A Common Interest Between Strangers

ROE

Roe begun to drag her feet, the sludgy mud sapping her energy quickly as it clawed at her heels to slow her down. She breathed heavily, puffing with exertion as she tried to scrabble to safety as the corrupted mage attempted to wipe her out with a swipe of its massive, thick tentacle. She dodged it, barely, slipping and falling as she did so. Her body hit the ground hard with a thud, exhaling what was left of the air inside her. Winded, she lay, stunned on the floor, fighting for survival. What made her think she could fight this beast alone? It was only a few months ago, her legs trembled at the thought of leaving Namarast. Surely, she had lost her marbles.

Word Count: 124

KIVO

Large wings beat furiously, fighting against the heavy winds. The blackened sky obscured his view and he tried his hardest to focus on the path ahead. Below, the crone roared, fighting off attack after attack. Others had gathered to join the fight and they were hitting it with all the power they had, but the creature was strong and powerful, flailing wildly with long, sharp talons, vast wings and heavy tentacles. It knocked into those few brave warriors, sending them flying backwards.

Kivo pulled his wings in tight against his body as he nose dived into an attack. On the ground, his familiar, Onyx, raced across the bogs to strike at the same time, teeth bared. At the very last moment, Kivo threw his wings open, his body jerking upwards so his hooves were pointing down. He kicked backwards viciously, striking the brute in the neck. It did little to damage it, leaving barely a mark behind, but it was not Kivo who was going to do the damage. With a thwack to the side, it made the crone lose focus. It looked up, watching the black stallion with its many green eyes as he soared over its skull. Before it could snap that humongous beak towards him, Onyx had leapt, chomping down on the soft skin of its chest and neck. Even with a skin like old boot leather, the panther made light work as he sunk his teeth into its flesh. The creature wailed with a cry of pain, spinning rapidly to rid itself of the parasite.

Kivo cried out as he watched in horror to his friend being tossed aside like a rag doll. He pinned his ears back aggressively. This beast will pay for what he had done. He raced over, landing semi-gracefully near Onyx. The panther lay motionless, the skid marks in the soft earth showing how hard it had been thrown. The stallion nudged him softly and he groaned, weakly lifting his head before collapsing back down. He was hurt. Bad.

Word Count: 337

ROE

Meanwhile, Roe had begun to recover. She had dragged herself across to a rotting fallen tree and propped herself against it so it braced her back. She felt nauseated and dizzy but she couldn't stay here, out in the open. As Roe considered her next move, she watched the co-ordinated attack of a winged fellow and his assumed familiar. Inside, she cheered them on as their plan went accordingly...that was, until one of them was falling through the air. She screeched in dismay, concerned for the lives of her fellow mages. Suddenly, her own troubles were forgotten about as the priority of herself had just fallen to the bottom of the list. The pegasus rushed over to help their friend and she followed, wanting to offer a helping hand.

When she reached the fallen comrade, her concern turned to dismay as the large feline looked lifeless in the mud. It made her happy that her own familiar had decided to hide from the conflict. She cursed the blasted creature for causing such harm and, in a way, she cursed The Order for standing back and allowing for this to happen. Innocent people were laying down their lives for this country whilst they cowered in their bunkers and hid. No matter, there was no time to berate those in charge but it was perhaps a time to think about her future within the academy. She didn't want her name associated with them anymore.

"Can I help?" Her voice was weak, barely audible over the screams and heavy stomps. Nevertheless, she held out the hand of aid.

Word Count: 265

KIVO

So focused on the fate of his beloved pet, he hadn't noticed the arrival of another until he heard the mouse's squeak. He turned, his face stern.

"No, you can't help me with this. What you can do is kill that bloody monster who caused this!"

He hadn't meant to shout but his fury was too strong to control. With fire in his eyes, he turned to look back at his friend one more time.

"I'll be back for you." He turned to his new companion, looking her up and down swiftly. "You'll do. C'mon."

He stormed off, hoping she'd follow, towards the writhing beast who was currently swinging some poor sod around by the ankle.

Word Count: 116

ROE

This man scared her but she followed anyway, partially terrified of what he would do if she didn't. She followed his lead, high stepping quickly to avoid any deep puddles or thick clay. Her wings were held out halfway for balance. The stallion reached into his saddlebag and grasped a small, round vial of shimmering liquid gold. It looked very much like her own exploding flasks of energy she had stored. Instinctively, she reached for one of her own. Roe had a inkling of what he was about to do and she was ready for what came next, prepared for any eventuality.

