I'm back with the next chapter! I hope this answers many of your questions. Reina's character took the longest time to be decided. I didn't want to make her fully a werecat, cuz then it'd be one more race to complicate things. I'm just starting out so I thought I'd keep it simple and stick with humans (and zombies/undead) for now. Most of my time was spent fleshing out the background of this world and trying to make it believable. This story has a number of influences from world of warcraft actually (and other fantasy fiction/movies), don’t know if anyone’s spotted that yet. Lol. So anyway, disclaimer: I don’t own some of the ideas here.
Oh and excuse the ridiculous place names, too much time was spent thinking up fantasy place names etc, and I’m not too creative in that department.
Chapter 3Shivers wracked through Risa’s body as a gust of wind buffeted against her. As luck would have it, she had been propelled by the current into a rock sticking out of the river. It was fortunate she was floating on her back, feet first or she would’ve cracked her skull open. Quickly, she’d scrambled onto it and was now lying above the boisterous white spray, taking a breather and feeling the chill. She tried pulling her sodden cloak around her, but the wind just cut right through it.
When she finally felt ready, Risa pushed herself up into a low crouch, careful not to slip off the wet rock. Taking a deep breath, Risa launched herself towards the bank. She’d only barely made it, her hands making contact with the grassy edge. Swiftly kicking her legs back up over her head, Risa brought her body into a full somersault, landing flat on her back with the breath knocked out of her. She lay still, gasping as relief flooded in, relishing the feel of solid ground and soft grass beneath her. Risa let out a joyful wail, flipping over onto her stomach, windmilling her arms and legs.
Minutes later when the euphoria wore off, Risa remembered she was still in hostile territory. And alone to boot. Her training kicked in and she got up, moving on, a little embarrassed at letting her guard down even for a moment. Her hand reflexively went to the hilt of the longsword belted at her waist. She loosened the sword in its sheath, ready to be drawn in a moment’s notice.
She stalked through the trees, her soft-soled boots barely making a sound, ears perked and listening carefully to her surroundings. Woodland survival, stealth and tracking were the key skills of a Sentinel. And Risa was undoubtedly one of the best.
She travelled back upwards toward the general direction of where Ai and Reina got out, but keeping well within the trees. Knowing the zombies were still following the river downstream, the last thing she needed was for them to spot her from across the river. Not after they’d gone through all that trouble losing them.
The sun was setting when she ventured deeper into the forest. Growing shadows around her forced Risa to quicken her steps and she began thinking about setting down for the night. She could make out a sort of cliff-face just beyond the trees where she could find shelter for the night. It was unwise to sleep alone at night in this forest. But it was not the wildlife to be afraid of, for there were none, but the undead. And night was when they were strongest, they preyed on life.
As darkness loomed around her, so did the uneasy feeling of being watched. Risa fought to keep her wild imagination at bay and focused instead on the immediate concern. Once again, she felt keenly the absence of Ai, for mages could sense when the undead were nearby. A sliver of worry crept into her heart when she thought of Ai and she quickened her steps unconciously. But knowing Reina, assuming she was still alive, was with Ai calmed her down somewhat.
Emerging from the forest, Risa examined the terrain before her. What she thought was a cliff was actually the base of a very large plateau-like mountain. Large, yawning crevices dotted the gently sloping sides which Risa thought would be a good place to settle in for the night. She took a quick scan around her whilst approaching the mountain-side. Certain there were no immediate threats, she sheathed her sword and climbed up, picking her way through the rocks. A couple of meters up from ground level was a cave opening, just about wide enough for two people standing abreast. Risa stopped and peered in. It was deep enough to camp out comfortably. Stepping in carefully, she dropped the small pile of twigs and branches she’d gathered on the way and examined the cave for any signs of inhabitation. The last thing she needed was to find she was sharing the place with the undead in the middle of the night and she wasn’t in the mood for surprises.
It was cold and damp, but otherwise pleasantly empty. But the cave extended futher into absolute darkness, making it impossible for Risa to explore any further. Unable to rest in ease, she returned to the entrance to light a torch. She peeled off the heavy, damp woolen cloak which had become uncomfortable since being soaked in the river and spread it out on the sandy floor to dry. Next she slipped off her pack and sat down next to it with a sigh of relief. After a whole day of exertion, it felt good to finally be able to rest her legs though she would have to get up again soon.
