littlec7821

the only story i've ever written that is over like 1000 words and actually is complete. Please give me any kind of suggestions or critique. thanks

Julius and I said one last good-bye to our horses, which we had taken on short rides around the island. We locked up the stable and began to head down the dirt path, our leather sandals flapping on the dry, dusty ground. Julius was a few years younger than me and still finishing his training. He looked up the hill at the barracks, the bright sun casting a golden glow across his thin face and golden blonde hair.
“I should probably get going,” he said. “Today’s training starts soon.” I nodded and we turned our separate ways. Walking down the narrow dirt path from the stable, I set off towards the shore to wash up. I knelt down in the soft sand by the cool ocean, the damp ground causing water to slowly seep through the knee of my pants. I cupped my hands and dipped them in a small pool of glistening, clear water. I splashed my face, the refreshing, cold liquid running down past my eyes and over my lips; it dripped from my hair and dampened my thin shirt underneath my light, bronze chest plate.
I stood up and climbed to the top of the cliffs that overhung the sea, looking out to the horizon. The sun was high above me and the ocean below reflected the light, causing me to squint. I noticed something far out in the water, a tiny black speck, hardly perceptible at first glance. I continued to watch as the speck grew larger, and it formed into two large ships. Immediately, I focused on the sails, trying to make out their color. They were dark against the bright blue sky. My heart leapt to my throat, pounding furiously. I scrambled nimbly back down the cliff and ran to the barracks where my father, Alexander, was training young soldiers.
“Father!” I shouted, bursting through the wooden door. “Black sails! Black sails coming in from the south!”
My father came running out of the barracks, with me right behind him. “Nicholas,” he said in a very serious voice, looking at me with no fear in his eyes. “I want you to warn everyone along the shore. There isn’t enough time to gather an army. Go quickly! Astilan is under attack by pirates!” he shouted to others as I sprinted back to the shore.
There were few people near the water. A group of five or six archers stood near the docks chatting with a sailor. I ran to them.
“Black sails! Coming from the south! We need to defend Astilan!” I panted, trying to catch my breath. The archers responded immediately and prepared themselves, hurrying to the barracks to gather bows and arrows. I rushed to the groups of farmers and villagers near the shore. “Go back to your homes. Pirates are coming in and we need to deflect their attack!” They threw down their tools and raced around, gathering friends and family, dashing inside their homes waiting for the worst to be over.
I gripped my spear apprehensively and walked up to the shoreline where fifteen or sixteen other men stood. I could feel my heart beating faster with each second. The entire village had gone completely silent. I could feel the strong tension between the other men along the shoreline. We braced ourselves, raising our weapons and preparing for attack as the ships came closer. The first ship landed and the second one floated up to the right of it, the black sails now still. Planks were drawn down to the southern dock and a mass of pirates, probably ten or eleven, leapt out of each ship. Arrows from the archers on the cliff immediately rained down on the ships. The pirates were clothed in thick red and black rags. They had little armor, but wore heavy helmets. “Aim for their lower torso and underneath their arms!” I called, searching for weak spot’s in their armor. The men on the shoreline charged and began to fight the oncoming pirates. I noticed a gigantic man standing on the deck of the larger ship, holding a short jagged sword with a thick iron hilt, obviously their leader, shouting out orders. I ran to the dock, dodging friend and foe. A few pirates tried to stop me, but I easily made my way past them killing two and leaving one badly injured. I noticed a young soldier trying to follow me towards the ship.
