Hellhounds of Providence

Blood Upon the Briar

"-!?!?!" It hurts! It hurts! It hurts! I tried to scream but couldn't because of the arrow piercing my lung so all that came out was a gargled wail. Blood started leaking into my now collapsed lung, forcing me to cough up blood as I desperately tried to gasp for air.

"Lucina, hold on!" Elise rushed over to me and forced me to lie on my side. "Agh, damn it! I need to break the arrow, just hold on!" I watched her snap the feathered end off the arrow and she pulled the rest of it out of my back. Now that the arrow was out, blood freely started to flood into my lung and it felt like I was drowning! I frantically grasped Elise's arm as it got harder and harder to breathe. I didn't want to die! "It's okay! It's okay, Lucina!" Elise was doing her best to comfort me as I felt the warmth of her healing magic close my wounds.

"!?!" But even if the wounds were now closed with only a scar remaining my collapsed lung was still filled with blood that I had to keep coughing up if I didn't want to die.

"Elise, how's the kid!?" Peter called over as he impaled a Heavenly Crane knight on his great sword before slicing upward to partially slice the man in half. I saw his body fall and his internal organs gushed out onto the snow. Including myself, only ten Hellhound knights remained standing.

"She'll make it!" Elise called back as she smacked my back to help me cough up the rest of the blood. My vision was blurry from the tears that froze in my eyes, but I was starting to be able to breathe again. "We-AAGH!" I watched a spear fall from above and impale Elise through her stomach; pinning her to the ground.

"Enough stalling!" A Heavenly Crane knight managed to climb the stone wall Elise had made at the start of the battle and his shadow now loomed over us.

"Eli- Damn it!" Carl tried to disengage and rush to Elise's side but he was stopped by two more enemy knights. "Outta my way!"

"Hmph, you only delay your deaths," the knight who climbed the wall chastised as he jumped down and landed a few feet away from me. I desperately started to crawl away. My gloved fingers dug through the snow and into the dirt as I dragged my body along the ground.

"You monst-!" a Hellhound knight charged the Heavenly Crane knight that was approaching me, but his sword was easily batted aside and the enemy knight ripped the head off the Hellhound. A miasma of red swirled around the enemy knight's hands; this man was an Aurister!

"Do not blame the strong for your own inadequacies, Urldrusk dog."

"That's enough games, Zhao," I heard Ming Fatecaller address the enemy knight who was still holding the severed Hellhound knight's head. "I wish to return to bed and allow our warriors a night's rest before tomorrow's battle."

"At once, Grand Master!" Zhao tossed the head aside and started approaching me once again. I couldn't crawl fast enough and his shadow soon engulfed me.

"L-Lucina!?" Elise managed to rip the spear out of the ground and slide it out of her gut to begin using her healing magic, but there were clear signs of magic exhaustion on her face.

"Damn it!" Carl and the others were also suffering from fatigue as they continued to fight off the seemingly endless wave of Heavenly Crane knights. The other Hellhound knights were now all dead leaving only myself, Peter, Elise, Carl, and Jeremy. I tried to keep crawling, but Zhao used his foot to flip me over onto my back and he pressed his foot down on my chest.

"AGH!" He was going to crush me!?

"The Grand Master gave you a chance for a clean death," Zhao taunted as he put more pressure on my chest. "You suffer what you sow."

"...!?!" Pain shot through my body as one of my ribs cracked. Stop! Please stop! I started bashing my fist against his leg to try and get him off but there was no way I could move this man with my strength alone. Peltairan Auristers were powerful, but maybe he hasn't mastered the technique that nullifies magic? I had to try! Another rib broke! I want to live! I have to stop him! I have to get away from him! I don't want to die here! I won't-!