Chapter 3

  Kerion Vorna

  The Greencloaks were surrounded on all sides. There was no time to get an accurate count of how many there were—Kerion guessed perhaps at least more than thirty. Nova had already called for his horse, but it was nowhere to be seen. There’s no time, he thought. As Arnon began letting his arrows loose, the captain spurred his mount over to Nova. “Get on!”

  Immediately, he turned and climbed behind him.

  “Back to the bridge!” Kerion shouted, taking off. The rest scrambled to follow after him. Screeching and roaring, the villagers gave chase, a few managing to clumsily run. With the villagers’ formation still spread rather thinly, Kerion pressed onward, smashing his warhorse through their scattered ranks and clearing a path.

  As he came within sight of the wooden gate that led back to the stone bridge, more villagers emerged from the alleys. They screamed, their gnarled faces gaping as they tried to claw at Kerion and Nova. The captain’s horse ground to a halt and reared up, shrieking in fear. Yelling, Nova wildly swung around his sword in an attempt to scare off their assailers. Unfazed, a pair of villagers lunged forth, with one latching onto Nova’s leg. “Help!” he screamed.

  Twisting around, Kerion plunged his longsword through its head. Before the captain could turn to deal with the second one, an arrow pierced its skull. The other rangers caught up on horseback, forming a defensive ring as they fought off the villagers nearby.

  With the main horde from the village center starting to catch up, Kerion barked for his men to get back on the move. “Go!” he shouted. “Get to the bridge!”

  Obeying, the rangers quickly spurred their horses back into a gallop. The few remaining villagers that stood in their way charged. As one came screaming toward Kerion and Nova, the captain slit its throat as they rode past. Gurgling blood, it grasped at its neck as it fell. The rest of the attacking villagers were promptly trampled underfoot or dodged by the other rangers that followed.

  Finally escaping from the village, Kerion hustled his steed onwards. “Keep going, boy, don’t stop!”

  Nova Engel

  After the company of rangers had crossed over the bridge, they made their way back to the crooked watchtower.

  Turning back to where they had come from, Nova looked to see if they had been followed. Fortunately, he saw nothing but the trampled path that wound about and the dense woods that surrounded them. Sighing, he felt a flicker of relief, but his hands still trembled.

  The sight of the old man haunted his mind. His heart was beating rapidly and pounded at his chest. Sweat dripped from his forehead, trailing down the side of his face. He could still feel the rush of battle gushing through his veins. Slowing his breath and wiping his face off, he tried to calm himself down. Get ahold of yourself, come on now.

  “Damn it,” exclaimed Baelis. Nova turned his head. The swordsman’s hand was bloodied. A large, gaping cut stretched across his thigh, blood oozing into his pants.

  “Are you alright, Baelis?” asked Nova.

  Baelis looked at him with a pained grin. “I’m fine. Just a scratch.”

  Nova clearly saw the pain on his face. “Doesn’t look like it.”

  Johan rode over to Baelis. “Here, let me treat that for you before it gets any worse. We’ll get you to a proper physician as soon as we can.”

  Dismounting from his horse, Johan dug into his knapsack. After he found a bag of herbs and a roll of cloth, he started tending to Baelis’ wound. The swordsman groaned in pain, cursing under his breath as he shunned the villagers.

  Observing their surroundings, Nova made note of the eerie silence that had overtaken the forest around them. He found it to be odd. Earlier, the woods had been very much alive. The birds had sung, and furry little creatures scuttered about in the trees. They had even seen a few stags, though to Nova’s disappointment, not a white one. But now the forest was as silent as the grave.

  “Do you feel it, too?” Kerion asked. “This dreadful silence.”

  Nova nodded, his eyes still prowling amongst the trees. “I do.” He looked at Kerion. “…What were they?”

  “I don’t know.” The captain’s face was grim as he turned. “Johan?”

  “I’m not so sure myself, captain.” He made the last adjustments to Baelis’ bandages. “I’ve never seen anything like it.”

  “The bastards looked half-dead,” said Arnon.

  Nova shuddered. The image of the old man’s horrific, mangled face had been scorched into his mind. Those milky, lifeless eyes. He had never seen anything of the sort before. The monsters are real, he thought.

  “A disease, you reckon?” Kerion looked at Johan.

  “Perhaps, though we can’t be sure of anything.” Johan mounted his stallion. “I suggest we take it up with someone more educated on the matter.”

