Alex laboured forward through the dense underbrush, each step he took causing the heavy chains encumbering his movements to rattle loudly.
With each weary step, Alex pushed himself forward, oblivious to how much time had passed or how far he had actually traveled. The only thing he was certain of was the overwhelming exhaustion that tugged at his very being.
The sounds of soft, heart-wrenching sobs and the guttural growls of nearby wolves filled the air. The mournful cries echoed through the forest like a haunting soundtrack to his relentless march.
The heavy chains around his wrists suddenly constricted, their cold metal links biting into his flesh before they forcefully pulled him backwards with a harsh yank.
Behind him, Helen, a middle-aged woman from the village, stumbled and fell to the ground behind him, her body succumbing to the overwhelming exhaustion that had built up during their unrelenting march through the forest.
The sight of Helen's dispirited form lying motionless on the ground filled Alex's heart with a profound sense of helplessness. Helplessness that arose from the knowledge there was little he could do to alleviate her suffering or his own.
A diminutive goblin adorned with ragged, sharp teeth protruding menacingly from his mouth and bright, red, beady eyes effortlessly dismounted from his wolf with a sinister smirk on his face.
The wicked goblin, resembling a predatory animal stalking its prey, approached Helen, firmly grasping her hair and forcefully yanking her face upwards to meet his gaze.
A soft whimper escaped Helen's trembling lips as the goblin fixed his gaze upon her. Without mercy, he delivered a hard slap across her face, before baring his fangs menacingly and hissing through gritted teeth, "Move or die."
The goblin's voice echoed through the air with an uncanny, unnatural quality that sent shivers down Alex's spine. There was something unsettling about it, an otherworldly aspect that only served to emphasise the goblin's malicious intent.
Helen desperately attempted to rise, but her body, weakened by exhaustion, couldn't bear her weight, and she crumpled back down to the ground. The goblin, now furious, unsheathed a dagger from his side, its cold, metallic blade gleaming in the dim light of the forest.
The goblin lifted Helen by her hair once more, his dagger poised menacingly above her exposed neck, ready to slid across her throat. In that moment, just before the blade could plunge into her flesh, Alex's voice cut through the air.
A raspy, gravelly sound escaped Alex's lips as he spoke, his voice sounding surprisingly alien to his own ears. It had been so long since he had last spoken that each word felt like sandpaper scraping against his parched throat.
“Please,” he begged. “I’ll carry her.”
The goblin's eyes gleamed with a sinister glee as he cast his gaze towards Alex. The dagger in his hand moved with sudden swiftness, slicing across Helen's throat in a gory display.
Alex watched in horror, unable to move. As blood sprayed out of her neck, her life visibly leaving her body. She twitched on the ground as blood sunk into the reddened leaves.
The goblin's bloodthirsty delight grew as he watched Alex's horror unfold, his unwavering gaze locked on Alex's face, relishing in the reaction he had provoked.
Muffled cries echoed through the air, the sounds of despair and desolation reverberating within the forest. The prisoners, shackled in chains like himself, let out stifled sobs, their suffering palpable in the air.
Unable to process the situation around him, Alex's mind was clouded with disbelief and anger. He watched as the goblin unshackled the lifeless body of Helen and tossed it towards him with a cruel indifference.
The goblin, gripping his blood-soaked dagger, pointed it menacingly at Alex. He barked out a single, chilling command. "Carry."
Alex's heart twisted at the sight of Helen's lifeless form, and his stomach churned with revulsion as he gazed back at the malicious goblin. The urge to retch rose within him, the bitter taste of bile burning in his throat.
The goblin, his face contorted in a sickening smile, advanced towards Alex and delivered a hard smack across his face. In a swift motion, the goblin then thrust the blade of his dagger menacingly towards Alex's throat.
The cold, sharp edge of the dagger pierced Alex's skin, sending a sharp, searing pain through his flesh, and a warm, wet sensation spread down his neck.
Once more, the goblin spoke, his voice filled with an ominous certainty. "Carry," he repeated, his eyes boring into Alex, demanding obedience.
With great effort, Alex slowly rose from his kneeling position, his movements hindered by the heavy chains that bound him. His muscles strained against the weight of the thick metal links as he lifted Helen's lifeless figure, gingerly cradling her in his arms.
The goblin, with his wicked laughter echoing through the forest, once again as he mounted his waiting wolf, a look of sadistic satisfaction upon his twisted face.
The heavy chains encircling Alex's wrists suddenly constricted, the metallic links biting into his flesh as they mercilessly tugged him forward with a sharp jolt.
