Blood. Tears. Screams. That was all that was left in this place. What humanity? What mercy? Such bullshit ideals held no place here. All that was left was to slaughter or be slaughtered.
Numb hands. Numb legs. Numb heart. Blood splattered along with the hum of a sword in motion. The man could not tell if it was from his body or his foe's. It was all the same red. But there was not a moment spare to dwell on this. The sword in his hands just kept swinging, as if it were the master rather than the tool.
"He's the last one standing! Surround him, you dundering fools!"
The man felt the heart he had already thought dead grow colder. So this was it. His final comrades had fallen. There were to be no more drunken nights in the taverns, no more quiet confessions brought to light by the campfire. Oh, why did life have to be such a fleeting thing?
However, the imperturbable sword never stopped cutting. Even if he were to join them soon, he would go down only after taking as many as possible with him. As they had no doubt done so as well.
Suddenly, there was nothing for his sword to cut. Through his blood-drunk haze, the man barely managed to perceive that the enemy soldiers had formed an encirclement around him. A perfect arrangement meticulously crafted beyond the reach of his sword.
"Even to the end, you manage to impress me."
The soldiers parted ways as a tall man, clad in golden armor, appeared atop a brilliant white steed. The light reflecting off the plates made it seem as though the sun itself had descended. He wore no helm, so the man's dignified complexion was on full display. Platinum blonde hair tinged with the white of age and striking ebony eyes, which contained such a majestic vigor, it was impossible to match it to a man of such late years.
"Duke… Logress!" The lone man lifted his sword high, his already considerable bloodlust surging to the point it caused the few closest soldiers to fall back a step with trembling limbs.
"Mercenary King Elron, or shall I instead address you as Eitan Reidar? I admit, you've come farther than I ever could have imagined. For that, you have my acknowledgment." The golden duke looked down at Elron, rather Eitan, from atop his horse.
"Who needs your- uff- shitty acknowledgement!" Eitan swung his sword, propelled by the force of every wrathful fiber in his body.
A loud clang resounded in the air as the sword bounced off the shining armor, leaving only a nick behind. The recoil sent Eitan sprawling backwards, but his grip never once loosened on the shaft.
"Not many have been able to leave even a scratch on this armor. To be able to commit such a feat without aura. You have superseded my expectations yet again. It truly is such a pity things have come to this." Duke Logress' voice contained no hint of mocking, but that only further fueled the rage burning inside Eitan.
Eitan managed to haul his bloody body upright, taking up his stance once again. Despite the aching exhaustion gnawing at his every cell, the tip of his sword still did not waver. "Don't you dare spew such garbage!" He charged again at his foe, only to be met with the feeling of cold metal on his shoulder.
Before he could even react, his arm and sword both fell from his body. "Uaaagh!!" Eitan let out a guttural scream but did not reach to assuage his injury. Instead, his remaining hand went to his belt and pulled a dagger from a hidden sheath. The weapon hurtled towards the duke, whose eyes widened as he caught sight of the imminent threat.
"Your Grace!"
The nearby soldiers were too far away to react as the hidden weapon went straight for the neck of their liege. The sound of flesh tearing could be heard, and sparks of feeble hope shot through Eitan's body. However, as he raised his head, the embers of victory were extinguished no sooner than they had been lit.
A single trickle of blood made its way down Duke Logress' neck. He raised his hand to the wound, and in mere seconds it vanished without a trace. He finally lowered his gaze to where Eitan lay on the ground, and his eyes narrowed. "To be able to pierce my aura barrier with nothing but sheer will. As I thought, as lamentable as it may be, you must die now for my heart to be at rest."
Eitan wanted to struggle more. Fight more. Spit in the dingy duke's face, telling him to screw off with his hypocritical bemoaning. But he could not. His entire body was cold now, rendering him incapable of even lifting a finger. The blood gushing from his now-empty shoulder had pushed his already overexerted body past the edge.
"Goodbye, Eitan Reidar." Duke Logress raised his sword and plunged it accurately into Eitan's heart.
Blood spurted from his mouth as Eitan's body convulsed one last time. His eyelids fluttered shut, the last thing in his vision being the back of blood-soaked hooves. So… this is all my effort amounted to in the end. Everyone, I'm sorry… sor…ry…
Nothing. No light. No comrades greeting him from the other side. No hellfire either. A pure nothingness took Eitan Reidar from this life.
Soldiers slowly crept closer to Eitan's corpse, as if they were half expecting him to leap back up as a vengeful spirit. Although, of course, nothing of the sort happened. But right as they were about to drop torches on his body, a soft blue glow emerged from his chest.
"What- what on earth is this?!"
The blue glow expanded, in just seconds, encompassing not only the encircled soldiers but the entire battlefield as well. But it didn't stop there. It spread and spread, seemingly not going to stop until it covered the entire world. And so it did. A phenomenon that covered every inch of the planet, perhaps even going beyond. It started as a faint glow, but grew brighter with every passing minute until every inhabitant of the earth became blinded by its light.
The source of all this… a carefully carved blue gem inlaid in a pendant tucked tight against cold, lifeless skin.
"My child, please… live on." A melancholic yet warm voice emanated from the light. Those who listened felt no different from a newborn wrapped in its mother's embrace. A single heartfelt wish, a plea. That was all it took to change the world.