Spring Showers Box-set
Page 65
difference between a cat and-” Harry paused and turned his gaze towards the passing jungle. “I
agree we could use the upcoming battle to escape, but we should not discount the possibility that
there are other predators in the jungle besides the army we’re marching with.”
“You’re right, of course,” Mikel agreed. “I’d still like to know why the commander keeps us around.
Do you think he plans to use us as bait?”
“I don’t know,” Harry replied. “But I’m sure we’ll find out.”
Chapter 14
Mikel
The Dutch soldiers entered the south side of the clearing as the sun fell behind the trees, casting
long shadows across the tall grass.
“Davis!”
Mikel heard his name called from the head of the column. It wasn’t the commander, but one of the
other scouts. He wore the same brown leathers as Mikel. His straight, brown hair and dark
complexion reminded Mikel of the tanned hides that hung in his uncle’s factory in London. All
muted brown and tan.
“The commander needs you to move ahead, through the trees, around the right side of the clearing.
He wants to know if the enemy is hiding on the other side of the rise.”
Mikel gritted his teeth, refraining from suggesting that one of the ‘loyal’ scouts should make the
trip. Instead, he nodded, glanced at Harry and moved into the trees.
Without his sword catching on every briar, he was able move with a lot less noise. But he still
cringed as each footfall elicited a snapping twig or rustle of leaves.
They must want to see me caught. Mikel thought. I have as much stealth as a stampeding herd of elk.
He made his way through the tree line until he could see over the rise in the clearing. His breath
caught in his throat when he saw the platoon of soldiers at the edge of the field in front of him.
So, they did beat us here, and they’re waiting for the Dutch to crest over the rise to attack.
The Portuguese army stood in loose formation as if they expected the enemy’s approach at any
moment. Mikel thought of Harry and turned back towards to the Dutch army to warn them of the
waiting Portuguese.
A snapping limb to his right caught his attention and arrested his movement. He listened intently
and heard it again. He looked to each side, panic creeping across his skin. A rustle of leaves stirred,
this time even closer. He scurried to the nearest tree and started climbing. He didn’t stop until he
was halfway up the tree. He held his breath, certain that the soldiers below him heard his noisy
ascent. The seconds ticked by as he listened to muffled footfalls and snapping branches.
He looked down through the thick leaves and saw a dark form emerge beneath him. It was
enormous, towering above the height of any normal man. Large, curved horns emerged from its
dark skull. Its black, muscular body covered only by a pair of brown trousers that barely reached its
knees. It held a massive dual-headed axe in its clawed fingers.
Mikel tried desperately to control his breathing, but fear threatened to overwhelm him as a dozen more of the creatures passed under his hiding spot. He nearly fell from his perch when he heard a
soft gasp above him. He looked up to find a Portuguese soldier clinging to the next highest limb.
The man’s face reflected the same fear and confusion as his own.
Mikel turned his gaze towards the Portuguese army, the same direction the monsters were headed.
Were there more approaching the Dutch as well? Were these the creatures the scout saw the
other night? Mikel reigned in his fear and careful y made his way down the tree. He needed to
warn the Dutch soldiers. As much as he hated his situation, he suddenly realized there was safety
in numbers. Mikel and Harry would never survive an attack against those creatures.
When his feet touched the ground, he heard the other soldier descending the tree as well. They
nodded to each other, understanding the greater danger.
Mikel threw caution to wind and ran as quickly as possible back to his fel ow soldiers. He heard
the sounds of fighting before he reached the southern side of the clearing. Otherworldly howls
followed agonizing screams. The Commander’s strong voice cut across the chaos for a second
before it was silenced. Mikel stopped just inside the tree line and watched in horror as a dozen
more demonic creatures swarmed through the Dutch soldiers. The men tried to fight back, but the
sheer size and strength of the monsters they faced could not be matched. His gaze was drawn to
the sound of Harry cursing. Surrounded by the bodies of the soldiers he despised, he raised his
sword and growled at the lone demon in front of him. A feral grin spread across the creature’s face.
It raised its axe above its head and brought it down against Harry’s sword. Harry’s weapon
shattered and the demon embedded his bloody blade in Harry’s chest.
Mikel ran away from the carnage and into the thick underbrush. Visions of the men he had
despised for weeks being slaughtered by those hellish creatures clouded his thoughts. He stumbled
through the night, not heeding the direction he traveled, having lost sight of the road hours before.
He tripped and landed face first in small stream. He pul ed himself to his knees and sobbed. His
salty tears mixing with blood from dozens of cuts inflicted by the thick foliage. He was lost in a
foreign jungle, without food or water and utterly alone.
