Vile

Chapter Two

      Walking along the trail from Borrow while it was cast into moonlight wasn't that bad, albeit extremely dangerous, but the primal emotions sparked out of the darkness were invigorating. Every sound of leaves rustling or branches scraping put you on edge, feelings of unease would creep up your spine and under your skin. It feels as though every beast that stalked under the moons had its gaze locked on you, hundreds of existential eyes ripping through your confidence. Every moment your out there, walking under the shadows of the forest canopy, you want to run as fast as your can back to civilization. But Kym wouldn't run back to Borrow if you chased her, it was just a pit of disappointment. Not that her current excursion had gone any better, but none the less. Sometimes she wondered why she hadn't run away yet. Maybe her big break would come one of these days, Cypher would leave town and she would follow him into the unknown. This one longing possibility was the only reason she stuck around him, the man was dangerous. He was an expertly deadly killer, a brilliant strategist, scarily manipulative, and had no ties to anyone but himself. Most had never even seen the face past his hood. But that kind of freedom and self reliance was what Kym craved most, to be free of the walls and the people. To take work when she wanted, shove off whenever she felt like it. The life of a cut-throat, her mother had called it once, in one of their numerous arguments. Kym sighed and cast her gaze to the sky, glaring into the bright light of the moon.

     As Kym's head moved back to level with the path, she noticed something odd somewhere ahead. The path back was a long one, a windy dirt stretch surrounded by thick alpine forests on either side. Nobody lived anywhere along its course. But two bright pinpricks glowing in the night, they had a color like a late fall gourd, a vibrant orange like nothing else. They swayed slightly like flames being disturbed by the wind, flickering in unison before being restored. Now thinking of it, the probably were just flames, the guards making a night patrol along the road by torchlight or following the same trail she'd been on previously. Quickly Kym realized that by reflex, her hand was clasp around the cold steel pommel of her hunting knife, slowly she released and shook out the tension in her fingers. Imagination had taken her for second, but it was still strange. The light wasn't casting ambience on anything around it,  just hovering there, and the distances didn't line up. For a torch's flame to appear that dim it would need to be leagues away, but it seemed she was only a few feet away from them. Kym stood still, focusing on the fire and slowly blinked.  Hoping to rid whatever illusions her tired mind was plaguing her with would vanish. She would not be so lucky.

     Prying her eyelids apart she found her gaze met. The eyes, were hypnotizing, the flickering dance they had done from afar was even more captivating up close, if there was some central space the orbs of fire were anchored to, Kym couldn't see it. The white and orange flame rose and fell organically, lapping at the cold air around them. The rest of the beasts face was bat-like in appearance and leathery in texture . A large, flat and scrunched nose plastered above a wide mouth with a nightmare of stained yellow teeth peaking over its lips. Its ears were elongated to points and rooted directly behind them were two wickedly curved horns like a rams. With every beat of its heart an infernal glow flashed under its hide, giving off an pulsating light like a firefly.

     Kym gasp and took a few stumbling steps backward. The thing had closed the gap between them so unnaturally fast, in fractions of a second. Eye's fixed on the creature, Kym regained her balance. Still not breaking eye contact Kym began inching backwards, holding her breathe and doing her best to avoid any sudden provocation, there wouldn't be time to draw a weapon now. It was like her worst nightmare come to life. The whole scene was surreal, this monster was like nothing she'd ever seen before, the way it stood, its imposing silhouette framed in the cold light of the moon. Kym exhaled a breath she been holding for far to long, sending a cloud of pale mist into the air. Before it had fully cleared, Kym was making a mad dash for her life. She was a fighter tooth and nail, but fear had won out this time. Running was all Kym could think about. Her speed carried with it reckless abandon, one lapse in concentration could break the steady beat of her legs pounding the earth, and send her toppling. Then it was over for sure. But as long as she had feet to carry her, she wouldn't stop. Though her legs and lungs burned in protest Kym never slowed down. By the time she turned to check if the creature had given chase, her heart felt as though it could burst and sweat damped every part of her body. But despite Kym's best efforts, she couldn't escape if she tried. Far behind, the monster still stood motionless and almost as if time slowed, a pair of wings unfurled behind it. They were a grotesque display of tattered brown hide stretched over an skeletal frame, though they looked to be in a horrendous state of disrepair, the beast went skyward in one great flap. In flight, the it was surprisingly majestic, its hulking 7 foot frame gracefully soaring through the dark on a pair of 14 foot wings at the speed of a raptor. Incrementally closer came the noise of its pursuit, until Kym winced in surprise a a cloven foot slammed into her lower back. She grunted, falling knees first into the dirt. On impact her leggings tore around her knees and fresh scrapes opened all across her shins. But she didn't stop, her momentum and the force of the blow would cause her to skid several feet. Her whole body went numb as the pain became to much for her brain to handle, Kym coughed and sputtered, trying to recover any ounce of composure.

