Chapter 19 - Battlefield of Nightmares

Wind howled in Skyle’s ears as he zipped down the line at reckless speeds. Fortunately, even as his grip on the rope began to slip, he was soon caught by a massive arm around his chest just before landing.

“You trying to break your other leg, you fool?” Leon reprimanded him, but in his eyes Skyle could see an odd mixture of relief and concern lingering behind.

In his own blood, Skyle could still feel the remnants of that odd sensation that had exploded in his veins. It left him slightly dizzy and confused as well, drained of all strength while his mind reeled in exhaustion.

Among the boys of Skyle’s age, he had always been the voice of logic and reason, the calm anchor in the sea of trouble that his friends would often stir up with their mischief. Even amongst his siblings, he had always been the stable, comforting older brother who would always look after wilful little Kass and shy little Reik.

Skyle could count the number of times he had been truly infuriated in his entire life in the fingers of one hand, and never to the extent he had experienced upon that wall. The comforting rule of reason had shattered under the repeated duress of this harsh new world and its cruel rules. In its place, a vicious storm of emotions and desires had been summoned, as though by magic.

Even now, Skyle could feel the fearsome beast still lingering within his subconscious. He could feel it in the most remote corners of his mind, like a lofty predator who sat within its cage not because it lay helpless and trapped, but rather because it couldn’t be bothered to struggle.

Sooner or later, it knew its time would come, and then the hunt would begin.

Skyle shivered unconsciously at the naked certainty he felt from that last thought.

“What is happening to me?” Skyle thought, a white hot edge of panic entering his mind.

Leon had already begun to walk forward, pulling a blankly staring Skyle trailing behind. The outter perimeter of the palisade wall had a ditch dug all around it, and since they had landed straight in the bottom of the ditch, they had to use both hands and feet to struggle up the steep slope to reach level ground.

Leon quietly reflected that it could have been worse, as there could have been spikes or other traps underneath. He was still wondering just what could cause such an impressive army to huddle behind such massive fortifications, when both he and Skyle finally reached the top of the slope, and climbed up onto level ground.

Both boys stared dumbly at the sight before them, their minds blanking out as their eyes slowly widened.

A long plain stretched out before them, with a thick tree line rising up high into the sky in the distance. The open ground covered a stretch of at least one mile, and it was all one massive battlefield.

The surface was littered with shattered swords, broken spears and sundered shields, carelessly strewn about the ground like so many toys. A vast sea of arrows could be seen, most of them driven deeply into the ground, their fletchings dirty with mud or blood, it was impossible to determine. Other shafts lay scattered all about, snapped into several pieces, the arrowheads blunted or broken outright.

Still, it wasn’t the various implements of war that shocked the boys into stunned silence. Instead, it was all the corpses.

It was a veritable sea of corpses that met their horrified gaze. Here and there, humanoid corpses could be seen wearing the same armor as the ones within the complex, but these were invariably torn to pieces. The armor on their body lay shredded by tooth and claw, as easily rent asunder as though it had been mere paper. White bones gleamed dully in the dark, some with strips of flesh still attached, but no whole body could be found anywhere.

However, these corpses weren’t the center of the boys’ undivided attention. Instead, it was the other corpses, the inhuman ones, that stilled the breath in their lungs as a numb ringing sound resonated in their heads.

There were easily thousands upon untold thousands of beastial corpses strewn all about the battlefield. Some were as small as a cat, though they still bore fearsome fangs and wickedly sharp claws. Others were as tall as a house, with a head that was as wide as Leon’s full stature, armed with razor sharp horns that jutted out a good four feet. Long, cylindrical bodies belonging to the most massive snakes Skyle had ever seen had been viciously chopped into several sections, each as thick around as a horse’s flank.

The beasts didn’t share any one physical trait, and instead they all had a myriad different shapes, sizes and unsual traits, though they did share one commonality: they had all been killed by weapons. Some had several spears sticking out of their chests, others had their eyes pierced by sharp arrows, and some others still had the handles of swords jutting out of their bellies.

Here and there, massive craters could be seen, with huge holes in the ground leaving a circular scar that left bits and pieces of flesh and bone scattered in a grisly spectacle. The ground had been churned into a gruesome mudpit that glistened dully with a distinct reddish hue.

Here and there, massive bonfires burned in the midst of the great battlefield. Huge platforms of dried out logs had been gathered together. Upon it lay huge mounds of corpses, and movement could be detected as a few figures toiled in the gloomy darkness, dragging more carcasses towards wooden pyres that had yet to be lit.

Leon was the first one to snap out of it, as he had witnessed many battlefields in his young life as part of his military training, though seldom, if ever, had he witnessed a massive scene of carnage such as this one.

