Past the camp, the gloom is too deep to make out my surroundings, the natural light of the moon and stars covered by thick clouds. A ‘film’ turns the dark night into a scene of gray and silver. There are no signs of these reapers but on the horizon, there is a mountain of snow that I could swear wasn’t there earlier. Oh, saints. Don’t tell me that’s the goliath we’re supposed to be killing? My footsteps slow as I take in the enormity of the task ahead of us. That’s not a titan. That is a small moving mountain. I can’t make out any details from this distance.

It’s so far away but it’s casting a spell that is affecting us here. It is also an aura, meaning it’s stretching in all directions. The amount of power that takes is absurd. Not to mention it keeps this enormous magic powered at all hours. Even if that’s the only magic this creature is capable of, that is still impressive. The amount of mana it has must be staggering. It also must have a ridiculous rate of regeneration.

A strong blow to the back sends me stumbling forward. I turn to see Kierra glaring at me. “Do not falter, Lou,” she whispers. “The creature does not have combative abilities. It is merely a big target.”

“A very big target.” I frown at my soft voice. I didn’t whisper. Ah. This must be the effect of the zone of silence, muting sounds around the goliath. So, the closer we get, the more absolute the zone becomes. That’s going to be…disorientating.

“Yes. I think this will only annoy it.” My wife looks at the spear she’s carrying with some distaste. “I underestimated the size of these creatures. I should have brought more weapons.”

“I thought you brought plenty.”

“I have variety, not quantity. My thought was to figure what worked best on these creatures, not taking down…that.” She waved her hand in the direction of the living hill. “Normally, in the forest, I can fashion weapons as I please and most opponents do not require more than one blade. I am not used to bringing extras.”

“Does it need more than one?” She’s quite fond of putting the pointy end of her weapons through creature’s eyes. It may be big but no matter how big it is, a spear through the brain will bring it down.”

“I put a sword through the eye of titan. It did not reach deep enough to bring it down. This creature is several times larger. And it has defenders.”

Ah. “Do you think more spears will help?”

“Yes.”

“We could collect them from the camp.”

“I am thinking hundreds, not a handful, my love. Do not worry. We will simply need to get a little creative. Are you ready?”

“Yeah, let’s do it.”

We continue sprinting toward the creature. Despite our speed, which can outpace the fastest steed in all the kingdom, it takes several long minutes before we’re close enough that I can make out any features of the goliath. All the while, the sounds of the world slowly disappear. It starts with the rapid crunching of snow beneath our feet. Then our breaths, misting on the cold air. Then my own heartbeat. The world goes completely silent.

As I thought, unsettling. I imagine a horde of fast-moving monsters moving in this quiet zone under the total darkness common to the north. No wonder they’re called reapers. I understand the franticness of the camp now. They could have swooped in without anyone noticing. Someone in the tent next to the knights could be gutted and they wouldn’t hear a thing. And they only attack at night, killing who they can while their prey is disorientated before disappearing. Insidious.

As for the goliath, it’s a lot more monster-looking than the titan. It walks on four, thick legs, each as wide as a neighborhood. A small head, comparative to the rest of its body, with a long…nose? I’m not quite sure what to call it. It’s where the nose should be but it’s not like any nose I’ve seen.

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It’s incredibly long and quite flexible, sweeping through the snow after the goliath’s every step. The wide body is large enough to settle a small village on. What gives me that impression is I think I can see structures on it. Conical ones, made of ice. What makes me think buildings rather than random pieces of ice are the many entrance-like holes in them. Judging from the size and number, I agree there are at least a few hundred reapers coming our way.

I also notice another problem. A big one. I don’t see the usual vital points. No eyes. No ears. That could be on account of the thick white fur covering its body but I don’t even see indentations or folds to suggest the features. That’s going to make it infinitely harder to kill this thing.

As the goliath takes another large step forward and its nose-like appendage sweeps the snow before it, several dark shapes slide down. Several fast shapes that don’t lose speed as they rush toward us in a wave, swerving left and right. They move like they’re trying to avoid enemy fire. I feel a spike of sympathy for anyone given the task of hitting them at range, whether it’s with arrows or spells.

As the goliath takes another step forward, another wave of reapers comes sliding down its nose. Again. And again. In minutes, a group of dozens are coming toward us.

Mm, definitely dogs. Dark fur mostly, though a few have white stripes, spots, and splotches in their coats. Alana said they skated on ice. What she failed to explain is that the ice they skate on is beneath their paws. The snow turns to ice beneath them and these monsters are moving incredibly fast on it.

I hate to say it but they are graceful. I would think bipedal hounds with bowed legs and paws would be gangly and clumsy. Instead, they have incredible balance. Some of them are even doing tricks, spinning while on one leg or sliding on their bellies. At least these bastards have a sense of humor.

“How do you want to handle this?” I shout at Kierra but I don’t hear my own voice. Right, zone of silence. That means no cooperation. Something that wouldn’t be an issue if I was a bit more practiced with my mental affinity. Sigh. Been a while since I ran into a problem that my prime form can’t solve. And this is a really big problem. Saints damn it all.

It’s not like I can turn around. The camp behind us is, well, not vulnerable, but Alana is depending on us to stop this threat here, tonight, before these creatures can inflict serious damage. I also can’t leave Kierra to face this alone. Even if she might thank me for it. So, I set aside my misgivings and speed up.

The swerving reapers tighten their loops as they narrow in on us. Ice appears in their hand-paws, quickly forming weapons. A strange weapon that resembles a short staff with scythe heads on either end. They twirl their weapons as they speed up, the wind blowing back their long fur.

They reach Kierra first. The first one swings at her. She comes to an abrupt stop, ducks, and jabs at it with her spear, catching the creature in the side. Its mouth opens in what I imagine is a pained howl but it manages to stay on its feet, pulling off her spear as it continues forward.

She strikes out at the next reaper but it avoids the spear tip, one leg coming up and kicking off a pane of ice that appears in the air, sending it twirling out of range. The next reaper leaps over her, a thicker pane of ice appearing under it and deflecting her spear strike. As it lands, it throws several daggers of ice behind it, followed by its compatriots as they swerve around the elf. She bares her teeth at them as she deflects the projectiles.

I don’t have time to see more as I have my own dogs to deal with it. Like Kierra, they attempt a close-ranged approach first but my attacker is a little braver than hers. His weapon snaps in the middle and he leaps at me with two scythes.

Trusting in my defense, I ignore the blades as I open my arms. I grimace as they dig into my shoulders as I wrap my arms around the monster. Its jaws open as it attempts to bite my face but I headbutt it in the snout while tightening my hold. Bones snap and the monster goes limp. They’re fast but delicate. Good.

Grabbing the dog by its arm, I throw it at the closest reaper. It bends over backward to dodge its comrade. In that miraculous pose, it sticks out its weapon, using the flat side to hit my leg. The ice shatters and the monster continues past me. And like my wife, once they realize I’m too tough in a frontal assault, they give up, pelting me with weapons made of ice. But none of them stop. They all speed past us. Heading for the camp.

I grit my teeth. Bell is there with Alana and several competent knights. Geneva is also there to protect the less competent members of our army. My role is to take down the goliath. I may not be a knight or a soldier but I know an army only functions when people follow the commander’s orders. It’s hard, but I bury my worries and continue running.