The Battle of Centarium

Theo shot up, wide eyes and sharp. The sound of wheels rolling on the road a few yards away had pulled him from his dreams, wheels that shouldn't be on the road he was traveling.

He leaned up off the tree that he had laid upon, and looked through the leaves to catch a glimpse of who was traveling on the back roads. Rotting branches blocked his view, so he crawled silently through them for a better look.

The wagon was being drawn by two horses, and men in long black coats followed it. On the wagon was a cage with rusted bars. The locks, Theo thought, were old enough to be yanked off.

Inside the cage, to Theo's surprise, was a group of elves. Over ten he counted, both tall and short, and as they were elves, it was impossible to determine their age. He watched as their hopes dropped with every inch they traveled. Their faces slicked to the sides, as if someone had pulled their skin until it stretched, and tied it around their ears.

Still, Theo grasped his Dragon Sword and walked out of the trees. He walked heavy so that the several men surrounding the wagon could hear his approach. Their reaction would help determine what the situation was.

They tensed up, and pulled their weapons towards the noise, defensive looks on their faces. The stepped out, and all eyes turned to him. He had his sword drawn at the ready, but had no amour. The other five men were, however, wearing old silver chest plates.

They smiled, and looked questioningly at him,
"Well.. who do we 'ave here boys?"

With this the other four laughed and chuckled, sheathing their blades. Theo however kept his in his palm.
"I was going to ask the same. Where are you taking these Elves?"

At this, the captors exchanged quick glances. The man who seemed to be in charge stepped forward. The humorous expression had turned to a cold stare. He rubbed his scarred chest plate, and acted out his words with his hands.

"We are taking them to Elorith. To the Elven district."

Theo smirked,
"Really? See I'm from Elorith," he spoke slowly, " and there is no Elven district there."

With this, the other four men drew their weapons, exposed as to what they were. Slavers. Elves were segregated to small areas in each well sized town. Slavers would kidnap a few here and there, and sell them to farmers in the forest. Very illegal, with a very high penalty.

"The best thing fer' you ta do is turn, and walk to whatever forest hut you came from." The big man said threateningly. Theo watched them try to circle him, and considered his odds. Two of the men would be easy in a one on one fight, and even together he could take them.

Two more seemed more of a threat, but with enough time he could beat them both one on one. It was the leader, who stood over six and a half feet, who seems would give him a tough fight even in a singles fight. All together, Theo had no chance.

Still, he gave them a cold look, and even advanced a step. A vain hope that maybe he could frighten the men enough that the would hesitate. Still they advanced, and Theo felt the impending doom of their presence.

"Should have walked away," one man sneered, and another charged.

Spinning his body around, Theo parried the man's blade, causing his hands to slip off the hilt. Theo threw himself forward and sliced open the man's shoulder. He immediately spun to the other opponents, his back to a tree.

The man he had cut was clawing at his open wound, blood flowing over his fingers. Theo could have impaled the man, but the last place you want your weapon when four men are advancing, is inside another two hundred pound man.

One man sat and tried to help him with the gash. Even so, three still came closer. Theo realized there was no hope in victory, and shot a glance at the Elves that were watching. Their faces were full of hope, excitement at the possibility of their impending freedom.

Theo's gut wrenched at the sight, knowing that he was their last hope, and knowing that he was about to fail them. Then one elf caught his eye, one who was staring blanking into Theo's face and whispering. The elf rose his hand, and Theo was taken aback to see it engulf into flames. After checking his enemies positions, he glanced back the elf was obviously a mage. Theo jerked his neck, forming a quick nod. The elf threw his arm outside the cage, and the fire expanded from his hand to one of the men.

As the man screamed in agony, Theo charged. The only man who didn't take his eyes off Theo was the big man, the leader. He went for him first then, and the collided with the clash of steel. They parried and struck, slashed and cut. Dodging and ducking, Theo had enough time to look at the other men.

They were running toward the unarmed elf, who was tossing fire with a pained expression on his face. They side stepped each one, until one struck one dead center in his chest. His face went stiff, and he fell dead to the ground.

Learning that the elf could handle himself, he went back to his own battle. The man was almost as good as Theo, but not his equal. His fighting style was too loose, and he gave openings that Theo noted in his mind. The screaming of the first man to be caught aflame had stopped, and the horrid smell of burning flesh filled the air.

Theo blocked a shot that the over-sized man threw, and struck him in the neck with his palm. He took a step back, coughing and holding his throat, carelessly holding his giant sword in a defensive position. Theo took advantage of this, and charged forward. He smacked the mans sword hand away, did a full three-hundred and sixty spin. At the end of the spin he sliced the man's throat, and the fingers that held it.

The man's eyes widened, and he fell to the ground gagging. Theo turned without a moment to spare, running to help the elf. Jumping over the two man he had already brought down.

Together, Theo and the mage elf made quick work of the final two, their fighting styles synching perfectly. When the fight was done, Theo turned to see the elf on his knees, pressing his hands to his heart and gritting his teeth.

Theo first checked on the other nine elves, making sure none were dead or injured. He then turned to the mage, and sat next to him. "Are you okay?"

Theo was gasping for air, and he looked down to see the elf's black, burnt hands.

"Your hands! Did the fire do that?" Theo babbled, grimacing at the wounds.

The elf shot a glance down, whispered some words, and closed his eyes. His hands glowed blue, and the skin started to stitch itself back together. After both his hands were healed, he laid on his back and took a deep breath.

After several moments, he turned to Theo.

"I owe you a debt sir.", was the first thing he spoke, in a calm thankful voice.

"No, you were the one who saved me. I couldn't have lived without the distraction.", Theo acknowledged.

The elf shook his head, and extended his hand, "I'm called Valonir. I'm an aspiring mage, as you can tell.", he nodded toward his hands.

"We were being moved from districts when these men raided the guards transporting us. I was planning an escape, but didn't know how I could have handled them all on my own."

Theo nodded, and watched the other elves speak with each other about what to do next. Elves, the creatures that had once been equals to men, were now treated as second rate criminals. They were barred into their section of the cities, and were not able to leave without authorization from a Jarl. These 'Elven districts' felt more like prisons to them.

"Now we must talk about where you go from here," Theo spoke while standing to his feet. The elves stopped speaking and stared. Fright in their eyes, expecting some sort of 'judgement'.

"Go now to wherever you feel fit. If you travel ten miles that way," he pointed to the direction he had been sleeping an hour before, "you will find a river. You can hide there, where none but a lonesome hunter could find you."

As Theo finished, each of their faces light up like a torch. After an hour of speaking with each of them, they went off into their freedom. All but one, the one they called Valonir.

Valonir turned, and with a courageous look in his eye, said, "I wish to travel with you."

Theo raised an eyebrow, skeptical of the idea. "A lone elf will draw a lot of attention, I'm on my way to a place that doesn't beg for such attention."

Valonir smirked, "You have, in your possession, one of the ancient great swords. I've seen drawings of them in my mage study. I am an expert in everything Ayden Centarium ever did."

Valonir stood, and made eye contact. With a hopeful expression he said, "I can help you. By the look on your face when I healed, I can tell you don't know much of magic. I can train you in it."

Theo looked to the ground, "I have no interest in magic, kind elf."

"Still, I could train you how to fight against it. The other competitor may be a mage after all."

With that advice, Theo sat and thought for a moment. After a minute or two of consideration, he spoke.

"When could you show me these things?", he asked.

Valonir glowed, a smile on his face that could have touched his pointed ears. "We can start now."