Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.

Again, I'd like to thank Guri for beta reading this for me. Thanks a ton dude.


Struggles of Power
Chapter 2: Incursion
The next few days were found to be fairly uneventful for Aelrios. He had decided to stay in or near the castle for the most part, hoping to catch his brother for a bit of conversation. Their last encounter had left him feeling slightly rattled, and it was his hope that they could quickly sort out whatever it was that had his brother acting so belligerent. Unfortunately, he hadn’t had much luck finding him. It was as if he’d disappeared from the castle. Nobody had seen him, and his room was always locked with no response.

After three days without seeing even a hint of Raethus around the castle, he finally decided to see if his father could provide any insight to his disappearance, and after one last attempt at knocking on Raethus’s door, he walked over to the King’s. A few knocks later, the door promptly swung open, revealing his father.

“Aelrios? What can I do for you son?” he asked, noting his sons slightly serious demeanor.

“I’m sorry to bother you father, but have you seen Raethus around lately? He seemed to be upset when we last met, and I’d like to find out what it is that has him so bothered.”

“Hmmm...I’m afraid I haven’t seen him since our discussion of the Helreoux. He’s probably just out training, wanting to prepare for the oncoming conflict. Though he’ll probably be back in time for tomorrow’s festivities, so you’ll have your chance to speak with him then.”

“Festivities…?”

The King rose an eyebrow at his sons questioning look. “Surely you jest! You couldn’t possibly have forgotten your own birthday!”

It took Aelrios a moment to realize that his father was right, it was his birthday tomorrow! With a nervous chuckle, he gave his father a quick nod. “Heh, I truly had not remembered. With all that is happening as of late, it must have slipped my mind. But are you sure that a celebration is necessary at a time like this?”

“Of course it is! No need to be modest, son.” He gave Aelrios a cheerful slap on the back, almost knocking him over. “Regardless, we and the people of this kingdom could use a chance for celebration these days.”

“I can’t argue with that, now can I?” he replied, smiling as he regained his footing. “I’m sure I’ll see Raethus tomorrow then, and we can settle whatever it is that’s on his mind. Well, I’ll see you in the morning father. I’m going to turn in early today.”

“Alright son, sleep well.” With that, the King gave a curt nod and shut his door.

Aelrios quickly made for his room, collapsing onto his bed and quickly succumbing to exhaustion after his long day of searching.


* * *


The next evening, a great celebration shook the feasting hall of the castle. Loud melodies were carried throughout the large chamber as various bards and minstrels performed, flagons were being constantly drained and refilled with mead, large platters of various cuisine littered the tables, and all the nobles, knights, and other castle residents were chatting away with one another. There were quite a few pokemon indulging themselves as well, seated in groups of their own so that they could converse with one another.

Aelrios looked around from his seat at the royal table, pleased that everybody seemed to be having a good time. He brought his attention back to his own table, lined with Dukes, Earls, and other respected nobles. His father was seated beside him at the head of the royal table, and Raethus was across from him, pint in hand and appearing bored and uninterested with the occasion. Aelrios was glad that he was in attendance, and hoped that he would have the chance to speak with him later. On his other side, Vylria sat on the floor -- too large to fit in a seat. She looked up from her plate of various berries, giving him a friendly look for a moment before returning to her meal.

At that moment, King Verahn arose, and silence quickly washed over the hall. He looked around for a short moment, giving a broad smile to all the guests.

“Is everybody enjoying themselves?” he asked in a loud voice, addressing the entire room. A loud cheer resounded through the hall in reply, eliciting a small chuckle from the King. “I am glad to hear it. And what better time for celebration is there than my own son’s nineteenth birthday!” He gestured towards Aelrios, who gave an embarrassed wave at the applause that followed. “As you all know, we may find ourselves in the midst of war in the near future. Although, it brings me great pride to inform you that my son Aelrios has decided to join our men in defending our kingdom, along with his friend Vylria!” The cheering this time was even louder than before, thundering throughout the room. Vylria gave a polite wave, placing her now-empty plate on the table. As the cheering went on, Raethus harrumphed, crossing his arms. The king then turned to address Aelrios directly.

“I know you will put your abilities to good use in the protection of our realm, and in light of these events, I have a gift that you may find to be quite useful.” He motioned for a servant to come forward, bearing a long wooden case. Aelrios moved to get up, but his father motioned for him to stay seated, bringing the box to his son himself after receiving it from the servant. Aelrios gently accepted the case, admiring the smooth feel of the polished surface for a moment before placing it on the table before him, slowly unlatching the side. All the nearby guests -- including Raethus -- inched forward, trying to get a glimpse at what was inside.

