CHAPTER ONE
The fishbones hanging around the bears’ thick, black neck clattered against one another as it walked down the wooded path. The sound carried with the passing breeze, a hollow, pretty noise that would’ve sounded prettier without the constant grunting and groaning of the creature. Little specks of blood dribbled down its snout, leaving a breadcrumb trail of gore behind.
Ukon squatted in the bushes ahead, patiently listening as the bear trudged in his direction. With one white-gloved hand gripping at the knotted root of a nearby tree and the other tightly balled into a fist against his knee, he could feel his anxiety eating at him. It’s big, he thought dumbly, sweat beading under the blue rim of his uniform cap. The report never said it was big.
The plan was not a complicated one. Ukon had drafted it himself days before, standing in the dimly lit barracks of Fable’s Southern Cadet Institute. He had traced the bear’s likeliest path through the western zone of the map, calculated possible stop-offs along the route, and painstakingly picked the best choke-point in the woods to subdue the creature.
But in the thirty-six page report he had been assigned, the hearty manila folder he had memorized front to back well over a week ago now, there was only one mention of the bear’s size-- “Mid-size breed, ursine.” That was it. It prattled on and on about the importance of the operation, how to dispose of the body and who to speak with when the mission was over, but it spent very few words on what the wretched thing actually looked like.
Not that he really needed that information now, though. The hulking mass of black fur was a few feet away, grunting down the trail. Ukon reached down and picked up his staff. The smooth white end extended from the navy blue hilt with a soft swish, and as he concentrated on the hilt, he could feel it start to bloom with the familiar warmth of his magic. Just like we practiced, he thought, taking in a deep breath. I’ll isolate it, and the others will do the rest.
A sudden snap echoed across from him, and Ukon jolted to attention. His olive eyes flicked up into the treeline, scanning for the source. There, in the cradle of thick branches hanging across and above him, he could just barely make out someone crouching precariously in the center. He squinted hard, fighting with the sunlight to make out the person’s matching white and blue uniform. The figure was small and stout, a shock of short chestnut hair framing his panicked face. It’s Kendric, Ukon thought flatly, letting a sigh of disappointment escape his nose as the branch creaked under his fellow soldier’s weight. He couldn’t make out the rest of their team in the vicinity. Isa and Clark were most likely still in position behind, probably watching Kendric’s struggle with the same exasperation he was.
In an instant, Kendric fell flat on his rear. The thwunk of the impact was painfully loud, and even the bear seemed to show pity as Kendric yelped in pain. The clumsy soldier looked up, making sheepish eye contact with the creature. The bear snarled.
Kendric nervously uttered, “Uh, Ukon? I think I could use a hand here...”
The bear lunged forward, its paws shaking the ground as it pounced. On instinct, Ukon shot up from his position, pointing the end of his staff out towards the slowly shrinking space between Kendric and the bear. An orange light burst out from the tip, tracing a line of fire through the air. The bear’s entire body was thrown off its course as the fireball made direct contact with the side of its face.
Kendric scuttled back on his legs, quickly hopping up and leaping into the brush behind Ukon. As the bear frantically rolled around in the dirt to put out the flames, Ukon glared at Kendric.
“I’m sorry,” Kendric said, reaching into his pockets to pull out a pair of white brass knuckles. He fiddled with them, stray sparks of yellow bursting as he slid his fingers through the handles.
“Why didn’t you have those on sooner?” Ukon hissed through gritted teeth.
“They were making my hands sore!” Kendric whined.
Before Ukon could set his staff down to strangle Kendric properly, the bear shook itself off and turned to face its attackers. It slammed against the ground with its paws, once, twice, then three times, all while locking eyes with Ukon. Then, water began to trickle out from between its claws. It pooled out of its mouth, leaking from its eye sockets and dripping to the ground, forming a massive, rippling puddle.
Ukon readied his staff once more, Kendric raising his right fist in unison. Then, a crackling shot of bright light burst through the air, striking the bear from the left. The shot passed through the left side of the skull, exiting the right with a spray of viscera, and the bear fell.
