Rain, thunder, occasional lightning. The world would not stop just because I begged for it to pause and undo my mistake. Regret cannot be so easily overturned. My actions were mine alone and I would have to live with the consequences.
"Arisa?"
Nothing, still nothing.
Her rank may only be a single question mark, but her abilities in combat made her easily one of the strongest around.
So why? Why did she just lay there, amongst the mud?
"You knocked her out kid"
Rider startled me by laying her hand on my shoulder as she spoke.
Just how long had I been standing here, staring at Arisu's body?
My clothes had become soaked in rain and sorrow at the gravity of the situation. This was a victory that came to fruition in the worst way possible.
"Naji teach you that?"
I looked down at my left hand, pondering the technique.
"Did I do it right this time?"
My words came out as a mumbled mess, almost completely unheard by the High-Drake.
When I hit Arisa under her arm, it wasn't remotely close to the hundreds of times I practiced to no avail, nor like my attempt roughly an hour ago. I felt no armor, no crunch or pushback, only the sensation of energy flowing into my palm.
In not refining or shaping the life force around my fist, the power was condensed into an orb, to which was then forced into Arisu's rib cage, ignoring her expressive multi-layered armor.
What happened after that, I don't know, but it was enough to send her flying whilst screaming in agony.
No matter how I thought about it, I shouldn't have hurt her this badly.
Unlike me, the Horsemen spared no time in trying to help Arisu, ripping apart her armor in the process. Riders' strong dragon-like hands and their sharp claws were enough to cut through the white fabric that served as an outer layer of both protection and utility.
Rider clicked her tongue before covering Arisu's upright ears and letting out a near deafening whistle. It was loud enough to be heard through the crack of lighting to alert a Witch that would be more than willing to help.
Unbeknownst to me at the time, Enda was transporting the Lord Holgata's heir and his bodyguards along the nearby road up from fairgrounds to Dragons Mort when the call went out, making her response immediate.
Enda slid down the hill and sprinted towards us at an alarming speed. Alongside her, a small magic device shielded her from the rain with a near invisible barrier and brightened up the area nearby.
It looked like two eight sided dice joined at the tips with mechanical insect wings. Each of these eight sided objects was made of a different stone with runes engraved on each side. One was a white mana-crystal, while the other was a dark purple stone I could not identify.
"What happened? Is she hurt?"
"Yeah. They got into a fight, Touji hit her with something to get out of a pin. Check er' right lung"
"Right lung?"
She raced her fingers up and along Arisu's intricate black Armor over the area Rider pointed out. Seconds later the pieces fell off, revealing the bloody truth.
My heart dropped to my gut as I saw the damage I had caused.
Arisu's lung had collapsed, a rib protruding from beneath her breast, the bandages normally wrapped around her bust all deep red.
I was warned something like this could happen if I didn't control myself and fueled an attack full of emotions that could bring someone to the edge of despair, but did I listen?
No.
Rider gritted her teeth and slammed the ground with her fist, leaving a small crater in her wake.
"Fuck! I knew I should of stepped in!"
Enda remained silent for a few seconds, seemingly contemplating what she should do.
"Where's Ru?"
"With Red at Broken-Blade. If I call er' it'd take er' an hour by river, three by carriage"
"At best, we have half that. Did she teach her apprentice how to heal Yokai?"
"No, he's not good with druidic magic either"
The Phoenix Witch quickly cut open her arm to spill a drop of blood, but it turned to ash as it made contact with Arisu's skin.
Desperate to stabilize her, she searched the crossbow bolt compartments she had reused and strapped to her thighs and belt for a solution. First, she cracked open a small circular shard that had once been used to heal Ota over her ribs.
Arisu's internal organs closed and skin regrew over her chest, however, more needed to be done. The strange rock only sealed her wounds, but it was enough for now, so Enda used magic to expel blood and bone shards that had entered her airway.
Next, she began to compress Arisu's chest, trying to get her breathing once again.
"Enda?"
"Do it"
Rubbing her oversized palms together, Rider created many small sparks of lighting as each hand glowed black or white. She pressed against the Kitsunes chest in a way that could seem inappropriate if it wasn't obvious that it was necessary to save a life.
Arisu twitched and threw up the remaining contents of her stomach, mostly blood and chunks of flesh.
Moments later she began to cough while remaining unconscious.
