“You know who I am, Drystan; try to remember!” Cadmus pleaded even as he tackled the other knight to the ground, knocking the sword from his opponent’s hand in the process.
“Yes, I do; you’re the maniac who’s trying to kill me!” Drystan snapped back, struggling beneath Cadmus’ weight.
“I’m not trying to kill you,” Cadmus insisted as he caught the fist Drystan tried to slam into his head. “I’m your…friend!” He had no choice but to punctuate that last part with a punch to Drystan’s visor-covered face when the other knight tried to hit him again with his other hand.
Growling, Drystan managed to struggle out from beneath Cadmus and retrieve his sword. He shot back to his feet, the sand of the beach they fought upon flying about him as he did so.
Cadmus got up as well, holding his own blade, though keeping it at his side, not angled at his opponent in an attempt to be as unthreatening as possible. (Though it was difficult to not appear hostile at all when one was covered from head to toe in steel armor.)
“Your mind has been corrupted by dark magic,” Cadmus went on as he dodged the stab Drystan immediately sent his way. “You aren’t yourself right now.”
“Shut up!” Drystan growled, trying to slash at Cadmus’ chest. Cadmus brought his sword up to block, but didn’t launch any sort of counterattack.
“I will do no such thing,” Cadmus returned ceaselessly as he batted the sword aside and skipped back a few steps. “Not until you heed my words.”
“Then I suppose I’ll just need to silence you myself!” Drystan lunged again, sword flashing.
Impulse more than anything had Cadmus swinging his own sword in response. The flat of the blade clanged hard against the side of Drystan’s head, knocking the other knight to the ground and sending his helmet flying.
For a moment, all was silent. Then Drystan groaned, shaking himself.
“Drystan?” Cadmus asked, hopeful.
“Cadmus…” Drystan groaned.
And Cadmus grinned in relief, knowing that his friend was himself again.
Thank you for reading! I wrote this story as part of the Storytelling Collective’s Flash Fiction February 2023 challenge, so a huge thanks to them for inspiring me to give it a shot.
