THE MYSTERIOUS VISIT IV
The festivities were cut short in the village once the alarm was raised. Two knight guards, Carrs Armani and Robert Townsdy were left behind to guard Martha alongside a fleet of soldiers who’s outpost was close to her quarters. The two twins Valmon and Salron went back to the market to sound the alarm and alert the other soldiers to keep their guard up.
“It has been three hours Robert, I think we should go after them maybe something went wrong.”
“She told us to stay back and wait for her signal. Besides we were the ones left behind to guard Mrs. Martha, if we abandon her here then…”
Martha popped out of the house and interrupted their debate.
“I’ll be fine. No need to worry about me I can take care of myself. You should go and look for them! I am also beginning to worry about them.”
Robert and Carrs both exchanged lucid looks and nodded simultaneously in agreement. They instructed the rest of the soldiers to wait until they received a signal. .They pulled out whatever they had as weapons and set their eyes towards the forest where Alicia and her cavalry disappeared into. The dark seemed to beckon unto them, softly dragging them inside its belly where terrors lurked beneath the covers of the dark shadows cast by the crescent moon. Further inside the darkness Alicia had Reene mantled on her shoulder, ferociously fighting for his life. Each breathe he drew seemed like a pace closer to his end, yet he clawed his way back with every step, trying hard to keep his eyes open.
Alicia’s top was covered with his blood. She had torn off a piece of her cloth and handed it over to Reene to help him apply pressure on the wound to lessen blood loss. Her steps were full of desperation, she wanted to take longer strides at a faster pace but every time she stretched her limbs further Reene would growl in pain. Roughly twenty minutes had passed since their return from the visit to the spiritual realm, and with each passing minute Reene’s grip on Alicia’s shoulder became weaker. For Alicia it served as a measure of strength left in him, she knew if his grip would fall off her shoulder it would be too late for something to be done.
A huge problem they faced was that they were basically lost. Following her lucky teleportation, they found themselves lost and the manna trail they had been following had completely faded. Darkness made it harder for them to establish a sense of direction so they started walking, hoping the guesses they took as turns were correct. She wanted to send a signal but that would also alarm the Vurhans who were on high alert thanks to the intruder’s efforts.
Alicia felt something brush off her back and when she turned to look she realized it was Reene’s hand. His legs gave way and he stumbled to the ground, dragging Alicia down with him. Alicia’s heart sank, she tried gently tapping his cheeks but he was unresponsive. Salty tears warmed her eyeballs, her hands were quivering. She pushed him once more, calling out his name with her shaky voice. The ruffling leaves behind her did nothing to stutter her. Another Vurhan shamelessly bulged out from amongst the trees. Alicia had had enough of those creatures.
She shot up from the ground and grabbed the creature’s face, almost squeezing out its teeth. She rampaged through its face with a blast so violent Carrs and Robert felt a shock wave from the other side of the forest. From where they stood they could hear the massive footsteps of the creatures heading towards the origin of the blast. They joined the footrace, trying to keep up with the pack ahead.
Alicia lost balance and found herself rocking back and forth for a brief moment before planting her face on the ground. She lay to her side, her eyes closing to the site of Reene beside her, immobile and lacking signs of life. Branches snapped and trees swayed as the horde closed in on the two. Carrs and Robert tried their best to keep up but their inferior legs were no match for the Vurhans who slingshot their way through the vegetation.
Luckily enough Alicia and Reene Had teleported close to the edge of the forest, the village was not a stone throw away but it was close enough. Robert lost hope in his ability to keep up with the creatures. He was beginning to loose speed so he spoke to Carrs who was surprisingly light on his feet.
“I am going to create a distraction! You must reach her and tell her to fire the signal!”
With all the commotion Carrs did not hear most of the words he said, yet he somehow understood what he meant. Robert pulled out his crossbow and aimed it randomly at the swaying trees in front of them. Carrs rerouted and curved a path beside his line of fire to avoid confrontation with one of the creatures. Robert began haphazardly firing arrows every which way, hoping to catch one of the creatures. He started yelling to catch their attention as well, which worked surprisingly well. The creatures at the rare end of the pack halted and turned their attention towards him.
Though he was exhausted he still somehow had faith his feet would carry him to safety so he resumed his run. Carrs could barely see the two lying on the ground. He could also see the Vurhans sprinting towards them. He yanked the bow from his back and wet his fingertips by swiping them across his tongue. In one motion he pulled out an arrow and positioned it on his bow, yanked it all the way past his ear and released a mighty shot that ripped through the air, finally thrusting its way through the Vurhan closest to the two who were helplessly sprawled on the ground.
The other three Vurhans halted for a second. Another arrow zipped through the trees and popped an eyeball of one of the three Vurhans. The remaining two zoned in on the origin of the projectiles and launched their bodies towards the direction, only to be met by two other arrows straight through their heads. Carrs rushed out of the darkness with a dagger at hand and sliced through their throats to make sure of their deaths.
He dived to the ground where Alicia was and forcefully shoved her back and forth. He arrived in the nick of time before she was fully incapacitated, she slowly opened her eyes but her vision was still blurry, and Armani’s words seemed distorted, but slowly she was coming to.
“They are too many! Do it now Alicia fire the signal!”
Armani shouted. The two Vurhans he shot earlier were still alive and had the use of all their limbs, there was nothing stopping them from launching an attack. Alicia straightened her back and aimed for the two creatures, charging up a blast, but midway she lost her orientation and her hand slipped, Carrs quickly caught it before it dropped all the way down, before her palm could be aimed at Reene. He clamped his palms around her wrist and shouted at her to fire.
Using her hand as a crossbow he aimed at the two Vurhans and directed the blast towards their heads, burning their brains off in a matter of seconds. After he believed them to be dead he shifted his aim and pointed her palm to the sky. The blast shot upwards and exploded in the sky like an aurora. It lit up the entire forest, for a moment the creatures thought it was already dawn. The blast made its way to the village and the guards responded. They lit up their torches and charged towards the forest.
The Vurhans feared engaging with a large group of enemies, that is why they never attacked the village. The multitude of armed soldiers rushed into the forest like a wave. Their bright torches lit up the forest and their chants drove fear into the hearts of the creatures. They rapidly commenced their retreat.
Alicia had used up the last bit of strength she had left in her. After her ravishing display she gave into the temptations and drifted away. Robert was gassed out, he was lucky the soldiers appeared the moment they did because he was ready to give up. He looked up and saw the Vurhans turning back and fleeing in terror. His body was pumped up with adrenaline. He waited for them to vanish and lit up his torch. The charging soldiers saw the flicker of his torch and ran towards it.
Armani pressed upon Reene’s neck to check for a pulse, it was really weak. If one did not pay close attention one could not sense it. But he was still clinging on to life by a thread. The soldiers approached the scene and found Carrs and beside the two.
“Quickly! Hurry up we are loosing him! Get them to the infirmary right away!” he shouted at them. The rest of the soldiers surrounded the two, forming a barrier as others lifted them up and placed them on their soldiers. Luckily they reached to them before the creatures could, but could the damage have been done? Were they too late?