The World Outside

Panicked screams and shouts pierced through the quiet near the fringes of an ancient forest.

"No!!! Get away from me you evil beasts!! Stay away!!!"

"Run!!! Everyone run away!!!"

"Ahhhhh!!!"

"Where are the Guardians? Where are the mages!?!? What are they all doing!!!"

The shrieks and yells echoed past the borders of the forest to the outskirts of a newly established settlement in a recently conquered plane, won by the powerful mages of the Tyraid Kingdom.

The trees were torn down as the settlers reclaimed the land.

Bountiful fields of crops and small sparse cottages swept the landscape beside the forest. It would be picturesque like a peaceful countryside, if not for the desperate screams of the farmers, running for their lives. They were under attack, hunted as prey.

Large dark creatures chased after their meals. Pouncing on the weak and unfortunate who were unable to escape, they chomped down with their mighty jaws, tearing chunks of flesh from their victims. Blood splattered the ground. Cries of agony echoed across the land, before becoming silent as they died and became the sustenance for the beasts.

"Run Eli!!!"

The hurried shouts of an older middle-aged man in worn out farming clothes yelled out to his adult son, who just came of age a year ago.

"Hurry! You cannot win Eli! Don't be foolish! Run away, son! Hurry!"

The poor farmer's son, Eli, was further behind him, fending off a pack of large beasts, each the size of a mule cart.

The wild beasts were called Mokai, and they were wrapped in pitch black fur. They were actually quite common and lived with similar variations of their species in the many different planes of the Great Expanse.

The beasts crouched and snapped aggressively on all fours but we're actually bipedal creatures. Their long arms swung to their knees when they stood upright.

They had long powerful front limbs almost like gorillas, but their wide midsections arched extensively outwards and were much longer in length, resembling that of jaguars.

The area of their femur bones extended longer than the rest of their legs. Large and dense hamstrings and calf muscles gave them powerful spurts of speed and agility.

Their skulls were shaped and pointed like that of a hyena, but they were mostly silent hunters like wolves.

Thick rows of sharp teeth filled their snapping snouts as they tried to clamp down on Eli. Eli swung his shovel smacking the closest beast attacking him. It recoiled in pain and stayed back, aggressively snapping its jaws back at Eli.

The Mokai were wary, but they did not give up the tasty treat before them.

Eli was slightly muscular from his work on his family's fields, but he was on the thinner side. His patched clothing fit relaxed on his body.

Eli's family chose to risk the dangers of the frontier territories of the Tyraid kingdom due to the much lower taxes and free land if they could claim them. The incentives were too good for the poor like themselves. However, now it was too late for them to question the risks.

"Dad! Go! I'll hold them off until the Guardians arrive!!! There's too many! We'll both die! Go! Run inside the barrier covering the town. You will be safe there!"

"No!!! Come with me! We don't know if they'll even show! Those bastards don't give a damn about us!"

Time was running out, the intelligent creatures tried to surround them.

A deep bellow blasted out of Eli as he commanded his father. "RUN FATHER!!! NOW!!!"

The deafening yell momentarily froze the beasts.

Eli's father was in a dilemma.

He knew there was no changing his son's stubborn mind. His son was right, they would soon overtake them both as they were deadly fast hunters. However, how could he as the father run away without his son?

"I won't leave you Eli! Come with me this instant!"

Eli screamed at his father again. "If you don't run right now, I will throw myself and let them tear me apart! You know I will! Now go!"

The farmer bit his lips hard. It bled from his frustration with his son. He knew his son well. His son would do as he says.

He gave in. Frustrated and powerless, tears filled his eyes. He felt like a coward for running away and leaving his son, but what could he do? He could not stop his foolish son. He thought this would be the last time he would see him.

"Promise me you will come back. Promise me and I'll go!"

"Why won't you leave, old man! I promise! I swear it to the divines! Now please, father! Go!"

"I love you son. Please don't die Eli. You must live and come back to your mother and I. You hear!?"

"I love you too dad. Now go. Leave them to me. I won't die so easily. I'll make it back! Go!"

His father charged towards the town. One of the Mokai lunged at Eli's father but he slammed his shovel down on its head, causing it to whimper in pain.

The others in the pack snarled and made creepy deep yet high pitched angry growls that resemble crazed laughing.

Eli succeeded in stopping the attack on his father, but now all of the pack of Mokai had their attention on him. The Mokai he had attacked blocked his path to town and more ran to block the path.

They tried to circle Eli in the middle, but he was not going to let them do as they pleased. He wasn't going to die anytime soon.

In a surprise move to the beasts, Eli dashed forward with all his might at a slightly open corner guarded by a single Mokai that led into the forest.

Unable to move away in time, the shovel swung by Eli smashed right at the pointed snout of the Mokai. The slam of bone against metal and a slight break could be heard. It retracted backwards at the momentum of being hit with the shovel and flinched from the radiating pain.

Eli took the moment of distraction and ran past the pack. A rarely heard maddening screech clambered into the surroundings from the pack behind Eli.

He swiftly ran away at full speed into the depths of the dense forest. Branches and brush scratched and tore his clothes and skin, but he didn't feel a thing.

Eli was completely concentrated in running away as fear and adrenaline rushed through his veins. He wanted to find the river that ran through the great forest. The Mokai disliked water, partially due to the greater dangers lurking in the river. But it was Eli's last hope.

There was nowhere else he could run to where they would not follow him. The Mokai had claw-like hands that allowed them to mount and climb trees. Those who encountered the Mokai and lived to tell the tale, either succeeded in running away or killed them.

There was no way Eli, a farmer with no combat or magic skills, could win against one, let alone the large pack chasing him.

He was panting heavily as he sprinted. Eli was somewhat familiar with the area as he would carefully forage when the Guardians and mages were present.

The sound of rushing water gave Eli hope.

The Mokai were almost behind him, but the brush and trees thinned as they opened up to the banks of the rapidly moving river.

Not giving a second thought, Eli rushed forward, sprinting with the last ounce of his strength.

The maddening screech once again bellowed through the area as the Mokai knew they were about to lose their prey. The prey that actually damaged their pack would escape. They raged in a frenzy and burst forth with inhuman speed.

However, they were too late. Eli ran through the stony bank and reached the waters. But a slash from a Mokai's claw grazed his calf. He was almost caught.

They screamed in a furry from the escaping prey, one that provoked their abilities. The smashed the stones and stomped the ground on the bank of the river.

The sting from the water on the cut of his open skin made Eli realize how close he was to death. He quickly moved further into the river thinking he would be safe.

However, he did not know the tenacity of the Mokai. In the rampaging, they realized they could still hurl the stones at Eli.

A barrage of stones the size of fists pelted the waters where Eli was.

There was an agonizing snap as a large rock slammed against his dominant arm, fracturing it. The hurling stones did not stop.

Eli covered his head with his good arm while moving slowly away with the water. But he tried to not get too far into the fast moving current, afraid he would be pulled away.

However, he would no longer be able to do so as the powerful throw of a rock hit his hand, the force was so great it slammed together with the side of his head. He was knocked into the water unconscious, floating into the rapid current as it took him away.

***

Seth momentarily stopped recalling his unpleasant memories of the terrible night of torture. There was so much more of this past, but he had a full day ahead of him.

He was not going to let bad memories get in the way of his new life.

Little did Seth know, he would find someone who would disturb his plans for the day.