Incubus I (UNDER EDITING)!!!

Prologue : Clouds Of Death. ✅

Pls, try to download the "Enya - exile" soundtrack to enjoy the chapters better, thanks. Pls, try not to listen to it too much you'll need it later 😉.

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Deep in the northwestern regions of Vrohengard, far from the green of the meadow and the brown-gray of the savannah, thousands of miles into the large mass of white that lay before the mountain ranges, lay the Marshriver forest; which was famous for the historic battles fought in it, it was home to more than sixteen different villages affiliated to diverse towns tens of miles from them. each of which sat along the borders of the thick forest, save only the north of it, for men feared to thread those terrains due to the myths of the ghosts of fallen soldiers, said to be still roaming in the area for generations.

Only one village dared sit closer to the north Hedgecliff, but not by choice though, they were a village of miners and stone cutters who supplied stones as far south as even the coastal cities towards the seas this they did through selling to merchant groups. They derived their resources from the mountains and had to live close to them for easy transportation, consequently isolating themselves from the rest, though they weren't the only mining village they were the only ones whose ancestors chose to settle that far. aware of the positional deficiency they invested in their defense and built stone walls roundabout and an iron gate stood at the entrance, they also received scouts and guards from their affiliated cities who periodically trained their youths on self-defense techniques.

All seemed to be going well for Hedgeclf until rumors began that the miners had heard things in the mountains. Some said they heard cries, others the footfalls of armies, some said it was the cry of giant animals they'd never heard before and more even claimed to have seen the silhouette of some mythical creatures, but, it was all played down by the village head amidst reassurances that the rumors were false. The people believed him, majorly because the mountains had been quiet for generations, and had they been about the voices in the woods, it would have been more acceptable.

The people continued with their lives as usual, until the day a worker didn't return from the quarry. the Chief quickly organized a search party, that went searching through the night for the young father of two, but it was fruitless. the search party continued for a few days but still found nothing. it was a difficult time for the entire village, but before they could get on with life again another disaster struck. a group of miners also went missing this time there were shreds of evidence of them all being killed in the mine, but no sign of which way their bodies were taken to. the news of this terrified the villagers and many feared going out to work again. initially, the thought of the village elder and the chiefs was that this was some trick by one of the southern kings to drive them from their Heritage, but the more signs they saw the lesser the likeliness of that being the case.

They sent scouts during the day into the mountains and other villages, as well as messages to the governors and the kings, in hope that someone would come to their aid, but that was not to be, as in the early evening just before summer that another surprise awaited them, one that was never heard of before nor could be speakable in the ears of an ordinary man.

That evening three children were returning from a nearby village where they had gone shopping. A young lad in his late teens, and his siblings a boy of twelve and their younger sister. they were walking side by side, though the little girl sat on her eldest brother's shoulders, as they walked along the clear path. the younger brother stopped to take a leak on an edge from where he got could see the view of the magnificence of the mountains. he tilted his head up to admire just how high up the mountain peak was, and that's when he saw it, a horse that dwarfed the average stallion, upon which sat a rider dreadful to look upon, covered in a gray tattered hood. the kid blinked again to be sure he was seeing correctly. the horse seemed partly decomposed and he couldn't wrap his mind around how it was standing or rather kicking with such strength. he noticed a dark cloud like that of smoke, with faint lightening within it emanating from between the mountains as the rider beckoned to what he presumed to be gray figures under the cloud, who staggered mindlessly in the direction he commanded, he couldn't make much of it from the distance, but he could see them toppling over obstacles they could have avoided. confounded he called to his elder brother, who after processing the sight resorted to running down to the village to warn the others, but they were still a long way off. Pulling this off had a slim chance of success but he had to try. He took off, leaving his brother with instructions to take their sister back the way they had come, but the curiosity of the two had them sneaking stealthily toward the feet of the mountains.

After several runs and breathers, as well as trips and balances, he approached the village, but it was darker than he had expected, or rather than the time of the day should be, and this brought him to a halt. he began threading carefully towards the gate of the village and was starting to see some familiar faces of the few archers on the wall. their expressions also revealed discontent at their surroundings and a slight sense of dread. He purposed to run over to them to sound the bells and lock the gates, but as he emerged from behind the tree he heard a neigh too loud and dreadful he backed down and fell to the dirt. He immediately picked up himself and hid behind a tree. that's when he saw it. the rider from earlier, riding calmly into the clearing just before the gate. The Archers yelled stop orders to the rider to no avail till the captain of the guard a middle-aged sturdy man shot an arrow into the ground before the rider, then the horse stopped. the rider looked up at them but they could not see through the hood and this terrified them because both the rider and his steed had an unreasonable build. tensed and terrified the lad climbed up a tall tree from where he could see most of the village. a loud whisper washed over all at the gate and its surroundings as the dark cloud that followed the rider began to cover the village. within minutes the entire village was covered by the low-height cloud and a strong chilly wind that hassled the torches so much that the guards could barely see. then the footfalls of scores of men began to encroach the gates. the Captain ordered a close of the gate but was too late as an army of mindless men burst into the village, the Village had only a handful of trained guards majority of whom were archers whose skills were useless in close combat. Consequently, they were overrun, and within minutes the village was on fire.

The dark clouds hovered above the village, as cold Winds induced the fear and dread that plagued the village. The screams of women and children could be heard as the dull blades of the invaders tore through their tender skin. Their homes, farms, and barns, are in raging flames. It was no use putting up a fight against the invaders, the few villagers brave enough to try met very horrible deaths, same as those who tried to escape. The village chief had tried to make his way over to the rider, who seemed to be the leader of the intruders in hopes of a peaceful negotiation but they ran him over mindlessly... Torching everything in sight. Taking no hostages nor looting any of the resources they found, they killed with uniformity and extreme prejudice, both old and young. Dodging any attacks the remnant of the village archers launched at them with inhuman speed before cleanly relieving them of their heads.

At the gate stood the black horse and its rider, horrifying to look upon. The confidence in him was damning. He watched until there was no sign of life left, man or beast. Satisfied he turned his horse aside and began to ride away, his soldiers dragging themselves behind him and as they moved so did the cloud. A few meters from the village the young boy on top of the tree observed all that was done, with tears in his eyes. The tried as much as possible not to make a sound though he knew it won't be possible for them to hear him. He watched them as they marched away from the village in the direction of another. The sadness and rage mounted up, making Him want to charge at them but knew it'll be futile. As his anger reached its peak and fear began to set in, he then noticed the army suddenly halt. He quickly strained his eyes to locate the leader and there he was in front motionless. He watched him for a few seconds, his dread escalating by the second.

His heart leaped the moment the rider turned in his direction, he knew the rider was looking at him, it didn't make any sense, not from such a distance, he was sure he hadn't made a sound. The entire army also turned in his direction. He Instantly jumped off the tree and took to his heels, running as fast as his legs could carry him. he tripped over and rolled down a slope till he collided with a tree. Dazed, he got up but fell back down, his head throbbing and his vision blurry, he could hear the horse closing In and knew he to get out of there but his body was failing him. he dragged himself from tree to tree trying to dribble his way through, till he lost track of the rider instead, then he halted. It didn't make sense, the rider he could feel was already upon him suddenly vanished. he looked around cautiously but could still neither see nor hear anything, and he was relieved for a split second though, he rested his back and heaved a sigh of relief, but it was not to last as he felt the rider's dull and heavy blade plunge through his ribcage, piercing his heart...He looked down at the blade as he went down on his knees, he looked up at the face of the rider stunned as to how he managed to come from his front, seeing nothing but bloodred eyes beyond the grim ragged hood... The last sight he ever saw.