How Gods Bleed

by Shane Porteous

  Chapter 5

  For the whole night the Immortal stood in the same spot, remaining so still he made a statue look lively. The sun returned to the world once more, creeping through the forest like an angry spider hell bent on reclaiming what once belonged to it. Within mere seconds of one another the 6 Helluvans were awake, needing no prodding from Cada Varl to leave their slumber. There was no yawning or rubbing of eyes to be had as if the group had been groomed perfectly to always awake at a specific time. The Helluvans ate a quick breakfast of some kind of biscuits, two each before the journey commenced once again.

  So it was for a number of days, the group would move through the wilderness at a steady pace until dusk, before making a simple fire, eating a simple dinner and sleeping a simple sleep. Over these days the fact that Helluvans did not talk much only became more solidified. However Cada Varl was able to gather all of their names alongside pieces of their history.

  There was Imbaka of course, beyond her great knowledge of maps and logistics the Immortal discovered that she was also the best fugitive finder Helluv had to offer. In one such case she traveled all the way to Nargus Ballen, a frozen desert where most would never dare to tread, in order to find a man who had stolen a sizeable amount of arrows. This was only one such case of her literally travelling to the ends of the continent to find fugitives, none had ever escaped her. Such feats granted her the title of the Human Hunter along with many tall tales spoken by those who had never even stepped inside Helluv.

  The man with the twin red swords and long black hair was known as Tanagy the Abider. He had earned such a title because out of all the living men in Noonsva he had directly fought against werewolves the most amount of times and survived. It was said that his swords were red because he had stained so much werewolf blood. However this seemed a contradiction because werewolf blood was more of a dark purple than red and was known to actually turn a bright orange when staining something. Yet Cada Varl believed Tanagy’s story was truthful.

  The man dressed from head to toe in black was Gokkus, leader of the Emuge Mura, which were a special assassination force created specifically to perform certain and dangerous tasks along the Helluvan border, mostly assassinating certain werewolf border guards. Outside of Helluv the Emuge Mura were as feared as they were well known.

  The tallest and strongest of the women was the red haired Leannol, known exclusively outside of Helluv as Sin Smile. This was due or so it was said to the fact that Leannol only ever smiled when she was on the battlefield or committing some kind of murderous deed, a sin. Cada Varl had taken notice that he had not yet seen her smile; but then again he hadn’t seen any of them show such an emotion.

  The blonde haired woman who had a strange interest in Cada Varl was known as Zova, Zova Infinite-Eye to be more precise when speaking about titles. With a bow and arrow or for that matter any kind of projectile weapon she could not be matched, it was said that she was so skilled that she could shoot a single leaf off of a tree from two miles away and leave the rest completely undisturbed.

  The last of the Helluvans was perhaps the most famous or rather infamous amongst them. The man who Cada Varl hadn’t had any interaction with. He was the oldest amongst them by at least ten years, perhaps 45 years old. The strong black of his hair had been infected by an even stronger gray though both colours remained prominent across his scalp. He possessed a stern face that though was suited to a man of 45 years was not burdened by deep and unflattering wrinkles. He was not with a beard and yet was far from clean shaven with stubs of both black and gray peppering his strong jaw and low cheek bones. Unlike the others who had only the phrase ‘You look delicious’ carved into their helmets, he had many different engravings all written in obvious different languages. He was Hazum Ka-te and unlike the others possessed no title, which indicated the power that his name carried, a power he had definitely earned. He had fought in well over 200 battles with men and werewolf alike and yet not once had he ever suffered so much as a nick in battle.

  Equally impressive as the man himself was the weapon he wielded. A true giant of a weapon, a spear that measured close to 10 feet and was so thick an average sized hand would not be able to hold it correctly. The sheer size of the weapon would have been comical if it was not so deadly. Because of its size as well as the skill with which Hazum Ka-te could wield it, the spear had been given the name Cloud Cutter. There were even a handful of stories about the weapon where it did just that. One such story spoke of a thunderstorm that was bothering the legendary warrior and so he cut the clouds in half to stop the thunder from keeping him awake. Cada Varl did not ask if such a ludicrous story was true and yet silently he did not completely doubt the tale’s sincerity.

