NOVA

The frontlines...I'll never forget my first days there. I remember everything so vividly. An ocean of corpses, an acrid smell filling my nostrils. How strange it was,that I was unable to smell that which was living,but when it came to the scent of the dead,my nostrils were lit aflame by there smell. I was afraid. All around me men were corpses. Ahead stood the other army, large men in bulky armour, polearm's and weapons drawn. The rain pelted me as it fell a top my body. Thunder growled overhead,shaking the blood soaked earth beneath my boots.

I was given nothing but a dagger,which for my young self, was the equivalent to a longsword. What was I thinking? I was only six years of age. I was meant to play soldiers not...be one. But I wouldn't run away. Despite my fear, A voice spoke to me while I stood there,shaking in terror.

No...I am not a coward...I've been running for too long...I need to fight! If I want to save mom...I need to fight!

I took a deep breath in as the two collosal armies stared at one another from across the battlefield. We were numbered in the hundred's of thousands on each side, excluding the corpses which littered the field of battle.

Flies buzzed around the maggot infested corpses. Some of the men were throwing up. There were corpses in between our ranks, making it difficult for us to form up. So many were the corpses,that to my comrades, they piled upon one another up to their kneecaps.

Much as it embarasses me to say this, I had to stand atop  the corpses to unless I wanted to be swallowed up by them.

There was a tension in the air. Silence purveyed the battlefield for a few moments before the general of the opposing side yelled his warcry. His troops rallied,yelling with him as they all charged forward.

"Form ranks!" Delion yelled.

Each of the men closed in,moving back whilst the shield bearers advanced to the front,placing their spears out front to form a barricade. The rest of the men each pushed themselves against the shield bearers,reinforcing their ranks.

The enemies footsteps made the ground quake beneath my feet, violent vibrations scuttled through the earth,making my teeth clatter.

I watched as they each ran directly into the spearheads, with several men being impaled while the rest all attempted to break the line.

I felt myself raise off of my feet only to be thrown amidst the fray.

"You want to prove yourself Nova?! Now's your chance!" A voice came. It wasn't Delion's.

I fell into the clash of steel,almost being trampled to death. Rolling out of the stampede of soldiers was no easy feat. When I managed to gain my footing,I jabbed my daggers into one of the men's achilles tendon's.

Nowhere else except the killing blow. I thought as I ran round,slashing at the men's ankles. Blood sprayed as I sliced through the bone,blade ripping through flesh and sinew,drawing crimson. Their screams of agony were cut short as they bled to death,slowly.

The rest of the ranks leapt over our shield bearers,attacking the enemy from above. Some of the men plunged   their blades through the enemies,piercing their armour,whilst others tackled the enemy,rolling amidst the corpses.

I used my size to my advantage,continously cleaving through the ankles of the men above me with my dagger as I pressed forward. Most of them were far too focused on the battle ahead to notice me beneath them.

My face was soaked in blood,my leather armour was now covered in blood,changing its hue. Hours must have passed during the ensuing battle. Time flows differently in the midst of a war. Its as if it drags on forever, slowly ticking down in what feels like a never ending struggle.

One of the enemy troops tripped over me, sending him face first into the ground below. I acted as quickly as I could,driving my blade through his throat and twisting  before I pulled it out.

As I withdrew my blade,drool formed at my mouth as I saw the crimson gushing from the open wound in his neck. I had a near overwhelming urge to bite into his neck,tear his throat open with my teeth...

"Trebuchets!" Delion yelled.

My eye's darted behind me to see the sky darken, large boulders soaring through the air,blotting out the sun. The massive rocks crushed the men, ally and foe alike as they continuosly rained from above.

"Fall back! Fall back!" Delion ordered.

Obeying his orders,I moved my legs as fast as I could,the bones of the dead crunching beneath my boots as I ran.

The world grew ever so darker as I made my way closer and closer to Delion and the men who ran to safety. I looked back,gasping as one of the boulders descended closer and closer toward me. I raised my arms to try and cover my eye's from the end.

I felt my weight being crushed as my body was forced to the ground. I felt my ribs cave in slightly as the stone carved itself into my flesh. Then,I felt nothing. A few seconds passed, and I thought myself dead. Yet,when I opened my eye's,suprisingly,I was still alive and well. The boulder was above me, and I had been able to stop it just short of it crushing me. I crawled out from beneath the rock and sprinted back to Delion,every breath sent a sharp pain through my chest. A few broken ribs without a doubt...

I raced back to the Commander, who ushered me to make haste.

"Come on kid! Pick it up!"

When I arrived at his side,we both made our way back to camp, which was a few clicks east of the enemy fortress,in a small portion of woodland,well covered, and well fortified with guardsmen and troops.

Delion spoke with the General as the nurses tended to my wounds.

"Casualty report."

"Over half a dozen of our men were slaughtered sir. Those trebuchets caught us off guard. We expected this would be a close ranged fight..."

"Clearly we were wrong. Gods damnit!"

"Commander,several of our men were taken as POW's. What is our course of action?"

Delion remained silent for a while. "We cannot help them. Our top priority is to acquire the fortress. We shall free the prisoners once we've reclaimed the fort."

One of the wounded soldiers stood up,saluting the Commander. "With all due respect sir...I ask that you try to save the POW's as soon as you can. My younger brother,he's only a kid, just turned nineteen, please sir..."

