TBATE-ONESHOTS

Honorbound 12

Tessia physically flinched and went wide in with surprise at Arthur's change of tone and him tensing up. She looked to where he was facing but didn't see anything but thick foliage. 

"What is it?" Tessia asked casually. 

"We have visitors," Arthur said, his voice tense. He reached back and unsheathed his silver elven blade that was strapped to his back. "Now, get behind me."

Tessia looked at him for a moment, and there was something about the way he looked and spoke that just made her think that right now wasn't the time to argue. So, she quickly walked up to Arthur and stood behind him, which was when she saw them. 

One by one, individuals dressed in leather armor stepped out of the foliage, glaring at Arthur and Tessia. The individuals ranged in size, age, and physical build. One thing they did have in common, though, was the dirt covering their faces and their apparent lack of personal hygiene. 

"Well, well," A voice called out from behind the group. 

The individual who spoke stepped forward, revealing himself to be a tall and muscular individual with blue hair and one blue eye, while his left eye was covered with an eye patch. Unlike the others, he looked well clean, and his hair was neatly combed to the side. However, his most notable feature, which had Tessia's eyes widen in surprise, was his elven ears. 

The man chuckled, "Now, isn't this a surprise?" He smiled sinisterly, "Been a while, Arthur."

Tessia's brows raised in shock, and her eyes darted to Arthur, wondering how they knew each other.

Arthur tensed and glared murderously at the individual, "Why are you here, Aaron?"

Aaron laughed and leaned against a tree as he crossed his arms, glaring at Arthur, "What? No, 'hey, it's good to see you' or anything?"

Arthur smiled and spoke sarcastically, "Hey, Aaron! Great to see you!" His smile faded, and he glared at Aaron, "Now, why are you here?"

Aaron grinned and shrugged, "I could ask you the same thing." He scratched the back of his head, "Curiously, a few of my men were found slaughtered here not long ago." His eyes settled on Arthur, "You wouldn't know anything about that, would you?"

"Sounds like they just had a rough day," Arthur replied and looked around. 

Arthur mentally noted how they were surrounded by approximately thirty individuals and mentally cursed. He also scolded himself since he had let his guard down while he spoke with Tessia, allowing these individuals to get close.  

"That's an understatement," Aaron stated as he stood from the tree and took a few steps forward. "They were ripped apart limb from limb."

"Sounds like a mana beast's work," Arthur replied, taking a protective step back toward Tessia.

"Perhaps," Aaron replied, staring directly at Arthur. "Unless that's what the killers would want us to think." Aaron began to move, slowly walking around Arthur as Arthur pivoted, keeping Aaron in front of him. "In case you forget, I used to be in the elven special forces."

Tessia's brows rose high in disbelief. She knew that the elven special forces were among the elite and most loyal members of the elven kingdom. She never would've imagined that someone from their group would fall so far. 

"Oh, I remember," Arthur replied. He smirked as he brushed a finger over his left eye, "Jasmine even gave you a going-away present when you left."

Aaron snarled as he gently touched his eye patch, "Yes, well. My ex always had an attitude problem." He glared at Arthur, "But, you would also know how they're trained to make their kills look to have been butchered by a mana beast to cover their tracks."