03-07-2015, 05:52 PM
Clark continued to swing his axe, attempting to break Radisa's spear in half. Radisa blocks each blow, the spear showing no signs of wear. Radisa then sidesteps out of the way of the next attack, and thrusts his spear into Clark's body. Clark yells in pain, swinging his axe back up towards Radisa to ward him off. Radisa pulls back and dodges the axe, he then quickly stabs Clark multiple times in the back. Clark stumbles forward in pain, dropping to one knee. "God...Dammit..." he coughs. Clark grips his axe and quickly stands back up, swinging his axe once more. Radisa's spear seems to glow as Clark's axe makes contact. The blade touching the spear shatters to pieces, shards flying in every direction. Clark stumbles back in shock, his axe, which had survived through generations of battles, had just been broken by a wooden stick. Before he can react, Radisa shoves his spear into Clark once more. Radisa withdraws his spear and Clark falls to the ground, defeated. Radisa then turns his attention towards the other fighters, looking for his next opponent.
As Clark lay defeated and dying, he saw his life flash before his eyes. Memories of the past filled his mind, and words of loved ones entered his ears.
"Admiring my axe again, son?"
A young Clark looked up at his father and nodded.
Clark's father knelt down and placed a hand on Clark's shoulder, "Have I ever told you the story attached this old axe of mine, Clark?" he said.
"Story?"
"Yep, it's a story that's been passed through our family for four generations now. My father told me this story when I was your age, and the same with his father. Would you like to hear it Clark?" he asked.
"Yeah!" Clark said
His father chuckled, "Alright then, it begins like this; Long ago, there was a great war that savaged our land. Lots of nations were on both sides of this war. Sev Rylan, your ancestor, was apart of the Etsvan army. Now, the country of Etsva was on the losing side of the war for quite a while. We eventually turned the tables on the enemy, but that happened thanks to the intervention of the Veron nation at the final major battle of the war. There were more battles afterwards of course, but this was the big one that would really decide how the rest of the war went. Sev was apart of this battle, and was one of the few Estvan survivors of it. Now believe it or not, this axe right here is the very same one Sev wielded during that battle."
"The axe is that old?!" Clark interrupted
"Well, the metal parts are. The handle has been replaced over the years, but the actual blade has been carefully taken care of this whole time. Anyway, it was during that battle that Sev fought a wizard. One of the wizards spells backfired, causing the effects of it to be revered. Of course, Sev had no idea what the spell would do, so he decided to let his axe take the hit instead."
"What did the spell do, dad?" Clark asked
"I'm getting to that son. You see, the spell the wizard had cast was meant to weaken Sev and make him easier to defeat. But the backfire caused his axe to grow stronger than steel, meaning the blades on the axe will never break through conventional means. With that axe, Sev and the rest of the remaining troops went on to win the battle and every other one after. However, the spell also did something that wasn't immediately obvious to Sev. In fact it was his grandson Krad, your great-grandfather's grandfather, that was the first to even realize it. The user of that axe would always survive the battles they were apart of, even with the most serious injury. And as that axe got passed down through our family, this has always been true."
"Whoaaaa" Clark said in amazement.
His father smiled, "And one day soon, I will pass this axe onto you son."
"It'll be mine?! I can't wait!" Clark said ecstatic.
Tears formed in Clark eyes remembering the story the father told him. The axe that was stronger than steel itself was broken, and here he lay dying. Was that story all a lie? A tall tale? He couldn't stop himself from thinking about this, and suddenly more memories filled his mind.
"This haul will feed our village for weeks! Amazing work Ven!" A now 20 year old Clark said to his friend.
"What can I say? When it comes to hunting, there's nobody better than me!" Ven said.
Clark and Ven finish loading the barrels of fresh meat onto their cart and begin to pull it down the road.
"Once we get back, let's treat ourselves to a drink. How about it Clark?" Ven asked.
"Sounds good, Hey I'll even buy it since you got so much today." Calrk said.
"Good, I was counting on that. " Ven laughed.
Clark rolled his eyes and look on the horizon, he saw a large cloud of smoke coming from the direction of their village. "It's a bit early for them to start the bonfire isn't it?"
"Maybe they decided to get started early so they could get the logs burning for longer." Ven suggested.
"Perhaps, but I've got the strangest feeling..." Clark trailed off.
"You're such a worry wart Clark, they just started early is all. Come on we have to get this stuff back home before dark." Ven said.
"I guess you're right." Clark began pulling the cart once again.
