Dypes The Soul Keeper. (2)

Chapter 28: Woods.

The cobbled road was usually quiet and calm but today it was full of noise, Clanking of white armour and the sound of men grunting at the heat of the day sun. The group was twenty strong; they patrolled this road once a month and each and every one of the white knights hated it. It was a long road that didn’t really start or end anywhere but the kind wanted it patrolled and with the recent increase of attacks patrol groups had been increased. Today would go like any other; they would walk the miles to the very end of the road then walk all the way back. Nothing special would happen and if they were lucky the weather would stay nice and they would be done before night fall, but today wasn’t their lucky day all that would go for them is that the weather would indeed not change it would in fact stay very nice and dry for them.

The cobbled stone path they walked on was over shadowed by trees, it was a small wood they passed through and the only thing worth fighting in the woods was the odd bear or feral wolf. Today however they would be met by something far more menacing. The oldest and most experienced knight walked in the front of the group. His sword was out and he walked with caution a noise had startled him, his men followed suite. They all looked around as they tried to reduce the clanking of their armour as they moved. Then from the right a great creature emerged from the trees. At least two metres tall it was not human. It stood like a man yet it wasn’t. Its entire body was covered in large scales and possessed large claws for hands, a great tail whipped behind its back and its feet large hooves. Its face snarled and looked like a squid on top off a man’s body. It had many eyes sprawled around its body. Looking in all directions they pierced the eyes of each knight that looked at them.

The knights stood in silence for a second looking at it, before it bellowed a great scream. A rip in its chest opened to reveal a large vertical mouth from its neck to pelvis, rows and rows of blade like teeth lined its unholy mouth as the scream shattered ear drums.

The first knight couldn’t even scream before his head was disconnected from his body and thrown into the vortex of teeth. Knights screamed as they charged the beast, using its tail as a whip it cut two men clean in half and another was ripped to shreds as its claws moved across his torso.

A few knights managed to get in close and slash at its hands and legs, but the cuts were shallow its scales protected it. One knight dropped his sword and ran away screaming in fear, as he ran he felt something following him and then a sharp stabbing hit his chest. He looked down to see a hole in his armour and chest. Blood exploded as he turned around to see another creature looking at him, this time it was about the size of a human, yet it had no face. It wore a large garb yellow in colour and its arms long with blades at the end of all four of them. Its white faceless body looked at the knight fall before another spike went into the poor knight’s head.

The old knight managed to dodge the tail of the first creature whilst watching the second run into the tress once more. It must be there to stop anyone escaping he thought to himself. Once more the tail twirled round to get the old man but he managed to jump back and slice down taking it cleans off. The large monster opened its large mouth and howled. Then the remaining knights launched an all-out attack cutting and stabbing at the creature. Finally it fell to the ground, black blood oozed out of it and it twitched before it stopped.

Huffing and puffing all the surviving knights looked around at each other. Then from the trees, the sound of clapping before a figure emerged. Everyone instantly knew who it was Dypes the soulless.

“Well done gentlemen, you took down that Homunculus quite nicely.” His accent strange and low.

He held a large sinister smile on his scarred face. Half his hair was missing as it was covered with severe burns incurable by any magic a permanent scar. His left eye was grey and lizard like whilst his right still held his brown Asura linage. He wore large green armour, it covered one shoulder with a great plate and draped down to his knees.

“Why are you here?” the leader knight demanded.

Dypes pointed his left clawed black scaled hand at him before talking, “Information, the fastest way to find out the situation is to take the soul of experienced knights.”

The leader knight without hesitation threw his sword forward before piercing it into his own heart. His men stood silent as they knew why he did this, if he died before Dypes grabbed him, no information would be harvested and the kingdom would remain that little bit safer from his hoards of monsters.

Dypes twisted smile grew even larger. “Smart man, honourable you know you haven’t the slightest chance of victory against me, so you took your own life to keep information a secret. Brave.” Turning his back Dypes walked down the cobbled road, “You lot are useless to me, Homunculus, kill them.”

Suddenly the dead creature stood up and went into battle frenzy, screams echoed in the sky as Dypes whistled down the lane.