The Commitment
We watched as the enemy army formed at the horizon like moths at
a light. We knew we were outnumbered, but if our king could cross the border,
he would be safe.
I watched our tactician, Lired; look at the walls around us. They were closer
than any other part of the canyon that we were trying to escape from, no wider
than 10 men abreast. He knew we had to slow the enemy down a little, even if it
was just to lower their moral, to be able to get across the border.
"Emry!" he snapped curtly at my Vindor's leader. A Vindor was an
elite group of 6 warriors. Each one was made up of two archers, two swordsmen,
and two spearmen. I was one of the spearman.
"Yes sir?" came Emry's reply as be trotted over to Lired. Everyone in
each Vindor usually got along well, but even if that wasn't the case, we all
respected each other’s abilities as some of the finest warriors in the land.
And I respected Emry, as one of our archers and an amazing leader.
"Your Vindor is the best we have, and I know you aren't afraid to die for
your king."
Emry looked at the canyon walls and nodded in understanding, "It would be
an honor sir." he put his hand on the tactician's shoulder, "Bring
the king home, we'll do our job here, sir."
"You'll be remembered as a hero forever, Emry." the reply was
soothing and I could see Emry straighten his shoulders slightly. Then Lired
turned away to go address matters for the king.
"Vindor One, on me, regroup on me." Emry's call came across the
encampment. I and the other 4 warriors responded. "Okay, we have been
given the honor of trading our lives for the king," Emry didn't bother
sugar coating it, "Drait, Corden," Corden and I nodded, "You two
will be on our flanks. You'll have extra spears for javelins as well."
Corden and I nodded once more. "Klore and Jice," the two swordsmen
nodded, "I want you two in the center but slightly more forward with
shields to protect from incoming arrows. Arisica and I will be in the back
providing cover fire.
Everyone nodded understanding. At least that’s something, I thought to myself. After
all, Arisica and Emry's skill with a bow was legendary.
* * *
The army was closer now, a lot closer. We started to move to our
post, the spot we would stand until we had to fight, and probably the last
place we would ever stand.
I could feel the eyes on me.
They were hundreds of them, and they were all from our own comrades. We could
hear them muttering to one another in hushed voices. I imagined that they were
saying something along the lines of, 'Wow, Vindor One! Are they really going to
sacrifice themselves?' or maybe 'That's the King's Guard, our most elite force!
Why aren't they protecting the King?' Well, we are, I thought grimly as a reply
to my own imaginative words; which of course, were true. We are the most elite
fighting group and first hand chosen as protection for the King. There was a
total of 10 Vindors and they were placed in order of skill. We were the most
skillful and the next best in line was Vindor Two, and they weren't nearly as
comparable. Legend states that just one of our swordsmen or spearmen could take
on the whole Vindor except the archers. Not like that was a big deal because
legend also said that either Emry or Arisica could shoot through and snap the
drawstring of both of Vindor Two's archers before they could even raise their
bows. Now, how accurate these tales were was still undecided but it was still
nice to have a great reputation under my armor, and I am quite a respected
figure.
We had now arrived at the location of our final stand. It seemed like no sooner
that my feet had stopped moving that Corden was already complaining to me. He
always tried to start a fight with me, and it was usually about something
meaningless. This time was no different.
"Why are we on the flanks?" he asked in a drone-like voice.
"This is where Emry told us to be, and we listen to our leader." I
responded calmly and responsibly.
"Yeah, but shouldn't we be up front? Where our reach would keep them at
bay?" he retaliated in a leaning voice.
Normally, this would make sense. Unfortunately, it seems Corden had forgotten
one thing that made this time so different. "This isn't like the other
times," I told him, my voice rising in proportion with his, "We don't
have shields! We are javelin throwers as well as spearmen. We're on the flanks
to protect the archers from getting hit on the sides by the enemy swordsmen. If
we were out front, they would shoot 5 arrows into your throat before you even
raised one of your spears!" After the words had left my mouth I felt
multiple waves of heat course through my spine and into my limbs.
Corden was about to respond when Emry's voice broke the argument. "Enough
arguing you two!" his voice carried light and crisp. "Get on the
flanks, there isn't much time left!"
I looked at the horizon and saw that he was right. We were about two minutes
prior to battle. I looked behind me and saw that the rest of our army was
almost out of sight. Only a few stragglers left here and there.
