Story Recap:
Abasi managed to escape the destruction of Kampalla with three soldiers - Imad, Hadi and Jamil. Together they made for Kairo to warn the pharaoh of the new danger, but were waylaid and found themselves in Candahar. Upon discovering Candahar's acceptance of white people, Abasi and his friend Omir decided to recruit people to overthrow the city's leadership. Before they could do so however, they were dragged into battle as a horde of Und’kal bore down on the city.
Ren and her guide Maria found themselves on the city's walls to join boomerang throwers in ranged defense. They watched helplessly as Zammar battled a Kal Prime. He defeated the alien but was mortally injured in the process. Tristan brought Zammar’s lifeless body to relative safety in front of the city's gates. Arion, Zammar’s horse, encouraged Tristan to give Zammar a mysterious liquid. Miraculously, it somehow resulted in revival of the man’s heart beat.
After the battle of colossi, the two armies re-engaged in combat.
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Abasi's spear pierced through the side of the Kal, coming to a sickening halt as it hit a hard bone-like substance. He pulled it out with a gush of black blood. The alien shrieked in surprise at his attack, turning quickly to look down at him with four eyes. It raised a talon menacingly, revealing its teeth in an angry snarl. Anticipating the attack, Abasi leapt over the dead body next to him, landing hard on the blood stained ground on its other side. The gash on his back burned with pain induced from the impact. Ignoring this, he turned quickly and prepared to move out of the way of another swing, only to cry in pain as a sharp spasm shot through his left leg. It straightened beneath him instinctively, throwing him back to land hard against some other corpse.
"Fuck!" He cried, cursing his old age and the white man that had impaled him in the side of the leg many years ago. The Und'kal walked over to him slowly now, reveling in its hunt. "Fuck you!" Abasi yelled, brandishing his spear and thrusting it forward to stab at the beast. It bounced off the tough hide, useless with his bad leverage. His leg remained locked as the creature revealed deadly teeth in a malicious grin.
Then, just as the Kal's shadow fell across Abasi, another spear pierced its side above the previous wound. Imad ran around the shaft, jumping on the alien's torso and swinging his scimitar around to cut the hard skin at its throat. The Und'kal didn't have time to turn as blood gushed profusely out of the gash. Its shrieks of pain simply came out as muted gurgles and the twitching body crumpled to the ground.
Hadi ran to its side, pulling his spear out with a heave. Imad walked over to Abasi and extended his hand. "I'm fine." Abasi said, forcing himself to his feet, conscious of the blood that stained his hands as he used them to push himself up.
"You are growing too old for this, Chief." Imad said neutrally. The tall, muscled man was covered in black and red blood, with fresh cuts and bruises mapped out across his torso. His long black hair was matted with sweat and hung down lazily behind his ebony skin.
"And you're growing too lax Imad, we're on a battlefield!" Abasi replied harshly, limping past his comrade to rejoin the battle. Imad and Hadi both followed behind. "Where the fuck is Jamil?"
"I dun know." Hadi replied unconsciously, scanning the battle carefully.
"Fuck it. We're losing this fight...badly." Abasi spat.The three took a moment to breathe in the short respite from the battle that raged all around. It was hard to see the ground beneath layers of blood and corpses, and their eyes watered from the dust that was kicked up by the fighting. Behind the brown veil of dust, silhouettes of tall Und'kal could be seen as they swung at the human soldiers that circled and lunged at them from all sides. Death was abundant - more bodies steadily joined those already resting on the ground.
Aliens on winged beasts were circling the battle overhead. Large globes of fire fell from the obstructed sky, streaking through dust as flickering lights before either lighting bodies on fire or extinguishing themselves on the blood caked earth. The short moments of brilliant light revealed more patches of ground, also covered in the dead. Some of these flickered in a permanent glow where bodies had caught fire, and added heavily to the metallic smell of blood with the new scent of burnt meat.
"We need to find Omir and his men," Abasi said.
