The Burden of Destiny | Sequel to The Aura Within

32 | Odds Against Us

Everyone out here was counting on her. This battle was more than just a declaration of war; it was also a reminder to everyone that an aura guardian would always be there to protect them. There would be people like Darnic, like Claudius, who would challenge that. However, they are the ones who would end up regretting the day they inflicted pain upon those beneath them. It was all Hope kept telling herself when Darnic stood before them with his forces of Obsidian Knights and Auraless behind him.

"I applaud you all for having the confidence to stand before us despite the odds being against you. The loyalty you all have for that woman is quite admirable," Darnic mocked in amusement. "It's quite a shame you refuse to join us, but I suppose there's no convincing those who are prepared to die."

"We all would rather die for Her Highness's sake than surrender to the Obsidian Knights!" Nicholas spat, his hand ready to unsheathe his machete.

"You will pay for what you have done to this region!" General Hayes followed up in rage.

"Very well then." Darnic raised his spear, and with a loud cry commanded, "Everyone, attack!"

In the blink of an eye, both forces clashed against one another. Iron clashing against iron, powerful roars coming from the military Pokémon, cries from both sides as attacks came in from every direction-- this was not another battle between the Rota Knights and the Obsidian Knights; this was the beginning of war. Both were driven with the desire to win, for the one who lost would also die in vain. Each attack thrown at either side grew progressively violent.

At one point, Blake resorted to unleashing his hidden dark power the moment he was overwhelmed. He struggled to fight against the enemies while also keeping an eye out for his allies. It wasn't until the numbers of his comrades dropped that he made the choice to unleash the power of Arioch. He despised having to resort to such measures, especially when it resulted in two violent deaths the last time he allowed Arioch to take over. Only Arceus knew what would've happened if Akira hadn't been there to snap him out of it.

Blake's eyes turned into a demonic red as he felt the dark power surge through his veins. His Arcanine became much more ferocious than normal to the point where the Obsidian Knights became terrified. Once the pupils of Arcanine's eyes became slit, many of the enemies ran for their lives. Some were unlucky to be caught by Arcanine's sharp fangs that tore them apart. Despite such a brutal display, Arcanine never allowed bloodlust to take control; it was the desire to kill anyone that harmed his master's allies.

Meanwhile, Blake managed to tilt the scale to his favor. He had spent many years gaining full control of Arioch to make sure he didn't hurt anyone who was with him. It had all paid off, for he was able to kill many enemies with the help of his power. His allies used this to their advantage to fight back against the enemies with everything in their power. Despite having lost many good soldiers, they managed to even it out. Blake felt unstoppable.

Until he found himself growing extremely exhausted.

As he challenged a rather powerful adversary of the Obsidian Knights, a painful ache in his chest distracted him. The opponent took this for his advantage and swung his axe at Blake. A strained gasp left his lips when the blunt end of the axe hit his chest with such force that it sent him flying until he collided with a boulder. He coughed out harshly as his eyes returned to their usual blue color. His eyes widened when he saw how much blood he coughed up, and he had a feeling it wasn't just from the axe that hit him.

When Blake looked up, he saw the adversary running toward him with the axe's sharp side facing him. He wanted to get up and run, but his whole body felt as though it was on fire. Every movement he made hurt like hell and his chest felt as though it would burst any minute. More blood erupted from his lips when he coughed, which made him feel too exhausted to even move.