“Go back and help the others,” I ordered. “I’ll get their leader.” The novice turned and bravely ran back to the fight. I made my way into the lower deck of the ship, which was dark and dirty. I entered cautiously, making sure none of the pirates noticed me. The only light I had was coming in from where I had entered. I felt my way around until I came to a ladder, which I climbed, emerging out on the top deck. I gripped my spear and put up my shield, expecting an immediate attack. When nothing happened, I glanced over at the leader, to whom a pirate had referred as Kyros. He continued shouting out orders and using his sword to point in directions to attack. He hadn’t even put up his shield, the stupid man. I slowly pulled myself up on the deck and slipped behind a large wooden post, trying to avoid being seen by the other pirates. Kyros was huge, probably about six or seven feet tall, with a lot of black hair and a thick tunic that covered most of his protruding belly. He waved his sword all over the place, looking very unskillful and dim-witted. I suppressed a giggle by stuffing my hand in my mouth and put my shield up.
I adjusted my grip on my spear and slowly crept up behind Kyros. When I was close enough, I threw it straight at his back nailing him right in the center. He grunted, turned around and slowly lumbered towards me. He took a broad, sluggish swing at me with his sword, which I easily deflected, and fell to the floor of the wooden deck. I pulled my spear out of his back just in time, as two big pirates had climbed up onto the deck. I took a step backwards and aimed my spear at one of them. He raced towards me and I blocked his attack with my shield, sticking him with my spear. The other pirate, who had been weaponless, was quick to grab his friend’s sword. He was obviously not very skilled with it because he almost dropped it immediately, taken back by its weight. He swung it towards me and I blocked it with my shield. He dropped the sword from the impact and hurried below deck again. I waited a minute, in case he’d been planning a surprise attack, and quickly leaped back down the ladder after him. It was still very dark below deck, so I stood still and listened for noise. When I heard no sounds of movement, I hurried back out of the ship to help the others men.
Once outside, I saw that the fight had moved from the shoreline up to the hill, closer to the town hall. Most of the pirates were fleeing back to the ships. Only three of our men were injured, two with a few minor cuts and one nursing a deep gash on his forearm. After a few minutes, the ships retreated. I ordered a soldier to bring aid to the injured and set off to find my father. I finally spotted him up on the western cliffs, seeking out more ships. I climbed up to greet him.
“Father, are there more ships coming?” I asked, once I had scrambled up to the top.
“I don’t see anything,” he answered. “But I want you to gather an army in case more come. I have a bad feeling about this.” I nodded and headed back down to shore, beginning to call together soldiers. I had just gathered about a dozen men when I saw someone hiding behind a large cherry bush. I cautiously walked over, asking myself whether it was a hurt soldier or a pirate. At the thought that it might be an enemy, I quickly raised my spear and shield and vigilantly proceeded.
But when I peered around the bush I did not see a soldier. I did not even see a grown man. A young boy cowered in the leaves and branches, his arms hugging his knees. He looked terrified and I didn’t want to frighten him any more, so I put down my spear and shield.
“Hey,” I called in a soft, quiet voice. He jumped at the sound of my voice and I heard a quiet whimper. “It’s okay. The bad guys are gone.” The startled young boy turned around. His face was dirty and tear stained but he didn’t look like he was hurt. He didn’t recognize me but saw I was no pirate. I held out my hand to him and he took it hesitantly.
“Who- who are you?” He had a very soft, shaking voice. He had short golden-blonde hair and looked about seven years old.
“My name is Nicholas. I’m going to help you get out of here.” I looked around for more soldiers. I found a group of them cleaning off their swords near the barracks. “You, there!” I pointed to them. “Round up an army and prepare for another attack.” They obediently spread and began to gather groups of soldiers. I led the boy to the other side of the island in silence. When we reached the houses, he grew less timid and began to speak.
“My name is Tertius. I have two older brothers and an older sister. My parents are farmers. I want to be a soldier when I’m older. My brothers and sister are also farmers. Are there going to be more pirates?”
“I think there will be more, so tell your parents and siblings to stay inside and let the soldiers kill all the bad guys, okay?”
“Okay,” he responded. “This is my house.” We stopped in front of a small, three room villa right in front of the cliffs surrounding the east side of the island.
“I sure wish I didn’t have to go back out there,” I said, looking at the shore, where an army of about thirty men stood.
