An arrow swerves, violently bending under the force of flight. Brynn would categorize this arrow as pissed. It hits on target anyway.
A big rat haphazardly crashes against petrified vines due to the arrow in its eye.
A company of three rats casually strolls to the frantic animal for some ten meters before they reach the sizeable creature, right on time for it to succumb to its wound and die. Brynn takes out a stone knife and jams it into the base at the back of its skull. No unpleasant surprises. Next, she sets to skinning the creature while Bart lays out cooking equipment and Amethyst sets up a small fire. Within a few minutes several pieces of meat covered in a mix of spices hang by string from one of the spears set up as a rotisserie over a strong flame. How Bart and Amethyst had somehow acquired these spices is a mystery to Brynn.
The current situation Brynn would categorize as unideal. Their objective, firstly, the relocation of a certain someone, did not inspire. Walking from one pile of shit, through a road of shit, into another pile of shit. That is how she categorizes this “adventure”. In her opinion, Anite should make his own way back home, so in the meantime she could enjoy some relative quiet.
Secondly, her companions for the journey are unideal. The one, because she really doesn’t like him. The other, because she likes her too much.
Thirdly, the absolute mindfuck of being glad for Barts presence.
She looks at the rat, still wearing his set of armor, steamimg with mysterious darkness due King’s enchantments. The little rat simultaneously impresses and underwhelms. She grinds her teeth, and her ears wring at his squeaky complaints, while her nose makes her salivate with desire for juicy meat. If she were presented the choice of never having him along on a trip of any kind versus always having him within close vicinity, she would honestly be dumbstruck. She imagines herself standing there, gaping, unable to respond. This hurts her thoroughly. Inner turmoil. Deep distress.
It’s only been two days since they found Anite’s sword but already, they’re at their limit. The two little rats physically, and she mentally. They need to find Anite before someone snaps.
‘I can’t believe he send US.’ Bart whines while spinning the meat, and she sighs for what she was ready to put up with.
‘I completely agree.’ Replies Amethyst, sitting with tense energy. ‘You two are great! Strong and stuff and dependable. How you took out those orcs, unbelievable. I didn’t know you were so capable; Anite and Brynn always sound like you can’t do anything, but I always knew you are a great guy. Really standup.’
Brynn wishes for a bucket.
‘But… but you are agreeing with me?’
‘I am? Oh, oh yes, I was. Well, I don’t know what I’m doing here. What am I going to do, talk an orc to death?’
‘Honestly,’ Brynn chimes in. ‘you’ve been a great help. How you’re helping me with my arrows, equipment maintenance and Bart is such a dunce that he really needs your help to take his armor off.’
‘Hey, it’s not my fault my arms are so small.’
‘Anyway, it doesn’t matter why you’re here. This is the situation. Let’s eat and set up camp.’
Brynn agrees with them, really. She doesn’t understand why they are here either. If King really wants results, he needs to send her alone. Now they move at a snail’s pace, making sure they sleep, making sure they have food. These things are not necessary for her, but she can tell when Amethyst can’t walk straight anymore from exhaustion. Or when Bart doesn’t talk for hours because he can’t think anymore from hunger.
So, they rest. The fire burns to charcoals as Amethyst and Bart talk animatedly. They discuss several things while Amethyst fletches Brynn’s arrows, attaching feathers to the wooden rods with care and thread. Brynn watches her dexterous claws work the thread into detailed patterns. She doesn’t need to do that. It doesn’t have a benefit, but she likes doing it. Meditative for Amethyst. Brynn indulges.
She already feels heavy behind her eyelids. She knows that when the last ember dies out, they will lay down to slumber till the next day. Resting with the vigilance of animals, ready to spring into action at the slightest noise. She hopes the embers stay lit for a long time.
This too is why she rather goes alone. Potentially with Anite if he were here. They would continue onwards through the night, perhaps even two nights. The completion of a mission and the adrenaline of danger gives you a certain edge that puts you on top of the world. So high, it keeps you up.
Even staying at home is preferable. She stays alone in her room, juggling knifes or meditating all through the night. She can do that with relative ease but for some reason it is impossible for her now. Maybe it’s the food. Maybe it’s because they are staying together until the final second they drift away. She feels too safe here. The warmth of the fire. The reassurance of family. So, when the fire burns out, she falls asleep.
Brynn dreads the moment. Another dream, another memory. Whenever she sleeps, another wrongdoing. Of her own. Of someone else to her. Of people to people. Each memory she feels slighted, and every waking moment they fill her with anger. She likes who she is now, but when she wakes she doesn’t feel like herself. Less and less.
