Legends of Skidad: Corruption

Coat-of-Arms

“Ulyssa… Ulyssa wake up!”

A girl slowly sat up from her simple bed, shaken awake and still half-asleep. Confused, she quietly grumbled with phlegm still covering her eyes. Suddenly, fear swept over her. The air smelled of smoke, and the glow of fire washed into the otherwise dark room. People were screaming outside.

They were under attack.

“Is it bandits?” asked Ulyssa.

“No, this is something much worse,” said her mother. “Now come on, we have to leave.”

With all traces of sleepiness lost to adrenaline, they ran outside. Ulyssa was met with a horrible sight. Mounted knights torched the tribe’s straw and wooden houses, leaving not one safe from the blaze. Whether fleeing or staying to fight, the tribesmen were mercilessly cut down by the footmen’s’ swords or speared by their lances. They intended for no one to survive. The air was chokingly thick with smoke, and the fire made dancing shadows of the fighting.

Ulyssa could have never been more afraid in her life, but she hid it well. She saw her father, the best swordsman in the tribe, fending off a pair of knights. She called out to him. He saw her and immediately rolled to avoid a sword slash. He abandoned the fight and began running to their aid. Just as he was half-way to them, Ulyssa saw the glint of silver out of the left corner of her eye. Her mother saw it too and almost screamed. An archer, aiming right for her father. Ulyssa kept quiet, she knew what was going to happen. The archer released the arrow. Her father’s eye twitched. With super-human reflexes, he spun around and raised his sword. It collided with the arrow with a clang, and the arrow spun out and hit the ground. He then reached into his belt, pulled out a throwing knife, and let it fly straight through the archer’s neck.

Ulyssa’s mother let out a great sigh of relief, while Ulyssa kept a straight face. Her father, nearly out of breath, finally reached them. “Is everyone okay?” he asked.

Nearly in tears of panic, Ulyssa’s mother nodded.

“Then let’s go!” said the swordsman hurriedly. “I’ve hidden Shadow by the lake. Now hurry!”

They started to run. Ulyssa and her father had to go slower than usual to let her mother keep up. They weaved in and out of knights, having too many close scrapes with lances. Finally, the three had reached the outskirts of the village. They slowed down to catch their breath. The glow of the fire softened, and the air was clear. They thought they were in the clear, but they the brown grass shuffle violently. Slowly, they looked up and saw the captain, his helmet’s red tail flowing behind him, pursuing them, with murder in his eyes. Weakly, they ran towards the hill leading down to the lake. The knight’s horse could not run on an incline. At the top of the hill, her mother tripped on a loose branch. Ulyssa and her father quickly stopped to help her up, but the captain saw his opportunity and threw his spear. It spun as it flew through the air, its ribbon trailing behind it. The world slowed down as it buried itself in her back.

Ulyssa stood there in shock, her mouth gaping open. A single tear formed in her eye.

The knight was advancing ever faster. He was close enough they Ulyssa could make out a coat-of-arms. A single blue shield, with an open-winged eagle. Her father grabbed Ulyssa by her arm and pulled her down the grassy hill. She came to her senses and shook him off. Grieving will come later, she thought. They ran towards the lake, the grass becoming greener as they advanced. A few trees limited their view of the lake. The moon and stars glistened off of the calm water.

Her father put his fingers in his mouth and whistled. A black horse with no saddle and a bag on its side came galloping towards them. They continued to run until they reached a thicket. Ulyssa and her father got down on their knees, Ulyssa sitting on her feet and her father kneeling tall. “Ulyssa,” he put his hand on her shoulder, “I want you to get on Shadow and run as far away as you can. Leave me. I will fight him long enough for you to get away.”

“What? No! I want to stay with you. I want to fight,” begged Ulyssa.

“Listen to me. If you stay he will kill both of us. Please.” He started to pick her up by the waist.

Her eyes were now red with tears. Kicking, she screamed, “Please, father let me stay! Let me stay!”

He had already put her on Shadow. “Ya!” he shouted as he slapped the horse on the rear. Shadow galloped far away burning village, leaving him alone. He watched in sadness and pride as his daughter and only child was being carried away to safety. She had grown so much. He thought back to when he first taught her swordplay, their tribe’s finest art. She was just a confused little girl then. He smiled. Then he remembered the task at hand. He looked back at the hill and saw the captain, large and in full armor, slowly approaching him, his sword drawn. He looked back at his daughter one last time, drew his sword, and advanced.

The sounds of screaming still in her ears, Ulyssa looked back at her father and immediately regretted it. He captain had kicked his knees out and raised his sword ready to strike. The sword came down and sliced through his neck. Ulyssa wailed a cry of agony as she rode off into the night.

Morning came. Ulyssa woke up on Shadow’s back, who was now sleeping. She stretched her arms and legs out so only her torso was touching the horse. Slowly, she rolled off of him and landed on her feet, feeling the hard dirt beneath her. Once more, she stretched and opened her eyes.

Then she remembered.

The image of her mother with a spear in her back. Her father being beheaded. The memories hit her like a cannonball. It wasn’t a dream. It was real.

She fell to her knees and wept. Her mother, who always cared for her, who made her clothes and cooked, the one who was always rational, who loved her more than anything, was gone. And her father, to whom she looked up to most, the one who taught her of honor and swordplay, her hero, was gone.

She cried until her tears had run dry. The last vision that flashed into her head was the coat-of-arms. Blue, with an eagle. It belonged to the royal family of Lenia, the kingdom south of the tribes of Uscar. She hadn’t lost her happiness, it was taken from her. Some spoiled nobleman in his posh and pomp mansion had commanded his army to attack them. Why? For fun? Ulyssa filled with rage. Determined to get revenge, she looked into the bag that Shadow was carrying. She found her black combat robe and black combat mask, ‘To protect your honor,’ her father had said. Underneath them, was Gust. The sword she named when she was only a little girl, because it sang like the wind when swung. She ran her hand along its smooth side of hardened steel, stopping at its angled tip. It was so light, it only took one hand to wield, but her fighting style involved both hands. Whoever caused her misery would feel its razor-sharp edge. She donned her robe and tucked her long black hair into her mask. When she put it one, it covered her entire head, except for her hazel eyes. With her tan complexion, just a light shadow would make her almost invisible.

She mounted Shadow. This isn’t revenge, she assured herself, it’s justice. She kicked Shadow and began her journey south. The first nobleman she sees will pay. Justice will be served.