He finally opened the lid, revealing a beautifully crafted sword, complete with an equally sized sheath lying beside it. His eyes went wide upon seeing the radiant weapon within, and he gently lifted the sword out to inspect it. It had a strong, double-edged blade, which had a very slight green tint. Near the base of the blade there was an engraving, depicting a roaring flygon. The hilt was wide and thick, and resembled a pair of flygon wings. On the pommel of the sword sat a large red ruby, sparkling like a star in the night. The sheath itself was rather plain by comparison, aside from the two rubies encrusted near the opening -- one on each side.

The King stood beside him, amused at his expression. “I had that commissioned by the greatest smith in our Kingdom. She refuses to tell how she gave the blade its color and light weight, but she guarantees that it will hold strong and retain its edge for many years.”

Vylria leaned over his shoulder, admiring the weapon with him. As he lifted it into the air for everyone to see, a series of “oohs” and “aahs” filled the room. He stood up and took a few steps back from the table, giving it a few experimental swings. To his amazement, it felt perfect in his grasp. The blade itself was slightly longer than three feet, and it felt no heavier than a standard longsword. The sword’s handle was just long enough to be held with both hands comfortably should the wielder choose to do so, though it doesn’t impede the use of a single hand. Satisfied with the feel of the weapon, he approached the table, sliding the sword into its sheath and holding it with reverence.

King Verahn chuckled and said with mirth, “Soon all of Helreoux will learn to fear that blade, along with its inspiritive companion.” He gave Vylria a quick nod before continuing. “With every hero, comes a heroic weapon. Carve out your future with that sword, and let the very sight of it invoke terror within the enemies of Zelthysta!”

Aelrios felt winded from the weight of the King’s brief speech, but after a few short breaths, he managed to stammer out a few words. “It is an extraordinary gift, father. Thank you. I’ll endeavor to meet your expectations.” The guests applauded once again, and the King clasped Aelrios’s shoulder.

“And now...” Verahn addressed the guests. “I think I will retire for the night. But please, feel free to stay as long as you like. Make merry and drink until the mead runs dry!”

With a wave of his hand, the music resumed, and the commotion of various voices filled the air once again as he departed from the hall, leaving them to feast as they pleased. Aelrios leaned forward and buckled his new sword to his belt, before looking up to notice that his brother’s seat was now empty. Figuring he’d see him again at some point before the night was over, he began to wander the hall, spending his time talking and drinking with various guests. Vylria always stayed nearby rather than being with the other pokemon, not wanting to be too far from him.

He soon found himself seated at a table full of knights, who were swapping stories of valor and bravery. Zavach had just finished recounting his tale of besting a machamp in hand-to-hand combat, to which many of his fellow knights doubted. Aelrios listened intently as they continued with their various stories, not even bothering to try and sort out the truth from the fiction. When it came to be his turn, he recounted a time when he and Vylria were ambushed by a group of wild luxray, telling the knights of how they had managed to defeat them together despite being caught by surprise. They all listened intently, praising them both upon hearing the story.

As a new story was begun, Aelrios excused himself from the table, searching for a flagon that was not empty in order to refill his pint. As his search brought him to an empty table, Raethus appeared from behind and seated himself, gesturing for Aelrios to join him. He made his way to the other side of the table, sitting across from his brother.

“You know, it almost seems as if you’re excited about fighting in a war.” Raethus said, downing the last gulp of mead from his pint before setting it down onto the table with more force than was necessary. Aelrios regarded him for a moment, noticing that he was a bit unsteady in his seat and had a dazed expression. “Bet’cha can’t wait to use that new sword of yours to ‘carve out your future’ with.”

“You know I don’t enjoy needless violence. I just want to defend the people of this kingdom.”

“S’wait, lemme get this straight. Stop the violence with...violence? Seems to me that if everyone would just agree to combine under one banner, then everything would work out for the better.”

“I do agree...but when it comes to the Helreoux, they are trying to enact that notion through force and fear, which prevents the unity that combining under one banner should bring. And besides, even if we were to surrender and unite with the Helreoux, they would just end up using us to fight for them in their inevitable continued expansion. So it matters not what we choose to do, we will have to fight one way or another. At least fighting against them now might prevent them from violently slaughtering innocents here and in other lands.”

Raethus stared into Aelrios’s eyes for a long moment, before scoffing. “You think you are so much better than everybody else, don’t you?” He thrust a finger towards him, the motion almost causing him to push into the table. “You think you know how to solve all of our problems. But you’re just going to end up as another nameless soldier, sent to die on the field. Nothing more. You may be a good swordsman, but you should know your place and leave politics to true nobility.”

He sat in silence for a moment, almost looking as if he regretted that statement, before attempting to take a drink from his pint, already forgetting that it was empty. Aelrios, not quite sure how to respond, merely stared at him.

