The light blue waters cascaded serenely down the stoney arch ways, its smooth polished pebbles clearly visible beneath the crystal clear waters. White lilies ornated its watery surafce, and then, there was a splash, and ripples began to disrupt the tranquility of the sight, as four heavy footsteps trudged across the river. It felt cold and chilly to the touch, yet refreshing. But to Halo, neither the chills of the icy cold water of the mountains biting into his wounds or the exzahustion he felt engaging the demon had much effect on him. His spirit had soared. How long has it been? Five years? Now, after all these years of separation, he had finally met Prince Wai Kit, all grown up, strong and healty, and learned of his safety. That was all this old man needed to survive on. He managed a smile in the young prince's direction, and so was its reply. Lord Wiliam's smile.
They trotted on, wading the river waters until finally, behind the trees of old willlow, there, stood a magical gate. The gate itself was beyond the imagination of any engineer in the land. Two large oaks intertwined, forming an arch over thier heads, towering above them, the only passageway is through its gapping slit in between, large enough to fit an elephant. They stood before its inpenetratable timber. The General dumbfounded. The Prince, smiling. Not a single piece of steel or wood, a pure gate formed by the magics of Mother Nature herself. The entrance into the temple of Light.
'I never thought this day would come.... Such a small world it is.....' began Halo, lost for words.
The Prince just smiled even more, and leaned towards the general. The general, confused, followed suit.
'I'll never forget that face, no matter how the tides have changed or how the gods have forsaken us, old friend.' and gave the general a hug. 'To the years of seperation, my friend. I've missed the lot of you!'
'I'm just glad you're alright.' He looked at the yung prince. My, how the young lad has grown! He used to carry the lad on his back, but now.... The prince that stood before him resembled much of the late Lord William, a strong lad full of youth and vitality, a charming man any fine maiden would fall for. Just like his father had wished for.
'Oh... do I have stories to tell you, questions to ask! How's it been? Have you been eating right? Do.. do they ill-treat you by God's name, if they did, I'll....'
'Haha. Easy there my friend! I'm fine. And no, the elders have been very nice folk. Now, what say we lose the sentiments and get you cleaned up first? It must have been a long journey uphill! Come, let me show you around!' the prince said, and placed his hand over the tired Halo's shoulder.
'Great.... I'll need more than that.' he said, rolling his eyes. He looked at the little boy still hiding behind the young prince. 'And who may you be, little lad?' he said, squatting down, reaching out his hand.
The shy little boy blushed, and hid behind the Prince.
'Go on Jimmy... its alright.' said the Prince.
'Oh... I'm sorry for before, Jimmy.' Halo had never felt more joy before in his life. 'I thought you were our handsome prince here. Haha. My old head must've forgotten the years! You both look just alike....'
General Halo stopped short. 'Wait... is he your? I.. I mean, his.. his your?' he was smiling, and nervous now. Could it be that the prince had...
The Prince shook his head, and smiled.
The puzzled general was puzzled, and the prince could see that. He laughed.
'Don't you worry, my friend, don't you worry. Come, I'll explain it on the way' chuckled the Prince as the gates swung open, pushing the confused General inside its walls.
**********************************************************************************
Blood was everywhere, the bodies of his men lying dead at his feet. The second wave had taken them by surprise. What's worst, those archers were flying. In the air! No warfare has ever prepared Siow for such a feat. From the safety of his hiding, he glanced up, and saw the archers reaching for another arrow, acrhing their bows.
'Take cover! Head back to the front!' The next wave came, and those unlucky enough were caught in its devouring graps. He panted, deciding what to do next. Remaining here would make them sitting ducks. They had to find cover. His shield held high up, General Siow made a dash across the field, the arrows hitting on his sole defence hard and precise. He made it onto a horse, and galloped across the field, along with the remaining of his knights, the archers' arrows filling the night sky once more.
