Shadow of the Erdtree (On Hiatus)

Chapter VI: The Frenzied Swordman

Yura and Nerijus were nothing but blurs as they fought. Nathan could see bursts of sparks and blood from the clashing of blades around him.

He stumbled forward, his body still sore from the pain of nearly dying. He finally got to Samuel, as he faded in and out of consciousness.

"Sam... Samuel." Nathan said, lightly slapping his friend on the face to get him out of his stupor. "Focus on getting your flask. Hold out your hand." Nathan ordered, grasping Samuel's hand and holding it out for him. "Focus on summoning the flask. C'mon Sam."

A moment later, a flask with a single black mark across its top appeared in Sam's shaking hand.

Nathan moved the flask to Samuel's lips and let him drink from the flask.

The wounds on his chest began to heal over as bone and muscles melded together to close the wounds. Nonetheless, Samuel's face was still pale. But he was clearly more well off than a moment before.

Nathan's attention turned to Heather, who was still moving, albeit not much. She he pulled herself to sit against a building and now began to drink the last of her red flask.

She gasped for air as her now empty flask disappeared. She glanced to meet eyes with Nathan before giving a weak thumbs up.

Nathan grabbed Samuel and tossed one of his arms over his shoulder. He walked Samuel next to Heather before setting him down next to her.

Then, he finally turned his attention to the fight near them.

***

Yura deflected a strike from Nerijus and stepped away from another before kicking him in the chest, sending the bloody finger rolling onto the floor. However Nerijus quickly rebounded onto his feet to deflect Yura's blade.

Yura stepped forward and grabbed Nerijus's robes before throwing him against a wall, spinning, and slashing at Nerijus's neck.

The bloody finger quickly ducked down below the blade, which made a clean cut into the brickwork of the wall behind him, before dashing forward.

Yura backed away and slashed at Nerijus again, halting his charge.

Blood pulsed from one of Nerijus's daggers as he swung upward, sending out a wave of crimson at the swordsman.

Yura quickly dodged to the side and raised his blade. But there was no target. Nerijus was gone.

Then a sharp pain pulsed through Yura's back.

He quickly turned and sent a powerful kick behind him, straight into the chest of his foe.

Nerijus tumbled as he hit the ground and quickly bound back onto his feet.

Yura rolled his shoulder as he stepped forwards, over a small piece of rubble on the road. "How long must you avoid fate, Nerijus." He held his blade towards his shoulder, aiming the tip at the robed figure. "It permits you no right to prey upon tarnished. Upon your own kind." He rearranged his foot slightly crouched down.

His legs and tip of his blade began to glimmer white. With a burst of light, he shot forwards and thrust his blade.

Nerijus didn't dodge. Instead he quickly cut across his arm with one of the daggers before flinging the drops of blood into the air.

The small drops quickly grew before exploding into red mist just as Yura reached him.

The mist was almost immediately dispersed as Yura's blurred form shot through. He skidded half a dozen feet before finally stopping.

Then blood spewed from his mouth.

The tips of two blood-covered daggers stuck from Yura's back.

Nerijus stood , crouched and braced, against Yura's attack, still tightly holding the hilts of his weapons.