007 (1/2)

“Once upon a time, Iruvana, daughter of the G.o.d Uruth wanted to experience life as a mortal. She incarnated herself as a human and married the King Galavandar, the High King of the Ifnetian Seas. In time, she bore a son. However, the divine blood shewed itself by granting the boy strange magick. Upon seeing that, the King ordered Queen Iruvana to die by stringing her on the walls of the Capital City, on suspicion of having lain with a demon. G.o.ddess Iruvana had locked her divine memories, making her unable to refute. As she lay hung on the wall, the entrails of her eviscerated son around her neck, her father, the Lord G.o.d Uruth came upon her disguised as a crow. He asked, “Grant me thy soul”. Iruvana, devoted to her King, said “Nay. Be content with my liver and depart”. The crow ate her liver and departed. On second day, he came again as a fox. Iruvana said the same, offering her tongue. On the third day, Uruth came again as a snake. Unable to endure the pain, Iruvana gave up her soul, regaining her divine form. For 40 days and 40 nights, storm raged on the Empire, at the end of which nothing but dust remained of The Capital and its King”

G.o.ds and Mortals, Sage Kagashan, date unknown.

I hit the tree canopies before I could realize what was happening. My fall was broken by the numerous tree branches. .h.i.tting me from every direction. Finally, I broke through the branches and whammed straight to the ground. The spears that were penetrating me had come off during the fall and now clanged down from the branches, like rain. The sword fell blade first and sunk into the earth inches from my crotch.

b.l.o.o.d.y f.u.c.king h.e.l.l.

Unbelievable fatigue a.s.sailed my body. My muscles were screaming for release. Blood drenched my whole torso. Torn meat and skin showed through the gaping holes in my body. Red drenched bone peeked out here and there. My eyes closed by themselves. I couldn’t keep my lids open even while trying. I was dying.

A terrible sense of danger woke me up. It was as if alarm bells had started ringing in my head. I opened my eyes at once and saw…glowing small fireb.a.l.l.s by the tens at a level of about 2 feet above the ground. As my eyes adjusted, I could discern the black ma.s.ses behind the fires.  Kivala packs had surrounded me, probably drawn in by the smell of blood. They won’t let go of an injured, easy prey.

f.u.c.k.

Sweat trickled down my temple. With a s.h.i.+ver I realized their fangs were glowing in moonlight.

How do I fend them off in my injured sta…dafuq?

My wounds had healed. Not that I was fully fit and fine but there were no wounds and the scars had healed up to, I discerned with a touch. I didn’t know what was happening, but this was an opportunity.

I picked up the executioner sword that had fallen with me. It was to be used two handed but made in the length of a one-hand, so a very bad one to be stuck with. I would have liked a s.h.i.+eld but… oh well, beggars can’t be choosers. The sword came off the ground when I pulled it out by the hilt. d.a.m.ned thing didn’t have a tip… so no stabbing.

I took a stance. I put both my hands on the hilt, looking at the green lights reflected from the Kivala eyes. Ages seem to pa.s.s as we stared at each other. Tension, thick and palpable like fog seemed to drift up between me and the monsters. My muscles started to hurt from the tensing when suddenly the lead Kivala jumped up, as if a certain milestone had pa.s.sed unknown. The monster had pounced on me, his paws aimed at my shoulders. I swung up the executioner sword and slashed at it’s chest. The blade dipped in and out smoothly, trailing blood droplets and shreds of meat behind it. The Kivala had died before it hit the ground with a  dull thud.

As if on cue, the packs of Kivalas closed in at once, howls reverberating the air around me. I slashed at the front runners, aiming for quick dodge and slashes. The sword cut off the front legs of one but went too wide for a quick slash recovery. A Kivala slammed into my stomach, throwing me  backwards.

This b.l.o.o.d.y sword…I had forgotten this s.h.i.+t is top heavy to cut heads better. The balance is out of whack.

By now, the monsters had surrounded me and came at me from both sides. I swung the  sword in a wide arc, taking advantage of the momentum of the heavy blade. For the first time in my life, I understood the idiomflying heads.  The sword was good at what it did, that is beheading. I slashed at the oncoming Kivalas in huge arcs, often hitting two at opposite ends, turning my  body in a s.c.r.e.w.i.n.g motion as if trying to hit a homerun with baseball bat.