As they continued down the road, Clark began to hear the faint sound of screaming coming from up ahead. A woman suddenly ran out of the woods screaming at the top of her lungs. She then abruptly went silent and fell to the ground, an arrow sticking out of her head. Clark and Ven dropped the cart and readied their weapons. "Well, everyone's wrong once in a while." Ven said.
A shadow moved along the treeline, readying its bow to shoot the two on the road. Before it could however, an arrow hit it in the neck. "Got him." Ven said as he drew another arrow. They moved closer to where the shadow was, and find a dead Orc laying on the ground.
"Orcs." Ven said.
"The village is in trouble, let's move." Clark said.
Clark and Ven run past the village gate, but find they are too late. The village is in shambles, and the orcs had already gone. "Let's split up and search for survivors." Clark said. Ven nodded and ran off towards the eastern side of town. Clark walked through the streets, axe at the ready. He soon arrived at his home, it looked relatively undamaged. Orc bodies layed strewn about, no doubt killed by his father. He opened the door and stepped inside, calling for his family. A quiet whimper was coming from upstairs. Clark quickly ran up the stairs and found his mother sitting over his father.
"What happened?!" Clark yelled.
His mother looked up, "They came out of nowhere, your father defended us, but...he was wounded. You sister went to get a doctor, but I fear he'll die before they get back."
"No..." was all Clark could say. He dropped his axe and moved over to his father. Clark dropped to his knees beside him and raised him up. His father opened his eyes and stared at Clark, he smiled. "Good, you're safe son."
"Dad, don't try to speak, you need to save your strength until the doctor gets here."
"No...It's too late for me Clark. Now listen to me, you need to be strong for your mother and sister. Never let them go, alright? Protect them and everyone else you care for understand? Sev's axe will make sure you win every battle you fight. But most of all Clark, I want you to live. Even without the axe, I want you to survive even without its magic. Live on."
"Dad please...don't leave us." Clark said, fighting back tears.
"I'm sorry Clark...I love you...son..." he then fell limp.
Clark screamed at the top of his lungs, his eyes filled with tears.
Clark forced himself to stand up, gripping Sev's axe with all of his remaining strength. *"Whether he was telling the truth or not, I won't let his parting words mean nothing."* he thought. Clark yelled at the top of his lungs and charged forward. The elf quickly turned around in shock that Clark was still moving. Calrk raised his axe high into the air for one final attack, with Radisa moving his spear to block. However, something the elf did not expect, instead of attacking with the remaining blade on his axe, Clark instead attacked with the blunt end. The blunt side of the axe collided with the spear, snapping it in half. The axe then collided with Radisa's head, knocking him unconscious. Clark dropped his axe, breathing heavily. "Your spear may be immune to sharp weapons, but you failed to make it immune to blunt ones." he said. Clark then fell backwards, unconscious with a smile on his face. He had won his battle, now it was up to his teammate Dayton from here on out.
As Clark lay defeated and dying, he saw his life flash before his eyes. Memories of the past filled his mind, and words of loved ones entered his ears.
****
--17 Years Ago--
"Admiring my axe again, son?"
A young Clark looked up at his father and nodded.
Clark's father knelt down and placed a hand on Clark's shoulder, "Have I ever told you the story attached this old axe of mine, Clark?" he said.
"Story?"
"Yep, it's a story that's been passed through our family for four generations now. My father told me this story when I was your age, and the same with his father. Would you like to hear it Clark?" he asked.
"Yeah!" Clark said
His father chuckled, "Alright then, it begins like this; Long ago, there was a great war that savaged our land. Lots of nations were on both sides of this war. Sev Rylan, your ancestor, was apart of the Etsvan army. Now, the country of Etsva was on the losing side of the war for quite a while. We eventually turned the tables on the enemy, but that happened thanks to the intervention of the Veron nation at the final major battle of the war. There were more battles afterwards of course, but this was the big one that would really decide how the rest of the war went. Sev was apart of this battle, and was one of the few Estvan survivors of it. Now believe it or not, this axe right here is the very same one Sev wielded during that battle."
"The axe is that old?!" Clark interrupted
"Well, the metal parts are. The handle has been replaced over the years, but the actual blade has been carefully taken care of this whole time. Anyway, it was during that battle that Sev fought a wizard. One of the wizards spells backfired, causing the effects of it to be revered. Of course, Sev had no idea what the spell would do, so he decided to let his axe take the hit instead."
"What did the spell do, dad?" Clark asked
"I'm getting to that son. You see, the spell the wizard had cast was meant to weaken Sev and make him easier to defeat. But the backfire caused his axe to grow stronger than steel, meaning the blades on the axe will never break through conventional means. With that axe, Sev and the rest of the remaining troops went on to win the battle and every other one after. However, the spell also did something that wasn't immediately obvious to Sev. In fact it was his grandson Krad, your great-grandfather's grandfather, that was the first to even realize it. The user of that axe would always survive the battles they were apart of, even with the most serious injury. And as that axe got passed down through our family, this has always been true."
