Full Circle

"W-What?!" your voice snaps out as you gaze around your body, "C-Claire?!" you mumble out loud. You heard her voice and you felt her touch on your shoulder, you know that much is true yet she was no where to be seen. "Then how did..." you think to yourself before about two more seconds and you realize that she's not here.

That's not all true though as she is always here, sure, she's not physically standing next to you with a hand on your shoulder but she will always be here in your heart, standing by your side and pushing you on no matter what. "Claire..." you softly push her name through your lips and then give a giant smile as you think about your sister. Rixx himself has already started to walk your direction again as he was readying his greatsword to continue his assault. His energy was immaculate and he was going to keep the fight going and not give you even a moment to rest.

"Stand up little brother..." her voice repeats through your ears and as if you feel your body get pulled from a sisterly helping hand you are brought up to your feet once again. You inhale a giant gulp of air as you realize that she's here, watching you do this battle and doing everything she can to give you the motivation you need to fight this monster with your all. With an exhale, you ready your short sword and get into a defensive position as the behemoth charges at you.

Back and forth, back and forth he swings his blade at you, showcasing his attacks off quite deliberately but forever making your dodge and weave out of them. It never gave you much opportunity to retaliate against him because he was constantly moving with such quickness, almost unreal speed for how giant he was. He kept his assault up and luckily for you the second wind was shooting through your body from not only the adrenaline spiking again but hearing those few words from your sister, the memory of her helping you push on and fight through the fatigue.

It's when Rixx slashes his greatsword in a downward arc that you sense an opportunity to hopefully either retaliate or potentially disarm his blade. His weapon flies downwards as you angle your short sword forcing his weapon to slice down the hilt but completely miss your body. After it does, you quickly leap to the side and with as much speed and force as you can, you take your short sword and slash down right on the backside of his gauntlet. You don't believe you'll puncture the armor but you figure if you put enough pressure on his grip, maybe he'll drop his sword.

As you throw all your energy into that swing, the blade of your sword connects on the back of his palm. The outer worldly screech echos through the air as you collide with his armor and with a monstrous grunt from the eagle, you hear another echo of steel clank seconds later. It worked, you hit the back of his gauntlet so hard as he was slashing down at you that the force knocked his blade out to the ground below. He was now the one without a weapon, at least that you knew of and with that, you decided to go on the offensive now.

You attack into him with your single sword, slashing left and right and the entire time he's slowly backing up, using his arms and gauntlets like the shields they are to defend your blows. You were trying your best to slash up towards his face, the lone area of his body that isn't exposed and even take advantage of the section on his side that is still seeping out that red liquid from the miniature wound you inflicted earlier.

He eventually tries to retaliate into you with his fist, forcing you to take a few steps back and in that brief instance of time you weren't attacking into him, he immediately kneels down and reaches for his ankle. A lone dagger sits down there, it almost looked as if it wasn't even a weapon but more so part of his armor, the grip itself looking like a golden feather but the blade of the dagger was only three or four inches long. Still, it was the same exact dagger he pulled out against you in Nillix at the end and even though it wasn't very long, it's still a sharp weapon in the hands of Rixx, which means it's as deadly as anything else.

You were far enough away from his greatsword that you knew unless he pivoted around you and made a break for it, you wouldn't have to worry about him getting that back and as you gaze around the battlefield momentarily, you notice only a couple paces to Rixx's left and a few paces backwards is your dagger, the beautifully crafted, engraved dagger.

Charging back into Rixx, now not wanting to give him time to rest since you feel you have the advantage, you thrust and jab into him, forcing him to do his best to block or parry your blows. He too does what he can to retaliate with that little dagger of his but you keep an eye on it and make sure he can never be quick enough to stab you. Left and right, right and left, forward and back, back and forward, over and over again the two of you continue your tornado of blows, each of you making no progress towards one another but only blowing off more and more energy, forcing both your bodies to work into overdrive.

With a quick downward slash right on his helmet which he fails to block, it slightly dazes the man causing him to take a step back and shake his head back and forth. Believing this provides you with an opening, you hold the grip of your short sword with both your hands and you angle it right towards his abdomen. With a scream out, you thrust forward with as much power and energy as you can. You hope if he can't successfully block or dodge this, with how fine the tip of your blade is, you believe it will spear right through his armor.