  Cada Varl gathered this information from the other Helluvans except the one who the stories spoke of. This showed that the group were not acceptable to vanity and took no joy in explaining their reputations. In the whole of the east with the possible exception of Granzool himself, Cada Varl was truly in the company of the 6 greatest human warriors that walked the land. It was hard to tell what if any relations the 6 had with one another, whether they considered each other friends or not. But from the little that was spoken over the course of those days the Immortal believed that Hazum Ka-te must have trained Tanagy at one time.

  The day fell to night once again and the group made camp in yet another small clearing. The winter had remained with them the entire time and upon this night seemed only to grow colder. A fire larger than any that had proceeded it on the journey was formed to compensate the increasing cold. A stew was soon cooked and though it seemed forged with the same ingredients as any other night, the scent it brought to the air was noticeably different. The Immortal could only guess that it had been cooked to a higher temperature to help deal with just how cold this particularly night was. The routine of the Helluvans was almost mechanical for like they had done on nights prior they ate their meals in silence, waited for their stomachs to settle, before forging a rectangle of small flames and embers to sleep within.

  As the Helluvans began to lie down within the rectangle Cada Varl said goodnight as he had done every night. Zova was the only one who responded with actual words while the rest simply waved their hands before entering the realm of slumber. The only thing that had changed in this ritual each night was the single Helluvan who actually said goodnight; so far each of them had said it at least once.

  Cada Varl took his post to guard over them as they slept, staring out into the frozen wilderness and the dark that it offered. However on this night something indeed changed and no more than an hour of sleep had passed before the Helluvans were awoken by Cada Varl’s whisper.

  “Werewolves are in the darkness.”

  With these soft words the Helluvans awoke instantly showing no sign that a state of interrupted slumber had hindered them. As Cada Varl stepped back from where he stood around the still roaring remains of the fire the Helluvans with bows in hands and quivers at their sides had surrounded the Immortal. They knelt with three on each side of Cada Varl, thus protecting him from every direction with the exception of behind him; the large trunk of a giant tree had such an honor. The Helluvans strung their bows pulling them back as far as possible in preparation to fire them, showing no sign of strain in spite of the tremendous strength needed to keep the strings pulled back.

  “How many?” Gokkus whispered daring not to take his eyes off of the darkness before him. “Thirty two,” Cada Varl answered after the briefest of moments to count them.

  The moon had only come out a quarter on this night keeping the forest dark and brooding, not allowing the Helluvans to see its secrets.

  But sight was not absolutely necessary for the werewolves could be easily heard through the breaking of branches and fallen twigs that snapped under their enormous weight. From a single direction they were coming and moving at full pelt. As they drew closer the most animalistic and powerful of grunting could be heard coming from the darkness like a choir no o
ne wanted to hear. The Helluvans kept their bows ready as Cada Varl grasped the handle of his sword with his right hand. The werewolves remained out of the campfire’s reach, only barley and enough for the Helluvans to know of their close presence.

  Like spilled water that separates when it comes across something circular in its path the werewolves moved in opposite directions around the camp.

  “They’re encircling,” Cada Varl whispered making sure the Helluvans knew of such a tactic.

  The werewolves had encircled the clearing fully but did not stop their pace, like a whirlpool they seemed hell bent in swallowing the encampment in a single strike. Using only sound alone each Helluvan seemed to find their target with their bows and arrows carefully following the beasts as they moved. Now they were so close the growling of the creatures seemed to make even the air tremble in fear of their presence.

  Almost simultaneously in a time too close for the normal eye to differentiate the Helluvans fired their bows into the darkness. The undeniable sound of 6 massive bodies crashing to the ground dead could be then heard. The Helluvans had fired so precisely that their beasts did not even have the second necessary to make a final sound. Each short was incredibly impressive considering the Helluvans had to rely completely on sound. Yet not so much as a single second was taken to admire such skill as the 6 strung their bows once more and carefully took aim. The werewolves were still encircling, perhaps watching and waiting for the ideal moment to strike. The eyes of the Immortal darted back and forth as he kept his vision on no specific target and as he did so the flames of the fire reflected off of his eyes, intensifying his already powerful vision.

