Hero Days

"You and Kosi should get inside the palace walls as quickly as possible." Counsel's forceful tone startled Noble.

"Kosi is injured. He needs a moment to recover." Noble looked down at a splotch of red matting the Symncus's fur.

"It is barely a scratch." Counsel countered. "It will take more than that to really hurt that whelp. You really must get moving." 

Noble furrowed her brow. It looked like more than a scratch to her, but Kosi was already calmly licking at the injury. "I will wait until Kosi is ready. Unless you mean that we are not safe here?"

"We are, for now. But with him being here, that may not be true for long." The man pointed toward the sky. 

"What do you mean?" Petting Kosi gently to soothe him, Noble looked up at the darkness overhead. 

A sinister creature hid among the bats, biding his time. 

"That Tyrant has wanted to break the protective array for a hundred years. It's smart. I have even heard him speak to me a few times. He claims to be after his heart, which he says is below the city." 

"Do you believe it?" Noble wondered. 

"It doesn't matter what I believe," Counsel blew out his cheeks.

Noble glanced back at the city. It looked so serene under the protection of the runes. Was something really hidden under the city or were the words from a deranged creature just nonsense?

In the end, it made no difference just now. They could not let the Tyrant or his minions breach the array.

Another of the humans who had managed to get through the enemy pushed through the invisible barrier and sprawled out on the ground. 

Noble ran to him, holding out the salve to help the worst wounds. 

The man held up his hands. "Don't waste it on me, My Lady. I am not worthy." 

Ignoring him, she placed the salve on the open gash on his forehead. The jar would self-replenish when she dismissed it, but even if it didn't, she still wanted to help the soldier. 

"What's your name?" She asked to distract him.

"Ilbar," he answered through clenched teeth. 

"It is nice to meet you, Ilbar. I am finished." Noble backed away to give him air to breathe. 

The man touched his head and inhaled sharply. "Thank you."

Emira blasted another hole through the enemy with her flames, allowing more of her men to get to safety.

'Why doesn't she come with them?' 

Noble saw the Queen continue to struggle against the tide of Nightmare Creatures. She now stood with her back to the protective array, taking down anything foolish enough to come in range of the obliterating fire.

The powerful monarch was easily within reach of salvation, yet she remained outside of protection.

"What is Her Majesty doing?" Noble asked Counsel.

"She is protecting the breach. The years of battle have worn a rut in the stone. While none of the weaker creatures can finish the job, their Lord can."

Whispers permeated the air, sounding like the hum of wings.

Noble could not make out any words, yet Counsel could understand.

He drew his sword.

"What?" Noble could see he was deeply disturbed.

"I have to go out there." The man walked toward the breach. "The Queen was wrong. My hero days are not yet over."

Noble watched him leave, a strange mix of feelings in her. She wanted to stop him but also echoed the passion he had to fight the forces of evil.

"If Her Highness hears him speak like that, she will murder him on the spot." The soldier who had received treatment from Noble sat up slowly. His head was already looking much better. 

"What did he mean by his hero days?" Noble asked as Counsel went to aid his sovereign. 

"I'm too young to remember them, but surely you do," the mundane soldier responded.

"I wanted to know what you know," Noble ordered. She raised her chin, giving off her most regal air. 

The young man nodded. He touched his head, trying to recall all the facts. 

"Long ago, Counsel was just a slave whose master was a skilled warrior. They went out on the battlefield, and when the master died, Counsel took his place and achieved a glorious victory. He Awakened shortly after that and was granted his freedom eventually. He continued to fight until the campaign to wipe out the Tyrant in the mountains. That was the mission that ended with..."

Ilbar's spike in emotion triggered something in Noble's memory. Her mind raced as she put pieces of the puzzle together. 

"It ended with my parents' death." 

The man nodded slowly. "My father said that Counsel tried to save them, but it just wasn't enough. He came back broken, and Her Majesty stripped him of his position in the army. If not for you making him your Counsel--" 

Ilbar was beginning to wonder what pull Lady Brenna had over him. She was far too easy to talk to for such a high-born lady. He should shut his mouth before it completely ran away from him.

"Would you please finish your thought?" Noble smiled at him.

Despite the chaos around them, Ilbar felt a warm feeling of peace nudge at his consciousness. Relaxing, he embraced the emotion wholeheartedly.

"If you hadn't chosen Counsel, most think that he would have been exiled or worse."

So that was it! Brenna took compassion on the man who had tried to save her parents.

That explained some of the strange dynamics between the three people. Counsel was Brenna's rebellion against the Queen.

Noble opened her mouth to ask another question when the insidious humming became more intense.

"It's coming!" Ilbar's gaze fixed on the sky, his peace quickly turning to horror. 

Turning her attention toward the battle, Noble's eyes opened wide. 

The bats in the sky parted and created a canopy above their master. At last, those on the ground got a look at their sinister puppeteer. Noble wasn't sure what to make of the Tyrant Lord. All she knew was that it would kill anything and everything that stood its way, including its own minions. 

The corrupted servants of the mighty abomination ceased their fighting and scattered from below him. Any humans still standing rushed toward the protective array. 

All but two. 

Counsel and Emira stood side by side, having as much hostility between them as they did for the descending abomination. 

Noble moved forward, ready to come to their aid. They were out of her range of levitation, but as soon as she could reach them, she would pull them to safety. 

Even if it was against their will.