Rise Of Pandora

Rise Of Pandora: XXVIII. Death's Rain

"I have good men and women who have been more than willing to sacrifice their lives for people who will never even know their names."

-Brais Bessarian

X. Foreigner

Impaled by dozens of arrows, Gaijin was left suspended over Maddard breathless and mute. The arrows which tore into him stuck hanging out like weeds. Maddard glared up at Gaijin, wondering how he was still alive. His body was currently repairing itself again with those same blue particles rising from all over his . His eyes were red and his body was butchered in the worst ways imaginable.

The horrid rain of death had finally passed.

Paralyzed by fear, Maddard did not even attempt to move. Minutes passed with him lying motionless underneath Gaijin. He had survived. But he knew he could never live life the same. He had met with the devil and suffered his power, yet he prevailed by the grace of a guardian angel.

Gaijin stayed still, never did he fall. His face was stern and stiff, his eyebrows scrunched together. He endured the pain and remained adamant.

Watching Gaijin heal and defy death with a close view was an extraordinary thing for him to see. He eyed and gazed at every body part being pushed and regenerated back into place, forcing out the arrows that were stuck halfway in his body. He was lost for words and rendered motionless. All he could do was watch the stiff body mend and repair itself.

With the last of the particles leaving his body, Gaijin began moving again. He could again feel and sense the cold air around him. He glanced down at Maddard and smiled wearily. "You're alive. That is good." He turned his head coughed blood before looking around. He could not even see the forest floor, for there were arrows spread throughout.

However, this moment of optimism was short-lived. The sounds of the man's voice were reverberating nearby in the distance. He was crooning a song, his voice harsh and mellow and sounding more like a howl from the muzzle of a ravenous wolf. He spotted them as he strolled leisurely. He discontinued his grim croons.

The arrows broke away into rising black ash whenever he grazed them with his feet. Gaijin looked up and caught a glimpse at the maniacal man's face. He violently pulled back the string of his bow and fires more arrows which Gaijin instinctively placed his back in front of to shield Maddard. And just like that, the sea of arrows that were stuck in the earth had all burst into a sky of ash, each breaking away into black particles that rose and disappeared into the azure above.

He sprained his neck upward and glared upon that fearsome figure approaching them.

Their skin crawled just by his presence alone which pressed them ever so menacingly. His shoulders were like boulders which sat just upon his arms. His eyes were fixed on Gaijin who writhed in pain on the floor beside Maddard.

Struggling to his feet, he yelled at Maddard to run.

Immediately, Maddard struggled to find his footing and scurried into the vastness of the trees. Knowing he would only hinder Gaijin, he did not turn back, he did not even glance behind. Suddenly, the man lifted his bow, his eyes keen and set on the scurrying Bessarian. Again, Gaijin intervened but he was quickly overwhelmed by a heavy fist that forced him onto the ground. Coughing blood, he felt slightly overwhelmed fighting this man. The arrows in his body stung and left him sore and the man's fists were like dense iron the way he struck Gaijin. He clutched onto his leg, trying his best to give Maddard time to escape the touch of the reaper. He was aggressive and incredibly powerful. Outwardly he appeared as a man, but Gaijin, as well as the two others, had long since concluded that he was no such thing remotely related to humanity. It was fair to describe the man as a 'monster'.