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With the storm roiling overhead, it would be reasonable to assume that Rhalgr Himself had descended upon Rhalgr's Reach. Seeing the bloodbath unfolding within would reinforce that assumption.
There wasn't a God of Destruction, yet He must have been raging, as Zenos yae Galvus walked amongst the bodies of His followers strewn about the battlefield. The Crown Prince ignored them, and lazily approached a lone Viera who was trying to pick herself up off the ground.
Lilith Viras felt her diaphragm finally loosen, and she gratefully sucked air into her burning lungs. She tried to assess the situation through the metaphorical thundering of her heart in her ears, and the literal thundering of the sky above. Alisaie and Pipin were down. Krile and Alphinaud were far too far away, and were healing Y'shtola and Conrad, besides. She couldn't find where her grimoire had landed. Her Carbuncle had positioned itself in front of her, trying to defend her from the menace of a man slowly marching towards her.
"It would seem I misjudged you," Zenos yae Galvus took a stance.
She could see the intent of his soul through her Echo. A charge and slash. She had seen his speed, and with the way her legs were burning, she knew jumping out of the way would be futile. She expected to feel his emotional state as well, but what she got was… boredom.
She didn't know if that scared her more than the imminent strike.
Her Carbuncle gave a little flip, and she felt its Aegis appear around her. There was no way it would be enough.
Her mind raced through options. It would be dangerous, but she could potentially use her Red Mage training to form geometries herself, without her grimoire. She glanced down at her Carbuncle, and one of the lessons of Surito Carito ran through her mind: Dissipation; using the aether of her faerie to fortify her healing and shielding spells. Eos was an Arcane Entity, just like the Carbuncle… maybe it could work.
The world seemed to slow as Zenos launched forward. Death was singing through the air towards her, dancing upon the edge of his katana.
Out of time and options, she Dissipated her Carbuncle, and used its aether to swift-cast the Nymean shielding spell. She didn't have her Grimoire, and without the Scholar's Soulstone on hand, all she had was muscle memory. Despite this, her improvised spell seemed to work; she felt the magics Galvanize her body.
She didn't have time to pray that it would be enough.
The katana sliced into and through the Carbuncle's Aegis. She could almost see sparks as the tip of the blade skittered across her last, desperate shield, and to her shock and relief, it continued on past her. The force of the blow had knocked her airborne, but the Galvanizing shield had held. Just barely, but it held.
An instant later, Zenos's backswing sliced through the last of it.
The sword was still ringing when Lilith crashed to the ground.
It only stopped when the sword let out a sharp ping.
Zenos glanced at his sword, then back at Lilith, as he straightened up.
"Pathetic."
He turned, and started to walk away. His sword clattered to the ground behind him.
All Lilith could hear was the rush of blood in her ears, and her gasping breath. Her body felt numb. She blinked a few times, and finally focused on the arm in front of her. Her arm. She flexed her fingers, and had a small wave of relief as the hand in front of her reacted as expected. She pulled her arms close to push herself up, and her left arm buckled the moment she put any weight on it. It was only after she pushed herself upright with her right arm that she noticed the huge slice through her sleeve, and the dark stain rapidly spreading down it.
'Aw… I liked this dress…' she blinked, 'Oh… I'm going into shock. That's not good…'
She sat back on her haunches, and freed up her hand to put pressure on it, and tried to start healing. Another wince, and violent shudder. She pulled her hand off, and noticed more blood on her forearm. The leather on her stomach had been sliced through as well.
She tried to focus through the shaking of her body, to channel her aether into healing magics, and blinked in confusion when she felt a warm glow envelop her that wasn't her own. She looked up into the eyes of a Gridanian Conjurer, and weakly smiled in the light of his aether.
Behind her, a Flame Officer looked at Zenos, slowly walking away as his troops withdrew, and turned to Raubahn. "Shall we give chase, General?"
The Flame General gritted his teeth, and lowered his hand from his sword. "Nay," he turned to the Officer. "There has been enough death this day. See to the wounded."
The Officer saluted, and ran off.
The Conjurer finished applying the bandage around her arm, and started getting a sling on her. "I've stopped the bleeding, at least. You'll need to get those cuts looked at by a chirurgeon as soon as you can."
"I don't need—" her sharp gasp of pain ended any attempt at protest.
Raubahn walked forward. He waited for the Conjurer to finish his first aid, and knelt down beside her when the Conjurer ran off to assist with the triage. "You all right, lass?"
Lilith looked up at Raubahn, then at the fallen soldiers strewn across the Reach, gritted her teeth, and looked down. Her hand touched the long cut gouged into and through her corset.
"To best the likes of you…" he looked towards where Zenos had exited, "Zenos is not what I took him to be."
