The last to wake up was Ulrich as he stirred numerous times to the soft trembling of the ground beneath his thick fur bedding, the cracks of the tainted bones of the revenants still hungrily dancing around while groaning in their warped voices.

Thanks to the flexibility of the arkhaine natured metal his armor was crafted from – and to the additional enchantments – he could easily stretch his limbs before aiding the others in cleaning up their camp and then preparing to move towards their destination which seemed so far while in the middle of a swarm of revenants.

As with the days before, he stood beside Gna with Priernuss and Aelfsigior at the front, Lioba and Ashnan at the back while Hevaeck himself was guarded by the youth of the group. The old dwarf stared at the ground while breathing heavily, still clutching the amulet channeling mana into the ward.

Then his eyes suddenly popped open and he nodded to Aelfsigior who finally gave the command, and they began their slow march towards the north east. Austere winds blew against the ward, creeping the space with an unnatural cold and fetid air.

Ulrich’s golden eyes remained focused on the revenants hollowly staring at them while slowly shadowing the trail of the radiant circle. Some bore their rotten, incomplete jaws at them, sneering almost while others remained gravely silent as if they possessed a bottomless patience knowing, expecting the ward to break down at any moment.

Thick, sick foliage they headed towards felt dreadfully distant, their pace slower with the frozen mud and snow wrapping itself onto their greaves, seeking to halt their uneasy treading towards the mendacious protective embrace of the forest.

Beneath his feet, the trembling he felt during his awakening what felt like hours ago intensified, just like the beating of his heart while the creaking of trees was carried towards his ear, turning his attention westwards where they danced themselves towards crumbling down to the earth as a rotten giant emanating a dark mist from the exposed skeletal half appeared on the grimly pale horizon.

“Brace yourselves!” Even before Aelfsigior words, orders manifested Ulrich and the others tightened their grip and took a formation around Hevaeck, no longer trusting the strength of his ward as the revenants collectively made a path for the undead giant.

Deep trembles shook their formation as the undead giant got closer and closer with each passing moment. Their hands tightened around the straps of the shields, their muscles in their arms and legs tensed up while their bodies quivered with mild ecstasy as they channeled their mana into their limbs.

Priernuss sensed the cold nekrotic matter condensing around the large log the giant tore from the earth, slowly slithering around the makeshift weapon which it slowly lifted upwards its half eternally grinning head. He quickly fell into the center of the formation, Ashnan and Aelfsigior patching the hole he left.

He threw down his weapon and shield, stretched his arm down towards the earth and closed his eyes while taking a deep breath. The mild ecstasy he felt intensified with each gradual moment as he swallowed the unseen energies of the earth – the building blocks of the aspect what they sensed and knew as earth – and forced his will upon it.

In the next moment, the undead giant tumbled over as the earth roared under its feet, tainted and rotten roots burst forth under its bulky, decayed feet and wrapped around its hole riddled frozenly dry curvature while pumping cold energies to lock it in place while the group began its careful march out of the damned clearing.

Revenants swarmed the fallen over undead giant cursing in its warped tongue, and like dutiful drones began to tear the roots, clawed at the ice slowly growing onto the dead flesh and yellowed bone while a few others decided to at least halt the careful march of the group.

Many stood in the way of the sliding ward, and as soon as they came into contact with the radiant and transparent wall, their bodies erupted in bright flames, or radiant matter taking on the shape of raging, starving flames eating away the thick and thin flesh in an everlastingly dead state.

All those revenants emitted one last harrowing, warped shriek as only a pile of bones remained of them which Ulrich and the others trampled onto. With each crack, with each bone broken under their heavy and slow steps, he muttered a prayer to the Solemn Shepherd and Gray Monarch while his eyes focused on the forest offering little protection, yet at that moment it seemed safer than the fight that may lied ahead if the ward maintained by the tireless Hevaeck collapsed.

His blood froze the moment, a deep warped shriek was followed by what he guessed was a victorious laughter reached his – theirs – ears. Aelfsigior turned to Priernuss for a moment who shook his head while breathing heavily with a half-mad smile under his helmet.

Ulrich was glad the half-aevhe was with them as it at least brought them time to reach a point from where they began to increase their pace. As soon as the earth began to tremble once more, a second warped roar quivered the trees, the group reached the forest, and at Aelfsigior’s command began to sprint without looking back.

Their only sign of their pursuer’s existence were their heart-shaking, spine freezing shriek that reverberated through the whole shadow infested forest.

