…

  Leris looked at the barbarian in front of him. The man stood tall, a fierce look upon his face. Leris was angered by that face. That face that had demanded his blessed daughter. Who was he? Who was he to try and steal his daughter?

  Leris had thrown his spear, the point nding in the ground slightly to the left of the raider. He still looked determined though, as if he was going to win. Leris wouldn’t let that happen, not at all.

  “Come over here!” Leris shouted out in his own tongue, watching as his daughter and her friend, along with his friend’s mother, ran behind him.

  He slid the iron hammer from his belt, the wooden handle feeling good in his hand. He then unslung the brass-rimmed, and wide, targe from his back. He gripped it hard in his right hand, the hammer rising in his left above his left shoulder.

  The raider decided to attack, raising his now prepped axe in his right hand. He rushed forth, eager to kill the man defending the city in front of him. Leris wouldn’t let that happen, of course.

  The axe then hit the shield, deflecting off of the rim with a cng. The bronze head ringing as the raider stepped back and readied another swing. Leris stepped afore him, and swung his hammer off to the side and down, aiming for the man’s leg.

  The raider stepped back, but not enough as the head clipped his kneecap. He yelped in pain and stumbled. This gave Leris the time to swing his hammer up, and bring the spike on the back to the front.

  He brought it down on the other man. His screams going up in pitch as the point of the hammer sunk into his clothed shoulder. Leris pulled the hammer free as the raider fell onto his back.

  Leris stamped his foot on the man’s chest, the screams still going. He then smmed the rim of his shield into the man’s throat, cutting off his screams. He then smmed the ft face of his hammer into his skull.

  The sounds of bones break, and brain squishing could be heard from all around the front of the gate. Vistilia, Aivan, and Thaia stood there, listening to the sounds. He didn’t stop at the first blow, he didn’t stop at the second blow, nor did he stop at the third blow.

  “Vrae! Vrae! Vrae!” he chanted as he smashed the man’s head in.

  “Father, can you please stop. You’re frightening Aivan and Thaia,” He heard his pride and joy say, halting his blows upon the wretch.

  He stopped, then looked up. His face was slicked with a light coating of sweat. His breathing was somewhat erratic.

  “Sorry, little one. I just didn’t like his face, so I guess I got rid of it,” he said and stood up tall again.

  He went over to where his spear hand nded, and plucked it from the ground. He slung his hammer back to the belt he wore. Yet, he decided to keep his shield strapped to his arm. Just in case if a foe in the near future got close.

  “Ok you three, let’s get you all inside,” he said, letting Vistilia grab the edge of his shield as if it was his hand.

  …

  Vistilia admired her father. She had grown to love him a lot since she had been reborn. Yet now, her love and respect for the man had grown more so. It was the simple fact of what he had done to that raider had earned her respect.

  After all, what daughter wouldn’t love their father more if they knew that said father would brutalize a corpse for their safety? Most little girls that Vistilia knew. That was for sure.

  Her father had quickly went back to his work after she had told him that she was fine, and that earned an uneasy, but wholesome smile from her father. Thaia, though, looked at her as if she had grown a second head. Thinking back to that interaction as the three of them walked down the street, that made sense.

  After all, she had just witnessed her father smash a man’s skull into paste, and she hadn’t the most normal reaction. She had simply watched and admired his footwork as he fought. Then again, when one stares into the void that was heaven, one tends to trivialize things like the desotion of a body.

  Aivan, on the other hand, had reacted in a way that made Vistilia worry for him. He was silent, deathly so. His face didn’t tell her anything when she looked upon him. It was as if he had seen a ghost. Then again, he had just seen someone be brutalized to death.

  As they were nearly home, Vistilia decided to help him out. After all, he was obviously scarred. His footfalls were light, like he had lost a dozen pounds in an instant, and his feet were lighter for it. She needed to help him out.

  “Aivan, how are you feeling?” she asked him as she walked to his side.

  He looked down at her, his gaze vacant, yet returning to normal with her question. The sun was setting as they walked on, giving his face a strangely lit and eerie air. He opened his mouth to speak, his voice strained.

  “Why did they do that to each other? Why did your father kill that man?” he asked, his voice breaking as his eyes began to get wet from tears.

  “Because the raider, that was what the bad man was, wanted to steal me. My father was worried for me, and wanted me to be safe. So, he ended the bad man’s life to stop him,” Vistilia expined, her tone of voice steady.

  “Why did he want to steal you? Couldn’t he just have his own little girl instead of stealing the best little girl ever?” Aivan asked, his tone becoming a bit more like a child’s.

  “He probably wanted to either sell me, or ransom me. That means he would have stolen me, and only given me back if my father had paid for my safe return,” she said, he tone trying to be comforting.

  “Oh,” was all he said.

  Vistilia took a breath and sighed. Letting it out, she looked at her feet as she plodded along. This was going to be hard. After all, she wasn’t all that confident in talking about feelings, or to children in general about emotions. Yet, she had to do this.

  “I didn’t like seeing my father bash that man’s head in, either,” she said, and Aivan looked at her again, “yet, he did it for me, for you and your mother. He did it, like all other guards would have, to protect us. My father killed that man so we wouldn’t have been. That raider would have killed your mother. Yet, he didn’t because my father ended his life. He did it for a reason, because he loves both me, and the people of this city, like you.”

  Aivan looked at her, tears welling in his eyes. Sobs could be heard as his face turned sour. His emotions on full dispy as his mother hugged him as the three of them stopped. She gave her son a full on bear hug, Vistilia joining in on it. they got home a little ter than normal that day.

  …