Their 'dueling area' was little more than a rough circle, made up of the Hall's long tables, turned on their sides with the benches arranged around their outsides in rows. Rows crowded by their 'witnesses', drawn up from all three of the groups that dwelt in Patch. His sister's entourage had one small corner to themselves, standing and sitting in an organized grouping while Saphron stood in front of them, past the barricade, and talked to them. His Knights, mostly the wounded that already had to be spared from patrols, took up another third of the seating, surrounded by a handful of Chastened from the village who were tending to them. The rest of the space was filled up by villagers, easily half of them children, who chattered excitedly to themselves - a far cry from the quiet tension of the Knights to either side.
He didn't understand how they could possibly be excited right now…
Unless, of course, they didn't understand everything that was about to happen. Or what it meant.
Gods, he'd been like that, too, once…
It made him angry.
"Lady Saphron Arc, of House Arc, Second of the Line." Ruby called out, snapping him out of his reverie where he stood in one corner of the little arena. He turned, looking up at her standing up on the raised platform, but she refused to meet his gaze. "Are you ready and do you understand what you must do?"
"Death or victory." She called back, nodding, "I will accept no other."
"Understood." Ruby called, turning back to him and… Gods, she looked so sad, it made his heart hurt to see it. Even so, she went on, "Lord Jaune Arc, of House Arc, First of the Line. Do you understand what you must do?"
"Not really." He called back, "But I haven't a choice, it seems…"
"You have to-"
"I'm ready." He snapped quietly, "I understand."
"I see…" Ruby smiled gently and sighed, looking away from him. "Then thetis shall continue until the challenger is vanquished, or yields. Begin!"
He frowned, snapped his shield up against his side, and raised his hammer by its rim as the woman turned to him, hefting her spear in two hands and frowning grimly. Resignedly. As if she already knew how this was going to go, and as much as she regretted it, accepted it. Considered it worthwhile. But she lacked the fear to be worried about losing her own life…
So she assumed she'd be the one walking away.
The arrogance made him even angrier…
He advanced slowly to meet her, shield raised high against his side, and the woman paced to the side. Sighing, he came to a stop and simply turned, keeping her in front of him as she moved and waiting. She was more lightly armored, but if he wasn't careful, all that would mean was that he'd exhaust himself faster under his heavier armor. A fact he could see she was aware of - and was unhappy he wasn't letting her play into.
Suddenly, like a match fallen to tinder, she exploded into action.
Her spear thrust in towards his face and he turned, bringing his shield up to bat it away. Just as he did, a foot slammed into the side of his ankle and he hissed, staggering to the side as his balance was thrown off, and the spear came up and around, thrusting into his bicep as he swung his hammer around, blindly trying to buy space. He hissed as the force of his own swing came down on the spear-tip and stung the inside of his arm, but managed to stay on his feet and lashed out with his shield, shoving the woman away and escaping with just the bruise to his arm.
But Saphron didn't let up - or stay on the same tact - circling to his side and swinging her spear around, slamming the hardened bracket that held the spear-tip in place against the side of his helmet. Right over his cut. Pain flared across his head and face, and Jaune snarled as a warm wetness spread out, then swore under his breath as the spear dipped down and thrust in, nearly taking out his eye before he jerked his head down, and the kettle-rim knocked the strike aside. Still she kept it up, snapping the spear around and down, into the rim of his helmet, to jerk his helmet down and force his eyes off her and then bring it around into the side of his helmet again.
"Damn it!" He snapped, swinging his shield up to force the spear away and then throwing himself forward, into her guard.
"Gah!" She backpedaled quickly, but he still managed to clip her leg with his hammer, sending her staggering away and buying him a moment to get his guard back together. Catching her breath for the briefest moment, she grunted, "You're a novice. But a quick enough thinker."
"Thanks, I-"
The moment he opened his mouth to speak, she was on him, striding to close the gap and swing her spear around towards his head. He ducked under it this time and, swearing again, charged her. His shield struck her in the chest and he rose, snapping out with his hammer to strike at the wood of her spear as she stumbled back. It didn't break, but the sudden hit made her grip slacken and she abandoned it, kicking it towards him as she backed away and yanked her knife and broadsword free.