**

Hours passed, the sky gained a darker, gloomier tone as they finally halted in hamlet devoid of life. After they entered the forest, the group picked up on their pace, Priernuss still carried Hevaeck on his back while the old dwarf seemed to be in an even deeper trance while clutching his amulet, the one protection they had against the threats of the deeper woodland.

Yet the danger was not too far away, prompting Aelfsigior to give out hasty commands. Ulrich, Eadwald and Lioba took up position in the hamlet’s third eastern structure, once a homestead of a family of hunters as decaying pelts remained over the roof and the walls both in and outside.

Azugh, Gna and Ashnan were ordered to take position at the opposing crumbling building slightly on a lower elevation as the village like their own was built onto a slight slope in the woodland’s abundant area. A home once housing a craftsman and their family once as dozens of cracked, crumbling pots adorned the collapsing shelves both in the main living area still possessing a bed or two, and in the storage room which’s northern wall collapsed down completely, letting the grayish white light of the Illius shone through the gaping hole.

Lastly, before Priernuss, Hevaeck and Aelfsigior took up their position in the square to act as decoys to most of the revenants reaching ever closer, Aelfsigior prayed to the Dawn Father and gave bestowed protective enchantments onto each of their chest plates, warding off the creeping nekrotic matter sapping their life forces away slowly and surely.

Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

In the homestead, Ulrich and Lioba faced the front and back doors while Eadwald stood between them a bit hesitantly, but stayed silent knowing it was not the right time to amass glory. Ulrich tightened his grip and closed his eyes. Not long after, in the vast sea of darkness gradually strengthening damaged, ethereal outlines appeared charging towards the hamlet appearing as a blindingly glimmering gilded smudge.

Then the still menacing, dreadful trembling shook their bodies lightly as he opened his eyes, all of them prepared for the battle ahead with Ashnan, Gna, Ulrich, Priernuss and Aelfsigior murmuring to themselves they fought worse than a risen giant.

Just as they expected it, the first of the revenants whom rushed into the abandoned hamlet charged with mindless rage towards the still erected ward and like those at the clearing, their eternally frozen dead flesh disintegrated into nothingness while their bones decorated the earthly, snow blanketed streets.

The second wave of the revenants seemed more intelligent as they halted in their rushed tracks and began to sense the life force pouring from Gna’s and Ulrich’s group. Some of their grotesque heads tilted to the sides while their sunken, hollowed eyeholes glared at the few deteriorated houses.

Ulrich ducked down as an undead aevhe charged at him with a long battleaxe still glinting blade heading for his neck free of plates. At the same time, his sword thrusted forward and easily penetrated through the weak dead flesh, then he cleaved upwards freeing it from the yielding grayish ivory flesh engulfed by nekrotic matter and the disintegrating soul passing beyond the mortal world.

Stepping backwards, his feet crushed the skull of a goblinoid revenant which body laid not too far from a hole itself created. For the short moment the rest of the second wave battered futile against the ward, Ulrich took a short peek at Eadwald, his whole body covered in black ichor which was once one of the prime life aspects of the humanoid revenant still pierced through by his gifted blade.

Ulrich wished to help him pull it out but his efforts were cut before he could even walk one step closer when two more revenants burst into the ravaged homestead. The first he sent tumbling down to the floor by bashing his shield against its frail, half-rotten body while the second was cleaved in half at its waist then got finished with the next thrust aimed at its head missing its jaw.

Just as the accursed soul was released, the other one leaped back onto its feet quite athletically for an undead. Ulrich spread his legs apart, hunched himself down a little while holding the shield in front of him, his blade ready to be thrusted forward at the inverted crescent curvature right at the left center of his shield. With a single thrusts forward, he poured a little of his mana bathed in the aspect of flames and as soon as the tip found its way into the abdomen of the revenant, it emitted a high-pitched and warped shriek as its body lit up in raging flames.

It flailed around in a primal rage aimed at Ulrich, then two or three steps later collapsed at his feet while Ulrich breathed softly while taming the flames, holding them back from migrating to the decades old wood making up most if not all of the building.

As the last mark of the revenant burned into the floor, Ulrich noticed the near silence which fell upon the little hamlet in the shadowy heart of the woodland. Yet it brought no solace as snow fell in the holes of the roof, the walls, the floor began to shook in small periods, and a deep, guttural and warped howl froze their legs, their spines as the undead giant slowly caught up.

