Age of Heroes (Age of Heroes Chronicles)

Chapter 13: Bandit attack (2)

In the village of Danoba a team of twenty brave townsfolk engaged in battle with bandits.

Arial, being recognized in the village as a talented rider followed his father on horseback and watched the battle unfold.

If he could find a weak point in their side, perhaps he could

"Dodge the arrows!" Arial screamed suddenly.

His energy had focused on his eyes, and his vision sharpened to see marksmen hidden between the trees.

The bandits had only been used as bait.

The lucky villagers who heard Arial's cry dodged the attack, but many weren't so fortunate. Arrows pierced their throats, tearing gaping holes in their skin and embedding themselves into bone, and the men fell.

Arial frowned.

Arial dragged his father to safety behind a tree and the two of them panted for breath, their eyes wide in disbelief.

Arial searched frantically for something to use as a weapon. He glanced back up at the bandits they were laughing.

They must think that no one of importance resides here, thought Arial, I will show them how wrong they are.

Arial clicked his tongue.

'I have defeated hundreds of Dark Land savages with less power than I have now, I can easily take down a lousy gang of bandits' he thought to himself.

Using his internal energy, Arial allowed his body to be filled with hot power and slithered between the flying arrows back into the fray.

He looks like he is dancing in the middle of the battlefield.

Grabbing a sword from an unsuspecting bandit, he slit the man's throat with his own blade, his look of shock turning to blankness as his blood spurted, and he fell.

Arial did not stop.

He smiles and he enter the battle. He is reminded of the battle he had with the dwarves and the elves.

He dodges arrows like he was the wind and move swiftly like lightning and his attack is as shocking as thunder

Arial's sword flew through the air, spilling blood as it dragged across the flesh of the bandits.

Arrows shot past him as he danced through the center of the battle, and his father yelled at him to retreat.

Arial hesitated before because he thought his body could not handle it.

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But now, that he is holding the sword on his hand and running in the center of the battlefield he confirmed something

'I can do this, Dad' Arial thought.

He split the air with his sword, creating a buzzing sound, performing the Blinding Dance technique, and all at once the bandits realized they were not dealing with an ordinary child.

The dance was a dance of Death. Where the light of the sword arrived, the heads would roll

The bandits stared at each other in confusion and fear; this boy had just slaughtered five men and his face showed no signs of horror.

Even the hardest killers would at least show some kind of disgust.

An innocent face of a young boy no even reaching ten of age that is filled with the blood of their companion yet the kid stands like nothing happened.

Drenching from his shirt was the blood of the bandit's companion. It is eerie.

'Focus on the boy!' one bandit shouted.

The remaining bandits focused all of their shots on Arial, while the archers in the deep bush focus their attention to the adventurers deterring them from helping the boy.

Arial dodged each one of the attack expertly, his feet dance on the edge of the grass like he is floating above it.

His father trembled as he watched from behind the tree. His son was extraordinary, he knew, but he had no idea of his strength.

Being such a young boy, he had never needed to display it, but as Aries watched him brandish his sword, commanding the townsfolk to charge with a thunderous voice which reverberated like an echo within a cave, he realized deep in his heart: his son would be a great man.

He is them reminded of those years ago, when Arial would have commanded little kids behind the house, playing make believe of war

The bandits were overpowered.

Arial with his pinpoint accuracy released the Blinding Dance. To anyone that sees him it was like he separated into ten images parrying the arrows from ever reaching the other adventurers.

The adventurers were also amazed.

This is high level swordsmanship, some of them muttered under their breath

Arial's swordsmanship was swift and fierce beyond comparison and he weaved through his enemies, slashing and hacking, splattering blood and sending limbs flying, heavy heads thudding to the ground and pumping out thick blood until they were drained.

With every swipe a flash of light followed, and the sword creaked and groaned until it shattered; the force of Arial's energy had been too great for it to handle.

Immediately, a villager Arial knew to be called Ronan threw his own sword to him.

Arial caught the weapon and nodded his thanks, turning back to the panicked bandits.

As they realized the dire circumstances they were in, their hidden men rushed out from the concealment of the trees.

The initial reports had been wrong. One hundred and thirty men stood before them, armed and furious.

