by Brandon Chen
Everyone stood frozen with fear as the swarm of monstrosities rushed at them. Violet could sense the panic that now took hold in the warriors’ minds as they stared at the ghastly creatures. Even Kura’s feet were rooted to the ground as she stood there gaping at their army of opponents. Never before had she seen such atrocious beings.
Violet reached out and grabbed Kura by her wrist, squeezing the assassin until her skin stung. The female warrior blinked, her sense returning to her eyes. “We can’t stay here!” Violet shouted, the words registering in the warrior’s mind. “You’re the leader, right? Stop panicking and take control of the situation!”
Kura licked her lower lip nervously and exhaled shakily, her hands quivering at her side. Resolution suddenly swept over her visage and she struck her chest, the group’s brave warrior returning to command. “Archerus can only buy us so much time. We’re retreating, follow me!”
The adventurers rushed behind Kura, their brandished weapons smashing into whatever undead creatures lay in their path. The monsters were not particularly hard to slay; it was their numbers that made them dangerous. The zombies continued to crawl out of the gaping holes in the canyon’s floor, soon filling the gorge with a myriad of abominations.
Yuri ripped his sword sideways, catching one of the creatures in the throat. His blade cut through the foul monster’s putrid flesh with ease, decapitating it with a swift motion. The boy’s heart raced, his weapon hacking wildly into the swarm of undead. He thought about the moment when he had lost control in Horux’s warehouse and had brutally slaughtered dozens of werewolves. Glancing over his shoulder, he watched as one of the monstrosities pounced on Kura’s friend, Oma. The woman was pinned to the ground, screaming in agony as the undead creature tore open her breast with its claws. I need to do something. His clammy hands squeezed the hilt of his silver sword. The power to save everyone is within my grasp. I can’t be afraid of it … more importantly, I can’t be afraid of what I’ve become.
“Noah, clear a path!” Yuri shouted to the magician.
Noah nodded and extended his hand outward, creating a herd of elephants, fabricated from blue magical essence. The triumphant beasts stampeded forward, trampling all of the undead creatures in their wake. The magician nearly fell over, exhausted after casting such a massive spell, but was caught and supported by Violet. Letting out an exasperated sigh of relief, Noah smiled at the princess. “Thanks.”
“Go while it’s clear!” Kura shouted, swiping her short sword across the breast of a monster. She swung her other arm outward, hurling three shuriken that buried into the forehead of another abomination.
The battling warriors hacked their way through the remainder of the undead ranks, sprinting through the open area that Noah had cleared. Nevertheless, the living corpses kept prying themselves out of the ground, crawling and sprinting after the group.
Yuri sheathed his sword and closed his eyes, recalling his memory with Asmund. Watching powerlessly as his friend perished before his eyes, untamed rage built within him. His turquoise eyes changed into those of a beastly monster and his body contorted into that of a ferocious werewolf. Letting out a bellowing roar, he burst forward and rent bodies apart with his sharp claws. Dismembered limbs flew through the air as Yuri entered a state of bloodlust, swiping and slashing the undead creatures relentlessly. It was an elating sensation … to butcher these abominations, to feel so powerful.
Terias stared at Yuri, watching as the beast slaughtered the creatures with ease. He gulped, continuing on with the group, leaving the werewolf to his massacre. The undead were all being drawn towards Yuri and Archerus, allowing the contingent to escape.
“We’re almost there!” Senna yelled, cleaving his broadsword across the torso of a creature. The knight rushed to Noah’s other side, wrapping the boy’s arm around his shoulder to help Violet support the magician. “I can see the other side!”
Gunshots sounded as bullets whizzed around Yuri, slamming into the undead. The werewolf grabbed one zombie by the face and squashed its skull into the icy cliffs. Fetid liquids oozed from its crushed head as the werewolf let the cadaver crumple to the ground.
Adrenaline surged through his veins and he felt as if he could fight these unholy abominations forever. Part of him wanted to stay and continue mutilating the undead until all that remained were mounds of body parts. But he knew where he had to be, and that was with his friends.