Carrying the motionless body of Helen in his arms, Alex continued his arduous march through the forest, dragged along by the relentless tightening of the chains around his raw wrists.
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His body was slick with a mixture of blood, sweat, and grime, each laboured step he took feeling like an insurmountable effort. Despite the exhaustion that threatened to overwhelm him, the chains yanking him forward mercilessly prevented any respite. He wondered how he managed to remain standing, pushing his limits to the brink.
Alex's sense of time had become a hazy blur. Days blended together in a never-ending march; no water, no rest, little food.
Along the way, three more prisoners succumbed to the relentless march, their bodies collapsing to the ground as exhaustion overtook them. The goblin didn't have finish them off with his dagger; their bodies lay motionless, victims of exhaustion alone. The goblins would feed there wolves the remains. Forcing us to watch the sickening scene, of crunching bones and rendered flesh. Like a warning of what would happen if we didn’t push forwards.
As the march continued, the nauseating stench of Helen's decomposing body became almost overpowering. The reek of rotting flesh and decay filled the air, a revolting accompaniment to their journey. The unbearable odour assaulted Alex's senses as he struggled to maintain his grip on her corpse.
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Any semblance of grace or respect for Helen's lifeless form had faded away after the first day. Her body now hung limply over Alex's shoulder like an inanimate weight, her blood seeping through the fabric of his clothes and trickling down his back.
The iron links of his chains pulled tight around his wrists again, abruptly halting Alex's weary gait. He stumbled, struggling to find balance under the weight of Helen's body as he came to a reluctant stop.
Peering up from the seemingly endless forest floor, Alex's gaze caught a distant sight of smoke rising in the air. Muffled beneath the fog of his exhaustion, the faint sounds of laughter and joy reached his ears like a bittersweet whisper.
The surrounding area was suddenly filled with movement as goblin riders, seemingly appearing out of thin air, emerged from all directions. They congregated together, engaged in raucous conversations that echoed through the forest.
Caught unaware, Alex was momentarily disoriented before realizing what was happening. The goblin riders spurred their wolves into a furious charge, the creatures hurtling through the forest in the direction of the distant laughter.
Oh no.
Alex struggled to find his voice, attempting to call out, desperate to warn the unsuspecting victims of the goblins' approaching presence. But his throat was parched, his voice hoarse and weak from days of disuse. All that escaped him was a croaked, gasping plea.
As the noise of laughter shifted into bloodcurdling screams, a wave of despair washed over Alex. He could feel tears running down his face, a bitter mix of shame, helplessness and grief washing over him with each piercing cry that filled the air.
The strength in Alex's legs gave way, and he sank to the ground, dropping Helen's lifeless body from his shoulders. Despondence and despair clawed at his insides, threatening to consume him completely. He was surrounded by fellow prisoners, all experiencing the same feelings, their eyes reflecting their horror.
The cacophony of weeping and terrified shrieks filled the night, an endless chorus of sorrow and suffering. Bound to the spot, Alex stared off into the distance, the inferno's dance of flames painting the night in an eerie, hellish light.
With the arrival of morning, a somber hush fell over the once-rowdy encampment, replacing the previous night's symphony of misery. Alex, still bound, found himself surrounded by an eerie stillness, a silence that felt heavy and ominous.
A harsh command barked out in a goblin's rasping voice echoed through the air. "Move" - a short, gruff word that sent a jolt through Alex's body. The chains attached to him snapped taut, their cold metal links beginning to tug at his wrists forcefully, propelling him forward once more.
The air was thick with the scent of acrid smoke, emanating from the still-smouldering fires of the previous day's horrific ordeal. The stench of death and decay mingled with the burnt wood, filling Alex's nostrils with a nauseating blend of smells that seemed to cling to the air itself.
Their relentless march continued, and a small, devastated village came into view. The once peaceful settlement had been reduced to ruins amidst the destruction, stained with blood and blackened by fire. The sight filled Alex with a deep sense of despair, the magnitude of the devastation bearing down on him with its bleak reality.
The convoy of prisoners was herded into a small clearing, and Alex's gaze fell upon another group of captives gathered there. Their faces were etched with despair, their eyes filled with tears of agony. The sight of their defeated and broken state only heightened Alex's own.
The savage goblins roughly pushed Alex and the remaining prisoners towards the other captives, before casually tossing a few scraps of food onto the ground. The gesture felt like an insult, a belittling display of the goblins' power and control over them.
