Index
CHAPTER THREE
Silent Whispers
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The Face of Death
The very sight of the creature disturbed Raven greatly. Mere feet away from him stood a large, deteriorated skeleton. It stood at about seven feet tall, and seemed to be formed from the bones of many dead creatures. Most of the creature appeared to be human, but its right hand looked to be made of the talons of a bird.
"What is that thing?" questioned Raven with more than a little shock.
"Skeletal Warrior," Emmelyne said simply, "I've never seen one before, but they're undead servants of darkness. Don't underestimate them..they're not afraid to die again."
Raven nodded and turned his attention back to the Skeletal Warrior. The creature's body looked deceptively frail, but he assumed that zombies could pack quite punch. Its body was clad in rotted and rusty armor, but it could probably still take a hit or two without giving way. Raven looked on. The Skeletal Warrior's eyeless stare pierced through him, and he involuntarily took a step back, trying to escape.
Not long after, another one stepped into view. Then another. Then two more.
"Oh my God!" Raven yelped. He brought his sword up to ready position, carefully avoiding the gazes of his would-be foes. He advanced a few paces, "Stay back, Emmelyne!" Raven warned, not wanting to risk her getting injured.
"Yeah, right!" she quipped, "I'm not letting you do this alone." She came and stood beside him, her staff ready, and settled into a practiced fighting stance. Raven could tell that she had skills. He just hoped she knew how to use them.
Suddenly, all five Skeletal Warriors attacked at once. Raven bullishly charged forward, sword in hand. When he reached the nearest Skeletal Warrior, Raven and swung high taking its head off. As its head hit the ground, the body fell, but the other undead creatures were already upon him. Raven looked around, but the Skeletal warriors had surrounded him.
"Uh-oh" Raven swung his sword, keeping his undead foes a bay, but every time he's swing at one, another would begin to advance. They were getting closer.
There was a cracking noise and one of the Skeletal Warriors fell, revealing Emmelyne, her staff ready. Raven wasted no time, hurrying through the opening his ally made. Once in the clear, he turned and slashed out, taking another skeleton out as it tried to advance on them. The creature that Emmelyne had knocked down now began to stand again.
"Oh no you don't!" Emmelyne cried. She brought her staff down hard on the creature's head, shattering it's skull.
"Two left!" Raven pointed out. He noticed one of the creatures coming up to Emmelyne. Emmelyne, however, didn't seem to take notice. She had turned her attention towards Raven, "Hey, Em! Watch out!"
But it was too late. The undead warrior reached out with its talon hand and slashed Emmelyne on the right arm, cutting her deeply. She recoiled, but soon recovered and lashed out with her staff. The skeleton fell, headless and crippled. Soon after, it grew still.
Raven gave one final swipe with his sword, and the last of the creatures fell. They stood there for a moment, trying to take in that the battle was really over. As far as Raven was concerned, that had been a little too easy. He would have would have expected them to put up more of a fight. He turned to look at Emmelyne a moment later, "You alright?" Raven questioned, "That's a nasty cut."
"I'll live," she replied distantly, almost as if she weren't really listening. He glanced at the cut on her arm and noticed that it already seemed to be healing itself. Perhaps elves had special healing abilities. In fact, if he remembered his lore correctly, elves could heal themselves very easily.
"Right," Raven replied, dropping the subject, "Was it just me, or did that fight seem a little too easy."
"You got lucky, Raven," Emmelyne scolded. She eyed him up, almost coldly. Her gaze wavered for a moment, then the girl turned away, "You charged in there like an idiot and almost got yourself killed. Fates be with you, Raven, if you ever pick a fight with someone more level-headed than you."
Raven shrugged, idly kicking a fallen skull, "I'm not one to believe in fate," he told her.
"Oh?"
"If I were, I wouldn't be worried," he admitted, "Everything would go as it should, and there would be nothing we could do to change it," he paused, then continued, "But life is all about choices. There are rights and wrongs and we've gotta choose between them."
His companion turned back to him, "What do you choose?" she asked, absent-mindedly flicking her braided hair to keep it out of her face.
"I always follow my gut; for better or worse," Raven replied, "Wanna know what it's telling me now?"
Emmelyne sighed and gave Raven an incredulous look, "You're hungry?"
Raven smirked, "Cute," he said dryly, "I think that something sent those things to size us up. They were holding back! I'm sure of it."
"I got the same impression," the elf agreed. Raven nodded and she continued, "But who knows where we are except the Elvin Council? Who would want to test us?"
Almost as if in response, there was a resounding crash and the ground shook, "Yes...who indeed?" came a raspy, almost whispered female voice. There was another quaking rumble, and the ground lurched under their feet.
Raven could see a shadow not far from them, larger than the creatures they had just fought...much larger. The ground shook with each step it took. The creature stepped into view. It was a giant dragon; at least thirty feet tall. It towered over the two like a skyscraper. However, this dragon, like the creatures they had fought previously, was completely skeletal. Her long, bony limbs looked to be far stronger than those of the Skeletal Warriors. The 'bone dragon's' frame was strong, and well formed. Its skeletal wings laid folded at its sides.