Yuri scampered after the group of fleeing warriors, knocking away any monsters in his way. To him, they were nothing but crushable bugs. There were just so many of them. Why were there so many corpses inside of this glacier? He clenched his fangs irately, remembering the vampire. How had Malyssa been able to summon so many undead?
Yuri leapt out of the gorge, landing hard on a layer of solid ice. He slipped slightly, nearly losing his balance, and turned to find that he was standing on a massive wasteland of flat ice. It was as if an entire ocean had just been frozen over. His throat tightened when he saw that beneath the frigid layers of ice were pale corpses, entrapped. More bodies?
“Yuri’s out, that’s all of us,” Archerus said, looking to Noah. “Can you seal the gorge?”
“Yeah. It’ll take the rest of my energy, though.”
“Do it.”
“What do you mean? We’re missing three people, at least!” Kura exclaimed, storming up to the werewolf. Fearlessly, she jabbed her finger into the beast’s chest. “I’m not leaving without my warriors. They’ll come.”
Archerus met the assassin’s gaze with his own unsympathetic visage. “Seal it,” he commanded Noah, his eyes still on Kura. “Unless you want to battle that horde of undead storming onto this unstable ice.”
“Don’t do it!” Kura barked to the conflicted magician. “My men are still—”
“They’re dead!” Archerus roared, his voice even more ferocious in his werewolf form. Towering over Kura, the female leader slunk back in the shadow of the monster. “And we will be too if we don’t seal that canyon now!” Already dozens of undead monstrosities had begun to pile out of the glacier’s entrance, sprinting wildly towards the group of survivors.
Yuri watched as some of the ice started to crack underneath the feet of the oncoming horde of zombies. The fracture then started to split throughout the ice-covered surface, spreading uncontrollably until it seemed like the entire frozen lake would shatter. “You have to seal it!” Yuri exclaimed to the magician.
Noah nodded in understanding, realizing the direness of the situation. He brought his hands upward, forging an image of a gigantic wall in his mind. Then he made it a reality. The magician conjured a magical blue wall that sealed the entire entrance to the gorge. Groaning, he fell onto his knees, his skin blanching white. He looked sick, as if he were about to vomit. “Ugh … maybe I pushed myself a bit too far today.”
Bullets and arrows sliced through the air as the remainder of Kura’s force unleashed hell on the small force of undead that had squeezed through the canyon’s entrance prior to Noah’s conjuring of the wall. The volley of projectiles pounded into the front lines of the frantically sprinting zombies, causing them to fall over and smash heavily into the ice. Some of them lost their footing and ended up sliding across the slippery surface while others simply fell through the cracks of the unstable ice, dropping into the freezing waters.
Within minutes, Yuri’s party had eradicated the remainder of the undead force and stood in silence, staring blankly at the monstrosities that they had just battled. Yuri breathed shakily. He’d thought that such abominations existed only within his darkest nightmares. Yet he’d just battled a legion of them. “This place really is hell,” he murmured aloud.
The boy turned and saw Kura advancing towards Noah, who was barely conscious. The assassin’s gaze was fiery. From her expression, one might assume that she was about to murder the exhausted magician. “How dare you disobey my orders? I am leading this expedition!” she snarled angrily, her hand moving towards her sheathed short-sword.
&
nbsp; Senna was suddenly behind her and quickly grabbed her wrist, halting the woman before she could brandish her weapon. “There is no need for violence. The boy is not your enemy.”
“What about these werewolves?” Kura growled, shooting a glance towards Yuri and Archerus. “The two of you might’ve wanted to mention that you were infectious beasts when you decided to come on this quest! That might’ve been good information to know.”
“It only would’ve complicated things,” Archerus said, his face stern.
“You lied to us because you thought it would complicate things?” Senna spat, taking a step towards the werewolf. He winced when his metallic boots cracked the ice beneath him.
“We are not a threat to you,” Yuri said, morphing back into his human form. He held out his hands, showing that he was not the same as the uncontrollable beasts that Senna remembered in Horux. “The two of us have already ingested the Phoenix Heart, giving us control over our werewolf bodies. Haven’t we already demonstrated to you that we are your allies? Without Archerus and I, none of you would’ve survived in the gorge.” He knew that he sounded like a jerk, insisting that the werewolves had been the ones to save the day. But it was true, and the rest of the group knew it.
