Tales of a Lost Sword 29

Episode 29 Strong Eats Weak
Flynn swings his weapon. Yet before Flynn makes contact with Fayvard, a clang of metal interrupts his attack. Flynn’s eyes widen, as Cynthia squeezes her way in between Flynn and Fayvard, her Kandine acting as the only shield between Fayvard and Flynn’s blade.

Cynthia bounces off Flynn’s dagger and kicks him across the face, throwing him backward. He stumbles but quickly recovers, holding a hand to his jaw momentarily.

Cynthia glances over her shoulder at Fayvard from behind her green goggles. “You all right, there?”

“Heh,” Fayvard growls, grimacing slightly, “I guess I owe ya one. You probably saved my life just now.”

“Two on one, huh…?” Flynn growls. “What did I tell you about butting in on my battles?!”

“I’m sorry,” Cynthia apologizes, her orange hair swaying slightly in the wind, “but I have no intention of stepping aside.”

“Then I shall force you to do so,” Flynn roars, his eyes glinting maliciously.

Zaram and his men suddenly appear behind Flynn, running towards the scene of the battle. “Boooossssss!” Zaram cries, gesticulating vividly with his hands. “We’ve got your baacckkkkk!”

“Tch,” Flynn hisses in a bad temper, “more nuisances!” He thrusts his dagger into the ground, throwing up a cascade of dirt and rocks. An explosion sounds, as a screen of smoke separates Flynn from Zaram, stopping the latter from approaching any closer.

“A little smoke ain’t gonna stop us!” Zaram howls, brandishing his own dagger. His lackeys do the same.

“Zaram! Guys! Stay back!” Cynthia shouts, motioning for Zaram to halt. “It’s too dangerous for you to get involved!”

“I would take her advice,” Flynn exclaims without turning back to look at Zaram. He enters a fighting stance, flexing his muscles and fingers.

Zaram skids to a halt, his men standing on either side. He grits his teeth as the smoke clears, analyzing the situation on the battlefield.

“Hey,” Fayvard mutters at Cynthia’s side, “you got a plan, right?”

“No,” Cynthia replies casually, “I’ll leave that up to you.”

“All right,” Fayvard growls, “then here’s what we’ll do…”

As Fayvard hurriedly discusses a battle plan with Cynthia, Flynn bursts forward like a rocket, swinging his dagger recklessly. Cynthia turns, facing up Flynn, deflecting each attack with her own Kandine.

“Oh?” Flynn raises his eyebrows, impressed. “Not bad. You are faster than I expected. However, although you have excellent speed, your attacks lack power!”

Flynn strikes heavily, breaking past Cynthia’s defenses. Cynthia leaps backward as Flynn thrusts forward; a fine cut appears on Cynthia’s cheek. Cynthia quickly wipes the blood from her face, its sting clouding her vision slightly.

Laughing gleefully, Flynn comes to a halt. “Ahh, you are quick indeed! To have avoided my power attacks with such skill and so gracefully… I must say that I, Flynn Schlieffer, am impressed!”

Cynthia grits her teeth, entering her fighting stance once more. She raises her Kandine in front of her, her breathing ragged. ‘He’s fast and strong at the same time…if I keep dodging and parrying, I won’t get anywhere. I need to create an opening for Fayvard…’

Behind her, Fayvard frowns, analyzing the scene pensively. ‘I hate not having my sword…when it comes down to it, I really am a close-range fighter. But I’ve got no choice…right now I’ve gotta depend on the girl to find an opening for my poison attack.’

Flynn smiles knowingly. “No plan you attempt shall defeat me, even if it is two versus one!”

Cynthia clenches her Kandine more tightly. “No, I simply have to create an opening!” She flashes to Flynn’s left, and slashes at him. Flynn blocks the attack easily.

“You did not expect that weak attack to make its mark, did you?” Flynn asks tauntingly.

Cynthia merely glares at him, her Kandine struggling against Flynn’s blade.

“Poison Mist!” Fayvard howls, casting a spell. A gust of poison gas floats through the air towards Flynn and Cynthia.

The Fatalist evacuates the area immediately, flying far away from the cloud of gas. Cynthia does the same, stepping out of the way of the gas cloud.

“Dammit!” Fayvard curses, having seen his attack miss.

Having summoned the Shield of Wizet just in case, Flynn now lowers it. “It would appear that I did not need this after all…” he mutters, relaxing his grip on the shield. “And a relief I did not…” he hisses in an even lower voice to himself.

Cynthia launches herself at Flynn again. “Take this!” she cries, swinging her Kandine down at Flynn.

“Not this again,” Flynn responds in a bored tone, deflecting Cynthia’s attack with his dagger.

“Meso Explosion!” Cynthia shouts. Several blasts surround Flynn, clouding his vision as smoke and dust rises into the air.