"Ahhhhh!!!!" you yell out at the top of your lungs as you jab your blade forward. The monster himself does move slightly but not in the direction you were planning. Instead, it's to the left, but also forward into you.

The sound of steel clashes off your blade as it's met with resistance at first but then suddenly it moves forward without any trouble what so ever until once more you feel a little clash of steel which in turn, causes your blade to come to a halt. At the same time though, a sharp pain is coursing through out your body, starting at the same exact spot you were aiming for on Rixx.

The two of you are standing only a foot apart, grunting and growling at each other as you stare into one anothers eyes. Your short sword was through his stomach, slightly to the right of where his belly button would be but you completely penetrated through his armor, into his body leaving the tip poking into the backside as you didn't have enough power to pierce through the shell again. Your blade is shoved inside this monster and from the agony in his voice, you knew he was in extreme pain with how much longer and farther your blade went in.

At the same time though, that pain pulsing through your body, starting in your stomach was because that dagger, that three or four inch blade that Rixx pulled out of his ankle. That too, was pierced into your abdomen, around the same spot you got him, just to the right of your belly button.

You stay locked into his eyes, huffing and snarling into his face under his helmet. A deep, guttural bass-filled growl escapes his mouth as he bares his fangs and roars at you. At the same time, he brings his head back and then lunges it forward, throwing his armored helmet straight into your face. As he makes contact with your skull, the armor bashes against your forehead, forcing your body to fly backwards from the man.

You collapse onto the ground, pushing yourself away from him a handful of paces before immediately jumping back onto your feet, stumbling a few times as you're once more seeing stars and all the while blood is seeping down the side of your forehead. The good news is Rixx let go of his dagger, which is still stuck in your stomach, the bad news is, you let go of your short sword which is stuck in his.

Without anymore time wasted, Rixx brings his right hand down and grasps the handle of your short sword and you see him start to pull on it. The pain coursing through his voice as he's withdrawing the blade from his body is spine tingling. It almost made you go into shock to witness as he completely pulls your short sword out of his gut showcasing what appears to be a massive amount of blood trailing out of that hole as he only grunts and clenches his teeth hard at you.

You were on your last lines, already on the edge of losing before but now you've burned through even more energy and you still have this dagger sticking out of your stomach. It seems Rixx never runs out of energy or if he does, he doesn't show it. Your mind begins to race as you think if you may have bite off more than you could chew. You knew this was it though, if you gave up now, he would kill you like he said he was going to.

Softly blinking your eyes as the black spots in your vision are becoming more abundant, you realize this could be it. You reach down with your right hand, just like Rixx did and you grip that dagger. With clenched teeth and a grunt, you quickly pull the blade out of your stomach, wheezing slightly as you feel the entire area around your abdomen going wet with your blood. As you hold the dagger in your hand, you look at Rixx, he has your short sword but he's not moving, only twenty five or so paces away from you, staring back at you but ready to finish this fight.

"One more stand..." you whisper under your breath as you turn that dagger around and hold it in an offensive position, "This is it..." you exhale out, doing what you can to slow your racing heart and focus. Your entire body was giving out on you, you knew after one final assault, win or lose, this was going to be it. So you step forward, one foot in front of the other as you make your way back into range of the monster.

Twenty paces remaining, your mind thinks of all the friends in your life and journeys you have accomplished with them. Starting all the way back in Rathkin when you met Lilyann and Karisi, fighting in Nillix and then going north to the Syndicate. You remember all the great times you had at Sicilian with your sister before traveling to Rathkin to wage war initially, then back home alone when the enemy armies took over the Syndicate. You recall heading back towards Rathkin again in search of Queen Bree to help your dearly beloved and then eventually going to Loner's Reach and meeting with and becoming allies with an unlikely source. Your entire journey, your entire life has been so memorable and you wouldn't have it any other way.

Fifteen paces remaining, you think about the women in your life that you truly have come to care about. The ones who you have grown with or have made an impact on. Karisi took you under her wing early, she trained you, helped you out and did so much for you early on in Rathkin. Yes, she betrayed you and even did horrible things such as working with Edmin and placing a bounty on your head, but she did so many wonderful things as well, such as saving you in Rathkin, getting you into the castle when your sister and Ashe were in the dungeon and even becoming the Queen of the Syndicate and truly turning things around for the best.