"We cannot son. Commander,surely we aren't willing to risk the lives of so many other men for the life of one?"

"The general is correct. I'm sorry son,but whatever torture your brother faces,he faces it alone. And should he face execution...well,begin writing home as soon as you can."

The soldiers features went pale as he sat back down on his bed. The two commanding officers went back to conversing.

I felt sorry for him. He buried his face in his hands,sobbing quietly.

Delion and the General as well as Lieutenant General conversed,their eye's falling on me for a few brief moments before they returned to one another.

A few more minutes passed and the trio continued their conversation,before Delion finally spoke.

"Nova." Delion called.

I rose to my feet,approaching him as he knelt before me. His eye's scanned my body,checking for injuries.

"Thank the gods you aren't hurt."

"I don't believe in the gods. There's no proof that they exist."

Delion stared at me briefly before his eye's fell away.

"That's not important. What is important is we've decided to send you back home son." The general said as he approached. He was a short man, a dwarf. His beard stretched far beneath his kneecaps. "Ye're too young to be fighting here."

"I can't go home! I'm not a coward...I refuse to run from this fight."

"Ye're right. Ye certainly not a coward boy. Most children would be cryin fer they're mammies by seein the corpses alone. But ye fought,slew men. Killed without hesitation. Ye'd make a fine soldier if ye were older. Now however,ye'd be a liability. If we were to lose you...ye're mammy wouldn't be too happy..."

A liability? I can fight just as well as any man in here...if not better!

My fists clenched,my knuckles whitening from my grip.

"Nova...you fought well..." Delion said,taking one of my hands. He pried my left hand open,placing within it a heavy sack of coin. "Here. Payment for your troubles. Enough to pay your mothers hospital bill for a year."

"And the year after that?!"

"Your father-"

"Don't you get it?! My father doesn't give two shits about me or my mom! This is the only choice I have left! Fighting is the only thing I'm good at damnit!"

"The battlefield is no place for a child for gods sake! You should have never joined, all you've done is-"

"All I've done for the past several months is work my ass off for this very moment! Pushing my body to it's limits,my mind, giving it my all! And now it was all for nothing?!"

"You are a child! Your place is to pretend to be a soldier with friends, not be one at this age!"

"Fuck you."

The General glared at me, rage festering in his eye's.

"Watch your language child."

"What will you do? Hit me? Go ahead. Believe me I've been through much worse."

The dwarf broke into a fit of laughter. "Oh I like this laddie! He's got a fire in em! But, ye gotta be careful young lad. That anger might get the better of ye."

"Furthering my point that war is no place for a fucking six year old! He's a child! We cannot have him throwing these temper tantrums on the field of battle,he'll drag all of us down! The enemy base is but a few miles away, he could jeopardize our entire plan of attack!"

Delion sighed and flashed me an apologetic smile. "Nova...pack your things. I'll take you to a pony, and a scout will escort you back to the city."

My heart dropped in my chest as I slowly began to pack my belongings away in my backpack.

I slung my backpack over my shoulders,following Delion to the pony,where a scout awaited on his horse.

Scout had long brown hair and sported a ludicrously large nose. He reminded me of that one fairy tale Mother always told me of,back when I was alive...what was its name? Pinocchio?

I saddled up in my pony, with Delion patting the mares head a few times.

"I'm sorry Nova...you'll find a better job somewhere..."

"Probably."

I departed without another word. The scout guided me through the woodland and as the darkness clouded our vision,with our path soon illuminated by the moon which loomed overhead. My senses were on high alert. Adrenaline pulsed through my body, as rage clouded my mind.

I can't just leave here damnit! I don't care how young I am! I studied hours upon hours,learning countless different fighting styles and techniques,mastering them and pushing my body to the brink to get here! Now it's all for naught?!

Just then, something caught my attention to the east. The sounds of screaming. My eye's darted eastward to spy the enemy fortress looming in the distance. There were guards on patrol, and my newly gained Revenant eyesight allowed me to see them almost as clear as day in the darkness. While they were on patrol,they were lax, exhausted.

My memory raced back to a few moments ago.

That soldier....

I ask that you try to save the POW's sooner sir...my younger brother...he's only just turned nineteen...

I pulled the reins back softly, causing the pony to slow just a tad. I carefully climbed off,doing my best to not make a sound. The Scout seemed to not notice and I managed to ease my way off of the pony, whilst it continued to follow the Scout.

I slipped off into the covers of night, making my way to the fort. I clambered beneath the corpses, crawling through the bodies,using them as cover to hide myself from the vision of the guardsmen. When I arrived at the walls, I took a few steps back to get a running start, then burst straight up and over the walls of the fort. I crashed onto a guardsmen,whose eye's widened in suprise. My hand became a blur as I drew my dagger and jammed it through my enemies jugular,plunging the blade deeper until only the hilt was visible. Blood gushed out from his neck, and once more I felt a hunger. I brushed it off, forcing myself to focus. I threw the guardsmans corpse over the wall, and it blended in just like the rest of the bodies which littered the battlefield.

I had infiltrated the fortress.

Single-handedly. Which meant no one would be able to help me if things went wrong.

Sorry Commander. I'm not leaving without a fight. If I need to prove I'm more than just a child, fine. I'll show you the extent of my skills.