  A moment later and the Helluvans had fired a second volley of arrows that was soon followed by another 6 thuds of massive bodies falling. If the attacking werewolf force was trying to confuse the group than they were indeed failing for the darkness appeared no hinder for the Helluvans. The werewolves seemed to finally realize this for it was only a spilt instant after the group had strung their arrows once more that the beasts leapt from the darkness.

  Directly in front of him Cada Varl watched as one such monster, for there were few other words that could describe it, leapt into the light of the fire towards him. It was a mass of fur the same colour as a thundercloud covering a tremendous frame of overdeveloped muscle. The thing’s face resembled that of a wolf’s only amplified by the power of 10 thousand nightmares. Through eyes that were as unnatural as a corpse moving after death it looked upon the Immortal, its gaping mouth filled with teeth as sharp as any sword. Its hands resembled more the paws of a bear than of a wolf’s with fingers that were human and yet inhuman at the same time, each possessing a long sharp claw of black. The creature was moving more like a lion or some other big cat as it leapt directly towards the Immortal.

  Cada Varl unleashed his sword from its sheave bringing it up in a vertical arc into the hideous flesh of the beast. For all of its size, bulk and muscle its frame offered no resistance whatsoever as the Immortal’s blade cut right through it. The cut was as quick as it was clean, literally separating the beast in two equal halves that fell to either side before Cada Varl. This was followed by an explosion of blood, entrails and bones that formed an image of a storm in the air before all of it fell onto the ground as well, leaving the Immortal completely unstained.

  The fallen beast was not the only one of its kind to attack for 6 others from all sides had done the same, each as monstrous and as powerful as the first. These 6 met their ends on the tip of a Helluvan arrow, as each member of the group found their mark perfectly, firing the arrows into the heart of their selected beasts. The time for projectiles was over and the Helluvans dropped their bows taking in their place their hand held weapons, the skirmish would now be close and personal.

  Before the six beasts had finished their fall another group of the monsters was already in the fray. Hazum Ka-te who had been standing behind the Immortal and to his right was the first to engage an attacker. Wielding the Cloud Cutter he thrust his weapon forward directly into the heart of the approaching monster. The weapon and the strength with which it was wielded by were so powerful that the monster’s leap was stopped and the creature was almost thrown back. Blood of a dark purple squirted out from around the tip of the Cloud Cutter as it plunged deep into the creature’s heart. The werewolf lifted its head and gave an almighty roar of pain that echoed through the forest in the same way a wave does when it crashes upon a cliff face. The creature fell heavily onto its back as all life was taking from it.

  Leannol who was the next in line of the Helluvans meet her counterpart with equal force. She wielded a weapon that possessed both the head of a single bladed axe and the fine tip of a spike or spear fashioned onto the opposite end. In both hands she wielded the weapon bringing the axe head up and then down upon the face of a werewolf. Its horrid snout was spilt completely in two causing its own blood to be thrown into its large yellowish eyes. The beast snarled in pain but Leannol knew this did not mean the end of the monster. Leannol lifted her weapon from the wound, turning it as she did so before plunging the spear tip directly into the dark thing’s black heart. As the blood of the creature squirted upon her face it forged a morbid smile as the darkest of glee filled her eyes. This was the very reason why she was known as Sin Smile for she seemed only happy when committing such bloody acts.

  Imbaka was the next amongst them to directly face off against one of these beasts. The weapon she wielded was not as large or as impressive as the weapons wielded by Sin Smile or Hazum Ka-te but proved just as deadly. It was a short sword, forged ideally for slashing, hacking and if all else failed bludgeoning. Forged with the intention of being wielded with one hand Imbaka did just that. The werewolf she faced did not leap toward her but rather stood on two legs of powerful muscle, sword and claw met in a brief yet intense engagement, causing sparks to form and then fly off the blade. After the engagement the Human Hunter swiped her sword downwards just above the leg joint of the beast, causing the monster involuntarily to kneel. The beast did not yelp but rather growled in a powerful pain before Imbaka cut the blade downward into the thing’s chest and through the heart.