The battlehorn in hand, he raised it high in the air, and blew, again and again, as they approached the front. Soldiers and guards got to thier feet, and armed themselves. Lord Nesh awoke from his slumber, and quickly reached for his sword. He stepped out of the tent, and to his horror, saw the winged demons in the air, his men burnt to crisps. He clenched his fists, hard, and slammed the ground in anger. One of the demons flew past him, aimed an arrow, and released it towards the Lord. He stood there, undetered, and with one swift move caught the arrow with his bare hands, arched his back, and threw it back at the demon, hitting it square in the face, his emotions unchanging. It yelped, and fell to the ground, where his guards finished the work.
'Come men! The demons picked a wrong night to challenge the House of Nesh! To arms! To arms!'
The demons remained airbourne, launching arrow after arrow at the helpless footsoldiers below. Suddenly, there was a loud crack of a bullet. One of the demons fell. Then two. Then another two. The demons looked below, and there, Seargent Chern Chiang stood, his accuracy as a marksmen taking the winged demons out one after the other. The demons were about to take him out, when more and more gunmen began to emerge behind Seargent, firing violently to the skies. The demons fell, one aftter another, in quick succession. Angered, they returned with another volley of arrows.
'To shield!' shouted Chern Chiang, and the gunsmen lowered thier guns and raised thier shoulders, the arrows merely penetrating the thick bamboo plates.
'To arms! Fire at will!'
The demons knew they were at lost, and began to retreat. Suddenly, there was a loud clap of thunder, and a bolt struck at the flying demons hard. Olaf raised his hammer again, and then slammed the ground. In an instant, another bolt of lightning struck the demons, scorching their wretched souls.
General Siow arrived at the front, and gave the orders.
'Men! Its time to face your demons! Gather your strengths and pray that we show them some mercy. Now, forward, charge!'
Twenty thousand strong headed towards the castle, calvary leading the way, the footsoldiers next, Chern Chiang's snipers, Olaf and Karth's tunnelers following swiftly behind. The castle responded, more arrows filling the skies.
'Archers, fire!' Siow gave the command. His archers immediately got into formation, and let lose a barrage of arrows unto the sky, hitting the castle guards. Then, the demons responded. Huge boulders were lauched, covered in blue flames, and hit Siow's men.
'Catapult!' The footsoldiers fell in agony.
'March, forward! No one lives forever! For his majesry the king!'
More boulders were launched, trying hard to break the Nesh's formation. But they had the numbers, and the strengths. His men were close to the castle walls now, when there was a loud tremble.
'FOOLS!'
The Succubus emerged from the emptiness of the air, and towered before them. The army was stopped dead in thier tracks, the calvary's horses neighing loudly. With one swoop, the demon crushed the grounds, killing at least a dozen of Siow's men. It lift up its fists, and went for another strike.
The footsoldiers engaged it, but were thrown about like toothpicks. The Succubus proved to be too strong. Arrows were launched, but did little or no effect on the demon, bouncing off in all directions. Then, with a loud roar, it lifted both fists into the air, and slammed the ground hard, breaking it apart. Siow could not believe waht he saw. The ground trembled and shook, and then, it began to crack, light emerging from its depths. Then, arms began to reach out into the open air, grabbing his men and pulling them down into the earth, as more and more demons emerged from the firey pits of hell. They were surrounded. Siow's men battled on valiantly on, but the Succubus was too strong. The newly emerged demons were also quick, jumping about so quickly, slitting the throats of the soldiers, sending blood into the air. Siow and his men fought hard, killing the demons, only to find another dozen men falling to the Succubus's wrath. Siow gave the signal to his men, and the calvary surrounded the demon. Then, without warning, they unleashed hooks, attached to steel wires, binding the demon to the ground. The first few hooks were futile, but as the numbers increased, the demon slowly began to falter, and finally, it was brought down. The lesser demons, at the sight of thier master's peril, retreated back into the depths of the underground, leaving only the Succubus in chains. Siow edged forward.
'We have you now demon!' he raised his sword, and plundged it into the demon, only to find the demon erupting into hundreds of bats, flying in all directions. The bats rised into the air, and once more, the towering Succubus stood mighty above Siow's men.
'FOOLISH MORTALS! YOU ARE NOT WORTH MY TIME! I EXPECTED A LITTLE... COMPETITION FROM THE HOUSE OF NESH... BUT ALL I SEE ARE A BUNCH OF WEAKLINGS!'