Your mind flashes over to Zoe, the black haired girl you didn't know for all that long but you loved her for what she's done in your life. She basically charmed you the first day you ever met her back in Murnic when she stood up against your warriors and even though you were terrifying, she talked with you. Zoe came back to the Syndicate with you to train to become a Sunrider and she put so much time and effort into that, listening to you constantly and taking your advice. The jokes and games she played with you, between calling you a Queen Fucker and constantly telling you she wouldn't sleep with you, it always brought a smile to your face. She did trip and stumble on her path, especially with her issues of Snuff but you knew she could get over that, she was such a strong young women who would go so very far in life.

Finally Ashe, your High Commander, the girl who was there for you the day your sister was taken. The one who would tell you what you wanted to hear, the one who would help you the most, guide you on your way and generally always look out for you. She opened up to you at the Turth, not once, but now twice and now you have no clue if she'll make it out alive from this war. But still, she gave you strength, the strength you needed for this final assault.

Ten paces remaining, your mind races towards Lexie, the love of your life and how she was the first one to show you around the Syndicate, the first one to truly have your back after your sister died and the only one to be with you emotionally and physically every time you needed it. She was the one who pulled you from that darkness and gave you a true purpose in life. Lexie, your wife, the mother of your child, she gave you such great hope.

Five paces remaining, the person you started this journey for. The one who watched over you when you were younger. The one who always put you over herself every day of her life. This was for her. This whole journey, your whole life, this whole vendetta against Rixx, this was for her. Your family. Your sister. Your Claire.

As if time slows down, you slash into Rixx as he stumbles backwards, almost losing his balance. You attack into him over and over, jabbing and slashing up towards his face, using the power of your memories to give you that last push of adrenaline. It appears you have got the upper hand but he keeps using his arms to defend and block your blade as well as quite weakly swinging back your own short sword to try to attack you.

He does a horizontal slash with your blade and you do what you've done before. You knew his boots would be armored but you hope if you put enough force into it, your next attack could work. As you lower your body and roll forward onto the ground, you flip that tiny three inch dagger around into reverse grip and then with all your strength, you swing it backwards, bringing the blade directly into Rixx's leg, right where his calf muscle would be.

The blade pierces in, puncturing into his armor and going right through his leg. The grunt that escapes from his mouth was truly emotional as you knew that was a blow to his body that could potentially finish him. Before having anytime to react, just a small distance to your front is that dagger of yours on the ground. Quickly releasing the blade which is now embedded into his leg, you roll forward off the soil, gripping your dagger, pushing yourself up to your feet and doing a little spin to now face the back of Rixx.

As you face him, his body falls to the ground, kneeling as the dagger in his calf is forcing him down. Your short sword which was in his right hand drops to the soil below and you see the strength give out as his head hangs, tilting downwards.

With the memories in your head still flowing strong, you run forward, dagger in your right hand while your left hand reaches out. As you get behind Rixx, it curls under the bottom of his helmet and you pull it forward as you step in front of him. You tear his helmet off his face, throwing it to the side and causing that heavy metal armored helm to bounce and clink of the ground. You face him directly and bring your left hand up to grip the side of his head and as if your dagger moved with lightning speed, the tip of that blade was now directly resting on the side of his throat, puncturing his skin only slightly, allowing a droplet of red to form at the tip of your blade.

All you have to do it push your hand forward one inch and that tip of your dagger would pierce into the soft throat of Rixx and the battle would be over. You exhale and inhale out as you stare into his blue eyes and his sweaty, bloody covered face. There he was, the monster himself, the man who took your sister from you, the man who killed her. He was on his knees, blood pouring from his side, his stomach and now a small drip down his throat as you keep the dagger ready. You're clenching down hard on the grip, so much so your blade is lightly quivering on his throat, kind of scratching his skin as you so much want to push in hard and end his life.

"It feels good doesn't it..." Rixx coughs out, his normally confident and bass-filled voice sounding much weaker now, "To be..." he groans out taking a few breaths, "To be the one standing above..." he coughs a few times, causing the tip of your blade to puncture a bit deeper and a line of blood to seep out of his mouth, "The one in control..." his breathing seems to be going weak, "Well fought, Darien..." his voice is barely audible over all the screams and fighting still going on around you, "Congratulations..." he praises you before he closes his eyes and lifts his head up, completely showcasing off his entire neck, allowing you perfect access to end his life.