Omir and Imad had already managed to find close to twenty people that would support Abasi in overthrowing Abejide. Abasi had planned on sticking together through the battle, acting as a commander of sorts to hopefully maximize their chances of survival. It had worked for a short period of time, before that man took on the giant Und'kal. When he had finally brought down the beast, chaos erupted and all of a sudden, Abasi, Hadi and Imad were alone. Even Jamil had disappeared.
Abasi still couldn't stop thinking of that brown man and the way he had fought against the monster. Omir had told him about some great warrior that was travelling with the queen - it must have been him. If he had somehow managed to survive, Abasi's plans would be complicated significantly.
Of course, all that depended on if they could make it out of this bloodbath alive.
"Chief we’ll never make it...there’s so many...It's just like Kampalla. Fuck!" Hadi cried, still swerving around to peer through the dust.
"I know...I'm surprised Candahar has held out this long." Abasi replied, looking back at the silhouette of the tall wooden walls. They were frighteningly close now; the army had been pushed back steadily through the day.
"They are excellent warriors." Imad added, stopping to pick up a spear.
Abasi hated to admit it, but the man was right. The people here seemed to fight with greater determination than he had ever seen. Even his own men at Kampalla had succumbed to fearful paralysis when fighting these monsters. Yet most of these Candaharrans seemed ready to give their lives for the cause. If only they were as loyal to The Blacklands, the Pharaohdom could use good soldiers like these.
Abasi closed his single eye for a moment, ignoring the part of him that just wanted it all to end. He breathed, calming himself from the pain that surged through his body. This was not the time to be weak. Sorry Bashira, I have to go fight again. His wife had always hated when he went out to combat. He stooped down to pick up a spear before walking back into the bloodshed.
A familiar scream ripped through the chaos.
“Jamil?!” Abasi cried in surprise, hurriedly limping towards the sound.
Three Kal were converging slowly on the single cowering man. Jamil swivelled desperately, his hands shaking the spear they held in fear. Abasi met his subordinate’s eyes the moment he stepped into visibility. The expression of limitless fear paralyzed him for a second.
“CHIEF, HELP PLEASE!” Jamil screamed, choking with tears.
Before Abasi could move, a Kal reached out wickedly fast, grabbing Jamil’s upper arm. With a gruesome tug, the alien pulled the limb out of the socket and tossed it to the ground.
Jamil screamed in pain. His left arm clutched at his shoulder where his right had been. Blood poured relentlessly through his fingers. Another Kal reached out, grabbing this arm and tugging hard to rip it out similarly.
Armless, Jamil fell on his knees, his screams slowly becoming teary. “Chief, plea...please...help...me.” He whispered desperately, looking red eyed, straight at Abasi.
Hadi and Imad had stumbled out next to Abasi. Hadi began to charge at the aliens. Abasi held out a hand, stopping the man in his tracks.
“Bu…” Hadi whispered, instantly silenced when he saw the expression on his commander’s face.
Abasi maintained eye contact, even as a Kal picked up Jamil’s torso and another grabbed his legs, completely oblivious to his screams and desperate struggling. “Chief…” Jamil whispered.
The aliens pulled hard, tearing his body in half. Blood and organs splattered across the ground in a violent fountain of gore.
“Fuck!” Hadi cried, swallowing back vomit.
“We’re going.” Abasi said.
“Jam...”
“I SAID WE’RE GOING!”
Abasi hadn’t liked Jamil very much. Ever since the four of them escaped from Kampalla, all he had ever done was piss Abasi off. No, Jamil hadn’t been a good man; but he had been Abasi’s man..
“Let’s find Omir,” Abasi said, slowly turning away from the aliens that were still ripping apart Jamil’s body.
***
The boomerang whizzed through the air at an incredible speed, cutting through dust in a violent spin. It reached the apex of its curve, preparing to turn back to its thrower in defeat, having failed to reach its mark. Then, just before it did, a series of compartments above its sharp edge opened, unleashing a deadly fan of poisoned blades. As the boomerang began its return, the blades flew forward fast, sticking deep into the belly of the flying Und'kal mount. Others pierced its long wings. Unable to cut through the thick leather, they embedded into it as the creature pivoted desperately to avoid the onslaught.