“I guess we found the reason for the walls,” Leon whispered in awed tones. “It’s a battlefield pulled straight from some sick god’s insane nightmares.”

Skyle slowly shook his head numbly.

“They’re still cleaning up. Looking at the aftermath, it must have been a scene straight from hell,” Leon whispered, instantly crouching down low and dragging Skyle down with him.

Skyle looked blankly in Leon’s direction for a moment, before turning his gaze towards the figures he saw moving in the midst of the battlefield.

“Why are they burning all the corpses?” Skyle wondered out loud. “It seems like a waste of energy and resources.”

Leon shook his head firmly. “Rotting corpses will bring plague and corruption. Looking at this slaughterhouse, within days it would be festering, ripe for disease.”

Skyle nodded absently as he glanced sideways. “There must be at least a dozen pyres just within our range of sight alone. Each of those pyres must have hundreds of corpses on it. How many dead bodies is that?”

Leon shook his head, too shocked by the numbers coming to his head to reply.

“The good thing is that only the outer sentries should be alert. The soldiers on clean up detail will be numbed and exhausted, and if anything they’ll be looking towards those forests for any unexpected attacks. That leaves us relatively free to sneak up behind them.”

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Skyle studied the lay of the field, and nodded slowly.

“Looks like you won’t have to settle for a measly axe anymore,” Skyle whispered, his gaze wandering around the field.

“And you won’t be running out of arrows anytime soon,” Leon countered, then continued speaking in more somber tones while nodding pointedly towards a particularly massive beast shaped like a black panther, only each of its claws was easily the size of a small horse. “The only thing is, just how much safer will those forests be, if they’re overrun by beasts as tyrannical and blood-thirsty as these.”

“Staying here is not an option,” Skyle replied in grim tones, his eyes hardening. “I saw.. They were sacrificing the captives who tried to escape after us. It was a hard death. I’d rather take my chances in the wilderness with the beasts.”

Leon looked at Skyle and finally seemed to understand part of what had happened previously upon the wall. He laid a solidary hand upon Skyle’s shoulder, and squeezed gently.

“Sorry you had to see that,” Leon whispered. “We’ll see to it that they get the punishment they deserve, these bastards.”

Skyle nodded firmly. “But first we need to survive. You look for weapons, I’ll keep an eye out while guiding us through this nightmare.”

Leon nodded his assent, and checking that his axe was still securely fastened to his belt, gave the go ahead to Skyle.

As the boys moved closer to the treeline, they were able to use the corpses of particularly huge beasts in order to conceal themselves from the soldiers. However, true to Leon’s statement before, most of the soldiers kept their gazes to themselves, their minds numb as they engaged in the plodding, monotonous work of dragging dismembered corpses into huge piles before setting them on fire.

Still, the pyres provided plenty of illumination, and each group of soldiers carried their own torches. Thus, the boys had to move slowly and carefully in order to avoid being detected. It was as they crouched next to the corpse of a particularly huge beast that misfortune struck.

Skyle stiffened momentarily before hissing under his breath and diving towards the ground while dragging Leon with him, seeking to hide from the gaze of one of the guards in a particular squad of ten soldiers that were walking about fifty feet ahead. Mysteriously, this man's aura had suddenly begun to glow with the now familiar yellow tones of caution and he had abruptly turned around to gaze straight in the direction of the boys.

While Skyle was fairly certain that they had managed to avoid being spotted, the guard’s yellow sparks only grew larger as he stopped for a moment. Skyle held his breath while he watched the guard’s aura, fervently wishing for it to go away. Leon lay face down next to Skyle, remaining completely still and not daring to make a sound. So determined and disciplined was the young nobleman, that he did not turn his head an inch even when he felt a warm, wet touch slithering across his leg.

At first, Leon thought it must be his imagination. Then he thought perhaps he’d disturbed the dead beast’s carcass and a portion of it had settled down on top of him. It was only when he gradually felt the warmth of the weight slithering around his leg that he slowly turned his head around to take a look.

In the end, it was actually Skyle who turned his head around first. This wasn’t because of any sound or sensation he felt from behind. Instead, it was because the thick yellow of caution in the approaching soldier’s aura had finally solidified enough that Skyle could now distinctly read the direction it was aimed it. It was not the ground, where both boys lay prone. Instead, it was centered upon the center of mass of the huge beast they were hiding next to. Or more accurately, they were lying right under the gaping maw of the beast as it lay curled in a fetal position, its back exposed to the approaching soldier.

“Oh hell, don’t tell me..” Skyle’s eyes widened in sudden realization as he immediately turned around to gaze around his back, whereupon his eyes found that two eyes as big around as his own head had fluttered open and were now concentrating upon Leon’s prone figure, all the while a steady stream of drool slowly slid down its slowly widening maw, one filled with a terrifying row of sharp teeth, to land squarely on top of Leon’s leg.