“I guess it was too hopeful of me that we managed shake off that damned giant.” Lioba said as she cleaned off the tainted, malodorous blood from her axe and with the same breath stood into a battle stance with her shield held high as both she and Ulrich sensed the trembles aimed at them.

Their fears proved to be true when Ulrich yelled for them to drop down onto the corpse littered floor just as the club cleaved off the upper half of the once cozy homestead. Fluidly they got back onto their feet with the exception of Eadwald whose name surged out in a yell as Ulrich watched as the large trunk torn from the earth, engulfed by nekrotic matter swung towards him.

Immediately, he trampled towards him while at the same time, subconsciously pouring mana into his shield, amplifying its durability. His slid across the last few meters, shield held above his head, encompassing his back and shoulders while he gritted his teeth, strained than closed his eyes as he confirmed he did arrive just in time and that it wasn’t a nightmare momentarily masquerading as a dream.

Yet just like one, the impact which he expected he would feel for weeks if not months never arrived, instead an even more hateful warped growl and a thundering roar reverberated through the area shaking his body and even armor. After confirming that Eadwald and him were both still in one piece, he turned to the left and noticed the spear pinning the large trunk into the ground with the rotten arm still clutching onto it.

Led by his fatherly instinct he looked back at Eadwald first and at the same breath confirmed that even Lioba was doing fine. He quickly ordered them to rush under the gilded ethereal umbrella and he rose back up facing the undead giant struggling to retrieve its makeshift weapon.

The earth trembled under their feet when it stroke at the ground with its right leg aiming to break off the spear pinning the log, yet its missed its target which retreated back to the hand of Aelfsigior. Ulrich slowly remained in the ruined house drawing the undead giants’ attention onto himself.

A small part of him was not so keen on it working and fear weighted down his legs and arms as the grotesque giant with a gaping hole where its once prominent arm was leaked what once was blood, now a dark ichor emanating a sickly sweet, caustic odor that cursed Ulrich with additional nausea.

Reflexively he leapt away from the downward strike of the log raised above the giant’s half ivory head, though in the end the motion proved to be unnecessary as the spear previously pinning its weapon now lodged into its rotten chest followed by a series of radiant spheres blowing its head away followed by the joyous curses of Priernuss as he was assailed by ecstatic pain while down on his knees. For a short moment, envy gnawed at Ulrich as he watched his son rushing to his friend’s aid first though time was not on his side as he reached for his shield too late.

The dangerous sensation faded from him the moment he felt the fetid, necrotic skin brace against his whole body followed by the certain sensation of weightlessness beget from being kicked away. Amidst the clanking of his armor, the tearing of decades old rotten wood, his ear picked up the shout escaping the lips of his eldest son that made him feel better even amidst his situation of propelled into the adjacent building which collapsed onto his body.

Though this weird joy was only momentary as his mind, his body was assaulted by immense pain, while he coughed blood onto the shattered shield on his left – or at least onto a part of it. “Gna, keep watch over him!” He had a hard time but he could make out Aelfsigior yelling amidst the strange, ever more warped gravelly shriek and the nauseous sound akin to flesh tearing and stretching in unnatural ways.

“Hang in there brother!” While it took him a great deal of effort, he moved his head upwards and smiled reassuringly into the brutish but affable face of his old friend he went through a lot the past few decades.

A series of ethereal rings buzzed his ear while Ashnan kneeled over him with palms over his damaged abdomen, emitting a warm light slowly easing the pain into oblivion. His lips moved, trembled as he heard Aelfsigior’s voice calling out Eadwald’s name amidst the series of rings stifled by the otherworldly roars.

Yet no words escaped him as his vision gradually blurred while shadows creeped at the edges, the sounds of battle became ever more distant. Dread formed in his heart, its icy tendrils wrapped around his spine as he noticed the dark figure looming in the corner of his sight to the right of Ashnan, draped in priestly garments of deep black similar to the fathomless darkness swallowing the sky when night falls.

He wrestled against the tiredness slowly taking him over, yet it was a battle he could not won as the figure raised its left hand, its elongated, clawed index finger raised in front of the utter darkness nestled within the confines of his hood. A child’s soft shush hurled her into the abyssal garden forming around the lands of Oneiron just as a deathly gargle of warped tongue reverberated through the forlorn hamlet hiding in the far corners of the Vesgeriath Woodland.