Ashes of Love and War - TodoMomo

||Chapter 1 ~ Part 2||

He stumbled and leaned his arm against the wall of a side alley, spitting. The blood had gotten into his eyes and stung like a dull bee's sting. He cracked an eye open and watched through blurry vision as Sero Hanata rushed up beside him.

"Todoroki, you okay?" Sero asked. He reached out and took Shouto's sword from his fingers.

Shouto took a moment and wiped the blood from his face with the back of his arm. "Yeah, I'm fine," he said, spitting into the dirt.

Sero grimaced and nodded in understanding. He was about Shouto's own age. Tall and lean, with straight, chin-length black hair. He was a good soldier and dependable, although rather plain-looking.

"Sorry about letting that one through," Sero said. He paused for a moment and then lowered his voice. "You can go rest if you want. We're almost done. I know you haven't been sleeping much lately." He flashed Shouto a small smile that showed too much teeth.

Shouto didn't smile back. He was tired, and his mouth tasted of salt and copper. He spat again, to get rid of the taste, but it didn't disappear. Sighing, he pushed off from the stone wall, instinctively reaching back for Endeavor. The sword was an unbreakable blade that was magicked to never dull or rust. It was the only gift he allowed himself to keep from his father. "No. I can still fight."

Sero opened his mouth to say more, but desperate cries coming from the adjacent street made both men look up.

Women and children raced down the opposite street towards the inner city and the Trojans' last line of defense. On their heels were a group of Theban soldiers, their white armor splotched with blood as they grabbed the escaping civilians and killed any that resisted.

Sero tsked under his breath. "No discipline at all. They act like wild animals now that we've won." He sighed and turned back to Shouto. He clasped his shoulder. "Nothing we can do about it," he said, his voice soft, almost apologetic. "They lost. The best they can hope for is to be sold into slavery. It's the fate of the weak."

Shouto didn't respond as he watched one soldier break off from the group, dragging a woman by her long hair down the stone alleyway.

She screamed in anger, kicking out to gain leverage and pull out of his grasp, but the ground was covered with too much blood for her feet to find purchase.

The soldier pulled her past a fallen warrior and further into the alley.

Shouto's eyes narrowed at the same time the woman's hands skimmed over the silver handle of a knife lying next to one of the corpses. She picked it up.

The soldier hadn't noticed.

She swung the blade up, cutting through her long hair.

The warrior stumbled as the weight he had been pulling went slack. His eyes widened, and he hesitated, clearly confused.

The woman didn't wait for him to regain his bearings. She swung the knife around and buried it into his unprotected thigh.

The soldier screamed.

She jerked back, scrambling away, but she wasn't fast enough. The soldier swung his shield around and slammed the metal into her head. Her body hit against the alley wall, and she crumpled to the ground.

The man howled and lunged for her.

"Leave her."

The soldier paused. Blood ran down his leg in rivulets. The hard lines of his face tightened as he put pressure on the wounded limb. His eyes flashed dangerously. "Fuck you! The bitch stabbed me!" he swore, turning to look at the two Spartans.

Shouto stepped forward, sheathing his sword. "It's war. And it's your own fault for not paying attention."

The man's gaze burned. "What the fuck! Just because you're a Spartan, doesn't mean you can--" His eyes widened as Shouto bent down next to the woman, and the moon shone overhead to illuminate his red and white hair. The man took a stumbling step back. "You're –You're Shouto Todoroki. The God of War's son." His voice had become low. Reverent.

Shouto didn't respond. He reached out to the woman. Blood matted her now shoulder-length brown hair. He placed a hand in front of her mouth, checking to see if she was breathing. Light puffs of air warmed his palm. He exhaled silently and gathered her in his arms. Slinging her over his shoulder, he stood back up.