He felt a second of satisfaction at disarming her.
Then she was on him - and he realized he probably hadn't disarmed her at all. But instead, she'd simply changed tactic herself.
He caught the swing of her sword on his shield, but had to bat away the thrust of her dagger with his gauntlet. Then, while he was distracted with that, she brought the sword up along his shield and swung it in, slamming into the side of his wounded head again and making the pain flare up anew. He cried out and she stepped to the side and in, bridging the side of the guard of the sword down on his shoulder hard enough to bruise through mail and padding, and then burying the bottom half-inch of her narrow dagger into his hip, just barely punching through the padded cloth he wore.
"Damn it!" He cried out, backhanding her with the shield and pushing her away as he turned, hammer coming around in a too-wide arc. She took advantage of it, stepped in and breaking the blow with her shoulder by catch his forearm on it, then brought the tip of her sword up, towards his face.
It missed by inches and he swore, snarled and cried out in ange all at once, hurling his shield aside to spare the weight that was slowing him-
And punched her square in the face in a strike that, finally, caught her off guard.
She backed away with a surprised cry, lip and cheek cut from his gauntlet, and he followed. She ducked his heavy hammer, but her caught her with a punch as she came up, right in the shoulder. With all his weight - and his armor helping - it forced her back and he followed, thrusting his hammer into her sternum. Even through her armor and padded cloth under, it drove the wind out of her and she buckled over it. He grabbed her by the shoulder and yanked her up-
And felt the searing pain of her knife cutting up, along his cheek and just under his eye.
"Damn it!" He backed away, hand clutching at the thin wound as it bled. She rose and followed, sword coming around-
And the doors of the Hall swung open as a man charged in and screamed, "Lord Rouge and Xiao Long are back!"
"What?!" Jaune turned, "They are?"
"Yes, my Lord!" The Militiamen said, "And pursued by Grimm! A-At least a hundred of them!"
"Damn it!" He grunted, turning and pointing out the few Knights who could walk. "See the villagers brought into the Hall! And rouse the Militia!"
"Yes, My Lord!" They snapped, rising on shaky legs and moving to do as he said, helped by Chastened and Villagers who rushed off to send out the call as well.
Turning to the man at the door, he went on, "You, too! Send runners for the patrolling forces and- Ack!"
"We are not done here!" Saphron snapped as he backpedaled, clutching the burning side of his head and turning to face her. "We've matters left unfinished!"
"Now?!" He snapped, "We have bigger concerns!"
"You are a Lord!" She snapped back, "there is nothing bigger than your honor!"
"Fuck your eyes!" He snarled, stepping in close to her while his Knights, frozen by indecision at the door, turned to watch. "And fuck your pride! I've innocent people to protect!"
"And we have-"
He snarled, grabbing her by the wrist and pressing the bloodied dagger to his throat. Eyes burning, he snarled, "Then do it and take charge! Because these people are more bloody important than either of us! Don't you understand that? If we don't put this aside and get out there, Lord Rouge dies! Tai Yang dies! And without my Knights, the village will fall!"
"You're mad!"
"No, I'm a Knight! Sworn to protect the innocent and weak!" He snarled, "And I won't suffer another Ansel and live! I'll die first! Here, out there, I don't give a Grimm Eye! So fall in or take charge, damn it!"
"You're mad… Dark-touched…" She murmured, holding the blade there for a long moment and then frowning. For a second, he thought she might do it. But finally, she yanked her arm free and turned. "Terra!"
"Ma'am?"
"Call up our calvary." She ordered, "Send them riding out- Rally whoever is outside the walls, and distract the Grimm from the retreating Knights!"
"Yes, Lady." Terra nodded, turning and barking the orders at those with her.
"Keep your Knights here." Saffron said, turning to him and nodding. "Mine are faster, and yours will be needed to defend the hall should they break through."
