It was now dawn, a scout party was being sent out to the nearest border control soon, which was roughly 30 km away.
Vazir was being left in-charge of the village affairs until Kaz'er returned.
Before leaving for the expedition, another search party was sent under the persistent efforts of Vazir to collect the body of the deceased guard.
Which they found, and his head was cleanly cut off. There was no doubt about it, this was the work of a hollow.
They retrieved the body of the fallen guard and gave him a proper burial. His wife was still a mess, tears dried on her face, but it was apparent that she was crying the entire night.
After the burial was done, Kaz'er told the people to gather at the heart of the village as he had an announcement to make.
He can't hide all of this from the people; it was their right to know what was going on.
Shortly after, many people could be seen standing outside of the Town hall waiting for Kaz'er to begin.
"My people, we all have been through hell in our lives. This village was built upon our blood and tears. Each one of you, exiled and shun from your respective cities. We came together and built this home; so our children could live a prosperous life. Yet..I stand here today, telling you off the horrible event that took place yesterday; one of our kin, was brutally killed by a hollow yesterday..." He said solemnly, the crowd erupted in all sorts of reactions.
He raised his hand, silencing them all instantly. Then he continued "The hollow we are dealing with is out of our league; we have decided to ask for help from the border....and we hope the results would be different this time. I will set off with a team of trusted warriors shortly. Await my arrival-I will bring glad tidings with me. Stay in your homes in the meantime, and do not leave them whatsoever."
He knew his address was not the best. He could have done better; had he failed them all as their leader? Was this all he was capable of?
Seeing him drowned in his own thoughts, Vazir regulated the crowd and dispersed them.
Vazir saw how empty and dead Kaz'er looked. Everything was bearing heavy upon him. He was their leader, someone they all loved and respected. Vazir knew how good of a human Kaz'er was.
He walked towards him and put a hand on his shoulders. "Kaz'er, right now, I stand before you as a friend and not a counsilman. Just know that you don't have to do this alone. I am here to share this burden-we all are always going to be there for you." Vazir said, his voice getting slightly heavy.
Listening to this, Kaz'er let out a thin smile. Vazir had always been there with him, through all of it. They were from the same city, friends long before making this 'kingdom' of their's.
" Vazir, I've always considered you as my kin-above everyone else." Kaz'er replied, trying to reassure Vazir.
"Me too.." Vazir replied with a smile.
Shortly after, Kaz'er gathered his squad and left the village, towards far south; their journey would take 2 days and they would have to spend the night in the forest.
They travelled throughout the day uninterrupted and without stopping. The Sun was setting down and it was almost night.
"Men, gather around; we will light a fire here and camp outside." Kaz'er said in a commanding voice.
He had brought 6 people with him. They all put their respective luggage down and started to look for the essential materials.
They needed to start a fire, hunt for food, and sent up tents for the night.
Kaz'er split the responsibilities amongst the people. He divided the party into groups of 2: each being assigned a specific task to complete.
The groups went to different directions
A teenager and a middle aged man were appointed wifh the duty of gathering food.
As they walked away from the rendezvous point, the man spoke, grinning: "Kid, pay attention; I will teach you how to hunt."
"Yes, sir!" The boy replied overly enthusiastic.
"Hehe, calm down." Said the middle aged man chuckling.
"So, what about your family? Who's taking care of them back home?" Asked the middle aged man.
The boy immediately had a shift of aura. His demeanour suddenly turned gloomy.
"I have no family; back at the city..all of them were killed. My father died seeking justice for my mother. She was brutally raped by some big shot. He killed her after doing the deed while she helplessly screamed out of pain. My father died due to a 'natural cause' when he took it to the court..... leaving this incompetent child behind." He said, his voice turning soft and on the verge of tears.
The middle aged man suddenly felt guilty for even asking him about his family. Not having any words to say only made the air grow tense.
They were already quite far from the camp; more so than what they were allowed.
"Hey, aren't we...." When the boy turned around to check on the old man, his eyes popped out of his sockets and he choked on his words.
The man was missing half of his upper body. Just like the guard in forest, it appeared as if he was sliced with a clean katana.
Before the boy could have screamed or said anything, a giant claw ripped his head off.
What accompanied it was a resounding thud and blood squirting from his neck like a water fountain.
.....
The second group, responsible for collecting the wood to ignite the fire, was traversing the dark forest.
This group was made up of a man and a woman.
"Hey, will you pass-" the man ate his words as he watched the woman sitting besides the lake.
'She looks breathtaking , as usual.' he couldn't help but admire her beauty.
Her face was illuminated by the moonlight.; she looked outerworldly to say the least.
She had her bangs tucked behind her ears, with a rose, which she recently picked up, holding them back.
"Hmm, you were saying something?" She caught him looking at her.
"U-uh... nothing important....You know, Amanda, this reminds me of our childhood." The man said, reminiscing.
"Huh? Where did this suddenly come from?" Amanda was caught off guard.
"Yeah...I remember every little thing about it. Especially the time when you fell in the river. Haha, who knew the great Cole couldn't swim?" She replied with tenderness but mockery in her voice. She was clearly teasing him.
Cole's face went red. "W-we don't talk about that." He said, stumbling on his words.
