Short Stories

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He stepped out from the cover of the trees and drew and fired his bow in the blink of an eye. The creature had no time to react and let out a roar as the arrow took it through the heart. He cursed. More would be coming soon.

He dropped the bow, drew his sword, and took off running in the direction he came. In the close quarters in which he would be fighting, the bow would be next to useless. What was I even thinking? he thought. This was a terrible idea. I should have stayed in Diderot.

It was like night under the dark canopy of the Deadwood Forest, the crooked branches of the leafless trees blocking out what little sunlight there were. The trees that grew in the forest were strange; their branches bore no leaves and the trunks were blackened as if they had been scorched, yet the trees themselves were alive.

He ran for his life while the blood chilling cries of the creatures chased him. As if out of nowhere the sound of footsteps echoed behind him. In one fluid motion, he spun and swung his sword. The blade made contact with the flesh of a creature and cut off the head like it was butter. Not stopping to wait for more to catch up with him, he kept going, his breath coming in ragged gasps.

More and more of the creatures came at him from the sides, in multitudes he couldn't fathom. He yelled a battle cry and swung Alagast in a wide arc, killing many of the creatures. Still more came to take their place.Memories began flooding back to him like a tidal wave. He thrust forward, taking one through the chest. That's for Castle! He spun and killed another. And Evanlyn! He was like a whirlwind of death, an unstoppable force of golden light. I promised... I would return to you.... I plan to keep that promise.... Evanlyn.... I love...you, Evanlyn.

Despite the warrior he was, it wasn't enough. The creatures kept coming in an endless tide, throwing themselves against him with the small chance that one of them might injure him enough so that the others could finish him. And eventually they did. He stabbed one through the chest just as two more charged him. With a grim smile he met the charge. He easily killed one, but his limbs were weary, and he wasn't quick enough to kill the other before it was able to run its claws across his chest.

He yelled in pain and killed the creature. But it was too late. Others were upon him in the small moment of hesitation. They came at him as one, seeking to tear the flesh from his bones. For the first time in a long time, fear lit his eyes as he realized there was no way to win. He realized there would be no more seeing Castle, who was just like a brother to him. He would no longer get to see Evanlyn, the one true love of his life. They would never be wed. But other things too: There was the fact that he would die here in the darkness of this accursed forest and would never get to see the light of the sun, or to feel the wind upon his face and running through his hair.

He had all of these thoughts as he battled for his life. He finally realized how much he loved life and how fortunate he had been. He wanted to live. He wanted it more than anything.

Evanlyn... He cut the head from one creature just as he stabbed another. Then he jerked Alagast free and met another's claws as they descended for his head. He cut off the creature's hand and ran it through with the sword.

Life! He spun this way and that, dealing about death as he went. The bodies piled up at his feet until there was no bare ground, only bodies. He racked up more and more wounds on his body.

Finally, he killed the last one. He pulled Alagast out and leaned against the sword, his chest heaving. His heart felt like it was going to pound itself out of his chest. His clothes were torn and blood flowed out of countless wounds, some worse than others. His whole body was matted with sweat and the black blood of the creatures.

"Well done!" said a voice that shook the entire forest and sent shivers down his spine. "I almost didn't think you would do it, but you and that sword, I must applaud the effort! Quite extraordinary swordsmanship, I must say. But then again, they say you are the greatest swordsman in the world, don't they?" A shadow manifest itself before him. It took the rough outline of a man, but had no physical features, and was blacker than the forest.

He looked up and glared. "You, have... failed to kill me," he said. "Now I can rid myself of you, once and for all." He stood up and began walking toward the shadow. His knees trembled with fear.

The shadow smiled evilly. Then, without warning, the shadow jumped at him, it's hands outreached as if it was seeking to tear him apart. It tackled him to the ground, Alagast was sent spinning from his grasp. They rolled about, each trying to gain the upperhand. His fear grew with each passing moment, giving more power to the shadow.

"I think he's over here!" a voice called. The sound of hooves echoed through the trees. Two figures on horses suddenly appeared through the trees. He gasped recognizing the people.

"Castle, Evanlyn! Get out of here. Now!" he said weakly. He could feel his life draining as the shadow sucked away his soul. Castle looked at him with a look of horror on his face. "Castle... I can't defeat it. Take the sword and Evanlyn away from here. Find... a... way." Without saying a word, Castle dismounted and grabbed Alagast. The sword's light went out as soon as he touched it, plunging the forest into utter darkness.

"No!" screamed Evanlyn as Castle started dragging her away.

"Please Evanlyn," he begged. "I don't want you to share the same fate as me. I love you."

"??? I love you. I promise we will find a way to free you." With tears in her eyes, she hopped astride her horse and rose away without looking back.

Tears rolled down his face as he imagined her riding away, knowing full well that he would never see her again. He didn't want to die. Death had seemed like something from a dream, something that would possibly never happen, of something that would happen in a vast amount of time. But here death was, stealing his life from him as he struggled like a fish out of water against the unmatched strength of the shadow.

Here is more of the prequel story. This is pretty much the end of ??? I still need a name for him if anyone has any ideas let me know.