Starborn

Chapter 8

He steps forward through the veil of rising blue fire, his image reducing the crowd of Shadowhearts into petrified men. Some of them are so terrified of the knight that they can't move. Drago stares at the man with that same undeterred smile. The knight stares back at the red-haired maniac- his cold eyes are fixed on him alone.

So he is called The Night Slayer. I can only imagine how many of these same heathens that man has killed to earn that name. But his body still surges with Vim, I remember that clearly.

The knight raises his greatsword, ready to strike. He provokes a number of the Shadowhearts to race at him with their dark weapons. He stands relentless, almost waiting for the exact moment that they strike. He then roars as loud as the clanging of his sword when it strikes the ground.

DIANDERO!

Bright geysers immediately rupture from beneath his feet, shaking the ground violently. A wall of light storms towards the stage, swallowing everything in its path. I scramble towards Alistar just as Vim rips through the stage. Latching onto the emblem that Alistar is pinned on, we careen off the stage just in time to miss the blast. I shield myself from chunks of falling lumber, as well as the remains of disembodied Shadowhearts. Drago has gone missing, but his robe now lies in his place, singed on its sides from the blast.

Several of the Shadowhearts look at us, and some charge after me with their dark weapons. I'm forced to call upon my Auryn again, though my blade is still pitifully small. Theoton guards, however, start to crowd around me in an attempt to shelter us from the cretins. Though their weapons prove less valuable, they stand firm and fight bravely. Their shields are surprisingly effective at blocking darkness.

Before I can move, I hear a deafening explosion just to my side. More lumber and brick fall all around me as a cloud of dust rises into the sky. I watch a round shot fly toward the ground. It's those same shots that fired Vim, but without my Auryn, they are simple projectiles. Suitable for providing a distraction but not enough to kill Shadowhearts. I can barely see Duncan and Roland up in the guard tower, the former firing the ballista to aid us. Shadowhearts are climbing up the tower in pools of the dark. Though some of them are brought down thanks to some of Theoton's guards using arrows laced with fire.

The old man with the mustache is a master of the twin-blade. I can even see traces of embers flying off the blades, though they are barely visible. A warrior reliving his former glory, it seems, though he looks to be in pain just spinning the weapon from the age of his body.

"Follow the lamps. They will lead you to the cathedral. We'll hold them off as long as we can, but you must hurry," I hear a soldier tell me as he blocks a dark spear.

When I look down the street, I see the lamps swinging gently from the wind. None of them are lit, as expected, but they are aligned in a convenient path. The lamps provide me with some sort of hope, leading me toward salvation. Seeing them does satisfy me to know that even in these times when the Shadowhearts have taken over seemingly everything, there is still at least one place in Cinedime that believes in the gift that is fire.

I slice Alistar's bindings, and Alistar can't stand on his own legs, so I'm forced to carry him on my shoulders. Alistar lets out pained groans, and with both of my arms holding him up, my Vim is useless. I feel his blood coating my shoulder. Another blast comes from a house nearby as a few pieces of roof tile smack me in the head. Shadowhearts are following me. Men are being killed behind me- I can hear their flesh squishing and their deathly screams, but I don't look back.

Passing the white brick buildings, I notice this is the market district, as told by the several swinging signs naming different shops. Each shop looks abandoned, though still in peak condition. Even passing a fruit stand, the fruits look perfect, not an apple overturned. Almost like whoever ran that little stand just disappeared in a puff of smoke.