She doubted them at first, the dreams. She tried to convince herself that they are just dreams, fabrications of her mind, busy to make sense of the world and her life. That is of course incorrect. She has dreamed even before this life. She has been angry from the start. If they were just dreams, they wouldn’t bother her so. Death wouldn’t upset her, but when people die in her dreams, she feels torn, betrayed, lost. There is no one to betray her now, but when in her dreams a person abandons her or pushes her into an unpleasant situation, she can feel the tears in her throat choking her. She can feel it cut into her skin. Skin. Her fur feels alien in the mornings. Her tail feels limb.
---
Allister’s bald face contorts in anger. I know him. I trust him. But I am shocked when the shadows rip the prisoners apart. This isn’t how I know him. All because they worship a different god. How does he feel about me then?
I hear a snap and my leg gives below my weight. He looks at me with disgust. He has never done that before. Now I know how he really feels.
---
New morning, new anger.
She gets up with a huff and the other two rats spring to action. It doesn’t take long for them to get used to this lifestyle. No time at all. As she tightens her bow Amethyst helps Bart put on his armor and helmet. Brynn must hand it to King, practicality aside, the armor is splendid. The greystone plating is thin, the helmet is simple and round with an edge in the middle to deflect blows, and both emit a slight darkness, a veil of black shadow turning the soft Bart into a ghastly appearance. When he stands in the shadows, you will not see him. Perfect for an ambush party.
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Her own arrow tips are also marvelous. She wonders how he thinks of it while she looks at the stone tip of one of her arrows. These tips too, glow with a darkness.
The true practicality is better displayed in practice.
This day would provide an opportunity.
Halfway through the day Brynn picks up a scent. Not Anite’s, but another scent worth paying mind too. The party traverses a common tunnel lit by blue light, contrasted by vines along the walls and an occasional creature. At Brynn’s order they stick to the wall as they walk and arrive near a crossroad of sorts. Three roads coincide, leading to two roads up ahead.
The smell comes up ahead, carried by a soft draft of wind.
In the distance a squad of three bipedal lizards enter their line of vision from the most center tunnel, carrying spears, wearing clothes. They seem guarded, the way they look about. Sadly, nothing can prepare them to encounter the rats lurking in the shadows.
‘So, we’ll walk up to them, casually chat about, and wave each other goodbye, hoping to have an encounter in the future.’ Whispers Bart, after which he gets pushed along the line of the wall into view of the lizards.
The creatures jump in shock as the rat man seemingly appears out of nowhere but collect themselves as he is alone and hasn’t made a move to attack yet.
‘What, uhm… what’re your names then?’
Two lizards crouch as they point the spears in his direction with lanky bronze arms, ready to press on. The other pulls out a bow and readies an arrow.
Bart squeaks and quickly removes his shield from his back just in time to intercept an arrow flying at his head, deflecting from the wooden shield with a thud, and sending the shield spinning by its hemp cord around Bart’s wrist. Brynn snickers in the shadows. Amethyst bites her nails. Bart’s armor is quite able to block a simple arrow, but Bart doesn’t know that, and he isn’t wanting to find out. The two spear bearers creep into reach and stab at him. He manages to get a good grip on his shield and blocks one of the strikes, feeling a slight numbness in his left arm from the impact, and jumps up to evade the other, feeling the first spear break away from his shield while he pulls out the sword to cut the spear tip of the second rod.
His heels hurt as he lands shakily with his feet on the ground in front of the approaching lizards. Remembering about the third one, he holds up his shield just in time to catch another arrow. Another spear stab surprises him into frisbeeing the round wood into the closest lizard’s face as he swings the sword at the other one. Fully shocked by his own reflexes he catches the second spear by the hands, feeling the back pull on the weapon but stopping the entire attack in its tracks. He looks into the lizard’s eyes and sees they’re wide of fear. He rips the stick out of clammy hands to slap the other lizard across the face with it, feeling the wood crack when it knocks the reptile out cold.
‘Yikes.’
Seeing the third lizard in the distance knock another arrow he lifts the spear over his head and throws it as hard as he can. The lizard frantically looses the arrow into the ceiling as the spear flies through the sky with a woosh and jams straight through its chest, dropping the lizard to the ground.
‘Oh no!’ Bart shouts. ‘I think I killed him!’
‘Good boy.’ Brynn walks out of the shadows. ‘Poor form, but you’re improving.’
She says as she aims her bow at the last lizard standing. He tries to run away but an arrow pierces through its ankle, dropping it to its face. ‘They clearly don’t like us.’
‘I don’t like me very much either, right now.’
‘Maybe we could have worked out our differences.’ Amethyst joins in uncertainly. ‘These two are still alive right? We can, uhm… immobilize them. Right, is that something we can do?’