“You don’t have all the answers…” Raethus continued, “a single soldier can’t save the kingdom like some big sword-swinging hero. It is folly to believe otherwise.”

With that, he turned, stood on unsteady feet, and stumbled out of the feasting hall, leaving Aelrios sitting at the table alone.

After his brother left, he merely sat at the table, gazing blankly around the room. He noticed Vylria standing across the room amidst a crowd of other pokemon that were trying to get her attention. She was looking in the direction his brother had taken, then towards him, looking confused.

Aelrios gave her a shrug, before returning his gaze to his table, reaching for the flagon that had brought him to this table in the first place. Sadly, it was empty.

He leaned his face down on a fist, wondering what could have possibly gotten into Raethus to cause such an outburst. He was hoping that his words were only being fueled by the amount of mead he had downed, and that they could sort out the encounter once they were both more sober.

His thoughts were hastily interrupted as a pair of very ravishing and buxom women approached, sitting themselves on either side of him as they fixed him with seductive stares. They wore matching dresses and had very similar features, though one had blonde hair while the other was a brunette. Aelrios looked back and forth between them, unable to utter a word as he admired their beauty.

After a few moments, the blonde leaned in close to him and broke the silence, whispering directly into his ear.

“Greetings, my lord...My sister and I would like to wish you a happy birthday...”

Her head remained close as another whisper graced his other ear, sending shivers down his spine.

“Yes, and we think you will be most satisfied with our gift...”

He couldn’t help the stupid grin that forced itself upon his face as he glanced back and forth at the sisters, who took the initiative to cling to him simultaneously, sandwiching him. Though this was definitely unexpected, he couldn’t possibly pass on such an opportunity, immediately aroused at the feeling of their voluptous breasts pressing against him from both sides.

Vylria saw the two women approach Aelrios, and had been watching with a growing intensity as they made their move on him. It was obvious to her what they wanted -- she could even smell it -- but she refused to just sit there and watch as the one she loved was taken from her in such a way. However, she didn’t actually know what to do. Her thoughts were racing, and she knew that she would regret it forever if she didn’t stop him.

His heart was pounding, never having been propositioned in such a way before, and it appeared that these women were willing to give him a first-time to remember. Trying to regain control of his thoughts for the moment, he cleared his throat and placed an arm around each of them, giving them a sly smile.

“Well ladies, t’would be quite rude of me to decline such a generous offer. What say we go somewhere a bit more...comfortable?”

“That sounds --” the brunette started, before being interrupted by a soft growling noise.

The three of them simultaneously turned their heads back, seeing a very angry-looking flygon hunching over them. Vylria glanced back and forth between the two ladies, punctuating her glares with a rising snarl, baring her teeth and flexing her claws in an attempt to look as intimidating as possible.

It worked.

The two women shakily stood from their seats, backed away, then quickly ran off, their confusion as to why the dragon was angry taking a backseat to their sudden fear. Aelrios just sat there staring at her as her growl died down, before she turned and walked a short distance away, not wanting to face him.

Confusion was beginning to give way to annoyance. He shot up and trudged over to where Vylria stood.

“Vylria, what was that all about?!? Why would you do something like that? Do you even know what you just did? You lost me the night of my life!”

She just stood there, refusing to face him. He continued to let his agitation grow, not understanding what reason she could have possibly had to do such a thing. He put a hand on her shoulder and pulled, causing her to turn her head towards him.

He was met with a tearing gaze, her body beginning to quiver as she emitted the slightest of whines, barely audible over the continued noise of the celebration around them.

Upon seeing her begin to break down, his anger was dropped in an instant, replaced with confusion and worry. He tightened his grasp on her shoulder slightly, walking around to face her fully. She immediately looked down at the floor, her tears beginning to stream and pool at the bottom of her red lenses.

“Hey...what’s wrong Vylria...? What’s going on?”

She suddenly lunged forward, locking him in a tight embrace. She didn’t know what to do. She had succeeded at preventing those women from having their way with him, but where did that leave her now? She greatly wished that she could speak with him.

He gently returned her hug, rubbing her back gently in an attempt to soothe her, wondering what to make of the situation.

Did I miss something...? She obviously didn’t like those women for some reason, and wanted them to leave me alone, but that doesn’t explain the crying...
He heard her sniffles slowly subside into a deep breathing, but she didn’t seem to want to let go of him yet.

Maybe...maybe she just thinks she’s looking out for my best interest, not wanting me to go off and have sex with random strangers...and she thinks that I’m angry with her for doing what she thought was right.
That must be it.

