The Fall (Revised)

The top of the redwood watchtower.

Yusuf held his shield in front of him, keeping half his body behind it. Only the area above his eyes was visible, allowing him to watch Rhode over the top of the shield.

With Yusuf holding his shield this way, neither a surprise sword attack nor a spell from Rhode would be very effective.

Yusuf continued to advance at a measured pace. The distance between them, which either could have covered in a few quick strides, now seemed impossibly long.

Yusuf knew his opponent had nowhere to retreat. Rather than attack first, he pressed forward, forcing Rhode to reveal an opening.

From Yusuf's perspective, as he advanced, his enemy backed away to maintain the distance, until he was almost pressed against the railing at the edge.

Seeing that Rhode was nearing the edge of the watchtower, Yusuf knew he wouldn't let him approach without reacting. Once Yusuf came close enough, Rhode would have to respond, whether by moving sideways or attacking. Either way, he would leave himself open.

All Yusuf had to do was wait for that opening, then knock Rhode off the tower with a powerful blow.

He could have launched a surprise attack from this distance, but Yusuf clearly wasn't willing to risk it. Instead, he waited for his enemy to expose a weakness.

Just as Yusuf had expected, as he pressed forward step by step and the distance between them shrank, Rhode seemed unable to withstand the pressure. Rather than move to either side, he struck first, stepping forward and thrusting his sword at Yusuf.

The moment Rhode moved, Yusuf realized he was about to attack. He read the direction of Rhode's strike and turned his shield toward it. Whether or not the sword struck true, Rhode had left himself quite exposed.

Yusuf saw every one of Rhode's movements. His extensive combat experience as a seasoned warrior let him react correctly at once.

Rhode knew his attack was unlikely to work. He had only done it to create an opportunity. Just before his sword struck Yusuf's shield, he pulled back and shifted his body away.

As Rhode withdrew, Yusuf moved too.

Yusuf stepped forward at an angle and slammed his shield toward Rhode, hoping to knock him off the tower while his opponent was still hampered by withdrawing from the attack. His other hand gripped his weapon, ready to strike at any moment.

Clearly, Rhode had anticipated Yusuf's likely response when he attacked. Before he had even pulled back his sword, he dodged to the side—right toward the arm with which Yusuf was swinging his shield.

Rhode avoided the shield's impact, but he was still near the edge of the tower. He had just finished dodging and hadn't regained his footing when Yusuf caught up and swung his sword at him.

Rhode raised his sword to meet the attack and blocked it. Just as he was about to swing again, Yusuf's shield smashed toward him once more. Unable to block it, Rhode could only roll to the side.

Against a fully armed warrior, Rhode might not have much of an advantage with swordsmanship alone. To win, he still needed to find an opportunity.

When he finished rolling, Rhode was still at the edge of the tower, though in a different spot. He readied himself for Yusuf's next attack, but Yusuf didn't come at him. Instead, he stood in place with his shield raised, looking more unsettled than before.

As Rhode rolled to avoid the shield, Yusuf's blow had struck empty air, and his shield had hit the railing. Watching the wooden railing fall away, Yusuf had instinctively felt a flash of fear as he pulled back. He hadn't been able to continue the pursuit.

Still, Yusuf was a seasoned warrior. He recovered immediately and prepared to press toward Rhode again.

With Yusuf's shield constantly held in front of him, Rhode still couldn't find an opening to attack. But he had noticed that even Yusuf, who had the overall advantage, was still afraid of death.

Seeing Yusuf raise his shield again and advance, Rhode knew his enemy had chosen the safest approach and wouldn't give him an opening. If he wanted to defeat the man in front of him, he would have to create one himself.

Rhode realized that despite having a huge advantage in this situation, Yusuf still intended to kill him safely rather than charge in and rely on his superior attributes to fight him head-on.

In ordinary circumstances, Yusuf's caution might have been a good thing, whether when making decisions for the merchant caravan or choosing how to fight. But now, his excessive caution had become a weakness. Rhode realized he might be able to find an opportunity.

As Yusuf advanced again, Rhode held his sword in one hand and pointed it toward him. He lowered his other hand, where several objects appeared, then suddenly hurled them at Yusuf's head.

Yusuf noticed Rhode's movements. His past combat experience had taught him that anyone with a Space Ring might carry concealed weapons for surprise attacks. Seeing what Rhode was doing, he naturally assumed it was an attack of that kind.

Seeing the objects hurtling toward him, Yusuf didn't dare let his guard down, especially with himself at the edge of the tower. He raised his shield, preparing to block the projectiles.

The objects struck his shield with several sharp clinks, and Yusuf sensed that something was wrong.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw several objects gleaming red in the evening sunlight. They had been knocked away by his shield—and they were only a few gold coins.

Suddenly, Yusuf realized what was happening. He had just begun to lower his shield when a bright white bolt of lightning shot out from beneath it. It struck his body. His armor protected him from serious injury, but half his body went numb.

In a normal fight, Yusuf wouldn't have worried much even if he'd been hit by this spell. Protected by his armor and shield, he could take no harm while his body was numb. But in this situation, the numbness that would otherwise have been inconsequential was deadly.

The moment he lowered his shield, Yusuf saw what Rhode was doing.

Rhode hadn't chosen to attack with his sword. Instead, at some point, he had taken out a shield and was now charging at Yusuf.

Yusuf could do nothing. He tried to move, but with half his body numb, he couldn't. All he could do was brace himself and hold his shield in front of his body.

Their shields collided. In a contest of basic attributes, Yusuf could have held his ground even against Rhode's charge. But with half his body numb, he couldn't brace himself at all. Hit by Rhode's full-force impact, Yusuf was sent tumbling backward.

Behind him, there was nothing but a few collapsed sections of railing.