I rushed back to my position on the flank and my thoughts briefly wandered to
my fights with Corden. Everyone in each Vindor had excellent chemistry during battle;
we all worked not as six individuals, but one Vindor. Corden and I were no
different when it came to this. However, we didn't always agree, and with him
as my counterpart, it could be dangerous for the whole Vindor. I knew that Emry
sensed this and had actually threatened to clang our heads together to get us
to cooperate. A few times he had even obliged.
This time was different though, we all knew deep down that it was a hopeless
battle, that we were only here to stall them from capturing our King. Even the
hope we still hold close to our hearts from our loyalty won't be enough to
destroy the inevitable deaths that awaited us. This meant no more fights, no
more missions, no more...anything.
I looked ahead once more at the approaching enemy, only about a minute away
from combat range. I looked behind at where our own army was last seen running
and saw nothing. Absolutely nothing. Nothing but the dust rolling off the
canyon walls and brushing onto the tracks they had created.
We were alone.
It all seemed to sink in just then. The end was near. I planted my feet firmly
on the ground and dragged my eyes forward, keeping my head slightly tilted
down.
No Vindor goes down without a fight, and Vindor One doesn't go down without a
human slaughter.
The Battle
I hear the repeating rhythmic "thumb" of two bows and
I see multiple swordsmen in the enemy's front line collapse while clutching
their bleeding throats where the arrows had pierced. They weren't quite in
average shooting range yet, but then again, Emry and Arisica's shooting range
was a good deal above average. The remainder of the gap closed quickly, with
only a few of the enemy soldiers collapsing due to the archer's want to save
arrows.
A few seconds before the two sides clashed, I looked up in the sky and saw a
dozen dark sticks gliding through the air and heading right for us. I quickly
looked at Klore and Jice, hoping they had seen the arrows as well and weren't
too distracted with the approaching swords and spears. Luckily, Klore and Jice
had both been expecting such a tactic and easily blocked the arrows that were
on a death path and then braced for the impact of the enemy soldiers.
I watched our swordsman slash, spin, and swipe at the air, and all the while
working in perfect unison to one another. Sometimes even seeming to block a
death blow aimed at one another and then flawlessly switch positions just to
protect one another. Already half a dozen bodies lay unmoving on the ground
beside them.
I saw Corden step forward and quickly throw two javelins and then shove his
spear deep into another soldier's chest. His movements had brought back my
attention to any enemies on my flank. There was a small group of about a half
dozen men running toward me, one was leading the others by a few meters.
I waited until the leader was about 10 meters away from me before I reacted. In
one swift and smooth motion, I drew my spear-clutching hand over my shoulder
for perhaps the thousandth time in my memory, then I let my body weight shift
upward and forward before allowing my feet to land in a stair-like fashion on
the ground in front of me; all while thrusting my arm forward with the power of
my wrist, arm, and now my entire body, behind it.
I never missed my mark, and this time was no different. The spear that went
soaring through the air from my javelin throw stopped in its path as it buried its
heavy head into the breast plate of my opponent, right where his heart lied
underneath his armor. He was dead before he hit the ground.
The other 5 members of his little attack party haltered for the slightest
moment at seeing their leader fall to a simple spear throw. Their armor was
built to withstand spears, but my javelin had gone through the breast plate
like it was made of butter. Their hesitation lasted less than a second, but it
was all I needed.
I threw a second spear in the same fashion as the first one and then sprinted
toward the remaining 4 soldiers. However, I knew that there wouldn't be four by
the time I reached them. I turned out to be right because when I was 5 meters
away, I heard the rhythmic "thumb" of the bows once again and felt
the wind of the arrows whisk past my right ear. The effect was instantaneous.
The two soldiers standing on each of the sides of the small line were flown
backwards as if a small, powerful, and concentrated wind had blasted them. An
arrow shaft sticking out of each one's forehead told the story slightly
differently.
I had no time to ponder the deaths as I had to start fighting for my life with
my spear. I quickly whirled it around in a propeller movement to block the
thrust of the first sword. Continuing with the spinning of the spear, I shifted
right and, without letting go, flung the heavy head at the hands of the soldier
to the further right and sent his sword flying several meters before landing
uselessly on the ground. I quickly stuffed my foot just above his unarmored
knee cap and put him on one knee. All this happened in less than a second and
the hairs on the back of my neck rose in warning of a killing blow from the
other soldier. Never stopping the flow of movement, I pivoted on my right foot
and spun in the opposite direction, bringing the spear into an underhand
position as I did so. His sword slash missed do to my evasion and I thrusted my
spear head deep into the second soldier's throat and then back out again. He
fell, writhing in agony.