In spite of that, I was only a lone man and there were tens of Kivalas. I was acc.u.mulating more and more wounds from their fangs and claws. There were deep claw scores that tattered my clothes. One of my slashes got caught in the spilled intestines of a monster, while another bit me from behind. I let go of the handle as it had got royally snagged, and punched the biting one in its eyes.

Now, I knew that my strength had increased a lot. Those wave like ma.s.ses that had hit me every time I had killed something? Those were probably some sort of power that pa.s.sed from the dead to me. Somewhat like exp from monsters in a game, but in this world, it somehow just increased my power.  But what did happen, sort of exceeded my expectations. The Kivala’s face caved in as my hands went wrist deep into its brain, blood spraying into my open mouth.

By now, the number of Kivalas had decreased quite a lot. Only a few remained. Their eyes were losing their green glow as day slowly broke. I went near the dead Kivala and tore open its entrails to recover my sword. The Kivalas backed away, seemingly scared.

I swung my blade in a wide circle, to disperse the blood droplets on it. The blade had made a constant whistling sound throughout the battle as it cut the air. That was caused by the 3 holes near its square tip.

Back in Earth, the Executioner Sword was made to whistle like this to strike terror into the hearts of the Executed whenever the sword is swung. The high-pitched whistle was called the song of the blade.

The Kivalas now flinched every time they heard the whistle. Finally, they turned and ran, bounding away in short leaps, tails between their legs. I heaved a sigh of relief, as I propped the sword on my shoulders and took stock of the situation. I panted heavily, leaning on the sword.

By now, the day had fully broken. Soft light had broken through the mountains, illuminating the forest beneath, while still some parts remained under the umbra of the peaks. The ring lay like a black belt across the sky. And I totally didn’t know where I was.

I had never come across this place during  subjugation quests with the guard corps. Moreover, there were no traces of any of the jungle trails that criss-crossed the forests surrounding the road to Haven. But, it wasn’t surprising, considering I had probably crossed Haven.

I could recognize the familiar outline of the Ishkal mountains, from a bit different  angle than I am used to. By the direction of the sun, Shrafings.h.i.+re would be North from here. And the distance was probably a lot, considering the distance from Ishkal by eye.

What the f.u.c.k did actually happen?

From what I gathered, Arin had probably unleashed some teleport type spell that dropped me here. What I was really worried about is the black light that had flowed out of Arin when the spell happened. It was too close to the black shadows flowing from my arm, I  thought unconsciously clutching my arm.

I need to get to Arin. I need to keep them safe.

My teeth gnashed together as I thought about what had happened. I took  deep breath to relax myself after the heated fight with the Kivalas. I used the blunt tip of the blade to break a few oversized Kivala canines. Those things could grow up to 20 cms. I used the canine as an improvised dagger to retrieve the Cores and cut myself some meat. Then, gathering some fallen brambles, I stacked them up to make a bonfire. My magic invocation was still s.h.i.+t, but the fire spell could create at least a few sparks to start a fire.

I could think more clearly after eating. I needed more power. The Black arm thing was very unreliable and I didn’t even know what that was. I couldn’t even get to work it again. Even after a lot of tries, I was still here with a very human arm. I needed to find a way to fuse the monster cores with myself. However, I didn’t have access to a Church or Soulcaster to do it. Moreover, they didn’t do it much in the first place due to the huge risks and chances of failure involved. And I didn’t think I would be too welcome at the company of other after the whole demonsp.a.w.n thing.

What’s up with that, I wonder.

I cut off some pelt from the Kivalas and made an improvised satchel out of it where I kept the Cores. As I understood it, they had a chanting to fuse the Cores with your soul, So I had some experiments to do. But for now, only one thing was left to be done.

I got up and walked towards Shrafings.h.i.+re, where lay my hearts desire.

I will reach you.

I cleaved open the head of a poison Tirath. The monster was like a five foot long lizard, with a sharp spiny tail and red coloured tough skin. The thing had a one foot long neck that could rotate 360 degrees and then some. These suckers were fast, nasty and plain ugly. What made them dangerous however was they injected paralyzing venom with their fangs. However, the paralyzing venom did nothing to numb pain, so you had to suffer the horror of getting eaten alive while you felt everything in excruciating detail. Yep, so gravy.

