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~` Illusions `~

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CaptChekaka

CaptChekaka

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~` Chapter Five `~

Sounds crept along the ground, flooding the ears of the two travelers and causing a distinct wave of anxiety to come upon them. Their eyes began to deceive them; shadows seeped out from the corners of their eyes, forcing them to keep on guard at any and all times.

Trees moaned throughout the darkness, and they allowed only but a few streaks of light to break past the canopy, alighting the forest floor below. This, however, did not stop the frequent calls of animals, preying in the night, to live in the wood.

“Anthoni,” Maxwell called in a low voice. “Anthoni!”

“Don’t worry; I’m right here, Maxwell.”

“This doesn’t seem... safe.”

Anthoni brushed past a wave of white, illuminating his features for a few moments before blanketing him in the same dark as before. “Aye,” he replied. “It is not."

"But then, why couldn’t we have waited for morning to come?”

Maxwell heard Anthoni’s horse give a soft cry behind them, followed by the calming hushes of his leader. Anthoni’s sword shifted slightly against his armor as he maneuvered, causing a blatant ring to sound out into the air. Reaching out to his side, he felt the arm of Anthoni, and was seemingly calm for a few minutes; it was soon broken, though, when another roar bled through the trees.

“Venturing through this place in the daylight is not safer, lad; it’s not worse, though. The forest has long since claimed the title of deadly, and this proves true in both the day and the night. Either way, we needed to travel past this wretched place - I just chose the most opportune time.”

The horse cried out again, a bit fiercer this time, and the moon’s light struck a small clearing in front of them. It fell onto the center, almost precisely, but what was most disturbing was the being lurking in the midst of the saving rays.

02-Jan-2009 04:29:57 - Last edited on 02-Jan-2009 04:36:10 by CaptChekaka

CaptChekaka

CaptChekaka

Posts: 35,595 Sapphire Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile
“Stay back, Maxwell,” Anthoni cautioned as he stepped forth into the light, revealing himself.

The creature immediately turned to face them, its face covered in blood. The white hairs, mixed a bit with black along the spine, stood on end; the wolf breathed a small puff of fog into the cold air and took a slight step forward. Behind it along the ground was the body of a young deer, its flesh mangled and its innards sprawling out into the grass; Anthoni knew what was coming.

Teeth glistened in the bright light that seeped down from above, and the wolf rose its ears until they stood straight up; its growling did not cease even for a moment. Shards of flesh and bone fell off of its long snout, and its blackened nose tilted down towards the ground.

“Shhh,” Maxwell whispered in a low, calming voice as he stroked the horse; it had begun to twitch in its position, and, shuffling along the ground, it had begun to cause a disturbance.

The wolf gained even more ground on the middle-aged warrior, raising its hind into the air and swatting the air with its long tail; the battle was near. Cold, black eyes stared into the eyes of Anthoni, prompting an attack from the lone fighter. Little-by-little, though, the general’s blade drifted farther and farther from its resting place.

“What the…?!” exclaimed a voice from behind Maxwell. Turning quickly, Maxwell drew his blade and rested it on the throat of his captive. Cold steel met flesh as he pressed it down, symbolizing for the man to keep quiet and allow the fight to happen without distraction.

02-Jan-2009 04:30:26

CaptChekaka

CaptChekaka

Posts: 35,595 Sapphire Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile
However, it had already begun.

The man’s screaming caused the wolf to dart forth, aiming for Anthoni’s neck as he leapt into the air. Anthoni’s mind reacted instinctively, drawing forth both his blade in one hand and shield in the other; a technique he had long worked to perfect in speed and motion.

Anthoni’s left hand, grasping the band of the shield, swept out at the beast, knocking it to the ground. Wasting no time, the wolf rushed back to its feet and stood, prepared to fight. It gave Anthoni a warning growl before it began to circle him clockwise, teeth bared.

“W-Where am I?” the man stuttered in a short whisper.

Maxwell moved to the side of the horse and leaned over the man's neck, answering, “The forest. Now keep quiet.”

The man’s silence was all the reply he needed before he turned his attention back to the battle at hand; the wolf did not stop its circling, letting out short howls at several intervals. Anthoni’s eyes never left those of his foe’s, and his foe’s repeated the action.

Snarling, the wolf struck forth at Anthoni’s leg, but his shield once again crashed into the being’s skull, knocking it away. Whimpering, it rose and turned its attention back to Anthoni; a few eyes, colored yellow, watched from the bushes surrounding them.

“Maxwell,” Anthoni murmured in a soft voice. “Come here. Quickly!”

Maxwell nodded, although his master could not see, and leaned the pressure off of his sword. Rushing away from the horse, the young soldier readied himself alongside Anthoni. “What’s wrong?” he whispered.

02-Jan-2009 04:30:58 - Last edited on 02-Jan-2009 06:11:35 by CaptChekaka

CaptChekaka

CaptChekaka

Posts: 35,595 Sapphire Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile
Anthoni continued to stare at the wolf in front of him, which had now backed up to the corner of the clearing to recuperate from the repelling. Then, for but an instant, his head ushered towards the shadows, directing Maxwell’s attention to the three pairs of yellow eyes that studied them from afar.

“But,” Maxwell started. “We can’t kill all of them!” His voice remained a whisper, but he put further emphasis on the latter portion of his sentence.

“Maxwell, learn this: the act of battle is not always to kill your opponent. Sometimes, you must only defend yourself until they become too tired to fight back, or they retreat from the inevitable defeat they would receive. The best defense,” he muttered in a scholarly tone, “is sometimes the best offense.”

The younger man looked out on his opponent, which had begun to move closer to the eyes that lurked deep within the brush. Eying them with malicious intent, the wolf seemed to be prompting them to attack, as if trying to corner them with his reinforcements.

“We’re outnumbered.”

“Aye,” Anthoni sighed. “Let’s end this quickly, though: we must reach Veskile.”

In the blink of an eye, Anthoni dropped his sword onto the ground and lifted a small knife from his waist; the edge was serrated and would not be removed with too much ease. Planting his right foot into the dirt forcefully, he blasted his arm forward into the air.

The knife drove forth in the thin atmosphere, and the wolf, relying on instincts, had darted forth when Anthoni began his attack. Its senses reacted as the knife punctured the air, and it tried to turn in mid-strike; the end result was less than successful.

02-Jan-2009 04:31:27

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