#youngsamuel

Samuel could feel his heart pounding as his squadron held their ground from the charging Forossan forces, his eyes peering from behind the mask of God. The line faced the charging enemies, each knight donning the same armor as Sam. The force of a hundred men, the actions of one. The young prince squire moved his leg to feel the comforting lightness of his rapier resting against his waist; Aslatiel wouldn't allow him to go into battle without wielding the Greatsword of the Royal Knight as he didn't want to raise questions. But it wasn't the time to think, it was the time to act. The Lion Knights were upon them, and a knight cried with the voice of Aslatiel as he took the first knight, slicing the warrior’s legs before swinging the large blade down upon the helm, Kremmel’s visage unwavering. This action spurred the others into action, the cries mirroring that of Aslatiel’s, and each took their opponent with shouts and clanging metal filling the air.. With a shiver, Sam joined the charge, targeting a lone knight. As they clashed, Sam looked at the unknown knight that was his enemy before swinging the hefty blade again, strikes clashing against one another. But with a simple twist of his wrist, Samuel trapped the opponent’s longsword within the handle of the greatsword, tearing it away before cutting the man down. However, the prince didn't have a chance to view about what has happened, another armored knight was upon him. Blocking the vicious blows with his small circular shield, Samuel returned the attack, swinging his shield against his attacker before thrusting the large blade like a rapier, piercing both the Forossan’s armor and flesh. And as the lifeless body fell, another charged to take his place, and the cycle repeated again and again. Adrenaline running through his veins, Samuel couldn't feel the gashes form on his arms and torso. The low yet sharp cry of a familiar female caused the prince to quickly focus on the outcry, spotting the dame 10 meters away fighting back three different Forossans’ combined assault. Gritting his teeth in anger and determination, Samuel pushed away his current opponent and charged towards Lucatiel, slamming the edge of his shield into the helm of the first knight, knocking him towards the ground; the Forossan didn't rise. The second of Lucatiel’s attackers turned his attention towards Samuel, swinging wildly. As the two blades crashed into each other, the Forossan pushed his blade down, sparks flying as the knight got closer towards Samuel. As the blades locked at the hilts, The Lion Knight swung his head back before crashing it into the mask of Kremmel, knocking it off of the prince’s head and stunning him as Samuel tried to regain his bearings. Taking advantage of his opponent’s situation, the Forossan pull away from Samuel, ripping the greatsword from his grasp and flinging it far away. All the prince could do was watch him as the knight prepare to run him though. And suddenly the Forossan was several meters in the air, the tip of a blade protruding from his front, before he was forcibly slammed into the earth, Lucatiel pulling her blade from the corpse when she was done. As she looked up towards him, her mask also gone,, Luctiel’s eyes were that of frustration and anger as she glared at Samuel. “What the hell were you doing?” “Wha-what?” Samuel could only stammer out, already reaching for his rapier. “I was fine on my own. You could have gotten yourself killed by charging like that,” Lucatiel spoke harshly, her eyes darting to each side, before catching sight of another enemy knight and turning towards her next opponent “Eyes up, Sam!” “You were fine on your own; you had three enemies bearing down on you!” Samuel mocked her as he turned forward as well. The Royal Order was faring well against the opponent, but it was only the front lines. More would come. Raising his rapier to the ready, Samuel awaited his next opponent that was charging towards him. Stomach, legs, or head; their armor is weak there. “I had three opponents, and I was doing fine!” The dame sneered as she took on the Forossan in stride, knocking his strike away while striking him with one of her own. The knight didn't have much of a chance, and was knocked away from her powerful swing. Their conversations ended, and the only noises emitting from them were grunts and yells; the occasional warning. They were pushing back the Forossan forces, the simple foot soldiers stood not a chance against Mirran’s greatest. But as Samuel could feel himself catching a second breath, he heard a cry of warning, perhaps Jeremiah? But the word, singular and sharp, just like its intentions, cut into Samuel as he looked towards the hills past the fields where they were positioned.

“ARCHERS!!!”

