Chapter Text
Ikaros keeps his word.
Even as a mentor, he’s still such a gentle soul – patient and understanding, slow in his explanations and demonstrations of using stellar energy as it’s supposed to be used – with finesse and seamless control.
Both Einaros and Zael take the training very seriously. Ikaros had chosen not to tell Zael that he has a possibly deadly condition – he only told him that if he doesn’t train, his sickness might return, and that was enough for Zael to immediately swear to follow Ikaros’ instructions and be the best student he could possibly be.
Einaros does feel guilty. Zael deserves to know what’s truly at stake here – but he also doesn’t want to terrify him any further. Just the thought of his weakness returning is enough to send Zael into a spiral of despair whenever he thinks about it – Einaros doesn’t want him to think about the possibility of impending death, too.
They train every day. By now, they spend basically all of their time with Ikaros – they hunt together, prepare food together, fix up Ikaros’ place whenever they have the time for it.
And eventually, Zael breaks the ice completely and asks if they can stay with him – permanently. Ikaros has absolutely no problem with it, and he helps them move their humble belongings to his abode the next day.
And Einaros, to his own surprise, doesn’t mind. He’s happy, actually. He feels safe – for the very first time in his life, being in the vicinity of a Xar other than his brother does not ring any alarm bells in his head.
Their training progresses every week. Einaros is a fast learner – he’s doing very well, as Ikaros tells him, and he feels rather proud of it. Zael has much more trouble, but he’s undeterred. With every failure, he gets back up just as quickly, his control over his stellar field getting better each day, albeit at a much slower rate than his brother.
Anorch is still a dangerous place. The war has grown in intensity again – from what Ikaros tells him, two other settlements are currently fighting over control of this one, plus the local civil war between the Enforcers and Renegades is sabotaging the overall war effort with the outside forces.
Einaros stays outside every evening, sitting on the roof of their new home. He listens to the distant explosions. Sometimes, the tremors of the battle reach the town itself, shaking the ground menacingly.
Ikaros is never scared, nor worried. And Einaros finds that he isn’t, either – not when he’s with him. Although Ikaros had only shown the brothers a fraction of his power during their trainings, he’s certain that he could defeat any stray fighters that would accidentally stumble into the area.
He trusts him to protect the two of them, no matter what happens.
--
Time flies by.
Zael is much better at his energy control now, although Einaros still surpasses him. They still train every single day, not getting even a bit of rest, and they wouldn’t change it for anything else – after every training session, Ikaros tells them a little bit more about all that he has learned during his life, be it about Xaria Vecta in general, about his tribe, about the other warriors he had trained, or about the nature of the Xar themselves.
The way he speaks about their energy is always so very interesting to Einaros. Sometimes, Ikaros gets so lost in his explanations that he goes on with these long philosophical tangents that Einaros can barely keep up with, but they interest him, nonetheless.
He’d speak about their connection to the stars themselves. He’d say that they have more in common with Xaria Vecta’s sun than with the other living creatures on this very planet.
He’d speak of their stellar cores, say that they are miniature pieces of stars – that all life in the universe formed from stardust, and the Xar just got a bigger scoop of it than everyone else.
He’d say that their people are a manifestation of the universe’s desire to live as a simpler, more involved part of itself. Its desire to know what it’s like to experience life on a much smaller scale, like all the other organic beings that are part of this vast, wide world. Its desire to know itself inside out.
That the Xar are, by extension, the bridge between organic lifeforms and higher forms of existence in the celestial plane.
Einaros won’t lie – he doesn’t exactly understand what Ikaros means by all this, but it sounds very grand. Poetic, even. Einaros likes the idea of his people being special in some regard, even if he doesn’t completely grasp the meaning of it.
He looks forward to those evenings, when the three of them lie on the roof of their home, the brothers listening as Ikaros explains all of these very complicated things about their people, their planet, and their place in the universe as a whole.
And even though he can barely see the night sky through the clouds of ash, Einaros starts dreaming of seeing this universe – of discovering what’s past the dark threshold that is the sky.