"Whoaaaa" Clark said in amazement.
His father smiled, "And one day soon, I will pass this axe onto you son."
"It'll be mine?! I can't wait!" Clark said ecstatic.
Tears formed in Clark eyes remembering the story the father told him. The axe that was stronger than steel itself was broken, and here he lay dying. Was that story all a lie? A tall tale? He couldn't stop himself from thinking about this, and suddenly more memories filled his mind.
--9 Years Ago--
"This haul will feed our village for weeks! Amazing work Ven!" A now 20 year old Clark said to his friend.
"What can I say? When it comes to hunting, there's nobody better than me!" Ven said.
Clark and Ven finish loading the barrels of fresh meat onto their cart and begin to pull it down the road.
"Once we get back, let's treat ourselves to a drink. How about it Clark?" Ven asked.
"Sounds good, Hey I'll even buy it since you got so much today." Calrk said.
"Good, I was counting on that. " Ven laughed.
Clark rolled his eyes and look on the horizon, he saw a large cloud of smoke coming from the direction of their village. "It's a bit early for them to start the bonfire isn't it?"
"Maybe they decided to get started early so they could get the logs burning for longer." Ven suggested.
"Perhaps, but I've got the strangest feeling..." Clark trailed off.
"You're such a worry wart Clark, they just started early is all. Come on we have to get this stuff back home before dark." Ven said.
"I guess you're right." Clark began pulling the cart once again.
As they continued down the road, Clark began to hear the faint sound of screaming coming from up ahead. A woman suddenly ran out of the woods screaming at the top of her lungs. She then abruptly went silent and fell to the ground, an arrow sticking out of her head. Clark and Ven dropped the cart and readied their weapons. "Well, everyone's wrong once in a while." Ven said.
A shadow moved along the treeline, readying its bow to shoot the two on the road. Before it could however, an arrow hit it in the neck. "Got him." Ven said as he drew another arrow. They moved closer to where the shadow was, and find a dead Orc laying on the ground.
"Orcs." Ven said.
"The village is in trouble, let's move." Clark said.
****
Clark and Ven run past the village gate, but find they are too late. The village is in shambles, and the orcs had already gone. "Let's split up and search for survivors." Clark said. Ven nodded and ran off towards the eastern side of town. Clark walked through the streets, axe at the ready. He soon arrived at his home, it looked relatively undamaged. Orc bodies layed strewn about, no doubt killed by his father. He opened the door and stepped inside, calling for his family. A quiet whimper was coming from upstairs. Clark quickly ran up the stairs and found his mother sitting over his father.
"What happened?!" Clark yelled.
His mother looked up, "They came out of nowhere, your father defended us, but...he was wounded. You sister went to get a doctor, but I fear he'll die before they get back."
"No..." was all Clark could say. He dropped his axe and moved over to his father. Clark dropped to his knees beside him and raised him up. His father opened his eyes and stared at Clark, he smiled. "Good, you're safe son."
"Dad, don't try to speak, you need to save your strength until the doctor gets here."
"No...It's too late for me Clark. Now listen to me, you need to be strong for your mother and sister. Never let them go, alright? Protect them and everyone else you care for understand? Sev's axe will make sure you win every battle you fight. But most of all Clark, I want you to live. Even without the axe, I want you to survive even without its magic. Live on."
"Dad please...don't leave us." Clark said, fighting back tears.
"I'm sorry Clark...I love you...son..." he then fell limp.
Clark screamed at the top of his lungs, his eyes filled with tears.
Clark forced himself to stand up, gripping Sev's axe with all of his remaining strength. *"Whether he was telling the truth or not, I won't let his parting words mean nothing."* he thought. Clark yelled at the top of his lungs and charged forward. The elf quickly turned around in shock that Clark was still moving. Calrk raised his axe high into the air for one final attack, with Radisa moving his spear to block. However, something the elf did not expect, instead of attacking with the remaining blade on his axe, Clark instead attacked with the blunt end. The blunt side of the axe collided with the spear, snapping it in half. The axe then collided with Radisa's head, knocking him unconscious. Clark dropped his axe, breathing heavily. "Your spear may be immune to sharp weapons, but you failed to make it immune to blunt ones." he said. Clark then fell backwards, unconscious with a smile on his face. He had won his battle, now it was up to his teammate Dayton from here on out.
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