"Still not enough.."
Enda pulled out a red health potion with an immaculate design of gold and emerald. After pouring half of the small bottles contents on Arisu's wound, she slowly emptied what was left into her mouth.
"Kings Blood? For this?"
"A body of a spirit, created by a god, inhabited by a mortal. If you know something that might work better then feel free to speak up"
"That ain't what I'm sayin'. She's missin' a lung, gallbladder, liver and gods knows what else. Unless you happen to have a spare million or Gods Blood, we need a healer and Ru isn't going to cut it. What about the Talismans?"
"They're as effective as a Kenko Rock. Even if Ru can't heal her, she'll know what to do, call her"
Her usually stern voice appeared to be on the verge of collapsing. As much as Enda believed she lost the ability to care for others after she lost the love of her life, it was clear Arisu had brought warmth in a different way back into her heart, even if it did cause her pain.
Rider could tell by the tone of Enda's voice she was beginning to lose herself to despair so she reached into her cargo pants and pulled out a small gold bell, no bigger than my finger. It was engraved with a sword on one side, and the picture of a black horse on the other.
She tapped on the steed in a strange pattern, both single and double hits that sent off a message only an apocalyptic warrior could understand.
Moments later she seemingly got a response.
"She said 'You already know what to do'... uh"
Enda stood up and unclipped her recently reacquired cloak. She skillfully wrapped Airsu inside the fabric whilst discarding the rest of her foreign armor and clothes to the side of the road in what looked like scraps. Each part was no bigger than my hand.
"Tell her 'It isn't guaranteed to work' there has to be another way!"
"She says it's 'its step one, not enough time for any other way'. What is she talkin' bout?"
"Something I haven't done since the Age of Gods... I'll send a Flying Knight to pick her up"
"The hell you planin'?"
"Touji, stick close to her. She'll make sure you aren't killed"
Cradling her body, Enda looked up at the clouds and breathed in heavily. Her right eye, normally hidden by her messy hair glowed brightly for a second like she was communicating with her copies.
"I had to learn- what made them tick- so we could have a chance at fighting back. That magic... it's not born of mana, and I can't do anything else when doing it"
"You learned blood magic you bitch! You should have told me!"
"Every spell, every illusion... I'll have to dispel everything in order to use it. That means-"
"I get it. Fuck! What do you need?"
"Tyrants Rest, that trade route must remain open. The Empire will push it if it's abandoned"
"And it all just so happens to be tonight, raght?"
"Consider it payment"
"Fine, but at least be honest with him"
Rider pointed at me with her thumb in a somewhat dismissive manner.
Enda turned back towards the city, unable to look me in the eyes for what she said next.
"If you truly believed she would try to kill you, then I've failed you. As a Teacher, and a guardian"
"It ain't his fault"
"I never said it was"
"And yet yer punishin' him! You really think he could pull that off? I wouldn't even be able to do that with the same bullshit"
"How so?"
"Stop fuckin' around and open yer eyes. They've done it before and they'll do it again"
"No, they gave me their word!"
"The Norn AND Moirai see her as a threat! Don't matter who, you threaten a God's power, they'll try to take it back, or did you forget why Chronox exists? How Merlin almost died to that bastard, how WE had to rip you out of that timeless shithole save you're own fucking city!"
"I-"
"Save her and don't you dare blame him! You don't know half of what he's goin' though. I'll do my part, pray Merrah does hers"
Rider walked over to the grass and picked up Arisu's relic.
"Touji, this is a weapon of honor, unless yer a murderer or a thief, it cain't hurt you. I don't know what she said, but she must have thought this was the only way to get it across. Enda, I'll send Leaf up with her scabbard and other gear. Make sure she's ready before midnight"
Enda didn't utter a word back, choosing instead to walk back to the city carrying a mortally wounded Kitsune wrapped in her cloak.
"Come on, yer with me"
A massive hand gripped my shoulder, pushing me back towards the recently reconstructed bar turned tavern, refusing my instinctive push against it.
I keep causing problems for everyone around me.
It never really hit until now.
"I'm a failure"
Rider tightened her grip around my shoulder, somehow hearing me mumble in the storm.
"If that's how ya feel, then it's time to change"
"How?"
"First things first, we gotta save yer sis, which means I'm gonna need my bow... Hey, did I ever tell you how a Horsemen comes to power?"