Skyle was barely able to contain his scream of surprise, and instead acted reflexively, springing to his feet and curling his hand around Moonshadow’s grip. Without a moment’s hesitation, he spun his body around in a tight circle, and dark steel gleamed at the tip of his hands as Moonshadow’s razor sharp wings tasted blood for the first time.

A savage roar filled the night as the beast instinctively recoiled in both pain and surprise. Its whole attention had been focused upon Leon, and this was the only reason why Skyle had been able to use his bow’s cutting edge to deliver a wicked cut straight across one of its eyes. The delicate membrane couldn’t withstand Moonshadow’s deadly kiss, and instantly ruptured, sending a stream of blood mixed with a foul smelling clear liquid gushing forth.

Even as Skyle finished executing his attack, he had firmly grasped Leon’s arm. Now he pushed himself off the beast and dove towards a nearby dip in the ground. Leon visibly recoiled from the shocking roar that filled his ears, but naturally trusted Skyle and let himself be pulled into the ditch.

No sooner had both boys landed within, than a loud crackle rang out in the air above them, as though a solid object had just struck a terrible blow against the ground they were hiding behind. Fortunately for them, a thick cloud of dust arose as a result, and it effectively obscured the sight of the boys as the soldiers cried out in unison and charged towards the beast, lifting up the long spears they carried at their backs. Several of them launched their weapons, and the beast above Skyle’s head roared in pain once again, turning to meet its new foes.

Skyle breathed out a sigh of relief, then turned to Leon.

“Are you alright?”

“Holy mother of the abyss, what in the god forsaken trials of cerberus was that flaming son of a..”

A long string of curses followed, flowing out of Leon’s mouth in a constant stream. The shocking smoothness and increasing creativity of the long litany of crass insults impressed Skyle. It just went to show that you never knew with these noblemen, behind their civilized and genteel veneer.

“Leon, we need to get away before the beast draws more attention,” Skyle interrupted Leon’s stream of expletives, pulling the boy along as he crawled through the ditch on his belly.

“..Mangy son of a fornicating goat, misbegotten spawn of Cilcer’s moldy balls..”

The sounds of fighting continued unabated as the boys slowly crawled away. By the time the sounds of battle were finished, two of the soldiers were down and a third was limping slightly as they finally nailed the horrifying beast to the ground. At this point, the boys had finally reached the relative security of the forest bordering the clearing. As they entered the treeline and took shelter under the branches of a low-hanging tree, Leon finally stopped and turned around to face Skyle, clearly struggling for words.

“Didn’t your True Sight detect it?” Leon suddenly demanded out of Skyle, glaring indignantly at him.

Skyle coughed sheepishly, “I was looking at the guards in front of us and didn’t really pay attention to the beast. I thought it must be dead for sure.”

Leon snorted loudly. “Next time you think something’s dead, dip your own leg under a starving behemoth’s salivary juices.”

Wrinkling his nose, Skyle raised an eyebrow. “I wouldn’t dare. I think the two of you had the beginning glimmers of a beautiful thing, back there. I almost felt too embarrassed to intervene.”

Leon grumbled under his breath as he flailed his arms wide in protest, but under the flushed cheeks Skyle could see the true intent behind the other boy’s words and actions.

“You’re welcome, Leon Draxas,” Skyle said in serious tones, though a small smile soon quirked his lips. “You did leap into this nightmare to haul my own arse out of the fire first, after all.”

Leon paused for a moment, then his own rueful smile slowly spread across his face. “Much good it ended up doing.”

Skyle firmly shook his head, “No, I would have never made it this far without you, my friend.”

Leon seemed to think on that for a moment, before he held out his hand towards Skyle.

“Those should be my words, my friend. I do not say these words lightly, but you have won my respect many times over. From this day forward I, Leon Draxas Di Adrausier, do solemnly vow to share both honor and glory, life and death with you, Skyle Farrow.”

Skyle nodded solemnly and took the offered hand, shaking it firmly.

“Right back at ya, Leon Draxas,” Skyle grinned, then intentionally wrinkled his nose while glancing down at Leon’s soaking wet boot. “Though you’re gonna have to do something about that awful stink, yer lordship.”

Without even missing a beat, Leon sighed mournfully as his hand tightened even further, intentionally pulling Skyle even closer.

“Honor and glory, life and death. I share this ungodly stink with you freely as well, my brother. Though I do greatly fear that it will overtly distract your mind, taking you back to your golden days rolling in the mud with pigs and fornicating with-”

The rest of it was cut off as both boys broke out in laughter, a much needed release from the terrible trials they had just overcome.

It was in such a fashion that the first day Skyle Farrow and Leon Draxas spent in the rift’s nightmarish realm finally came to a close.