I swung the sword again and half of the face of a lizard went flying. These monsters had strong skin that routinely deflected blades after chopping. The only weak area was the head and the neck that had too many vertebrae to facilitate the 360 parlor trick. I collected the monster Cores and walked towards the river I had found.

I kept looking at the cores. A bead of sweat flowed down my spine as I was reluctant to do what I had to. A heavy sigh escaped me as I got to crus.h.i.+ng the Cores. Yeah. That’s what I had found out after a bit of tinkering. I crushed the cores into powder, then I diluted them with water and gulped them straight down. Just like knocking back a few beers, right?

Only that this particular one is f.u.c.king excruciating. The first time I had tried this, I had fallen off the rock I was sitting on, clawing at my throat. The Core fragments had shredded and tore the insides of my throat, tearing everything on their way down. I had fainted in a pool of vomited blood. However I had noticed the results almost as soon as I had woken up. If I eat enough Cores, I didn’t need to rely on the black arm that Arin hated so much.

I wonder what Arin thinks of me now. That look…she gave me when she saw my arm…I can’t stand it. Can’t stand it, can’t sand it! She thought I betrayed her! She thought I killed everyone on purpose….

Do I even have the right to go save her? Does she even love me anymore?

Do I even have the right to save myself?

I gulped the potion again, my fingers curling up to brace for the incoming pain.

Probably I didn’t.

It has already been the third day that I was separated from Arin. Three f.u.c.king days! How long do I have to b.l.o.o.d.y wander here!  I had already killed hundreds of monsters in these forests and consumed their cores. The monsters now ran away whenever they heard the whistle of my blade. I had killed so many that even the sharpness of an executioner sword was gone; leaving me to use it as a bludgeoning weapon.

The whistling didn’t stop. It won’t; until it has met the girl with river in her hair. I’d endure the pain of a hundred Tirath stings if that would have brought me closer to Arin. I had been wandering through this G.o.d forsaken forest for days, without a way out. I need to go to her!

Suddenly, I heard shouts of human voice, and  growls of the Kivala accompanying it. I ran towards the voices, without paying heed to things around me. I burst into a clearing, with a dirt road through it. I had been so close to a road!

A pack of Kivalas were attacking two covered carriages. The Carriages were pretty big, with canvas covering it’s topside. The 2 pairs of Serrads that were reined to the carriages had went wild, scared of the Kivalas. Five lightly armoured men were defending themselves against the onslaught of the monsters. Two of the men were already severely wounded and bleeding. The men desperately tried to fend off the Kivalas with no avail. The monsters pounced on them repeatedly. Some even attacked the defenseless Serrads,  jumping on their flanks and the long neck to bring them down. A well dressed man was shouting, “ Defend the goods, dammit! I don’t want to die here!”

It all took just a few seconds to register. The men were having a hard time, defending the carriages, their wounded, the Serrads and the whining man. I swung my blunt sword a few times in full circle and jumped into the fray. The Kivalas immediately changed their targets towards me, wary of the high-pitched whistle. Their rabid eyes wavered as I gave a b.e.s.t.i.a.l howl, not unlike a Kivala itself.

Then, my blade was swung, smas.h.i.+ng the limbs of a Kivala, all four if it. I kept extending the same swing till it reached a Kivala that been scrambling to climb the roof of the carriage. That Kivala had the side of its head smashed in, brain leaking out of its other ear. The armoured people didn’t miss the chance and plunged their weapons into the Kivalas. Some fell, while the others turned tail and ran.

The men hailed for me, I put up a hand to acknowledge their shouts. “Thank You so much, said one man, “You saved us there, kid”.

“Its alright. Do you know the way to…” my head swam as I pitched forward, fatigue and relief finally claiming my body.

“Oi…what happened?” The man caught me. I could hear whispers as my whole body relaxed, coming in contact with other people. Merciful sleep washed over me.

“Finally awake, eh, executioner?” a warmly smiling middle aged man said when he saw me wake up.

“Where…what happened?” I asked, still groggy from sleep. I was in a moving carriage, with a few other men. The inside was dark with boxes piled up on the sides. The carriage shook and jerked with every movement. I could hear the sounds of whipping.

“ Black Rhissot mercenary group’s carriage, in service to Merchant Kattors from Sonozoa”, the man said, “You?”