A Bloody Summer Festival (4)

Zheng Meng's helmet limited his vision slightly, but he turned his head and saw only two riders following him. He turned his head more and saw a blackguard get thrown off his horse, and his lieutenant's arm being crushed by a hoof.

"Continue forward," Zheng Meng commanded, his sword making a sharp cut, the same time his horse suddenly turned and cut between two raiders. His sword released their heads from their shoulders, Zheng Mengs black brigandine and black pauldrons were marked by streams of crimson from his enemies. His horse danced between the enemy, his small oval shield and his sword weaved in and out between the raider's sword and flesh.

Men were crawling on the ground, trampled, stabbed or they had fallen from their horse while some staggered to their feet to be met with unbridled hell. He was among them, hacking and cleaving, slaying the defeated and standing with his sword crackling with electricity and turning red blood into a black stain. The Iron raiders either ran away from him or charged into him. He heard roars from the left and right of him.

On the left and right of him, he was surprised to see the same two blackguards still following him. Their brigandines and swords were marked by the crimson that trickled into the dirt. Sword in hand, they were jostling between the raiders as they moved forward. A raider was dead and a new tear appeared on their brigandine.

"I said, retreat!" Their horses went into a full sprint, riders fell from their horses as horses tumbled and crushed their riders, crashing down on the crimson brown earth, steel fell hard. Blackguardsmen were still fighting with vigor, and bravery beyond their years yet it was a losing battle.

"We die with the commander!" The Blackguard shouted. Another raider ran toward the trio, the shaft of his spear was knocked upward, following with his hand being lobbed off, following with his head being lobbed off and his chest being pierced by a purple shining spear. The trio maneuvered around the horse, ending with a spear being retrieved. Zheng Meng was laughing at the raider internally.

A raider grabbed the bridle of his horse, swung himself to the side, sword in hand, and thrust it in front of Zheng Meng's face. His shield caught the sword, He cut the raider's nose and drove his sword into their head, pulling him off his horse and wrenching his sword out of its new sheathe. The Blackguard beside him was barreling through raiders, cutting their horses, taking their arms, and impaling them on their spears.

Zheng Meng urged his mount forward, he ducked down narrowly dodging a misplaced block. The blackguard was swift in their movements, circling Zheng Meng and lancing a raider off their horse. Zheng Meng's eyes focused on a singular figure before looking right to left, the blackguard was sticking close behind but they were exhausted.

He suddenly dislodged himself from the cradle of his horse and stood on the saddle, his impeccable balance on full display as he leaped into the air.

Yi Shan only saw a black shadow pass his vision, before crisp streams of purple electricity and red hot fire collided and stung the hairs on his face. Zheng Meng landed heavily on the ground, dashing to the side with his sword and a round shield in hand. The giant, recovering his spear, spun it to the side and pointed it toward Zheng Meng as he steadied his steed.

The blackguard rode through dead corpses and maneuvered themselves through the living. From the epicenter, tree lines they could see people dispersing and the raiders and black guardsmen alike riding them down, but they could still see fighting toward the center of the road where the bodies and horses were beginning to topple on top of each other.

Yuan the blackguard shouted, "Aid the commander!" he cut off a raider, "Understood!" Jian shouted raggedly behind, he pooled his momentum, his swinging motion, and his strength into a circular cut into the raider's head, cleaving their cheek off and felling them off their horse. His arm felt numb and his body felt heavy.

"Agh!" A raider fell to the ground, a spear sticking out of his chest. Yuan spurred his horse forward and pulled the spear out of him, digging a hole out of their chest. Jian backhanded a raider, "D-don't you dare, leave me behind!" The raider's helmet was dented and they were thrown off their horse.

"Never, dream of it!" Yuan angled the spear, touching the tip all the way to the shaft it lit alight with purple light. Jian was struggling to keep up, "But you're gonna be left behind, if you don't, keep up!" Yuan suddenly punted the spear. It flew out of his hand like a ballista bolt.

Zheng Meng's face was tense as he rounded to the side, his shield catching a spear in the center of it before it rolled off. Steel rang on steel. Sparks were produced. The thrusts were quick and loose, the giant was smiling as he tossed his spear from one side to the other, Zheng Meng could barely close the distance being forced back without contest. Each movement the giant followed to the point his burning spear was blurring into a single line of flame where at a moment's notice, and unplaced steps could send Zheng Meng into hell.

The giant's spear touched the side of his spear briefly, before being sent to Zheng Meng's shoulder. Zheng Meng was too slow and his brigandine tore and was set on fire. Zheng Meng didn't pause and counter cut, The Giant didn't wait for a moment's notice and countered the cut with a well-placed warning strike to the head.

