//------------------------------// // Killed By Death // Story: THE SAVAGE SWORD // by anarchywolf18 //------------------------------// Before the battle had started, the mercenaries in the clouds were preparing for the battle ahead. Fang had been put in charge of watching over the others as they prepared. Everything was in order thus far. Every one of the soldiers was alert and ready for battle. Those who were not were making last second preparations. Glancing to Lobo the greenhorn, Fang saw him take a tiny knife from his belt and prick it into his skin. After drawing his own blood, he smeared it over the surface of his wooden shield. In the short time he had been with them, the simple wooden shield was what Fang had seen Lobo used the most. Looking at it, he had suspected it was made from a timber wolf, given what looked suspiciously like a green eye in the center. He had heard that it was called Nightfall. Or, perhaps it was Wrath. Or perhaps one of those names belonged to the small hammer, hewn from black stone that he carried. “You might not want to do that,” Fang said, snapping Lobo from his ritual. “It’s never really a good idea to have your blood drawn in battle, no less before it even starts.” “This?” Lobo said, indicating his bloody knife. “It’s an offering for the goddess. So that she can grant us all protection from the minotaurs.” “I see,” Fang said, smirking partly from amusement and partly from disdain. A sudden loud munching noise drew their attention nearby. Looking to its direction, Karns was seen stuffing his face with a talonful of mushrooms that he was pulling from a pouch on his belt. “Get a look at Karns over there,” Lobo said, “Even before a battle, all he thinks about is eating.” Fang’s smirk grew to a full grin. Lobo was still new enough to not know about Karns’s pre-war ritual. “So, you know how you never interrupt Karns when he’s eating, right?” Fang said. “Yeah. So?” Lobo replied. “After he eats those, you don’t want to be anywhere near him for the whole battle.” “Why?” “They do things to him,” Fang said, in a low tone, “None of us are brave enough to try them, after we saw what they do to Karns. But, he says they’re magic.” “What do they do?” Lobo asked, curious to the effect such an innocent thing could do. “From what he tells us, they make him focus so much that he can see things that nopony else can see. The way he puts it, it’s what lies beneath the material world. And that while he’s there, he becomes even stronger,” Fang explained. “How?” Lobo asked. “I don’t know. But, there must be some truth to it. I’ve seen Karns have his whole side sliced open by a chimera after he ate those mushrooms. He acted like it just brushed him with a broom, and he started eating the chimera alive after that. Halfway through eating it, he slipped into a kind of food coma and we patched him up. But, we never got curious about trying his mushrooms again.” Lobo stared in horrified awe at Karns. The idea that a griffin all on their own could withstand such an injury and defeat a chimera all on their own sent chills down his spine. In the back of his mind, he decided that he was not going to be anywhere near Karns when the battle started. From the ground far below, a flash of light caught the corner of Fang’s eye. He knew what it meant. Their time had come. “This is it! Let’s fly!!” he shouted. And they precipitated like a hellish rain, Fang leading the way. The battlefield was growing closer. Fang only caught a glimpse of his one-winged friend charging into battle, when he was upon his first target. The minotaur had no time to look up, when he was impaled from the top of his head, through his crotch and staked to the ground. Fang vaulted from the top of his spear and pulled it free. All around him, the other soldiers fell to the ground, joining the slaughter. Already the one-winged griffin was massacring the minotaurs, felling many with his enormous sword. With one swing, he chopped straight through two minotaurs at once. He was blindsided by a charging bull, and pinned to the ground. The captain moved his head, dodging the downward thrust of an enormous dagger. Once the dagger was plunged into the earth, the captain placed his back feet against the minotaur’s stomach and tore it apart with his claws. The minotaur recoiled with a loud bellow, and furiously attempted another stab. The captain grabbed the minotaur’s arm and threw him aside. Both rolled to their feet and charged one another. The captain went low, aiming for where he had torn into his opponent. He felt the minotaur’s weapon plunge into his back, and loosed a furious shout. The minotaur had hurt him, and he was going to pay dearly. Brandishing his talons, the captain tore into the bleeding gut of his opponent once more, slicing deeper and deeper, until he was able to disembowel the bull with his bare claws. The minotaur bellowed loudly, and raised his dagger to stab again. He wobbled weakly, then fell to the ground dead. The captain could see his sword on the ground nearby. But, before he could retrieve it he was stopped by a giant axe swinging at his neck. He rolled beneath it, and turned to face his opponent. It was the largest minotaur he had ever seen. Far more distinct than his size was that he was the only minotaur who was wearing a steel chestplate. The rest of him was covered in burnt bear pelts, peppered with yuan-ti arrows. The giant minotaur raised his axe to swing. The captain grabbed a dead yuan-ti and threw him at the minotaur. With one clean slice, the minotaur cut the corpse in two. And from between the two halves of the corpse, he saw the captain charging him with the dead yuan-ti’s sword in his talons, and stab him in the leg. The minotaur did not so much as wince from the blow. Instead, he grabbed