As she started to relax, hunger pangs came to the fore, reminding her that she hadn’t eaten anything since morning, which was merely a couple of hard biscuits and a handful of dried fruit scarfed down in a matter of minutes. She pulled out a wet package wrapped in wax paper tied together with a length of twine. The plunge into the river had soaked everything in her pack. At least the soggy biscuits were now softer and easier to eat. Risa tried to keep a positive mind as she stuffed a softened biscuit into her mouth. They were made to be dry and tough so they could keep longer for journeys. But now they wouldn’t last a day more. The rest that she could not finish would have to be ditched. Same goes for the dried fruit. The dried jerky was oddly missing, however, but she didn’t remember eating much of it. Puzzled, Risa rummaged through the pack. Curiously, her supply of biscuits didn’t seem to diminish one bit since they started out. She’ll have to think about that later though, pulling out the tinderbox, she set to work starting a fire.
***
Ai and Reina sat around a small crackling fire they’d lit under a rocky overhang. Dressed in just their undershirts, their wet clothing were spread out close to the heat to dry. A thoughtful silence hung in the air as they both chewed on the remains of their waterlogged rations.
It was roughly a week ago that they had lost all contact with, Camry, one of the surviving towns, about three days travel from Burslem. Facing the sea, with a major river running along its side, the town’s location provided it with some natural defenses against the dead. This allowed Camry to weather the neverending plague of undeath encroaching the lands for years. The three of them had set out to investigate, but had come upon a ruined town infested with the undead. Stunned and despairing over the loss, the trio were ambushed by a pack of undead and pursued this far. Fully armed and armored, those zombies were clearly part of an army. And Ai had a sinking feeling that they were going to have to prepare for war again very soon. It was imperative that they return immediately to warn the others of this new development.
Reina stared blankly into the night, chewing methodically on a strip of jerky while Ai was retracing their hurried flight the past day to estimate their current location and figure out the quickest route back to the city of Burslem, now the largest remaining pocket of human resistance. It used to be the capital, when there was still a Kingdom. There hasn’t been a King or Queen for eight years. With the last living member of the royal family turned to evil and the guardian of the throne gone missing, the Kingdom crumbles day by day into a darkness from which no one will rise but the dead.
Heaviness filled her heart and she suddenly felt weary beyond her years. It had been a constant struggle since the Great Betrayal that plunged the Kingdom into chaos eight years ago and threw upon Ai responsibilities greater than she was prepared to bear. Having just turned eighteen and knowing nothing but the stability of a peaceful and prospering land, the sudden turmoil and leadership thrust upon her young shoulders left her reeling. She would surely have given into despair if not for the support of Risa and the surviving mages rallying by her side. Rest still did not come easy for Ai, for when she closed her eyes, she could still see the images vividly in her mind. All around her the dead rising, swarming through the city. Caught unawares, the mages had desperately defended their Sanctuary with their lives, for if it fell into the hands of the dead, all would be lost. Confusion, panic, fear. Emotions and memories swamped over like the torrent of that powerful river.
A sharp pain on her arm brought her back to reality and she blinked to find Reina staring back at her with the slitted glowing eyes of a cat, her claws extended ready to prick again if need be. “You were staring weirdly into the fire again.” Reina laid back down next to the fire, her eyes turned out to watch the darkness. “It’s no use worrying about things you can’t do anything about now. Take a nap, I’ll be on first watch.”
While Ai was lost in her thoughts, Reina had shifted into her cat form. She was one of those gifted in the arts of shapeshifting, having a particular affinity for cats since her childhood. Reina had started out an orphan living off the back streets of Burslem, when her talent was discovered by a passing mage. She was taken in by the Sanctuary and the rest was history. Shapeshifters can learn to adopt the forms of any animal depending on individual ability, but Reina had stubbornly chosen to stick to her preferred feline forms exclusively. In her various cat-forms, she is indistinguishable from a normal animal, gaining all their attributes including keen hearing, acute sense of smell and superb night-vision. Perfect qualities for guard duty.
Deciding she was right, Ai made herself comfortable by the fire, forcing her troubling thoughts to the back of her mind, she attempted to sleep.
Topic: Fantasy ga Hajimaru (Chapter 3 updated 1/24) (Read 8078 times)