-
One night, Einaros wakes up with a start.
Cold dread washes over him when he realizes that he can’t feel Zael’s warmth next to him. They always sleep next to each other (or, rather, sprawled on top of each other) – and Zael did lie down next to him when they went to sleep that night.
But now he’s not there.
Einaros sits up, ruffling the fur-lined bedding, his eye darting around the room. He can barely see anything in the darkness, and so he lights up a glow crystal that he keeps nearby and takes it in his hand.
Zael isn’t here.
Trying to ignore the rising panic in his chest, Einaros leaps off the bed and rushes out of his and Zael’s room.
As soon as he peeks into Ikaros" sleeping quarters, he stops – and almost gets dizzy with relief when he sees Zael sleeping soundly next to him, snuggled up to his side on a blanket of Artalloe fur.
Einaros simply stands in the doorway for a moment, watching the scene in front of him, trying to calm his stellar core. He was so very terrified for a moment, his mind supplying him with nothing but thoughts of Zael being missing, of Zael being taken.
But no – his brother had simply decided that he wants to sleep next to Ikaros tonight.
As Einaros gradually calms down, a different kind of intrusive thought appears in his mind.
A tiny part of him – a tiny, selfish, stupid part of him - is feeling jealous. Although he trusts and likes Ikaros, Zael is still his little brother, and Einaros had been his safe harbor ever since they were born.
And now, for whatever reason, Einaros apparently wasn’t enough – and Zael sought Ikaros’ protection instead.
It’s a stupid thought – he knows it. Einaros knows that he shouldn’t feel like this. It is logical that Zael would feel safer with the stronger of the two – still, Einaros can’t help but feel a little saddened by it.
He quietly shuffles back to his and Zael’s room, lying back down on the nest of fur. He tries to fall asleep again, but the absence of the familiar hum of his brother’s stellar core next to him makes him too uneasy, and so he only tosses and turns until morning.
--
Years pass.
The war rages on.
Anorch has been a target of so many attacks that entire districts have been lost. Luckily, the southern section is still largely intact – which means that most of the remaining Renegades have chosen to hide out there, hidden among the citizens.
Unsurprisingly, some internal conflicts have made their way over here already, and so Ikaros had to step in a few times, with the brothers not far behind. They had managed to chase off every soldier that wandered to what they consider their territory so far – but their unintended visits seem to be more and more frequent.
Zael and Einaros are now almost considered adults. They’re both nearly as tall as Ikaros now, and Einaros starts to have the uncomfortable feeling that Zael is actually going to grow taller than him. Einaros still has a few inches on him, but his brother seems to be growing at an alarming rate, both in height and in pure strength.
His energy control still lags behind Einaros’, but it’s good. It’s adequate, is what Ikaros said. To Einaros, he clarified that Zael is now at a point in his life where he should be relatively safe – as long as he does not let his stellar core take over too often.
As a mentor, Ikaros is happy with both of them. He keeps talking of how much progress they’ve made over the years, how much stronger they both are – while Einaros has proven himself to be a master at energy control, Zael is exceptionally gifted in power itself – which is, of course, due to his status as a Volatile.
They still haven’t told him about the full extent of his condition, about its possible fatal outcome. Einaros still feels pangs of guilt sometimes when he thinks about it, but Zael is doing so well – he doesn’t want to ruin it all by putting even more pressure on him by telling him that he might die if he gets too reckless with using his stellar power.
Today, they’re supposed to have an open training – whenever they reach another milestone in their training regime, Ikaros challenges both of them to a proper sparring match, where he judges them on both finesse and strength. He’s always strict during these – like a proper mentor.
Einaros yawns, stretching his arms in front of him. He’s sitting on the roof of their home, kicking his legs in the air as he waits for his brother to get ready for their match. He’s still loitering around in the house, working on one of his recent sculptures.
It’s a neat little hobby they’ve picked up from Ikaros. Whenever they find nice pieces of obsidian or other rocks on their hunts, they bring them back home and turn them into various tools and decorations.
