Chapter 18: cleansed in blood(the fall of the city)

"Are we there yet?" "For the last time, shut your mouth Jake." Timothy responded in frustration as they were walking towards the capital. It has been two hours since they left Sondor, and they were right in the heart of the desert, passing many ruins along the way.

"Why didn't we take the carriage? I deserve to know," jake grumbled in frustration.

"We are going to pass by a forest ruled by bandits and thieves. Bringing a carriage would cause us unnecessary trouble, don't you think?" explained Timothy.

"Forest? Where?"Jake asked looking around . "Just shut up and walk!" Ver screamed after growing tired of Jake's nonsense. Jake looked at her with a wronged expression, earning himself a scoff, leaving him grumbling to himself.

"There it is," Finn pointed at the distantsilhouetteof a forest. Jake almost yelped in joy looked like he was about to jump and scream before realizing that the forest was still an hour away.

"Damnit, I can't catch a break, can't I?" Jake clicked his tongue in annoyance , Timothy shook his head at his friend's pained expression.

...

Back in Nâçiteñe'v city, four men dressed in white and gold magr robes with hoodies approached the city from four different directions. When they reached the outer wall, all of them started mumbling strange words.

"Revi nor seij vor unze'r dela krovoz. Revi dela BLODKLOT CLEANSE THE WORLD WITH BLOOD." Their eyes started bleeding, along with their noses and ears, as two tentacles emerged from their backs before the tentacles started moving to the left and one to the right.

The tentacles shot towards one another before joining together. As soon as the tentacles conjoined, a blood barrier appeared, covering the whole city. The people in the city looked up at the sky, amazed by what they saw. "My Lord, there is a barrier of blood covering the whole sky!" one of Iver's most trusted men reported to him.

" Only Death awaits the city now , it seems like it is time ." he thought to himself.

"Get me that boy Morgan and his two lackeys. I have something I need to discuss with them." Iver commanded.

"Yes, my Lord." The man bowed and left.

A few minutes later, there was a knock on the door. "Enter." Iver answered the door.

"Saint Iver, we heard you called for us?" Morgan asked, concealing his happiness under a serious expression.

"Yes, the city will perish, and I don't think I can protect any one of you. So right now I need you to leave and go to the capital and report the destruction of the city to the king's council." "My Lord, what about our families? What about you? Why don't you all leave with us?" Morgan asked as the weight of Iver's words sunk in.

"Families? In this great peril? If your father was given the option to choose; your life or his, what do you think he would choose? " iver asked scrutinizing the boys from head to toe.

Morgan contemplated Iver's words and eventually nodded realizing that his life was the most precious thing, therefore he had to put himself first.

Iver smiled at Morgan before continuing " I on the other hand , as the one in charge of the city, I have to be here when doom faces it and try to fight, even though the chances of me solving the problem are futile. I have to die trying , for that is the way of a true knight .....Of a true sword Saint." Iver spoke in a determined manner whilst handing the boy a map , his image of a righteous man in front of the boys was fully portrayed in his words and expression.

"This is a map of underground tunnels that go from here to Sondor the warringvillage. Once you reach Sondor look for Faro jorn and explain everything I told you and everything you saw that way you can be taken to the capital city. I entrust you with this task , leave now before you too become collateral damage. If I survive, I'll definitely be behind you." Iver's words were like "The boys bowed before turning around to leave." "Morgan, remember you are the future of Zebha. Don't let me down." with that Morgan nodded proudly and left the room.

"Sadly, you are not the main character of this generation nor are you of any importance," Iver spoke with a smile. Above the city, red clouds filled the sky slowly gathering , turning into one big cloud with blood lightning bolts flashing in the sky. With that, it started to rain, but the rain was not water but it was blood, raining heavily, filling the whole city in red and the scent of blood permeated whole seated like a deadly pandemic on the loose.

The people of the city seemed to be in a daze before their bodies started mutilating. Their skin turned red, hands turning to claws, their teeth turned razor-sharp, and their eyes turned yellow. Those who didn't mutilate screamed in horror as they watched their loved ones mutilate. Children watched their mothers turn into a horrific creature before being attacked and ripped into shreds and ate. Husbands were killed by their newly mutilated wives, and children killed their parents . In a span of ten minutes, the whole city was now quiet with only the sounds of teeth grinding on bones as the abominations fed on the former occupants of the city.

"This place reeks." Iver who had surprisingly survived the fall of the city spoke as he slowly navigated his way out of the city, he seemed to be invisible to the horrifying creatures that murdered the whole city. The whole city was a mess filled with mangled flesh , dried up blood , and disfigured bodies of the former occupants of the city. Some were being ripped apart by the abominable creatures as they feasted on the lifeless remains of the former citizens of Nâçiteñe'v city , the city cleansed in blood.

" Not now.....they are not yet ready for me." Iver spoke his gaze in the direction of the capital , before taking the opposite route and heading towards the unknown. His journey was a mystery to all except for him , smiling as he made his way to the unknown....

....

Timothy and the rest had finally entered the forest, breathing in a breath of fresh forest air. "Ah, magnificent trees, please continue sheltering us from the sun with your cool shade." Jake spoke, but no one reprimanded him as they all shared the same thoughts.

They walked for an hour before reaching the center of the forest. The plant life here was vastily different from the ones in the outer region; it was much larger , enchanting and beautifully scary. The forest had an air of mystery and many creatures of legend seemed to reside in this magical place.

"Now, remain cautious," Finn warned, his voice barely audible as they traversed through the center of the forest. They would occasionally hear many sounds from beasts and sometimes even from people but finn was good at leading , making sure they would not encounter danger along the way . But that wasn't until a deep and menacing voice resounded out through the forest followed by a series of mad laughter ,

"What do we have here, boys?!"