Ren tracked it through her sight, waiting for an opening. Her arrow released the moment she saw one, penetrating the alien's torso. She quickly loaded and fired another one, chiding herself when it flew through the air the creature had occupied a moment before. It didn’t matter. Another boomerang slashed through its belly, and countless more blades pierced the monster’s wings. It tumbled helplessly through the air. Only now, when it was falling, did Ren see the Und sitting on its back, its fearful screams lost over the chaos of the battle into which it fell.
The Candaharran army had been pushed back, despite their desperate attempts to hold the line. As the dust cleared from the previous front lines, it revealed an immense tract of land littered with bodies; the mutilated corpses seemed to stretch to the red horizon. Now, the battle raged directly beneath Ren - just a few meters in front of the city gates. Merging seamlessly with the barren death field behind it, the bulk of the Und'kal army could be made out. From above, it seemed like the black horde of aliens just kept pushing forward, leaving death behind them. The monsters struggled against each other, each trying desperately to reach the humans.
At the front of the vicious horde, where it met the frail human resistance, the massive cloud of dust that had defined the entire battle still rose to the screaming of men and the clanging of blades. It had finally gotten thinner, there being less dust on the roads in front of the gate. Still it obstructed Ren's vision enough for her to not risk shooting into it.
The Und'kal swarm had been reduced significantly. Ren was surprised at the conviction and resolve with which the Candaharran army had fought. Despite that, the horde of aliens remained horrifyingly big. The dark, writhing mass beneath her dwarfed the shrinking human army.
She didn't even want to think about how many good people had died. Now, their living comrades fought urgently, the crippling malady of fatigue slowing their movement and taking lives just as commonly as sharp Und'kal talons. They had been so invigorated after Zammar's defeat of the Kal Prime; but the hours of fighting were beginning to take their toll.
"I think the poison is finally starting to work," Ren said to Maria, loading another arrow and aiming for an Und'kal behind the main army that was moving sluggishly, its arms twitching despite no apparently large wounds.
"Yes, my queen." The woman replied half attentively.
"Too little, too late." Ren unleashed the arrow, waiting for it to sink into the Und'kal's side before turning to her guide. Maria had spent the battle by Ren's side, growing visibly more anxious as it progressed. The girl clutched her spear tightly, bringing out bones in her small black hands. Her long black hair was tied intricately behind her, falling behind the toned, elegant and bare body in long braids as she looked down at the fight with a forced impartial face.
"You can go," Ren said, "join your comrades..."
"No, my queen. My place is by your side." The woman replied, still neutrally looking over the battle.
"Then, I suppose we'll die together." Ren whispered under her breath as she turned back to the battle and picked another arrow from her barrel - it was starting to run low.
"It will be my honour." Maria replied, bringing a small smile to Ren's face as she released the arrow.
An ear piercing shriek tore the air directly above her, causing Ren to jump as a shadow darkened her vision. She turned quickly, grabbing Maria's hand and leaping awkwardly to the right. Landing hard on her side, she turned just in time to see a large fireball hit the wooden wall top and instantly light it in flames. That was a first, she had been surprised that the flying Und'kal's had chosen not to aim for the wall until now, instead dropping fire into the battlefield.
Maria pulled Ren up hurriedly, allowing her to look down the wall. Large fires had begun to erupt the entire length of the wooden structure. Smoke added to dust from the battle, slowly rendering the view hidden behind a whirling, impenetrable cloud of darkness. The silhouette of the curving wall disappeared into the horizon, revealed occasionally by fire. Along the length, people were running desperately, trying to put out the fires. Above her, the shrieks of Und'kal mounts cut through the haze, foreshadowing more balls of flame that fell upon the walls of Candahar.
"Roma?!" Ren yelled, straining her watering eyes to squint through the smoke. She coughed violently, trying to clear soot from her throat.
"Here, I've got word that most of the throwers are okay." The woman in charge of the boomerang throwers replied, running into Ren's vision as she jumped over a small fire.
"Good, tell them to partner up and have one watching the skies so they can see the fires drop..."
