The icy flow of the river rushed slowly in the night. In the water, a young boy desperately tried to swim across. He was getting to the point of total exhaustion. With the hounds getting closer, he struggled on for the safety of the other side. Every stroke that he made felt like his arms were heavy with boulders. His legs were failing him and he was afraid that he would drown. He could barely swim any further as he made his final way to the shore and collapsed on the softened snow. From not so far away, the hounds raced frantically as they finally reached the river and barked continuously at the lying corpse on the other side. They raced back and forth in vainless hope of catching their prey. Out of the trees, the three men closed in on from behind. They looked at the dogs and stared out across the river where the boy was lying.

"There he is," said Sayan quietly with a finger pointing in the direction of the boy.

"How are we to get across?" asked Tylin as he rubbed life into his hands. "Is there a bridge connecting to the other side somewhere down the river? I don't think I'm up for swimming through this freezing water."

Looking across the river carefully, Gentah caught a glimpse of something moving swiftly among the trees to the left of the boy on the corner of his eyes. He blinked once and nothing was there. He wasn't sure if it was his imagination playing tricks on him or maybe it was just a wolf hunting. He scratched his matted, wet beard as they stood silently, debating on what to do. He was tired from the chase and only wanted to end this as quickly as possible and get back to the rest of the army. His leather leggings were soaked through by mud, the rain was getting ready to pour harder on him, and his mood was as foul as a hungry dog.

"We have no choice but to swim through it," said Gentah suddenly. "There is not a bridge or a ferry anywhere here."

After a few moments, the three men descended from their horses. Taking off their bronze armors except for their swords, they walked into the freezing water and started for the other bank. A few yards off where the unconscious boy laid, a figure on a large branch of a tree watched as the three men swam across the river. He was dress all in green, merging with what left of the green color of the forest. His hair was braided as it dangled to his shoulders and the beard on his face was streaked with silver. He stood there nonchalantly as his fingers toyed with the handle of the doubled edge sword strapped to his back. The sword itself, black as the night, was curiously glowing thinly. There was no expression on the man's face. He stood there as still as a statue, watching.

The boy groaned and started to sit up, as the men swam closer to the shore. He was hungry and tired beyond belief. He struggled to stand up and run but he couldn't find the strength. He took a quick glance back and saw the men coming to the shore. In panic, he crawled futilely in vain effort to escape. It took the men a few minutes to swim across the icy currents. They came out of the water and stood a few yards from the boy.

"You gave us quite a chase, boy," said Tylin as he came forward with the two men all soaking wet. "And now it will end here."

"Leave me alone!" whimpered the boy who was now wet and filthy with mud.

Gentah stood behind his comrades without saying a word. He looked around the clearing as he rubbed his arms and legs from getting too numb. Suddenly he frozed as he felt something beyond the darkness of the forest. Even though he could not see who or what it was, he knew someone was watching them. Years of training gave him the instinct to sense the unseeing. It was like his third eye.

"Someone is here," muttered Gentah as he unsheathed his sword from its scabbard.

"What is going on?" asked Sayan as he drawed his sword as well.

Before Gentah could reply, a man appeared from the darkness and stood in front of the child. Tylin and Sayan was so startled by the man sudden appearance from, to them, out of nowhere that they backed a few paces. They did not sense his approach at all. The man stood a full six feet and two inches with immense shoulders and an expressionless feature. The stranger walked forward towards them, and the three men backed some few yards until he stopped. With the boy behind him some feet, the stranger calmly looked at the men as if analyzing them. For a few moments, no one spoke. Only the howling of the wind and the drizzling of the rain could be heard. The rain continued to soaked the earth and the men stooding there as well. Gentah stood with his sword tightly gripped. He was prepared for the unexpected.

Finally Gentah broke the silent. "I do not know who you are but this is no concern of yours."

"Do you feel like a man hunting down a young helpless child?" asked the stranger to no particular one, disregarding Gentah's question.

"This is none of your business old man," said Sayan with a harsh tone. "Now stand aside or do we have to cut you down?"

The stranger stood his ground with his arms folded. "Is that a threat my friend?" he said. "Lets see how well you use that sword than your empty threats."

Sayan and Tylin looked at one another, deciding on what to do. Something about this stranger made them uneasy, but Gentah was not afraid. For him, if a man can bleed, he can die and he had no doubt that this man could bleed. He stepped forward.

"Enough of this," he broke in with a rough tone. "We are under the order of Prince Allaran, soon to be king, to take this boy. You either get out of the way or suffer the consequence."

The stranger just stared at the three men without a word.

"Very well, you left us no alternative," said Gentah. "Tylin, take him."

Tylin noded and ran forward towards the man in green and took a swing for his head but the man was quick like a cheetah, ducking under the blow and with a sudden motionless move, drawed his black sword from its sheath instantly. Then he faced Tylin with the black sword drawn. The two encircled one another. Tylin went for a thrust at the man's belly, but he spinned around it and did a deadly reverse which took Tylin's head clean off. The decapitated body collapsed onto the ground without a sound. And just like that Tylin was dead and the man turned towards Gentah and Sayan. From behind, the boy was shocked at the gory sight. He closes his eyes from the decapitated body that was lying on the wet earth.

It was a shocking sight as Sayan stared at the dead body of Tylin. Tylin was a well-trained veteran and had fought along side him in many occasions. It was almost inconceivable to see Tylin cut down so quickly like he was a mere soldier in training.

"You have two choices," said the stranger. "Leave or die."

Gentah stood his ground, as did Sayan. He was a bit surprised by the man's technique in dispatching Tylin so swiftly. In all his life, he had never seen such agility and gracefulness in a man. The man was quick and skillful, no doubt about it. But he could not leave without the boy. He had orders. "Like I said, the boy is to come with us," replied Gentah simply.

"Very well," said the expressionless stranger.

Gentah and Sayan both moved forward with their swords ready for combat. Gentah was on the right flank while Sayan covered the left. They encircled the man like a trap boar. Gentah made the first move as he thrusted his sword forward at the man's chest, but the stranger blocked it with a perfect circular side swing. As Gentah recovered from the block, he attacked the man again, this time taking a swing for his neck. The man was not easily succumbed to such maneuver. He ducked the blow and smashed his left fist into Gentah's face which caused him to back away as Sayan came in from behind. He brought his sword downward with all his might at the man's head. But somehow the man knew of his move and instinctively side stepped away from the blow. Sayan was slowed to recover so he was forced back as his opponent hacked at him. He could barely blocked the blows the man was throwing at him. As he stepped back further while fending himself, he was oblivious of a rock under his footing. Before he realized, he tripped and fell to the soaked earth. As the man about to deal a thrust for the heart, Gentah ran forward with a yell. The man turned as Gentah's blade went for a death blow, but he blocked it as both of their swords clashed loudly. They were face to face, eye to eye. There was no giving on both side.

The rain continued to drizzle while Gentah and the man circled one another. Gentah knew he was not going to have an easy time with this man. He moved like a jaguar, swift and deadly. There seemed to be no weakness about him. He has a strange force of some kind that was unseen to the eyes. But Gentah was a skilled swordsman himself and he was not going to let this man get the better of him. With a battle cry, Gentah surged forward. He reversed a well-executed thrust with all his force behind the move and for a split second he thought he had the man.

The stranger was too quick. He dodged Gentah's blade and his own sword responsed in return so fast that it caught Gentah off guard. Sudden pain burst through his entire body as he fell back. His left hand went for his chest and he saw blood after he withdrew it. His leather tunic was cut through and there was a painful, deep gash on his chest.

 

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