The Beginning: Breath of War

by R. Malak

  Lorika touched the knives hidden in her hair and up her sleeves.

  She went on, “Remember it is your faith that is being tested today.”

  Togran growled his eyes becoming hot, “I do not doubt the importance of this tradition, my only wish is to honor Sezrath.”

  “Good, then you will keep your mouth shut.”

  His father scowled at the admonition, but closed his mouth.

  Shaman Berzook the oldest and wisest of the Shamans stood up and held his hands up to the sky, his robes drenched in blood dripping onto to his feet. “Lord Sezrath! Heed my words! We call upon you to bless or curse those who have fallen short of your will!”

  The shamans around the square repeated his words rhythmically again and again like a hymn till the words hung in the air.

  It was then that WarChief Kozan appeared thrusting his way through the crowd of onlookers, wearing full battle armor alongside Grul Han a huge grey skinned giant with hideous scars to his face and arms carrying an immense war hammer.

  “Looks like the shamans have given him a new arm,” grunted Togran with annoyance.

  Takil threw him a knowing look, as if to say she knew this would happen.

  Eight other Orc warriors in full plate armor shoved their way out of the crowd to surround the puffed up WarChief.

  Berzook seeing their entrance cried out to the heavens, “Who dares to challenge the warlord?!”

  Kozan beat his fist against his chest and proclaimed loudly, “I do! Kozan of the Bone Splitters! I challenge the Stone Skins!”

  Berzook eyes flickered over to his father. “Do you accept his challenge?!”

  His father spat on the ground and punched his chest with his fist. “I do!” And there it was, a clan on clan Duerza battle to honor the God Sezrath.

  Kozan leapt down into the pit followed by his nine clansmen all equipped in full plate armor and wielding Warhammers.

  Togran looked down at him and placed a hand on his shoulder. “Stay here.”

  “But father, the whole clan has been challenged!”

  “Stay here,” he repeated then turned and jumped down into the pit with eight of his chosen warriors following him. Ka-gan relieved and yet sick in the stomach from self-hate, didn’t know what to do. He wanted to jump down and help his father, but feared he would only get in their way. But then how could he live with himself, if he did not fight to preserve his own clan?

  Throwing caution to the wind, he leapt down into the pit, and drew his war axe.

  Togran glanced at him, but said nothing.

  Ka-gan stared around him recognizing most of the Orc warriors beside him in the pit: Roltek a tall lanky Orc with short tusks who preferred to wield two axes, Furon another Iron skinned giant like Grul Han, Tosa an old war veteran with many battle scars, Sazta an overweight Orc who loved to eat and fight, and Harwen an iron skinned giant with unique half grey and half white skin. The rest he didn’t know by name but knew by deeds upon the battlefields Throat ripper, Skull crusher, and Leg breaker. These were his father’s best fighters, feeling more confident with them on his side. He gazed across him towards Kozan who was smiling with amusement. Unnerved by his smile, he wondered if Kozan had some trick up his sleeve. When Berzook tossed the heart of one of humans they had captured into the pit. “Begin!”

  Grul Han bellowed loudly, raised his Warhammer and came at them like a thunderstorm followed closely by his kin. The battle ensued with brutal melee battles breaking out all around him. The crash of steel thudded against stone, ringing the air with a deafening sound that tortured the ears and froze the blood. Ka-gan watched with awe as his father met the charge of Grul Han and knocked him aside with a powerful shoulder charge into the great Orc’s unprotected stomach, before deftly sweeping his axe overhead to chop into the side of his skull. Grul Han tumbled to the earth shaking his head like a wet dog and leapt back up to his feet drowsily with blood seeping from his head wound. Kozan hiding behind Grul Han’s huge frame slipped out of his shadow to kick his father’s feet out from under him. Two on one, his father struggled to get to his feet, as they both came at him, pressing him with heavy hammer swings towards his head and chest.

  Ka-gan’s eyes flew left and right frantically searching for a warrior to help his father, but all were busy battling their own opponents. His hands shaking with fear, he let out a scream to release his terror and ran to attack Kozan. Kozan met his wild axes swings with ease, dodging all his blows, like they were nothing and smiled mockingly. Enraged he attacked harder and faster throwing all his weight behind each swing until the axe head was a blur of steel.

