A Collection Of Short Stories

Fallen

Jack stands there staring up at the large stone doors that lead to a city that has long since been forgotten. The protection of the walls and door is no longer needed though, seeing as this city has fallen to time much like everything else in this world. For a few moments Jack stands in the pouring rain, just staring at the door. He wonders for a few moments if this could be the end to his journey, if after this he could finally rest. Though for one reason or another he doubts it. Without any more time to wonder, Jack reaches into his cloak and removes a gem encrusted insignia which he then shoves into an indenture in the door. The sound of a click is soon heard which is followed by the ground beginning to rumble underneath his feet. Within seconds of inserting the city's crest, the door begins to sink into the ground to allow him access to whatever lies inside. As soon as the door is gone, Jack steps inside and takes a couple moments to admire the architecture of the city. Gothic styled homes surround him, all of which stand tall above him and the streets. Despite the decrepit and abandoned looks to the homes, they retain their gorgeous design. Though he didn’t come here to admire the work of people who have long since died, he has made this journey to explore the city and see what secrets it holds within its walls. What better place to start than the homes that are so gorgeous? Without a moment’s hesitation, the Hollow walks over to the doors of one of the homes and knocks. Just a precaution in case somehow somebody is inside. To his surprise the door is opened, just not by a human. Rather, a man with orange oozing eyes opens the door and lets out a horrible gurgle. Before the creature can do anything other than make a noise, Jack draws his sword and stabs it through the stomach of the Husk. With one hard upward yank he slices the creature in two from under the ribs all the way up through his head. The body then falls backwards and begins oozing blood, orangish red blood that pools underneath the body and doesn’t seem to move outward much more. To some, this would be a sign that they should leave. To most honestly, this would be enough to leave. But to Jack, this is only a sign that he should press forwards. Not only to find whatever it is that draws him to this place, but to find out what made it fall in the first place. 

    Stepping over the split body, Jack enters the dimly lit home. His red eyes scan over each thing in the living area of the home, he’s searching for anything worth value. Of which he only finds a silver vase which he quickly scoops up and places inside of the sack that he has tied to his belt. After grabbing the vase he then walks over and sits down on one of the wooden chairs that rest next to the shattered pile of wood that was once a table. He remains sitting for a few moments before standing up and making his way up the stairs, once he reaches the top the Hollow is soon greeted by another Husk that tackles him to the ground and begins letting out loud gurgling screams in his face. Orange liquid splatters across his face as it comes out of the screeching monster's face, liquid that burns Jack’s skin. Though it gets no reaction from Jack other than him bringing his hands up and twisting the Husk’s neck as hard as he can to the right. The sound of a sickeningly loud crunch fills the air which is then followed by thuds as Jack throws the body down the stairs. Jack soon gets to his feet and wipes whatever the Husk had spit all over his face. A sigh escapes his lips as the Hollow then continues onward to continue his searching. He finds nothing in any of the bedrooms, and only a single unlabeled potion in what seems to be a study. Shortly after that, Jack exits the home and steps back out into the streets where he sees something that almost excites him. The husks of the guards that once patrolled the streets dutifully, now undead monsters cursed to patrol forever the same paths they once knew. The possibility of a real fight almost excites the combat driven Hollow, though he resists the urge to attack so he can continue his searching for valuables. Perhaps the fight he seeks can wait for another day. The next home he enters, the Hollow decides to kick the door open and walk inside with no precautions. Thankfully for him, there appears to be no Husk’s inside. So he decides to look around in this short moment of peace, he finds a few things worth taking throughout the house. A bag of gold coins, some silver cutlery, a couple of healing potions and a single gold ring. With that he exits the home and continues onwards. This time though, he is satisfied with the loot he has taken from the two homes he searched and continues onward to a different section of the city. He begins heading towards the markets and stores that are nearby the residential districts. Perhaps the stores would hold more valuable things than these homes, but something draws his attention away from his original idea.