Upon my retreat, I quickly put the first soldier (the disarmed one) out of his
misery for my 4th kill and rushed back to my original spot. I glanced over at
the right flank and saw Corden pulling one of his spears out of a still body
and brandishing it in an expert fashion.
I hope he dies.
Wait, what? My conscious quickly argued with the rest of my thoughts. I don't
hope Corden dies! I mean sure, we don't always get along; by he's part of my
Vindor--but what if he wasn't part of my Vindor? Would I care the slightest bit
about him? Would I even think about mourning his death? Or would I not lose any
sleep over the fact that another random soldier has fallen. No, it's not just
because he's in my Vindor, I have had some great times with Corden and we share
the same interests--but what if that's just because we're forced to? No, that's
not it, I do care about him. Or at least I want to. I don't want him to die...
My uncertainty inside my head was interrupted by a war cry from the enemy army.
Apparently they had regrouped and were going to send larger groups of soldiers
at a time. They would be made up of groups of 9 instead of the 6 that they were
sending before to no avail.
Emry ordered us to a more compact group, we would have to start fighting as one
unit and forcing each one of the enemy groups to face us one at a time. Another
bonus of the compact formation was that we could all cover everyone. I could
even poke Corden with my spear now if I reached over, even though he was on the
opposite flank and the furthest away from me.
* * *
Four of their groups had fallen, business as usual. There were
no casualties on our side of the battle, which makes sense because if one of us
were to fall, the rest of us would fall like dominos. We readied ourselves for
their fifth group which was no running toward us.
Then, everything changed.
I had a bad feeling about this one. I looked over at Emry and could tell that
he sensed it too.
The rhythmic "thumbs" from the bows had long since ceased at the
start of each interval. The two small sections clashed with usual bashing of
shields and swordplay. Corden and I reached in whenever we could to try and
lessen the density of the enemy group. Men from the second row of the group
tried to sneak around to the flanks and catch us by surprise; it was
unsuccessful do to Corden and I's javelins.
Then, everything changed...again
It was just like any other time, with them sneaking around. I was reaching in
with my main spear to try and help out Jice and Klore hold back the swarm that
was now beginning to pile up as one of the enemy's groups of 9 reinforced the
one currently in battle. I hadn't seen the two men sneaking around the flanks.
"Drait!" I heard my name being using as a warning call by Emry and I
started to turn toward the flank. Just as my eyes met the enemy I could already
feel my spear get tossed from my hands as one of them disarmed me. The other
one thrusted a stab at me but a split second before it pierced my skin, it
stopped. I looked into the enemy soldier's eyes as they stared unseeing and out
of focus past me and toward the horizon. My vision shifted down and I saw and
arrow protruding from his chest serving as an explanation for his death.
I had split second to silently thank Emry as the soldier collapsed to his knees
and fell face first into the dirt. The second soldier had already begun his
stabbing motion.
It was all happening in a matter of a couple seconds, but it seemed like
everyone was moving in slow motion, and I was just a helpless spectator. I
watched the spear head as it careened toward me. I knew this one would be the
sure end; after all, even Emry didn't have the time to reload. Aristica would
be helping with the crowd out front so it seemed as if all my allies of help
were unavailable.
I tried to lean back a little to maybe dodge the thrust, but I knew it would be
to no avail. This would be the end. Why does the end have to happen in slow
motion? It's not like I can do anything about it! Just stab me and get it over
with, stop this mindless torture!
But the end wasn't ready to arrive yet.
I saw the spear that was on a death path to my heart suddenly get knocked away
in a blindingly fast deflection. Corden finished the kill with a half spinning
slash to the throat. I didn't leave any seconds to die from hesitation: I
quickly ran and picked up my spear and then pivoted on the spot to take a look
at Corden.
He had saved my life, and I looked him right in the eyes. He looked back and I
could feel the change. All those times of arguing, all those times of
disagreement, all those wishes of death and hatred for one another had been
wiped away like crumbs on a countertop. It wasn't the action of Corden saving
my life that made me silently partake in the wordless truce, but it was just
the thing that pushed me over the edge into a world of realization; and I had
come to the realization that I had never hated Corden.
The words that were passed between us were all silent and done in a fraction of
a second. It was all forgiveness, apologies, and a wish of friendship if we
were to ever survive this mess. The worst part of it all was the fact that it
was all too late. We were all about to die, and now we have come to the
realization of all the time wasted. About how life is too precious to spend all
the time fighting. All the times we missed. The eye contact had said it all,
and it sent shivers up my spine of how foolish I have been.