  Gokkus fought with a weapon that could only be described as two identical blades that had been forged horizontally handle to handle, creating a kind of staff from both blades. In a 360 degree blur in front of him Gokkus spun the weapon, effortlessly slicing its tips into the wrists, forearms and biceps of his opponent. The blows were that swift that the blood followed his weapon creating a morbid twirl of the dark purple liquid before one end of the weapon was plunged into the things chest.

  Zova was next and wielded a long blade that could be held with a single hand but was more suited to two. She ran the tip of her blade across the throat of a werewolf and as blood flowed from the ghastly wound like the water from a fall she struck the beast squarely in the heart before it had a chance to counter. Though this beast was dead Zova did not rest, taking from underneath the armor that covered her right wrist a short knife that was as thin as it was simple, she threw the weapon across the air where it landed flawlessly into the heart of yet another beast.

  Tanagy fought with as much skill and brashness as his companions, wielding his weapons without flaw. Criss-crossing his sword repeatedly he struck a beast across the wrists, knees, thighs, shoulders, elbows and groin, quickly hitting every joint before driving both blades into the werewolf’s chest and finishing off the monster. The attack had been a dissection with the precision of even the most skilled of surgeons. Though he had not severed any of the creature’s limbs, he ensured that they became useless before finishing off the creature.

  As another werewolf leapt towards him Cada Varl was ready for it, in one swift motion he brought his blade across the neck of the monster instantly severing its head from the rest of the body. The attack had been done with such force and precision that the severed head actually spun through the air causing a swirl of blood to follow it as it landed off somewhere in the
darkness. Before the headless body of the monster had even fallen two werewolves were all ready to take its place. Cada Varl brought his right leg up in a simple way into the stomach of the headless thing, causing it to violently move backwards as if it weighed no more than a pebble.

  The two werewolves twisted their bodies to avoid the now projectile corpse, turning just in time to see the Immortal as he leapt in front of them and cut his sword effortlessly through both their bodies in a horizontal arc. Blood and bone became the sickest of decorations as they spewed into the air while the 4 halves of the two bodies fell onto the ground joining their now eviscerated brethren.

  The remaining three werewolves were finished off by Imbaka, Tanagy and Leannol respectively and as easily as the others had been killed. In total the whole ordeal had only lasted a matter of minutes, but the intensity of those minutes was greater than most men felt in their entire lifetime. Cada Varl was more than impressed by the skill of his companions, they had easily and systemically defeated a werewolf group over four times larger than their own (including Cada Varl). This was all the proof the Immortal needed to know just how skilled and powerful mere men and women could be especially when they had been bred and groomed their entire lives for such a purpose. There had been very little room to maneuver in, causing the group to remain surrounded by the werewolves, only now they were corpses not beasts that no longer needed to be feared.

  “Gokkus,” Gokkus said suddenly in a clear loud voice.

  “Leannol.”

  “Zova.”

  “Imbaka.”

  “Hazum Ka-te.”

  “Tanagy.”

  They all followed Gokkus’ example. When Cada Varl realized what they were doing he added “Cada Varl.”

  It was basically a road call, a way of knowing for sure that each of them were still alive.

  With this knowledge the group slowly moved away from one another checking and looking upon the bodies of those they had slain. None amongst the werewolves had turned into a human corpse indicating that these had been born such beasts and had never been human. It was an expected result for werewolves that were old enough to once be human were probably a thing of the past, probably. Using the tip of one of his swords Tanagy checked the back of one of the werewolves he had killed ears, revealing a strange mark literally seared into the flesh and strong enough to force the fur not to grow back. It was a strange sight, for werewolves could heal very quickly from all wounds that were not instantly fatal or cleaved by silver. But Tanagy did not appear concerned, without taking his gaze off of the seared flesh he said clearly, “ Exiled beasts, I am guessing they turned bandits.”

