The village horn blared, its hoarse cry sounding desperate against the methodical, thundering steps of the Church's army. They stopped just outside of arrow range, their line of silver shields forming an impenetrable and intimidating wall. The silence that fell afterward was heavier than any war cry.
The Knight Commander, whose gold-adorned armor gleamed in the twilight, stepped forward. He did not shout. His voice, amplified by magic, was calm and condescending, as if speaking to unruly children who needed to be taught a lesson.
"We come in the name of the Holy Church," he said, his voice echoing across the village. "We do not come for bloodshed. Surrender the child blessed by the Light, the new Saint, and this village will be spared."
Borin, as the leader, stepped forward from the line of village fighters. His face was pale but resolute. He attempted his final gamble, a fragile lie in the face of overwhelming power.
"Your Excellency," Borin said, his voice crafted to sound as calm as possible. "You must be misinformed. We are but a simple village of hunters. There is no Saint here as you describe." He was buying time, searching for an opening, praying for a miracle.
For an agonizing moment, the lie hung in the air. But before the knight commander could respond, the village's solidarity was shattered from within.
"He's lying! Don't hurt us!"
Elder Garek broke through the line, falling to his knees on the ground. His face was wet with fearful tears. He turned and with a trembling finger, pointed directly at Lina, who was hiding behind Kael, clutching her new pendant tightly.
"There she is! The new Saint is there! Her name is Lina! Just take her and leave us!"
A shocking silence fell over the village, followed by horrified, angry murmurs. The trust they had built together was destroyed by one man's fear. Kael's face flushed with fury.
"Garek, you... YOU TRAITOR!" he roared, his voice breaking with pain.
The Knight Commander smiled coldly. This was the outcome he had expected. He raised his hand. "Thank you for your honesty. I will repeat myself for the last time: surrender the child, or we will take her by force."
Their answer came from Kael's roar. Ignoring the trembling Garek, he raised his spear high. "THROUGH OUR DEAD BODIES!"
It was the signal that started the battle. The Holy Knights charged forward like a silver tide. The fight was brutal and one-sided. The village fighters, driven by rage and desperation, fought with wild ferocity, but every swing of their axes merely scratched the blessed armor. Every spear they threw was deflected by impenetrable shields.
Kenzo unleashed a succession of blue-white fireballs, managing to take down an Inquisitor in the back ranks. But his effort was like trying to stop a flood with his bare hands.
"Elara, take the children! NOW!" Borin yelled amidst the chaos, before swinging his axe at a knight.
In the pandemonium, Elara, as planned, began to gather the non-combatants. She pulled the other children and a few elders towards the hidden escape route behind the village hall. She grabbed Lina's hand.
"Come, darling, we must go now!" she urged.
But Lina resisted, her eyes fixated on the figure of her father fighting like a wounded lion on the front line. "No! Father! I won't go without Father!" She pulled her hand away, refusing to move.
Realizing that forcing Lina would only endanger the entire evacuation group, Elara made a heart-wrenching decision. She ran towards Kenzo, who was providing magical cover fire from the rear.
"She won't leave!" Elara cried out amidst the chaos, tears streaming down her soot-stained face. "I can't abandon her, but I must save the others!"
She pushed a crying Lina towards Kenzo, her small, trembling hand now in his.
"Please, take care of Lina, Kenzo!" she pleaded, her gaze conveying all the trust and despair in the world.
With a heavy heart, Elara turned and ran, guiding her terrified group into the darkness of the forest.
A new chapter of the nightmare had begun. Kenzo now stood in the middle of a deteriorating battle. The village's defense had crumbled. Borin had fallen, his chest pierced by a spear of light. The other fighters followed one by one. The front line now consisted only of Kael and a few of the toughest hunters, being pushed back to the village center.
Kael, breathing heavily with a gaping wound in his shoulder, saw Kenzo guarding Lina. Their eyes met across the chaos. No words were needed. Kael gave a single, sharp nod of farewell, full of meaning. He then turned and charged back towards the enemy, his roar mixing with the sound of clashing steel.
"We have to go!" Haelan appeared beside Kenzo, his face deathly pale. "They'll surround us soon!"
Kenzo knew he was right. He grabbed Lina. "We have to follow Elara!"
As they started to run towards the escape path, a few of the faster knights broke through and blocked their way. Haelan, with the very last of his strength, slammed his staff into the ground.
"Go! I'll hold them off!" he yelled. A fragile wall of earth erupted, just enough to block the knights' view for a few precious seconds.
Kenzo didn't argue. He pulled Lina, forcing her to run. But as he glanced back one last time, the sight was forever burned into his memory. He saw Kael, Lina's father, surrounded by three knights. He fought valiantly, but a sword finally broke through his defense. He fell to his knees, his eyes still looking in the direction of his daughter, before finally collapsing, lifeless.
"FATHER!" Lina's shriek tore through the air.
An unbearable surge of pain and rage exploded within Kenzo. He stopped, turned, and raised his hand. [WARNING: UNSTABLE ENERGY OUTPUT. RISK OF ACUTE MANA EXHAUSTION.] Prometheus warned him, but Kenzo didn't care.
"FIRE!"
A fireball, far larger and more violent than any he had created before, erupted from his hand, engulfing the knights who had just killed Kael and vaporizing them in a sea of blue flame.
But it was useless. More were coming. Kenzo felt his head spin from mana depletion. He grabbed the now-hysterical Lina, picked her up, and forced his legs to run. He ran with all his might, through the forest, the sounds of battle slowly fading, replaced by the roar of the fire consuming his village and the sobs of the child in his arms.
He ran without stopping, until his lungs felt like they would burst. Finally, he stopped on a small ridge. He looked back.
The small village that had become his home, that had given him warmth and purpose, was now a giant torch in the middle of the night. Thick black smoke billowed into the sky, staining the two moons that served as silent witnesses. The loss was so real, so absolute, that it crushed his heart.