Kuro: A Land in Eternal Night

Chapter 5.3: Hunted

Mykall nodded and tilted his head in the direction they had come from. "Will the other girls be all right?" he asked.

Vannah nodded. "They are children of the Utter Darkness and the villages. They know the area well enough, and they know how to survive. They will be able to make their way to a neighboring town, and Taiyou-Shi, the city itself, is not too far away on foot. Besides, the Marauders are no longer interested in them." She smiled at Mykall, her eyes turning to slits. "You are far more interesting to them now."

"We need to keep moving. I can still feel the presence of the armored knight. He is tracking us. Weighed down by his armor and with the injury he has sustained, he will find it hard to keep up, so we just need to make sure we stay ahead of him."

"The Warlock will not be so easy to kill," Vannah said. "His armor is special. Light rounds do not pierce it, and blades will not have much effect no matter how skilled one is with them swordmaster." She smiled at Mykall. "Unlike the armor of the rest of the Marauders, that which is given to the Warlocks is built tougher, with fewer weak points. It is hard to see in the dark, but I can see you found the points in their armor where the coverage was sparse. That's where your blade was able to penetrate. This is not easy to do with the Warlocks because their psychic abilities allow them to guess their opponent's moves in advance. A warlock cannot be taken so easily off guard. Your great speed was the only reason you were able to find the opening that you did."

"Can we lose him?" Mykall asked.

"That depends on how good you are out in this wilderness, and how lucky we are," Vannah answered.

"We need to keep moving, then." Mykall started to rise.

The group ran through the woods once more, the girls following their newfound savior. He did not talk much, this stranger dressed in odd garb. He moved swiftly, each step confident, as if he had done this many times before. His knowledge of the wild was impressive. He led them through uncommon paths. They crossed another stream into a clearing. They came across a herd of deer. This area was a safe haven. Though in clear view, it also afforded them a good vantage point. They would be able to see an approach well in advance.

Mykall stopped the girls. "I no longer feel his presence. He might have stopped to rest as well. This area will be easier to defend. We can take a breather here." He knelt down and began to make preparations for camp.

"Why did you help us, sir?" Vannah asked as the stranger went about his preparations. The tall girl's gaze was piercing.

"I had been traveling for hours. I came from the mountains that way – Mykall pointed in the direction he had come from. As I came to the edge of the forest, I saw your caravan emerge. I saw you being forced off, then moved in line. Then I saw the armored knights pick three girls from your group. I knew they intended to dispose of them and indeed I witnessed them shoot, even the little girl was not spared. There was no no mercy from these men. I knew that was wrong. I could not stand idly by and let them kill the weak. I know not what story had transpired before, all I knew was that I had to do something to protect the rest of you from the same fate."

"We are grateful, Mykall," said Vannah.

Mykall succeeded in getting a small fire going. In the brief respite and by the light of the fire, Mina was able to get a closer look at the man and examine his features. His hair was a mess. Long tousled locks of dark hair covered most his face. He had a thin face, a long slender nose, and piercing brown eyes. He was handsome in a rough way; there was a harshness, a wildness about him, but also an odd gentleness in the eyes. He looked to be around thirty. His eyes stared out into the distance often, as though they had witnessed a great many things. There was a sadness to them, as well, as if those eyes had seen far too many things he did not want to remember.

He took out two cloaks, taken from the Marauder units earlier and tossed them to the girls. "That should help keep you warm."

Mykall turned to Mina. "Your feet are bleeding. Let me help." Mina had completely forgotten that she had been running around barefoot all this time. The warrior took some herbs he picked up while they were moving earlier and put them in his mouth, grinding them with his teeth. He took the ground herbs and slowly applied them on Mina's feet. The herbs felt warm and wet and comforting.

Satisfied, Mykall then took part of his cloak and tore it up. He deftly wrapped it around Mina's feet and bound them with rope, fashioning makeshift boots from the cloak.

Mina stood up and walked around. "Thank you," she said to Mykall, smiling.

Mykall nodded and smiled back. He looked around in the darkness. "We cannot dally here, nor keep the fire going too long, as it would attract too much attention. Hopefully it will be day soon."

The two girls stared at him in surprise. "Did you say 'Day'?" The surprise in Mina's voice was difficult to hide.

Mykall looked quizzically at the two girls. "Is there a problem?"

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