The Twilight Children//The School for Good and Evil

2 ~ Igni

. : Sebastian of Havfrue : .

"We cannot just enter the forest and slaughter everyone in our path."

Sebastian glared at Kendrick across the table. The pirate leader was maybe a few years older than him. He was greasy and smelled like an aggravating mixture of seaweed and oil. His hair was slicked back and pulled into a low ponytail.

Sebastian hadn't wanted to ally with the pirates. He refused to believe Kendrick had an ounce of good in him. He'd sooner team up with the Igni who had burnt him than the son of Captain Hook. He had spent weeks back home, trying to express his concern and his distrust of the pirates, but his father-- who hadn't been on the battlefield since before he was born-- had insisted it was fine.

His father was going to eat his words sooner or later.

The way Kendrick was looking at the map, the blatant greed and malice in his eyes, concerned Sebastian. The Twilight Children were damn good fighters-- most had spent decades training-- and there was no way they would take the forest. That was their territory. The one time they had gotten close enough to the heart of Neverland to place it under siege was the most brutal thing that the Havfrue military had ever been responsible for. He would still wake up every night with nightmares of those few days.

They needed to stick to the beach. They could fight on the beach.

"We cannot enter the forest," Sebastian snapped back. He ran a hand through his auburn hair. Autumn was starting and the night brought with it a chill. He longed to leave, to return to the temperate climate of his home. "You know how good they are at ambush attacks, and at hiding. That forest is their territory. We will have no chance on their ground. Our best chance is dragging them onto the beach."

Kendrick narrowed his eyes at Sebastian, tucking his hands into his dark leather pants. "And how, do you suggest we take them out? We are going to lose if we don't push back soon."

He was correct in that manner. The Twilight Children had been ruthless lately, counter-attack after counter-attack, and had managed to push them back to the shore. They needed one more win and they would win the war.

Sebastian wasn't willing to let them win. He wouldn't return home with more bodies and having lost the war. His parents had entrusted him with this, and he couldn't bear to face the disappointed looks again.

The first loss had been hard, dozens of soldiers had lost their lives in the battle. Since then, he had grown numb. The bodies piled up, all marks of his failure, yet he carried on, numb to the pain and suffering.

Sebastian pointed to a spot on the map, right in the heart of the map. "I'd be willing to bet that they keep the source of all magic here. All we need to do it is a small team, and slide them through their defences."

"And what of the Igni? What will you do about him?"

Then there was the matter of the Igni. In the first fight that Sebastian had gotten into with him, he had nearly turned and ran. He had never seen or heard of anyone with that level of magic. The roaring flames that listened only to their leader had frightened him to the point of nightmares. After the first battle, he would specifically target the Igni, learning the way he fought, and his strengths and weaknesses. Sebastian prided himself on his ability to analyze fighting techniques; it was what had made him such a good soldier.