Damian Gerard|Edge of Crocus
Damian closed the distance with the spear wielding lad quickly, bringing his sword up to deflect a thrust even as he summoned a second Ares Blade and brought it up towards his gut.
"The hell is your problem boy?"Adiaan's eyes blazed black as he leaped backward in shock at the stranger.
This isn't any of your business so I suggest you leave off!" a large black circle of flames erupted around the pair and sped toward Damian, the flames quickly went a light blue and disappeared just before they reached Damian, Adamine pulled her robe around her in concentration as she watched her twin brother carefully as he quickly brought up his spear and swung it in an arc toward Damian.
"Adamine may not have her guild mark, but she is still a member of Phoenix Wing. Don't think I'm going to stand aside while you attack her!" Damian expertly spun under the spear slash and moved into his opponent's guard, delivering a series of rapid punches to his chest before slamming his foot into the guy's chin.
Adiaan took the hits to the gut with a groan and threw up a fire wall between them, with a rage filled yell black fire sprung up all around them and Adiaan thrusted his spear through the wall of fire before Adamine could put it out as she was putting out each black flame Adiaan conjured.
Damian watched the wall carefully, but didn't see the spear tip in time, grunting as it dug into his shoulder. Grabbing the haft, he pulls it out then pulls the boy back into view, spinning the blades and changing to the Hermes pair.
"Triple Blade!" Three blades appear and rush at the spear wielder from three different direction, trapping him between them.
With a sneering growl Adiaan threw himself sideways choosing one blade to hit him in the chest. On impact black flames exploded outwards knocking even Adamine backwards, and Adiaan laid on his back, ond hand clutched to his chest. Sitting up he hisses in pain as his eyes leak black flames, narrowing his eyes he shoots a large flaming black ball at Damian with immense speed.
Damian summons another Blade Shield and puts it between him and the fireball, flying back from the resulting explosion. Groaning a bit, he stands up and dismisses the shield, calling down a Blade Rain to fall on the spear wielding young man and then closing the distance and unleashing a barrage of slashes and thrusts intended to keep him on the defensive without causing real damage.
"You're outclassed. Give it up!"Adiaan rolled sideways and came up engulfed in flames, he back peddled trying to keep up with the attacks. Conjuring another flame ball, this one at close range, he throws it at Damian, but it flashes blue and is gone. With a frustrated growl Adiaan lunges toward Damian and shoots small lines of flames in every direction that seem to explode on impact.
Leaping up and over the frustrated man, Damian flips and brings his momentum to bear as he lands hard behind him and slams his elbow into the boy's back before spinning and leaving a gash across his back.
"Damn it all, surrender! You can't win this!"With another yell, Adiaan explodes his flames outwards pushing Damian back with the force. Getting up, he quickly moves to Adamine and grabs her wrist and pulls her close as he glares at her with his black eyes
You killed mom and dad, didn't you?!" Adamine's eyes widen as she can physically feel his rage.
"I- it was an accident, I didn't mean too Adiaan!" With a disgusted rage filled snarl Adiaan brought his spear up with both hands, intending to run his sister through.
Once more, time slowed down for Damian as the spear rose up, and unbidden, a memory rose to front of his mind.
"-back. Fall back! There are too many of them!" Joseph had always known when a battle was going south and was sending the order to all his men to fall back to regroup. The walls of the outpost had been over run hours ago, but the defenders of Fiore's borders weren't so easily pushed back. For every loyal soldier of Fiore that fell, ten more of the invading Mistralians did. Damian, only ten at the time, had been among those at the front, helping to fight and doing just as vicious a job as the older men, even if he hadn't yet killed anyone. By now, the beleaguered members of the Fiore garrison saw any invader out of the fight as good. However, when the order to retreat came, he didn't hesitate, running back towards the camp that had been set up as a secondary defensive position as fast as his legs could carry him.
Still, he could hear the sounds of battle as he got closer and knew that he hadn't been fast enough. Upon clearing the tree line, he balked in fear and worry. Tents were in flames, the civilians of the camp, women and children who didn't know how to fight, or couldn't, fleeing as the men who'd reached the camp first fought to buy them time. "Damian, what are you doing? Get in there and get what you can and run!" Damian watched as Hank, a kind man when off the battlefield, ran to join the others on the front and Damian did as he was told. Don't want to upset father or mother by getting myself hurt or killed. Reaching their tent, he ducked inside and grabbed the only thing that mattered, a locket his mother had given him for his birthday two years back, and ran back out, only to be confronted with a horrifying sight. Frankie, another boy in the camp and a close friend of Damian's, had been cornered by a Mistralian wielding a spear and was cowering as the man rose the spear to kill him.
"No you don't!" He didn't hesitate, didn't pause, simply rushed forwards and plunged the sword he'd been holding through the spearman's back, who uttered a surprise yelp before falling sideways, his spear clattering to the ground after falling from limp hands. Damian didn't flinch as he felt the warm blood soak his hands, didn't let go of the sword until the spearman quit yelling. Only then did he let go of the sword, after realizing what he'd done.
Damian snapped back to reality and looked down, a single Ares Blade in his hands as the point of the magical blade poked out the spear wielding boy's chest. He let go of the hilt as the spear, as the one so many years ago had, clattered to the ground, the hands that had held it limp. The body fell to the side and the blade vanished in a shimmer. Damian looked at his hands, blood covering them once more, and then at the boy who was slowly dying.
"Damn it..." Damian walked over and helped Adamine up and then lead her to her brother, letting her get in her last words.