A quick nod was exchanged between the two of us before Corden started rapidly
making his way back to his original position. I watched him go, but he had only
gone about a meter when it happened.
Neither of us had heard the multiple warning cry from our two archers. Not only
were we way out of position, but we hadn't seen the company of a dozen archers
that the enemy had moved onto the left flank that I was supposed to be
protecting. The arrows could now easily fly at Corden and me because Klore and
Jice's shields were far from protecting us.
So it was because of these mistakes that Corden was now flailing on the ground
in front of me clutching an arrow that had pierced his lower torso. I bent down
beside him to try and offer whatever assistance I could.
My skin started itching as I saw the blood start spilling out of the fresh
wound like a bottle that was being overfilled. I leaned forward to try and put
pressure on the wound but the blood was pumping out of his body too fast. We
were way too far in the open; I could hear Emry and Aristica firing rapidly to
get rid of the archers as well as Klore and Jice gradually working their way
toward us. I focused on the wound once more; I knew I had to stop the bleeding
somehow. I quickly pulled the arrow out of the wound causing a loud scream of
pain from Corden's throat. I could see a new gap had opened up from when I
removed the arrow and blood started flowing out of the gap as well as the
original wound. I quickly ripped off a good portion of my shirt and used it as
a makeshift bandage for Corden. I quickly wrapped it around him and tied it as
tight as I could for pressure. The bleeding eased a little bit. I leaned back
in satisfaction.
Just in time.
I saw the dark blur rocket in front of my eyes, just where my head was
milliseconds ago. It was obviously aimed to permanently put me out of
commission but instead it struck Corden deep in the throat.
I looked back down and saw Corden's hands fly up to his throat and try to
childly grab the blood. His whole body started shaking violently and his head
rolled slightly to me. I could see his eyes lock onto mine in a vice grip and
he reached out with blood covered hands and started grabbing the air in front
of me in the same childish motion. He tried to speak, but all the came out was
sickly choking gargle that slowly started to fade away. The shaking was less
violent now, and his hand dropped from the air in front of me and fell to the
dirt leaving random shapes as the blood started to dry and crust. I saw his
eyes lose focus and sight. Then he lay still.
I snapped closed my jaw that I didn't realize I had open and turned away. I
slowly keeled over and vomited all over the ground next to my dead friend.
After all, that's what he was to me now: a friend, but a dead one. I finished
emptying my body's contents into the dirt and sloppily wiped my mouth, Corden's
dried blood still staining my skin.
I looked around; everything was quite the same as when I had checked a few
seconds ago. That was all that had passed, just a few seconds. Klore and Jice
had worked their way over to us now and were covering my kneeling body with
their shields.
I quickly leapt to my feet and readied two javelins at the same time. I strafed
to the left of the small shield wall and hurled them at the nearest group of soldiers
I had spotted. "For Corden!" I yelled at the top of my lungs as the
spears hurtled toward my enemies. They collided with the two soldiers I had
aimed at and then one of them kept sailing and struck a third.
I heard a sharp "twang" of an enemy bow nearby and I felt an
unimaginable white hot pain in my right thigh as I lost all feeling below it. I
saw the ground rush up to meet me and I did a half twist and landed roughly on
my back. I leaned forward slightly to try and look at my wound but an immense pain
in the left side of my chest forced me back down. I opened my eyes that I
didn't even realized I had closed and saw a large wooden object sharply
sticking out of my chest. The blood was immense. Suddenly I was surrounded in
it as my heart was punctured and released all its contents. There was blood
everywhere, I was floating in it. My whole life I had seen no color except red,
I was drinking it.
Everything I had ever known had been nothing but blood; I
was being eaten by it. It leaked ferociously into my eyes, mouth, and nose as I
started choking on the substance that once gave me life. I tried to scream but
the only language I spoke was blood. I just want it to end! Let it be over!
I've had enough!
Then, like a candle being blown out, it did. It ended.
(Emry's point of view following Drait's death)
I felt the cry escape my lips as I saw Drait fall. That's our second man lost
due to archers, and both of them were spearman. I had watched Drait tend to
Corden, and I had acquired the utmost respect for him since he had done it. To
see two skillful warriors and lifetime friends fall in an act of friendship
tore me apart from my heart, to my soul, to my mind, and then back to my heart
again.