  “You’re right.” The captain wheeled his horse around. “We need to get back to Warhall as soon as we can. Without our courier bird, it’s going to be up to us to deliver the message.”

  Before Kerion could lead them on, they all suddenly stopped as a voice shouted from down the road. Nova turned, taking a closer look at who it was. A man on horseback approached, dressed in plain clothes, and a sword fastened to his side. He rode toward them with haste, a ghastly expression on his face.

  The five rangers drew their weapons. “Halt!” Captain Kerion commanded. “Who are you?”

  At once, the man stopped. “I-I’m Eren,” he gasped, stammering over his words and barely able to breathe. “P-please… I need help.”

  Kerion lowered his sword. “What’s happened? You’re not going to Ingrid, are you?”

  The man shifted in his saddle, gripping his reins tightly. “W-we were attacked. My family… they’re hiding in the cellar. I… came to get help from the village.”

  “Ingrid is lost to whatever plagues it,” said Kerion. He looked at the man, inspecting him thoroughly. “Who were you attacked by?”

  “…Monsters.”

  Nova saw the streak of red that dashed across the man’s face and his blood-stained shirt. He could see it in his eyes, the primal fear he felt when the old man had tried to kill him. Even Baelis, who had openly ridiculed their mission before, was now silent and serious.

  Kerion’s expression was a firm, yet calm one. Nova wondered how he could maintain his composure in such turbulent times. In a way, he admired it. He is our captain, after all.

  “Take us to your home, Eren,” said Kerion. “We’ll get your family and head to Warhall.”

  To that, Eren seemed relieved, but Arnon protested. “Captain, we should focus on our mission. The Brotherhood must be warned.”

  “And they will be,” Kerion replied. “But remember the oath you swore, Arnon. To protect the people, and to serve as their sword and shield.”

  Grumbling, Arnon merely nodded in silent obedience. “Then I shall ride first to Warhall. The rest of you can go with him.”

  “No.” The captain was adamant. “It’s dangerous, and we don’t know what else is lurking. We stand a better chance together.”

  “…As you command,” said Arnon. He turned to Eren. “How many are in your family?”

  “Two,” he answered. “My wife… and my daughter.”

  The bowman glanced around, counting with his eyes. “Five horses. It should be plenty to double-up.”

  Kerion nodded, sheathing his blade. “Eren, lead us there.”

  “Y-yes, sir.” Turning his horse around, Eren galloped back down the road, with the rangers following closely behind.

  They flew past the trees, their cloaks fluttering in the breeze. Glancing to the side, Nova swore that for a moment, he saw something darting through the forest, as if following them. A deer? Whatever it was, he couldn’t quite figure out. It had only been an indistinct blur of movement. The shadow seemed to have disappeared soon after he had spotted it. Perhaps it was nothing… Or something.

  “Captain, I saw something moving in the woods,” said Nova. “It looked like they were following us. Or perhaps I’m hallucinating.”

  “I saw it, too.” The captain lowered his voice. “We’re being tracked.”

  Nova’s stomach churned. His hairs stood up as he felt a chill coursing through his bones. What, or who, could possibly be stalking us?

  Eren led the rangers away from the main path, diverting into a side road that went deeper into the woods. The trees seemed to stretch on and on forever, until at last they came upon a clear patch of land. A lonesome wooden house stood by itself, accompanied only by a small shed. There was a gentle breeze, and so the trees were calm. All around them, the woods were silent as a crypt.

  The place looked rather a peaceful one to live, quiet and removed from the world’s hardships. But not anymore, Nova thought. This family’s small garden had been trampled, their home had been broken into, and their lives were forever changed.

  They stopped right as they entered the clearing. Kerion rode up next to Eren. “These… monsters that attacked you, did you kill any of them?”

  “Two of them attacked us, and… I managed to kill them both.” He swallowed hard. “One with an axe to its head, and the other… I cut its throat with a knife.”

  The captain looked at him. “Did they look human?”

  For a moment, there was silence from Eren. Then he made eye contact. “…Barely.”

  Taking a deep breath, Kerion carefully observed their surroundings. There seemed to be no one besides them. Turning to face the others, the captain gave out his orders. “Nova and Eren, the two of you will come with me inside the house. The rest of you, keep a watch outside, and let us know if anything happens.”

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  “Understood.”