Word Count: 102

KIVO

He glanced over his shoulder as he reached for his weapons, hoping the tiny deer had followed his command. She had and she also had a similar looking glass jar as his own. This would come in handy and it meant he needn't waste any of his own.

"You're small. Light. Agile. You'll do best on the ground. We strike together. Quick like lightning. This thing will never see us coming. Stay hidden and keep your eyes on me. You'll know when go."

He spoke like a marshal giving out orders to his troops. They were rapid-fire and precise. With all that needed to be said being said, he took to the sky once more, kicking up from the ground and leaping into flight. He gained height swiftly, circling the behemoth's giant skull like a vulture circling a dying animal. He kept one eye focused on that and another on his new companion, hoping she got into a sensible position.

Word Count: 160

ROE

She floundered behind, struggling to keep up with the equine's large strides. Then he began talking which just added to her struggle. Unconfidently, she nodded her head, praying she'd heard and understood the task. Without further instruction or a check that she'd caught the grasp of the plan, he took off, leaving her gaping with confusion. For a moment, she stood there, looking around wildly as if someone was going to jump out and save her. That saviour never came though and she just did what he'd hoped he'd asked of her. With her bomb clutched tightly to her chest, she sprinted into the shadow of a building that, probably once resembled a home. Now, it was nothing more than a pile of bricks and wood. A lone wall protruded from the debris. Its edges were jagged and crumbling, holding together as stable as a house of cards. However, it was just large enough to hide her from sight if she tucked herself snugly with her back pressed hard against the cold stone. Most of the inhabitants of the land hadn't run away in fear - they'd stayed to fight for their homes. Who wouldn't? When you have nothing, you fight for the very little you have and you don't live in the arse end of nowhere as a choice. These people had been shoved aside by society, shunned into isolation. It was probably the very reason why The Order was yet to show up. Why would they waste their resources on such a worthless cause? It was heart-breaking to witness the destruction.

From her position, she could just about peer around the corner, watching as the crone took another pummel from another mage who was gallantly battling their own corner. There was a bright flash and the unmistakeable wail of agony from the monster shook the Sunless Jungle. Another small victory. However, the progress was painfully slow and the onslaught was nowhere near its ending. Every hit seemed useless with the monster showing no signs of waning. Onwards, they must go.

Word Count: 341

KIVO

He nodded his head approvingly as it looked as if the doe had heard his instructions. As he'd asked, she hid behind a shield for protection, just out of sight but close enough to deliver the blow. He was confident this would work. He waited for a slight pause in the fighting, gathering all his strength mentally. Once the bright flash of light had expired, he moved into position. It was impossible to find a blind spot, the vermin's many eyes seeing all from every angle so a sneak attack was equally as difficult. But, it was dumb. As the fight continued, Kivo had noticed that the creature found it hard to concentrate on more than one assailant at a time. It was also clumsy with its huge size, incapable of evolving its stride rapidly. With this, he had concluded that an attack from two fronts was the best approach. The last attempt had been high risk and close contact was no longer an option here. Even with its disadvantages, there were other factors at play that made combat desperately dire. Instead of chasing, the corrupted had adapted its style to thrashing around recklessly. It was dangerous for all parties.

Kivo had no awareness of danger for himself. He had lived too many lifetimes to believe in death now. Putting himself in harm's way only added to the exhilarating thrill. Anyway, he rarely got to be a part of the action these days with the harsh clampdowns The Order had enforced. He spent so long hiding in the shadows, commanding his army of nobodies, he'd forgotten how exciting it was to be on the front line.

With a cry, he hollered into the bleeding sky of light and dark before rushing into the face of peril. The battle cry had aroused attention, beady green eyes snapping onto him. The raven's head squawked, snapping towards him. They threatened to gobble him up like a light snack. With a hair's breadth between him and it, he swung his everything into throwing the circular vial of magic, pulling away simultaneously. The stench of corruption filled his nostrils. It drove his own corruption insane. Every fibre of his being danced, wanting to join in the party but he wrangled the feelings down, locking them away into the depths they came from. It was a struggle that caused him to falter and he fell out of the sky like a duck that had been shot on hunting season. Limp wings hung by his side as he twisted through the air, slamming down to the ground as his familiar had done.