     Startlingly close to Kym's head the beasts slammed into the ground and threw up dust in a wide circle. The loose particles gravitated into Kym's mouth and nose causing her to choke and thrash about, bits even managed to find there ways into her eyes, further extenuating the discomfort. But all movement ceased as an iron grip closed around the back of her skull.  She was thrust into the air like a rag doll. Clawed fingers dug into her scalp as she again, met the creatures gaze. Its massive maw was upturned in a sort of sneer, and its eyes burned brighter then ever. It took in a loud and lengthy breathe and exhaled a noxious odor of brimstone and rot right into her face.

     "Do you know how longs its been....since I've tasted fear," It inquired in a terribly rough barely comprehensible whisper. Kym didn't respond, eyes streaming tears and limbs limp. The beast shook her violently, just to prove its prey was alive. The the monster pulled her close and curled back its lip's revealing a full menagerie of wicked incisors, and exclaimed, "...To long!" It began bearing down on her temples with two of its fingers. Her vision exploded into a collage of black splotches and just as it felt like her skull would cave in, she slipped into unconsciousness.

     Kym awoken standing, in perfect health and in a distinctly different place then the Borrow woodlands. Her senses were dulled to a point of almost nonexistence, creating total isolation from every feeling. The ethereal state was perfectly complimented by the rather intriguing surroundings. It wasn't night here, at least it wouldn't seem so. But it was still dark, the sky took on a muddy green hue and host angry clusters of dark clouds. There didn't seem to be any natural light either, no visible solar or lunar bodies, only ambience emanating for nowhere. Periodically flashes of silent lighting crackled against the sky. It was hard to tell where the horizon line stood, there was no definition anywhere on the flat black expanse that splayed out on Kym's every side. Then the realization hit. It had been creeping in the pit of her stomach since she opened her eyes. It became clearer the longer she pondered, death had come for her. Riding on the wings of that fowl beast it swept her to her own personal afterlife. Collapsing on her hands and knees Kym gave a retching sob. This couldn't be it, there had to be something more. She wrapped her arms around herself, in attempt to regain the feeling of something tangible. But the chilling numbness disallowed, it felt like her body didn't exist. Splaying her limbs out, Kym lie defeated. There still, was nothing, not even the gentle puff of her own breathing billowing in front of her eyes. "This really is my own eternal punishment..." Kym whispered, but even she could not hear it.

     After what felt like an mundane eternity of lying in a twisted world, a feeling came. It was one small tap on her left shoulder, then another. Slowly the ground quaked more an more, ripples formed in the blackness each emanating from a different epicenter. Kym sat up strait, shocked out of her lethargy by the tremors. The dead world was coming alive, far above in the grass colored sky, a massive vortex of coal clouds and arching silver streaks of lightning had formed. It felt as though reality was shaking itself apart and taking her with it. Teeth rattling inside her skull, Kym gazed over the dark expanse as it churned like the arctic seas. She tried to stand but was far to dizzy, this not aided by the fact the ground was taking on the curvature of a billowing flag and the sky ceaselessly spun. But just as quickly as it began, everything stopped. Her field of view still rocked back and forth but the physical shaking was over. Whether it was pleasant or not, the experience was real which at this point was the only thing that mattered. Something had happened, something to break the silence. Compared to the past however-long, it was the most exciting moment of her life. There had to be more, something like this couldn't just cease happen. Kym stood up,

"Come on, its not over yet," Kym yelled into the void, "Is it?" She could hear herself again, not a bad sign. But there was something else now. It was like an ominous breeze that sounded more like a whisper. It was ceaseless with no start or end, a constant drone buffeting Kym's ears from every side. She could swear it was breathing a single drawn-out phrase, No. "No?" Kym spoke questioningly into the din. The wind shifted, it seemed to be blowing faster and with more force, carrying a different phrase. It felt like a poison, was slowly working its way through her body and mind. Yes. This cant be real Kym thought, she was talking to the wind. In a world. Made of nothing but black. That almost shattered itself. After being attack by a beast out of a storybook. None of it made sense, her mind was all questions and there was no way to find the answers. Unless. "Where am I?" Kym asked the breeze. Yet again its tempo changed, slowing down to a near crawl. Its message was almost intelligible, but she swore it said, My nightmare.