  “Agreed,” Leannol said in a voice that was strong yet still feminine as she looked down upon an identical mark of a beast she had killed.

  “Good,” said Imbaka as she stabbed her sword into the hearts of the two beasts that had been cut in half from the waist by the Immortal. The only sure-fire way to kill a werewolf was by plunging silver in its heart or decapitating its head completely, though the beasts appeared already dead Imbaka took no chances.

  “That means they are not a part of any regiment or patrol, meaning we should not have to worry about allies showing up.” She added as she checked a seared mark on yet another fallen werewolf.

  Though these creatures had been formidable they were nothing compared to the monsters that fought professionally for king or usurper. Much like the humans they were descended from the werewolves were not of one breed or duty. Though each possessed a pair of deadly claws and a mouth filled with severing teeth not all could be considered warriors.

  “This flesh could make a nice breakfast for the morning,” Tanagy said, as he began for seemingly no reason to cut the ear off one of the corpses.

  “ It could,” Gokkus added “But by morning chances are it would become frozen, it would take too long to thaw…”

  Tanagy nodded “ Probably,” he said simply.

  As the hope of having werewolf flesh for breakfast died, Hazum Ka-te approached the severed halves of the first werewolf Cada Varl had killed, his dark eyes were filled with a strange emotion that was not quite weariness not quite amazement. His eyes slowly wandered the ground where he looked upon the headless corpse and the two, which had been horizontally severed, until finally his eyes rested upon the sword of Cada Varl. In spite of what it had done the blade remained stainless with not so much as a single drop of dark purple.

  “That is one hell of a sword,” Hazum Ka-te said in a voice that was powerful and booming, yet clear. Cada Varl slowly looked over his shoulder into the eyes of Hazum Ka-te but said nothing in response.

  “ It wasn’t because of the sword,” Zova said in a matter of fact kind of way. Now all eyes were upon the Immortal, he could feel every one of them upon him like he was the light of a candle surrounded by curious moths.

  It was now that all of the Helluvans took notice of the damage the Immortal had caused, sure their weapons had more than adequately killed the beasts, but not even the legendary Cloud Cutter was capable of cutting a monster in half. But beyond this remarkable feat was the fact that as skillfully as the Helluvans wielded their weapons, they all were covered in the blood of their enemies, meaning Cada Varl was capable of moving his sword far faster than even the most capable of men and women. An awkward yet calm silence followed for a moment before Imbaka spoke once again. “ Come the night is not yet over and it would be foolish to waste it, let us return to our slumber, Cada Varl,” she said as she turned to the Immortal. “May you please continue to keep guard?”

  “Of course,” Cada Varl replied with a slight bow. With those words the Helluvans quickly cleaned their weapons upon the corpses of the very beasts they had killed before returning to the rectangle of embers.

  In a matter of moments they were all fast asleep again like they had never been awakened in the first place. A thought then popped into the mind of Cada Varl, not a serious one but one he could not help but enjoy. The Helluvans slept so peacefully because they had never woken in the first place, that killing werewolves was so ingrained into them that they could literally do it in their sleep. Though the Immortal was well aware that the Helluvans had awoken he allowed this thought to repeat itself time and time again as he stared into the darkness of the night.

  The following evening as the group set up camp there was a new feeling in the air that was anything but tense. The skirmish against the werewolves seemed to enliven the Helluvans greatly and after the evening meal was finished conversations were to be had. Even Cada Varl felt more welcome as Tanagy and Hazum Ka-te invited him to play a game of ‘Arkles’ with them.