“Really great job guys,” Isa said, clapping as she approached. Her silver rifle was already strapped to her back again, the barrel smoking lightly and trailing in the air behind her. She flipped her green-dyed box braids over her shoulder, placing both hands on her hips as she stared the two baffled privates down. “Honestly, I couldn’t have done it better on my own. Oh, wait! I did do it on my own.”
“Isa--” Kendric cooed, arms outstretched with a grin. Isa stepped forward, reaching up to flick his forehead hard. “Ow!”
“You’re an idiot. A mistake like that could have cost us this entire operation! Any sergeant watching that would’ve thought you were trying to sabotage us on purpose.”
“Maybe we should send you in for treason, Kendric,” Clark chirped, stepping into the clearing. He moved towards the bear, squatting next to the corpse as he said over his shoulder, “Might get you to take things a little more seriously if you’re on death row for it.”
“Look, clearly it turned out fine, guys. I feel like we can just call this a win without playing pin-the-tail-on-Kendric, okay?” Kendric huffed.
While Isa continued to chew out Kendric, Ukon noticed the sudden tension in Clark’s shoulders as he examined the bear’s body. Ukon wandered over, still holding the hilt of his staff tightly. “What is it?”
Clark reached for the fishbone necklace still hanging from the bear’s neck. The braid of twine snapped free with ease as he pried it off. The bones were thin, almost translucent against his palm, with the sunlight catching on them as he turned them over. He frowned up at Ukon. “There’s only one skull here. The rest are all ribs.”
“What?” Ukon knelt down, reaching for the necklace himself. Sure enough, only a single skull sat in the middle, clacking against the ribs strung beside it.
“Captain,” Clark said, his voice low. “The bear we were chasing--”
“--Was reported with four, I know,” Ukon finished. “Maybe it lost the other three.”
Clark shook his head. “Bosque is super stingy about bone count, it’s a huge deal in their culture. There’s no way it’d travel this far without them. Not to mention…”
Clark reached a steady hand under the massive, black-furred thigh of the beast. As he pulled it up, he revealed a long, crooked slit running from the bottom of the bear’s jaw all the way down the middle of its stomach. Patches of new skin and fur were growing over the wound, but there were still leaves and sticks jutting out from inside the bear.
Ukon narrowed his eyes on a small bulge protruding from the wound, just under the newly healed flesh. He poked it.
“What… Is this?” Ukon murmured, grimacing as the hard mass moved with his touch. “Looks like a rock.”
“Here,” Clark pulled a hunting knife from his belt. He carved into the bear, pushing his hand inside to pull out the object. With a disgusted look, he offered the bloody lump to Ukon.
Ukon stared in disbelief. “...A potato?”
“A potato,” Clark repeated, dropping it on the ground and wiping his hand off on his pants. “Looks like it got caught in some weird Blem ritual.”
The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
Ukon shuddered at the thought. Blems were the vagrants who lived in the outskirts of Fable, people who had renounced their dedication to the country and wandered between territories. Growing up he had heard all sorts of horror stories about them, how they had silver skin, and they danced in the blood of the elk and the wolves at midnight, luring men and bears to slaughter for their dark magic. He shook the haunting thought away, returning to the scene at hand.
Something was wrong here, Blems or not. If this wasn’t the bear they were looking for, where was it? And who had attacked this bear first? Thousands of questions raced through Ukon’s mind, his stomach churning with dread. As he turned to call Kendric and Isa over, a rhythmic thudding echoed out from the northern end of the path. The forest seemed to fall silent around it.
The two approaching figures were lanky and thin. Both wore tweed rags that hung loose on their figures. The taller one was a young man, no older than Ukon, with a sharp nose and a pale face. His hair was an odd pink color, framing his face and hanging down his back in scraggy, dirty locks. The shorter was a girl, with matching hair and bright pink eyes. Her rags, arm and face covered in what Ukon could only guess was blood.
The two stepped into the clearing, stopping as they finally saw the other four. The girl tilted her head, wild eyes moving from one private to another, before settling on the bear. She let out a loud, irritated groan.
