Chapter Two: Village Raid

Santiago fiddled with the knife in his hands as the horses took the men through another field. There were about thirty of them in total and Xen still had no idea where they were going. They had to be riding for at least an hour at this point. Xen's helmet and armor began to feel heavy on his tiny body after sitting for so long. Fitz and a heavy set man with a long black beard led the pack. Xen stayed somewhat on the end with Santiago. They all traveled in a line. All Xen was told was that he would be needed to fight, as he was now "of age."

The horses stopped and started lining up next to each other in the forest. Xen was unsure of why this was happening until he saw a cottage on a hill through the tree-line. Its thatch roof was worn and must've had a few holes in it. The fence around it was broken down and old. Xen could hear the faint sounds of children playing and people working over the men around him breathing heavily.

All of a sudden the heavyset man started screaming with his sword in the air. Xen felt a tug at the reins as his own horse bolted through the tree-line and up the hill along with everyone else. He jumped the fence post and watched as a few of the horses trampled the townsfolk. People started to scream and run away with their children but the men cut them down or trampled them. Some of the men had torches that they threw onto and inside of the cottages. The entire village was set ablaze within seconds.

Xen got down low on his horse as arrows flew overhead. A hoard of Emissuss Soldiers charged and engaged the dark armored men on horses of their own. One arrow struck Xen's horse in the chest causing it to collapse straight into a puddle of mud. Xen got up quickly as a soldier on horseback nearly trampled him. He jumped to the side and watched as fire engulfed the battlefield.

"KEEP PUSHING" Fitz shouted.

Screams echoed throughout what was once the village as Xen climbed over bodies of horses and people. He walked towards the south of the village where the forest was when something grabbed his leg.

"Gh—"

Xen turned around to see a young boy about his age gasping for air. He had short/flat black hair and many stab wounds in his chest. Xen's eyes widened in horror, trying desperately to pull his leg away from the boy. The boy used his other arm to grab hold of Xen, whatever he tried the grip was too strong. It was as if the boy was using his last bit of strength to cling to him.

Xen finally pulled out his swords and slashed at the boy's arm. The boy fell face first into the mud and didn't move. Xen's face was expressionless, his mind was too focused on what he had done in that moment to register anything else. All of a sudden Xen was swooped up onto a horse by none other than Fitz.

"Keep moving! We've got them on the ropes!" Fitz shouted in his ear before charging a group of soldiers.

On collision Xen snapped back to his senses and he lunged onto a nearby Emissuss soldier. He used both his swords to decapitate the man before pushing him off of the horse. He grabbed the reins and started to steer the spooked creature back to the front lines.

Santiago drove his sword through four men before knocking another off his horse and tampling him. His lips strained as his eyes gleamed with pleasure. He grinned widely and pushed his teeth together. His armor and horse were stained red with the blood of the many different men who had crossed his path.

The Emissuss soldiers who saw the carnage that had ensued in his wake all had a frozen look of horror on their face. They couldn't move as he slashed his way closer and closer to them, killing whatever and whoever was in his path. Until-

A large man with a red stripe that went straight down his helmet, shoved Santiago off of his horse and into the blood and mud. Santiago got up quickly, his eyes the same savage color of the stains on his armor and face. He turned to meet the man who had thrown him. His eyes widened with a sense of excitement and anger. It was as if he had laid eyes upon a cruel god.

"You're still just a beast, writhing in the dirt and mud you came from." Locus said to the man on the ground in front of him.

He narrowed his eyes in a sad but stern sense. His sword was drawn out in front of himself, pointed directly at Santiago.

"And you're still just a shell of a man staring down from his hollow tower. I'm going to break you." Santiago growled as he knocked Locus's sword away.

Locus kept his hold and swiftly swung at Santiago, his blade moving as if it was one with the wind. Santiago jumped backwards, just narrowly avoiding the edges of fury Locus had thrown at him. Locus didn't let Santiago recover, rushing him while he was still unstable. Santiago blocked each swing but Locus still had the upper hand. He threw the worn man around with each movement of his arm, pushing him closer and closer to a pit of fire. Locus slashed downward with both hands. Santiago blocked the attack and the two held their swords there in a clash.

"You're done for, just surrender. We both know you can't continue this whole thing much longer." Locus stated calmly as he looked around. His own men were being slaughtered in every direction.

Santiago grit his teeth and began to tremble in anger. The metallic sounds of both their swords shifting ever so slightly back and forth ringing in his ears.

"I'll never stop. Not until I'm dead. That's the difference between you and me. Because I won't just settle for what they did to her!" Santiago shouted, his blood filled saliva hitting Locus on the cheek.

He quickly slid below Locus, who jumped to the side to avoid the attack, with his sword swinging wildly. Locus leapt back onto his horse and rode away from Santiago. Leaving him there in the filth of his own actions.

