by Gwynn White
The moment he spoke, one of the aimless wanderers noticed them. It moaned, hobbling towards them clumsily like a child learning to walk. Others followed, arms outstretched, growling like animals.
The mystic and his companions dashed down the street as more of those things poured out from alleyways. Others came busting through doorways, their blackish dry tongues hanging out, eyes rolled back in their heads. “Keep going!” Owen shouted just before he stopped and turned around. Xavier promptly joined him, blades in hand.
“What do you think you’re doing?” Liam shouted, stopping briefly to see what the madman was planning.
“Reasoning with them,” the hunter called back, crossbows clacking down his arms, automatically latching to his wrists. “I know what I’m doing. Just get her out of here!” He sneered, eyeing the moaning swarm approaching from multiple angles at once. “We’ve been in tighter spots than this,” he grumbled under his breath.
Seeing no choice in the matter, Liam drew his sword and led Viola away.
Owen’s crossbows hissed and steamed as new orange crystals loaded into empty chambers. “Stop right where you are and I won’t have to hurt any of you,” Owen shouted, crossbows raised. Not even slowing, the groaning wave drew ever closer. Blades readied, Xavier flashed him an incredulous look. “What?” the hunter asked sheepishly. “I didn’t actually think they’d listen. But now that they’ve been properly warned, I feel better about killing them.”
The wave nearly on them, Owen roared as a torrent of flashing orange light sprayed from his wrists. The front runners were instantly shredded, limbs and clothing tumbling upward. A fine mist of blood hazed the air as he swept his arms back and forth, pieces of torn bodies hitting the ground with a wet smack.
Xavier hurled both his blades into the wild fray. Spinning in a wide arc, their level trajectory took multiple heads before gliding back into his waiting hands. Even as those bodies fell, others seemed eager to take their places. Ignoring the countless fallen, they just kept coming. Stumbling over on the slippery dead, they didn’t seem the least bit shaken by the ensuing massacre.
After a final sweep, Owen’s crossbows began to click, tiny rotors slowing to a halt. Steaming orange crystals ejected, hopping across the dirt. “What is wrong with these things?” the hunter shouted, rolling his shoulders to send the crossbows ticking back up his arms. Effectively useless now, they would have to cool down before reloading. “They have no survival instincts whatsoever. They see their own falling by the dozens, yet eagerly advance to be the next to die! If we don’t fall back now, they’ll surround us.”
Snatching his spinning blades from the air a second time, Xavier thrust them into the ground. Owen’s words rang true. They would be surrounded shortly, so a change of tactic was imminent. With a sudden flourish, his cloak floated back, fluttering to the ground. Silver rings tapped against handles strapped all over his chest. With a subtle twitch of his fingers, the blades seemed to levitate into the air, each defying gravity for what seemed like several seconds. Then, with a high-pitched whistling, they began to zip around with astonishing speed.
Three of the mindless creatures wandered too close. The whirling blades buzzed right through them, faces splitting open as if ten thousand paper cuts all formed at once. Blank, drooling expressions exploded in a fine mist of red.
“Go if you wish, master,” said Xavier, now eyeing the ones coming from behind. With a mere thought, one of the silky lines tripled in length. A single blade fired out, shaving the top of one’s skull clean off. It crumpled to the ground, others marching right over it, unfazed by the fear of death. “I’ll hold them as long as I can. The mission has changed now, and I intend to see it through...no matter the cost. Viola’s safety is our top priority.”
Drawing the blades from his back, Owen cursed under his breath. He wasn’t about to let his young apprentice show him up. These things were aggressive, true, but showed nearly nothing in the way of fighting skill. Surely we can take down a few hundred. Right?
Liam and Viola were able to keep a fair distance between themselves and their pursuers. Although aggressive and tireless, the primitive creatures were mostly clumsy and slow. Suddenly, Liam stopped in his tracks. A second wave came from the other direction, each stumbling over each other in an awkward charge.
“Go up,” he said, pointing to a nearby rooftop. “I’ll hold them off from down here.”