He stood up, and helped her to her feet. She looked at the motes of light that were the healers tending to the wounded and the dying. She spotted the conjurer who aided her, helping a groaning Alisaie sit up. She looked at Raubahn, and nodded. "There's a lot of work to do."
He nodded back, "You should get yourself some rest, lass. We'll handle matters here," and set off before she could protest.
Lilith took a few steps, and stopped at a sharp piece of metal sticking out of the ground, next to the hilt of a snapped katana. The sword had been Zenos's. She remembered hearing the clatter that meant he had dropped it, so that sharp ping must have been…
She let out a laugh. At the incredulity, relief, and triumph of it all, she could only laugh. It must have been the shield. No soul crystal, no pre-rendered geometries, and she managed to make a shield that did that!
"Lieutenant?"
She jumped, and looked over to a Maelstrom officer. He was holding out her grimoire. It was slightly more scuffed than when she last had it, but thankfully none the worse for wear. She reached out and accepted it, "Thank you."
"Are you all right, ma'am?"
She opened her mouth, about to answer in the affirmative, but stopped herself, and winced. "I will be. Excuse me…" she took a moment trying to awkwardly salute, and the other Lieutenant returned it, with a nod of understanding. She composed herself, and started walking towards the two points of light that were Krile and Alphinaud.
"Don't you die on me, Y'shtola!" Lyse couldn't stop the panic cracking through her voice. "Hold on!"
Krile kept the healing magics flowing into Y'shtola, but spared a glance at Lyse, "Don't worry! It's going to be alright!" Another glance, "Alphinaud? How's Master Kemp?"
Alphinaud spoke up from where he was healing Conrad, "I am doing what I can to stabilize him."
"Y'shtola…" Lilith came up alongside her, and stared, her mouth dropped open. It was the first she had gotten a good look at the deep slice Zenos had given her.
Lyse did a double take when she saw the sling on her arm, and the blood stains, "Oh Gods, Lilith!"
"How can I help?" Lilith awkwardly got down, and reached out, channeling healing magics into Y'shtola's body. Next to the lantern glow of Krile's spell, Lilith could only manage a flickering candle.
"Lilith, stop that! You're about as pale as she is!" Krile stared at her in alarm.
Lilith shook her head, and tried to focus, "I'm fine—!"
"No you're not, Lilith! Sit down!" Krile's suddenly sharp tone rocked her backwards, and Lilith swayed, the aether of her healing spell dissipating, "Lyse, help her down."
Lilith tried to object, but she knew Lyse could feel how badly her body was trembling.
Krile's voice softened as Lilith was lowered to her knees, "If you want to help right now, hold her down," she looked at Y'shtola, who was beginning to twitch, unconsciously trying to curl herself up. "You too, Lyse."
Lilith leaned over, and put a hand on Y'shtola's arm, putting some weight on it, while Lyse knelt next to her. Lilith winced as she tried to use her bad arm, but leaned in closer, and started whispering to her, "We're here. You're in good hands. Krile, Lyse, and I. We're all here for you. You're going to be okay…" she kept speaking in her gentile voice, like a mother comforting a hurting child.
After a long minute, Y'shtola finally stopped her shivering, and her breathing became more steady.
Krile lowered her hands, and the healing magics winked out. She started to get up, "The worst is passed, but without the proper facilities, I can do no more."
Alphinaud stood up as well, "Master Kemp too would be better served in the infirmary. Let us take them there without delay."
Krile nodded to him, and turned to the one still looking down, "Give us a hand, would you, Lyse?"
Lyse jumped, and finally looked up from Y'shtola, "Oh… Yes. Of course."
"Help Lilith to the infirmary, and see what they can do about getting us stretchers for these two."
Lilith stood up, "There must be others who need… my…" her voice faded as her eyes unfocused, and she would have fallen over had Lyse not grabbed her.
"Don't say another word, Lilith! You're going to the infirmary, and you will rest! I'm not losing you too, Godsdammit!"
She looked at her arm, locked in Lyse's death grip. At the angry tears in Lyse's eyes. She looked down, closed her eyes, and nodded.
Lyse put Lilith's arm over her shoulder, and her own arm around Lilith's waist, and started guiding her over to the infirmary.
They were about halfway there when Lyse broke the silence, "I'm sorry I shouted at you. I just… you run yourself ragged for us. You care about everyone around you so much… but… I…"
Lilith squeezed Lyse's shoulder, gently, "Thank you."
Lyse let out a weak chuckle, "For what?"
"For reminding me to take care of myself, too."
Lyse sniffed, gave her a sad smile, a return squeeze, and an apology when Lilith winced.