Maria yanked Ren back hard, causing her to yelp in surprise as another ball of fire narrowly missed the wall and landed in front of the gates below.
Ren heard Roma yelling the orders down the wall, allowing them to be passed on. The battle drums were still pounding in her ears, though she wasn't sure if that was just adrenaline.
"Roma," Ren coughed, choking on her own saliva. It was so hard to breathe. "We need to put out these fires!" she called weakly into the smoke, looking around desperately for a water source.
"I know," Roma replied, moving hurriedly to the wall edge. "But it's not as bad as it looks, the dust from the battle is choking the fires as well..."
"They are going to spread, we can't let the walls burn!"
"The children are working on it." Roma pointed to the long lines of children that stretched down the stairs and into the city below. Large, sloshing buckets of water were being passed along the line, and then across the wall. Boomerang throwers were grabbing these buckets wherever needed, splashing them on the fires. "We need to get back on the attack, they're going to burn the city at this rate!" Roma said resolutely, unhinging her own boomerang and throwing it blindly at one of the beasts that was circling above.
Ren watched the bucket line for a moment, noticing with great trepidation, the lack of effect the water was having on the fires. The most it could do was slow a flame down, douse it with a hiss for a moment before it started up again. The small, isolated fires were beginning to spread, engulfing more territory and reducing more of the wood to ash. This was made worse by the additional balls of fire that kept falling from the sky. The heat that burned her face was further evidence; soon the entire wall would be alight. Already it creaked unsteadily beneath her.
Ren swallowed back her fear. All around, destruction raged. But the Und'kal had already taken Torst, her family, friends...Zammar, everything she'd ever known away from her. They had nothing else to take. She had nothing else to give. Now, she would die with their blood on her hands, defending the people she had adopted as queen.
From below the wooden palisade, the clamoring of fighting rang true and clear through the dusty air. Screams filled the air, mingled with angry growls and zealous war cries. The sizzling of the fires on wall top added to the cacophony, accentuated by explosions and falling debris. The shouting of desperate men and women, trying to fend off the attackers while desperately fighting the fires also added to the din. It was chaos.
To Ren, it seemed far away for a moment of isolation. A single, soft voice whimpered above all the din, coming from next to the fire nearest her. She approached slowly, dreading what she would see. There, curled up at the edge of the wall, backing away from the approaching fire was a little boy. Ren recognized him instantly. She ran up, pulling him aside, protecting him with her arms as cried and rubbed an eye with a small fist.
"Cody, are you okay?" She asked to no reply.
Suddenly a loud thud shook the ground beneath her, followed quickly by another. A familiar shriek ripped through the cacophony, bringing Ren back to the world.
"My Queen!" Maria's voice yelled from afar, unheard by Ren.
She stared at the towering Kal. The creature, though clearly wounded, appeared to be incredibly joyous as it stared down its prey. Its bulk occupied over half of the wooden wall top, and it seemed to pay no heed to the fire that was raging right by its side as it approached Ren and the boy.
Ren scrambled up quickly, throwing her arms out in a protective stance. "I won't let you hurt him." She whispered quietly, staring back at the Und'kal without betraying her fear. In response, the alien simply cocked its wicked head, giving her a malicious grin of needle teeth. Saliva dripped down from them, sizzling on the small fires beneath its feet.
The creature turned its head suddenly, bringing up a gashed arm to parry Maria's halberd swing. Maria stepped forward, ducking her torso down as her back leg swung forward. Pivoting quickly on that foot, she spun her entire body, retaining a hold on the shaft of her halberd and allowing it to cut into the Und'kal's torso, beneath its arm.
The creature stared stupidly at the blade that stuck in its abdomen. Ren took the short moment of opportunity and ran forward, unsheathing her Candaharran scimitar. She swung that too, nicking the creature's other side. The wound was not deep enough to penetrate through to blood, but it distracted the Und'kal long enough for Maria to pull out her halberd and back off a little bit. Ren allowed her own momentum to carry her down to the ground, wary of the creature's deadly talon as it whistled aimlessly through the smog behind her. She rolled, coming to a stop by one of its legs.
The Und'kal raised the leg, preparing to crush her beneath it.