Chapter 15
Raphael
Raphael snaked through the underbrush that edged the clearing. The only sound of his passing
was the occasional whisper of leaves against the soft leather of his vest. He emerged from the
dense foliage and stopped abruptly, hearing the snap of nearby twigs and cascading leaves as they
fell to the ground.
Not a very talented scout, is he?
He smirked and climbed the nearest tree, waiting for the enemy scout to approach. He was
surprised to see the same man, with blond hair and pale skin from earlier that day. The man
looked around nervously, with a panicked expression. He did nothing to hide his presence and
made no efforts to be quiet. Raphael shook his head and smiled as blondie recklessly climbed the
tree beneath him. When he settled onto a limb just below Raphael, he heard footsteps in the
underbrush.These were subtler, being carefully placed. Raphael tried to gauge how many soldiers
approached, but it was difficult to tell.
He watched the jungle floor beneath him. A large shadow was quickly followed by a creature with
curved horns growing from its dark skul . Its enormous, muscular body appeared to be covered in
black scales. A massive dual-headed axe rested against its shoulder and clawed fingers flexed
around the hilt. It paused and turned, gesturing towards someone behind him.
Raphael was unable to stifle the gasp that escaped his lips as he watched a dozen more of the
massive creatures emerge from the jungle. They passed beneath his hiding place, unaware of the
two humans watching them. Raphael hadn’t realized he held his breath until they were out of
sight. He exhaled softly and looked down at the blond scout beneath him. The young man was
shaking violently and looking back towards the road. He had the same thought.
I need to warn my fel ow countryman.
Raphael watched his enemy scale down the tree and he quickly fol owed. The scout’s gaze shifted
to Raphael a
nd he nodded. The threat of these creatures was more dire than their own fight.
Raphael dropped from the lowest branch and nimbly raced through the trees. He expected to
catch up to the creatures easily; they had passed beneath his tree mere minutes ago. He was only a
few minutes from his own camp when he finally saw them, but he was too late to stop the
slaughter of his countrymen. He hid behind a patch of briars, bile pooling in the back of his throat
as he watched the massive creatures defeat even the bravest and most skilled soldiers.
As the group finished off the last of his comrades, Raphael noticed a pair of the dark scaled
monstrosities headed his way. He thought about hiding, but only for a moment. If they discovered
him, he had no hope of surviving. His commanding officers at the fort needed to know of the
threat lurking in the jungle.
He quickly and quietly moved deeper into the trees, heading north towards the safety of their fort.
Would their wooden walls be enough to stave off this foe? Raphael felt it unlikely.
He retreated into the night, only stopping at the occasional stream for water. Visions of his fellow
soldiers brutally killed by those hellish creatures, kept his mind whirling. The thought of sleep was
beyond him. He knew the nightmares that waited for him if he closed his eyes.
He made it back to the fort late the next evening. The sun had set hours ago, and Raphael noticed
the outlines of the patrolling guards. He approached a pair near the main gates, startling them.
“Who goes there?” one of them shouted and raised his musket in Raphael’s direction.
“Raphael Silva Lopez,” he replied. “I need to report to the commander immediately.”
“Lopez, where is the rest of the platoon?” the guard asked, escorting him to the main gate and
signaling the watch to open it.
“Gone.”
Raphael moved slowly through the gate. The closer he got to his destination, the more his
exhaustion threatened to take him. He made his way to the guard tower knowing that the
watchman would wake the commander.
He pushed the door opened and pulled himself inside. He collapsed in the nearest chair,
disregarding the lone guard in the tower’s base. A few minutes later, the watchman shook him
awake.
“The commander will meet you in his office in five minutes.” The man shuffled his feet then looked
directly at Raphael. “What happened to the rest of the platoon?”
“I need to report to the commander first,” Raphael replied. “I’ll let him tell everyone else.”
The watchman nodded and left. Raphael pushed himself to his feet and shuffled out the door
behind him.
~~~~~~~~~~~
“The whole platoon is dead?” the commander asked in disbelief.
His rumpled uniform and unlaced boots indicated his rush to meet his scout, but he was not happy
about Raphael’s report.
“You expect me to believe that a dozen black scaled, horned creatures killed an entire platoon of my
best men?”
“Yes, sir.” Raphael stood at attention in front of his commanding officer, who ignored his scout’s
obvious exhaustion. “I would not believe it either, if I hadn’t seen it with my own eyes.”
“Were they working for the enemy?”
“I don’t believe so. I discovered an enemy scout at the edge of the clearing and he was just as surprised by the creatures’ presence as I.”
The commander leaned back in his chair, rubbing the thick whiskers on his chin.
“Get some rest,” he finally said. “I need to think about the tale you’ve told.”
Raphael saluted and turned to leave, too tired to be offended by his commander’s disbelief.