“Why not?” Tertius asked. “You get to fight.” He swung his arms, pretending he had a big sword.
“But if something bad happens…” my voice trailed off.
“I didn’t think big kids like you got afraid,” Tertius said. “I watched you kill that big guy on the ship. You were great! Don’t worry.” He smiled up at me confidently and I smiled back. “They need you out there,” he added softly.
“You’re right,” I told him, gathering my strength. “I need to go now, okay?”
“Okay.” He waved and disappeared inside the house. I waved back and mustered groups of soldiers on my way. I looked back at the house to make sure the boy got inside, then hurried at top speed to the shore where another wave of pirates was emerging. There was only one ship this time, but it was a big one. About twenty pirates spilled out and rushed towards us. I heard arrows flying and looked up at the top of the cliffs, where about ten of our best archers had positioned themselves.
A giant pirate, at least a foot taller than me and much heavier, came lumbering towards me. He had heavier armor than the last group of pirates but it was weak around his neck and shoulders. I put up my shield to block the first blow of his sword, and then plunged my spear into a hole in his armor just above his shoulder. He fell down, clutching his wound and I left him there, removing my spear and running over to help the other men. I noticed a few soldiers setting up a catapult. They began firing at the large enemy ship and eventually punctured a few holes in it, causing it to fill with water and eventually sink. The remaining pirates were killed by our men, but once we finished them off, we got a warning from my father and the archers up on top of the cliffs.
“More pirates are coming! Two more ships and they look big! There are more ships coming in from the north and the east, and we can’t identify them!” I sent a few men to the north and east to try to scout out the ships, while I repositioned everyone else. I made sure the wounded were inside and being helped while the rest were prepared to attack. The ships continued to move closer, and I raised my spear. Out of the corner of my eye I could see the catapult being loaded. Just before the ship landed, the men returned from the other end of the island.
“Sir, the ships are Astilan’s army!” My heart leaped with exhilaration and thankfulness that it wasn’t more pirates.
“Okay, have them come around here and help us out,” I ordered, then positioned myself to fight. The pirates poured out once again, and if I hadn’t known reinforcements were coming, I never would have thought we could fight them off. I had just killed a weak pirate and noticed Julius trying to ward off a huge enemy, at least three times his size. Julius was no match for this pirate. I ran over to help him, coming between Julius and the pirate. I raised my shield and repelled the furious blows of the pirate, then called to Julius.
“His armor is weak under the arms!” Julius used my advice and stabbed the pirate with his sword under his left arm. The pirate clutched the gash and staggered away. I noticed that Julius had a large wound on his leg. It didn’t look deep, but it needed treatment. I ordered him to go to the barracks and sent another man to help him.
We held out strong after that, and then our ships gathered at the dock and an army diffused and scattered onto the shore. They took on the remaining pirates well, and before we knew it the last few pirates were retreating to what was left of their ship. My father kept watch up on the cliff for another hour, and then climbed back down to shore.
“I think that was the last of their attack. I’ll keep watch overnight just in case.” I nodded to my father and walked into the barracks. I found Julius lying on a cot nursing the minor wound on his right leg.
“Hey, Julius, are you alright?” I pulled up a chair next to the cot and dabbed his leg with a warm cloth.
“I’m fine now. When that huge guy came towards me—if it weren’t for you I’d probably be dead.”
“Aw, I was pretty scared myself,” I answered modestly. I looked out the barrack door and saw the sun setting behind the cliff. I figured it was about five or six o’clock.
“I’ll bring you dinner,” I told Julius, then walked to the town center to pick up some food.

The next night, everyone ate in the town hall. Once our dinner came out, we all sat down around the large wooden table and helped ourselves to pork, cooked vegetables, wine, and berries. After we were done eating, my father stood up and clapped his hands to get everyone’s attention. The chattering stopped, and everyone look towards the head of the table. Alexander cleared his throat, taking a small sip of wine.