"Aristica! Regroup on Jice and Klore's position!" I shouted to my
counterpart while motioning toward the swordsman. We rushed to their rear and
we closed into a tight pack. Formation is key, last time the formation broke we
lost two of our men.
"Not too much longer sir," Aristica said to me. "We're two men down;
we will get over run shortly. Not to mention, our quivers are almost
empty."
"Let's see how many of 'em we can take with us," I replied to
Aristica. Then I leaned forward and made a one word command to Klore and Jice,
"Attack."
With no hesitation, I saw the two swordsmen simultaneously shuffle their feet,
break into a run, and shout their own war cry as they slashed their way into
the death party.
My reactions were instinctive, fine tuned from years of practice and
experience; the bow was an extension of me. Take arrow, draw string, aim shot, and
then release in a fluent motion. Over and over again. Take, draw, aim, release.
Take, draw, aim, release. One by one I saw the enemy soldiers fall from my own
power.
"The archers are back!" Aristica's cry pounded my ear drum as I saw
the remaining eight archers from the original dozen come onto the right flank.
"You work from the right," Aristica muttered as he took aim.
The four shots came out of my bow at the same intervals as Aristica's. Two by
two, the enemy company of archers was eaten alive by us two elite warriors as
we flawlessly shot arrows in between their eyes. The 8 archers were all dead in
less than 5 seconds.
"Runnin' dry," I muttered to Aristica. I could feel the weight and
rattle of the space in the quiver. Experience told me I had 4 or 5 arrows left.
I glanced over at Aristica and saw he only had 6 left.
We looked at each other; and I couldn't tell whether it was
years of being with each other, the power of our friendship, or just the heat
of the moment but at the same time we both grinned and savagely shouted,
"Time to go out with a bang!"
We each knocked three arrows on our strings and waited for the
inevitable. About 3 seconds after we had erased the enemy archers from
existence, we saw Klore and Jice get overrun. They both soundlessly fell
together. They died in a last effort of trying to protect each other. No sound
escaped my friend or I's lips as we shot our arrows. Six soldiers that had
killed our swordsman and were now charging us dropped in a heartbeat. We had reloaded
(me with my last two arrows, Aristica with his last three) in seconds and fired
one last time. Five more soldiers dropped but their places were taken almost
immediately by other soldiers.
"I never missed once today," Aristica told me with a sense of
satisfactory.
"Yeah, me either," I replied in a casual tone as the swordsman rushed
toward us. "Don't let go of your bow," I said gently.
"Never," he replied with a smile.
We both drew our daggers in a previously arranged plan. Standing
side by side, with no gap between us, we waited. As soon as the swordsman
reached us, we stabbed them repeatedly. After the first two had fallen, I felt
Aristica's grip grow weak on my arm, then I too got slashed through the
stomach. I fell on top of my friend and as we hit the ground, I rolled off so
we were facing each other, bows still tightly grasped. Even though both of us
were bleeding and in unimaginable pain, we smiled at each other.
I heard the soldiers gather around us to deliver the final blows. The darkness
came quick, I didn't feel a thing. Aristica's smile still shone through my
unseeing eyes. It was almost all over. The next step was no breathing and the
closing of eyes. And finally...it executed, and it was all over.
A spectator would have seen Emry and Aristica's eyes
close...simultaneously.
Epilogue
Lired stared at the sign in disbelief. They had made it, this
was the border. Emry and his Vindor were truly the best, the only ones that had
the ability that would never be beaten.
They broke camp just inside the border with good spirits of freedom. After
everyone had eaten, Lired stood up to say a few words.
"Vindor One has fallen," he started crisply to everyone, "A
build order for a monument will be executed as soon as we arrive home. A
memorable monument for a memorable group of men. The six men of Vindor One had
infinite braveness, skills, and personalities that I have never seen before.
They had figured out the true values and meaning of life. They have already
discovered the secrets we look for. We will earn this for them!" The crowd
cheered, "We will earn it!" Lired shouted even louder and the crowd's
cheers rose in equivalence.
Lired sat down for the night and went to his own tent. He stared up at the
stars and he could almost see each fallen member's name carved in the dark sky
through the small points of light. He smiled up at the sky...and he would
swear, 'till his final days, that he saw the whole Vindor smile back.
![[send message]](https://www.writerscafe.org/images/mail.png){kind=small}
![[befriend]](https://www.writerscafe.org/images/friend.png){kind=small}
Share This
Email
Facebook
Twitter
Read Request
My Library
Flag Writing