Xen gripped his swords tightly as two soldiers rushed him from both sides. He could feel his teeth grinding as he ducked under both of their attacks and cut their stomachs open. He then jumped and slashed wildly at the other soldiers who had noticed him. He looked like some sort of animal. His tiny body jumped from soldier to soldier ending life after life with random slashes and stabs in almost every direction.

He could hear someone scream louder than the constant state of screaming that filled the once village in that moment. He paid it no mind and just kept hacking away, not even at just the soldiers anymore but at any living being that decided to get close.

Suddenly he felt two very strong arms grab him and pin his own arms to his sides.

"XEN!" Shouted Fitz, trying to calm the erratic boy down.

Xen pushed the man off of him. His breathing was heavy and his head felt light. He looked around, The Emissuss soldiers had fled. They had won. His mind didn't have time to take in the pure destruction and carnage that they all had left in that village before passing out on the spot.

Xen's eyes fluttered awake to see a disheveled woman standing above him. He was locked in the pit again. He quickly jumped out of a puddle of mud to see each of his fingers were still intact.

"Thank god you're finally awake.." The woman spoke. Xen knew she had been here for a long time but this was the first real conversation he's had with any of the women, or a woman in general.

"Are you going to bite my fingers off too?" he asked, clenching his fists.

She frowned at him before giving him a sad smile.

"No, I was protecting you from the others while you were passed out. A group of men just threw you in here with us." she told him.

"What's god? Why are you thanking it?" He asked after a short silence.

"Uhh.."

"Anyway, I'm Izzy, I've seen you around here quite a bit. You must've grown up here right?" she asked, trying her hardest to maintain a positive outlook for the child when she knew both of their situations were hopeless.

"I guess so.."

"Do you like being a soldier?"

"I'm not a soldier." he scoffed, offended.

"Oh, I'm sorry.." she didn't really know how to continue the conversation without breaking down in front of the child.

Xen's stomach made a loud rumbling noise. He hadn't eaten since that morning, and the battle definitely made him hungry. He sat down against the wall of the pit, holding his belly.

"Are you hungry too?" Izzy asked with a fabricated smile.

Xen didn't say anything back, he wasn't sure he was supposed to be talking to this woman.

"Psst, Izzy, I'm here" whispered a voice from above Xen.

Izzy's dark eyes glowed at the sight of the person behind him.

"Fitz!" she whispered loudly. "I missed you.."

The white haired man stepped into the pit, still unaware of Xen's presence. He was carrying a giant loaf of bread with him. The other women in the looked up at the sight of him, they seemed as if they were about to scream before Fitz tossed them each a piece of the loaf.

"I missed you too. I'm sorry I wasn't here, we had a raid on another Emissuss village today. Santiago is really losing it. I'm going to get you out of here soon, my love, I promise." he said, his voice was shaky. It was unusual for Xen to hear him like this.

Izzy kissed him softly. Xen starred, a little confused. He'd never seen anyone touch mouths in that way before, he thought it looked uncomfortable.

"It's okay, I'll wait in this hell as long as I have to as long as I get to see you each day." she said to him with loving eyes.

"Eat up, please, you must be starving." Fitz handed her a piece of the loaf.

"Did anyone touch you at all today? Are you hurt anywhere?" he asked, looking her exposed body up and down for any signs of injury.

"I got lucky today, I just hope I don't get pregnant here. Not only because your child is the only one I wish for but raising any child in this would be.." Izzy slowed down, her mouth was full as she looked past Fitz at the observant young boy.

Xen's stomach growled again. Fitz's eyes went wide as he realized they were not completely alone.

"Xen-?" he whispered, turning around to meet the boy's gaze.

"I know I shouldn't be allowed to eat after today.. But can I please just have a crumb of the bread?" he asked, his voice innocent, he did not understand the full concept of what was happening.

Fitz breathed a sigh of relief.

"Here Xen," he ripped off a huge chunk of the bread. "I'll let you have this as long as you promise to never tell anyone I was here okay?"

Xen was confused but his hunger was undeniable.

"I promise," he whispered.

Fitz tossed him the huge chunk to his delight. The boy practically inhaled the food, desperate for any nutrients he could get.

"Thank god.. Izzy.. next time please warn me if you see someone watching us. If Santiago finds out about us he'll-"

"I understand.. I'm sorry, perhaps this whole experience has made me a little bit mad.." Izzy apologized profusely, practically throwing herself at the man's feet.

"Woah, hey, it's alright.. I promise you we will get out of here together, and then all of this will just seem like a bad dream." Fitz lifted her up and held her close to his chest, embracing her with everything he had.

"I love you." she said, sobbing into him.