Today though, Einaros feels exceptionally impatient. He’s been looking forward to this day for months – the sparring matches are always the most fun when Ikaros gets involved.
So, he brings his fist down onto the roof, shaking the whole building in the process.
,,Get your ass over here! Ikaros is already waiting for us,” Einaros shouts, and smirks when he hears Zael’s muffled curses as he walks out of the door.
,,Did you have to do that? I almost ruined the whole thing - my hand slipped, and the chisel almost broke off a larger piece of obsidian than I wanted!” Zael shouts right back, glaring at his brother.
Einaros jumps off the roof and lands right next to him, dusting himself off as he does so.
,,Sorry, but it’s not my fault you keep getting lost in your head whenever you work on these. When was the last time you even slept? I feel like you’re only ever carving these weird little statuettes.”
,,They’re not weird. They’re … each of them represents something. Ikaros says it’s good for the mind, to have something I can focus on other than just training,” Zael says, frowning as he explains.
,,No, I agree with that. It is a good thing. When I said that they’re weird, I meant they look cool. I especially like that scary one with three heads. You know the one?”
,,Yeah, you keep telling me that,” Zael sighs, yet he looks at Einaros with fondness, ,,now come on, let’s not keep our mentor waiting any longer.”
-
Their training grounds are not too far away – they’re actually right next to their home, at the very edge of the settlement. A flat space that they themselves had cleaned up of debris and remnants of collapsed buildings, to create an arena they can use. The area was abandoned anyway, and would probably just become yet another landfill if they hadn’t claimed it.
Ikaros is leaning against the city wall, arms folded over his chest. He acknowledges the brothers with a nod and straightens up. Right away, his expression turns much more serious.
,,Same rules as last time. Your objective is to knock me down. Do so, and you win. Fail to do so in the time limit I give you, and you lose. Understood?”
The brothers nod.
,,Good. You have three minutes. Begin.”
They don’t waste a second.
Zael rushes at Ikaros head-first, his eye glowing as he calls forth his stellar field and forces it to boost his speed. He gets right up to Ikaros freakishly fast, aiming a fake strike at his side – his plan is to side-step at the last moment and aim for his leg instead.
But before he can do so, in his slowed perception of time, he sees Ikaros’ eye move – his iris slides over to look straight at him. The look he gives him is quite unimpressed.
Ikaros sees right through him – instead of attempting to dodge Zael’s fake-out punch, he throws a punch of his own. It connects with Zael’s face before he can even attempt to raise his arm to block it, and he’s thrown back by the sheer force of it.
Einaros takes the chance to attack Ikaros from the other side. He launches himself forward and off the wall, aiming a kick right at the back of his mentor’s head, but Ikaros simply ducks out of the way and puts more distance between them.
Zael gets back up. He briefly makes eye contact with his brother, the two of them wordlessly agreeing on a new strategy. They’ve been brainstorming ways to defeat Ikaros in combat for a long time now, and so far, none of them have worked.
Their best hope is to get him into a pincer attack that he can’t get out of, but he always seems to find a way to counter them, no matter how many surprises they try.
Einaros attacks again. He rushes at Ikaros with a flurry of punches as Zael circles around, looking for an opening – but as always, Ikaros’ guard is always up, even when he has his hands full defending against Einaros’ lightning-fast strikes.
Zael feels his field flare up, his frustration manifesting as a surge of stellar power. He takes advantage of it, flying at Ikaros with such speed that he really can’t afford to just block him this time.
Ikaros dodges another one of Einaros’ punches and then manages to move out of Zael’s way before his fist collides with his head, but only barely. Zael feels the brush of hair against his knuckles, the static discharge as their stellar fields overlap for a second.
Spurred on by the sudden chance, Zael lets his stellar field grow in power even further. He needs this speed, this surge of energy that he feels whenever he lets his core take over for just a moment. He can handle it.
He moves in tandem with Einaros as they circle around their mentor, both gaining speed but not outright attacking. They make a few fake-out attacks to keep Ikaros on his toes, but he’s still entirely composed, his eye following their movements with expert ease.
