The men were wearing cloaks of silence, crouching in the shadows. Their pale faces, darkened with ash paint, were now one with the night. Only their eyes gleamed, intently gazing into the dark ahead, their ears pricked listening to every rustle, every movement. The wind was silent too like a maiden holding her breath waiting for her long-lost love to arrive.

Thud...Thud... the clanks of a horse's hooves echoed from afar. The ground reverberated as a solitary rider appeared on the horizon. His white mount glistening on the moonless path. An arrow whooshed pass alerting the rider of an ambush he had suspected once his mates went strayed a while ago. Ethan unsheathed his mighty sword as he jumped from his horse. Its wings flapped as it became airborne but waited for his master at the outskirts of the dark sky.

Ethan charged straightforwardly to the three dark figures. His sword clanked with the other three charged by them, making sparks fly as metal collided with metal.

A grunt escaped from Ethan's throat as he pushed them all backward with tremendous force in a clean motion, but he didn't see the other man, the one who was lurking behind the cliff in silence all this time, waiting for a chance. The hidden shadow aimed now and a sharp blade grazed Ethan's left arm, nearly missing his heart. He jumped back, cursing the backstabber but mindful of his quick knife.

The giant man sprang onto Ethan with ease, benefitting from his dark form mingled with the moonless sky. He was using his enormous body weight to pin him down to the ground.

In a desperate attempt Ethan gripped a handful of the giant's raven hair to lessen his hold onto him and managed to crash the back of his head on his metal shield. A loud clang was followed by a howling scream.

"You son of a bitc*" screamed the attacker. "You are fighting dirty, Montgomery", he spat holding his bleeding head as he swayed back from him.

"It wasn't gentlemanly of you either to plan a sneak attack on me, Zoro". Ethan chuckled as he managed to regain his footing.

His laughter turned into a gasp as a heavy blow knocked the air out of him. He had forgotten about the three cronies.

Ethan turned slightly feeling a sudden gush of wind from his right and blocked a charged fist with his own. A high kick from his leg prevented another attack from his left but a sudden gleam in the front told him it was a dagger aimed at his heart.

Ethan twisted his upper body to keep it safe from the harm's way, but the dagger pierced straight to his leg instead. But that didn't stop him. Forgetting his bleeding wound, he defended himself using all his force. A minute later, two bodies fell limp on the ground as his sword had sliced and speared mercilessly.

Zoro staggered as he saw Ethan escaping, disappearing into the sky, mounted on his winged horse and aimed the sharp dagger once again but this time at the horse's heart.

With a doleful grunt, the faithful horse started to fall in the endless space below as the dagger pierced into its chest till its hilt.

Ethan felt the horse jerked beneath him as warm liquid started trickling from its side, knowing he was too late, he let out a despaired cry, "No! Fliaius!". But this time it didn't respond to his master's commands as death had already consumed its loyalties eternally.

The wind whooshed pass him as he began speedily descending to a bottomless pit. He tried to clutch at his horse futilely as he slipped off its back. Ethan felt his heart heavy with remorse, angry tears stung his eyes as he was plunged downward into utter darkness.

Hello wonderful people,

So I thought to improve the previous chapters side by side while continuing with this story. I really want it to be an impactful read that may take you on a journey. I hope you all enjoy the ride.

Lots of love <3