Flynn bends over, the smoke filling his lungs. He closes his eyes, coughing steadily. Suddenly, he feels a gash open up across his left arm, the one holding the Shield of Wizet.

Cynthia lowers her Kandine, blood dripping from its blade. In an instant, the Shield of Wizet drops to the floor with a heavy thud.

“Gotcha!” Fayvard howls victoriously. “Paralyze!”

Fayvard’s attack pierces straight through Flynn with thundering force. Flynn contorts his face wrathfully as the attack hits him. “B-Bastard…!” he cries. He reaches down to pick up the Shield of Wizet, but finds that his body refuses to move. Flynn widens his eyes immediately as his entire body goes numb. “What…what is happening?! I cannot move!”

Fayvard steps forward, a satisfied grin on his face. He picks up the Shield of Wizet from the ground, causing Flynn to bare his teeth, anger pulsing through his entire face even as he stands motionlessly, unable to move.

“How dare you lay your filthy hands upon the Shield of Wizet!”

Fayvard merely stares at Flynn as he holds the shield in his hands. “So this is the Shield of Wizet, huh? Heavier than I imagined…”

Flynn struggles, but still remains immobile, frozen completely. “What is the matter with my body?!”

“I paralyzed you with my poison,” Fayvard explains simply. “You won’t be able to move for a while. So, shield’s mine now. You won’t be able to heal yourself by creating an antidote. Consider this check and mate.”

Flynn continues to glare with loathing at Fayvard. “Return the shield at once! I shall not forgive you for this!”

Lackadaisically, Fayvard merely shrugs. “Whatever,” he replies, turning away from Flynn. “It’s useless to argue considering this fight’s over.”

Cynthia glances at Fayvard. “Shall I finish him?”

“No,” Fayvard responds lazily, “we’ll tie him up and hold him prisoner for a while. I’m sure little Ryuu will wanna ask this guy some questions.”

“How dare you display such insolence!” Flynn cries angrily. “Release me from this poison at once!”

“Gag him too, while you’re at it,” Fayvard adds irritably.

Cynthia moves to restrain Flynn, as several of the spectators nervously join in to help. From afar, Fayvard glares at Flynn’s immobilized body sullenly. ‘If it weren’t for the girl showing up and surprising him…I might not have won this battle. We only won this fight because of the surprise factor and because it was two on one. This guy’s undeniably tough…’

Rill falls to the ground, blood flowing freely from his various wounds. He hits the ground hard, dust from the ground leaping into the air upon impact. Kunai stares down at Rill’s frozen body, his eyes glowing with the grim light of victory.

“Rill…” Kunai murmurs sadly.

Xavier drags himself up from the ground, surveying the scene tentatively. “That was quite some battle,” he mutters with awe. “What’re you gonna do with this guy?”

Rill suddenly stirs, opening his eyes a tiny crack, peering loathingly at Kunai above him. Kunai bends over Rill, checking his injuries. “Nothing,” Kunai says to Xavier, “he’s not an enemy. I’m certainly not going to kill him.”

“Whoa,” Xavier says, “you’re nobler than I thought, Kunai. Considering this guy just tried to kill you…”

“You only say that because you don’t understand, Xavier,” Kunai replies. “Rill really isn’t an enemy. I can even understand a little how he feels…”

Without warning, Rill grabs Kunai’s wrist. Kunai jolts, glancing down at Rill. However, Rill remains still, although his black eyes are lit up with tears. “Kunai…”

“What is it, Rill?” Kunai responds in a gentle voice.

“I’m…sorry…” Rill splutters, tears pouring freely from his eyes now. “I…I…”

“It’s okay, Rill,” Kunai says gravely, “I understand why you did those things. But you have to promise not to fight anymore. If you’ve gained this new power from the Fatalists, then let’s use it against them. Let’s fight against the Fatalists together, and make them pay for their sins!”

“Yeah,” Rill nods. He coughs, blood still streaming from his wounds.

Kunai looks at Rill’s wounds urgently. “I’m not that great with injuries, but I’ll do what I can to bind you up. Then we’ll head over to Skylark City and get you to a hospital.”

Xavier glances at Kunai. “Are you sure, Kunai? What about—” A loud crunch sounds, and Xavier suddenly falls to the ground, as the hilt of a heavy sword smashes into the back of his head and knocks him unconscious instantly.

Kunai turns around with lightning speed, his eyes wide and his heart pounding heavily. From out of the darkness emerges a figure absolutely identical to him, carrying a massive sword at his side.

“Yo,” Dark Kunai pronounces, a wild gleam in his eyes, “I was wondering when you’d finally show your face.”
—END TWENTY-NINE—
Finally, the confrontation begins! Chapter out early, just because.