Amanda stood up, her red crimson hair turning a shade of grey under the moon's light, and walked towards Cole.
She stopped in front of Cole and held her hand out. "Don't you think it's the perfect opportunity?" She said, looking into Cole's eyes.
His heartbeat quickened.
"What exactly is it the right time for?" He asked, knowing damn well what it was.
Amanda averted her gaze and whispered "That which you always wanted to tell me."
Getting the affirmation he needed, Cole really couldn't help but suffocate with sheer awkwardness.
'Stand strong Cole! Stand strong!' he calmed his nerve and took a deep breath.
"Amanda...we have known each other since we were 5. We grew up without a family, in an orphanage, but we always had eachother. Even after being exiled...you never left my side. I think it's the right time for it..." He said as he got on one knee and took out a bracelet woven with grass.
These people were abandoned and poor, they couldn't afford luxury.
"What took you so long...dummy?" Amanda said shyly as she stretched her hand forward for Cole to embrace.
He held her soft hand and kissed it. "if I may?" He asked Amanda. To which, she nodded.
He slipped the bracelet over her wrist, but he didn't let go of her hand.
Having her hand in his, he slowly rose up.
Both of their hearts were working overtime right now, one could practically hear it pumping blood at a mileage of 100.
"Amanda...I want to share a life with you. Start a family, have kids, and most importantly: make you the happiest." He said slowly, while locking gazes with her.
Amanda was on the verge of tears, she had waited such a long time for this.
she held her breath, waiting to hear the words she always wanted to.
"Amanda...I lov-.." Cole's voice was suddenly cut off.
Words could not describe what just happened. Half of Cole's head was missing.
All that was left of his face was his lower jaw intact.
Amanda suddenly found herself in a state of disbelief and shock. She was still holding onto Cole's hand.
His body fell over her, and his blood, shooting out like a water hose, smeared all across her face.
Tears formed under her emerald eyes as she looked at the starry sky.
'What? Why? How?' she questioned in her head.
She had suddenly lost the will to continue, to live. After all, what was there to live for now?
Her disoriented state was short lived as she saw a slender grey figure standing at a distance .
It had a vibrant black orb embedded in its head. She felt a shiver run down her spine just looking at the monster.
And then? All she saw after that was her vision being shrouded by darkness.
.....
Back at the camp, Kaz'er was waiting for the two groups to return. The last remaining group had already finished up setting the tents.
"What's taking them so long?" He said, somewhat annoyed. The sun had already set long ago.
He heard footsteps; expectantly, he turned around, but saw no one.
He was perplexed by this. 'Is the hunger getting to my head?' he asked himself.
He was brought out of his thoughts by two resounding thuds; he over his shoulder and saw the two remaining people cut in half.
'Shit!' he screamed in his head as he abruptly jerked his upper body backwards. A large claw materialized above his head, barely grazing past a strand of his hair.
He was bent in an awkward bridge like position . He immediately performed a kip-up, plunging forward as he saw the greyish monster reappear in front of him.
The kick connected , but to his despair, the monster didn't even flinch.
Before Kaz'er could process what happened, a hand shot forward, aimed at his neck.
He immediately erected a few walls between them; unfortunately, the claw tore through them as if they were made out of paper.
The claw was a few inches away from his face; Kaz'er had no choice but to use his telekinesis.
He knew he can't move the monster, so he levetated a piece of a thick tree trunk and pulled it towards himself.
The trunk rammed his rib cage, sending him flying away.
The Martial's claw nicked his cheek, leaving a trail of hot blood running down his face.
His situation became shit from bad as he crashed into a nearby tree.
He started coughing blood as he struggled to get up.
He used telekinesis again to pull a sword.
The Martial teleported in front of him and shot another deadly claw strike, aimed at his chest this time.
Kaz'er let out a scream and brought the sword up to deflect the blow; the claw made contact with the sword and sliced through it like butter.
Kaz'er eye's narrowed down to pin pricks.
With the claw being a few inches from his chest, and filled with desperation,Kaz'er erupted a wall below the holllw.
Caught off-guard, the monster couldn't do anything and he was sent airborne.
Kaz'er, half-erupting a series of walls, made his way to the monster's figure.
It looked as if he was walking on empty air. He let out a warrior's cry as he leaped over the lasr erupted wall.
Using telekinesis, he pulled another sword in his hands; then he brought the sword over his head as he was positioned over the hollow.
Using both of his hands, he slashed the blade towards the torso of the monster, who was still in a daze.
Suddenly, he felt ominous. As if the axe of death was about to fall.
'I am sorry, love, forgive me.' he said, with closed eyes.
A sole materialize in front of his face.
The kick connected with his forehead; the force behind the kick was so much that his head exploded instantly.
Two distinct thuds were heard: one belonging to Kaz'er's sword, and the other was of his lifeless body making contact with the floor.
His tensed fists relaxed, and the necklace he was holding onto fell on the ground.
The Martial?Well, he was nowhere to be seen; and whoever interfered, was also nowhere to be seen.
The forest was in pin drop silence as the cries of help and battle subsided.
There lay, 7 figures; decapitated or missing half of their body.
....