Vuroth's Tear: Even the Gods Cry

Chapter 55

Chapter 55

Dravis cut through the crowd of undead ahead of him, his sword still burned through each of them almost effortlessly. The archers were being overwhelmed, torn to shreds or tossed from the roof carelessly. Dravis tried in vain to ignore the screams followed by the thud of them hitting the stone streets.

His men were falling too quickly. Soon, they would be overwhelmed but survival was never their mission, they just needed to survive long enough for the others to make it to Tola. From there, it was up to them to kill him and save the kingdom.

Dravis could feel the exhaustion setting in, making him sluggish. His sword felt heavier with each swing. As he continued, he looked at his men, all fighting with honor, fearlessly facing and dying at the hands of nightmarish creatures or turned comrades all for the sake of helping to sake Drakorna.

What if they fail to survive long enough? What if the others can't kill Tola? What will become of the kingdom if they fail? What did Tola want, to rule or simply to destroy? He grunted as he slashed, digging deeper for the strength to continue. What did it matter to him what Tola's motivations were? No matter what they were, he knew that if they failed, the results would be the same. A kingdom consumed by death.

In an instant, the city went quiet. The husks retreated several steps and stood motionless, staring at the remaining soldiers. Dravis slowly turned in a circle, looking in confusion at the statuesque undead that surrounded them. He and his men fought to catch their breath, cautiously awaiting the next wave of attack.

Dravis' mind wandered to the most frightening possibility he could imagine, were the others found and killed, was this the end? He feared the worst and in a panic, he didn't know what to do. There was tension in the air, Dravis and his men were exhausted yet held steady, ready to fight until they fell to the ground dead.

"Men, no matter the outcome, I just want you all to know that I'm proud of you. You have all fought well," Dravis swallowed hard and gasped for a breath, "it's been an honor, men."

One husk moved, its dried lips peeled back into a grin before dropping to its knees. Others followed the example and knelt in front of the ones behind them. The husks standing behind those who had knelt let out a loud shriek and tore off the heads of the ones that had dropped in front of them.

Black smoke poured from the dead creatures and began to circle the army of men. Dravis dropped to his knees, his sword fell from his hand. It was over, he would die, his men would die or worse, become slaves to Tola. The fearful cries of his men brought tears to Dravis' eyes. Dravis closed his eyes as the smoke closed over him and his men.

He heard the screams of agony and coughs from his men. He felt the smoke forcing its way inside him through his mouth and nose. He fell to his stomach, coughing and clawing at his throat as he felt the painful intensity of the magic spreading throughout his body, leaving a painful tingle in his arms and legs. He could feel himself being lost but still he fought it, fought the death with every bit of the little strength he still had.

A warmness flowed over him followed by yet another burning agony spreading through him and he screamed. He took a deep breath and wondered if it was over, was he one of Tola's men now? He opened his eyes and realized the smoke was gone, the husks that had been around them were gone. Slowly he sat up and looked at his hands and realized he was somehow still himself, he looked at his men who were slowly climbing to their feet and looking around.

"What happened? Why are we still us?" Men were asking questions, confused and shaken up. They looked to Dravis for answers, but he simply stared back, dumbfounded. He was as shocked and confused as they were.

The men all helped each other to their feet and searched for an explanation. Nobody knew what to do and looked to Dravis for orders. Slowly he bent to pick up his sword. Where were the husks? He knew there must be more but they were nowhere to be found. More curious, where were those who had just been surrounding them?

"Sir, who's that?" One man asked while pointing down the hill.

Dravis couldn't tell, they wore solid black with a hood covering their head. The entire left sleeve of his suit glowed in the sunlight.

Dravis started towards them with his sword pointed in their direction, "Who are you?" The man continued towards him, silently, "I asked you a question!"

He decided not to take any risks and attacked the stranger. As his sword cut through the air, the man's armored left arm stopped the blade and his right hand yanked down the hood, "Dravis, where are they?"

Dravis stood in awe of Aven, his glowing fiery eyes stared back, "Aven, it was you that saved us?"

"Where are Donovan and the others?" Aven snapped, ignoring the question.

"We were just a diversion. Don, Vel and Kass were supposed to sneak through the city while we kept the husks occupied here. They went to face Tola," He looked up at the castle, "I don't know if they made it though."

Aven closed his eyes and felt the pull of Quicksilver calling to him. Without a word, Aven broke into a run up the hill towards the castle. He needed to save his friends and end the chaos once and for all.

Aven disappeared up the road and Dravis turned to the hiss of more husks as they rushed towards him and his men. He struck his flint against the blade of his sword to relight it and held up the blade to the others. He looked at his men and once again, screamed as he charged the undead.