He felt like he understood the situation a little better now, and he gently pushed her away, bringing a hand to her face to make her look him in the eye. Her tears had stopped, but she still looked incredibly sad as she met him with a strained stare. He gave her a reassuring smile, unable to find it in himself to be mad at her, even if her actions did annoy him greatly.

“Look...I’m not mad at you, alright? I’m just...a bit agitated, but I think I know why you did what you did.”

Her eyes quickly widened, and her heart skipped a beat. His gaze seemed to pierce right through her as her thoughts raced to come to terms with the situation.

Oh no, I knew that this was too far! This was not how I wanted him to discover my feelings...why did I let my jealousy get to me like this? There had to have been a better way to handle that.
Her claws were shaking again as she held his gaze, ready to accept his judgement of her love. He crossed his arms and took a deep breath, and she lost her nerve; she looked down and clenched her eyes shut.

“I know that you feel like you must look out for me, but trust me, I can handle myself. I am perfectly capable of making my own decisions. I’m not some child that must be guided and watched over, okay? I do appreciate your concern, but please, do not coddle me.”

For a moment, she was not able to make sense of his statement. She was almost positive that he had caught wind of why she had chased those women off and had angrily rejected her love, but it seems he thought that she was merely being overprotective! Relief washed over her almost immediately, and she brought her head back up to give him a deliberate nod, playing along with his conclusion.

Not only did I succeed in chasing off those harlots, but I also got away with it without exposing my feelings in such a manner. I still have a chance, but I need to act soon before this happens again.
“Thanks for understanding, Vylria.” He dropped his arms and flashed her a smile. “Well, now that that’s out of the way, how about we return to the celebration at hand?” He quickly glanced around in search of the two women, but they appeared to be gone for good. He quickly found the nearest source of mead, downing it quickly before mingling with the various guests once again. She merely watched, smiling as she crossed her arms and shook her head.

Managed to dodge an arrow there...Happy birthday, Aelrios.
As the revelry continued throughout the night, the large chamber had at last begun to die down, with many of the guests passing out in various places. Aelrios was no exception; he ended up passed out on the floor near his original seat. Vylria too had been getting sleepy, and she slid down next to him, lifting his head to rest on her tail as she curled around him protectively. She silently bid him good night, before succumbing to exhaustion as well.

* * *

“Everyone! Wake up! Prince Raethus is gone, and there are signs of a struggle in his chamber!”

The shout resounded through the room, and people began to shuffle around and moan, grumpily awakening from their slumber. A servant was running between the tables, repeating himself like he didn’t know what else to do.

Aelrios began to stir, bringing an arm up to shield the light from his eyes. For a brief moment, he was unsure of where he was; his head hurt, his ‘pillow’ was moving, and he felt a warm presence against him, a stark contrast to the cold floor against his back. He quickly gathered his thoughts and remembered the night prior, sitting up to see what the commotion was about. Vylria -- who had been awakened much more quickly by the mans yelling -- sat up and stretched, opening her mouth wide in a great yawn. They both turned their attention to the servant that was running around and yelling, finally registering what he was saying. Aelrios quickly stood up, eyes wide and heart racing.

A maid ran into the feasting hall upon hearing the servant yelling, leaning against the closest table as she caught her breath.

“I saw him leaving the castle this morning, wearing his armor! I didn’t think anything of it at the time. I thought he was just going somewhere to train. Do you think something happened?” she shouted, looking around the now-alert crowd.

With a quick nod to Vylria, Aelrios made his way through the stirring group of guests, wading through to the maid.

“Did you see where he went?” he asked, getting the maids attention once he broke through the crowd.

“I’m sorry, but no m’lord. I know he left the castle, but I haven’t a clue where he was headed.”

Cursing, he turned and ran into one of the many connecting halls, hurrying towards Raethus’ chambers. Upon seeing Aelrios rush into the castle, Vylria made her way to the large doors that acted as an entrance from the outside, stretching her wings to take off once clear of the castle walls. She circled around above, looking around for any signs of Raethus.

Aelrios arrived to see the door to his brother’s room already open, with the King pacing around inside, maneuvering around the various items scattered on the floor. He walked inside and joined his father in inspection, noting that nothing seemed to be missing, aside from Raethus’ armor and weapons. There were a number of scrolls and open books haphazardly tossed to the floor beside the desk that Raethus had often studied at. Many of the desks drawers were tossed, and a splash of ink against the wall above the shattered remains of an inkwell marked where it had been thrown. In fact, many of the books along the floor seemed to have been thrown against a wall. Even his bed had not escaped the destruction, having multiple repeated slash marks across it, seemingly from a sword.

All-in-all, it didn’t look too much like a struggle, but rather a mess purposely caused in anger -- perhaps an alcohol-induced temper tantrum.

The King finally tore his gaze from the disarray and looked to Aelrios with confused eyes.