“I trust them,” Violet said and suddenly all eyes were on her. “If they had ill intentions, they could’ve just infected everyone in Reidan while they were there. But they didn’t. Archerus and Yuri have had plenty of chances to spread their infection or kill all of us, but they haven’t.” She looked to Yuri and gave the boy a friendly smile. “The werewolves we saw in Horux were just as mindless and brutal as the undead we just battled. But Yuri and Archerus are completely different. They’re as human as we are.”
“I trust them too,” Terias murmured, his arms folded over his chest. When Senna glared at him, he shrugged. “It’s clear that without them, we would’ve died in the gorge. Noah cleared a path for us, but we never would’ve been able to escape without the werewolves’ help.” He raised an eyebrow at his mentor. “We have other enemies to worry about. Lichholme is a dangerous place.”
Senna stared at his apprentice for a long moment and then nodded hesitantly. Even Kura had to agree, though she was grumbling swears to herself. “But there are no more lies,” Kura growled to everyone. “I don’t have time to think about whether or not my companions are trustworthy.”
“That’s right. You’ll encounter countless formidable opponents along your adventure,” a familiar voice hollered.
Yuri turned and saw that Malyssa was standing at the top of the glacier, looking down at the adventurers. The vampire had a sadistic grin on her face, as if she’d enjoyed watching them battle for their lives within that ice canyon. “But your journey has only just begun, hasn’t it?” she said, folding her arms. Then her eyes flashed a slightly brighter shade of red. Yuri had noticed it before when they were in gorge, just before she’d summoned the horde of undead. Did that mean—
“Vampires have an innate ability that allows them to control certain individuals with weak minds,” Archerus murmured, staring at the massive glacier that towered over them. His eyes narrowed and began to slowly take steps backward. “Things are not looking good for us.”
Yuri understood why Archerus was beginning to panic. The ground was quaking, just as it had when the zombies had awakened. However, this time it felt like a real earthquake, as if the ground itself were alive. Fear shot through him as he saw the cracks in the ice deepening. He watched with horror as a massive hand tore itself from the icy floor, shattering the frozen lake like glass.
The hand grabbed onto Kura’s right-hand man, Tassan, and squeezed him tightly. The warrior shrieked with surprise, fear and shock on his face as he was pulled downwards into the depths of the frigid lake. Freezing water splashed onto the cracking ice, which was now beginning to give way.
Yuri heard Kura’s anguished cry of sorrow at the sight of her friend’s demise. The rest of his comrades broke into a mad dash across the frozen lake, fearful of the creature underneath the surface. But Yuri stood frozen in his tracks, the image of the enormous hand still burned freshly into his mind. The size of that hand had been colossal … as if it belonged to a Titan.
The werewolf’s eyes widened when he heard the icy ground explode behind him, feeling sprinkles of freezing water bite at his neck. He gulped back his fear and spun around to find a frost giant, the size of the glacier itself, towering over him.
The creature looked like a monster from mythology, with a long beard made of sharp icicles that dangled down to its large belly. Its skin was pale as snow, and its eyes were large gems that glowed an icy blue. Black antlers that looked like they belonged to a deer protruded from the top of the giant’s head. In its left hand, the frost giant held the frozen body of Tassan. In its right hand was a massive spiked club made entirely of crystallized ice.
Oh gods. Yuri swore under his breath as the monster raised the weapon over its head. He quickly transformed into a werewolf and spun around, dashing away. Lichholme was truly one of the most dangerous places in Terrador.
Native
Yuri was thrown high into the air, his arms flailing wildly, as the frost giant brought its club smashing down onto the frozen lake. The icy surface exploded, sending ice, snow, and water spraying in all directions. The werewolf screamed as some of the freezing water burned his skin as if it were acid. Every droplet that touched him felt like molten lava.
His landing was less than graceful as he landed painfully on his arm, rolling and sliding uncontrollably across the fractured ice. Terrified that the floor would give way beneath him, he quickly scrambled to his feet and continued fleeing.
