My sword whizzes past the enemy’s head. His fist soars towards my head. I roll to the side to avoid the strike. We trade consecutive blows that do not land against the other. His fists shoot at me as if they are arrows from a crossbow. If my eyes betray me, then he will surely land a hit against me. To prevent this from happening, I need to end the battle in one strike, since he is capable of healing himself. It needs to be an attack that immobilizes him for a temporary amount of time. I disengage to come up with such a plan.

“Why would you want to go up against the Fire Wraiths?” my opponent asks.

“Why such a question in the heat of battle?”

“Curiosity. I wish to understand what my opponent strives for. So, are you willing to tell me?”

He is indeed an oddity amongst the bandits. He’s taking the time to ask me what I wish to accomplish, not to laugh or poke fun, but to see where my heart is.

“Very well. I wish to fight them because they have caused much pain and suffering to others outside the kingdom, so I wish to end it.”

“Ah, that is quite fitting for you. However, I don’t feel as if that is all there is to it. What other reason are you hiding? Unless you cannot say?”

“No, it is not that. It’s just a truly selfish motivation.”

“I see, but if I may be so bold, were you the one to start this fight against the bandits?”

“Yes, it was me.”

“Then by default, that means you are having people fight for your selfish desire. I suggest for you to stop acting as if you are a pure-hearted man without any selfishness.” His face is still giving a kind, warm, gentle expression, but his words are sharper than a sword and filled with a hint of anger. Perhaps he is right? I did impose my idea on others. And even when I gave them a choice, I still have them risking their lives for this. “...Don’t mistake me, I do not despise you for being selfish, but that you believe that you are not already selfish for having others fight the bandits with you.”

His argument is sound, no rebuttal comes to mind. However…

“Yes, I suppose I am being conceded. My intentions are still to help those outside the kingdom with the bandits, that is not a lie. It is true, I convinced them to fight for my selfish goal, and I shall apologize to them after this.”

“Then what is your goal, if I may ask again?”

“That is… To destroy the bandits, for making my sister cry!”

Ever since she opened up to me during my time as a prisoner for the bandits, I learned she was forced to join them. She told me about the various atrocities that she had committed. She cried on and on as she talked about the people she killed. That day gave me a new goal to work towards, and that is to eliminate the bandits! So despite dragging others into my affairs, I cannot back down, nor will I turn back now. And if everyone else hates me for it, then I shall accept it.

“Such a strong reason… Yet, not as selfish as I thought.”

“What did you expect?”

“To be truthful, I do not know. I just wish to see what it was that you are fighting for. But you desire to destroy us not for yourself, but for your siblings. While it is still selfish, it is a noble reason to fight.”

“No need to say such a thing. I am aware that what I am doing is selfish, but I must accomplish this goal, even if it’s not noble!”

My opponent laughs. He is trying to keep it subdued, but he is failing to do so.

“I am sorry, truly I am… It’s just, you surprised me. I thought you would crumble at the thought of you not being the perfect, nobleman.”

“Nobody is perfect, every man and woman has flaws. I am no exception, and neither are you.”

There was never a point in my life where I thought I was the perfect person. Rather, I am aware of my flaws and faults, but those only make me fight harder.

“Very true. I am glad to see that I am fighting someone with a grip on reality. It is a shame we have to fight at all.”

That comment brings to light a question that surfaced in the back of my head.

“If I may ask something of you, why do you fight for the bandits? A man such as yourself is not fit for such a group.”

My opponent drops his guard after I pose my question. Did I say something wrong?

“Hmm… Answer me, why do you think anyone joins the bandits?”

“Well, there are several reasons, are there not?”

“Yes, there are a plethora of reasons to be a bandit; power, wealth, infamy, and nobody to control you. But those are not the main reasons for most. Fear and desperation, it is those reasons that make people join the bandits.”

“Fear and desperation?”

“Think about it, some join them because they don’t wish to die by them, or have nowhere to go.”

“And you would happen to fall into this category?”

He looks away from me. I seem to have hit a sensitive topic for him.

“Yes,” he says. He brings his gaze back onto me. His expression is sterner than it was before. “...My brother and I are orphans of the war. With no one to rely on, I fended for us for as long as I could in the northern region. Up there, no land can be used to farm food, so there were days we’d go hungry. With this desperation, I decided to join the bandits, to protect him.” I cannot share any words with him, for I have none that would be adequate to sympathize with him. “...Ah, but I think we have gone on long enough. This is a fight, after all, so we must continue this battle.”

“Yes, I concur. But allow me to ask you this: if you had a choice, would you rather be somewhere else or be a part of the bandits?’

“Such a brusque question. I shall only answer if you are victorious in this battle.”

“Very well, I shall accept your proposal!”

