Chapter III: Into the Jackal's Den

Jayth, Lani and Devren must venture deep into the perilous Kelemen Valley, faced with dangers both human and beast in hope that can return safely to The Den.

Jayth stared at the river absently as he watched the other two cross. The sound of it's rushing waters represented the past memories that flowed through him, now awakened, but the kind he wished had remained buried. There was a wistful look in his purple, sunken eyes, almost as if the river's waters were starting to flood them. This overwhelming feeling surged through him, like he was battling a huge storm within himself, it was enveloping him but outwardly he tried to temper the violent winds and waves that threatened to consume him. He had escaped The Vanguards for now but the past was forever the omnipresent, looming prowler, for which there was no escape, never ceasing. All he could do was put it in the back of his head; the spectres that roamed the hallways of his mind, he had to shut them out, for now, for his own sake. Jayth then breathed deeply and hesitantly started to cross. He felt the swishing water glide over his boots as he maintained his balance until he got to the other side where Lani and Devren were waiting.

“Right,” Lani pointed towards the top of the ridge, “we need to cross up here and then a further climb to the mountain, but we need to stick to the side path at all costs.”

“More climbing?” Devren groaned. He brushed himself down, “Can we assume that they will have guards patrolling the mountain tops? Barbarians they may be, but The Jackals are meticulous, they will have every patch of their territory covered.”

“That's why we're sticking to the side path,” she replied in her usual self-assured way, “plus we're under the cover of night, and they are only human, no heightened senses.”

Jayth was impressed with her knowledge of the surroundings, “You seem to know your way around.” he said.

She merely nodded as she gestured for them to follow her up, her look stern, she knew they were heading in dangerous territory, that much was true.

They made there way up and could see the steep mountain up ahead. It was bold and august with a v-shaped peak. The broad face of the mountain side was crested in small patches of snow. Jayth almost gasped at the sight as he had not seen snow for many years. The knifelike winds bit at their backs as they got further up.

“This is one of the Obsidian Mountains...” Lani puffed as she took larger steps, “Mount Despair...or is this Mount Dread?”

Devren scoffed, “Well, either one, I'm sure it's not a very favoured spot for aspiring lovers,” he joked, “Never did hear of the passionate ballad of the Lovers of..Mount Despair, bet that was a cheery one.”

“Stop!” Lani whispered, almost freezing still. She seemed agitated, like something was amiss.

“What is it?” Devren's voice little more than a murmur.

“Do you see that??” she pointed to the left.

Devren and Jayth saw something further up the mountain that looked like three, tall black shapes moving through the opaque darkness. The outlines became more defined as they moved closer in their direction, down the mountain side. They were human.

“...Surely not.” a slight tremble in Devren's voice as he glanced at Lani, knowing what they could be. He was at the mercy of his imagination and that was frightening to him. The comforting light of day seemed like a distant memory now.

They then noticed another distinct shape to there right that emerged almost out of the blackness. It was graceful and slinky in it's movements, making slow, methodical strides towards the other three figures, almost as if it was stalking them. It was also shorter than the other three with a noticeable arched back, as if it was in some kind of predatory stance, getting closer and closer, bearing down on the unsuspecting figures. Piercing eyes of deep amber then materialised in front of them like two glowing orbs in a sea of ink. They could not make out any other discernible features but one thing they knew with certainty and unlike the others: that it was definitely not human.

“Is that-?” Devren squinted to try and make out what it was.

A horrifying roar then ripped through the mountain side as it pounced on the three figures, tearing them down, their dark outlines suddenly disappeared from view, lost in the darkness.

“AHHHH!!! NOOO!!! HELP!!! BY THE-!! PLEASE!!”

The sickening shrieks added to the horrifying medley of macabre sounds that carried across the mountains, the sound of flesh tearing like sheets of paper as the deafening growls continued. The screams then stopped, and all was silent.

Jayth gulped as he crouched near Lani and Devren who were fixated on the creature as it feasted on it's prey. It tore hungrily at the flesh as if it hadn't eaten in months.

“What do we do?” with dread etched on Devren's face which was drained of colour. “Stealth isn't an option...I really don't want to end up as the second course.”

“We still outnumber it, the odds are in our favour.” she said calmly with a sense of anticipation, she gave a Devren a slight nudge, “Pull yourself together, we've faced worst.”