“I feel that we have not seen the last of these pirates. We want to destroy them before they destroy us!” Everyone cheered, and my father cleared his throat again to silence us. “We will gather our army and scout the areas in the north. The leader of the pirates, Melanion, has stolen our town flag.” The crowd gasped in shock. The town flag was the most important thing on the island. It was what marked Astilan’s existence. “We must defeat the pirates and return the flag to its proper home!” my father declared. We all cheered once again and raised our wine goblets. “To Astilan!” my father announced.
“To Astilan!” we repeated in unison, and finished off the wine.

littlec7821

PART TWO:

The next morning my father gathered together an army to set off to the north. Our army was compiled of three scouts, a few sailors and villagers, fifteen archers, and a number of infantry. My father pulled me aside before breakfast.
“Nicholas, I need to stay here to defend Astilan in case of another attack,” he said. “You need to be in charge of this army.” I must have looked worried because he then added, “Don’t worry. You’re a born leader. I know you can do it.” I nodded and we headed back into the hall for an early breakfast. The sun had just barely risen above the horizon. After eating, I told everyone to get onto the ship so we could set off to the pirates’ territory. While everyone began getting settled in the ship, I hurried to the barracks to say goodbye to Julian. I probably would have brought him along, but he still wasn’t in great shape to fight. I opened the barracks door to find Julian asleep. He began to stir and his eyes opened when I stepped into the room.
“Morning, Julian,” I greeted him.
“Hey,” he said, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.
“How are you doing?” I asked.
“Better.” Julian lifted his leg. “It’s all wrapped up now.”
“I’m going off to attack those pirates.”
“You?” Julian’s eyes widened.
“Yeah, my dad put me in charge. He needs to stay here and defend the city in case of another attack,” I told him. “I would have brought you along, but-“ I motioned towards his wounded leg.
“Yeah.” Julian looked sorry I had to go.
“I’ll be back soon. I need to go now.”
“Good luck.” Julian held out his hand and I shook it. I could feel his eyes on me as I left the barracks. I arrived at the ship, where most of the men had already gathered. We set off quickly, hoping to make it to the island by the next morning. After about three or four hours I noticed the sky growing dark. I made my way over to one of the sailors, Simon.
“Do you think a storm is coming?” I asked him apprehensively. Simon looked anxious as well.
“From the looks of these clouds, I’d say so. Better warn the others.” I took his word and notified everyone in sight. Over the hours the sky grew darker and the wind picked up speed. By nightfall it had started to rain. I ushered the younger soldiers below deck, where they would be safe.
I scrambled back up the ladder to the deck. The waves were gigantic, larger than I’d ever seen. They crashed down over the side of the ship so many times to a point where I could not tell if the water splashing my face was from the sea or sky. A particularly immense wave rose up right in front of me. I was frozen, unable to move. I could hear someone calling to me.
“Move! Get out of the way!” a sailor called to me. The ship rocked and I was thrown off my feet as the wave poured over me. I swallowed a mouthful of saltwater and gagged as I tried to find something to pull myself off the floor. I reached for a wooden post and the ship was swept around again, causing me to knock my head against something hard. My body went limp, and the world turned black.

“Nicholas!” I could hear a familiar voice. I opened my eyes and saw Simon standing over me. The memory of the storm flashed through my head and I quickly stood up, only to see the flat water surrounding the ship and a slight orange glow peeking over the horizon against a light pink cloudless sky. The ship had some minor wreckage but seemed to be in decent condition. I looked back at Simon, and a thought crossed my mind. I was afraid to say it, but I needed to know.
“Did we lose anyone?” I asked Simon hesitantly, hoping for the best. The dark eyed sailor smiled, his thin face lighting up.
“No, everyone is fine. A few minor injuries here and there, but nothing that can’t be mended by tomorrow.” I waited on the deck as the sun crept up into the sky and we sailed closer to the now visible island of the pirates.
