The Last of the Twenty: Broken Pawns

Chapter 32

Kendrick stood silently alongside Pierre, smells of campfires, leather and men blended with the watery breeze of the river, flowing up the steep slope of their overlook in a powerful stream of sensations. What would start as a peaceful day would soon erupt in the violent explosion of battle as tens of thousands of Norman invaders prepared to lay siege to Paris. Their ships filled the water like a floating plague, a massive shadow of impending death ready to bloody all in its wake with merciless brutality. Kendrick felt his body tense with anticipation, the boiled leather cuirass creaking against the strain of his flexing muscles. Pierre felt his tension boiling over, knowing the mere sight of the long ships was enough to send him over the edge and into a berserker-like rage that would not only match but far exceed that of the invaders.

"Patience," he told Kendrick, his eyes fixed on the impending battle, "we will have our chance. Battle draws all of our people like insects to a torch, if he is alive, he is here."

Kendrick's fists clenched as his body shook with rage. After decades of waiting his chance had finally come. The Normans had become bolder in their attacks, venturing further and further into France in their quest for death and plunder. Now countless men stood on the field of Montfaucon, and somewhere amongst them stood the man responsible for so much of Kendrick's misery, the one who had taken everything from him, his father, his mother, his sister, and his soul. If he had to rip through the entire army with his bare hands he would, for only death itself would be able to keep him from his adversary. Kendrick closed his eyes and breathed in deeply, taking in every detail in hopes of sparking those dark memories.

Then it hit him, a momentary and subtle sensation that made the hairs on his neck stand on end. A shutter ran down his spine like and electric current, igniting a rage inside his chest that he would have never thought possible. Kendrick's dark eyes snapped open, focusing on the swarm of floating ships with the intensity of a predator. A tiny flicker of red reflection caught his eye half a second before a member of the crew lifted a torch to the ship's carved front, igniting an oily fire in its iron mouth. He was here.

"It's him." Kendrick said quietly, his own eyes focusing on only the black smoke rising from the ship of his nightmares.

"Good. I will stay close. Drain who you will in battle, but remove the heads of those you bite so none rise again. Others of our kind will be there, remember what you learned, for you can die." Pierre said, drawing his sword from its sheath in a single fluid motion.

The sounds of battle erupted in the field below as hordes of screaming men and horses charged each other, coming together with the violence of a storm. Kendrick didn't wait for any signal, his already tense muscles sprang to life in a powerful release as he ran down the slope, less than a blur of dark movement against the dull browns of the field.

Pierre allowed his outburst without a thought, in battle there is no need of subterfuge, the intensity of fighting and death were all that was needed to mask the hidden strength of their kind. Men saw much but remembered little in the confusion of battle, it was one of the few times they could act openly amongst their prey. He followed Kendrick down the hill with controlled and graceful strides, easily catching pace with his protégé and slowing to match his strides. He would remain close while allowing Kendrick his freedom, for it would be his actions today that determined if Pierre would allow him to live.

Kendrick entered the fray as a specter of death, moving with such lightning speed that men saw the heads and limbs of their brethren explode and tear off bodies as if on their own accord. For all his speed and fury Kendrick remained controlled in his kills, roughly dodging French forces while decimating any Norman within reach. He never fed, concentrating on a victim only long enough to rip them apart and move on.