Devren's face then suddenly lit up, a thought had struck him, “Unless, we can count on your friend here to try another of his..tricks.” he shot a knowing glance at Jayth.

Jayth shook his head, “It...doesn't work like that, at least not any more.”

“What are you talking about?” he sneered.

“LOOK!” Lani was aghast, “It's...gone.”

The creature had vanished before their eyes. As if the oppressive dark wasn't enough to contend with they now had a ferocious predator out there somewhere.

“Maybe it had it's fill and went on it's merry way.” Devren ever the hopeless optimist in such situations. It was how he calmed himself more than anything even if it wasn't at all true. Diffusing any serious situation was how he ironically kept his sanity.

“Stay very close. Keep your guard up, we need to keep moving. If we stay here were as good as dead.” she knew it was still a huge risk, but they had to advance.

“Well, that seemed to work for those poor b******s.” Devren retorted.

“They weren't us. Come on.”

Lani as always took the lead, while the other two kept close, ever vigilant. Their eyes danced around the rough mountain side, they knew it was potentially out there somewhere, in the shadows, just waiting for it's moment.

Jayth kept a very firm grip on his small blade, to the point his hand was slightly shaking, though not with fear.

“Where are we going?” Devren noticed Lani was heading straight up rather than off to the side path which was over to the right.

“I want to find out who those men were first.” she said.

“What's left of them. Does it really matter? Let's just go.” he seemed increasingly perturbed, his sword slightly shaking in his hand, he just wanted to get back.

Lani gasped slightly at the grisly sight before her. The other two also saw it, though they wished they hadn't. A sight one should never see, the kind they wished that their eyes hadn't become too accustomed to the darkness.

They were the mangled, eviscerated remains of the three men, their faces unidentifiable, mauled beyond all recognition. Their entrails were strewn over the grass now saturated in blood, chunks of torso and limb scattered like leaves in the wind.

Devren gulped and was almost sick in his mouth, “Real pretty. I was never that hungry anyway.”

Jayth kept a weather eye on his surroundings, paying no mind at all to the bodies. There were far bigger concerns out there to him, though all was quiet for now, too quiet for his liking.

Lani knelt down and calmly scanned the carcasses for any discernible clues, though it was hard to make anything out in the bloody mess. She then noticed two engraved, steel swords that were buried in the tall grass, a severed hand still clung to one of them.

“Curious,” she eyed the weapons intently, “These aren't merely makeshift weapons. They are well-crafted with red filigree laid into the pommels. Not the sort a Black Jackal or any wandering hunter would carry.”

“Fascinating, can we please go now? That beast could be out there still.”

“Wait a minute.”

She then examined what appeared to be a piece of armour that had been torn from one of the men. It was a very fine leather, slightly bloodied but the original colour was still there underneath, a distinct golden sheen to the material which confirmed her early suspicions.

“These were Gold Hoods, men of the Crown.” she glanced back at Devren, “The fine craftsmanship of the weapons, the regal colour of the armour, it fits.”

“That's impossible. What would they be doing all the way out here?” Devren was now curious.

“I don't know, they weren't heavily-armoured. Possibly a scouting party of some kind.” Lani noticed a distinct emblem on the leather. A small golden crown with a bold 'M' emblazoned over it. She smiled with delight, “The men of King Marius Galexandis, I believe.”

They then heard what sounded like a series of branches snapping. Like they were being crunched under a very heavy weight. Lani and Devren shared an intense look.

“We have to move now.” Jayth sensed something wasn't right.

The trio banded close and made there way across the tough grassy terrain. They trudged through the unforgiving tall grass, which seemed to almost wrap around their legs like vines. It was interspersed with small rocks which nestled amongst the blades of green. The mysterious crunching noises continued, though the mountains often played tricks with sounds so they did not know whether it was actually close by or many, many yards away. They did not stop to find out.

The intermittent wind picked up suddenly as if summoned by an incantation. The grass rustled and swayed violently around them as they tried to get to the gravelly path up ahead.

“I don't like this, I don't like this at all.”

“Oh Devren, pull yourself togeth-!”

A ferocious bellow erupted from behind them, the air rushed forth and with it a black, cat-like shape that pounced with such speed Devren was thrown to the ground in a mere blink. He yelped for his life as the beast clawed at him repeatedly.