Masks still facing forward, the Mirrans began to reluctantly retreat whilst still fighting the foot soldiers. They didn't want to give away their favorable position, but the arrows would be too much of a threat to ignore. As the first knight reached the castle gates, arrows, too many to count, peppered the sky and came crashing down, piercing both Mirrans and Forossans without prejudice. Bodies fell, the prince wouldn't know who until they collected their dead, and the knights retreated at a great pace, some abandoning their current opponent as another volley was launched. Seeing his brothers and sisters in arms turn and retreat towards him, Samuel could feel himself turning as well, moving without truly realizing it. However, as he turned, he caught a glimpse of her, staying her ground. Lucatiel was preoccupied to take heed of what was going around her, focusing on the towering knight fighting against her. The knight was different, dwarfing her as he swung a hunk of iron, roughly the size of the prince himself, that one couldn't call a blade at her.  Dodging the blade; trying to block the sword’s path would most likely end in her chest being separated from her torso, Lucatiel brought her own weapon down on the knight’s calf, cutting through the knight’s armor. As the towering figure was brought to his knees before the dame, she leaned back before thrusting the blade through her enemy’s chest, a foot placed upon his breast as Lucatiel tore her blade free and watched the foe fall. Caught up in watching her fight, Samuel didn't notice the volley of arrows flying through the air until he heard the high-pitched whistling as the approached their location. Lucatiel still did not notice the arrows nor his cries for cover, her eyes trained on the fallen Forossan. Bitting his lip, the prince charged the dame without thinking twice; there was a promise that he was determined to keep. Knocking her towards the ground, Samuel arched over the surprised dame as he felt the sharp sting of an arrow hitting his shoulder and arm. “You.. are required at the gate…” The prince breathed as he offered a hand towards Lucatiel, who took it with merely a glare; he could have her thanks later. Helping her from the ground, Samuel moved slowly, moving his hand to break off the shafts of the arrows, not noticing the rushing soldier, blade aimed for his throat. And the blade was intercepted by a Greatsword of Mirran make, twisting the metal away before striking the owner with impunity. A gloved hand came into the prince’s view, grabbing him by the shoulder as the other snapped the shaft of the arrows in two. Each time an arrow was shifted, Samuel bit his lip in pain, keeping himself from yelping. Once the knight was finished, a laugh emitted from behind the mask, and a familiar snarky tone began to speak. “Both of you are like toddlers; always need an adult to lead you around blindly or you'll just hurt yourself. Hahaha, Samuel, I believe that I warned you about this. Now how do you plan on hiding your wound? It matters not, as we need to hurry back towards the gate; if you don’t hurry, then you will surely be shut out.” Aslatiel spoke as he turned his back towards the two, heading towards the gate without a care for them. He did his part. “Such a charmer…” Samuel muttered to his companion, turning towards her only to see that she rushed off, charging past her walking brother. As she pushed through back towards the gate, the prince watched her take on different Forossans in stride, cutting them down one by one. With a sigh, Samuel began to follow them, confronting any knight that stood in his way. Making towards the gate, the prince saw that the group entering was significantly smaller than those who came out with him. With a breath to steady himself, Samuel rushed forward, passing through the defending Royal knights as well as the lower ranked warriors, maskless and wielding axes and swords. The gate was already beginning to shut and the Forossan forces became fewer and fewer, knowing that they couldn't push through the gate. Above them, archers felled arrows into the opposing tide, trying to fell as many as possible, hopefully to force a retreat. Samuel wandered until he found his two companions, Lucatiel arguing with her brother. As the prince was seen, Aslatiel broke conversation and turned towards him, his mouth visible under his tilted mask. “Samuel! Come here, I need something of you. Take my sister and head towards the infirmary; you both need some help,” he spoke calmly, his hand placed on the royal’s shoulder. He was about to speak again when cries came from ontop the walls.

“Reinforcements are approaching!! They plan to scale the walls!!”

There was silence, if only for a beat, then more news came, news that chilled the Mirran knights.

“Leading them is the Terrible Mercenary of Forossa, Mad Beast Vengarl!!”

Murmurs ran through the ranks as news of the feared warrior settled into place. The undefeated fighter; the warrior who can shrug off greatarrows and 5 blades at once; the one where even lions cower in his presence. How are we suppose to defeat a beast like him?? Samuel looked up towards his brother in arms, his mentor, to see his reaction. A thrilling smile had crept over his face, white teeth glimmering as he gripped his blade tightly. The prince never saw his friend like that, and became almost frightened by his appearance. Aslatiel’s arm moved away from Samuel’s shoulder as he lowered his own mask, blood from the boy’s wounded shoulder brushed onto the modeled beard. Turning back towards the shut gate, the captain of the Royal Guard spoke softly, quiet like a knife in the dark.