Ambush (1)

Their stunned silence lasted only a moment before the captain's cries echoed through the air.

"Form ranks ! Prepare to engage the enemy !"

"Steady, hold the line!" the infantry captain's command reverberated through the air, and the infantry soldiers braced themselves for the impact.

For an instant all was calm, And then all hell broke loose. The collision was brutal. The impact of the orc charge sent shockwaves through the ranks, but the soldiers held their ground, their shields forming a barrier against the enemy onslaught.

Gripping his sword tighter, Arko prepared for the hard battle ahead.

"Charge in ! Focus on the aura users!" the Eric's voice rang out cutting through the din of battle.

Arko charged in, shifting his attention to an orc warrior who glowed with the telltale energy of aura.

With a burst of speed, he closed the distance between them, his short sword swinging in a calculated arc, chopping towards the orc's neck. The orc cleanly deflected his strike with one of his battle axes while he used the other to cleave through an infantry man's head.

"He's good"

Now turning to face him fully, the orc grinned evilly before hacking at his sword arm.

Arko turned to deflect the blow with his shield while simultaneously getting his sword ready to counter attack with a stab.

Unfortunately he hadn't expected the force of the blow on his shield and his arm buckled down, messing up his stance.

Seizing the opportunity, the big bastard kicked him in the chest, sending Arko sprawling on the rocky ground.

"Curses"

Quickly standing back up before the orc could reach him once more, Arko knew he had to do something drastic to win this fight. The orc was clearly a veteran, bigger, stronger and more adept at using aura in his attacks than himself.

The battle raged on around them, but in that moment, Arko's focus was solely on his adversary.

The orc stepped forward, one axe in each hand, and grinned. Then he leaped at Arko, his left axe cleaving towards his head, the blade glinting with dark red aura.

Lifting his shield up to parry the blow, He infused as much aura into his shield arm as he could. This time when the axe hit his shield he wasn't staggered, but decided against counter attacking.

Deflecting the other axe with his sword, he stepped back. Focusing entirely on his defense.

"focus on defense, wait for an opening"

Continuing to deflect the orc's attacks, Arko continuously revolved his aura through his veins using the endurance technique. His heart beat started slowing down, synched with his aura.

He felt surprisingly good, the din of battle fading from his mind as he fought the orc.

"I can do this"

Blocking one blow with his shield and ducking out of the next one he backed away. Gradually he was getting used to the ebb and flow of the battle. dozens of strikes were raining down on him continuously.

Barely dodging another strike at his head, he gazed at his enemy. The orc was clearly getting irritated by his strategy and it was starting to show in his attacks.

The blows were getting stronger and more violent, but at the same time the orc's fluidity and precision were gone.

Luckily, while fighting the orc aura user, the common soldiers, human and orc alike seemed to make space for them not daring to interfere.

Ducking, Dodging and parrying the orc's relentless attacks, Arko managed to land a few strikes here and there. but a decisive opening hadn't yet appeared.

As the moon hung high in the sky, casting an eerie glow over the battlefield, Arko's determination burned brighter than ever.

But in the midst of the battle's furious dance, a strike cleaved straight through his shield. The orc's axe slamming into his breastplate, jarring his entire body and throwing him to the ground once again.

"damn it"

Turning his head he saw his sword laying next to him, just out of reach as the towering orc stepped above him. Dropping his axe, the orc reached out and grabbed Arko's neck. Then pulling him up off the floor, he laughed viciously as his grip tightened around Arko's neck.

Summoning his last reserves of strength, Arko silently reached down to his leg, where he had concealed the orc knife he had found in the forest.

The oblivious orc continued laughing disdainfully, as Arko felt his neck about to snap. With a swift and desperate motion, he pulled the knife free, his fingers closing around its hilt.

In one fluid motion, he slashed, aiming for the orc's exposed neck. The blade sliced through the orc's tough skin, as Arko channeled as much aura into the knife as he could.

The orc's grip on Arko's neck loosened as a gurgled gasp escaped its throat. his eyes widened in surprise, his hand clasping at his own neck while blood spurted through his fingers.

With a final convulsive shudder, the orc collapsed to the ground, its life force extinguished.

"Urgh"

Arko's chest heaved as he kneeled in front of the fallen enemy, his body trembling from the exertion and the rush of adrenaline.

Quickly getting himself together, he crawled towards the dead orc's body and placed his hand on it.

"Darn it, come on"

Slowly he started drawing in the dead orc's aura, using it to fill his own body.

Once the aura fully absorbed, Arko pushed himself to his feet, his fingers clenching around the hilt of the orc knife. He glanced around, searching for his sword that had been flung from his hand earlier.

It lay a few feet away, glinting in the faint moonlight.

With renewed determination, Arko retrieved his sword and looked around assessing the state of the battle.

"Damnation"

the battle wasn't going well at all, the infantry was being massacred. On top of that he counted at least a dozen aura wielding orcs. The captain alone was holding off three of them.

In the midst of the battle, he spotted Entar furiously battling another orc, red aura swirling around him as he fought.

Making up his mind Arko quickly jogged over to him, sword in one hand and machete in the other.