Lionsgate was on fire. Magical flame which had been embedded in the battlements by Pyromancers long ago and activated to cover the retreat of the men as the Crickers assault pushed them from the walls.

Crickers burnt as they tore at the wall of flames. Some tried with magic to quell the flames and others tried with their bare, wooden hands. They would have kept trying to leap into the flames forever if hey had been given the chance. All but a few Crickers ran on threw themselves to destruction. The ones who didn’t skulked back and watched with emotionless eyes as their siblings burnt.

But the fire only lasted for a minute, for even magic can only force a fire to burn for so long. But as it did, the eerie flames provided the backdrop for a meeting of two people who couldn’t be any more different.

********************************************************

Robis Hotar took his bearings. The Halian had transported him to Lionsgate and he saw the colours of the gates regiment, The Venerators, flying above the trenches behind the gate. The corpses of men and Crickers were strewn all about and the body of a particularly gruesome looking Grom was slumped upon the gatehouse itself.

He saw the blaze upon the battlements as burning Crickers tumbled out, most were dead before they hit the ground and all were dead shortly after. He saw a Grom pulling itself through the flames, headless its gaping neck sported jagged teeth and it roared and spluttered as the magical fire burnt its flesh black. Its arms were on fire and its skin was blistering horribly. Then a voice cut through the clamour of battle, somehow managing to be playful and commanding in the same intonation.

“No you silly thing, don’t waste your new life. Go wait for the fires to die down until I call ya.”

Heeding the voice the Grom stopped trying to get over the wall and let itself drop into the river on the other side.

The voice came from a figure walking down the steps from the battlements. She was human and held her self with a steady confidence. Her hair cut short she wore the scars of many battles on her young face. But at that moment Robis saw something else. His future sight, that which had shown him so much over the years, came back into focus on the woman with a disconcerting clarity. She seemed to be the culmination of so many fates and actions that he wondered if other people, those without the sight, didn’t see it too.

“Robis Hotar?” She called across the short distance between them as she walked confidently towards her enemy’s battle lines.

“I am. Who are you who seek me?” Robis asked, though she could almost hear the name she was about to give. So astute his sixth sense was in that moment.

“I’m Alibastor Allwinter and I’m here to kill you. Sorry about that.” She had left the steps and was closing the distance with lazy strides. She held a blood stained dagger in her hand, casually twirling it between her fingers.

Despite himself Robis smiled as he drew his long sword, the runes along it gleaming playfully in the firelight. “Oh I don’t think so. I can see a lot right now and nowhere do I see you killing me. It is my destiny to strike you down here, I can see that clearly enough.”

He approached her as the men of the Venerators came to his side, recognising when their commanding officer needed them. Robis wondered what had happened to his own bodyguard whom he had left stranded at Uppergate. He put them out of his mind though, he could see he would need all his concentration to slay this woman.

And then the flames died down as quickly as they had begun. As soon as they were no more than a flicker the Crickers came on. They crawled and creaked cautiously, moving to support Allwinter.

“Don’t be too confident” she said “I have friends to.”

“And they will not kill me either.” Robis retorted and took up his combat stance. Smiling wickedly Allwinter waved her wooden army forwards and then leapt recklessly towards the men of Ptrygon.

Robis and Allwinter’s blades clashed a second before the men and monsters around them did. Arrows and bullets fell upon the Crickers and less recognisable ammunition flew back; wooden splinters and quills peppered the human line over raised shields and into helmets.

Robis’ aimed his sword at Allwinter’s dagger, the two blades almost sparking as he found far more strength in her arm than he had been expecting, he only just caught her smile as she pushed back, almost knocking his sword from his hand. She was stronger than him but he could see her every moved the moment before she made it. That would have to be enough.

He staggered back, almost colliding with his troops rushing forward to face the Crickers. The man who had almost smashed him aside ran at Allwinter and she sliced his face in two for the trouble. Robis closed again, parrying her dagger, never trying to go strength for strength. He moved round to her left to try and strike at her off hand side. A Cricker with four snapping crab claws and a backwards head jumped from the press at him. He read its moves perfectly as he drove his sword home into its unprotected chest. He pushed it off his sword just in time to see Allwinter cut down two halberdiers who had tried to take her by surprise.

Robis closed swinging his sword in a wide ark, she ducked into it and parried his back swing, moving effortlessly to deflect another sword blow from a near by soldier as easily as Robis bisected a Cricker in the same second. His next strike seemed to miss her wildly but struck the head from a nearby Cricker who Robis knew would have killed a certain spearman in a few seconds.

