Airyos had taken Yatsimoto and tied him up with several thick vines, plus the long leather strap he always had tied around his waist (for reasons unknown).
The hulking man was unconscious now and didn't look half as intimidating as he had in the fray.
Airyos waited patiently for his men to return from Elwood so they could transport Yatsimoto back to Pikia, the Elves' homeland.
"What is keeping my men?"
He thought to himself as he settled down on a nearby stone and occupied himself with his long, slender blade and a cherished whetstone the likes of which he had gotten from a friend a long time ago.
"I know there can't be anyone as tough as this guy there...I'll give 'em another few minutes."
But just as the words left his mouth, a familiar voice floated into his ears.
"SIR! We have returned, Sir!"
It was Aramin and two of the nine men Airyos had left him with back at the village.
"A report, Sir!"
He said as he saluted and then sat to catch his breath.
Normally, that would be a serious offense, but in the presence of a friend, Aramin didn't think too much of it, for he knew Airyos wouldn't.
"Go on."
Said Airyos, putting his whetstone back in its decorated pouch. Aramin continued.
"Sir...the village...is gone. We defended it till we could no more. We lost Kladien and Elarisse in its defense, Sir-"
Airyos was taken aback by the thought of losing two of his best warriors against such weak foe.
"Tennesic, Bardion, Marriet, Pinella, and Joltin?
He asked calmly, figuring they were just slow on their feet at the time.
He was wrong.
"They too are...gone...Sir."
Now Airyos was angry.
He quickly rose to his feet and strapped his sword back to his side.
"You...LET THEM FALL TO HUMANS!?"
He yelled at Aramin, causing him to take several steps back in shock.
"N-NO, SIR! They were killed by a man clad in the most strange armor I have ever seen. It was of a teal-ish color, with platinum chains and badges lining his chest-
"THAT'S ENOUGH!"
Airyos cut in.
"I've...heard enough."
Aramin turned and, in the process, stumbled a little, yet just enough so that it caught Airyos' eye.
"To me, soldier."
He said with a hint of curiosity in his voice.
"What sword has dared injure my best swordsman?"
By this time, the sadness had caught up to Aramin, and he could no longer hold back the tears that seemed to fight for their freedom from his eyes with every passing second. He began to break down.
"I...I couldn't save them...He was too strong!... I've failed you...Sir."
For the first time...maybe the second time in his life, Airyos felt his heart skip a beat. What kind of man...no, MONSTER could get to his best man like this? At a closer look, he could see that Aramin's arm and leg on his left side were bruised and cut badly, and his sword (which he held in his right hand) was dented and missing its tip.
Airyos took the sword and placed it in his one sheath, handing his personal sword to the sorrow-stricken Elf.
"Sir, I..."
"No."
Airyos cut him off for the second time.
"You are a very brave, honorable Elf. You deserve to be treated as one. Take this as a gift. An award from me. And the two of you..."
He said, addressing Jadec and Hypernnia.
"You'll be paid in double what you earn and presented with harmony medals. You both are in my deepest gratitude."
"Thank you, Sir!"
They said in unison, causing an echo effect throughout the deep, dark, yet strangely inviting forest.
"Oh, think nothing of it. You both...all three of you deserve it."
As Airyos turned from his companions, he studied the broken sword that had once belonged to Aramin.
It was heavily dented, and its top quarter was missing. Airyos couldn't imagine a weapon or man who could have done such damage to such a strong, well-made sword.
"This is...troubling."
He said to himself as he ran his fingers over the dents, bringing the now-useless blade to eye level.
"This sword was made to withstand almost any impact and counter almost any attack... I can't comprehend what could have done this much damage to it!"
As Airyos speculated on the blade, Aramin was busy tending to his comrade's wounds.
Jadec wasn't heavily injured, but he did have a long cut down the side of his face that seemed to never stop bleeding.
Hypernnia looked as if she'd simply fall over from exhaustion at any given moment.
Aramin really had his work cut out for him, as he, too, was injured, but still, he went on, placing his own self-needs to the rear of the line of seemingly never-ending problems.
"Aaauh, DAMMIT!"
Jadec exclaimed as Aramin softly dabbed at the jagged-looking cut with a rag he had dampened with an Elvin elixir drawn from one of his many side pouches.
"Come now, are you not a Lenige?"
Is along the lines of what Airyos would have normally responded, but this time and situation was slightly different than the average.
He decided to not challenge Jadec's manliness, but instead approach him with sympathy in his tone.
"Don't worry, Jadec. I will avenge your pain... tenfold! Whoever did this will pay."
From somewhere nearby, a gravelly voice answered the declaration.
"Oh, I will... Won't I?"
In an instant, Airyos was on his feet facing the direction in which the voice had originated. There before him in a suit of remarkably light blue-ish armor stood a knight, and in his hands was a long double-handed sword that the character seemed to wield with a sense of great valor and impudence all at the same time.
Airyos took to his guard stance, raising the Messimune to a combative position before him. The broken weapon was all that he had near him in that moment, so he figured he would give it a run, while still keeping himself safe by being as careful as possible.
"Oh...this is going to be entertaining!"
Arkamis began.
"So, those Jutglings belonged to you, did they?"
Arkamis said, adding a slight sneer to the word 'Jutglings'.
It was a rude and cruel word that Humanity used to use to describe Elves back in the days of Airyos' childhood.
Arkamis failed to realize that he had crossed the line far too many times.
Airyos was pissed.
"You...You killed my men..."
His head was now hung low, and the sword that had served as his guard was also a lot lower than it was supposed to be. Arkamis was standing perfectly still. He knew that it was an Elves' first move to lower his own defense to trick their enemy into lowering theirs.
"I will not fall for such easy-minded tactics as that!"
He spat in Airyos' direction, not knowing that it was not a trick.
In an instant, Airyos' blade was at Arkamis' neck, and with a sudden spike, a heat wave hit the knight as Airyos' bodily heat caught up to him as if it hadn't noticed his sudden movement.
"Aah, a true opponent...this shall be...fun, to say the least!"
Now, it was Arkamis' turn.
He ducked under the elf's blade, shifted on his heel, and jabbed him in the ribs with a sharply aimed elbow, which Airyos brushed off as if it had been done by a child.
This one was dangerous...
"QUICKLY!"
He shouted to his remaining comrades.
"TAKE YATSIMOTO AND RETURN TO PIKIA!"