He opened the door to his barracks and a knot formed in his throat. It was empty and would stay
that way until they received new recruits. He collapsed onto his cot, not bothering to undress, and
fell into a restless sleep, plagued by demons.
Chapter 16
Mikel
Mikel was startled awake by the sound of hundreds of wings echoing through the dark cave where
he slept. High pitched squeaks from a swarm of bats drifted into the night as they left their home
to hunt. He was not surprised by their presence. When he entered the cave two days ago, the smell
of their feces assaulted his senses. He nearly abandoned the thought of using it for shelter, but he
was tired, hungry and beyond despair.
He’d only slept for a few hours, his nightmares not allowing more rest. He stretched his aching
limbs and prepared himself for a long night of watching for predators. He had no weapons, other
than a stiff branch he’d successfully used as a club the previous night. A young black cat, nearly
the size of a large dog, tried to creep into his cave. Mikel was certain he didn’t kill it, but it limped
away with a whimper.
He took a small swallow from his water flask. The warm, stale liquid barely quenched his thirst. He
would need to find a better stream to refill his supply. He would also need to find a way to feed
himself if he had any hopes of surviving. He was born and raised in London. His father never saw
the need to teach him how to build traps for small animals or a fishing line. He would surely starve
if he didn’t figure something out or stumble into one of the local villages.
I’m deceiving no one but myself. He thought. I’m not a woodsman. I’ll never be able to catch anything to eat, and I’ll likely poison myself the first time I try one of numerous berries. Maybe I’m deserving of that fate. I left my friend to die amongst his enemies, only to be slaughtered by demons.
His thoughts continued to wander through memories of his childhood, his parents and younger
sister. He remembered his first successful negotiation with the East India Trade Company. His
father was so proud of him, although Mikel suspected he was also relieved that he would no longer
be handling the deals. His father was a worker, while Mikel was the planner. Their partnership
worked splendidly until-
Mikel was startled awake again by a warm hand on his forehead. He tried to open his eyes but
found he couldn’t.
“Be still,” a strong, masculine voice echoed through the cave. “I have a task for you.”
A surge of heat consumed his body. He arched his back in pain and tried to cry out, but nothing
escaped his lips.
“Search for the scout named Raphael,” the voice continued and the pain faded away. “He has need
of your mind and you require his skills. I will lead you to the mountain when you find him.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Mikel awoke again to the sunlight streaming into the mouth of the cave. A strange sensation
assaulted him that he didn’t immediately understand. He stood and stretched, noticing that his
muscles did not ache, his mouth was not parched, his stomach no longer grumbled with hunger
pains and he felt – alive.
He looked down at his outstretched hands and saw a soft glow radiating from them.
What happened to me?
He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. The smells of the jungle assaulted him, aromas he never
noticed before. His eyes snapped open as he remembered the voice.
Was it just a dream?
He looked at his glowing hands and a feeling of purpose and obligation nearly overwhelmed him.
He shook his head trying to clear his mind.
I don’t think so.
He stared into the thick jungle and made a decision.
Chapter 17
Raphael
The next day, Raphael found himself marching south again, with another platoon of soldiers. Only
this time he was in the lead. His commander instructed him to find the platoon he abandoned. The
lieutenant at his side eyed him skeptically, also not believing his story about the horned creatures.
They made camp the first night, with only the threat of a lone, injured puma. It wandered into
their camp, favoring one of its hind legs. One of the soldiers put it out of its misery and carried the
corpse a safe distance away, so as not to attract any other predators.
The next morning the lieutenant approached Raphael.
“How much longer before we reach the clearing?” he asked.
“We should be there by mid-day, sir.”
“Good, I’d…” the lieutenant’s comment was cut short by shouts at the end of the column.
“Lieutenant!” a man with dark hair and darker eyes, raced up to the officer. Blood dripped from the
arm he cradled against his chest. “The back of the column is being slaughtered!”
“Pul everyone to me and form ranks!” the officer called racing toward the end of the line.
Raphael followed with trepidation. A sense of foreboding crowding his thoughts.
The soldiers did as instructed and rallied around their lieutenant, forming a defensive rank along a
curve in the road. Several more soldiers ran toward the line, each grievously injured and some
carrying their fellows.
“Allow them through quickly, then reform the line!”
When the first black-scaled monster turned the corner, fear swept across the ranks.
“Hold steady! It is only one-” the lieutenant paused as two dozen more followed in the wake of
their leader.
They each carried a massive axe, almost as tall as the average man. The demons themselves were
heads tal er than even their largest soldier. Their bare chests rippled with muscle as they tested
their weapons in anticipation of the coming fight. Without warning the demons charged and
soldiers’ line collapsed.
Raphael had seen the results of the demon’s onslaught once before and knew they would not