Arial smirked.

Several villagers began to back away, but Arial raised his sword once more and charged like a frenzied warrior.

The courageous display of leadership inspired the townsfolk and they followed suit.

If a boy is that courageous how could they retreated back and be a coward?

They would lose their face if a seven-year-old kid fights and they do not. How will they look at the village people?

Not to mention the boy is the Village Chief son.

The sword of Ronan had slain twenty bandits before it cracked. Arial threw it away on the heap of bodies behind him.

Arial swiped a third blade, again from a bandit, breaking the man's bones as he did so. He uses Lion Bite, a martial art technique useful to grab weapon of the enemy hands

Dashing through the mass of men, Arial used his much-practiced Sweeping Stars technique to hack off their heads.

Heads fly like a bird across the battlefield as their body falls to the ground with a thud, and the green grass turns red.

The bandits were half-frozen in terror.

They had never faced such a powerful opponent, or been part of such a bizarre scene; a seven-year-old couldn't possibly be responsible for so much bloodshed, yet he had already killed more men than some of the bandits ever had.

Finally, much to the relief of the exhausted villagers, backup in the form of the Shield and Sword arrived.

The villagers who didn't require medical attention retreated to safety and slumped to the ground, whilst the Shield and Sword men faced the bandits.

Arial, however, failed to notice the newcomers and continued his controlled yet rapid slaughter.

Adrian watched from his horse. He couldn't believe his eyes as he saw Arial's sword cut through the bandits, again and again.

"Extraordinary," Adrian muttered, "who is this boy?"

Then suddenly the boy disappeared from their sight with a whooshing sound. Then a scream could be heard.

He was moving so fast that their eyes hadn't had time to adjust.

Fairy Steps, Tommy the bandit leader muttered when he saw the technique

'A kid knows how to perform Fairy Steps? Who is this boy?' he thought to himself.

Tommy, the leader of the bandits, had had enough, and hurtled towards Arial, aiming his sword into Arial's side.

Arial only laughed.

Arial blocked the attack with ease, and immediately Tommy delivered another, his sword coming down hard and fast on top of Arial's head.

Swift as lightning, Arial knocked the sword aside and, using the Sea Dragon Pushing the Current stance, forced it to the ground.

'Sea Dragon Pushing the Current? Another high level technique' Tommy thought to himself.

Arial's blade shattered once again under the pressure of his energy, and both warriors dived to retrieve weapons from the fallen men.

Tommy was far from a weak man.

His martial arts training had pushed his natural strength to a great level, and his internal energy was highly developed.

Pushing his energy into his sword, he lunged at his child opponent. Arial block it with his sword but it created a mini shockwave around them

As Arial felt an internal energy push on his sword, he shouted loudly and countered it with a brute and fierce force of his arm.

Crack.

Arial's sword snapped in two, and with it Arial's arm went numb, but he refused to withdraw. He had come too far.

Instead, he executed a new move, Blind Man Searching for Light. It is the seventeen stance

A bright, cold ray of light flashed, and sparks flew as he thrust what was left of his sword forward.

Tommy's blade suddenly became lighter in his hands, and he stared down to see it had been cut by the sheer force of Arial's internal energy.

Arial smirks.

Arial brought his sword down a second time and, with another flash of blinding light, sliced off half of Tommy's head.

The townsfolk were trembling and weeping, Adrian and the King's men watching in stunned silence.

The bandits, seeing their leader had fallen, some surrendered and some that is farther away fled.

Arial stood alone, still clutching his broken sword, amidst the masses of severed limbs and pools of blood, like a scene from his father's stories of great heroes.

The King's men pursued the bandits through the forest and caught them with ease, weak from battle and shock.

Adrian finally jumped down from his horse and approached Arial.

He wanted to see his eyes, but when he did a shiver swept through him.

There was no fear in the boy, no hesitation. It was as if he had seen it all before, and much worse too.

A boy, thought Adrian in awe, just a young boy.

Adrian flinched as Arial's eyes shot up to meet his.

They watched each other intently for a moment, before Arial wiped the blood from his face and walked solemnly into the trees, to his father.

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End of the battle. Hope you enjoy it. Leave some comments and reviews