Still you wait, clenching the grip of your dagger as it's softly bounces off his throat over and over again. Something was holding you back and making you not want to kill this man. Which, at first you thought was crazy as he took everything from you and was the reason you started this journey, the reason you did everything in your life. Rixx was one of the reasons you became who you became, fought who you fought and accomplished what you did.

Your mind races with these thoughts because ever since that day at your village six years ago, your journey was to kill this man and yet now, he's defeated and on his knees with your blade at his throat. Your eyes look at your dagger, the dagger Rivianne made for you and the very same one Lexie had her etch something beautiful into it. As you focus on the grip, you see it again, Claire's name engraved in those golden characters right by your eyes yet so very close to ending the life of the man who took her from you.

Ashe told you at the Turth before that you shouldn't be consumed by darkness. Killing Rixx, would that be that darkness? Would truly ending his life bring you happiness? Would it bring you that fulfillment you were longing for? Would it bring Claire back? You weren't sure of the answers to those questions but you knew one thing and one thing only, you won. You beat the man who was unbeatable. You climbed that mountain and dethroned the king. You toppled the giant. You slayed the behemoth. You clipped the wings of the eagle. You, Darien, brother of Claire, leader of the Sunriders, you, yourself beat Commander Rixx.

Clenching your teeth so hard that your jaw begins to hurt, you recall the very same day he took Claire from your life and you knew this is something he would have to live with, knowing he isn't the unbeatable man he once was and coming to the conclusion he wasn't alone at the top of the mountain anymore. And with that, you whisper the same exact words you remember him telling you that dreadful day he took your sister. "Rixx..." you state his name in a trembling voice, "You have suffered enough..." the words roll off your tongue, "Today is not your day to die..." you tell the man kneeling before you, causing him to open his eyes and give you a weak grin as he remembers telling you those same exact words.

All in an instant, you move your hand, reverse the grip of your dagger quickly and with as much power as you can, drill the butt of your dagger into the side of Rixx's skull. The backside bounces off his head, causing the giant of a man to fall sideways into the ground and forcing his body to go limp as he tumbles to the soil below.

You push yourself up to your feet, barely able to stand as you look down upon the now unconscious behemoth. You stare at his limp body, not even paying attention to anything around you as all you can do is focus on that man, letting it sink in that you won, you accomplished the goal you originally set out for.

Then and only then, your body collapses, making you fall backwards onto the ground. Exactly like six years ago, the same day that Claire got taken from your village, you were on your back gazing up into the clear blue skies above you. You couldn't help but remember that day so very long ago, that same day this monster changed your life completely and forced you on this path. That same day you crawled out of your destroyed home and collapsed in the middle of a dirt road watching the smoke fill the sky above you as everything around burned.

As you grimace in discomfort your right hand reaches down and puts pressure around the wound in your abdomen and you grunt out hard as the adrenaline leaves your body and the pain begins to succumb your senses. You do what you can to forget those thoughts as you clench your eyes shut hard and take a few deep breaths, trying to calm your body and slow your beating heart.

Another shot of pain courses through causing you to open your eyes once more and gaze into the sky. You see a figure way high above, as if an angel was watching you, her blonde hair, her blue eyes, her perfect smile, there she was, looking down at you from above. A tear rolls down your cheek as happiness was clouding all the pain within your body, happiness to see her again, happiness that she has been and always will be there for you. With a half smirk on your face you remove your right hand from the gaping hole in your stomach and move it down towards that pouch you always carry around your waist. You know you don't have the strength to open it and hold your most prized possession but you place your hand over the entire contents, remembering exactly what is hidden away, that pressed purple tulip, that last piece of Claire, your most delicate treasure. "For you, Claire..." you whisper out, using the last bit of strength your body can muster, "Always for you..."

Long ago you laid on your back on the dirt ground, staring up at the gorgeous skies above you, telling the world you were going to get your sister back and making a promise that you would fulfill no matter what. Now, six years later, you're in that same position and as your eyes begin to slowly close, you realize that same promise you made all those years ago, those same words you said telling the world you would get your sister back, that you would take on this path, this journey to return to her no matter what.

As darkness overtakes your sight, today may very well be that day. That day you and your sister become reunited once more...