Until finally, the brothers charge – Zael aiming at Ikaros’ legs, while Einaros means to hit him square in the chest. Their speed is remarkable – they would surely take down any other Xar in this settlement, but Ikaros is a crafty one.
He purposely falls back, bracing himself on his arm as he lifts his body upwards to dodge both of the attacks. The brothers miss their target – and now have to change direction at the last second to not collide with each other.
Ikaros uses his arm as a spring and launches himself backwards, landing back on his feet after a graceful somersault. Meanwhile, Zael unceremoniously hits the floor in his attempt to correct his course, and Einaros almost ends up the same way, if not for regaining his balance at the very last second.
They both get back into their fighting stances as quickly as they can – but Ikaros quickly stops them by raising his palm.
,,Time’s up. Better luck next time,” he tells them, his tone cheerful. The brothers groan in annoyance.
,,We almost had you. Almost,” Einaros growls, glaring at his teacher.
,,Maybe. But almost is not good enough,” Ikaros teases him, ,,you’ve both improved again. Einaros, your focus on technique is admirable, but I know you can still go further. There’s still something missing when you fight – you know the moves I teach you, but you don’t use them to their full potential.”
Einaros quickly nods, and Ikaros moves his attention to Zael. His face grows notably more serious.
,,Zael – your potential is immense, but you keep being too reckless. I know it’s tantalizing to let your power flow outward in such volume, but you know it’s too risky for you. You should try fighting more like your brother – focus on technique, the martial arts I’ve taught you. Combine them with your stellar power, yes – but to a safe extent. You rely on it too much.”
He finishes his evaluation and looks at both of the brothers expectantly. They both bow their heads in respect, and Ikaros does the same in turn.
,,Let’s go home now. Any volunteers to help me prepare today’s dinner?”
The brothers immediately raise their arms, and then try to push one another over as they hurry back to the house.
-
Zael is whittling away at yet another one of his statuettes, sitting on the roof as he takes advantage of the stray moonlight shining through the ash clouds. Both Einaros and Ikaros are probably already asleep – unlike Zael, they have no trouble turning off their mind to get a good night’s rest, but he rarely ever does.
He just thinks too much. There are so many things to think about.
He thinks of his training, his condition. He knows he’s not okay – he knows that if he stops trying, there’s a high chance that the sickness he had suffered as a child will come back to haunt him. So he trains and trains and tries his absolute best to keep his stellar field stable. Quiet and controlled.
But whenever he loses focus, he can feel a certain hum in his stellar core. A low, intense sound, like a signal of an oncoming storm – he has to push it back every time, and although he had found his rhythm by now, it still scares him sometimes.
He thinks of Einaros, of how he’s very obviously still worried for him, even though he barely shows it. His brother had grown more confident in his own abilities over the years, and it showed in his personality. He’s no longer as careful or serious all the time – he jokes and laughs with Zael about stupid things, he chats up Ikaros all the time.
Einaros had been very wary of Ikaros when they were still children. Zael could tell, even if he never commented on it – he’s glad that they both seem to be on the same page about him now.
Ikaros is someone they can trust completely. Their mentor, teacher, and protector.
Perhaps he is also a fatherly figure.
It’s hard for Zael to gauge exactly what he’s feeling – he and Einaros never knew their parents, and so he has zero idea about the nuance of such a dynamic. He doesn’t know if Ikaros feels a similar way – if he sees the two of them as his family.
What he does know is that Ikaros matters to him greatly. He thrives on his stories, as short and simple as they are, and he wishes to know more about his life, his people. He wishes to see his tribe with his own eye, to learn about their customs and their innate connection to the primordial way of Xar life.
He hums in thought as he finishes carving the eye on the small statuette he’s currently working on. He wants to make this one a bit more special, and plans to paint it after it’s complete.
His ear twitches. He hears something strange.
A deep, fast-approaching rumble.
Zael stands up, his eye turned towards the sky where he hears it from – and then he sees a flash in the clouds.