"Right." He nodded, turning as Ruby sprinted over, that same stinging muck in her hands. There was no gentleness now as she smeared it into his cut, stopping the blood that was getting into his eyes. While she did, he said, "We rally! To Lord Rouge's rescue!"
XxX----XxX----XxX
To this day, Grimm are a mystery to me…
The Church teaches that Grimm are nothing but beasts, born of darkness. Dumb, simple, and dangerous only for their size, numbers and ferocity. Without this, it is taught, the Grimm would have long since ceased to be. And due to this, the Grimm are simple enough to engage and, if one has the numbers and luck, to repel. For the Grimm do not skirmish. They do not withdraw and charge and wheel and adjust their approach to strike again. Even the most intelligent of Grimm are barely able to do this - and only by virtue of keeping some of their lessers away, rather than withdrawing them, because once the Grimm were embattled they wouldn't withdraw.
This is what we were taught.
And yet…
XxX----XxX----XxX
The small Ghoul, barely half his height, collapsed under the weight of his hammer-blow. It twitched, sized, and smoked as it finally gave out. Another Lesser Ghoul leapt for him, and he caught it on his shield, staggering back under the weight. Another shield, held by a Sister of his Order, braced him up and he held. As the creature slid down he wrenched the shield to the side and brought it down, shattering its shoulder. It warbled a cry and he brought his hammer up and down again, crushing its throat.
But when he brought his shield back around, ready for the next…
Nothing came.
Instead, he watched the dozen or so larger, still breathing, Ghouls turn… And lope off, back towards the forest.
"What the hell…?" He murmured, head throbbing and chest burning as he sucked in breaths. Around him, his thin line of Knights panted and breathed while they watched arrows and stones chase off the Grimm. He shook it off and raised his hammer, bellowing, "For the Brother Gods!"
"For the Light!" His Knights echoed as what was left of his sister's cavalry came in from the side, running down a pair of Ghouls with their long spears.
Exhausted, he turned and lead his Knights back as their small semi-circle of defense broke down and the gates groaned open. Chastened and villagers alike pushed past them, headed out to help the wounded and clean up the mess that had been made of the fences, fields, tents and stalls outside the walls.
Inside, the streets were crowded by wounded and dead militia-men, caught outside on his patrols when the Grimm had come and too disorganized to know what to do other than 'run'. Knights were amongst them, survivors and casualties from Lord Rouge's dispatch who hadn't made it up the hill, into better shelter, by virtue of a desperate need for more immediate care. And, unfortunately, a lower priority than some of the others among their number.
All of which ate at him…
He had just found a seat to fall into further up the hill when one of his Chastened, whose name - he regretted to admit - escaped him until he looked at her collar and sighed, "Kat?"
"My Lord." She murmured, helping him tug his helmet off and then grimacing. "Your head is-"
"I know." He grunted, more than aware of the agony etched into his flesh. "Just do what you have to."
"It will cause pain…"
"Yeah." He sighed, "I figured."
He grit his teeth when she brought a knife out, cutting out the paste that Ruby had put in earlier as gently as she could. Even so, it hurt - and bled, hot and fresh down the side of his head. It hurt, but didn't last long before Hare arrived, carrying a little bottle of a different kind of muck. It stank, and hurt almost as much as getting cut had, but he sat through it while they worked and wrapped the bandage around him.
Then they peeled the thin smear of it off his face, and Hare murmured, "Shouldn't scar… Too shallow."
"Even so, it might, Lord."
"It's fine." He grunted, watching villagers flit by, working quickly on this and that, trying to restore order to the settlement now the danger had passed. "Just get it cleaned and covered."
"Yes, Lord." They both parroted quietly, setting to work.
No sooner had they finished did he spot Terra, bloodied and with her arm in a sling, coming towards him. As they backed away, he forced himself to stand on legs of lead and grunted, "Yes, what is it?"
"Your business with my Lady was not finished."
"Are you joking?" He snapped, "She wants me now?"
"Yes." Terra growled, "She does. And you will come."
"If I don't?"
"You'll be a criminal. Marked for death." She answered, flicking a look past him, to his Chastened. "Along with your servants."