We pulled up onto shore just as the morning sun had completely risen over the sea and dispatched the ship back to Astilan to gather more troops. Our group set up tents and I sent the villagers off to gather food and other resources. Once the tents were up, the rest of us explored the area along the shore. Some young men began making a small fire by the camp. A thick wood surrounded one side of the camp, so wood was plentiful. I noticed three young soldiers playing with dull training swords on the sand a little ways from the camp. They looked about twelve or thirteen years old. They clearly had not been exposed to much teaching or instruction. I walked over to them, carrying my sword and shield.
“Hello, young soldiers. My name is Nicholas,” I greeted them. A tall boy with dark hair responded,
“My name is Theron, and these are my brothers Thomas and Gregory.” Thomas and Gregory looked younger and were identical twins. They were pretending to sword fight, and Theron joined in. I watched them for a minute as they ineptly swung their swords every which way, and then stopped them.
“You are not using your shields wisely,” I observed aloud. “When you use your sword, always keep your shield up.” I demonstrated, bringing my sword up and around, plunging it into the air in front of me while keeping my shield at my chest. “You mustn’t forget to use your shield as well as your sword.” The boys practiced the move, keeping their shields close. I noticed Theron was especially good with his sword. He clearly had more training than the other two. I left them and walked back to the tents, where I sharpened my sword. By nightfall the other ship had arrived with a larger army. As they began setting up more tents I sent out the other scouts to explore the area, which we assumed was an island.
The villagers returned with a group of wild pigs they had found scattered near a clearing in the forest, and began cooking dinner. It was late when we were finally able to eat. The food was not nearly as tasty as it was back at Astilan, but it was good enough. We were all hungry from traveling and ate quickly. The scouts returned and joined us. Then, one of them spoke up.
“Nicholas, sir, Sebastian hasn’t shown up yet.” I began to worry about the young scout. What if he was found by the pirates? I hated to think of what could happen to him, torture or death. Just then, we heard someone call out.
“I’ve found a shipwreck!” We all looked towards the edge of the water, where Sebastian was pulling a makeshift cart full of wood and some gold, as well as a few sacks of rice. “There was an abandoned shipwreck along the shore and I gathered all the resources I could.” We all praised Sebastian and gave him an extra ration of food. We used the wood to feed the fire and kept the gold to bring back to Astilan. About an hour after the food was gone, I told the remaining men who hadn’t gone to bed yet to get a good rest in before morning. “We need more food for tomorrow, and we will need to plan our attack for the night,” I said, then entered my tent, which I shared with two other soldiers. Both soldiers were asleep and a small white candle was burning by one of them. I picked it up and held it over the gold pieces Sebastian had found. Mostly small gold pieces I suspected to be some sort of foreign currency, the grimy artifacts would prove to be lucrative gifts to Astilan after a good cleaning. I placed the gold on an extra blanket and wrapped it up. I placed the bundle underneath my cot and soon fell asleep.

The sun rose in my eyes the next morning, so I got up and helped awaken everyone who was still asleep. I had the scouts search the area again and try to find the enemy town center while the villagers searched for more food. We had more pork for breakfast, but we were going to need more than that to be awake and alert for the night.
I gathered together the soldiers and we picked out a warm spot in the sun where I drew out a plan of attack on the sand with my sword.
“Now, we are not entirely sure where the enemy is located, so I’ll have to be a bit vague.” I drew circles for the enemy and X’s for our troops. I drew out the enemy town center and barracks, basing it on our own town of Astilan. A wave of excitement and anxiety rushed through my body when I realized I was in charge; whatever I said would be done. If I made one wrong move, it would all be on me. But if I was victorious… I imagined the return home to Astilan, waving our flag high in the air, everyone cheering for me. Now suddenly noticing my drawings on the sand, I returned to the battle tactics and began explaining each part as I drew it out. “You ten archers can situate yourselves somewhere up high, like if there’s a cliff or hill of some sort. The rest of you, position yourselves behind the infantry. We’ll first take on the enemy archers, if they have any.” I pointed to Theron, Thomas, and Gregory, as well as another older man. “You four will work the catapult and take down their barracks and town center. If anyone approaches you, use the technique I taught you earlier,” I said, nodding towards the three boys. “Does everyone understand?”