Several missiles fly through the skies. He’s used to the sight – usually, they are a bit further away, but they are just military tests. He knows that the Enforcers are constantly testing out new technologies, believing that pushing their weaponry forward is the only way to ensure Anorch’s future.
Even if they completely neglect the town and its citizens in every other way.
Zael watches the formation in the sky, only seeing flashes of light behind the curtain of deep dark ash. His mind begins to wander again.
But then one of the lights starts flickering.
He frowns, locking onto it – it doesn’t just flicker, it begins to separate from the formation. The rumble gets louder.
He feels a chill down his spine when he realizes what’s happening.
A missile breaks through the ash, its trail brightening up the sky so much that Zael has to shield his eye from it. His core thrums in unease as he watches the missile and tries to determine its trajectory – it’s closing in, it won’t land here – but close.
It hits its unfortunate target the next second – a residential building near their home, right on the border. Zael holds his ground as the shockwave hits him, wincing at the extremely loud noise of the explosion.
Einaros and Ikaros run outside, both alert. Einaros jumps up to the roof to Zael as soon as he sees him, his face warped with disbelief.
,,Who’s attacking?! Why so close to us? There are no targets here!”
,,I think it’s a faulty missile .. it separated from the formation. How many Xar live in that building?” Zael asks, suddenly realizing the magnitude of the situation.
,,Follow me! If anyone is in there, we need to help them out of the rubble!” Ikaros shouts at the brothers and immediately starts running towards the smoldering heap of a building.
They follow after him. As soon as they make it to the burning remnants, Zael can tell that the situation is far from ideal – the building had at least three floors, but is now entirely collapsed.
He sees Ikaros fire up his stellar field, creating a layer of purple energy around his body. Zael does the same, moving through the fire effortlessly as he wades through the impact zone.
They find the survivors one by one. A missile is not exactly enough to kill a Xar of adequate ability – but these are civilians, until now untouched by the war and without any training. Zael worries as he pulls several of them out of the rubble – some are only a bit bruised, with sprained or broken legs from when the rubble fell on them. But others are nearly unconscious, missing limbs, missile fragments impaling their bodies.
Zael gets angrier by the second. None of them are dead, but some seem close to it – when Einaros solemnly brings a wounded child out of the rubble and hands him over to one of the surviving civilians, Zael has to bite back the rage bubbling in his chest.
He knows most of Anorch has been directly affected by local conflicts already, but this is the first time he sees this destruction up close, happening to Xar that he might as well have considered his neighbors. They were the closest to their home, and although they usually kept their distance, Ikaros traded resources with them regularly.
Once they’re sure that everyone is out and accounted for, Zael sits down on a piece of a destroyed wall and stares at the remnants of the fire. He sees pieces of the missile here and there – and on one of those pieces, he notices an interesting detail.
The half-smeared symbol of the local military, the Enforcers. A red spiral with a crudely drawn eye in the middle.
Zael feels his anger coming back in full force. He frowns, breathing through his nose as he grits his teeth. His core is buzzing with energy – he wants to do something. Anything to prevent something like this happening again.
He knows the military won’t care about this. They were running a test, like usual – and mistakes happen during tests, right? That’s what the testing is for – to find out if their weapons of mass destruction work properly, or if they need more tuning.
They won’t do anything to help these Xar rebuild their home.
Ikaros tends to the wounded, instructing them on the use of their energy to focus on their healing. Zael doubts it will help – these Xar do not know how to use their energy as a warrior would. They’ll have to bear the pain as their healing slowly sets in.
Einaros quietly sits down next to Zael, looking just as troubled. They both glance at each other, and Zael feels a mutual understanding between them.
,,Seems like their test didn’t exactly work out. And, as always, the city is paying for it,” Zael mutters as he points to the piece of wreckage.
,,I know that they usually send their rockets outside, to the plains. Why would they conduct the tests over residential areas?” Einaros says, balling his hands into fists.
,,I don’t know. But we should do something about it. What do you think?”
Einaros is silent for a moment, and Zael patiently waits for his decision. They watch as Ikaros makes a makeshift sling from a piece of cloth and gives it to the injured child to make him a bit more comfortable as his healing factor slowly does its job.