  Spurring his horse forward, Kerion led them toward the homestead. Upon getting there, Nova got off and waited for Kerion and Eren. After they had both dismounted, he accompanied them onto the porch, weapons drawn.

  The captain was the first to the door. Stepping to its side, he stopped and looked at Eren. “Where did you kill them?”

  “…In the dining room. We’re about to enter it. The door to the cellar is directly ahead.”

  Nodding, Kerion turned back to the door and lowered a hand to its knob. Twisting it, he slowly swung the door open and cautiously crept inside, with Nova and Eren trailing behind him closely. With each meticulous footstep, the floor creaked and croaked.

  Nova glanced about the room, where blood stains were splattered across the wall. The dining table had been knocked over. Shattered pieces of bread, cheese, and fruit were scattered across the floor, along with broken shards of plates and cups.

  His boot stepping into a puddle of blood, Nova looked down. Then over at Eren. “Sir, you didn’t happen to… move the bodies afterward, did you?”

  The man’s face had gone pale. “N-no,” he whispered, his voice and hands shaking. “Not me.”

  Nova raised his sword as he heard staggered footsteps shuffling to his rear. “Behind you!” Eren screamed.

  Whipping around, Nova only caught a glimpse of a morbidly grotesque and rotten face—pale and bloodied. As the wicked creature lunged at Nova, he swung his sword between its teeth, where the blade was caught. Unable to cut completely through, he yelled as he shoved it against the wall. Its yellow, rotten teeth grinded against the sword’s edges. As its teeth clenched down, blood gushed out from within. In a fit of fury, the monster lashed out at Nova and clawed into his chest with its razor-sharp fingernails.

  Agonizing pain spread like wildfire from his chest to the rest of his body. The claws sank deeper into his flesh. Never before had Nova felt anything like this. He couldn’t move. It felt like he was burning. All he could hear were his muffled screams of pain. Then Kerion’s sword flashed and plunged into the side of his attacker’s head.

  Nova felt a pair of strong hands gripping his shoulders, hands that pried him away to safety. As he was gently laid down, he saw that it was Eren who had recovered him. With a concerned look on his face, his lips were moving, but not a word that was being said could be heard.

  Kerion swiftly moved from the clawer’s corpse to the door, his sword bloodied, and shouted something to the others. Vibrations of hasty and panicked footsteps signaled the arrival of help. Nova could feel himself being carried outside. The world was spinning around him, his head throbbing. Each jerking motion only intensified his pain. Oh God, I’m going to die, aren’t I?

  Kerion Vorna

  “Go, get him out!” Kerion shouted. He glanced back as a reeling Nova was dragged out by Johan. Then Eren screamed again, “The second one!”

  Turning, Kerion spotted it—the one whose head Eren had plunged an axe into. Before he could react, an arrow whizzed by his cheek and struck its neck. Reeling back, the creature stumbled, which bought them precious seconds. “Get your family outside, now!” Kerion ordered.

  Obeying, Eren rushed past the dazed monster to fetch his wife and daughter. Kerion dared not waste any time, and quickly rushed his enemy. Dodging a faulty swing of its claws, he swung his sword and decapitated it in one fell swoop. No resurrections this time.

  As its headless corpse dropped to the floor, he made sure to hack off the creature’s hands, just to be safe. He did the same to the first one as well. Turning back to the open cellar door, he saw Eren emerge with his family, alive.

  The daughter buried her face against her mother’s dress, clutching her arms tightly with her little hands. Her muffled sobbing could be heard as they hurried past Kerion and went outside. Poor thing, he thought. Then he frowned. No, not just her, everyone.

  Keeping his eyes on the pair of dead clawers, as he called them now, he ushered Eren out. First to enter, last to leave. As he went outside, he slammed the door shut behind him and then approached the others.

  Immediately, his attention was fixated on Nova, who looked ghastly, and then Baelis, who was still upright but looking much worse than before. Johan had just finished tending to Nova’s wounds as he best he could.

  Cursing under his breath, Kerion knelt beside Nova to have a look. The boy’s skin was a sickly pale color, his lips had become purple, and his eyes looked as if bleeding. Nova’s bandages had already been soaked in a dark red. A feeling of guilt sank into his chest as he pondered if he could have done anything differently. Looking up, he locked eyes with Johan. “Poison?” he asked quietly, a sense of hopelessness to his voice.

  Johan’s face was a grim one. He nodded. “Baelis was wounded in a similar manner, but he’s been holding up better against whatever venom this may be. We need to get back to Warhall.”