Suddenly, with a loud groan, the wall beneath her began to tilt and Ren rolled slightly with it. In surprise, the Und'kal too was dragged down for a moment before the tilting stopped, leaving the wall's top surface at an angle sloping down to the city. Maria's halberd came flying through the air, slicing deep into the Und'kal's shoulder. It screamed in agony, swinging a talon that rammed the girl's side and sent her flying into the palisade at the bottom of the newly formed slope.
Ren didn't waste a moment. Still on the ground, she brought the scimitar in a stab. The blade pierced through the underbelly of the large Und'kal. With great effort, she managed to move it a little bit, before pulling it back out with a splash of hot black blood and guts.
The Kal screamed in pain. Its legs buckled threateningly above her, but Ren scrambled back to her feet just before the Und'kal collapsed. The alien hissed angrily, reaching out to grab her but failing as it slid dramatically down the inclined wall. It left a long trail of black blood before finally falling off the spiked edges and into the city below. Its frustrated shrieks could be heard all the way down before a loud, final thud.
Ren struggled against the slope, grabbing the palisades that made up the front of the wall to help herself back up. She trudged over to Maria, helping the other girl up.
"Are you okay?" Ren gasped in effort, almost losing her grip.
"Yes, my queen." Maria replied, standing on a knee and grabbing the stake next to Ren's. Her other arm clutched at her side, where three deep wounds had blood slowly oozing from them.
"You're hurt!" Ren whispered..."Let's get you to the medics..."
"No, my queen." Maria pulled herself up. "Look."
Ren followed her gaze, still clinging tightly to splintery wood.
Beneath them, the battle still raged. The Candaharran army had shrunk significantly, fast. A moment ago, the defense had stretched the length of the walls, protecting them in a giant semi circle. Now, the edges of this circle had crumbled, leaving a fast shrinking mass that jutted out from the gates. As a result, the Southern end of the wall was completely exposed to the Und'kal horde. Here, crowds of Kal were piling atop one another, pushing the wall back and down as they leaped onto it.
The weight of the aliens was causing that end of the wall to sag. Since the wall was still fixed on the Eastern end, the entire structure was forced to twist to accommodate the new load. Loud groans could be heard over the fighting as the wood strained to maintain its structural integrity.
An explosive crack thundered through the clamour of battle. The weight was too much; the structure snapped in half. Ren felt the ground give way, and suddenly she was hanging desperately to the palisade. It did no good, as this too fell, splintering halfway through its length to tumble after the rest of the wall.
Instinctively, Ren screamed, her voice unheard. With incredibly loud and catastrophic thuds, the walls of Candahar fell to the ground, allowing hordes of Und'kal to stream into the city.
***
Wide eyed, Tristan turned away from the collapsing wall and threw himself on top of Zammar's body, opening his arms protectively.
Zammar's heartbeat had slowly steadied from the first erratic rhythm. Now, it pounded powerfully beneath Tristan, pumping life and warmth back into the otherwise still body. He had spent hours cleaning the multitude of cuts and slashes across the man, using the rags that the medic had left behind in fear. The entire time, fighting had raged in front of him, with injured men being dragged back by little boys to be nursed by medics.
The battle was finally starting to catch up with him. Tristan had been warily watching the backs of the Candaharran army as it shrunk and closed in around the gates. Now they were just a few meters in front of him.
The thuds of falling debris ended abruptly. For a single moment, the entire valley was silent, in stark contrast to the cacophony that had occupied it a moment ago. The silence was short lived.
Slowly, Tristan raised his head, squinting against the massive dust cloud that had been thrown up. Where once it had been obscured by wood, the silhouette of the city of Candahar slowly started to materialize out of the dust. Chunks of wood littered all around it. Many large poles, still bound together, had crushed the mud huts, leveling the outskirts of the city.
"Ren..." he whispered, wide eyed upon seeing the destruction.
Tristan hurriedly got up and took a step before hesitating; Zammar was vulnerable here. With the wall gone, the Candaharran defense would be surrounded and the Und’kal would be upon him.