,,The base is going to be very well protected. Tough to break into. Tougher to take over. We’ll have to give it our all,” Einaros speaks in a measured, serious tone. Zael only hums in response.
Einaros turns to him then, and there’s a blazing fire in his eye.
,,Sounds like fun to me.”
He grins, and Zael grins at him right back. Their excitement quickly fizzes out when Ikaros walks up to them and stares them down – he looks as serious as they had ever seen him.
Zael prepares for a lecture – if Ikaros overheard them, surely he’s going to protest against their plan to decommission the Enforcer base. But to his surprise, their mentor says something else entirely.
,,Going against trained soldiers will be very different from just doing sparring matches like you’re used to. You will need to work together exceptionally well – there won’t be room for mistakes. Are you certain you are ready for something like this?”
He asks, his arms folded over his chest as he looks at the brothers. Zael is the first to nod.
,,We are. You’ve told us before that the Xar in the military are a far cry from the warriors you used to train – that they rely too much on their technology and forget to use their natural powers to their best advantage. Since you trained us, wouldn’t that mean we should be stronger than them, too?”
Ikaros smiles at Zael’s words.
,,Indeed. As long as you keep your energy stable, protect yourself with your stellar field, and use speed to your advantage, I’m certain that the Enforcers and their weapons won’t be a problem for you. Therefore – you are free to go. Consider this another test of your abilities.”
Zael and Einaros stand up, staring at their mentor with determination. They both nod, and Ikaros raises a hand.
,,But – I hope you realize that failure is not an option here. If you attack them, you need to finish it. You need to make them yield. Otherwise, they’ll target the three of us – and the general area we reside in, which will only endanger more innocent lives. So, I ask again – are you certain you can do this?”
,,Yes. We’ll break through and make way for the Renegades,” Einaros affirms, his voice steady. ,,Once the situation in town is stabilized, we’ll at least be able to focus on defending against the outside forces.”
Zael nods. Yes, he thought of that, too. He knows that the other settlements in the area are closing in on them, taking advantage of the fact that theirs is shrouded in a civil war on top of the other conflicts. If they can take out one of the sides and help the Renegades take over, then they’ll be able to coordinate their defenses better.
He had been thinking about the current situation of the town for quite some time. This constant conflict that has been going on ever since he and Einaros were little … it’s high time someone did something about it, and if he and his brother have the strength to do so, why shouldn’t they be the ones to bring change?
,,I wish you luck, then. Remember your training – I will wait for you here,” Ikaros tells them, and there’s not even a hint of worry or uncertainty in his tone. He believes in them – wholly and entirely, and this realization only spurs Zael on more.
They can do this.
-
,,So, what’s the plan?”
Einaros is fidgeting as they hide behind a building on the outskirts of the militarized zone. Zael can tell just how excited he really is to do this – even though his brother keeps himself contained whenever he spars with Ikaros, the same can’t be said for when he and Zael train together.
Einaros relishes in fighting. He keeps a cool head, as Ikaros always instructs him, but sometimes he gives in and outright laughs and taunts Zael as they spar, not at all acting like the calm, level-headed warrior that Ikaros always has in mind when he tells them how to fight.
He knows Einaros can’t wait to get into a proper fight – and Zael is looking forward to it as well. These Xar have been a thorn in his side for long enough – all they’ve done is throw their hometown into a pointless, endless war, not at all caring about the wellbeing of the citizens.
Zael smirks as he looks at his brother.
,,No plan. Just go in and wreak havoc. We’ll take out as many soldiers as possible. I doubt they can hurt us after the training Ikaros put us through over the years.”
,,That’s what I was thinking,” Einaros nods, his eye glowing with anticipation. ,,Let’s show them what we’re capable of.”
-
The base is in complete chaos as soon as the brothers hit it.
Zael leads the charge. He scales the wall effortlessly, Einaros not far behind, and immediately knocks out a guard at the very top of it. He didn’t even have time to aim his rifle properly – not that it would make any difference.
