Chapter 30: Battle Against the Rats

The giant launched himself at the first ratling. His feet landed on its head, pushing it into the ground and bursting it with a squealch. Unsatisfied, he swung his axe down, cleaving the next ratling in half. Blood jetted in the sky, covering Liam and the hillside. Charon watched the brute turn to backhand a ratling that ran past him. His tongue was running across his lips, savoring the taste of the crimson fluid. Not wanting to be left out of the fight, Emerius dashed in, his two blades striking out at the nearest beasts. One lost its arm and another its leg, the whirling dervish finally being unleashed on creatures weak enough to be easily cut. Spotting another foe, he pushed off the hillside, spinning in the air as he came down behind it. He jerked his swords behind himself, skewing the ratling in two places. Darius, the final member, was slower to attack. By the time the others had killed two, he had only begun to engage one. He calmly let it approach, watching it lash out with a serrated dagger. With practiced motions, he deflected the strike and moved in, his sword piercing through the humanoid’s gut and coming out the other side. Darius deftly kicked the corpse away just in time to parry a spearhead streaking towards his leg, following it with a riposte that relieved the ratling of its head. Charon watched, dumbfounded, as the three made quick work of the initial clash. ’It’s like they are masters of death, cutting through the horde like butter!’ Despite their initial success, things became worse as more ratlings grouped up on the fighters, causing them to both defend and attack three or four beasts at once. Liam was the first to get injured, having waded into the thickest part of the horde. A ratling managed to strike him in the back with a shortsword, but the decrepit weapon snapped before it could do any real damage. In retaliation, the brute spun and grabbed its head, crushing it in his palm before throwing it at its comrades. This only opened another blind spot for him to get attacked from, a fact the dim-witted beasts didn’t miss. Soon, his bare chest was covered in cuts and scrapes, blood weeping from the wounds and covering him in long streaks. Unable to sustain the slaughter, he was forced to pull back, his waraxe cutting a path out. Even though he was still standing, Charon saw Liam wince more than once, the pain getting to him. After Liam retreated, more of the ratlings ganged up on Emerius, his agile movements constrained in the throng of bodies. Gritting his teeth, the dual-wielding swordsman backflipped away, managing to kill two more in his escape. Even as the other two struggled, Darius showed no signs of fear, lightly moving forwards and back as he kited the ratlings, denying them the opportunity to sneak up on him. His glowing blade never moved far from his body, doing the bare minimum to keep himself safe and his enemies harmed. However, with both of his allies having withdrawn, he was forced to do the same or risk losing his advantages. The horde climbed the hill as the trio retreated, unceremoniously stepping over their dead in their mindless assault. Taking the moment to rest, the three waited until the ratlings were only a few feet away before striking again, resuming the previous battle exactly as they left it. Liam jumped in, killed a few, and sustained more wounds before backing away. Emerius, moving fast on his feet, danced around the group and picked off stragglers before having his options reduced. Once that happened, he retreated again, his body heaving from the exhaustion. Darius moved with purpose, focusing more on deflecting enemy attacks to make openings rather than forcing his way through the crowd. He was always the least likely to be injured, but he also killed far fewer of the ratlings, which grew more obvious with time as his side of the horde was almost the same size as when they began. Like before, they pulled away, catching their breath and waiting before trying yet again. Watching it all, Charon saw the flaw the moment they re-engaged. ’They aren’t doing this right. Emerius and Darius should be working together as a team, with Liam cleaning up the sides.’ It was clear to him that the fast-moving attacks of Emerius would complement the slow and defensive style of Darius, allowing them to create space for each other. Liam, by comparison, was an unstoppable force, but he was too deranged to think about his positioning, allowing his enemies to surround him. ’If he worked on the sides, he could guarantee that his flank was safe while still dealing a lot of damage.’ Charon knew it would be more effective, yet he had no way to communicate that; instead, he decided that it would be better to share after the fighting ended. ’They are winning, anyway. I had expected them to be skilled, but this is just... incredible.’ He had seen Emerius fight before, but it was still a spectacle. The way he dashed, flipped, and rolled to give himself new angles of approach was incredibly entertaining. It was like he was five men in one, striking at a dozen areas at once, and somehow managing to land every blow. Liam was no slouch either. Although he lacked any tactical precision, his raw strength made up for it, allowing him to turn his body into a weapon. Every time he swung his axe, he did so one-handed, using his other hand to punch or grab, doubling the number of ratlings he could kill. What made him even more impressive was how he never seemed to tire. While both Emerius and Darius were sweating profusely, Liam seemed as energetic as he had at the battles beginning. Even after swinging his axe for the umpteenth time, burying it in the chest of a ratling, he just jerked it out with a smile. His back rippled and flexed with his every action, the marking that covered it becoming more vivid as the bodies began to pile up. Despite how impressive those two warriors were, Charon found himself watching Darius the most. His fights were always the least flashy, with very few actions of note occurring, and yet the results spoke for themselves. Not a single cut marked his skin, nor his armor. Comparatively, the ratlings around him were covered in red streaks, their attacks slowing as they bled out. If Charon had to describe Darius’ fighting style, it would have been a single word: defend. No sword, spear, or dagger pierced his defense, his blade reacting instantly to intercept any strike and counter with one of his own. Every movement he made was planned, his feet moving in a specific order to lead every ratling he saw in a specific order. With the three of them working towards the same goal, it wasn’t long before they achieved it, the last ratling going down with a scream. Jerking his sword from its back, Emerius looked at Charon, Annie, and Red with a half-grin. Liam walked past the blonde swordsman and looked down at the final beast’s corpse, grunting before swinging his waraxe down. Blood and viscera exploded out, splattering against Emerius’ dark robes. The brute just glanced up with a wide smile, saying a single word before continuing. "Sorry." Darius looked at him with slight disgust, but just sighed before nodding at Emerius. "I thought you said you were not very good with those?" Emerius, frowning as he shook the gore off himself, responded with barely contained revulsion. "I don’t. I am but a learner, and shall be for many more years." Darius’s eyebrows knit in confusion before reaching a vague understanding. "Very well. We both have a great many things to learn." Annie watched them before glancing at Charon. "Your friend is good for Darius. It is not often he meets someone who can match him in many things. It will keep him humble, thank the gods." Charon chuckled. "I was thinking the same thing. Emerius has an ego on him, but I think it comes from the pressure he feels." That caught Annie’s attention, her body turning to face him. "What pressures is he facing?" The question sent off alarm bells in Charon’s mind, the minor slip suddenly becoming apparent. ’Shit! We aren’t supposed to have memories. He wouldn’t know about his family, and wouldn’t feel pressured by them anymore!’ Struggling to think of a response, he looked away from her, hoping for a good excuse to come to him. Staring at the next ridge over, he saw something moving and froze, recognition striking him like lightning. Seemingly confused by his ignoring her, Annie moved in front of his view and waved. "Hello? Are you okay?" Charon just froze before limply pointing straight ahead. The faint sound of rumbling returned, as well as the chittering and screaming of ratlings.