Lieutenant Shil of the Boren Militia

“Run!” I shouted to my comrades in the darkened corridor, shadows flickering as lanterns shook. We were sprinting as fast as we could in the heavy armour we were sporting.

“A monster is coming!” I yelled.

We all got into formation. Knights at the front with their raised shields, mages and archers behind them. The archers poised ready to fire with their bowstrings taut, arrows nocked; the mages prepared to fire their offensive magic as mana swirled around their staves.

“Prepare to fire!” Captain William shouted as he raised his sword and braced himself.

A guttural growl bounced through the corridor alerting us to the approaching threat. We heard the sound of glass breaking as the monster shattered each lantern it passed.

Drip, drip, drip.

A solitary, clawed hand became visible out of the darkness, dripping with crimson blood. Many soldiers gasped and cried out to one another as the rest of it became visible in the light.

A figure in tattered clothing, covered head to toe in crimson stood tall in front of them.

The ranged fighters hesitated for a moment, they took deep breaths to steady themselves. “Ready… Fire!” The archers released their arrows all at once and the mages shot magical projectiles at the monster. It ducked and weaved with impossible speed and precision, the shots it couldn’t dodge were rendered useless against it’s clawed hands. Massive bolts of lightning and balls of fire dissipated as it touched it’s crimson claws, flickering out leaving it unscathed. The monster laughed and smiled at us as it stalked closer to our position.

I have fought in battles where thousands have met their end, but this is…

Captain William ordered those with bows and offensive magic to prepare a second volley, but the beast in front of them didn’t give them a chance to attack. It cut through the defending knights easily, crushing shields and shattering swords. Knights fell one after another with fatal wounds, some dying instantly and others slowly fading in increasingly deep pools of blood.

I watched as battle hardened soldiers screamed and swung their weapons blindly, injuring each other in an attempt to damage the monster. None of their swings or attacks touched it as it danced through the flurry of blades and slashed the attacking soldiers with it’s dagger-like claws. Blood sprayed from deep and jagged slashes and blood flowed freely along the floor and into the crevices of the stone bricks lining the corridor. The walls of the damned corridor shone with glistening crimson as if the beast was trying to paint it with blood.

I backed away from the shattered formation as it not only sliced my comrades but tore them in half. Limbs covered the floors, bodies had bones showing and heads rolled. The screams of my comrades cut out one by one as the monster slaughtered each and every one. The sound of glass shattering rang throughout the corridor as the monster’s deadly slashes destroyed the lanterns and cloaked the corridor in lasting darkness.

The captain sprinted down the corridor, away from the massacre. In the darkness, I heard him stop when the last soldier screamed his last and an ominous silence filled the corridor. He struck a match and his face was illuminated, he slowly turned, and searched the darkness for a hint of any survivors or the monster.

Drip, drip, drip.

The captain hesitated, perhaps cut in thought between fleeing, searching for any survivors or to see if the damned beast had been killed.

Drip, drip, drip.

It sounded closer, I blanched as I remembered what that sound was. I backed away in a panic, recalling the crimson clawed hand poking through the darkness. My crotch warmed as I slowly backed away trying not to make a sound and silently prayed to the gods.

My prayers were cut short when a jagged slash sliced the captain’s throat and vocal chords. He lifted his hands to his throat in a feeble attempt to staunch the waterfall of crimson. He collapsed and the light went out. As I ran, I heard a voice in the darkness. The voice of the beast, the voice of the monster. It whispered to itself “I will kill them all”.