The dragon glared at them; its hard, featureless skull seemed to convey unseen emotions. Raven and Emmelyne looked up at it in awe.
The blond man took a step forward, "And just who are you?" Raven asked, calmly. He boasted more confidence than he truly felt.
The dragon looked at him, "I am Dora...leader of Bane Heart's undead armies" Dora seemed to speak as the breeze blew, almost as if her words were carried by the wind, "You are far weaker than my master expected you to be."
"Well isn't he special," Raven remarked sarcastically. He realized a moment later that he probably shouldn't have said that. A titan-sized, living skeleton was not the type of creature he wished to make angry.
"You are a fool." Dora replied, "If you think you can stand the test of time."
Emmelyne remained silent throughout the exchange, carefully scrutinizing Dora. She was very sure that the dragon was analyzing them as well. She'd never heard of a leader of the undead, and the name Baneheart always seemed to be taboo with the Elvin Council.
She turned her attention back to the other two...Raven must have said something really foolish.
"If that's the way you want it child!" Howled Dora. With that, the creature threw back its head, angrily and fired a beam of red energy from its mouth. Emmelyne realized what was happening and shoved Raven out of the way before he could be struck.
Raven hit the ground hard. He glanced up at Dora and, who was now glaring at Emmelyne. A moment later he glanced at the spot where he had been. It almost seemed as though Dora's attack had done nothing. However, he soon noticed something odd. The grass where he had stood looked to be untouched, however, upon closer inspection, he realized that it was now a sickly shade of brown... almost as if something had drained the life out of it. It was dead.
His eyes widened as the realization hit him, however, he still was unable to collect himself in time to stop what happened next.
Dora fired her ray attack at Emmelyne. The girl dove out of the way, rolling forward and standing again in less than a second. When she stood, Emmelyne immediately held up her hand, and white sparks of light sprang forth from her finger tips. The bone dragon roared in as the Elvin healing magic damaged its undead hide.
The creature fired again. Emmelyne, still off balance, simply raised her arms in an 'x' block position.
As Raven watched the beam hit the girl..or it would have, but instead, a golden barrier appeared in front of her, taking the brunt of the blow. The blast sent the Elvin girl sprawling back. She fell in a heap, unconscious.
"No!" Raven screamed. Rage filled him, giving him yet another burst of adrenaline. Sheathing his sword, Raven pulled out the Thunderbolt pendant and concentrated fiercely on it. Soon, it glowed intensely with the energy, "Time to see what this thing can do!" he called out. Dora seemed to sense his anger and began backing up. Raven wasn't about to let her escape so easily though. He glared at the beast with pure torment in his eyes, and taking a step forward, he called out "Thunderbolt!"
Flinging his arms up towards the heavens, Raven released all his energy at once. There was a short time of silence, but then static filled the air. Raven could feel the power surging around him; smell the steamy odor of ozone filling the air. Then, in a flash of pure energy, lightning tore through the sky, arching across blackness.
The bolt struck Dora with such force that it drove her to the ground. The creature screamed in tortured agony, trying desperately to escape. It dissipated a moment later; Dora lay still, a scorched blackness covering her bones.
Raven quickly forgot about the smoldering mess that was Dora. He rushed over to Emmelyne, who lay where she had fallen. She looked to be unharmed, but was unconscious. "Emmelyne?" Raven questioned. He received no response, "Emmelyne?" he repeated more loudly. He shook her gently, but still she did not respond. In all appearances, she was dead.
He put his finger under her nose..she wasn't breathing! Raven gritted his teeth. A moment later he put his ear to Emmelyne's chest. He breathed a slight sigh of relief. Her heart was beating, but very weakly. If she didn't start breathing soon she'd die for sure.
Raven shook his head, "C'mon, Emmelyne! I don't want to be wandering around this place alone!" he carefully parted Emmelyne's lips and pinched her nose, "You'll probably smack me for this, but" he took a deep breath and forced air into the Elvin girl's lungs.
He watched as Emmelyne's chest rose, and then fell again when he broke the seal of his mouth on hers. Again Raven breathed air into her; hoping that he wasn't already too late.
This went on for several minutes, and Raven had all but given up hope, when Emmelyne suddenly took in a deep breath and opened her eyes. She coughed violently, then laid calmly again. Slowly, the girl's breathing returned to normal; she looked at Raven, but remained silent.
Raven looked down at her, worriedly, "I thought that elves could heal themselves from just about anything. What happened, Emmelyne?"
Her gaze wavered, "I'm only..half..elf," she wheezed, laboring out each word, "Using..Elvin power..drains me."
Raven hushed her, "We'll talk about it later," he assured, "Rest now. I'll protect you." This was the first time she had mentioned her race to him at all. If she hadn't spoken to him about the Elvin Council earlier, he'd have had no idea that she was really an elf at all.
Emmelyne merely nodded in reply. A moment later, she closed her eyes and fell asleep.
When Raven turned his back, Dora quickly used the distraction to her advantage. Lord Baneheart! She silently communicated. Bring me back!
A moment later, she slowly began to fade.. to be teleported to Baneheart's dark realm. Even as she faded from view, Dora thought to herself, So he really is the one chosen by the spirit of Thunderbolt. This may yet prove to be interesting.
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