Damn it - she was using his kindness towards them as a weapon? He supposed he should have expected that at some point. But that didn't make it any less galling. Any less infuriating.
So,with a scowl, he waved her on and grunted, "Lead the way."
She did, leading him up to the Great Hall, where Lord Rouge, leg splinted and bandaged, and Tai Yang, who looked remarkably uninjured even if he was filthy, paused to pay him polite nods as he passed. They didn;t stop him, though, too busy discussing whatever they were about the next stage of handling the Grimm. Or he assumed that was what they were talking about - he couldn't think of what else they could be so invested in, after all.
Terra lead him down, into the sub-floors of the Hall, and to one of the rooms he'd passed earlier. It was flanked by a pair of the exhausted cavaliers Saphron had come with, who nodded as Terra stepped in front of them and reached for the door.
"I should warn you," Terra paused, pulling the door open, "It… Is not good news."
"How do you mean…?
Inside, the room was a mess of scattered armor, clothes, and ripped fabrics, with Saphron laying at the back.
She was laid out on the bed, wrapped all across her left side in bandages and with her legs propped up on pillows. One arm had been bandaged tightly against her chest, with a riding coat thrown over her for modesty for her bare chest, and her stomach was a mess of red bandages. Red that was slowly, steadily, creeping out. Her other arm, though…
It ended halfway down her bicep.
"What-"
"We charged." Terra explained, sitting at the head of the bed and reaching out to run her fingers through Saphron's dirtied hair. "To divert away from some fleeing militia. Saphron's horse… A Ghoul got its claws into it, and she fell, and they were on her before we could recover and turn."
"Gods…" He looked down at the woman as she blinked wearily, turning to look up at him. Shaking his head, he said, "I'm… Sorry."
"Why?" She rasped, "This means… You win."
"I wanted everyone to live." He said, "Not to win some… Stupid noble game."
"You… Would call it that." She rasped, then sighed a long, rattling sigh. "At least… I didn't have to kill you."
"You… Probably would have won, you know." He admitted, grimacing, "You were better than I was."
"I know." She murmured, "I…. Have years of training… More than you. Never stood a chance. That's why I- Hrk."
"Shhh." Terra cooed, leaning over the woman as the coughing fit took her. "You need to rest."
"Rest won't matter…" The woman said quietly, "Jaune… Brother… Our match didn't end."
"You want to fight? Now?" He scoffed, "In your condition?"
"No." She murmured, "I yield my claim. O-Officially."
"What…?"
"She yields her claim." Terra repeated, "You fled the combat, good reason or not. But you fled, legally. Yielding protects you from that. And anchors your claim. I… We spoke to Lord Rouge already, while you fought. He will back you."
"I see." It seemed so… Unimportant, now, looking at the obviously dying woman. And he knelt, shaking his head. He choked and forced himself to breathe, "Don't worry about that. Just… You need to rest, Saph."
"Saph." The woman snorted, "Always wanted… A nickname like that, you k-know."
"I…" The woman started to cough, and Terra was on her, smoothing her hair out and murmuring soft, encouraging words. Words that a mere Lady ought not offer another, and Jaune stood. He didn't understand them, but…
Whatever it was that he couldn't grasp, would die with them, and he turned to leave them to it.
"Damn it all…" He snapped as the door closed. Turning, he slammed a fist into the wall hard enough to splinter the wood and send pain lancing up his arms. He ignored it, murmuring to himself, "How…. Is it my fault? My orders?"
Or had he exhausted her with the fight…?
"Jaune?" He turned, looking at Ruby a few feet away, and grunted. "Father and, uh, Lord Rouge want to see you?"
"Why?"
"The, uh, Grimm." She said, "They need help planning a Hunt to finish them off."
"With what men?!" he snapped, flinching when Ruby did. Quietly, he said, "I'm sorry, Ruby, I…"
"It's okay." She smiled, "Long day."
"Yeah…" He sighed, "Come on, then. Let's get this done."
She nodded and walked beside him, and Gods, but his head hurt. It was all just… So much, and all so, so stupid.