She capitalised on his miss by delivering a perfect strike at his heart, faster than the eye could see. But he had already begun to move before she had even thought of the strike. He stepped back and jabbed with his own weapon, using its much greater reach to his advantage. She seemed to copy his twist but instead move closed, her offhand moving to strike the flat of his blade, preventing him from reacting properly. She stepped close, almost barging him back and swept his legs out from under him with a kick.

He fell on his back and she reversed the dagger to follow him down. He rolled to the side but she moved with him. He couldn’t get away fast enough and would have died there if a spear hadn’t been driven through Allwinters thigh at that exact moment. Her face contorted in anger as she span round to backhand the young Robis had saved a second ago spearman and sent him flying backwards.

Robis made it to his feet in this moment and swung his sword at her head. She listened to her body for once and fell to one knee as her left hand pulled the spear from her thy. Defending instantly she thrust the spear back up at him. He brought his sword back and sliced the tip from the spear. Not giving her time to react he drove the pommel of the sword back at her. It struck her in the forehead and he felt her skull crack under the blow.

As she swayed backwards he swung his sword back round for the finishing blow. Somehow, though he was sure her vision must have been swimming at this point, her dagger flashed back and blocked the blade perfectly. Twice more she blocked his blade with a stylish parry, even though he held every advantage. Finally he broke through her defence and drove his sword into her chest, straight through her collar bone and down.

He pulled his sword out as she fell to the floor and paused to look around. Men and Crickers were still locked in a brutal combat that had degenerated into a simple killing match. A Cricker saw him. It appeared headless at first and then screamed at him from the head where its hand should have been. It swung its head at him and he cut it off at the wrist. It fell back and as it did he span round just in time to block the blow from the woman he had just killed.

He didn’t bother asking how, for he had seen it all over the years. Her dagger flashed and his sword struck back, they aimed to kill each other though often they killed a near by man or Cricker instead. Sometimes they lost sight of each other in the chaos around them but they always found each other again.

“You’re really annoying” she said in a momentary break in the fighting, her face under lit by an eerie red light coming from the hole he had made in her armour. Blood was streaming down her face from the open head wound but there was no mistaking the fact she was alive and vital.

He opened his mouth to reply but he never got the chance. A strike he never saw coming struck his temple and he stood there dead for a moment.

“You’re one to talk.” Said Samuel Brier as he pulled his stiletto from Robis Hotar’s head and let the man’s body fall to the floor.

******************************************************

“Hey… you. I… I was fighting that man for ages. Look at me. I look like I’ve been dragged under a horse.”

“Stop whining Ali. I think you owe me something.” Smiled Brier as he held his hand out.

“Oh fine.” She said as she put her dagger in its sheath and went to a small pouch on her belt. She produced a gold coin from the pouch and placed it in his outstretched hand. She now wished she’d never bet him a crown that she’d be the first one to kill one of the wanted. “But I’m not thanking you. And I want his sword.” She said retrieving the weapon.

“So how did I do?” she said as she took his arm and they turned to go deeper into the siege works as all around them the Crickers pushed the defenders back. The trenches here had been severely compromised by a lot of defenders dieing from the same unexpected method Hotar had.

“Pretty good your blade work is really improving. Though I must admit I didn’t see all of it. I’ve been busy.” Allwinter surveyed the scene around her and wondered how long it had taken him to kill all the men in the trench. “I would have let you finish but we have more pressing concerns.”

“Typical man.” She chided “And what could be more important than me winning glory in the eyes of His Majesty instead of you?”

“Opala is advancing on the palace. I thought you might want to get there first. I’ve detected a massive power building their, something cross-scape.”

She smiled and said “You know I love you don’t ya? You always bring me such nice things” but as she said it a thought seemed to strike her, she held back and began to pull him back towards the walls. “I’ve got just the thing. C’mon.” and they practically ran hand in hand back to the smouldering parapets.

**************************************************

“We did it Ode” And His Majesty placed His hand on Odes head stood up from His throne but drew it back just as quickly. He hated human contact. He stared at the projection of the Skein as it twisted to accommodate the death of Robis Hotar. Fates reworked and new paths opened and, though it was hard to see, His goal came that much closer.

The Cricker/woman projecting the image squirmed under the light of the Skein and pulled at her leash He grasped in his clawed hand.

“We’ve prove we can do it. Soon the prince will be dead and the Elemental will have killed the Witch. Once we find the Elf we will have killed everyone we need to and no power in the Scapes will stop me.

He looked round at Ode trying and failing to smile for him as usual. He was so happy He almost appreciated the effort.