the captain by his neck, headbutted him twice and threw him aside. Lucidity quickly came to the one-winged captain, who saw the minotaur pull the sword from his leg. The giant minotaur snorted and smirked at the captain, as if to appreciate the attempt to harm him. His own enormous sword was right by his talon, ready to be wielded. The minotaur paused and glanced to the sword. And with a knowing grin, the captain picked up his own blade. They were both armed now. And with that, they charged one another again. Lobo crushed the head of one minotaur with his hammer, and broke the neck of another with the edge of his shield. He blocked the charge of another minotaur and was harmlessly flipped over his opponent’s head. Valiantly, he charged into the thick of battle. A boulder from a minotaur catapult landed in front of him. And without losing momentum, Lobo easily clambered over it and leapt off to crush another minotaur under his shield. From the ground, he swung his hammer to break the ankle of another bull, allowing the soldier fighting it an easy kill. He spun to his hooves and blocked an attack meant for another soldier. The soldier he had defended turned around and cleaved the attacking minotaur’s skull in two. The minotaur was not about to die so easily, and removed the blade from his split head and swung his club wildly. There was no technique or thought to the bull’s wild swings. As if any rationality had left him, he swung with reckless abandon, hitting ally and enemy alike. Lobo had to raise his shield when the oversized club was swung at him. And with a loud crash, he was launched over the battlefield, above the heads of the fighters. When he landed, Lobo found himself in the middle of absolute carnage. Karns was literally tearing his way through each and every one of the minotaurs that charged him. Whatever his axe could not cut, it was ripped apart by his beak or talons. The mushrooms he had eaten seemed to be doing their job. No matter how many times he was struck by the many bulls that threatened to overwhelm him, Karns simply continued his mad butchering. He picked up one minotaur with a single arm and thrusted his horns into the chest of another. As Karns was doing so, Lobo saw another minotaur raising his sword to attack. Lobo took his shield, ready to defend the berserk Karns. But, he was too late. The moment that Karns gored one minotaur with another, the attacks swung his sword, severing Karns’s arm partway between his wrist and his elbow. Any other reaction would have been more natural. Instead of wailing or shouting in pain, Karns roared like a lion and gouged his beak into the neck of the minotaur who had dismembered him. When he was done there, he turned around and sliced another minotaur’s torso into three even slices like steaks. Before Lobo stopped watching, Karns took his own arm, gnawed one end to a sharp point and perforated another opponent until they spewed like a bloody fountain. He saw his one-winged captain fighting furiously against the largest minotaur he had ever seen, and started fighting his way through the bulls to assist him. Blackheart spun around to the back of one minotaur. With one slice of her first dagger, she cut his back open. With one slice of the second, she cut his spine out of his body. The minotaur crumpled dead, and Blackheart took to the sky. She swooped through the fray, spinning with her daggers held outward. Not a single one of her brothers-in-arms was touched. But, the minotaurs they fought were cut down like a row of wheat. A gigantic fist struck her hard in the face, knocking her to the ground. Without missing a beat, Blackheart was able to clumsily land upright and slid backwards some three feet, when she saw a pitch black minotaur with long, shaggy hair charging her. Blackheart easily leapt over his swinging halberd, and landed with the ribbons on her daggers trailing gracefully behind her. The shaggy minotaur swung at the flying ribbons, and only just saw his opponent trying to gouge his sides. He blocked and shoved Blackheart back with the shaft of his weapon. Blackheart recovered with a somersault and leapt to attack again. The minotaur blocked each attack from the flashing blades, as Blackheart vaulted over his head. He took his halberd and swung it round and round, slicing out deep chunks of earth every time he missed his opponent. Blackheart jumped and landed directly on the shaft of the halberd. She swung her daggers, obscuring the vision of the bull with her ribbons. The minotaur reached forward, but grabbed only air. Blackheart was gone. And not a moment passed when her daggers gouged into the neck of the minotaur. And with a quick spin, she sliced his head from his body as fluidly as if she were unscrewing a bolt from its socket. She landed on the ground, and saw that her captain was locked in battle with the leader of the minotaurs. After so many battles, she knew full well he was capable of handling himself. But, after watching him recoil after blocking the swing of an axe that was twice the size of his own sword, she knew she had to help him. Ahead of her, Fang dropped out of the sky again, this time on top of a boulder that had been launched. The boulder he knocked from the sky landed on a group of minotaurs, who were all immediately squashed. With a flap of his wings, he darted forward, spearing three minotaurs in a row like a gruesome kabob. And with another flap, he dashed backwards, removing his spear with a sickening squishing noise. Fang yelled over the thundering hooves of a row of charging minotaurs, as he dashed toward them. None of the minotaurs had time to register the moment that Fang threw his spear through one of their heads. And in the moment they were distracted, he flew into the air and fell to collect