Zael scans the area in only a few seconds. He sees at least six more soldiers out in the open, and several vehicles and ammo depots hidden behind tall fences.
The equipment is something the Renegades could find a use for.
,,Minimize damages to the infrastructure and equipment – we’ll leave this base to the Renegades,” he tells his brother before leaping off the wall and onto the grounds of the base below.
He fights in perfect synchronization with Einaros, the two of them cutting down Xar after Xar as they advance through the field. Alarms are sounded, reinforcements come, but they’re all nothing in comparison to the two young Xar warriors.
Zael almost wants to laugh as he knocks his enemies around. They simply cannot keep up with him – they try to shoot as he approaches, but Zael simply dodges out of the way and rushes right up to them before they can get away. It’s too easy.
Einaros does laugh – he’s enjoying himself tremendously, especially when he manages to throw a grenade right back at the enemy before it explodes at his feet. He sneers at the scattered soldiers, running around in confusion as they attempt to get into some sort of formation.
Finally, the fight gets more interesting when Zael feels a foreboding presence in the air – someone’s aura, powerful enough to be distinguishable in the sea of unstable energy signatures on the battlefield.
Zael turns around, looks at the top of the nearest hangar – he sees a Xar there, standing at the very top of it and looking straight at him. He’s wearing bulky armor and holds what looks like a sniper rifle in his hands.
Zael stands his ground and keeps looking at the enemy. Einaros still battles the soldiers scattered around him.
A shot rings out. Zael doesn’t move away until the very last second – he sees the bullet in his slowed perception of time, and tilts his head to dodge. It whizzes past his face, leaving him unharmed.
The Xar at the top of the hangar then drops his rifle – and charges straight at Zael, his bright blue energy shining through the seams of his armor. Seems like he wants a close quarters fight.
Zael still does not move. He uses his stellar field as a shield, blocking the enemy’s attack with his arm. He feels his whole body vibrate from the impact, feels his field slightly give as he’s hit – but in the next second, he takes the offensive, charging up his stellar energy to the point that his aura scares the rest of the soldiers away.
His enemy falters. Zael can faintly see some pins tacked onto his armor – military decorations, maybe. Which would mean that this soldier is probably the leader of the forces here, or at least someone of a higher rank.
He pushes back against the enemy Xar. As soon as the soldier is forced to take a step back, Zael follows, getting up close and personal and firing up his stellar field until he’s completely shrouded in red. The vast amount of energy strikes visible fear into his enemy, who once again attempts to move back, his own energy faltering under the onslaught of Zael’s own.
He backs away, starts circling around him. His movements are fast, unpredictable. The enemy tries to follow him with his gaze, his face warping into a stressed grimace when he starts realizing the difference in ability between them.
Zael strikes. He purposely slows down enough to give the Xar a chance to block him – he gauges his reflexes, tries out various moves that he had learned over the years. He calculates how quickly he needs to move to actually land a hit, depending on his enemy’s reaction time.
And then he stops playing around.
Zael attacks, increasing his speed significantly, punching the enemy right in the middle of his chest - which sends him crashing to the ground. He’s gasping for air as he lands, his aura waning even further.
Zael leans over him, breathing hard from the adrenaline.
,,Yield, and you’ll live,” he says, his voice rough from the exertion of the battle.
The enemy quickly nods. Zael narrows his eye.
,,Say it. Convince me you mean it,” he doubles down, the enemy wincing at his menacing tone. He nods again.
,,I yield! I give up.”
Zael straightens up, satisfied. He looks around the grounds – the battlefield has gone largely quiet now. He sees some Xar covering behind walls and vehicles, all unarmed and looking quite alarmed. He notices the flashes of Einaros’ orange aura in the distance, deeper into the military zone.
He looks back at his foe, still on the ground.
,,Tell everyone you see to group up here and wait. Do not try anything. This stupid conflict ends today – from now on, all Xar in this settlement will band together to fight against the enemy out there, instead of wasting time fighting amongst each other,” Zael tells him. His voice has a commandeering quality to it – he doesn’t know why he’s even bothering to speak with this soldier, or why this all suddenly matters to him so much.
