Dawn of the Nephilim

56. the Snake guild attacks part IV

Adrenaline was rushing through him like never before. He could see the little veins in the faces in front of him. Next to him he heard Mundi laugh like a maniac, his reaper piercing chests and severing necks. With arms and chest splattered in blood as they were, Mundi seemed more like a savage barbarian than the happy-go-lucky fellow Ronan had come to know. On his other side Windar didn't make a sound. His face was almost solemn as he cut down opponent after opponent, radiatin calm confidence and showcasing incredible speed that soon inspired awe in their enemies. He moved like an artist of death. Ronan saw that Windar was keeping an eye out for him as well. From beside Windar, he heard a roaring and sizzling, which told him that Eloï'inda was still slightly preoccupied, raining down fire as if she were a child of the Almighty.

Only the first few opponents engaged at a dead run. The others soon learned to respect them and approached more warily. The women were the hardest for Ronan. One woman had red, curly hair and big blue eyes. She could be no older than twenty five. Furiously, as if she was indignant that he had been so audacious to survive that long, she jumped towards him. "For the cobra!" Her battle cry did not save her. With pain in his heart he knocked her out of the air in mid-jump. She limply hit the ground, and another opponent tripped over her body. Ronan caught the man's face with his knee, breaking his nose and likely leaving fractures in his skull. He eyed the red spot on the cloth as the man went down into the dust.

Their enemies soon tried to circle them, by passing over the ridge on their left. The first to get up there dropped down again immediately with a gurgling sound. An arrow protruded from his neck. Ronan managed a quick glance, and saw Ayra standing behind them with her bow in hand. It was the only weapon she had managed to take with her, and she now used it well.

The sheer numbers facing them began to take their toll on them. Ronan became more and more tired, and he received a very painful slash over his forearm. -It's not deep Ronan, don't worry.- Tiar'Mara was watching him from the inside. She kept him going, and jealously guarded his stores of energy. Suddenly, next to him, Mundi slipped. Ronan responded immediately and jumped to stand watch over him, one leg on either side of his body. Now Ronan truly got in trouble, having to fend of double his normal allotment. With one blow he knocked two people over. He became almost giddy from his own unlikely strength. Then a big bearded man of sizable bulk locked a spear with his weapon, and pushed hard. Mundi had immediately crawled from underneath him, but as he took a step back, he tripped over something else.

He saw the sky shooting past in front of him as he fell to his back just like Mundi had before him. Looking up, he saw the big man lifted his spear up to permanently pin him to the ground. The man's face was right in front of the sun, which, shining behind him like an aureole, made his head seam chiseled out of stone, his hair and beard sprawling out like shadow and lichen. A row of yellow teeth with one front tooth missing, thoroughly ruined the would-be noble picture. Ronan forced himself to keep his eyes open, and bared his teeth against the man.

The man's face contorted in fear. He lowered his spear, turned around and simply ran. Most of their adversaries did the same. At least thirty of them simply turned tail and ran. A group of about ten black leathered men stayed behind and looked after the fleeing group with the same surprise as Ronan. They seemed at a loss what they should do next, and in that Lull Ronan got back to his feet.

Then Eloï'inda stepped forward, her crimson blades were dripping and her eyes were a blazing red. "Wion'dair. Do you know the song of Mulka'indor?" Windar still stood in a crouching position. "I do messenger." "Sing it for me please." Windar's blades sang as he let them glide over each other, which he accompanied with a mysterious, menacing song, in a tongue unknown to Ronan. If anything, it seemed to resemble the speech of the stars, as they forebodingly spoke to one another about the coming end, over the vast rifts of space. Eloï'inda began walking forward to the ten opponents.

The men realized that in their indecisiveness, they had lost whatever chance they had at taking the iniative. At the same time, all they saw walking towards them was one woman. Although her eyes and a strange light that seemed to suffuse her, warned them that she was no ordinary woman. Still, apparently blessed with a modicum of training and discipline, they formed a line and readied their weapons. Windar's song increased in intensity, and as if that was the sign Eloï'inda had waited for, she attacked.

Ronan's jaw dropped, and he shivered. Eloï'inda didn't just kill the men, she slaughtered them fast as a praying mantis. They were barely able to perform a single move before they fell to the ground, gutted, beheaded or otherwise. I knew she was dangerous, but this? When one man thrust a spear out towards her, she kicked it aside, and stabbed her sword so hard in his chest that the force knocked him back two meters. The sword barely made a sound when it was ripped free. Then Eloï'inda stood facing one last soldier. A man that seemed to be almost middle aged. He had the looks of a veteran. She lowered her sword, and did not engage him.

"Flee if you are wise" she said, in a tone of voice that expressed a great tiredness.

The man carried two battle axes, like Ronan had seen many of them do. Crude weapons, but very dangerous when used effectively. "Curse you, harbringer of death" the man spat out before raising his axes. Three times axe met blade, and the man showcased a speed and cunning beyond his fellow travelers, which might have been responsible for his misplaced arrogance. When he realized his mistake, he jumped back with another curse and threw his two axes toward Eloï'inda. She easily dodged one, and the other she actually caught. Yet again she waited, and waited for the man to take the initiative. He might have saved himself by running, but instead he drew a curved, vicious knife and advanced once more, cursing Eloï'Inda all the while. Throwing the axe aside, she jumped forward with her blades in a v-shape. Two seconds later a body fell to its knees under a fountain of blood. And a snarling, hateful head rolled against the ridge.

Eloï'inda turned around and let her swords disappear. Her white robes and hair were stained with blood. "I have brought the other soldiers into a blind panic, as they were feeble minded. I don't think we have seen the last of them. We have to leave now. They won't be able to effectively give chase, and we can't afford to lose the boats."

They ran back over the ridge, and met total chaos. All the snake guild members that had fled were in the river. Some were swimming downstream, and others were madly trying to climb the cliffside on the other side of the river. They managed to grab a hold of their swamp-skimmers. A few arrows flew their way as they paddled away as fast as they could. But the shooting soon abated.