The Duel

[Akessel92]

The sky was lit ablaze with tracers and crackles of Flak along with the falling and burning wreckage planes and zeppelins. On the deck of one of the flak guns located on top of the battered airship, Schwaben, the captain of the ship an anthro German Shepherd by the name of Thörsten Schaeferhund stood with his men as they fell around him. His grease and blood stained uniform and flight coat rumpled from the wind outside as his iron cross medal glistened in the sunset. He stood and looked on as a boarding party charged towards him and his fallen comrades, guns blazing. He pulled his pistol from his holster on his uniform and emptied it upon the group of foes. He then saw the familiar face of the leader of this enemy boarding party, a crimson furred and armor clad Kitsune. Once they both hesitated at first looking into each other’s eyes with what seemed sorrow in the Kitsune’s eyes and anger in Thörsten’s. Those emotions evaporated from the Kitsune and was replaced with anger. They took hold of their scabbards and drew their swords, gripping them tightly. Thoersten put his left arm behind his back as he gripped the sword in his right paw in a fencing lunge stance. The Kitsune held her samurai sword in both her claws. They lunged and then came a clash of each of their blades. Thus beginning the series of strikes that would be their duel. As steel struck steel, it was as if lighting cracked the sky at every strike they made. The rhythmic beating of their hearts melded with the pounding of flak around them. Thoersten was on the defensive holding his own against his former lover, meeting her blows with block after block.The Kitsune  was aggressive and steady in her attacks. As she attacked, Thoersten moved back onto the mount of the now unmanned top deck flak gun on the airship. Thanks to both of their footwork the kitsune still kept him on the defensive but Thörsten changed his position, rather than being pushed to the edge of the flak emplacement and the curved canvas covered bow of the airship, he turned. He now had the rest of the ships length and the fins to his back. As the two reached close to the fin of the airship, Thörsten then began to be more aggressive in his attacks. This kept the two anthro sword fighters at an en passe. However, this would not last. The wind changed direction and speed catching the two off balance and both began to fall from the airship. Luckily, the two were strapped and  held by a cable that ran on the top of the airship so no crew member would accidentally fall to their death several thousand feet. The two fell at opposite sides of the airships still gripping their swords. After sheathing them used their claws, feet and the cable they hooked onto to climb back up. When they reached back to the top they soon caught sight of one another. They got ready to lunge and restart their fight. Then suddenly, cane the loud buzzing of a damaged aircraft crashing and ripping canvas and aluminum frame of the airship. This made a hole exposing the duralumin skeleton of the airship, the narrow catwalks, and the massive gas bags which made up the upper interior of the ship which the two anthros fell into. Both landed on the catwalk of the airship on their feet. This prompted the kitsune to run as she was now in the interior of the ship alone without any other support. While Thörsten now had a greater advantage, as his men were stationed throughout the ship, and he knew every corridor, every ladder, and Every section of the ship. Thörsten was not fast enough for the kitsune so he put a call out to the crew throughout the ship saying: “Men there is a female pirate on board you are to capture her but beware she is armed and is likely heading toward the hangar.”

 

The kitsune heard the order and made a dash toward the bridge as the hangar was no longer an option. She ran with all her endurance and would prepare for her stand against Thörsten. She looked through the bridge section but found no one as the airship was on auto-pilot and so looked through stores for a pistol or another weapon. Which her search took her to Thörsten’s cabin not far from the helm.

 

Thorsten knowing full well she was on the bridge, he reloaded his pistol and made his way to the bridge. When he peered into the bridge, the kitsune was not there. He listened, sniffed and looked around the bridge with his pistol at the ready. He then heard sounds in his cabin. He quietly crept to his cabin door which was openly slightly. He threw it open pointed his pistol but hesitated when he saw the female kitsune curled on his bed looking at and holding a framed picture as numerous tears fell from her eyes onto it. The picture itself was them in love, happy but also there was a tiny cub being held by both of them in the black and white photograph.

 

“You still kept it after all these years?” She asked him with a sob.

 

The German shepherd lowered his pistol as sadness filled his heart. “Yes.”

 

“And you miss her as much as I?” The red kitsune asked.

 

“Absolutely...” he replied approaching her slowly. He began to look closely to see if she was still armed. He found she had set her sword on a shelf far from her. He sat close to her.

 

“Why and how did we end up deciding to take our pain and loss on each other?” She asked her fluffy tails curling around her.

 

“People hurt others because they are hurt. When our little one was gone it hurt me because I was gone far too often and made it seem I didn’t care about you. I got angry because I barely heard from you and felt you kept her illness and what was going on in her life from me until all I could do was mourn her.” He replied sitting with his head low.

 

“I loved our girl being in your life and I wanted her and myself to be with you. But when she got sick those years ago and waiting for you to return. I felt you left us and cared only about the whims of your Kaiser and your advancement as an officer.” She said with a great deal of malice when she talked about Thörsten’s superiors at high command.

 

“What I did was always for you and her. But when she was gone and you no longer wanted to have anything to do with me... I had nothing else and failed everyone.” He sighed as they both turned to each other. The both of them looked into each other’s eyes. Their ears flopped down as the both of them drew nearer to each other. His paw sat upon hers. Taking one last glance and then they embraced. Their hearts beating as one not in anger against one another but in forgiveness and hope for the future.