But he does know that fighting these Xar made him feel like his life suddenly gained a purpose. He’s doing something good – something that will help the citizens, their hometown as a whole.
He rushes towards where Einaros is, following his energy signature.
-
The military encampment falls.
Obviously, the ruckus of the battle does not go unnoticed. As Zael and Einaros round up the surrendering soldiers, they notice newcomers to the military zone – Xar dressed in armor that looks to be hand-crafted from scraps of metal and leather. They slowly advance towards the brothers and the squad of soldiers, sticking to cover and shadows.
,,There they are! It’s about time the freedom fighters showed up,” Einaros exclaims, looking at a duo of the nearest Renegades. One of them, a tall lanky individual with red hair, slowly walks closer to the brothers.
,,Who are you? What is your intention here?” he asks, his tone cold.
,,We’re just a couple of warriors that have grown tired of constantly hearing distant explosions and having to deal with rockets flying over our heads. So – we made your enemies surrender for you. Hopefully, that will make living here easier for all of us,” Einaros explains, still smiling. Zael feels just how fired up he still is from the fight.
The tall Xar remains quiet, observing both Zael and Einaros as he quite obviously tries to grasp the situation.
,,You got the camp. But the factory further to the north is still defended. It’s where most of the heavy machinery is,” he speaks after a little pause, giving the brothers a questioning look.
,,Then we’ll get that one, too. Tell your friends and we can all hit it together,” Einaros shrugs, talking about it so casually that Zael has to sigh and step in.
,,We could help. We’ll leave the actual negotiations and political thinkpieces to you – do with the soldiers as you wish, but do take into consideration that they have surrendered. Do not waste lives – we’ll need to be strong, so the other tribes of the Plains won’t consider us their next target. The city is broken enough as is.”
Zael’s tone is resolute. Einaros glances at him, his expression teetering on surprised approval.
The Renegade holds Zael’s gaze for a few more beats, before his expression loses some of that hardened edge.
,,I am Atar. And you are?”
,,Zael. This is my brother, Einaros.”
Atar slightly bows his head in respect. Other Renegades start reluctantly walking out of their hiding spots, gathering around their comrade, all looking at the brothers with timid hope in their eyes.
,,Then, Zael and Einaros,” Atar starts, smiling slightly, ,,as one of the so-called Renegades, I thank you for your … surprising assistance in the civil war effort. Believe me, we have been trying to negotiate for ages – and we never wanted to risk a frontal assault. Hopefully, now we can start working towards building something that resembles a free-willed society, one that stands together when faced with a common threat.”
He pauses again, his green eye lighting up with excitement.
,,We would join forces with you in liberating the weapons factory. Once that is done, we can discuss what is next. What do you say?”
Zael glances at his brother again. Wordlessly, they both come to the same conclusion – that they weren’t exactly planning on joining the revolution effort today, and they have no idea what Ikaros would think of it.
But it’s something new. Something exciting. Something purposeful.
Their life with Ikaros had been a blessing in comparison to their lonely childhood days – but it lacked a vision of the future. A direction that they could strive towards.
Now … all Zael thinks of is the possibility of living in a town not constantly wracked with explosions, drifting from one meaningless conflict to another. How wondrous would it be to walk the streets without the fear of being attacked or dragged into a fight? How would the lives of the Xar here change? The lives of children who would have no reason to scavenge for food and hide in abandoned buildings?
Zael had thought about precisely this many times before, yet it always seemed like a foolish dream at best.
But then Ikaros started training them, instilling confidence in them with his teachings. And now, Zael knows that they’re strong enough. He and his brother just singlehandedly took over a military encampment, because Ikaros was right – the soldiers here have forgotten all about the old ways.
Maybe this dream of a peaceful life isn’t really a dream after all. Maybe it’s something tangible – something that they could make reality, if only they try hard enough.
Zael steps forward, his head held high.
,,Our interests seem to be aligned. Whenever you’re ready.”