A smile appeared on Titania’s face, as she sensed some of Malice’s old carefree attitude return. Perhaps the battle was an escape; a hole in the ice from whence he could escape the frigid waters of his looming burden.
Yet while his careless and simple words did bring her joy, another part of her seemed to resent them.
Never late!? How’s six hundred and ninety nine years?
Wherever the strange impulse came from, she shook it off and smiled at her friend.
“What do you say we try something to really make these demons run?”
He smirked and nodded “Just what I was thinking.”
Her hands slowly moving apart, she formed a burst of white fire between them, before raising it up. With his usual speed, Malice, moved backward, and held out his palms, his fingers spread wide from each other. With precision, a spiral of wind shot from his hands and coursed through the orb Titania had formed. In less than a second, the magic burst into a million pieces, carried by sharp and bitter winds. Demons screamed and cried as the new and mysterious spell flew at them like dragons and cut through their flesh like knives.
As if both pleased and surprised by their own accomplishments, the two smiled at each other and continued to fight. For a moment it seemed as if as long as they were nearby, the demons could not advance, and as long as they stood strongly together, they could not be killed.
*
“Sir!” cried one of the wretched to his commander.
Pulling his eyes away from the battle, General Hige Toboe turned to stare at his addresser “What is it? Can’t you see I’m busy?”
“The city seems to have called reinforcements. We’re going to have to retreat if they continue on like this!”
Hige was silent for a moment, knowing that every moment he spent thinking would be a moment where more men met their deaths.
“Which direction is the wind blowing?” he asked after a while.
“Excuse me?”
“Which direction is the wind blowing!?”
“…west, sir.”
“Light as many fires as possible in the eastern wood. Humans may have the advantage in their own land, but they have weak eyesight compared to our men, and cannot survive long in smoke.”
*
Syne thrust her sword forward, its heavy blade adding to her own inherent strength.
“This is thy first battle in this world?” asked Glenn.
“It is…” Syne answered, bluntly, her concentration so heavily given to the fight.
“Save thy energy. The soldiers with whom we battle are only the lowest of their men. There are greater monsters that they are waiting to release.”
Syne nodded as she drove her blade into an enemy’s skull, cutting him down the centre before turning him to ash.
“What was the pervert doing here earlier?” she shouted to Glenn, sure to be loud so he could hear her.
“Mine own mind has not an idea.”
“Why isn’t he here now? Shouldn’t he be?”
“He is hiding.”
“Why? He has plenty of skills! Wouldn’t it make more sense for him to be here?”
Glenn paused in realization, blood on his dry lips “…it would…”
*
“A good distraction, my lord.” Hector said as he watched the battle with his master “They will be so busy they will never notice. And what’s more, with the smoke that’s coming, they’ll never see what you’ve done until it’s too late.”
Kani nodded, and laughed “Tell the soldiers at the shore that there will be so many human bodies on the ground by nightfall, they’ll only have to walk steps to find their supper.”
*
Titania coughed as the air became hazy and stung at her eyes “Malice, are you still here?”
“I am!” he shouted, the smoke eating away at him from the inside so that he could not breath properly.
“Where are you? I can’t see!”
He raised his hand to summon the wind, but no matter how strong the gust, the smoke simply re-gathered.
“Get out of here or you’ll choke!” he shouted, coughing, as he began to stumble away, his feet sliding in the wet mud "Forget about finding me, just g-!"
Suddenly, he received a heavy blow to the stomach. By impulse, he raised his eyes, taking in the shadowy and terrible sight of Kani.