Just then a bolt of thunder hit the demon square in the face.
'ARRGH!!' it shouted, and paced backwards.
'Never underestimate us, you wretched demon!'
General Olaf, his hammer in hand, rushed towards the demon, and raised the hammer for another strike. The bolt caught the demon right in the chest this time. Behind him, the remaining of Nesh's forces arrived, alongside an arsenal of catapults.
'GARH!' the demon tried to go for the artilary, but the bolts were too much for him to handle. Another bolt went straight for the face, but this time, the Succubus caught the bolt, compressed in, and threw it back at Olaf, causing him to bounce a few paces back. The demon reached forward, fist held up high, and pummeld his strength to the ground. It stopped in mid air. There, below him, Lord Nesh stood, his outstrecthed hand stopping the demon's death blow right in the tracks.
'A WORTHY ADVERSARY.... '
Lord Nesh sprang forward, avoiding the demon's grasp, and laid a punch to the demon's knees. The Succubus immediately fell in pain. The lowered demon sufferd another one to its jaws, and it was tossed into the air, alas came crashing down on the castle's walls.
The demon laid there, motionless. Lord Nesh stood up, and approached the demon, when suddenly, laughter filled the air.
'INTERESTING, MORTAL. THE MASTERS MAY HAVE GOOD USE OF YOUR... SERVICES'
'Don't give my these bullocks demon! Now, come back here so I can kick that foul a** of yours and send you back where you came from!'
The demon laughed, and raised its hand. A flare immediately illuminated the skies. A signal.
'SOME OTHER TIME, MORTAL, WE SHALL MEET AGAIN.' and with that, vanished into thin air.
Lord nesh was about to give chase, when he heard a familiar galloping of horses from afar. He stood there, silent. No.. it can't be.
Slowly, emerging from the fallen stone of the drak castle, shadowy figures began to appear. Nesh's men drew their swords, and prepared for the worst. The figures began to emerge out of the smoke, but they were no demon. Humans! Very much alive humans on horsebacks. Lord Nesh stared blankly at the human figures, unsure of what he saw.
Phillip and the MoonGlades stared back, riding the Dark Nights. Only they had bloodshot eyes, and wings behind their backs, the crest of the moon glistering brightly under the moon lit sky.
They trotted on, wading the river waters until finally, behind the trees of old willlow, there, stood a magical gate. The gate itself was beyond the imagination of any engineer in the land. Two large oaks intertwined, forming an arch over thier heads, towering above them, the only passageway is through its gapping slit in between, large enough to fit an elephant. They stood before its inpenetratable timber. The General dumbfounded. The Prince, smiling. Not a single piece of steel or wood, a pure gate formed by the magics of Mother Nature herself. The entrance into the temple of Light.
'I never thought this day would come.... Such a small world it is.....' began Halo, lost for words.
The Prince just smiled even more, and leaned towards the general. The general, confused, followed suit.
'I'll never forget that face, no matter how the tides have changed or how the gods have forsaken us, old friend.' and gave the general a hug. 'To the years of seperation, my friend. I've missed the lot of you!'
'I'm just glad you're alright.' He looked at the yung prince. My, how the young lad has grown! He used to carry the lad on his back, but now.... The prince that stood before him resembled much of the late Lord William, a strong lad full of youth and vitality, a charming man any fine maiden would fall for. Just like his father had wished for.
'Oh... do I have stories to tell you, questions to ask! How's it been? Have you been eating right? Do.. do they ill-treat you by God's name, if they did, I'll....'
'Haha. Easy there my friend! I'm fine. And no, the elders have been very nice folk. Now, what say we lose the sentiments and get you cleaned up first? It must have been a long journey uphill! Come, let me show you around!' the prince said, and placed his hand over the tired Halo's shoulder.
'Great.... I'll need more than that.' he said, rolling his eyes. He looked at the little boy still hiding behind the young prince. 'And who may you be, little lad?' he said, squatting down, reaching out his hand.
The shy little boy blushed, and hid behind the Prince.
'Go on Jimmy... its alright.' said the Prince.
'Oh... I'm sorry for before, Jimmy.' Halo had never felt more joy before in his life. 'I thought you were our handsome prince here. Haha. My old head must've forgotten the years! You both look just alike....'