  The game involved a total of 19 stones, each specifically crafted for such a game. The largest stone was dark red in colour and was positioned in the center of a circle Hazum Ka-te created in the dirt. Each player then had to place a black stone somewhere on the circumference of the artificial circle. From there each player then had to drop a white stone ensuring that it struck against the red stone in the center and then landed onto the ground. Each player then had to drop their remaining stones, one at a time with each bouncing off of its predecessor to eventually form a line between the white stone and the red stone. Distance was an important factor as there was no space allowed between the stones after they fell, if a player dropped their stone and it bounced too far then they would have to wait until their next turn before they could try again. The game of course could be finished quickly if someone had been lucky enough to drop their white stone from the red stone exactly wide enough for the player to drop a green stone between the two without leaving any spaces. When Cada Varl tried such a thing and failed Hazum Ka-te was quick to assure him that it was only a rarity that someone actually won that way.

  More important than the actual game however was the conversations that were being had by all of them. Unsurprisingly the conversations were all about past victories and battles prominently against the werewolf kind but a handful of intense human battles
were discussed as well. The atmosphere of conversations was reminiscent of a group of farmers who had finally finished the summer harvest and now were eager to discuss stories of the past. It all made sense for Helluvans were bred and groomed for combat, it was their livelihood, something that their entire lives revolve around. It had been a passage through fire for Cada Varl to be fully accepted by the group, to people whose entire purpose in life was to kill werewolves, an immortal who could literally cut the beasts in two was someone they easily appreciated. It seemed an almost alien vision to see these men and women smiling and laughing as they recalled battle after battle, glorious incident after glorious incident. The game of Arkles seemed merely a way to keep their hands busy for neither Tanagy nor Hazum Ka-te concentrated much as they dropped their stones.

  The game then came to a sudden end as Tanagy who had been a definite third in progress landed a green stone perfectly between his red and white one.

  “Well done,” Hazum Ka-te said with an undeniable genuineness.

  Tanagy bowed his head slightly as a smile came across his face.

  “Congratulations,” Cada Varl added receiving a friendly nod from the Abider.

  Hazum Ka-te then leaned back ever so slightly as his expression hardened in thought, he then looked over to immortal and said, “Cada Varl may I ask you about Gatavoi.”

  Upon these words spoken a silence fell over the group as every eye was now on the Immortal. It was not a tense silence, but an important one as the expressions of each Helluvan showed a quiet eagerness to hear Cada Varl’s answer. The Immortal looked over to Hazum Ka-te hesitating for a long moment before he said, “What would like you know?”

  There was now aggression or anger in his voice but it was clear the question sat heavily on his mind. Hazum Ka-te now paused for a moment as if silently showing the Immortal he knew what the heaviness of the question.

  “Just a little of its history,” Hazum Ka-te answered quietly yet clearly.

  the Immortal looked around the group and saw the curiosity in each of their eyes. The Immortal knew the reason behind the curiosity, it was no doubt because of his combat abilities, they all wanted to know from what kingdom such a man was bred and the fact he was now immortal and no longer a man seemed irrelevant.

  Cada Varl did not look to any of them but rather the roaring fire as if he was intending to use its flames as a canvas for his memories to paint themselves upon. A smile that disappeared as quickly as it appeared could be seen upon his face before he said, “ For 9 months out of every year Gatavoi was surrounded by a mist as thick as iron, as if the very clouds wanted to keep the kingdom a secret from the outside world. For those 9 months the sky was always dark gray like a thunderstorm that never fell. After winter spring would come and that is when the beauty of Gatavoi could truly be seen.”

  Cada Varl stopped for a moment as if to enjoy the memory in his head and make it last just that little bit longer. “When Spring came the mist would lift and the sun would shine through, like the very world itself was awakening after a dreamless slumber. The many rivers of Gatavoi who had become frozen would melt. In the sunlight the riverbeds would look like they were filled with countless crystals….” Cada Varl did not notice for he was transfixed upon the fiery canvas before him but Imbaka smiled at the beauty Cada Varl was describing. The Immortal after a long moment looked up from the fire to each of the Helluvans but said nothing. He knew that was not what Hazum Ka-te and the others were interested in.

