The Aftermath of the Battle

"Step aside", he said, his voice barely a whisper, as he looked out over the woman's shoulder to where the Captain was laying on the muddy, blood red ground. "I don't want to hurt you." he said brought his ice blue gaze back to her. "You shouldn't have to pay for his sins."

"His sins? What sins? He fought for his country! He fought for his King! YOU are the betrayer, YOU lead the rebels. If anyone has sinned on this day it is YOU." She raised her voice at him. Or at least, she attempted to - she doubted that her body would let her do any yelling with what it had gone through today. She began to tremble but she didn't know if it was from anger, from the pain in her side where she had been cut, or maybe it was from cold and hunger. It had been a long battle. The sun was setting and it was growing cold again. She kept her gaze firmly fixed on the man whose path she desperately wanted to block.

"He lost, and now it is my privilege to kill him." Thalen replied calmly.

"What gives you the right? You won! Leave him his life. Or have you no honour?" She spat at him.

"Honour? You think he is honourable? Is the killing of innocent people honourable? Well perhaps if it in the name of the King eh? Get out of my way you silly girl. I won the battle. I decide who lives and who dies. It is my RIGHT". Thalen looked into Cassandra's eyes with such anger and hatred that the world seemed to become still in a destructive awe. Cassandra was taken aback, but she needed to do something.

"Take me, kill me, do what you will. But please let him live. Please" She pleaded. She begged. She hoped that maybe this man, who had just killed hundreds of people singlehandedly would somehow let one man live.

Thalen took in a deep breath and regained composure. He moved to push Cassandra out of the way. He stepped forward and placed his hand firmly on her shoulder - pushing her over to his right side. She had no strength left, so she stumbled and fell over into the mud. she tried to catch herself but her arms weren't strong enough to hold her up.

Thalen made his way over to James. He stood over the Captain's broken and blood covered body. He crouched down, and roughly shifted the Captain's head so that it would face him. The Captain opened his eyes slowly, and a knowingly looked up at Thalen. Thalen glanced around and found the Captain's sword which had fallen away from the Captain. It was a few feet away. He slowly got up, glanced over to where Cassandra was struggling to pull herself up. She would likely get to him eventually, but he would complete what he came here to do.

He walked over to the longsword, and lifted it from the mud. It was a beautiful sword with stunning emeralds in the golden pommel - although they were barely visible beneath the blood, mud and grime. Thalen walked back to the Captain. He glanced back at Cassandra again and saw that she was already up to her knees, pushing herself up out of the mud. That girl is strong, he thought to himself, it's too bad, and he shook his head. Then, he turned back to the Captain and saw him looking up at him. The Captain's eyes held a little bit of fear - he knows he's going to die, good, Thalen thought. However, Thalen could also see acceptance and knowing in his eyes.

"With this sword, you took my brother's life. So now, in his name, I take yours." Thalen spoke in a strong and loud voice.

The Captain's gaze shifted over to where Cassandra was nearly up and back to Thalen. There was pleading in his eyes.

"I will not harm her today. She has not done wrong by me" he glanced back at Cassandra, nearly up, "yet."

The Captain look on last look at his wife. He met Thalen's gaze and slowly blinked his eyes in acceptance of what was going to happen. Thalen raised the sword above his head and yelled a gut wrenching deep cry of pain, hate, anger and relief. The Captain closed his eyes. The sword came down and impaled itself through the Captain's heart and into the ground beneath him. Immediately, a loud piercing scream reverberated throughout the field as Cassandra fell again, screaming "James! No!".

Thalen left the sword impaled as it was and walked over to where Cassandra had fallen. She lay, crumpled in a heap - unconscious. He bent down and lifted her up, holding her under her knees and arms. He draped her wet and dirty cloak over her and headed towards where Silvius' had gathered what remained of their defeated army. He walked to the edge of the area where the remaining soldiers had set up camp. Even if someone had seen him, everyone was too busy tending to the wounded, collecting the dead - no one noticed him. He laid Cassandra down on a small patch of soft grass, under a tree. He walked up to a young boy who was carrying some wood, probably for a funeral pyre. He grabbed the boy by the shoulder who dropped the wood he was carrying as he looked up at Thalen's face. Fear was evident in the boy's eyes. It was likely because Thalen was quite a terrifying sight - covered in blood. There was no way this young child would recognise Thalen as the commander of the enemy army.

"The Captain's wife. There. By the tree." He pointed to the bundle under tree where he had left Cassandra. With that, Thalen turned and walked away back toward his war camps where his soldiers would be celebrating the victory.