  Kozan sensing the danger he was in, flung himself forward out of the path of his war axe, rolled and came up directly beneath him.

  Unable to defend himself, Ka-gan watched the Warhammer moving towards his head in slow motion, when he felt a strong hand grip him from behind and throw him out of the way to bounce hard against the side of the pit.

  Head pounding, he looked up just in time to see his father cry out in pain as the blow meant for him smashed solidly into his father’s left shoulder dislocating his left arm, making it go limp. Together Grul Han and Kozan attacked his father dealing hammer blows to his chest, neck and arms. Breaking his bones and making a mess of him. Togran’s chosen warriors seeing his father fall to the earth dropped to their knees and released their weapons. Warhammers fell, crushing the skulls of the defeated clan to splash blood and grey brain matter onto the earth.

  Ka-gan his legs shaking, and heart racing furiously rushed to his father’s side.

  Togran looked up at his him with dimming red eyes and bruised purple skin.

  Heart full of sorrow he blurted, “I’m so sorry father, I didn’t mean to… I never meant to…” Tears trickled down his cheeks.

  His father smiled. “You have finally become a warrior Ka-gan, I am proud of you,” he said and in a softer voice so no one would hear. “Save Our Clan.” With that, his father shut his eyes and his body became very still.

  Berzook seeing the battle ended raised his arms once more to the sky to declare for all to hear, “Sezrath lord of death has chosen! Welcome Kozan Warlord of the clans!”

  EIGHT

  ---Gunfire blazes in the background--- “Oh Jay, where are you? I really need you to come home right now; the town is under attack. Sarah, Mikiel, Joseph, Gunderson and Talia are all dead *sob* killed by those fire freaks. They surrounded the town at night and started throwing fireballs. Most of the town has been burnt to ashes. I have taken Josh and gone to the church to take shelter with the rest of the survivors. Please Jay if you can hear me, please come home soon…”---More Gunfire and explosions blast in the background, before the phone line goes dead---

  “Sorry, the person you are calling right now is unavailable, please call back later or leave a ten second message after the beep……beeeep”

  30mins Later

  ---Mortar fire and gunfire rattle constantly in a deluge of sound---

  “Damn that coward Dansin, he and his lackeys have run away and taken most of the transport vehicles. Good grief, the man has been nothing, but a curse to our town since the moment he set foot here. Sergeant Toleman is the only officer who has stayed behind to protect us with a few soldiers. He says he’s called in reinforcements and air support, but we all could be in for a long wait. He has started organizing a convoy of cars and vans for us to leave town, in case things don’t go well for us...I pray you return soon…”

  “Sorry, the person you are calling right now is unavailable, please call back later or leave a ten second message after the beep……beeeep”

  45mins Later

  “…Jay I’m soo sorry, me and Josh can’t stay here. The church has been burnt to the ground. Don’t worry, me and Josh are fine, but there’s nowhere left for us to hide. The Sergeant says we have to leave town right now or we will be trapped. If you can hear me Jay, we are heading to Lincoln City, he says there’s a military base there…I love you”

  “Sorry, the p
erson you are calling right now is unavailable, please call back later or leave a ten second message after the beep……beeeep”

  ~ * ~

  Location: The Spire, Year 2061

  Talmen after questioning a few cadets, found out the colonel was supposed to be out on the gun range training new recruits. Eager to see the gun range, and begin his own training, he picked up the pace and went out the back door of the main hall. The gun range located on a small grassy field at the rear of the settlement had wooden fence posts and small metal human shaped targets. Thirty-two soldiers in UN nation’s uniform lounged around on the grass outback drinking what looked to be moonshine with only three soldiers doing any actual training. Talmen after hearing Greta’s comments on the army had prepared himself to see the worst, but this! This was an absolute joke! Humanity was battling for its very existence and these fools were wasting their time. Ears getting hot, he stomped over to group of soldiers, and immediately recognized two of the soldiers from town that had punched him.