“Aww, you guys caught it! That’s no fair, we saw it first!”
Her partner was silent, but his gaze settled on Ukon’s staff in a way that sent chills up his spine. Kendric stepped forward with a snort.
“These woods aren’t for hunting, little lady,” then, crossing his arms. “They’re not really for beggars either.”
“What my friend means to say is these grounds are under Fable’s private jurisdiction,” Isa added, elbowing Kendric hard in the gut as she passed him. “Civilians aren’t meant to be out this far into the woods.”
“We’d be happy to escort you back to town, though,” Clark offered.
The girl cackled, revealing a pair of long, yellowed fangs. She nudged her companion and pointed to Ukon. “Look at that one’s face, Norok-- It’s all wrinkled.”
Norok nodded, giving a sly smirk. “Yeah, he’s probably the smart one. Doesn’t say much, though, they all look pretty stupid.”
“Like dinner, you mean,” the girl said, licking her lips. Then, with her eyes darting from each of the four, she finished with a low, hungry voice, “They all look like dinner.”
In an instant, the girl surged forward, her hands outstretched for Kendric. Kendric stepped back, his leg faltering for a moment as she leapt into the air, her knees colliding with his chest. He cried out as she dug her nails into the sides of his face. Her mouth opened wider and wider, the yellowed-fangs protruding from her mouth jutting out now as she drove them deep into his right cheek. Kendric screamed.
Isa sprinted at the girl and tackled her to the ground. The girl gurgled, choking on a half-chewed hunk of Kendric’s face. Clark ran to Kendric, his healing magic ready at his fingertips.
The girl rolled her head to the left and spat out the chunk, sticking her tongue out with disgust. “Pweh! Salty!”
“Don’t be picky, Daimona,” Norok chided, clicking his tongue as he began to lurk forward. He grinned at Kendric’s flailing body in Clark’s arms. “Beggars can’t be choosers.”
“Stop!” Ukon shouted, raising his staff. The end began to spark violently, a circle of fire forming at Norok’s feet and trapping him where he stood. Norok raised his hand, and with his index finger and his middle finger, he swiftly pointed up at the sky.
“Up,” he said with a sigh, and with immense force, Ukon’s staff immediately flew into the air above the treeline. As Norok dropped his hand, watching the fire circle dissipate, a loud snap rang out in the woods, and Ukon’s staff came crashing back down in two pieces, taking with it several branches and twigs.
Taking Isa’s shock and confusion as the opportunity it was, Daimona reached up, wrapping her hands around Isa’s throat. She rolled up and forward, until she was hunched over Isa’s body and strangling the life out of the young cadet. Isa clawed desperately at Daimona’s chest, attempting to push her off, but Daimona slunk forward, pressing her full weight down and nudging her forehead against Isa’s.
“It was you, right?” Daimona cooed, her tone mocking and bitter. “You shot my bear, I can smell it off you. You stink of death.”
Isa choked for air as Daimona pulled Isa’s head up and slammed it violently into the ground again. Blood leaked from the corners of Isa’s mouth, her green eyes rolling back into her head.
“Go on then. Shoot me. Shoot me like the bear.” Daimona’s fingers tightened around Isa’s throat. “Grab your gun and shoot me.”
The ground rumbled, and rising from the ground was a stone-carved dog. The long snout jutted forward suddenly, and rammed into the side of Daimona’s face, knocking her off Isa and sending her tumbling into the bear corpse.
Kendric huffed, pulling his fist back. His face was still worse for wear, with blood trailing down his neck, but Clark’s magic was visibly repairing the wound at a rapid pace. Another pair of stone dogs emerged from the ground, dragging Isa by each shoulder and pulling her to Clark. Kendric stood protectively in front, glaring down Norok.
But Norok didn’t return the look. Instead, he rushed to Daimona, pulling her to her feet. Daimona patted his shoulder.
“I’m good,” she said with a soft laugh, stretching her arms high above her before repeating, “I’m good.”