“Do you know what happened here? Where is your brother?”

Aelrios gave up on finding anything that would lead them to Raethus, and turned to face his father. “According to one of the maids, he left the castle early this morning, clad in armor and fully armed. However, she did not see where he was heading upon exiting.”

“Did something happen last night?”

“Well, he approached me and started talking about the war, but something about him seemed off. He was overtly hostile, and had been drinking quite a bit, it seemed. My guess is that his mind was still addled when he left.”

The King furrowed his brow in a frown, and resumed his pacing. “This may be a problem. There are many dangers facing a drunk man on his own should he leave the city walls. He may even endanger others, if he is armed as you say.”

Aelrios nodded in agreement, turning to the door.

“Worry not, father. Vylria and I shall find him by nightfall.” And with that, he took off, heading for the main gates. The King gave a heavy sigh, before returning to his search, hoping to find something that would explain Raethus’s actions.

Once Aelrios stepped outside, it was only a matter of seconds before Vylria landed nearby.

“Any sign of Raethus?”

She only shook her head, lowering herself so that he could reach her back. He swiftly leapt onto her, barely managing to get a firm grasp before she launched up into the air.

As they began their airborne search, Vylria decided to start by circling the castle, giving it a wide birth and flying at a low altitude. It was midafternoon, so Raethus could be anywhere within the city by now, or even beyond. They both gazed down into the city streets, scanning for any sign of the prince. She glanced back, seeing the anxious expression on her companion’s face. She hated seeing him like this, and it only fueled her desire to help. She turned her attention back to the city and continued her slow flight, rounding the castle.

That’s when they saw it.

Beyond the city walls, large pillars of smoke were piercing the horizon, clouding the area and spreading to cover the surrounding fields. They weren’t able to make out much more from that distance, but Vylria immediately accelerated towards the smoke.

Fires weren’t too uncommon, but the amount of smoke indicated that this was more than just a small accidental blaze. He struggled to see through the black haze as they approached, the widespread fire now visible through the smog. A number of houses were ablaze, spreading to various crops nearby, but that was all that they could see from above.

Vylria looked back to Aelrios, emitting a warble and pointing a claw downward. He quickly nodded, and shielded his face before they descended through the layer of smoke. The sounds of fighting were barely audible through the crackling flames as Vylria quickly landed.

The sight that greeted them caused a swirl of emotions: Confusion, sadness, anger, and a small amount of fear.

Before them, there were a number of lifeless bodies strewn across the field. Men, women, and even children who failed to escape whatever madness had befallen this area. Some of them were aflame, and others were covered in slashing wounds.

Suddenly, a soldier dashed out from behind a burning house, screaming at Aelrios. He appeared to be one of the town sentries, and had his weapon in-hand.

“Help! Its the Helreoux! Call for reinforceme-- AAAAAHHH!”

A large gout of fire burst from behind the house, slamming into the man and causing him to scream out in pain, tossing on the ground in a mad frenzy. His plate armor did nothing to stop the heat, cooking him alive within.

Aelrios started to run forward to try and help him, but a loud growl stopped him in his tracks. Vylria stood close by and let out a vicious growl of her own. The unknown snarl was joined by another, and then two Houndoom rounded the building, baring their teeth.

“Hey, we got another over here! And a pokemon!”

Sparring a quick glance away from the houndoom, Aelrios found the source of this new voice, spotting three soldiers clad in black plate armor running towards them. They each held a longsword and tower shield, charging forward in a line. They grouped up with the houndoom and readied their weapons.

Without warning, the houndoom both spat out a Flamethrower, one at each of them. Aelrios quickly rolled to the side, avoiding the deadly flame, and Vylria met the other with a large Sand-Attack, dissipating the fire before it could reach her.

Aelrios quickly rose to his feet and drew his blade, holding it with both hands. One of the soldiers and a houndoom approached him, while the rest of them attempted to keep Vylria busy.

She shot Aelrios a worried glance. She knew that he could hold his own in a fight, but there was no telling what could happen when other pokemon were involved. She didn’t have time to come up with a plan, however, and as Aelrios engaged his two opponents, her two soldiers rushed her, the houndoom running around to flank her.

She quickly whipped up a Sand Tomb and trapped the houndoom within the swirling sands; the fire type would be hard-pressed to escape that without injury. Immediately after her attack, her two human opponents split up and ran at her from different sides, slowing their approach with raised shields as they neared her. She backed up slowly, not wanting to allow them different angles of attack.

