea what had killed him as he fell to the ground, but it shook me.

Rosk looked down at her, speaking gently. "Go inside. The helpless are safe beneath the shield." The girl stumbled again as she obeyed, looking back.

He looked to me next, his face conflicted. "Were you forced to fight?"

"No." I spoke the truth loud and clear.

"Then you may not enter until it is done, or you are unable to fight." I could tell he was sad, seemingly disappointed that I'd made my choice.

"I understand." With that I turned, heading towards my uncle's shop.

By the time I got there there were few left fighting, but I found him locked in combat with a man in full plate armor. A few dead from either side told me these two were the last of a skirmish.

Barro fought with an ax, a huge two-handed affair he swung with aplomb. His opponent though was too fast, and too strong. With a two handed sword he pushed back the larger man. Each blow pushed him back until a savage kick slammed him into the wall of his own shop, crumpling him to the ground.

Before he could line up a killing blow I ran in, aiming to put a blade under his armpit. He turned in time, deflecting the strike away. He was fast, not quite as quick as me, but very fast.

"Physical magic? I'm impressed boy," he spoke as we fought, him deflecting a handful of strikes from me. I barely managed to parry his first return. It came in like a thunderbolt, screeching as my blade pushed it away.

"You're strong," I remarked as we circled each other. He would advance as I dodged or parried, then fall back as I struck at his joints. I scored a hit on the back of one knee as I jumped past a slash that would have easily bisected me. It was shallow, an irritant, but not enough to impair.

The problem was obvious. I couldn't get past his armor. Perhaps in a hundred blows I could hurt something deeply enough to disable him. He only needed one on me though.

"If you surrender I'll spare you. I would hate to kill such a promising young man, for you'd do well in the empires armies." He made his pitch.

"I'll pass." I had no intention of fighting for them or the kingdom.

"Very well. I am Aiden, of the third imperial legion."

"John, of Orsken."

Our introductions done he attacked in earnest. Before he'd merely been testing me but now he fought to kill. I still could not injure him, his armor deflecting anything he allowed to get through. His skill made up for any lack of speed as he pushed me back again and again. I realized a second too late as I blocked the same blow my uncle had, and the same followup kick sent me flying into the open front of his shop.

It hurt as I tried to suck in the air that had been driven out of me, both my blades tossed to the floor.

I saw my death as he walked through the door. "I did not come here to kill you boy, but I must. Goodbye."

The loud 'clang' as something struck him from behind rang out through the shop. He turned as the quarrel fell. It was enough. I grabbed the one thing that lined every surface in a smith's shop and flew at him. A blade would have skimmed harmlessly off of his armor, but the hammer I planted in his temple struck true.

Even after he fell I struck again and again, unwilling to risk not killing him. I stopped only when his helmet was caved in and brain fluid and blood began to flow out.

The ancient tavern keeper limped over to me, crossbow in his hands. "You looked like you needed some help. Reckon you'll make it?"

I laughed for a few moments from the sheer relief. "Yeah, suppose I will."

It would have been wonderful if that had been the end. It was not, armies do not surrender or flee when an officer dies. The fighting went on all night. Half the village burned to the ground, corpses littered the streets, injured men groaned in pain everywhere.

The empire had won the field, slaughtering the kingdom's soldiers. In turn they'd lost so many in the fight that what few remained had fled.

Just before dawn it was finally over and I stumbled toward the woods to retrieve my sister. She would indeed be needed. A few drops of water fell on me as I struggled up the road.

It was like an icicle was pushed into my heart as I came to the woods. All that had been green and brown was now charcoal or angry red. The bottom truly dropped out as I worked my way forward, trying to find trees and landmarks as the deluge that might have saved our fields a day early poured down on me.

When I found the cave, and saw that it was empty I fell to my knees and wept. How could I have been such a fool? I should have taken my family and fled, but instead I got caught up in my desire for vengeance. Now my sister was gone too; lost because of my own madness.

There was a pang of hope. Perhaps she'd fled to my mother in Creekrun. Perhaps she was safe.

We searched for a week finding no trace before we finally gave up, my mother forcing the issue. I had to accept as I took her and my uncle to the place dad had told us of. My spirit was crushed. I knew that they wouldn't blame me, but I had failed all the same.

The village was done. What people there were left went elsewhere to seek shelter. Some went to Hazelwood to beg for aid. Some to other villages and their relatives. The priest and tavernkeeper stayed until everyone else had left, sharing one last drink for the place. As Perry closed his doors for the last time he and Rosk parted ways, each going to seek a new place, one thing was clear to all. Orsken on the Forest was done.