“Yes sir!” they all shouted in unison.
“Okay everyone, study your positions and make sure you know what you’re doing. Study any particular techniques that might help you fight better.” I walked over the man who I’d instructed to work the catapult with the three boys.
“I’m sorry, I don’t believe I caught your name,” I held out my hand to him.
“Carolos,” he said in a deep, gruff voice. He shook my hand. I called over to the boys.
“This is Carolos.” I turned to him. “Do you know how to work the catapult?” I asked him.
“I’ve only used it under the assistance of someone else,” he answered.
“I’m going to show you four how to use the catapult.” I led them over to the large wood and iron structure. There was a wooden shelf underneath that held large rocks. “The rocks will slow it down and make it harder to pull. When the scouts return, we will see if there are enough rocks already on the island to use, so we don’t need to bring these,” I told them. The bottom of the structure had a sled-like design. The ends rose up so the catapult could easily slide over the ground. “Now, Carolos, you will be in charge of pulling this lever, which will shoot the rocks.”
“What will we do?” Thomas cut in.
“Theron, you will load the catapult, so you put the rocks into this pocket. I pointed to the wooden pocket, which was lined with thick leather. Thomas and Gregory, you two will look for rocks. Do not search too far away from the catapult, and remember to keep your shields up and ready at all times.” They all nodded. “Why don’t you move over to that side of the island,” I pointed south, “and practice using the catapult?” They all agreed and pulled the catapult across the sand. They had a hard time moving quickly due to the poor traction of the sand. I watched them for a minute. At first they moved slowly, placing the rocks and pulling the lever, but after a few tries they got the hand of it and were moving along nicely.
Soon the sun cast an orange glow over the sea, and I called everyone over to the fire. The scouts returned at sunset, just as I had told them to.
“There is a small path through the woods,” one of them said. “If we follow that and bear east, we will emerge through some cliffs and come right to their town center.”
“Good work, guys,” I told them. I repeated the plan of attack to the soldiers as the villagers cooked dinner. Everyone ate in silence. Nervous tension spread throughout the camp, and looks of anxiety crossed the faces of the men. Once we were finished eating, we let our stomachs settle for a bit. I then ordered everyone to the path in the woods and a scout, Lex, guided us through. Finally, we reached some cliffs and the forest ended. I stopped everyone for a minute and peered through the trees with Lex. The two of us continued forward until we could see buildings below. We looked around and saw no strangers lurking outside. “They must all be sleeping.” I told him.
We returned to the army and led them down through the trees. We planned to go around the cliffs and down into a clearing right next to the enemy camp. Once we were through the gap in the cliffs, we took our positions and attacked. The pirates had a vigilant defense, because the minute we launched arrows and rocks, a fleet of them came pouring out of the barracks. I ordered Lex to return to camp, and I joined in on the battle. The pirates had very few archers, and our infantry took care of them easily. The catapult was working well between the three boys and Carolos. Just then, I saw three pirates catch sight of the catapult and head over to attack. Thomas got his sword ready and held up his shield, but Gregory was carrying a rock and wasn’t able to position his shield correctly. As the pirates approached them, Thomas stepped forward and stabbed one of them. He missed, and the pirate took a swing at him. Thomas was able to deflect the blow, but when the pirate struck his shield, the force knocked the young soldier down. I ran over to help Thomas. Gregory saw one of the pirates about to stab his wounded brother, so he bravely hoisted up the rock he was holding and threw it at the pirate. The rock struck the pirate’s head, and the ugly beast fell to the ground.
