DELUSIVE OUTBREAK: Round Three

Cure #3: Shift and the Sluagh

Shift and the Sluagh

ELEMENTS:
Necromantic Magician & A person with enhanced senses.

~

After the world ended, our human world, the Otherfolk emerged and took over.

There were no wars; the Otherfolk roamed the nuke blasted Earth and Humans didn't fuss. They knew they can't handle anything anymore, not with the current state of rot the world was in. The nukes destroyed the barriers between the world and the otherworld and extinguished the barrier charms, creating total visibility amongst all kinds of creatures. The Faerie folks, to be fair, never abused the helpless survivors as they pretended that Humans were invisible just like how they were back in the days. Humans agreed unanimously since it was easier to bear than being enslaved for the rest of their lifetime.

However, as decades passed Faeries became weaker, especially those elemental sprites that relied on the forces of nature. They assumed human services necessary for makeshift communities. Elves became traders and shop owners, ogres and other strong Earth dwellers guarded territories and dug graves along with men and young boys who were left with no choice but dig cadaver beds for a living. Dead bodies contaminate food and water resources but once buried nourishes the soil. Majority of the Human population were gravediggers, followed by forest restorers and traders.

They believed that once the vast forest -sucked dry and petrified- was restored, the barrier makers could once again keep the two worlds where they really belong.

***

A young boy stood atop on a mound of freshly dug soil. His face and his clothes were filthy and damp with sweat and his fingers were sore and lacerated; trembling with fatigue. Humungous trolls with rough, rock-like skins were dragging crates of bones unearthed from ancient graves. If sold to the artisan elves, grave owners could make good money out of those precious human bones. Bones are trendy fashion statement amongst faeries.

"You hungry, boy?" Grandpa asked. He had stopped digging to look at Shift and straighten his back that's long been sore due to old age.

"No. I just... I think the Mage is coming," Shift said, frowning. To make sure, he nimbly jumped off the mound unto the solid earth and pressed his left ear on the ground. The Mage travelled on a headless horse, they said, that he got after he defeated a Dullahan. Shift heard hooves.

"Why, is it today?" The old man had emerged from the open grave to join his grandson. Trolls moved about leisurely, carts tied with ropes and slung on both shoulders. The commanding elves shouted incoherent orders spoken in their own language.

The boy just shrugged. He honestly didn't approve of the idea of him being the Mage's apprentice but his grandpa insisted on it. His old man wanted him to join the restorations just like his father, Alt Capslock, however, he must learn to use magick first before taking on the laborious task.

Personally, Shift was cynical on the idea that a Human could conjure magick, just like how the Otherfolk do it normally. He believed that the Mage was just a fraud and a drunkard who used cheap tricks to mislead desperate Humans into giving him lavish gifts and invite him to dinner. Although they'd never been face-to-face, he'd heard some elves talk about the Mage and that's where he got his impression.

"Hide! Return to your burrows! The Sluagh are coming!"

A band of firesprites glided over the cemetery, urging every creature to hide. Trolls quickened their strides and tiny pixies clung to their shoulders like tiny chameleons, camouflaging themselves on each troll's rough back. Humans jumped back to the holes and lied flat on their backs. Elves gathered on their own troops while the firesprites dropped bows and lances.