章節 60: Fight Until We Die

During this ongoing struggle with the mouse, my ability to control my powers was constantly diminishing. I know it was not the best idea, but I lent some of my focus towards healing the wounds that were becoming a hindrance in my movements. They were starting to become a distraction that I did not need. Either I start my healing, and losing some of my concentration for a small amount of time, or I suffer the injuries and a continuing amount of focus being lost.

Now I am not a complete fool, I only healed the wounds just enough so that they would not be a problem in the fight. Some simple cauterization of my back wound, stopping the blood, and some application of my control of cold applied to where the heat attack landed. Anymore than that, I could not take care of in a short amount of time.

Even though I was trying to minimize the damage that I was taking while healing, I did suffer a few more minor injuries. Though, none of them were of importance towards the battle, just some minor annoyances. But, I can not afford to accept any more damage.

With the both of us weakening, and getting sloppy, the fight is drawing to a conclusion. I have gone through enough, that I must kill the vicious rodent. As for the thoughts of my opponent, my only hope, is that it does not try to escape.

If I would have to try and track it down, after it would depart, there is very little chance that I could find it. With its use of powers, it will almost definitely try to obscure its own trail. I also doubt that it would ever try to fight me again, if I let it get away.

While Girts did not have a definite hope that I would be able to vanquish this problem, I am here, and I am going to defeat it. If I let the mouse escape, it could terrorize large swaths of area, possibly threatening my family. The few emotions I had nourished, with being around my parents and sisters, would be ravaged. I have no idea what would become of me if that happened.

Defend, defend, attack, defend, attack, evade. The mouse is starting to have trouble in unleashing its abilities in the fight. Though, too, I am also having my own problems.

I am having to conserve whatever energy I have left. The battle is forcing me to push through my own limits, that I have never had the chance to test. There had never any encounter that I have been a part of, that made me use my power for such a length of time.

It is now or never. Before I lose any chance to win, I need to use as much of my power that I can control, and utterly destroy my opponent. This mouse, my first foe, I can show no mercy to it.

Summoning powers of cold, and motion, I concentrate it as much as I can. I want to freeze the air, as the power swiftly approaches the mouse, not letting it have a chance to retaliate. There is no guarantee that this attack will work, but it is the only thing that I can think of that might win me this fight. And, I release my weapon that I spent so much energy creating it.

I am not sure on what I expected to happen, but the attack froze plants that were low to the ground, and then ripped them out of it. The blast of increasing amount of shrapnel roared into the mouse, stopping its motions. With the passing attack, my view was obscured from the devastation that occurred.

When everything settled down enough, and I realized that the mouse had not attacked after my last ditch effort, I had to force myself to approach the carnage. Without verifying what the result was, there is no way I could relax. Though my efforts have exhausted my energy, a slip up at this time, could prove a deadly fate.

Approaching where the mouse had launched a countless number of attacks, relief was finally allowed to be felt. The mouse, my deadly foe, was, if not dead at this exact moment, had no way to survive. Lacerations, from where the body of the mouse met the speeding debris, were letting blood flow freely. With an attack from an arrow, from the quiver that was completely full, I stabbed the mouse for the first and last time, in the neck, making sure that it was without fail, dead.

One of the two entities, that were attacking me, was dead. The other one, while she might not be dead, will not be able to recover any time soon. Though, so I could recover from my exertions, I have decided to prevent her from moving, and attacking me again.

It might not be the most humane thing that I could do, but, right now, I do not care. I need some sleep, and screw the my morals. I do not think that I could do anything else, other than pass out, at this point.

* * *

With the sound of birds chirping, and the sun in full force, I awoke. The atmosphere of what I woke up to, was in complete contrast to what I went to sleep from. Nature abhors a vacuum, and as there was nothing to interrupt it, nature took back over, leaving a pleasant day to wake up to.

In the clear light of day, signs of the struggle that I was part of last night, littered the area. In a matter of time, the signs of combat would be lost from all but memory. It feels like that is wrong, but life finds a way.

My body is sore from the wounds that I have not had a chance to heal. With some judicious care, in a day or two, I will not be baring any signs of my fight. No scars were earned from my first battle. No stories that I would have to explain to others that would have seen those scars.

I am lucky. I realize that.