Under the misty night, with the sun beneath and the moon watching over them, men of war fastened themselves for everything that will surprise them.

Sentries there were, placed on towers, walls, even a couple of walks outside of the place they are defending. Always with eyes like an eagle, or an owl in this misty night, for those eyes means their life or their death.

There are also those inside the walls, resting, eating, and even some drink as they have fought many battles on the open field.

Geir and Karl was amongst those warriors, as they were eating, drinking, and planned the next move they would make the next morning.

“The mercenaries from Gancio should arrive this morning, my lord!” A knight, already out of his armor, reported to Karl.

“Mercenaries?” Geir was surprised. “Are you serious Karl?”

“I sure am! We’re outnumbered brother!”

“Should’ve taught about that before cutting four of their heads.” Geir said somewhat mockingly. “Huh… fine, then I am guessing you want me to handle them?”

“Yes!”

“Huh….” Geir took a large, annoyed sigh. “Okay then, what’s our plan tomorrow?”

Karl after receiving Geir’s agreement, told the plan for their next battle.

It was quite simple with a bit of trickery that is a staple mark of Karl’s, he planned that they’ll be a faux parley between him and the other kings of this island, Sikeli.

It was more or less to give time to Geir and one of his commanders, to bring a couple of their men behind the enemies, to strike them from the shadows and to end this war much more quickly.

A cunning and a very dishonourable move, but honor was out of the table when the four men, the four princes from the kingdoms in Sikeli, tried and failed to dishonour Theophania.

“But why did you have to kill them? I thought you were smarter than this Karl!” Geir berated Karl.

“I know, I know… I just… couldn’t take it anymore with their disrespect towards Phania, especially when they tried to touch her! What was I supposed to do?” Karl defended himself.

“Imprisoned them! Make them a hostage! Four of them are still a prince, their heads attach to a body is much more valuable than what we have now…”

“I know… but brother, you wouldn’t believe the sex that me and Phania ha-”

SMACK!

“Ow…” Geir smacked Karl’s overproud nature.

“That’s for being stupid!” Geir then reach back to Karl’s head and patted it this time. “And this is for being a man, a very passionately in love man.”

“…” Karl blushed a little.

“Just… please don’t lose yourself like Eirikr, passion and obsession are not the same, but the line that divides it is very blurry.”

“I know and I won’t, brother.” With a resolved and a somewhat scared look, Karl promised Geir.

* * *

The sun was up, overseeing the miles of men lined up perfectly and disciplinedly like the soldiers they are.

Karl was making small talk, distracting the other kings to buy time for Geir and one of his commanders to cross the river undetected. Thankfully it was running smoothly, quite great even as only a couple of scouts Geir and his men had to kill on the way.

But the time ran out eventually as one of Geir’s scout reported back that the battle has begun, with Karl and his men standing their ground across the river, taking the full brunt of the avenging army of the princes he killed.

Geir and the Karl’s commander made haste as they know that Karl and his men wouldn’t last very long.

When they finally came out of the fray, the swordsmen and spearmen, mercenaries or not, rushed to the rear of the enemy, hacking, slashing, and disorienting them. The rangers and bowmen also, positioned themselves on higher ground to release a shower of deadly arrows on them.

With all of them being led by Geir and Karl’s commander, defending Karl and his men from the certain doom they would have befallen to.

Karl seeing this, roused his men and unleashed their second wind. It made them push, made them went into a frenzy as they know that the enemy are as good as dead in this sandwich.

From an eagle’s eye up in the air, you would only see ants rushing to one another, to the point they made themselves a ball of matter that.

But if you go down, down to the eyes of the soldier, you would see blood, steel, and the skies darken by the hale of arrows.

Geir remembered this kind of view very well, he remembers the smell, the taste, the sweat, the rush, the pain, everything. A past him would love this, feeling of taking another’s life, ripping and shredding them to pieces with his steel-arms.

But that monster is gone, that monster chose to go to the grave and stayed, as the one here is not a monster. Geir kill not for his pleasure, but for his survival, for the people he care, to defend, not to do indulge.

And defend he did, when his and Karl’s men finally linked and was about to wipe out the enemy. Hel, even the kings that Karl distracted are all but bodies now in the dirt.

Victory was at sight and they both knew it, but… something was wrong. The hale of arrows that should’ve still darken the sky was nowhere in sight.

Geir felt weird, the feeling was aching him and he found it when he took a step back from the battlefield to see… another army on top of the hill that the rangers and bowmen took, was rushing down to everyone.