“Liam, they’re coming!” Viola shrieked. “I won’t! I’m not leaving you here.”
“You must get to higher ground,” he ordered. “I’ll join you as soon as I can. I’ll be fine. Now go!” Reluctantly releasing his hand, she backed off a step before starting to spin. The flapping black funnel whirled upward, settling on the roof above.
Coming out of her spin, her form shifted back just in time to focus on the mystic down below. “Behind you!” she screamed.
The former soldier whirled back, his steel flashing across the face of a woman. The top portion of her head burst, gore and brain matter scattering across the dirt. Her body remained upright a second or two, then tipped over stiffly as if blown by the wind. With half her face and one eye remaining, her accusing gaze seemed to glare up at Liam.
Trying not to think of what he’d just done, he backed his way up near the wall. She was not a woman anymore. It couldn’t be helped. At least, that’s what he tried to tell himself. A small hand reached down from the rooftop, waving just above his head.
“Liam,” Viola called, stretching down as far as she could. “Take my hand. I’ll pull you up.” The mystic spun off the wall and turned to face her. Surely she couldn’t handle all his weight, but if he pressed his feet against the wall, he might be able to climb up with her assistance. She could see the mindless humans converging from all sides, men, women, and even children rushing towards him. “Hurry!” she urged, shaking her hand at him.
He reached up to take her hand, sliding his sword back in its sheath. Suddenly, his eyes went wide, face going white. There was no time to speak, and just barely enough to act. His sword hand streaked in and out of his chest pocket, then flicked towards her face. Her eyes hardly registered the tumbling dagger zipping straight at her. It whizzed past her ear, and thumped into something just behind her. She rolled to the side, a delayed reflex at what felt like a failed attempt on her life. Dagger quivering in its chest, the mindless creature hovered over her.
With a shriek, she rolled twice more to create some distance. It didn’t pursue, lazy eyes just watching curiously. She scrambled back to her feet, pulling out the dagger Liam had given her. “Get back!” she ordered, jabbing weakly as she backed away. Eyes crossed, it lumbered forward, hands stretched out in a lazy attempt to grab her. One on one, the slow creatures were hardly dangerous at all, but she was untrained and had no idea how to use even a simple dagger.
She caught a quick glance over the side of the roof. Liam was fully engaged, his steel flashing this way and that. They were dying as fast as they approached, but there were just so many of them. How long could the old man hold?
Ignoring the dagger in its chest that obviously caused it no pain, the creature on the roof started displaying a bit more urgency. Its clumsy walk became a trotting charge, arms flailing wildly as it groaned. “I said get back!” she screeched, continuing to jab her blade in sweeping stabs.
By luck alone, she caught it right in the chest. Her blade easily slipped in and out, like stabbing several layers of dry paper. It was as if his insides were hollow, and his fragile skin offered almost no resistance. Piercing him a second time, the sickly crunch of dry skin made her let go of the blade. Poking out harmlessly, her dagger remained in his chest, jiggling near the first. Neither seemed to bother it at all.
Wild fear gripped her as the impaled creature lunged. She screamed, throwing her hands up in a desperate attempt to defend herself. Eyes closed, she felt it slam against her arms, heard its teeth clicking with numerous attempts to bite her flesh. She should have died, should have been eaten alive a
nd ripped apart right then. But the expected pain of teeth ripping into her never came. Still feeling the pressure of its body, she opened one eye, wondering why she still drew breath.
Like a nightmare come to life, Viola wasn’t sure which startled her more: the sight of a mindless creature trying to tear her apart, or the sight of her own arms blocking its path—arms which she no longer recognized. Flesh turned solid, her pale arms had extended several inches, each now resembling the blades of long swords. Held at bay, the creature snapped and growled, unable to push through the solid blades of flesh.