Aelrios caught a glimpse of sand erupting around the houndoom near Vylria, before the sound of footsteps brought him back to his own fight. The soldier ran at him, shield raised, and thrust his sword forward at Aelrios. He managed to sidestep the attack, hearing a small rip as the sword pierced through his clothing mere millimeters from his skin. Before he could retaliate, the houndoom rushed forward and tackled him, knocking him to the floor. He regained his senses in time to see the enemy’s gleaming blade once again thrusting at his gut, and he rolled over twice, avoiding the stab and gaining some distance. He rolled to his feet and raised his blade, trying to figure out how to take the fight to them. He couldn’t just dodge and block his way to victory.

Vylria launched herself upward as the soldiers closed in on her, hovering just out of their reach, and quickly launched a Dragon Breath at one of them. He initially held fast against the attack, planting his feet firmly and ducking behind his shield, but it wasn’t long before he was thrown back, tumbling to the ground and dropping both his weapon and shield. The other soldier held his ground, preparing to face an attack and glancing back at his comrade. Before Vylria could unleash another attack, a Flamethrower hit her square in the back. Apparently the houndoom had escaped her sands faster than she thought it would. Though her skin was resistant to fire, it had still hurt. She turned to face the pokemon, still hovering out of the soldier’s reach. It leapt up at her, baring its fiery fangs, but she grabbed it by the neck before its attack made contact, holding it above her before shooting it in the face with a Dragon Breath, launching it a short ways into the air before it came crashing down into the ground. She spared a quick look over at Aelrios, seeing that he was still okay, but barely holding his own. One of the nearby soldiers shouted something, and she turned to see that the closest soldier was now pointing up at her while running back towards a fenced area, where the one she had hit earlier was crouched down, taking aim at her with a bow.

Aelrios had been stuck on the defensive. Between the relentless attacks of his heavily-armored opponent and the constant bursts of fire from the houndoom, he was having a difficult time keeping himself in this fight. He quickly patted out a small singe on his tunic, keeping his sword raised and his eyes on his opponents. Perhaps it was time for a change in tactics. He focused his attention on the houndoom. If he could manage to avoid the soldier for a short time and take out the houndoom, then he was confident that victory would be his. It was just a matter of getting close to the agile fire hound and hoping that it would engage in melee combat, all while avoiding sword swings and torrents of fire.

Aelrios sighed.

After ducking beneath a swipe of the soldier’s blade, he countered with a few slashes of his own, only to be blocked by the shield. Suddenly, he raised his blade high, feigning an overhead strike. When the knight rose his shield to block the strike, Aelrios dropped his stance and kicked out at his midsection. His blow barely managed to stagger his opponent, but it gave him an opportunity to lunge at him with his shoulder and tackle him to the ground. He reasoned that the houndoom wouldn’t shoot fire at him when it would risk injuring the soldier.

He was right.

The houndoom merely stood and watched from a short distance, waiting for an opportunity to help. It didn’t have to wait long though. As soon as Aelrios had the soldier on the ground, he immediately rolled off and stood up, not willing to engage his armored opponent in such close quarters. Knowing that the soldier wouldn’t be able to get to his feet as quickly, he dashed straight towards the houndoom, who launched a short burst of fire at him. Aelrios dove to the floor as the flames shot overhead, the houndoom unable to see the result of the attack until it ended. Once the fire had stopped, he bolted forward to continue his sprint towards the fire hound.

The downed soldier managed to get to his feet in time to see his Houndoom lash out at the prince. It leapt towards him, baring flaming fangs. However, Aelrios quickly sidestepped as soon as the pokemon’s feet had left the ground, spinning and swinging his blade right into the airborne hound’s back in one fluid motion, slicing right in between two of its bone-like ridges. The injured Houndoom crashed into the ground with a loud yelp before the soldier could even attempt to close the distance. He made a mad dash towards his bleeding pokemon, but was far too slow, encumbered by his heavy equipment. He had no choice but to watch as Aelrios pointed his sword down at the writhing Houndoom, swiftly ending its misery with a short thrust.

Knowing he had little time to dwell on the fact that he just taken a life, Aelrios brought his attention to the incoming soldier once again, swinging his reddened sword into a sideways stance as he began to circle around his now-single opponent.

Overhead, Vylria began to dart around in the air, trying throw off the aim of the two soldiers, both now armed with bows. They were alternating fire, keeping her hard pressed to advance on them. As she twisted around, a few arrows made glancing blows and left her with small cuts, but thankfully they have yet to make direct contact with her. In the midst of her constant dodging, she frantically tried to trap them within a Sand Tomb. To her relief, the stream of arrows had ceased, a small vortex of sand enveloping the area around the two enemy soldiers. She quickly flew towards them, concentrating to unleash an Earth Power attack within the swirling sands. Soon, two screams and a rocky explosion were heard from inside the small sandstorm. She allowed the Sand Tomb to dissipate early, now seeing two motionless figures lying among some rocky rubble. As she turned to check on Aelrios, a heavy weight landed on her back, and a sharp pain shot through her left shoulder. She craned her neck back, seeing the Houndoom from earlier latched onto her shoulder with its fangs, a small amount of blood beginning to trickle from the wound.