I raise my sword, putting it in front of me. I shall strike him with one attack that will render him unconscious. We both make our move. His fists fly past my head and hit my sword as I block them. I can’t attack carelessly or I’ll suffer the consequences for it. However, blocking too much will prove to be my downfall if he breaks through the blade. This requires me to attack when it is necessary. The question is when should I? His strikes are getting faster and faster, the gap in our speed is beginning to widen. If I do not bring him down now, I’ll die. It is now or never! I bring my sword down toward his head.

“An opening!”

Zell blows the attack out of the way. This leaves me open to being striked. His fist closes in on me, it will surely crush my head if it makes contact. This is a seemingly unfavorable position to be in, however, this is what I wanted. I tilt my head, the fist barely flies past my head. Now is my chance! I move my fist, it’s going for his head. He immediately puts up his defense. My attack is no longer going to go through, however, that doesn’t matter. My second fist hits him in the gut. The air in him leaves his body as he drops his guard. This moment is my only chance to knock him out. I put my dominant foot in front and all the weight of my body into my fist. There’s a power behind it that makes it feel heavier than usual. This must be the rush of a life or death situation. Nonetheless, the second punch goes towards his gut again. His body hasn’t hardened, so that means he was not able to react to my attack. Which means this fight is concluded. I push him back to the ground.

“Brother!”

The other brother turns his back to Marie; a fatal mistake. She lunges at him with the point of her spear. It slices open the flesh on the side of his torso. The crimson liquid comes gushing out as he falls to the ground.

“Zeal,” Zell yells, he shambles over to his brother, who is on the ground, bleeding.

Marie points her spear at the nape of his neck.

“Don’t move,” she orders. He stops dead in his tracks. His hands' quiver as his brother’s life is being threatened. “Surrender the fight. If you don’t, I’ll kill him.”

The side of her spear touches his neck.

“Wait, do not kill him! He is not the one who deserves to die, it is I who should perish.” He puts his head to the ground. “...I am the Flame Wraith captain, he is just a subordinate, please spare him in exchange for my life.”

“No, damnit, leave my brother alone… Kill me instead!”

Zeal, despite the injury, attempts to get up. Marie still has her spear at his neck.

“No, Zeal, I won’t let them kill you!”

“And neither you! I’d rather die than see you die!”

The two of them are at an impasse. The display leaves me speechless. Not because I am shocked, but because I can see myself in Zell. Despite us being enemies, I cannot deny the truth: he is a good person!

“Marie, stay your--”

She moves her weapon away from Zeal’s neck, even though I have yet to finish my sentence.

“Why are you… Are you pitying me?” Zeal yells at her, his anger seeping into his words. “If you’re gonna kill me, then kill me, you piece of shit! But leave my brother alone!” Marie scratches the back of her head, letting out a sigh. She hits the downed opponent’s head with the back of her spear. “Ow, what the shit is wrong with you!?”

“Nothing, I hit you because you said something thoughtless. And you…”

She hits the other brother with the butt of her spear.

“Ow!”

“That’s for being just as stupid.”

“Wha…”

The brothers stare at her with confused looks and raised eyebrows.

“If you don’t want your brother, then you shouldn’t have brought him with you here to fight.”

“Screw you, I came because I--”

Marie hits him with the butt of her spear again.

“Shut it! Furthermore, you two act like dying for one another is easy. Have you ever thought how the other would feel if one of you died?” The brothers let out a simultaneous gasp. “See? I get you want to keep each other safe, but if one of you dies, then the other is by himself. Wouldn’t that be painful enough? So instead of continuing this, why don’t you just surrender? That way, nobody has to die.”

She knows exactly what to say compared to me. Her blunt approach to matters is perfect for moments like this. Zell’s head rises from the ground, looking at Marie, who has her spear resting on her shoulder. His face is not that of a man ready to fight, but that of a man who has seen the light.

“Zeal, I owe you an apology. I must seem pathetic?” he asks his brother.

“Shut up, you’re not pathetic, I am! I couldn’t defeat this chick!”

“No, you are not. We underestimated our enemies. Take no shame in this defeat.” Zell stands up, dusting himself off. “Marie, is it?”

“Yeah.”

“Thank you for your mercy, and you too, Alexander. I truly am in your debt.” He slowly rises from the ground and walks towards the car he arrived in. He jumps on top of it, looking at his men. “All soldiers, hear me! Retreat, return to home base! We have lost this day! Take whoever is not dead and run away!”

By his order, his men run from the battle into their vehicles. They are driving away from the battlefield. Some are still out battling but the odds do not favor them. I walk up to the car Zell is standing on top of.

“This truly a humiliating defeat,” he says. He turns his attention to me. His expression is that of peace. “As a Flame Wraith captain, I hereby surrender this fight.”

A sudden urge in me rises from my gut. This urge builds until I cannot control it. I take in an extensive amount of air, and I scream, “Victory!” My scream echoes through the air, everyone’s cries follow mine into the winds. We did it, father, our first big victory!