"I am not a child anymore! Stop this nonsense, and we could be family again! Allies even! We shouldn't be fighting!"
Tien blocks attack after attack and counters with some that are just as skillful.
"You are no kin to me...You're too weak!... You have dishonored the Amir name!"
Himora's rage was beyond the limits of human emotion. His sword swam as elegantly as a dolphin as it sliced the air and blocked attack after deadly attack.
Meanwhile, Athena and I had our own problems to deal with.
As Himora dealt with his family feud, I was preoccupied with keeping the giant of a man from crushing me.
"Oh... My... God! This is crazy!"
I think to myself as Moshido flashes in my mind. I couldn't help but think of how useful he would have been in this particular situation.
The legendary Sumo Wrestler, known as Dunya, had a huge body which wasn't ideal for speed, but packed more than a good punch as I was soon to find out.
WACK!
His huge fist covered almost half the surface of my chest as it catapulted me across the forest floor.
I lay unmoving, tasting blood and dirt.
Athena's heart sank to the bottom of her stomach as she saw the horrible sight of me tumbling across the ground.
"Bas-BASTIOOOON!"
Athena's mind raced with millions of thoughts at once.
What to do?
How to do it?
Suddenly, a strange and familiar voice exploded into her head.
"ATHENA... IT IS I, MARAKAI... I'M HEAR WITH YOU... USE MY STRENGTH! SAVE BASTION!"
At that moment, a strength began to brew inside of her that she had never felt before as the spirit of Marakai entered her body and merged itself with her own.
"ISAMU HOSHI!" (Brave star!)
She shouts in a voice that sounds like two people speaking at once.
Her body trembled with fear as the power of her fallen love flowed through her body. Her eyes went black, and the very earth cracked below her.
As I began to come to, I shook my head and spat out a mouthful of blood and dirt.
I roll over and see a sight that I will never forget as my vision focuses in on the scene.
The tiny form of Athena rushes forward and grabs the giant of a man by the legs, and with a short grunt of anger, she tosses him up and into the trees.
"You'll pay... For... WHAT YOU'VE DONE!"
Athena screams out to him.
As the shaken warrior tumbles from the top of the canopy, his body is beaten and battered with every foot he loses in elevation as the branches reach out like arms and strike at his body as he collides with them.
"GOODBYE!"
She shouts as she raises her hands above her head.
"Hiryuu Masakazu!" (Flying dragon of light!)
The forest rumbles, and the trees sway, then part as the light of the moon begins to intensify without warning, and just as the Sumo slams head-first into the ground, a huge dragon of pure Aether plummets from the sky, forged from the very light of the moon itself.
The dragon's massive body is made of solid beams of light, yet its image is one that portrays true beauty. Just as it comes in contact with the forsaken warrior, he shouts out one last rallying call.
"AVENGE MY DEATH, BROTHERS!"
Then, in the blink of an eye, it is over.
The dragon swallows him whole and disintegrates, leaving his -or what was left of his- burnt body lying lifelessly on the lush yet slightly singed forest floor.
"Ath-Athena!"
I shout as I quickly regain my footing and run over to her, grabbing hold of her right before she falls over.