Battlefield
I saw the sword before I saw the person that held it. I had always known something like this would happen, and yet it still came as a surprise to me. I mean, seeing a sword is quite scary after all. And I was frightened. Can you blame me? I might be 6,2 and built like a Norwegian viking, but I’m still just a man. It’s not like I’m immune to any sort of emotion that goes around in my body. If anything, I feel emotions more strongly because I’m not used to showing them. I tend to keep them hidden inside me, which evidently, makes them burst out of me when they become too much.
No, wait, back to the fight. We can talk all about my suppressed emotions another time. Not when I’m just telling the story of how I die. I should think that gets priority. My opponent drew the sword that would be my downfall. I saw the glistening of the lemmet, like it was freshly cleaned. The thought crossed my mind how that was possible, since the fight started about two hours ago. He must’ve killed some people during that time. At least one. Maybe he wiped his blade clean? Yeah, that could be a decent explanation. So that everytime he would swing his sword high, the reflection of the sunlight would show the enemy that his or her time was near. That they were about to die. Although I do think that a blade covered in blood would have at least the same dramatic effect.
I’ve always found it very difficult to tell a story from start to finish with no interruptions, can you tell? It’s a pity that I live in the 1300’s, because I’m sure that had it been a couple decades later that there would be a name for this. None of my friends experience the same limited attention span that I have. It’s like I have no focus, no attention for something for longer than five seconds, but my activity levels are through the roof. I want to do so many things at once. There is never enough time in a day to do all the things that go through my head. And if there was, I would surely go crazy. Well, crazier.
Maybe when you read this, there will be a name for it. I hope there is.
I’ve strayed from the story again. By the way, since you’re reading this, you must have come to the conclusion that I’m not dead. So, I didn’t die in that fight after all. I wasn’t killed. But, in my defense, I was sure I would perish on the battlefield when he lifted his sword. I saw my life flash before my eyes and everything. I fought the guy bravely, like any good soldier would. Even though it was a surprise attack, I found the time to draw my own sword, which was bloody and dent on the sides.
Our blades crashed into each other, sparks flew through the air as we slashed our swords together. I have to say I was pretty impressed with my fighting skills. I hadn’t fought like that in a very long time. I gave everything in that fight. I knew I had to win or die trying. There was no other option. Or at least, that’s what I thought. Our fight lasted for thirty minutes or so before he gave me one final blow that brought me to my knees. I closed my eyes, waiting for the pain that would indicate my defeat. I waited for the hot iron to penetrate my body. I waited for my life to end. But no such blow came. When I opened my eyes I saw my opponent rising above me, panting. He was leaning on his sword for support. I looked him in the eyes and expected to see malice, a need to torture me before I went. But all I saw was kindness. All I saw in those dark eyes was grief.
He looked me in my eyes for just a second and started to walk away. Now I knew why his sword wasn't bloody at all. I had never met a soldier like him before. Someone with actual morals. I stayed on my knees for a very long time. All around me I saw people stand up from the battlefield, looking around for their friends. By now my knees started to hurt, so I stood up and did the same. I never saw this soldier again, but that’s no surprise. I quit the army not long after that. I saw in his eyes something I thought humans had lost. He was humane. I wasn’t able to kill anyone after that. I couldn’t. And that’s not a very good trait when you’re fighting in the army.