Word Count: 435

ROE

Roe heard the call to arms. She leapt into action herself, skipping over the uneven, slippery ground with ease in her speed. As Kivo had said, she was small and agile, able to dodge the waving arms of the crone as it became fixated on the aerial show above. Once she was finally close enough, she tossed her jar of energy as hard as she could muster, dashing away as quickly as she could. The bangs of both flasks hitting their target shuddered the surroundings, tripping Roe up on her attempt of escape. She stumbled, her back legs sliding from under her. She fought to stay on her feet, scrambling for traction just enough to make it back to her safe spot.

In all the action, she hadn't been watching her teammate spiral out of control. It wasn't until she looked up to search for the flashes of red on his wings to realise he was no longer there. The effects of the corrupt's magic made her worry ten times worse. In a panic, she called out to him, shouting for the stranger. Others stared at her as if she was an imposter as she ran around like a lunatic. She didn't blame them. The sacrifice of a life was barely on par with the current situation that still reared its ugly head. They soon lost interest in her to continue their fight. However, that wasn't how Roe worked. Her empathy wouldn't let her forget and if she walked away without trying to find him, she'd never forgive herself. Even though she didn't know his name, she still felt a pang of sorrow and guilt. Perhaps, it was the effects of corruption. Perhaps, it was just her nature to care a little too much.

She took care with each step she made, sloshing through the flooded fields of the valley to avoid the carnage that raged. She ducked behind buildings and other structures when she felt the searing burn of eyes upon her. It felt like hours had ticked by with her constant sprinting then dashing out of sight. Eventually, she found the stallion crumpled on the floor. He was filthy and soaking wet. One of his wings lay at a funny angle and Roe assumed it was broken. His breathing was shallow, his chest rising up and down erratically as he sucked in air with a raspy noise. His eyes were closed, scrunched up in pain. What was she meant to do?

Word Count: 413

KIVO

Kivo lay still, his body screaming in pain. The cold wetness of the water he lay in soaked through his coat, down to the bone, enhancing the agony within. It wasn't the injuries that tormented him though. It was his mind which raced a million miles an hour. Every unsavoury thought rose to the surface, hounding at him to join in with the chaos of corruption. His whole body was tense as he tried to fight the feelings. It was torture. He crumpled up his face, blocking out all the light from around him. He closed off his ears, drowning out all the screams, cries and bangs around him. It was now just him. Alone with his thoughts. One day, he knew, he would lose this argument. But, if Kivo had his way, today would not be the day. He would not allow himself to succumb to this today. He had so much left to do. He hadn't been down here if he hadn't been pursuing a new line of business as he was ready to continue to expansion of his empire. If anything, the monstrous mage was a massive inconvenience and had led to his time being wasted. Had he known, he would've stayed in Faline where his time was better spent. He couldn't change the past, however, and what is done is done. That didn't mean he had to throw in the towel and make this mayhem worse. His time would come where he would have his own show. He'd make the world regret the day they allowed Kivo to live. But there was more to come yet.

Determined, he beat the raging emotions over and over, forcing them back into the cage they'd been locked in. There was no victory to be had. If Kivo were anyone else, they'd be ashamed of their thoughts. But corruption was not something you were handed by surprise. Every choice he'd ever made had led him here and the rewards he'd reaped were worth the torment. In a way, he understood how this creature had come to form. It was easy to become addicted to the want of more.

His eyes shot open and he gasped, his throat hoarse. He spluttered and coughed, sitting up with a wheeze. His wing lay crooked against his body, the red tips barely visible beneath the thick layer of mud across his feathers. His partner in crime had joined him, her face sickened with worry about him.

"Did the strike go well?"

He needed to distract himself.

Word Count: 422

ROE

She nodded, eyes wide. This man was a machine. If this man was not frightening before, he was now. Moments ago, she'd believed he was close to death but, here he was, sitting alert and alive. The recovery was astounding but the flicker of discomfort could be seen behind his eyes, in the depths of their mesmerising redness. Nevertheless, she thanked the patrons for his return from the jaws of oblivion.

"I think you should see a healer," she gestured towards his broken appendage. "It will become infected if not treated."

She felt a strange attachment to him even though she barely knew him. She wanted the best for him.

Word Count: 110

KIVO

He stared at her for a moment, not really registering what she'd said. Regardless, he nodded in agreement. With a hefty grunt, he rose unsteadily to his feet, careful not to aggravate his injuries further. With the little doe's help as she supported his hanging wing, he limped away to the edge of the Sunless Jungle. Here, he was greeted by his faithful friend who, even in his own wounded state, stayed and waited for him. They both shared a glance that needed no words to be understood before the began their trudge to the nearest shelter for aid. The battle was not over yet - it was more a case of the round had been lost.

Word Count: 116