The Legend of the North

Chapter 24

Announcement

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"In that case we have no choice but to take you by force." At the end of his patience, Or raises his ax above his head.

Ezer dodges the slow but brutal attack, if it were to hit him just once it would break him in two. Or knew this and therefore controlled the force he put into the blunt side of the axe.

Immediately after, a knife grazes his shoulder and tears part of his coat, the attacks continue one after another in an irregular and frantic manner, Ezer dodges the attacks and sometimes reflects them with his dagger. But before the ax he can do nothing but dodge.

They took turns attacking since the terrain and their coordination were not the best, there were several times when they hindered each other.

"Clearly they don't have any technique, I have to find the right moment." Ezer never attacked, he simply waited until his opponent tire himself more than already was.

His patience showed results, the long-haired man attacks with his knife very slowly and with an excessively extended arm. Ezer immediately places his left hand on the inside edge of his enemy's elbow, immobilizing the weapon-wielding arm.

Perhaps because of the fervor of the battle or because he never thought seriously, only now understands what he has just done when feels the hot blood drain from the dagger to his fingers.

Ezer looks up at the man straight in the eye, he can see how his life is extinguished when stops breathing. He dies standing up and all of his weight is transferred as his chin rests on Ezer's shoulder.

Ezer has no time to think further as the ax edge mercilessly closes in on his head. He dodges it by throwing himself to the ground along with the body and, already on the ground, he rolls away from the dead weight that was holding him back getting up with his guard up.

Ezer's pupils were completely dilated and part of his mind still remembers the moment, along with the sensation, of the dagger penetrating the man's stomach and how the life left his body. While the other part had to concentrate and keep him alive.

That time he stabbed Erk in the back he didn't feel much remorse since he didn't see him die with his own eyes, and he may even have survived, at least that's Ezer's excuse to be able to sleep at night.

But this time it is different, every second he remembers the same image over and over again, at the same time that he moves his body to the right avoiding another ax blow that ends up embedded in the ground raising earth and leaves.

"I do not mind! I do not mind! I do not mind! Now I won't have to split the bounty!" He says it while swinging the ax from right to left, up and down without even getting close.

Ezer's remorse is forgotten when he hears Or's words.

"I don't care... No... it was his fault... his fault!" Greed is completely replaced by insanity. Until now the attacks followed a pattern, although they change to be frantic and desperate at the same time as dangerous.

"Your partner was murdered and you don't care?" Wrath emerges from the center of Ezer upon noticing this. Subconsciously he wanted to make amends for his sin by giving justice to the man he murdered, who placed his trust in a traitor, even though the way he would do it would only serve to deepen the darkness in his heart.

Ezer joins Or in a frantic dance, completely forgetting reason and tactics, only instincts prevail. Dodge, attack, retreat, these were the steps that followed guided by bloodlust.

"His fault! His fault! If it wasn't for this kid... If it wasn't!" Or screamed in his mind with each attack.

"People like him, people who don't care about the lives of their peers... Those people deserve to die." Ezer screamed in his mind with each attack.

Or had cuts all over his body, light but debilitating, while Ezer was still intact but tired. A mistake occurs when Or attack ends up embed the ax in the nearby tree, Ezer takes advantage of the delay and launches a blow straight to the stomach.

Or does not stay still and dodges the attack, but the blade still manages to penetrate his skin and fat layer, reaching his muscles, but not organs.

At that moment a basic instinct takes hold of Or, a primitive one rooted in the depths of our genes. The survival instinct.

"I don't want to die... I don't want to!" Forgets the ax embedded in the tree and run with all his might trying to get away from Ezer.

"Do you think I'm going to let you escape like this?" A dangerous gleam can be seen in Ezer's eyes.

He searches the ground for his bow and one of his scattered arrows at the impact moment of the trunk.

When he finds it, he takes his time and takes a deep breath as takes aim at the target.

"Did he get this far in such a short time?" Do not underestimate a dying man." Or was more than a hundred meters away, and Ezer wasn't entirely sure he'd be able to hit the mark.

He takes a deep breath and tries to remember what it felt like to see the flow of magic and the moment he induced it to the arrow. Tries to recreate the same thing without caring about the pain that he feels in his head and that spreads through his spine.

His mind is divided into three parts, the memory of killing the man, his goal, and the image of the woman smiling lovingly at him. He bears it with his determination that is different from what he had in the past, now the determination to kill prevails.

The thirst for blood and the image of the woman smiling lovingly at him oppose each other, splitting his head in the process. Somehow, he manages to focus and set up his shot.

Unleash the arrow that gains alarming force and speed as it rotates, propelled by the wind of magic. It reaches his destination and fulfills the objective.

Or doesn't have time to even bring his hands to his neck and feel the arrow that pierced him. Blood runs from his mouth as well as tears, he can't put his thoughts into words as his neck is shattered.

"Friend... brother, forgive me. It was all my fault... if I could..."

He remembers the fears of his companion when entering the forest, if he had listened to him at that moment...

The anger he felt was not directed only at Ezer, but he also blamed himself. The moment he lost him, he realized that he had lost a brother.

"None of that matters now... I'd like a tomb for both of us... I don't want... to end up in the stomach... of a beast." His eyes close and his body cools.

Ezer puts away his bow and takes another deep breath looking at the sky.

"I don't know if I can keep my promise, mother. This world is very dark and my light barely reaches my feet." Ezer seemed to have matured several years at that time, something changed inside him.