Alex felt the familiar uneasiness as he and the others consumed the meager food, their appetites diminished by days of neglect and the horrors they had endured. The act of eating like animals, in such a degrading and undignified manner, was as revolting as it had been the first time.
The atmosphere was tense and ominous, filled with an almost unbearable silence. The only sounds that broke through the air were the soft, quiet sobs of the newly captured prisoners, their anguish and grief piercing the heavy veil of silence that had fallen over the clearing.
The goblins quickly gathered the prisoners once more, their harsh commands cutting through the air. As they resumed their march, Alex noticed that their numbers had increased a lot. The goblins had added more captives to their grim procession, adding to the ever-growing group of wretched souls now shackled by their cruel captors.
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With each passing hour, the sickening reek of decay grew stronger, and Helen's body was the only source of the foul odour. The constant exposure to the stench gnawed away at Alex's sanity, a relentless torment that seemed to permeate every aspect of their journey. Carrying her corpse through the forest had become a worse torture than the hunger that gnawed at his stomach or the cry’s of his fellow prisoners.
After hours of traversing through the thick forest, they arrived at the imposing sight of massive stone walls, their sheer size and grandeur towering above them. As they neared, the gates swung open, revealing the sprawling city that lay behind, its towering structures and bustling streets coming into view.
Weary to the bone, Alex's body seemed to run on willpower alone. He could no longer feel his legs, each step a Herculean effort, and yet he found himself moving forward, one leg slowly shuffling ahead of the other, compelled onward by some hidden reservoir of strength deep inside him.
The edges of his vision were clouded by exhaustion, his breath coming in short, ragged gasps. The chains mercilessly pulled him forward, the links scraping against the stone ground as he was forced through the city gates.
Amidst the haze of exhaustion that clouded his mind, Alex could pick up the chatter of voices all around him, along with the occasional low, menacing growls of wolves. The sounds echoed through the air, blending with the clinking of the chains that bound him and the shuffling footsteps of his fellow prisoners.
“Filthy humans.”
Alex's weary gaze rose at the impact of a small rock against his head. Looking up, he beheld a peculiar sight - a small child covered in a fur patterned like a zebra. The child had thrown the rock, its young face etched with distain.
How could even a child look at me like that.
The chains yanked at him once more, pulling his body forward, while a barrage of curses and projectiles assailed him from all sides. Each step he took was a struggle, the insults and thrown objects only adding to the sense of torment and despair that weighed down upon him.
The time seemed to stretch and distort as they travelled through the city, the constant barrage of torment from the strange creatures wearing down on their already exhausted spirits. Finally, they came to a halt in front of a massive stone building, its imposing size and structure suggesting some purpose of importance.
The heavy barred gates creaked open, and the prisoners were brusquely pushed forward, passing the stoic forms of guards who stood like sentinels at the entrance. They entered the building, the air taking on an ominous and foreboding feel, the thick stone walls adding to the sense of confinement and helplessness.
The cold-blooded goblin, the one who took Helen's life, approached Alex, his sinister presence causing a shiver to run down his spine. The goblin coldly unchained him, only to then cruelly toss Helen's body to the ground, treating her as nothing more than a lifeless thing.
The odour that assailed his nostrils was truly repulsive, a pungent and rancid stench that seemed to cling to the air. The goblin captor led Alex down a long, expansive hall, keeping him separate from the other prisoners in the other room. The smell was overwhelming, worse even than the stench coming from Helen's decaying body.
A sickening sense of horror crept over Alex as he looked warily at the barred gate they walked pass. Inside was what looked like a human man, only he hung upside down from hooks that ripped through his feet.
Blood flowed freely from his throat into a waiting bucket that was placed underneath him. The scene seared into Alex’s mind as he watched in horror.
They passed more cells, each one with someone inside, hanging upside down getting bleed. Each one adding insanity to Alex’s mind, threatening to unravel him.
The goblin captor seized hold of Alex's weakened frame and threw him with brutal force into a dimly lit room. The impact knocked the air from his lungs, and he stumbled to the ground, pain and exhaustion washing over him.
As the metal gates clanged shut, closing off the outside world, Alex found himself trapped in the small room. The goblin captor lingered outside, his cold, reptilian gaze fixed on Alex, studying him like some fascinating specimen.
The glow of the goblin’s red eyes cut through the darkness, a malevolent flame in the dim corridor. A cruel cackle echoed through the air, bouncing off the barren stone walls, as his captor, his tormentor, turned and vanished from view, leaving Alex trapped and alone in the small room.