“DEVREN!!!” Lani shouted with a fury in her eyes.

She flailed violently at the beast with a feral intensity, Jayth quickly followed, he thrust his dagger repeatedly at it with all the force he could muster. It bled and cried in pain as it swung it's other paw at Lani who quickly swerved and thrashed at the beast once more.

The beast roared and then rushed at Lani who quickly thrust her polearm at it as it pounced, she impaled it as it landed on top of her, still alive, still intent on killing her viciously. It revealed it's razor-sharp set of pearly white teeth with four distinct, enlarged canines as it tried to bite her, it's powerful jaws slammed open and shut, it's deathly roar curdled the blood. She pushed it back with her spear as it stuck out the other side of the creature, she tried to swing it off her, her face creased with sheer tension, sweat started to bead down her face.

Jayth struck it on the back, it pierced it's tough hide again, it yowled and swung it's body as if the life was finally being drained from it.

It threw it's paws at her as it dangled on the edge of her weapon before Lani finally threw it down to the ground, she let out a mighty cry as she yanked it out of the beast. It whimpered in pain, it's body twitched for a few moments before it finally succumbed to death. Lani and Jayth breathed heavily, it was if they had endured a titanic battle with greater numbers than there own, but this was just one beast, the kind of beast they would never wish to encounter ever again.

“Devren!” Lani immediately turned her attention to her fallen friend who laid motionless in the grass.

Jayth too quickly rushed to him. He felt for this man despite him not ever liking or fully trusting him. It put it all in perspective, and everything that came before didn't matter at all, this man's life was in the balance and that was all that mattered.

They looked down and saw Devren's duster coat and leather armour was torn in multiple places, he had two gaping claw wounds on both sides of his face. His forearms were completely stripped bare of any protection, his exposed flesh bled profusely where he attempted to shield his face from the fury of claws. Luckily he was still intact, their blows to divert the beasts attention away from him had worked, he had not suffered any fatal injuries that they could see.

“Devren...” her voice no more than a squeak. She cradled him and tried to rouse him with a few gentle taps to his face, he was still breathing, barely.

Jayth knelt down by her side, “Is he going to be all right?” he was still slightly shaken by the events. His hands and raiment now bloodied, a reminder of his part in all this.

“...I don't know,” she stroked his injured face tenderly like a child. “He's still breathing, thank the Goddess.” Lani shook him a little and sighed, a deeply remorseful look cast across her sunken face. “...This is all my fault, I'm sorry Devren, I should have listened to you.”

He finally started to cough much to Lani and Jayth's delight. He slowly opened his eyes, his hazel orbs beamed with life which was in contrast to the rest of his face. “...Well,” as he spluttered a little more and started to come round, “...next time I hope you will, cause I would rather no further injuries to this pretty face.”

She giggled as she gave him a playful pinch. “Duly noted. And you don't look that bad, what was it you said about scars agreeing with me, well now you've got a few of your own.”

Jayth smiled, he admired the guy for still being good-humoured even in the face of death. Not many could do that, I guess people deal with it in their own way.

“Is it bad?” he replied.

“Not as bad as it could have been. Me and Jayth managed to keep the beast occupied from doing more damage.” she glanced at Jayth and gave him an approving nod. As much as she did, she couldn't have done it alone.

He shrugged, “I just stabbed at it really, she finally managed to slay it.”

Devren paused for a moment and looked up at Jayth for the first time, well I guess he could only look up cause he was lying down on the grass but Jayth felt a certain warmth from him for the first time since they met. “...Thank you, for my life.” he said.

Jayth nodded, “Don't mention it. Can you stand?”

“Well I've still got my legs luckily.”

Lani helped him up as he grunted in pain, he managed to finally stand if with a little limp. He slowly reached down and picked up his sword and sheathed it.

“Whoa...” he gazed at the beast's large corpse. “You managed to kill that thing?”

“It didn't go down easy. Looks like a jaguar of some kind, not any kind I've fought before.” she said as she picked up her weapon, freshly coated in the blood of the kill.

“A hunter's delight, it's hide alone would fetch a very pretty price.” Devren grasped at his arm which bled, the pain coursed through him, he probably wouldn't be able to use his sword arm for a while. “Going to have to patch this up when we get back.”