He bent down, placing one of Zammar's limp arms around his shoulder and struggling to stand. The man was crushingly heavy. Where was Arion when he needed him? The horse, who had lay still by Zammar's side for hours, had unexpectedly jumped up and faced West a few minutes before the wall collapsed. A moment later and before Tristan could say a word, it had galloped off.
It didn't matter, he had to get to Ren. Hunching over under the bulk of Zammar, Tristan started moving slowly to the ruins of the wall.
All of a sudden, loud hisses and growls filled the air around him. Tristan lost his concentration and stumbled to a knee, Zammar seeming heavier than ever. Silhouetted Kals were charging through the dust cloud. Seeming infinite in number, the aliens ran aimlessly in blind confusion. What happened to The Candaharran army? Already? Tristan looked around, unable to see anyone else.
An ear piercing screech ripped through the air. He turned quickly, seeing the Kal that had managed to spot him in the chaos. It approached slowly, flexing bladed claws, before gradually gaining speed. Tristan closed his eyes. "Sorry Ren..." he whispered hoarsely.
"Tristan." The firm voice was like a god-sent anchor in the chaotic world, reverberating through his being and bringing him back to a place of hope.
The weight on Tristan's back lessened immediately, the giant arm around his shoulder moved suddenly. By the time he opened his eyes, he was free of the burden altogether. The first thing he saw was an incredibly fast flash of a blade, cutting through the dust cloud easily. The next was the Kal's blinking head flying through the suddenly clear air. He saw for just one glorious moment, the muscular back of Zammar, as the red cape billowed gently in the wake of his slash. A second later, the dust had regathered, silhouetting the mighty man.
The heroic pose didn't last long. Still injured, Zammar collapsed to one knee in exhaustion. The Und'kal were everywhere, their silhouetted figures swirling the dusty air as they sprinted fiercely around the pair, seeking prey in the blinding cloud. One spotted Zammar, leaping at him with braced claws. The man sensed it just in time, bringing his elbow up to smash into the alien’s face. It recoiled in pain, clutching at its dented head before collapsing, twitching to the ground. The Und'kal's jump had pushed away more dust, creating a short moment of visibility.
More Und'kal leaped at Zammar. He struggled back to his feet, fighting them off laboriously with Calesol. The previous grace of the man had disappeared under the burden of fatigue and injury. Now, he muscled his way through the fight, struggling against individual Kals.
A Kal leaped unexpectedly from his side while Zammar was distracted. It latched on to the muscular body, using needle sharp teeth to rip into the thick shoulder. Zammar and the alien entered a deadly roll, chased by more of the creatures. He managed to fight it off, pushing with his broken arm until Calesol was free to slice through the creature's belly. The moment he had pushed the limp corpse off, another had pounced on top, forcing him to swivel desperately on his back until his leg could kick the alien off. He struggled to his feet, uncharacteristically awkward as he swung his great sword to fend off the Und’kal.
Tristan stood rooted in dismay. The Und'kal seemed to be too focused on Zammar to notice him, but he felt absolutely helpless.
"Stay Together!" The strong, familiar voice of Chief Abejide called out from behind him.
A strong gust of wind revealed, in swirly eddies and the light of a dying sun, the final stand of the Candaharran army. Abejide had gathered his warriors together. Now they stood surrounded by the bodies of their brethren as well as their enemies, in a small, tightly packed circle just a few meters behind Tristan. Sharp, bloodied spears stuck out of the gathering, keeping Kals at bay as a few of the aliens leaped haphazardly, trying to get to the humans.
Droves of Und'kal were also unveiled. Their swarm had been reduced significantly in size, but to Tristan they still looked unsurmountable. Granted new visibility, the rest of the alien horde turned their sights to the remaining human resistance.
Tristan found himself standing between the two armies. He backed away from the aliens, his heart hammering. The Und'kal army soon mirrored the shape of the human one. Gathering in a large circle, they began to converge on the small Candaharran resistance. Tristan watched the arc formed by aliens in front of him slowly shrinking as they approached closer. The Kals were quick to the spot him, the lone human in front of the dangerous spears, and many set their eyes to profit from the easy prey.