his weapon. Fang swung his spear at the first minotaur, slicing him through. With his guts still spilling out, the minotaur attacked maniacally, trying to take his killer with him. Another flap of his wings and fang was over the head of another minotaur, who was gouged by his own dying ally. Fang raised his spear and blocked the downward blow of two minotaurs. After nearly being driven into the ground by the combined force of the blows, he burst upward into the air and swooped back to strike them both. When he landed, he spun and slashed them both with the bladed end of his weapon. Taking his spear, he thrusted it directly into the chest of a charging minotaur, and swung the bull over him to squash another minotaur that tried to charge him. After taking the two out, he saw his one-winged friend fighting off the minotaurs’ giant leader. Seeing how he was struggling so to keep his footing against his opponent, Fang decided it was prudent to help him out. Blow after blow was exchanged between the two giants. The captain swung his sword, and was parried each time by the minotaur’s axe. It was like living his greatest dream. The slightest mistake would mean the end for him. And the mere thought of his life hanging by a thread, mingled with the hate and frustration for the minotaur who was grieving him so was like pure ecstasy. The minotaur swung, and the griffin blocked. The one-winged captain was knocked aside, and recovered with a clumsy roll. Taking his sword, he blocked when the minotaur was upon him again. He was ready this time. The captain pushed back, driving his elbow into his opponent’s kidney as he did. The minotaur retaliated in kind, smashing his knee into the griffin’s face. Neither backed away or recoiled from the blows. They continued to lock their weapons, knowing that whoever slipped was going to die. In the griffin’s mind, a terrible rage boiled over. With the rage came a pure focus. The minotaur felt his opponent flinch, and took full advantage. He shoved to the side, throwing the griffin to the ground. Only, that was not what happened. The griffin anticipated the move and flowed with the momentum of his opponent’s shove. With that, he was able to turn and sever the arms of the raging bull. There was a bellow that rang through the battlefield. The anguished voice of their leader sent a tremor of unease through the ranks of the minotaurs, and their will started to falter. Their leader, however, was not defeated. Though at a loss of his harms, the giant minotaur continued to duel, swinging his horns and slashing with his hooves. The griffin easily dodged a horn and slashed downward, cutting the horn and taking a hood chunk of the minotaur’s face with it, driving his sword deep into this opponent’s shoulder. The minotaur finally was down, taking a knee. He glared intensely at the griffin who had defeated him. And through the battle, he saw the griffin was joined now by Fang, Blackheart, Lobo and Karns, who all stood flanking their leader. And with a small smile, he offered his last words. “I don’t know whether it’s gods or devils you have on your side. Whichever, it’s clear who is favored in this fight,” the minotaur said. The griffin scoffed. “Gods and devils don’t favor me. They fear me. They keep me in the mortal world for as long as they can, so that I don’t overthrow them,” he said. “Whatever it is that’s let you win, I’ll be waiting for you in the next world, little bird. And we’ll continue our duel then,” the minotaur said. “Until oblivion,” said the griffin, before severing the head of the minotaur leader. What remained of the minotaurs fled the battle shortly after. The yuan-ti collected their dead and paid the mercenaries for their services. Some time was taken to collect Karns, who had disappeared from the battlefield. As it turned out, he was taking the head of the minotaur who had dismembered him, and trying to make a helmet of the flayed skull. Stranger still, he was trying to fashion a new arm for himself from one that he took off of the same minotaur. After convincing Karns that it was useless to try, he chomped his own arm in his beak and followed after his companions. Fang flapped his wings and jumped high into the air, landing next to his one-winged friend, who was being tended to by Blackheart. “So, where to next?” Fang asked. “We’re going to Cimmeria,” the captain answered. Cimmeria. The home of all dregs of all walks of life. From assassins, to thieves, to kidnappers, to saboteurs, to tax collectors, there was not an honest soul to be found there. “Cimmeria? Nice. What’s it going to be? We raiding the house of pegasus nobles, or blowing our gold at the gladiator ring?” Fang asked. “I suppose we could do one or the other as a diversion,” the captain said, grinning at the idea. “But, I have something more prudent in mind. When we reach Cimmeria, we’re going to free Ringo.” Both Fang and Blackheart went silent at the mention of Ringo. His was a name that they had not heard since he was turned into a statue for the crimes he committed against both gods and ponies alike. “But, Ringo was lost to us back in the west,” Blackheart said. “True. But, as it turns out, the chief of the village we so recently conquered was on talking terms with many nobles of the region,” the captain answered. “Is that how he got all that fine wine?” Fang asked. “I would conjecture so,” the captain said, “It seems that one of this contacts has a penchant for black market antiques. Among them, he spoke of a finely crafted statue that matched precisely Ringo’s description. And we are going to reclaim our lost brother.” And so began the journey to Cimmeria, to reunite with one of their own who had been lost. A brother who had been punished by the gods. And to reclaim him, defy the divine.