“Do you ever give up!?” she roared out in pokespeak, before reaching back to grab at it’s neck with her claws, steadily applying more pressure. It wasn’t long before it let go, yelping in pain as she began to pierce it’s skin. With the hound now frantically flailing in her grasp, she flew straight up a short distance, and without a second thought, threw the pokemon down to the ground, wincing and grasping her shoulder with her other claw.

Aelrios continued to slowly strafe around his heavily-armored foe, sword held at his side. He knew that speed and accuracy would play a large role in this fight. The enemy’s armor only had a couple of weaknesses -- a crevice between the helm and breastplate, and small openings at each armpit. These were the only places he could strike at to harm his opponent while armed with only a sword, unless he managed to unhelm him.

Fully aware of his defensive advantage, the soldier began to advance on Aelrios, shield up and sword at the ready. As soon as he was within range, he thrust his sword out at the prince, who parried with his own sword. However, he immediately followed up with a shield bash, knocking him off-balance. Pressing the advantage, he slashed at him from the side, ready to take revenge for his fallen Houndoom.

Aelrios knew he wouldn’t be able to dodge this strike in time, so in a last-ditch effort, he brought his sword up to block the brunt of the blow, though part of the sword cut into his arm, resulting in a shallow wound. Ignoring the pain, he knocked the enemy’s sword away and made a swift thrust at the soldier’s exposed spot beneath his sword arm. Unfortunately, the soldier managed to turn enough to stop the blade from piercing into his armor, and he delivered a headbutt onto Aelrios’s exposed forehead, following with a diagonal slash aimed at his neck.

Recovering quickly from the unexpected headbutt, the prince ducked immediately upon glimpsing his opponent’s next attack, dodging the blade by the slimmest of margins. This was his chance! He quickly shot up and bought his sword against the soldier’s, putting his arm against the flat of the enemy’s blade to use as leverage to disarm him. The soldier was not expecting this move, and with a quick push to the hilt of the sword, the handle flung from his grasp, his sword landing a few yards away.

Aelrios had expected him to immediately go for his fallen blade, so when the soldier threw a punch, it solidly connected with his face. He reeled back as his vision began to slightly blur. The blows he had taken were starting to take their toll. He began wildly slashing at his opponent, trying to get him on the defensive, but every blow was blocked by either his shield or armor, and he was getting nowhere. After a particularly heavy series of attacks, the prince quickly disengaged, backstepping to gain some distance.The soldier made no move to follow, however. He didn’t even go for his fallen blade. In fact, he began to laugh.

He was mocking him!

Then, he suddenly brought his shield forward and dashed towards him, intending to ram him. He was hoping that Aelrios would give in to anger and attempt a clash. However, the prince was not so easily swayed by taunting, and quickly hatched a plan. As soon as the soldier was upon him, he fell to the floor.

I hope this works!
With as much force as he could muster, he delivered a sweeping kick against the soldier’s armored legs. It hurt immensely to do such a thing, but it had worked. The soldier lost his footing and stumbled forward for a few steps before falling and rolling to the ground, landing on his back. Aelrios scrambled to his feet and ran over to his fallen adversary, wincing at the pain in this leg.

The soldier brought his shield up, but Aelrios kicked it away with his heel and swiftly stabbed his sword into the crevice at his neck with as much strength as he could muster. He immediately ceased all movement, making only a muffled gurgling noise before absolute silence.

Upon hearing a thud behind him, he quickly freed his sword and turned, aiming it’s bloody tip forward. However, all he saw was a battered Houndoom amidst a small cloud of dust, unmoving. Coming down from the adrenaline of battle, a spike of worry hit him and he quickly scanned around for Vylria and the remaining soldiers, but his concern was abated when he saw Vylria up above where the Houndoom had fallen, with no sign of any remaining enemies. Suddenly, he began to cough wildly, finally feeling the burning in his lungs due to smoke inhalation. He couldn’t stay in the area for much longer.

Vylria scanned the field below after throwing that mutt, relieved to see that Aelrios was the lone standing figure. She slowly hovered down to him, landing beside him before pulling him into a tight embrace, emitting a light warble of worry upon seeing his wounds, even though they were only minor.

He immediately returned her hug, equally happy to see that she was okay. Though, as his hand grazed against her neck, he felt her shudder, and his hand came away wet. He immediately broke her grasp and took a step back when he saw blood on his hand, giving her a concerned look.