"What do you think you are?" The giant laughed merrily, "A giant?" His horse chortled and stamped its hooves on the ground.

The giant face froze, as he did he violently spun his spear up and slapped aside a purple-tipped spear. The purple light spilled out over his face, In the sudden stab of light, he was disoriented. He spun his spear violently around himself, regaining his vision a mere second after. He looked to his left and right, the battlefield still full.

He heard a crack to his right, he caught the sword on the shaft of his spear. He threw it up, his heavy hand whipping back and slamming into Zheng Meng's gut. The brigandine's plate bent backward, Zheng Meng's sword spun out of his hand, along with Zheng Meng himself, his figure slammed and rolled on the ground twice before stopping.

His brigandine had broken and his gut was aching with pain. He found that he had landed in a black puddle, a mixture of dirt and blood creating black mud. He heard a hiss and a bunch of clumping fast forward to his position. He somehow found a broken sword in front of him and found his feet again lurching forward with sword in hand, he managed to catch himself on a horse that swerved in front of him, "Storm-wielder…" Zheng Meng let out a gracious sigh.

The giant was nearing his position, however, his two guardsmen were always near him galloping side by side until one another collapsed onto the giant. Yuan grabbed the reins of his horse, his spear dipping below their nose and ramming toward the giant's steed. Jian had gripped his sword with two hands reeling above his head like a hammer and swung it toward the giant, who expertly navigated between the two and counter thrust toward Jian's chin.

Jian lurched to the side, losing his sword and grabbing the reins of his horse. He urged his steed forward, The giant ran after him, a spear in hand and their white eyes shifting the golden sun and the sparks of flame out of their lenses. Jian wished he hadn't let go of the sword in his hand, but he didn't have enough time to think as the flaming giant approached his position.

Yuan had swerved, reaching the blackguard commander easily, "Commander, we need to leave!" He offered to hoist him onto his horse. Zheng Meng slapped the hand away and with a terse shout, "Pick up the lieutenant and leave now!" He threw himself onto the horse, broken sword in hand, "I'll get your friend and both of you will leave this field! Don't disobey my orders!" He reaffirmed before galloping forward.

...

Jian felt the flames tickle his neck. He whipped his horse, "Faster!" He shouted he didn't believe it at all. This was fear, the fear of death in battle. Cold sweat poured down his skin like a fountain, his horse leaped across a fallen horse and his comrade. Men came at him from his left and right, he managed to swerve one and grab the other's spear under his armpit, tossing him off his horse.

He dashed into the treelines, there were men fleeing from the battlefield. Men slumped on trees, raiders off horses with spears in hand pinning them to trees. The battle had ended. The whooshing of flames came closer to his ear, he slipped behind a tree. Low hanging tree branches threatened to throw him off his horse, he shuffled them away with his spear.

"Blackguard!" The giant aggravated shout reached him, "You were the one who shot that spear, weren't you?!" He lopped off the low branches. His hand firmly held onto his reins, he didn't care for anything that approached him, let them come! He wasn't going to let them get in the way of hunting. His gigantic horse galloped past one of the blackguards, a spear embedded in their chest, and he laughed merrily. One of the raiders rose and barked in laughter the same.

"This is fun!" He spoke between gallops of laughter, "You aren't going to escape. Slow down and I'll give you a faster death than being burnt alive!" His fiery spear slid across the bark of the trees.

Jian roared, The flames spread across the back of his black brigandine, and his body was engulfed. Jian's horse folded, throwing him into the air and tossing him onto the ground like a rock. The flames disperse but he could hear the grand raider roaring forward, like a demonic beast.

Jian's eyes welled with tears, throwing himself to the side he shifted to his feet and clung onto a tree. The horsemen barreled forward and shifted his weight to the side, The giant heinous smile and pure white eyes followed him. His laughter swept into the air and cut into Jian's ears like a chorus.

Suddenly he heard a piercing screech. He had to cover his ears. Electricity strung itself across the tree lines, flames flung backward and coward. The Giant swung his horse to face the man galloping on a horse. His sword outstretched above his head and his horse barrelling forward with an ethereal electrical shield surrounding it.

"Run!" The Black Guard Commander shouted. His broken sword, his broken armor, and the blood that covered him were brought to the front, however, his unyielding nature and undying attitude were masking his weakness like a dense shield. Jian's eyes were wide, but with another shockwave of electricity and fire stringing itself around as the Black Guard Commander and The Giant Collided he was forced to retreat.