The sight of his father's blue blood made Lycurgus jump back. Taryu grabbed his chest and examined the blood in his hand and a smile came to his lips.
"You mean to kill me son?"
For a moment the rage subsided in Lycurgus' heart, and a sadness crept through his body. Slithering its way up past his heart to his throat and eyes. Suddenly the rain began to come down.
"Dad." His eyes were welded up with tears, covered by the descending rain.
Taryu looked up and let the rain hit his face. "I never let a man pierce my skin and walk away unscathed. I've fought countless battles and slayed many men. I can't imagine what it must feel like to fight one's own father. I feared my father till his demise, but you, you are different son. Braver than I've ever been, than I ever will be. But if you walk back to that village and I am nowhere to be seen, everything will be destroyed. What my father and brothers gave their lives to protect, what I dedicated my life to improve, innocents that are just as much family to me as you are Ly. If you're serious, if you truly believe you can do better, I can't…."
Taryu's voice went mute, only the rain hitting the ground graced their ears. Taryu was for once glad there was rain. The bane of a fisherman of Tiziano, the symbol of the Malunod, terror of their lives every year, he was glad it was here this one time. It shielded his face, blending in with the tears that rolled out his eyes. Each antagonizing second ate his heart, changing the time to hours and hours, wearing him down. He hated himself, he hated who he was more than anything else in life. To make the safe decision, he could barely call it worth it to himself.
"I can't go easy on you. You have to beat the titian and when you go to the village, show no mercy." Taryu said as his eyes met Lycurgus.
"But why? Do it with me father, fight off the others with me!" Lycurgus couldn't understand why he had to do it by himself, why he had to bear that burden alone and it rekindled that anger in his heart. The complexity of people, why must it be so hard, so full of roadblocks? He tightened his grip around Weaver's spindle.
"If it must be so then I will make it so."
He lunged forward with a slash that Taryu dodged. Anger burst through Lycurgus as he screamed,
"You said you won't hold back!" As planted a step turning his body towards his father as swung his weaver's spindle effortlessly turning it into its Tamari form. The blast of wind was countered by Taryu smashing the ground with Tujira.
Lycurgus stepped forward seeking to recreate the magic of his previous focus and power, but he was off balance. His heart was distraught, not wanting this burden to be placed upon him. The thought of killing his father, finally became clear what that really meant to him. He wasn't entirely sure if he was ready to lose him. Deep in his heart, he knew he needed him. This thought made each slash and strike out of sync. But the rain continued to fall, just as time continued to move forward, just as the gap between their abilities continued to widen, but he continued to push forward.
He didn't even have a clear goal as to why anymore. He found himself asking the question 'What was worth the life of his father?' and he couldn't find the answer in his heart. At the same time, he felt his hatred shift, shift toward the question, 'What was his life worth to his father?' and that enraged him.
Meanwhile, Taryu watched, almost out of body, as he dodged and weaved all of Lycurgus' attacks. It became effortless, and it pained him, he felt his heart begin to tear at the realization that Lycurgus couldn't beat him. Not as he was, he needed to mature and grow, but he was tenacious and driven, and though he loved that his son never gave up it broke his heart.
Lycurgus launched another overhead strike.
"Chief it's a boy," said Raul, his amber eyes glowing brightly beneath his messy locks that hid his various scars.
Taryu stood up and approached slowly, he was so tiny to him. This moment made the giant of a man into nothing more than a granule of sand.
"Shezira look," he said softly as she reached for her baby.
Tears flowed from her eyes, "Oh my baby, our baby, my little Lycurgus."
Taryu couldn't even hold back the tears that flowed from his eyes, a smile cracked across his face as Raul slapped him across the back.
"Hopefully the little one doesn't eat like you or we'll all die from starvation!"
Taryu's eyes glanced at Raul and laughed at his joke, but they slowly fell back to Shezira and Lycurgus. He placed a hand gently on her head.
"You did good Shezira," he said softly, almost in a whisper.
"Alright, we gotta patch you up Shezira." Said a little old woman.
"Raul, take the baby and check to make sure he's all good."
Shezira handed Lycurgus to Taryu
"Hold him, Taryu."
Nervousness filled his heart, as he held Lycurgus. He began to cry as he left the warm comfort of his mother.
He offered him one finger and Lycurgus grabbed it and held it tight, calming him down.
"It's okay Lycurgus, I'm here to protect you, son. You don't have to worry, you're safe with me. My little Lycurgus."
Lycurgus let out a blood curdling scream as Taryu's axe sliced clean through his right arm just above the elbow.
He dropped to his knees grabbing what was left of his arm. Trying to refocus and calm himself but the pain was immense. His breathing was ragged but he managed to steel himself, controlling his tarmata to stitch himself and stop the bleeding.
He looked up to see his father walking away slowly. The rain made everything hazy, and his vision blurred, but he couldn't give up. He looked down and saw his arm lying in the rain holding weaver's spindle. He wrenched it out his own fingers, molding it into its Kentari form he used it to assist him in standing. It took effort but he was on his feet.
His breath labored and heavy, he yelled out at his father "I won't kill you with your back turned!"
Taryu stopped and slowly turned around. The rain almost completely drowning out his words.
"Don't."
His face was the epitome of sadness, as every part of his body pleaded with his son.
"Please just stop Lycurgus, you've lost."
A crazed smile stretched across Lycurgus' face.
"I'm still standing!"
Taryu shook his head no and said,
"You're not strong enough."
"You underestimate my power!"
Lycurgus screamed at him.
The thunder roared overhead, as the rain continued to fall even heavier.
Lycurgus readied himself to strike, making a new form of weaver's spindle. Shaping it to be that of a small dagger while shielding his arm with the remaining materials. Sanflosohn was the name of this new form.
For some reason or another he had thought about something Le had told him when he was young.
"To fall, is something we all do and have done, getting back up is something the strong do. But there will come times when getting back up is impossible. When your legs will carry you no further, you want to always avoid these times son."
Lycurgus' energy swelled through his body, and he charged his father. His face so filled with sadness; it made him wonder what was on his mind. For all that was in his mind was Le's words.
Lycurgus landed face first into the muddy ground and let out a scream, as his body tried to register the pain. It took all his strength just to remain conscious as he choked on his own scream. He couldn't even catch his breath as his body panicked, struggling to grasp what had just happened. He attempted to get back up, as tears streamed down his face. He clawed desperately at Weaver's Spindle that he unconsciously released, returning it to its original form. But the mud impeded any movement forward.
"Get up" he told himself repeatedly, he continued to say it now pleading with his body to respond, but there was none.
He heard his father's footsteps approach him and looked up to see his face. The epitome of sadness. Taryu reached down and picked up Weaver's Spindle. He took at step forward and then looked back,
"I'm so sorry Lycurgus."
The words enraged him as Lycurgus looked back to finally see, he had taken away his legs, just below the knee. Lycurgus turned back around to see his father walking away. He tried to crawl after him filled with unspeakable rage, but Taryu outpaced him with his sad gat.
Thoughts raced through his head a myriad of curses and swears came to him but the only words that could leave his lips were,
"I HATE YOU!"
Lycurgus fell into the mud, refusing to give up, he focused his energy on sealing his wound best he could. When he looked back up, he was alone.
The rain never stopped for him, even though he could no longer move forward. The tears came freely from his eyes as he sobbed without regard for anyone hearing. He felt his energy wane and the fatigue from the battle set in as he passed out.