  Arnon was shooting Kerion a look of malcontent, which he elected to ignore. “Agreed,” he answered, rising back to his feet. There wasn’t any more time to waste mulling. “Mount up!”

  Doubling up on the horses wherever they could, the group set out at once through the forest. Uncertainties were flung around in Kerion’s mind as he rode. Were they being watched at this very moment? If so, by whom? Then he thought back to Nova and Baelis, who were both injured and their conditions worsening by the second. Was it right that I insisted on going to that house? There wasn’t much more that could be done. All he could do now was keep a straight head and get his troops and Eren’s family back to the safety of Warhall.

  After riding with haste for hours, they stopped and found what looked to be an abandoned homestead to settle in for the night. Kerion went inside first, and Arnon followed, his bow at the ready. When both floors of the house were deemed safe, everyone else was waved inside. Johan went to work immediately. Lifting Nova and Baelis, he placed them onto tabletops and began rudimentary treatment.

  While Eren comforted his family, Kerion was approached by Arnon, his face as grim as ever. They were rapidly losing daylight as the sun set. “No flames tonight,” the archer said as he eyed the dead fireplace. “Don’t want to attract any attention.”

  Kerion nodded. “I don’t disagree. But they’ll still need to keep warm.” He looked at the family that they had rescued, huddling together now in a dark corner. A mother and father comforting their frightened daughter. “Find them whatever blankets and cloaks you can.”

  “Will do,” Arnon said, eyeing them as well. “Do you want them, or our injured men, to have the proper beds upstairs?”

  The captain looked back at him. He felt like he was being tested. This, he did not like. “Help Johan move them upstairs and into the beds.”

  Arnon’s facial expression didn’t change from his dark, serious one. “As you command,” he said. “Also, I’ll need a word with you later.”

  “Very well, then.” Kerion nodded. Did I pass your test? The archer went away to do as he was told. Finally free of Arnon, Kerion turned his attention to Eren and his family.

  “How are you?” he asked softly.

  Kneeling down, he looked into the frightened eyes of Eren’s daughter, who was perhaps no older than seven. Tears streaming down her cheeks, the child hugged her parents closely and gripped a stuffed doll, perhaps made by her mother. The sight made Kerion’s heart twist. Thinking back to the injured Nova, he wondered if he had made the right choice in saving them. Would they have survived trapped in that cellar?

  Eren approached Kerion, kneeling as he did so. “Captain, I…” his eyes diverted to the floor for a moment, then went back to meet Kerion’s. “I don’t know how to thank you.”

  Kerion allowed a smile to cross his lips. “No need, sir. It is our sworn duty.” Sworn duty. The words echoed deep in his heart.

  “We don’t have much,” said Eren’s wife. “But I want you to have something. As a token of our eternal gratitude.”

  The captain watched as she carefully took off her necklace and offered it to him. “I-I can’t,” he said, backing away.

  “We insist, captain.” She placed it into his fingers and closed them. Eren took his hand next, moving closer. “If you had not been there, I could have been killed, and my family with me,” he said. “You saved us. And we thank you for it. Truly.”

  His last words hung in the air. They stared at each other for a moment. Then, accepting the gift, Kerion smiled, and nodded. “Thank you, Eren, and… I’m afraid I don’t know your names.” He looked at the mother and daughter.

  “Alyssa,” said the mother. “And this is Lianna.” The little girl was still sniffling, but her tears had dried up. She managed a smile at Kerion and made her little doll wave at him. He couldn’t help but laugh a little. Reaching down, he shook the doll’s hand. “And what’s her name?” he asked Lianna.

  “Eliza,” answered the little girl. Kerion smiled. “A pleasure to meet you,” he said. Then Johan called from upstairs. Baelis and Nova were now abed. The sun had nearly set. The night was coming.

  “You should get some rest.” Kerion rose. “We’ll keep watch for the night. You need not be worried.”

  “Are you sure?” Eren got up as well. “I can help.”

  The captain firmly shook his head. “No. Stay with your family. They need you.”

  Nodding, Eren went away with his family to try and make their beds with what little sunlight they had left.

  Kerion stood there alone now. He stood in silence. He thought back to his vows, the oaths that they had sworn. To protect the innocent. To defend those who cannot defend themselves. Yes, that’s just it. Then his eyes were hardened, a fiery resolve igniting from within. Defend the innocent. Defend the people.