“Are you going to start acting like a real captain, or what?!” Kendric shouted at Ukon. Previously paralyzed by the loss of his staff, Ukon felt a jolt of inspiration surge through him with Kendric’s words. He was up against two vicious assailants, with no thirty-six page report to tell him what to expect. But I didn’t enlist to fight the expected, Ukon thought, heat blossoming in the center of his palms. I did it for my people. For my home. For Fable.
Ukon clapped his hands together. He closed his eyes, concentrating on the air. All around him, it grew thick and heavy, snaking into his lungs and sitting in his chest. He breathed through the pain, slow and steady, until he could feel the searing heat of his efforts materializing.
As he opened his eyes, Ukon could see the hot white rod of fire tearing its way through the sky above Daimona and Norok. It blazed and crackled loudly, before finally dropping an impenetrable wall of flames and encasing his opponents in the fire. On the other side, he could hear the two shuffling and coughing, their hands reaching through the wall only to be pulled back with hisses of pain and frustration.
“Hell’s Curtain will buy us some time,” Ukon said, snapping his attention to Kendric. He kept his hands clasped tightly together, holding the spell in place. “You and Isa rush in and put them down before they can recover.”
“Won’t we get like…” Kendric gestured helpless to the blazing wall. “Burned?”
Isa dusted herself off, giving Clark a grateful pat on the back as she stood up. She rubbed at her throat, her voice coming out hoarse. “Ukon won’t let that happen. Right?”
“Right,” Ukon replied. “But you have to hurry, I can’t hold it for long without my staff.”
With that, Kendric and Isa looked to one another, gave a resolute nod, and charged the curtain. Isa kept her gun aimed at the ground, her back the last thing Ukon saw as they disappeared into the flames.
He couldn’t hear much over the sound of the curtain. There was the sound of feet moving, a few stray grunts, and then nothing.
“Do you think they’re okay?” Clark asked quietly, shuffling closer to Ukon.
“We trained for this,” Ukon said, then offering a sheepish smile. “Just be ready to heal them up, okay? That’s all I need from you.”
After another tense bout of quiet, Kendric’s voice piped up over the fire. “It’s over! Drop the wall!”
Relief washed over Ukon. He slowly pulled his hands apart, causing Hell’s Curtain to dissipate. The flames billowed, falling to the ground like fabric.
But in the scorched clearing, a horrific sight awaited him. Ukon could see Isa’s body on the ground, her face down in the dirt. Her back was slashed to ribbons. Her right arm looked broken, the bone jutting out of her forearm, but her gun was lying just a few inches away from her hand outside the circle. She was reaching for it, Ukon realized, with a helpless sense of dread.
Standing in the center was Daimona, with Kendric in her arms. Her hands were hooked around his waist in a way that almost made it look like they were dancing, only her mouth was lodged firmly to his throat. With a sicking crunch, she pulled away, taking his trachea with her. Kendric’s head hung limply for a moment, until she dropped his body completely. Her eyes flicked up to meet Ukon’s.
She opened her mouth to speak, but it wasn’t her voice that came out. Instead, Ukon heard Kendric’s laugh spill out of her, as she said, “Sorry about that, chief.”
“Didn’t you hear them earlier? It’s captain, Daimona,” Ukon heard from behind.
He whirled around to Clark, just in time to see Norok step forth from the shadows. Clark’s eyes widened as Norok’s hands overtook his face, brutally snapping his neck. Clark fell first to his knees, then doubled over right before Ukon’s feet.
Nausea and fear overwhelmed Ukon’s senses. He stumbled back. Norok closed the distance between them, grabbing Ukon’s right arm roughly.
With one hand on Ukon’s shoulder and the other gripping his elbow, Norok grunted, “Down.”
For a moment, there was nothing. The breeze blew through the space between them. Then Ukon’s arm began to tremble, straining under an impossibly heavy invisible weight. The bone snapped, blood spurting out as what was left of his arm twisted and tore, slamming into the ground beneath him.
The pain was blinding. Ukon screamed, but he couldn’t hear it over the terrible ringing of his ears. He fell, twitching and howling, nothing more than a wounded animal now.
Daimona grinned, skipping over to him. As her foot came crashing down into Ukon’s skull, everything went black.