In a few seconds they would be upon him. Tristan fell backwards, landing hard on his rear. He squinted, instinct tempting him to close his eyes, but forcing himself to keep them open. Unconsciously, his hands began to push him back, closer to the safety of the human spears just a few meters behind.
Suddenly, the Und'kal that was charging directly in front of him stumbled. Inelegantly, it fell and tripped two of its comrades. Above the three struggling masses, Zammar leaped out into the shrinking clearing. His legs pounded the ground hard, giving him a lead on the aliens.
Cheering erupted through the small human army as they saw the immense man run, his cape and hair blowing wildly in the strong wind. The dust that had hidden the entire battle was completely gone now, allowing the red rays of the setting sun to further beautify the scene.
Tristan had traveled long with Zammar, and could see the toll of his injuries. His run was slightly uneven, though not as bad as it should have been considering the damage done to his left side. It was his eyes that struck Tristan the most. Burning with determination, the lonely brown eyes sagged with regret and exhaustion.
Zammar reached Tristan a moment before the Und'kals. The towering man pivoted a step before him, swinging Calesol around to cut through the necks of four Und'kal directly behind him.
"Tristan!" He yelled in the short moment of respite. Another Kal leaped from his right, bracing a talon. Zammar dodged accidentally as his left leg collapsed beneath in exhaustion. The Und'kal's jump was powerful enough that it flew right over the man, smashing in to another of its kind that had started to leap from the left. Zammar brought Calesol up to slash upwards at a new alien in front of him, using the momentum of the swing to propel himself up to his feet.
"Go!" He yelled behind him. "Tristan, save the queen!"
Tristan remained dumbfounded as the man was attacked again. Two Kals charged from in front of Zammar. One got Calesol in its torso, the other found all four legs shattered by a powerful, sweeping kick. Zammar stumbled again, an alien rammed into him from the right, launching him into the claw of another one. The thick blade pierced his side, bringing forth black stained blood in a small drizzle. Zammar grunted before pushing against the alien with his broken arm to free himself. He ducked, allowing the first Und'kal to mutilate its comrade with its own talon swing before stabbing it through with Calesol.
"Tristan...save Ren." The man said, the desperation in his exhausted voice reverberating through the air even after an Und'kal had launched itself atop him, bringing him to the ground. They struggled, the alien's face inches from the man’s, but held back by his shaking arm.
Ren...The Und'kal army had split, charging after Zammar or joining the battle with the humans behind Tristan, ignoring him as any other corpse in the chaos. The war cries from behind, shrieks from in front and spaces through which he could escape the conflict all blurred. How could anyone survive this? The image of Ren's lifeless body crushed under the wall appeared in his mind. She was gone. They killed her.
Rage filled Tristan, drowning out all he had ever been. His thoughts vanished, replaced by alien instinct. His hand reached down to his belt and pulled out the Torstian longsword. Without a word, he got to his feet and charged, putting his weight behind the sword as it rammed through the side of the Kal that had leaped on Zammar.
The creature cried in surprise, giving Zammar enough time to push it off with a kick. "Tristan, go now!" The man yelled before another Kal was upon him. Tristan didn't hear, he was already swinging his sword at an unsuspecting Und'kal.
Author's Note:
Work and training put a big damper on writing progress, but I really shouldn't be taking a month to release 5000 words :p Now, in my defense, I decided to finish writing pt.11 before releasing this, so I guess there's that small justification. I'm glad I did, because a lot of things changed!
This part got an exceptional amount of hate from the ever angry editor, so I guess there's that. Still, I hope that you reader enjoyed it! I'm super excited for pt.11, so look forward to that!
I guess a conflict as an author is how explicit one should be in describing characters. I have a good idea of each of my characters, but it seems to not always be the same as what other people see. I wonder if that's a good or bad thing, since it would be nice to believe that people, like anything, are open to interpretation. It just means I have to be better in describing what I feel are the motivations for what they do. It is unfortunate though that most of these characters were conceived and described so long ago that no one remembers!
Thanks for reading friends! Pt. 11 out soon!
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