It was easy for Yuri to predict the giant’s attacks since its movements were so sluggish. But each time that the creature struck the ice, it dealt devastating damage to the lake’s surface. If all of the ice was annihilated, Yuri would fall into the sub-zero water and perish within seconds. Remembering the floating corpses trapped in those waters caused him to shiver. He increased his speed, sprinting as fast as he could in a poor attempt to escape the giant’s enormous reach.
Several of the knights had fallen through the ice and into the water. Yuri saw one man was flailing about for a moment, but his clanking armor weighed him down and he quickly sank to his doom. The man probably froze to death before he could drown.
Yuri saw that Archerus was carrying Noah on his back. The magician was unconscious, completely taxed after having used up so much of his energy to conjure magic. The boy winced, realizing that the frost giant was wading through the water towards the group of fleeing adventures. They weren’t moving away fast enough — at this rate, the creature would surely catch up and kill them all.
Skidding to a stop, the werewolf turned to face the frost giant. I have to buy the group time. Licking his lower lip, he exhaled a wisp of chilly mist as he scanned the creature for its weak points. Everything about the giant seemed impenetrable; did this thing even have a weakness?
The goliath swung its spiked club downward once more and Yuri dodged to the side, grunting as he slid away from the crumbling ice. He was certainly running out of places to land, and avoiding the monstrosity’s brutal attacks was a lot harder with less available space.
Yuri suddenly caught sight of the gleaming crystal eyes of the giant. Maybe those could be shattered, but reaching them was nearly impossible. Then the werewolf looked at the club, feeling his heart beginning to race at the idiotic idea that flashed into his mind. Unfortunately, it was the only plan that he had. “Desperation at its finest,” he said, taunting the creature by waving his hands in front of him. “Hey, fat-ass! How is it that you keep missing me? Come on, finish the job!” Can this thing even understand me?
Malyssa, sitting on top of the glacier, raised her eyebrows in surprise at the boy’s bold actions. Intrigued, she leaned forward, gazing at Yuri with profound interest. “How exciting,” she said, licking her lower lip. For anyone to bravely confront the giant directly was an unexpected
turn of events.
Yuri yelped as the club smashed into the ice several feet from his position. The ice beneath the werewolf collapsed but he’d already lashed outward and grabbed onto two of the spikes on the giant’s weapon. Luckily for him, the creature pulled his club from the water before it sank too deep. Yuri’s legs, however, had been temporarily dipped in the freezing water and were now trembling. He couldn’t feel or move his legs anymore after only a brief moment of being in the water. Gritting his teeth, he watched as the giant pulled the club up near his head, as if to examine his weapon. With its other hand, it dropped Tassan’s corpse into the lake and reached for Yuri.
A smile of victory split across Yuri’s lips. Good thing you’re an idiot. Using the remainder of the strength in his arms, he launched himself upward through the gaps between the giant’s massive fingers and landed on the monster’s face. His claws lashed out, grabbing the glowing crystal eyes of the giant. A howl of agony escaped the creature, but Yuri wasn’t done yet. Heaving back, the werewolf yanked the icy spheres straight out of the goliath’s sockets, gripping one in each hand. I did it! I—
Yuri saw a shadow suddenly looming over him, and grunted when he saw that the giant’s palm was coming to squash him. Yelping in panic, he released his grip on the creature’s face and fell. His eyes widened when he saw that there was no ice underneath him … only the bitter-cold waters of the lake. His mouth opened slightly to scream in terror in the face of death. But he stopped himself and instead closed his eyes, bracing himself for what was to come.
Smashing through the chilly waters, the werewolf immediately felt every joint in his body freezing entirely. Within a second, he couldn’t move. It felt as if he had been dropped into a scorching furnace, for every inch of his skin was burning. The pain was immeasurable, worse than any agony Yuri had ever endured. Then came numbness, sweeping over his mind and overcoming all his senses. He stared blankly at the sea of corpses that drifted underneath the water. Blackness coated the perimeter of Yuri’s vision, but he could swear that all of the bodies trapped underwater … they were alive.
