Hell's Bane (COMPLETED)

Chapter Eleven: Many Sacrifices

            As they continued on the trail of footprints, the bloodbath that ensued continued to replay through many people's minds, and though the battle was over, they all knew that the war had only begun.

"What were you doing there?" Hugo hissed, looking at Davis as if he were no longer the benevolent leader he once knew.

Davis sighed and dipped his head down. "It was the only way."

Hugo glared. "No, it wasn't. You could've easily let him go, but you killed him instead."

"It was for the better. If he had escaped, who knew what would've happened?"

Hugo walked away, his thoughts a storm of conflicted feelings. The day continued, and, as the group passed countless grains of sand and bunches of cacti, the shock of what had happened before began to wear down, replaced by seemingly never-ceasing commotion and chatter. Yet what Hugo found most interesting was that not many seemed disturbed at the events they had witnessed – save the young children, who even then, only expressed small signs of unsureness and tension.

"They are used to such things," Pavir said when he caught Hugo's glance. "Besides, I suspect there is much more to come..."

Around the campfire, the traditional ability-showcase was no longer a pleasant thing. War tactics were discussed, followed by brutal training, and even hand-to-hand combats, leaving many people bruised and sore before they were healed.

Even as they retired for the night, it was clear none of them would be able to sleep for the night. The darkness rose, and they all stayed awake, lost in thought and fear of the war to come.

The next day, Caralin steadily began grumbling about headaches and the danger that drew ever-so-near. They continued to follow the trail of footsteps, and even Davis had to admit he was beginning to become worried, with only a day or two away from reaching Haedleigh – and the Mountains.

"Something's doesn't feel right," Rhea suddenly announced, looking around. "There's something wrong with this place... something in the sand..." The Blind Wanderer suddenly gave an audible gasp and pointed to a trail of footsteps several feet away. "The direction that they're going!"

The explorer turned and looked, causing a chain reaction from the entire group. One by one, they began to understand, and suddenly surged forward, crowding around the footsteps.

"They're going to the direction we came from," Rhea said, touching the sand.

"We know," Joss said, giving a melodramatic sigh of exasperation. "Anybody can tell."

Rhea shook her head. "No, there's more. This is fresh... even less than a day old..."

"Wait a minute," Hugo suddenly blurted out. "The soldier said that the Scavenger would try to eliminate us even before we reached the Mountains and if they were planning to ambush us from behind..." The explorer's voice trailed off.

"These are clearly footprints made by the Scavenger," Rhea said. "It smells of them... and the footprints bear the Scavenger insignia on them."

"If they would only stop wearing those things," Susan grumbled, and then unslung her rifle and cocked it. "Be on your guard. They could be coming anytime-"

Caralin suddenly yelled and collapsed onto the ground clawing at the air. "They're coming. The Scavenger – they're coming! They cannot see us yet, but they are running, and they are going up that hill... they're coming! Ready your weapons, they're-"

A gunshot suddenly rang out, and the Blind Wanderer screamed as a bullet went right into her gut, bloodying the area around it.

"They're here!" Joss suddenly exclaimed, as if the others hadn't already realized, and instinctively, Susan raised her gun and fired it. The Blind Wanderers fell back with fear in their eyes as they saw the swarming numbers approaching them. There were a hundred of them at least, and with every round of bullets, many of the Blind Wanderers fell.