  They stared up at with bleary red eyes. “What the fuck do you want twerp?”

  Talmen said nothing he snatched the bottle of moonshine they were passing around and threw it into the ground shattering the glass bottle, spilling the clear white liquid.

  The soldiers leapt to their feet and surrounded him, the stone-faced soldier shoving him hard in the chest. “What the fuck twerp? You had better have another bottle with you or I am going to crack that pretty little skull of yours open.”

  His face reddened with rage, refusing to back down. He spoke in a soft deadly voice full of conviction he replied, “I have seen a lot of stupid shit in my life, but this has to be the dumbest thing I have ever seen.” He glared all around him at the circle of men and women with disgust. “I have lost friends, my brother, my mother and my father because of those creatures out there and this is what you do with your time? Our world is being destroyed and this is what you do? You’re supposed to be fucking soldiers!”

  The big soldier pushed him backwards again, nearly knocking him over. “Shut it Twerp, we don’t need lectures from you!”

  Talmen his blood boiling clenched his fists, when he felt a hand on his shoulder and a kind voice whisper into his ears, “That’s enough lad, you’ve made your point.”

  Talmen looked up at the man behind him a tall wiry fellow with short wavy black hair and warm yellow eyes who nodded his head in the direction of the soldiers.

  He stared once more around at the group of soldiers and found that only a few could meet his fervent gaze. Feeling his anger dwindling away, he nodded his head and turned to leave, when Turk growled, “Hey Twerp, where the fuck do you think you’re going? You owe us a bottle of moonshine.”

  Before he could reply, the man beside him spoke again, “Shut it Turk, we are finished here, unless you want to take this into the ring?”

  Turk’s black eyes bulged with fury, but after a few seconds of contemplation he shoved aside those around him and left the circle storming away.

  “The rest of you, go about your business.”

  The soldiers grumbled and broke apart each going their separate ways. The man turned to face him with a warm smile on his face. “That took a lot of guts kid. Most people tend to avoid that meat mountain.”

  Talmen blushed and felt his face go red.

  As the man continued, “I’m staff Sergeant ‘O’ Keefe I’m in charge of all UN recruits, and who might you be young man?”

  Talmen shook the soldier’s proffered hand. “My name’s Talmen, sir.”

  The man smiled at the respectful tone. “Well, Talmen, you here to join our grand army?”

  He nodded his head.

  “Come along then, I’ll take you to squad eight’s sleeping quarters to settle you in.”

  Talmen bit his lip and replied worriedly, “But sir, I was told to report in to the Colonel.”

  Keefe gave a lopsided grin. “Don’t you worry lad, I’ll let the Colonel know we have a new recruit.”

  Sighing with relief, he followed the Sergeant away from the gun range and along a well-trodden path out to east side of camp. There they passed a series of bulky grey tents with the UN insignia stitched in above the entrance, as they passed by he noticed most of the tents were crammed full of bunk beds and chests.

  Keefe stopped at the last tent at the edge of camp. “Well here it is lad, pick an empty bunk bed and settle in, I’ll give you two hours to look around or rest up, than I want you back at the gun range to test your skills. Is that understood?”

  “Yes sir.”

  The Sergeant gave him a mischievous wink and left him.

  Talmen went inside the tent and saw row upon row of bunk beds with a few of them surrounded by other people’s belongings. He searched for the closest bed that had nothing on it and sat on the edge pondering the mess he had gotten himself in. Turk more than likely was going to be looking for some payback, which meant he would need to watch his back closely. He sighed and lay down on the bed. He honestly hadn’t meant to attract so much attention on his first day in the army, but the outrage and anger that had been building up inside him at seeing the world go to fuck had reached its boiling point. He thought of his father standing in front of the council shouting, pushing and screaming for people to take action and make their lives matter only for his words to land on deaf ears. Seeing those soldiers lazing around had reminded him again of that feeling of hopelessness. Still shaking a little from rage, he had felt, he closed his eyes to rest, and saw the faces of the men he had killed on the road to the settlement float before his eyes again. Tears of blood ran down their cheeks in rivulets, and their mouths gaped open to scream accusations at him. He felt no regrets at their deaths, they would have killed him otherwise, but he did feel a deep sadness. Humans fighting humans, while the world goes to shit, felt so wrong.