  Arnon was there now. Kerion had just barely noticed his arrival. “Ready to have your talk now?” asked the captain.

  “Yes.”

  “Speak then. I know you’ve been waiting to say it.” Kerion leaned back against the wall, his gaze focused outside.

  “The boy won’t last the night,” said Arnon. There was a hint of bitterness to his voice. “Baelis’ condition is skeptical at best. We should have just left for Warhall. They would have been fine in that cellar.”

  “Would they?” Kerion scowled. “Would you have forced Eren to abandon his family? To leave his wife and little girl to wonder about his fate? About theirs?”

  “They would have been rescued when the relief force arrived,” countered Arnon.

  “And how are you so sure about that?” Pushing himself away from the wall, Kerion approached the archer. He stared him in the eyes.

  “Have you forgotten your mission, captain?” Arnon growled.

  “Have you forgotten your oath? To defend the innocent? To protect the people?” Kerion was full of wrath, but he kept his voice as hushed as he could. “Tell me this, Arnon. What do you value more? Our mission, or our principles? Our real duty?”

  “Our mission… was to investigate Ingrid, and then report back to Warhall. We did not need to suffer unnecessary casualties on a reckless side quest. The boy, Kerion.” Arnon’s voice intensified. “Nova. He’s going to die. There is nothing we can do to save him.”

  “We don’t trade lives,” Kerion said.

  “We just did.”

  “No.” Kerion cut off Arnon before he could reply. “We sacrifice ourselves so that others may live. That is our vow. Our oath. To accept death without recognition. To die in the line of duty. We do not trade our lives expecting anything in return.”

  The speech left Kerion feeling winded, but his words had reduced Arnon to a subdued silence. They stared at one another. After a moment, the archer spoke. “Then you better say your goodbyes to Nova now.”

  No more was said after that. Arnon left to take the first watch. Kerion went upstairs to pay a visit to his injured men. Ascending the steps, he pondered what he would say. In the worst case scenario, he wouldn’t have much to say at all. They’d be dead. Ah, best not to overthink it.

  Opening the door to their room, he stepped inside. A streak of moonlight came in through the window, illuminating the beds that Nova and Baelis were on. Johan sat in the shadowy corner on a chair, sorting his dwindling medicinal supplies.

  “Are they still alive?” Kerion whispered.

  “Yes.”

  Kerion gave a silent breath of relief. A glimpse of hope. But he knew better than to overestimate their situation. “Can either of them speak?”

  “Baelis could,” Johan answered. “But Nova hasn’t awoken since we rescued Eren and his family.”

  The captain sighed, closing his eyes for a moment. He was coming to terms with the fact that Nova wouldn’t be getting any better. “Has Baelis improved?”

  “Never been better,” Baelis answered, his gruff voice reduced to a coarse whisper. The burly figure of a man shifted up from his bedsheets, groaning.

  “Damn it, Baelis.” Johan got up and went beside him. “Stay down.”

  Baelis meagerly protested as Johan placed him back onto his pillow. “The captain was askin’ about me. Figured I’d answer myself.”

  “Then do so, while lying down.” Johan went back to his chair.

  “Fine.” Baelis made himself as comfortable as he could, though he still took labored breaths. His eyes fixated onto the captain’s. A moment of silence passed. Then the question was popped. “Nova’s not going to make it, is he?”

  Kerion lowered his gaze. They all knew the answer. No one dared to say it. All Kerion could think about was that he wouldn’t get a chance to exchange any last words with the young lad, a brave soul from Koborund who had volunteered to join the Sworn Brotherhood of the Green only a few months ago. No consolation. No closure. He barely even knew the boy. But the guilt still yanked at his heart.

  A hand was on Kerion’s shoulder. Johan’s, he figured. “You should get some sleep, you’ll need it for tomorrow’s journey to Warhall. If Nova’s awake tomorrow, you can talk with him then.”

  Kerion nodded. If, he thought. A possibility, but not a likely one. “Good night, then, you two.” He went for the door and left.

  There were no dreams that night when he slept in-between watches. At least, nothing that he could make out. Only the emptiness of a black void was there to greet him. When the first light of dawn came during his last shift, he immediately went back upstairs.

  By the time he entered that room again, he didn’t need Johan to tell him anything. He knew. No consolation. No closure. The brave boy from Koborund was gone.