“I'm sure Ranna will kiss it better for you,” she teased. “You all right to walk? It shouldn't be much further now, were on the path.”

He nodded. “Can't fight though, I hope we don't run into any more surprises. I'm going to look pretty pathetic if I attempt to swing anything right now.” he clutched tightly at his arm, he grit his teeth to try and keep the pain at bay.

Jayth laughed. “Don't worry, I guess we'll have to protect you, again.”

Lani smiled. “Let's go.”

The gravelly path greeted them which seemed like a welcome relief from the ordeal they had all just endured. It became increasingly steeper and for a split a second they caught an incredible view as they peered slightly over the mountain summit. It was a vast, deep valley nested amongst the tall, snow-crested mountains. Roaring fires lit up the bleak landscape with a very large camp at the bottom which appeared to be the size of a large lake that had long dried up. This is where The Black Jackals had made their home and they could make out their large silhouettes as they wandered about in the distance.

“It looks like-”

SMACK!! Lani's body crashed down with a heavy thud. Devren and Jayth were utterly flummoxed as they had little time to even react. As they turned their gaze upward what they saw standing before them was unlike anything they had ever seen.

A hulking, mighty mass of a man, his veiny, exposed legs the size of tree trunks. He wore a thick, sleeveless cuirass made entirely of a type of fur, his mammoth arms were the length of Jayth's entire body. His face and the top of his head was concealed behind a menacing, black fur mask which had pointed ears and a face that resembled that of a wild dog. He held an abnormally large battle axe, it's broad crescent-shaped edge shimmered like the moonlight. Devren staggered back in utter fear, his physical handicap threw him backwards onto his side as he cried in pain.

Jayth was now stood before the giant alone, his lean, minute figure completely dominated by the gargantuan mass of flesh and bone.

“JAYTH LOOK OUT!!” screamed Devren. He felt helpless.

The behemoth grunted as he brought his mighty axe down on Jayth. He breathed in and closed his eyes and in an instant his entire body went pellucid like glass, it morphed into a wraithlike column of cloud as the axe passed right through his body. The force of the downward swing buried the axe in the ground. The Black Jackal was completely stunned at what he had just seen.

Before he could even blink, jet's of blood started to spurt out of his arms, legs and chest one after the other as he howled in pain. The spectral dagger was relentless in it's movements, it thrust and thrust at him till he was finally brought to his knees, his axe still buried in the ground. Jayth then materialised right before his eyes, his mouth underneath the jaw of the mask seeped with blood as he drooled.

“...W-w-what are...you...” the giant gurgled, barely being able to speak.

Jayth's look was fierce as he gazed upon his defeated opponent, he remained silent, he pulled his bloodied dagger back and then thrust it once more into his chest. He twisted at the flesh as it squelched and ripped, the cuirass now completely torn apart. His body riddled with over a dozen stab wounds. Jayth yanked his blade out and The Black Jackal slumped to the ground dead, his immense weight smacked it hard.

“...Well, I'd never thought I'd see the day a Black Jackal would be slain.” Devren said utterly amazed by what he had witnessed. He glanced over and saw the body and then tried to push himself up.

Jayth then felt an overwhelming sense of fatigue as he collapsed to his knees, almost out of breath, his body sapped of all energy. “...Curses!” he cried. He clenched his fists and struck the ground in anger.

Lani then slowly regained consciousness. She shook her head, still in somewhat of a daze. “...What...happened?” she pressed her hand against her head, it throbbed in pain.

Then footsteps quickly approached from behind them. Before Devren could get back up he was kicked hard in the face which knocked him out cold. Lani too was struck again, she fell back down to the ground in a heap. Jayth then looked up and saw that he was completely surrounded. In his weakened state he could barely make out who or what they were. His vision was blurry but one thing that he was able to discern was that all they were all unnaturally pale and bald with a distinct ovoid shape to their faces. A circle of tall, moon-like heads that gave off a radiant glow, his impaired, cloudy vision made them appear almost ghostly. He wearily watched one of them approach him, he was in no fit state to fight back. If they were The Vanguards, they had finally got him. Jayth breathed, probably for the last time, he braced himself for his fate.

And then...complete blackness.

Author's Note

Yuup a cliffhanger ending, also my longest chapter so far. Would love to know what you think so far, any criticism is welcome. :)