Overwhelmed by it all, Viola felt faint, but she didn’t dare lose consciousness. Not now! How could such a thing have happened? In some bizarre survival instinct her body had somehow defended itself, a primal reaction she couldn’t even begin to understand. Face leaning between the crossed blades, the trapped creature’s teeth clicked wildly. Unable to adjust to even the simplest of defensive tactics, it just kept pushing forward. Her feet began sliding back, her body inching towards the edge of the roof. Pushing back but failing to reverse its momentum, she gazed into its deep-set eyes.
Yellowed eyes slipped back into its head, black sockets suddenly turning red with flickering flames. Its tongue crept from its mouth, hanging low like a wagging red vine. The tongue twisted up, then began weaving back and forth like a cobra. Rotted skin across the cheeks twitched and squirmed as writhing white maggots burst through, trickling down its front and spreading across the rooftop. The beast opened its mouth, a sorrowful moan bellowing forth as slugs and spiders scrambled up from the back of its throat.
Something clicked in Viola’s mind, an extraordinary revelation she couldn’t begin to comprehend on a conscious level. The disturbing images flickering across her vision were rooted in something deeper, something far below the surface of conscious reasoning. As nightmarish as these images were, they secretly revealed a truth of sorts. They were like a window into another dimension, displaying an unfathomable suffering that could only be described through images, not words.
She pushed back with all she had, her bladed arms actually slashing the creature’s chest. Dry, flaky skin broke easily, releasing a stream of dirty sand onto the roof. The grievous wound only made it stumble back momentarily. A second later it regained its footing, charging at her once more. Viola’s arms shifted back to normal, armored flesh melting together like molten metal. She didn’t raise her arms again, nor did she move even when the stumbling creature was only a few steps away.
“You’re in pain,” she whispered, body tense, ready to accept the impact. The creature stopped cold, a sort of light appearing in its yellowed eyes. It was a readable emotion unlike primal anger or savage hate. Sadness...
It was all so clear to her now, although she couldn’t say why. An animated husk stood before her, with only a hint of its former life force still remaining on this side. Like a foot stuck in a hole, most of the body is liberated, but one simply still cannot move on until the whole body is free. That small part still clung to this world against its will, keeping it trapped between two dimensions.
She could feel its faded life force so easily, could almost touch it. It was like a kite barely snagged on a small branch; it just needed a little push and it would sail away on the wind. Her mind reached out, easily giving the necessary nudge. “I release you,” she said. The creature raised its arms, teeth bared as if smiling in gratitude. Then it dropped in a heap. Lifeless.
With no time to contemplate what had just happened, Viola raced back to the other side of the roof. Her only concern now was for Liam. Terrified of what she might find, she gazed down upon the street below. Liam was still standing, and more than holding his own against the ever pressing wave of attackers. Twisting and spinning, his sword flashed with lightning speed. The mindless creatures died as fast as they advanced once the old soldier’s instincts took over in a deadly dance of steel. Forms he hadn’t performed in years brought his blade to life. Techniques burned into his muscles’ memory allowed him to react to each new enemy with zero hesitation.
But his breaths came heavy, and the enemy was tireless. With exhaustion taking its toll, his once blazing-fast movements were taking on a sluggish look, each felled enemy now seeming to last a second longer than the one preceding it. At his current pace, he would soon be overwhelmed. Evidence of his work lay all around as bodies were piling up. In a sense they were trapping him, limiting his mobility as he struggled to dance around the mounting carcasses.
Viola could feel each of them, their weak life forces offering only the slightest trace of lingering energy, fireflies that should have felt like blazing torches. But in reality they should have felt like nothing at all. They were dead. One by one she gave each a mental push. The effort needed was so minimal it was hard to believe it didn’t happen on its own. So delicate a balance it was, the scale so easily tipped.
To Liam’s eyes, the creatures fell for no reason, bodies jolting as if being hit from behind by some unknown force. But Viola could feel their essences streak away like feathers on the wind, so light they carried away with ease. Danger quickly disappearing, Liam looked up to see Viola gazing over the street. Hands stretched out, her eyes swept methodically, bodies dropping wherever she looked.
