Chapter 35
Surrounded
Rasmere woke the rest of the group while being as inconspicuous as possible. The entire party was now awake and wondering what had caused him to arouse them from their much needed slumber. Rasmere duck walked over to where Thaddeus knelt, listening to the dark forest around them.
“Any more movement?” Rasmere asked.
“Yes,” the King said as he repositioned himself. “Something is definitely out there. An animal, perhaps?”
“I do not think so,” said Rasmere.
Azonis, Caleb, and River made their way over to the fire where Rasmere and Thaddeus sat.
“What is out there?” asked River.
“We do not know. Be ready for anything,” replied Rasmere.
“I am getting a bad feeling about this,” said Azonis. “I feel eyes upon me.”
“Want me to check it out?” asked Caleb.
“Yes, but be cautious,” replied the King.
Caleb once again transformed himself into an owl and flew off into the night sky. They sat silently awaiting his return, listening and watching the darkness that surrounded them. After a few minutes the Shape Shifter touched back down beside the fire with a panic stricken look on his face.
“Well?” Thaddeus asked.
“Something is definitely out there. I can see shapes but I cannot make out what they are,” he paused. “And there seems to be a large number of them.”
“The Breathless,” Thaddeus said as he stood up. “I can smell their stench.”
“I think it is high time we find out who our visitors are,” he said as he drew his axe. “River, can you shed some light on this situation?”
The Mage nodded her head and readied her staff.
“Prepare yourselves,” Azonis said as he removed his golden sword from its sheath and readied his shield. “If whatever is watching us is hostile, it will surely attack when it knows we are aware of its presence.”
Rasmere's bow was already drawn at full length, desperately seeking a target. Caleb transformed himself into the golden brown lion and lowered himself on his front legs, ready to pounce. River stepped forward and muttered a few words. With a swipe of her staff, the forest became alive with flames. Loud screeches from the darkness sent chills throughout their bodies. As the blaze began to dance across the forest floor, their eyes began to adjust to the initial explosion of light. Dark figures started to come into focus, and they were now charging at their camp site.
“Get ready!” Thaddeus yelled. “And whatever you do, do not stray from the protective circle of flame that River has provided."
A multitude of Breathless and Shadow Men began to storm their camp. At least a hundred attackers fell victim to River's circle of fire before it was stamped out.
The heroes began to battle by the light of a blazing forest. Thaddeus managed to keep his party in formation as they faced the overwhelming attack. He and Azonis put their weapons to work meeting the slews of the living dead head on. They ripped through the rotten flesh of their attackers like a hot fire poker in fresh snow. The fight was fast paced and frantic. The sheer numbers of the evil forces did not allow for even one mistake. Thaddeus, amongst all the chaos, still managed to bellow out orders to the rest of his party. Without his direction, they would surely have been overrun.
Caleb circled closely to Thaddeus and Azonis, taking down any of the Breathless who made it past their defensive wall. The amount of power behind Caleb's powerful swings, along with his razor sharp claws, made for quick one hit kills that sent large bits of rotten flesh and black blood flying through the night air.
River and Rasmere stood near the cliff face. The Forest Engenium was picking enemies off by the dozens. A rotten corpse somehow managed to make its way behind Azonis. Rasmere took aim but hesitated for a moment. The corpse grabbed Azonis by the shoulder; tarnishing his golden armor with a slimy black substance. Rasmere released the taut string and sent an opas arrow through the soft skull of the corpse that stopped it in its tracks. Azonis quickly turned to see Rasmere standing motionless, staring at him. The Sestian gave him a nod of thanks, which Rasmere reluctantly returned. The Sestian rejoined the battle and Rasmere continued to snipe enemies from the back of the battlefield.
River was hurling bolts of fire into the darkness, which made quick work of the Shadow Men. Her fire bolts, combined with the forest blaze, incinerated the ashen foes by the hundreds. For creatures without mouths, the Shadow Men produced ear splitting cries as they exploded, and their remains were blown away with the cool night breeze.
After a frantic defense of their camp, it was finally over. Heaps of rotten corpses and black ash from the Shadow Men littered the forest floor. The smell was unbearable. The warriors were all panting heavily. White sections of flesh shone from underneath their dirty faces, streaked clean from the sweat that flooded down their brows.
“Is it over?” asked Caleb.
“Why?” Thaddeus asked with a smile. “Do you want more?”
Caleb returned his smile.
“But there is more,” replied Azonis.
The eyes of the entire group narrowed down upon him. He had just said the words none of them wanted to hear.
“If these creatures are here, then there must be a Summoner nearby. Am I correct?” Azonis asked.
“Very likely,” said the King. “Let us search the forest once more. Stay close together, we do not want to become separated.”
They set off blindly into the forest looking for the person responsible for the unannounced arrival of their guests. Caleb was soaring high in the night sky looking for signs of life below. A few miles from the camp, Caleb descended back to the earth.
“Anything?” asked Thaddeus.
“Yes. There is an old cabin a few miles west of us. Smoke rolls from its chimney. I do not know how I missed it before,” said Caleb.
“Do not worry about such things, Caleb,” Thaddeus said as he put a hand on the Shifter’s shoulder. “Can you lead us there?”
“Yes,” Caleb replied.
The fearless warriors gathered their belongings and made their way through the dark forest and prepared themselves for the worst. It was very unlikely that anyone with good intentions would be living this far out in the forest.
If the Summoner is in this cabin, he will meet the same fate as the rest of his kind, Thaddeus thought as they set off for the cabin.
Locmire's Quest: Book One A Tales from Calencia Novel Page 54