  He woke up from his nap suddenly with sweat soaking his clothes and coating his skin. Shivering he sat up in bed for a minute to collect his thoughts. With no way to check the time he got out bed, took his wet sodden t-shirt off and spread it out on the bed, when he heard a light cough coming from behind him. Surprised he turned around to see a tall young girl with short brown hair, olive skin and grey eyes staring at him with a raised eyebrow from the entrance of the tent.

  Quickly grabbing his t-shirt, he slid the still wet t-shirt back on. “Sorry I thought I was alone.”

  The girl laughed and took a seat on one of the bunk beds. “My, my, the rumors around camp about you being a fighter must be true, where did you get all those scars?”

  Feeling uncomfortable speaking to a girl, Talmen edged his way towards the door. “I, I really must be going.”

  The girl shook her head and stood back up to block his path. “But you can’t silly, you haven’t changed into your uniform yet, plus I want to learn more about our new team-mate.”

  Confused he looked around for the uniform he was supposed to wear.

  The girl giggled and pointed to the trunk at the front of bed. “It’s in the trunk of course, duh.”

  Cheeks reddening, he moved to front of the bed and pulled the trunk out from under it. He unbuckled the steel clasp; and heaved it open. Inside the trunk was a folded up set of clean grey United Nations uniform, a bowie knife, a machete, a plastic canteen bottle and a lighter. He took out the uniform and placed it on the bed, paused for a moment, then took out the bowie knife as well, just in case he ran into any trouble and the lighter. He closed the trunk, and slid it back underneath the bed.

  Done, he stood back up and looked over towards the girl who was still staring at him. “Ahh, do you mind?”

  The girl giggled with amusement at his discomfort and walked out of the tent with a backward glance over her shoulder.

  He waited for a few seconds to make sure she wasn’t looking, before quickly taking his wet clothes off, strapping the bowie knife to outside of his right thigh, tugging on the grey shirt and black cargo pants and pocketing the lighter.

  Feeling more comfort
able with clean clothes on, he exited the tent and found the girl standing outside waiting for him. “All done?”

  Talmen rolled his eyes in annoyance and nodded his head.

  “Come on, I want to show you off to the rest of the squad.”

  Talmen held his hands up. “Sorry, I’m supposed to meet up with the Sergeant”

  “Don’t worry we still have time,” she said and started leading the way back up to the tower.

  Not wanting to appear impolite, especially since she was to be his new squad mate, he tagged along behind her, quietly taking in the picturesque scenery. The settlers had done a wonderful job of balancing nature with technology with garden beds, vegetable patches and animal pens, mixed in with auto cleaners for getting rid of weeds and G.S bots that worked the earth. He watched with interest as one of the floating G.S bots worked its way around the garden watering the plants. And couldn’t help but wonder where they received their power from. There was no power station that he could see and he hadn’t come across any while walking around the settlement. Had the people living here found a new source of power?

  Nearing the tower, the girl in front of him waved her hand in the air vigorously and called out, “Hey Guys! Guess, who I found?!”

  Talmen noticed three cadets in the same uniform as he was wearing standing outside the Tower chatting quietly with each other.

  The girl walked over to the group with a bright smile on her face, followed by a cautiously nervous Talmen.

  Two of the cadets were young men with dirt stained uniforms that hadn’t been cleaned in a while, and the other cadet was serious looking woman with well-toned dark skin, long luxurious black and bright brown eyes. “Isn’t this the idiot that nearly got into a fight with Turk?” asked the older girl.

  The girl beside him laughed. “Yes, I think so,” she chortled happily.

  Face hot with embarrassment he was considering whether to leave, when the dark-skinned woman took hold of his wrist. “Sorry, I didn’t mean for it to come out like that, to be honest I thought it was really brave of you to take on that brute, not many people would have stood up to that thug.”