Exhausted from battle, Liam dropped his sword with a rattling clang. Covered in sweat, all he could do was watch as the miracle unfolded right before his eyes.
Double blades slashed forward, ripping the creature’s chest wide open with crisscrossed gashes. Clotted blood spilled out in darkened globs, discharging with the gooey thickness of honey. Arms pumping, steel flashing with reckless abandon, the hunter took out two, sometimes three with each sweeping assault. Arms bulging with unmatched power, he cut the creatures down like weeds, roaring savagely with each swing.
Sweat glistening across his forehead, he gulped air as his lungs burned, muscles craving more oxygen than he could give. Owen was certainly no stranger to battle, but he usually overwhelmed his prey quickly and savagely with a decisive outcome. Rarely was he engaged in battle so long, with endless foes coming at him from all sides.
Xavier spun and leapt, his whizzing blades opening throats and taking heads. Much of his training had been similar to this, learning to hit multiple moving objects as they came at him from all angles. But this time he didn’t dare miss a single target. If one slipped through his whirling defense of blades, he would be forced to adjust accordingly, disrupting his blazing pattern of flashing death. There were just too many for that. The slightest hesitation could prove to be...unforgiving.
Owen whirled back, his savage blade streaking right over the top of one. What? It ducked? He jumped back, shaken by the brief indication of combat intelligence. If these things started getting organized, this could spell real trouble given their numbers. But no, others were falling for no reason as well.
Breathing hard, the hunter and his apprentice watched in stunned silence as the creatures collapsed all around them, wet smacks hitting the road as they seemed to lose their bodies completely, as if hammers were falling from the sky and driving them down. They looked down the street, seeing Liam and Viola headed their way. Her arms were held out, and the creatures seemed to be dropping wherever her gaze fell. Was this her doing?
“The gods be praised,” Owen grunted, slipping his bloody swords back into their sheaths.
Chapter Seven
Owen sat down on a wooden walkway, his back pressed up against the door of the local butcher’s shop. From the putrid scent wafting from under the doorway, it was clear they wouldn’t be salvaging any meat. It was also a clear indication of just how long this town had been abandoned. Arms still tingling from the battle, he stretched hard. With a groan, he began rubbing the cramps from his shoulder. Xavier and Liam approached to join him, each taking a seat on either side.
“Of all the places you could choose to sit and try to regain your wind,” said Liam, clasping a hand over his mouth. “This doesn’t bother you?”
“Decayed ani
mal flesh bothers me a lot less than decayed people trying to take my head off,” Owen replied, hand waving underneath his nose to help make his point. “I’ve seen a lot of strange things in my day, but this ranks up near the top. What the hell happened here?”
“They were undead,” Liam reasoned. “Animated corpses brought to life by an unseen hand. Are you telling me the mighty Demon Hunter has never faced such a foe? They’re quite common, really.”
“I’ve faced hundreds,” Owen snorted, tilting his head back against the wall so he could gaze at the clouds above. “Just not hundreds all at once. And these seemed different somehow. Less...decayed than others I’ve seen. Most often they’re summoned by some dark force, then used as cheap, throwaway soldiers for however long the spell lasts. The bodies are usually years old and nearly reduced to bone. I don’t think these were dead all that long, and they were all about the same level of decay. You know what that means, right?”
“Of course I do,” Liam said, rubbing his temples, eyes closed. “They are the very same folk who lived in this town. Essentially, a mass murder took place here, then each of them was turned into—” He couldn’t finish his own sentence. Owen nodded his agreement. It was the same conclusion he had come to.
“Where is Viola?” Xavier asked. “Do you think it’s safe to let her wander off like that?”
“She’ll be fine,” Liam said. “Viola insisted on searching the town for any stragglers so she could...release them. She’s refusing to leave until she’s saved everyone. And to be honest, I think her gift leaves her far more equipped to deal with them than we are. If you are concerned, go on and join her if you like.” Agreeing with the idea, Xavier stood and wandered off to go look for her.
