Light and Dark

Arden was lying down on the dusty field with a cut on his chest, the bleeding making him nauseous and his sight blurry. His dark hair and pale gray skin were white with dust covering them all. He tried to look around to see if there was any enemy around who would be aware that he was still alive. All he could see in the bloody blur were men and women lying around wounded and bleeding. Most were dead. The battle had been vicious and even though they got their hands on victory, many good soldiers had been lost. Arden felt little pity for the fallen. He very well knew that he could have been one of them. It was the high price of victory.

As a dark elf assassin, the putrid smell of death and dust that dominated the air was familiar to him. Countless battles he had fought, countless death missions he had endured, all his life. And he was not going to let this one end him either. It was not that he cared about the politics and whether the queen had her victory or not. He believed he was simply tailored for this, to take lives and embrace life as a bringer of death.

He coughed out some dust mixed with blood and lifted his head just in time to see a filthy light elf jumping on his white elk, attempting to run away in the wide-open battlefield. So the fallen had failed to finish off this one. Arden growled inwardly at their recklessness. He couldn't let that happen. Not one single light elf was supposed to escape with the plans.

Grunting loudly, he forced himself to stand as a fireball exploded near him, making the war horses nearby run around frantically.

Holding his still bleeding wound with one hand, Arden grabbed the saddle of a war horse running towards him and forced himself to jump on it, yelling with pain as he did. At that moment, a crow which most likely belonged to a blood wizard at the war, attempted to attack his bleeding wound. Arden harshly slapped the bird away and urged the horse to follow the white elk. The large black horse neighed and started to run at full speed towards the enemy elf and the elk. The elk was running for its life and the war horse was after him with thundering hooves like a beast escaped from its cage.

At that moment, the rider of the white elk noticed his chaser. With panic, he forced his elk to run toward the woods as he was obviously aware that while a war horse had its advantage in an open field with its superior endurance, an elk had more advantage in the dense woods with its agile build. Arden's sight was still blurry, yet he was determined not to let that elf get into the woods so he urged the already racing horse to run much faster.

He smirked to himself as he swiftly started to catch up with the light elf. Becoming aware that he was soon going to be caught up, the enemy freed his hands from the reins and started to ready a spell with his hands. Arden couldn't figure out what the enemy elf was trying to do yet he was ready for anything that would be thrown against him. He yelled like a wounded tiger as he slowly started to close the gap between him and the light elf. At one point he became so close that he could almost snatch the target's long silver hair waving behind him. Yet what looked like a small ball of blue lightning was sent from the light elf's hands to his chaser.

Arden tried to duck and avoid the ball of lightning, yet he was too close to dodge it and it hit his already wounded chest. With a shockwave of pain, he lost his grip on the reins and stumbled backward, starting to fall off the huge horse. Yet, he quickly grabbed the side of the saddle and forced himself back on the horse as it ran unmoved by the things happening around it. War horses were trained for such situations in battle.

So this light elf was a mage. Ah, he hated mages so much. How they thought they were superior to common warriors as they commanded the elements of nature and ever fancied themselves to be much smarter than the rest of the people. Smug, filthy creatures. Arden was going to enjoy finishing this one even more now. He reached to his waist and pulled out a bloody dagger hurtling it towards the elf. The elf was careful though and with an agile move of his elk, he dodged the blade coming for him.

They were too close to the woods now. Dangerously close. Quickly, he readied another blade as the elf also started to give shape to another ball of lightning. Arden narrowed his gray eyes as he carefully reinforced his grip on the stirrups with his feet and stood up on the saddle. Just a bit closer and the light elf was his.

The elk was about to dart into the woods when Arden jumped off the saddle to tackle the elf on it. The moment Arden had his enemy's throat, the ball of energy in the elf's hand exploded in their faces. Both men fell to the ground with a loud thud, grunting with pain. The war horse stopped immediately watching the two trying to wrestle the life out from one another while the elk vanished into the forest.

''You horrid creature!'' the silver-haired elf grumbled with hatred as he tried to kick Arden off himself. Having him by his throat, the dark elf was not going to let him prevail. He pressed his knife into the soft, white-pink throat of the light elf, just enough to make a shallow cut. He was lost in his bloodthirsty triumph yet was quickly snapped out of it when he recognized the badge on the enemy elf. A dark green in the shape of an oak tree leaf which meant he was a member of royalty. Arden grinned inwardly. Ah, what a trophy that was.

''Do you..'' Arden whispered in his prey's ear menacingly as he pressed the knife a bit more ''...have the plans?''.

The light elf's dark blue eyes glared at him with utmost hate. ''Just kill me already!'' he spat ''Kill me! You cowardly horrid creature!''.

Arden backhanded him and the elf rolled on the floor. ''I asked you a question!'' he growled as he walked towards him knife still in hand. Thin blood was slowly trickling from the wound on the light elf's throat as he tried to murmur words of magic in hopes of saving himself.

Arden chuckled devilishly, ''Oh, no. No, no, no!'' he sneered and he grabbed his by the throat again his hand feeling slick with blood, and lifted him nearly to his feet. ''No magic tricks!'' And with these being the last words he spoke to the mage, the dark elf kicked his head knocking him out before he could complete his chanting.