She turned around to show him the wound on her shoulder and looked back, shaking her head and shrugging to tell him that it wasn’t serious. However, upon noticing the cut on his arm, which had begun to bleed out on his sleeve, she stepped forward and gently grasped his arm in distress. Before he could tell her that it was only a minor injury, she gave it a few quick licks, a small effort at cleaning the wound.

He gently pushed her head away, knowing that they were still in danger here, when what sounded like a scream resounded throughout the burning fields and wreckage. Both Aelrios and Vylria paused, looking around for the source of the noise. For a moment, all was quiet around them, aside from the crackling of the flames, before another scream, this time louder, reached them.

A woman was screaming for help!

It sounded like it came from the nearby trail that led towards the city walls, but it was hard to tell with the thick cloud of smoke surrounding them. He tried to ignore the pain both in his lungs and his leg for a little longer and quickly dashed towards the screams, Vylria hovering and keeping pace beside him. As they put some distance between themselves and the burning fields, they came across the path, and saw a few figures through the lingering smoke, near a house on the side of the path opposite of them.

“Please! Don’t hurt him! I’ll fight you if I have to!” The voice sounded familiar, definitely a woman, and she sounded frantic and winded.

Aelrios and Vylria quickly crossed the street, finally able to make out what was happening through the haze. Little Jero, the boy they had saved from the beedrill, was huddled against the wall of a nearby house, eyes filled with terror as he watched his mom standing above him. She had a dagger drawn, and was pointing it at a dark-armored soldier, who was slowly walking towards them, sword ready to swing!

“NOOO!!!!” Aelrios yelled, dashing forward. Vylria was faster, but she still wasn’t fast enough.

The soldier swung his sword against her dagger, knocking it aside, then thrust his sword into her abdoman, right above her son. As soon as he pulled his sword back, Vylria was upon him, grabbing him from behind and latching her jaws across his neck. Her fangs were unable to pierce through his armor, but she twisted her head and threw him against the ground -- knocking his sword and shield away -- and immediately jumped on top of him and slashed away with multiple Dragon Claws. His armor quickly dented and rent, and when one blow manage to knock his helmet off, she grabbed his throat and held tight until he stopped moving.

Aelrios had run straight towards Jero’s fallen mother, kneeling beside her. He could already tell that she wouldn’t be able to pull through after a wound like that, her breath coming in shallow pants as she looked upward at Aelrios through tearing eyes. He couldn’t hold back his own tears as she tore her gaze away from him to look at her son. He was curled into a tight ball against the house, eyes wide and fearful as he shook his head. She looked back to Aelrios, and after a fit of coughing, managed to get the words out that she desperately wanted to say.

“P- Please, Lord Aelrios, please get Jero out of here...Don’t let him die like this…” With that, she gave Jero one last look, and her breathing stopped.

Vylria stood over them, gasping when Jero’s mother grew still, emitting a sad warble.

Jero had finally found the strength to move, crawling over to his mother on shaky limbs and sobbing uncontrollably. He merely stared into her face, not willing to accept that she was gone.

Solemnly, Aelrios stood and dried his tears. Sad as it may be, there was no time for grief right now. As the wind shifted, the smoke was beginning to lift from the immediate area, but enemies were still likely to be nearby.

As if on cue, two soldiers appeared from down the path in the clearing smoke, joined by a magmar. They immediately saw Vylria and pointed, shouting. Aelrios readied his blade once again, looking down at the boy.

“Jero, you have to get out of here, now! Vylria and I cannot guarantee your safety if you linger! Make haste, please!”

Jero merely sat beside his mother, barely registering what was said. Quickly, Aelrios sheathed his sword and picked Jero up, bringing him to his feet.

“Listen, I’m sorry about your mom, but you need to move. Please, we need you to make it back to the castle and inform the king about this attack. I know that I am asking for a lot from you, but if you do not go and warn the castle, many others may die needlessly, including myself. Staying here means your mother’s sacrifice will have been for naught. Now please, go.” Somebody else had likely already gone to get help by now, but hopefully giving the boy a purpose would get him out of there.

After a brief moment, Jero finally met his gaze and gave a short nod, wiping his eyes with a sleeve. Then, after one last look at his mother, he turned and ran for the city gates.

Sighing with relief, Aelrios turned to face the oncoming threat once again, drawing his sword and holding it at his side. He spared a glance over at Vylria. She boldly stood beside him, preparing to do battle. Although the wound on her shoulder was shallow, a small amount of blood had continued to trickle down her back.

“Vylria, how you holding up…?” he asked, eyeing her injury. “Are you sure you’re okay to keep fighting?”

She gave him a firm nod, and let out a loud shriek. These guys would regret challenging Aelrios and her on this day.