“Nice job, Greg!” I called. I fought off the other two pirates and helped Thomas to his feet. I noticed Thomas’ foot was bleeding badly. I grabbed the closest soldier and told him to take Thomas back to camp. He was clearly in no condition to fight. Gregory looked worried. “Don’t worry,” I told him. “Your brother will be fine. Focus on loading the catapult.” Our archers had defeated most of the pirates at this point, and the remaining infantry took out the last few.
“Hahaha!” I looked toward the harsh laughter. At the top of a hill near the edge of the town, I saw Melanion standing, holding Astilan’s flag. I ran at top speed across the town and towards the hill. The leader of the pirates took off down the other side. I chased him through the thick woods, stumbling on tree roots hidden by leaves and shrubbery, finally surfacing on the other side of the island. I looked out towards the horizon and saw that this side of the island was a cliff. I noticed Melanion still running towards the edge of the cliff. I followed him and he stopped at the edge. He was cornered.
“Drop the flag, Melanion,” I ordered.
“Why should I give it to you, when I can stay here and fight?” His voice was shaking. I wanted to treasure this moment forever. Melanion looked so powerless, cowering at the edge of the cliff, cornered and defeated. A man could never look weaker. I couldn’t imagine why he would suggest fighting.
“Y-you want the flag?” he challenged me, trying to keep the words steady and his gaze at me fearful.
“Hand it over,” I demanded, my voice staying strong.
“No! This flag is all the meaning of Astilan, all the pathetic town stands for. Without this flag, you are nothing. Astilan is nothing. Astilan will fall and burn with this flag gone.” Melanion declared.
“Then I will fight you,” told him. “No fleeing; you either win by conquest or lose by death.”
The pirate king walked up to where I was standing and we slowly walked in circles, our swords held out. I grasped my shield close to my chest and I could feel my heart pounding. My eyes were locked on Melanion’s and I could sense the fear inside him. I kept my gaze steady and strong. I would not show my fear to him. Suddenly, Melanion’s eyes shifted to the left. In that split second, I threw out my sword towards him. He barely blocked it with his shield and raised his sword to block the second blow just in time. I remembered my teachings and recited them in my head as our swords clashed together and the sound of metal against metal rang throughout the entire island. Don’t move your eyes from the enemy, don’t show fear, use your shield, block with the lower end of your sword, don’t lose grip on your sword or shield. The words of my father ran through my head, and I could hear him speaking to me over the pounding in my ears. I quickly swung my sword down, and when Melanion tried to block the useless attack I dodged to the left and swung my sword with me, slicing Melanion’s side. He fell to the ground immediately and cried out in pain. Blood flowed from the deep gash and I stood over him, looking into his eyes. I understood his fear of defeat, his fear of death, his fear of weakness, his fear of pain. I lifted my sword, ready to plunge it right into the center of his chest, and I stopped. I knew this man was horrible and weak. But I just couldn’t do it. I couldn’t kill him. I slammed my shield onto the top of his head, knocking him out. I grabbed the flag from him and said, “Never again will you come near my home, or you will suffer much more than you have already.” Before I left, I took a very intricately designed dagger from his belt as a souvenir for myself. I ran at top speed the entire trip back to the pirates’ camp, holding the flag high above my head. The army had ransacked the camp and everyone’s arms were full of supplies. I led the army back to our tents as I told them of what had happened.
The sun had risen by the time we returned to camp. The villagers had just finished making an extra large breakfast and we stuffed our faces with food. We were all merry and cheerful, and we took our time eating and celebrating. Finally, we loaded the ships and set off back to Astilan. We were greeted at first with anxious faces but as soon as word of our victory spread, a celebration and feast was quickly prepared. The villagers cooked a delicious dinner of pork, berries, bread, fruit, vegetables, and plenty of wine. We composed a short ceremony outside of the town hall to proclaim the return of our flag, honoring those who fought to get it back. We raised the flag and placed it back on the stone wall in front of our town center, where it belonged.