  “ Gatavoi was a wealthy kingdom built on the power of trade, from the shores of Astroluc in the north to the lands of Belcummin in the south. You see a very unique metal known as Hegadakore could be found in the mountains of Gatavoi, the metal was useless for the forging of weapons or making tools, but it resembled gold more than anything else. It was a lighter shade than most gold, however it was easy to treat the metal in a certain way to make it appear as gold. Amazingly that is where it found its value, Gatavoi had so much of it that it could be traded for just about anything. Many people I think enjoyed the fact Hegadakore allowed them to appear whether, with false rings and other such jewelry, a grand illusion that even the lowest peasant could enjoy. Gatavoi became the wealthiest kingdom in the west….”

  Again Cada Varl fell quite but the Helluvans did not need to be told why, for it did not take a great deal of thinking to understand how wealth often lead to attention, welcomed or otherwise. “In Gatavoi, military service was not mandatory though it did possess an army any kingdom would be proud to have serve them. You became a soldier only if your hands were not skilled enough to be used in another way, which mine weren’t….” Cada Varl paused only briefly before he continued, “I joined the Hodgand division, each time a new captain was appointed it was his or her privilege to name the division, Hodgand meaning ultimate….”

  After he said these words he moved his hand up towards a very small badge that he wore upon the left side of his chest, the badge was very simple consisting of black and red which formed a simple yet impressive pattern. He looked towards Hazum Ka-te as he said, “This is the badge of the Hodgand division….” Judging by how clean it looked the Immortal had either taken great care of it for over 4,000 years or he had had a replica made to replace what he had lost.

  “It is rather quite small?” Tanagy added not causing offense but rather asking a question.

  Cada Varl looked over to the Abider and nodded his head. “Designed specifically so,” The Immortal said, “All division badges were forged this size, the reason why it was said was because Gatavoi soldiers got so close to their enemies upon the battlefield it made the badge seem as large as the sun.”

  There was a collective nod of approval from the Helluvans, clearly they enjoyed such a premise.

  “What do you remember about Marga?” Tanagy asked and though he had spoken clearly and in his normal tone the question felt quick, like the blade of an assassin upon an unsuspecting target. Cada Varl lowered his hand as he looked over to the Abider staring for a moment too long. Everyone else looked over to Tanagy but it was clear by how quickly they looked back to the Immortal that they were eager to know the answer. Though it was perhaps the heaviest question the Immortal had ever been asked in his 4,000 years he understood the question. Marga was not only ‘the battle of all battles’ it shaped the very continent of Noonsva and in a sense gave birth to the werewolf the very thing Helluvans hated above all else (with the possible exception of thievery and cowardice). Cada Varl looked back to the fire and it was immediately clear there was no good memories to be had of that place. His hands even trembled ever so slightly as the memories came over him like an unwanted snowfall.

  “Blood,” he said finally. “Lots of it, the blood of the butchered and the screams of the slaughtered…. That is what I remember most….” The Immortal now looked upon Tanagy who narrowed his eyes slightly, revealing he knew that he had asked a question too far. For their warrior ways and in contradiction to what many stories told about them Helluvans were not heartless, but rather quite the contrary, for it was the love of their homeland that ultimately shaped them into the men and women that they were. A silence then came, one that no one welcomed or enjoyed, it was so powerful that even a group such as this became overburdened by it.

  “The night is becoming old and time will not prolong itself just for us, slumber is needed.” Imbaka said keeping her voice clear and calm. Several members of the group looked up through the trees and into the night sky, though it had not been the sole reason why she had said it Imbaka was correct, slumber was needed. One by one the Helluvans stood up with Tanagy being the last of them.

  “I am sorry Cada Varl if my question caused you discomfort, I can assure you that was not my intention,” Tanagy said keeping his eyes upon those of the Immortal.

  “Your apology is welcome,” Cada Varl replied. “But not necessary, I cannot blame such a dedicated warrior wanting to know of such a battle….”

  In response Tanagy bowed his head but said
nothing. As Hazum Ka-te began to put away the Arkles stones and Leannol began to form a rectangle of embers Cada Varl stood up and walked away from the light of the fire standing guard as he had done on each night. It was clear that he was still troubled by the memories of Marga for not only did he keep his back to his companions, he did not say goodnight.