‘Well, I have different plans for these two.’ Brynn says, curling up the corners of her mouth to a cruel smile while she goes through the pockets of the unconscious lizards. She pulls out a few pouches with dried meats and nuts. ‘I still smell something funky up ahead.’
The little rats snack contently in the shadows, waiting for Brynn her hunch to reveal itself. It does not take long for a large shape to emerge from the rightest of the three tunnels up ahead. It is difficult for them to identify the black hulk. They wait for it to come closer. Brynn can tell Bart is controlling his entire being to remain silent, his entire coat of fur has fluffed up, making him look ridiculous as his fluffy arms contrast with the armor around his chest. She understands. She herself feels a chill moving through her.
It stops by the dead lizard archer, munching down at it. Brynn stifles a nervous laugh. The creature has eight stubby limbs. Its head sports eight beady eyes, covering its head asymmetrically. Yet, the creature is a rat.
Two pink claws rip apart the corpse as the creature balances on six claws. She can make out the wetness on its black snout. Beyond, she can make out several long tails moving around in excitement. Brynn feels her heart in her throat. This beast was gigantic. Her mind drifts for a moment to a hallway filled with the terrifying shape of a bull in human shape. Falling to the ground. Pissing with fear. She can still remember. She can tell this monster rat is bigger still.
She smells something.
She looks at her teammates and notices that Bart and Amethyst have pissed themselves stiff with fear. It is not the time for memories. She taps Bart who looks at her in shock, too scared to make a noise. She signs to him to climb up the roots and pushes him into action. She grabs the stiff Amethyst and carries her as she climbs behind Bart into the canopy. Once there she can get the girl to hold onto the roots by herself as Brynn wraps her own legs around the sturdy vines, hanging only by them so she can have her hands free.
She takes her quiver and hooks it by a branch in front of her while she balances there. She takes out her bow and waits.
She is terrified.
Yet this is what she wants.
This is what she needs.
The monster has not finished its meal but notices one of the lizards on the ground waking up. It stiffens the moment it sees it move and watches it for a second. At the same moment Brynn takes out an arrow and nooks it, baring her fangs in excitement as the feathers rest by her eye. She sees in front of her how the stone arrowhead glows with darkness within the shadows, bending light around it like waves, smoking like a dark fire.
‘Swallow.’
The beast stirs at the sound of her words but it’s too late. The moment the arrow starts to leave the bow, the shadows around the arrow tip stir too. Two tendrils extend from the sides of the arrow point, shifting into the shape of wings, beating the arrow forward as it soars through the air, enveloping the sight of the creature with darkness right before plunging deep into one of the eight black eyes.
It screeches with rage as it trashes around, sending the lizard-corpse flying.
‘Swallow.’
Another arrow whistles as shadowy wings cut through the air straight into another eye. Brynn releases a strained breath through her clenched jaw and feels her heartbeat in her head, feels her muscles fill with energy and strength, feels the calm in her mind, feels the gentle emotion of content. She nooks another arrow.
The monster is now trashing into their general direction. Brynn can see how pieces of the wall have been broken down where it crashed into, leaving the petrified vines spread about the floor.
‘Swallow.’
The arrow beats into the open maw of the creature as it screeches at her from a distance. It now knows where she is and it’s running at her.
‘Swallow.’
The creature accelerates with every leap as eight legs hit the ground with rage.
‘Swallow.’
It cannot see her, but it smells her now. Up close, it looks so big and shows no sign of stopping even though the arrow takes out another eye. Her heart is beating out of her chest.
‘Swallow.’
She’s thinking a mile a minute. The creature landed right below her and needs just a split second to prepare its jump. She can hear vomiting behind her. In this moment she can hear everything, see everything. A split second is just enough. From this distance the arrow is at full speed. The wings beat the arrow tip straight through the skull of the rat, exiting from the other side to pierce the stone floor.
The rat collapses with a thud.
Brynn let’s out a sigh of relief and starts laughing. No laughter of cynicism or sarcasm. She wears an expression of pure joy. This is wat she needed.
She untangles herself and jumps down. She looks at the gaping wound at the throat of the monster where the arrow had broken through. It bleeds heavily as an object spills out from the insides and Brynn picks it up to confirm it’s a bow! Upon picking it up the bow grows a size and at Brynn’s will then turns back to the manageable size of a hand bow.
‘Ragon, you son of a bitch. You’ve done it again, hahaha.’ She smiles to herself.
Next to her she sees a steaming yellow puddle of food remains. She looks up to the two rats in the canopy, still stiff with fear.
‘That is gonna be my whole afternoon.’