General Halo stopped short. 'Wait... is he your? I.. I mean, his.. his your?' he was smiling, and nervous now. Could it be that the prince had...
The Prince shook his head, and smiled.
The puzzled general was puzzled, and the prince could see that. He laughed.
'Don't you worry, my friend, don't you worry. Come, I'll explain it on the way' chuckled the Prince as the gates swung open, pushing the confused General inside its walls.
**********************************************************************************
Blood was everywhere, the bodies of his men lying dead at his feet. The second wave had taken them by surprise. What's worst, those archers were flying. In the air! No warfare has ever prepared Siow for such a feat. From the safety of his hiding, he glanced up, and saw the archers reaching for another arrow, acrhing their bows.
'Take cover! Head back to the front!' The next wave came, and those unlucky enough were caught in its devouring graps. He panted, deciding what to do next. Remaining here would make them sitting ducks. They had to find cover. His shield held high up, General Siow made a dash across the field, the arrows hitting on his sole defence hard and precise. He made it onto a horse, and galloped across the field, along with the remaining of his knights, the archers' arrows filling the night sky once more.
The battlehorn in hand, he raised it high in the air, and blew, again and again, as they approached the front. Soldiers and guards got to thier feet, and armed themselves. Lord Nesh awoke from his slumber, and quickly reached for his sword. He stepped out of the tent, and to his horror, saw the winged demons in the air, his men burnt to crisps. He clenched his fists, hard, and slammed the ground in anger. One of the demons flew past him, aimed an arrow, and released it towards the Lord. He stood there, undetered, and with one swift move caught the arrow with his bare hands, arched his back, and threw it back at the demon, hitting it square in the face, his emotions unchanging. It yelped, and fell to the ground, where his guards finished the work.
'Come men! The demons picked a wrong night to challenge the House of Nesh! To arms! To arms!'
The demons remained airbourne, launching arrow after arrow at the helpless footsoldiers below. Suddenly, there was a loud crack of a bullet. One of the demons fell. Then two. Then another two. The demons looked below, and there, Seargent Chern Chiang stood, his accuracy as a marksmen taking the winged demons out one after the other. The demons were about to take him out, when more and more gunmen began to emerge behind Seargent, firing violently to the skies. The demons fell, one aftter another, in quick succession. Angered, they returned with another volley of arrows.
'To shield!' shouted Chern Chiang, and the gunsmen lowered thier guns and raised thier shoulders, the arrows merely penetrating the thick bamboo plates.
'To arms! Fire at will!'
The demons knew they were at lost, and began to retreat. Suddenly, there was a loud clap of thunder, and a bolt struck at the flying demons hard. Olaf raised his hammer again, and then slammed the ground. In an instant, another bolt of lightning struck the demons, scorching their wretched souls.
General Siow arrived at the front, and gave the orders.
'Men! Its time to face your demons! Gather your strengths and pray that we show them some mercy. Now, forward, charge!'
Twenty thousand strong headed towards the castle, calvary leading the way, the footsoldiers next, Chern Chiang's snipers, Olaf and Karth's tunnelers following swiftly behind. The castle responded, more arrows filling the skies.
'Archers, fire!' Siow gave the command. His archers immediately got into formation, and let lose a barrage of arrows unto the sky, hitting the castle guards. Then, the demons responded. Huge boulders were lauched, covered in blue flames, and hit Siow's men.
'Catapult!' The footsoldiers fell in agony.
'March, forward! No one lives forever! For his majesry the king!'
More boulders were launched, trying hard to break the Nesh's formation. But they had the numbers, and the strengths. His men were close to the castle walls now, when there was a loud tremble.
'FOOLS!'
The Succubus emerged from the emptiness of the air, and towered before them. The army was stopped dead in thier tracks, the calvary's horses neighing loudly. With one swoop, the demon crushed the grounds, killing at least a dozen of Siow's men. It lift up its fists, and went for another strike.
The footsoldiers engaged it, but were thrown about like toothpicks. The Succubus proved to be too strong. Arrows were launched, but did little or no effect on the demon, bouncing off in all directions. Then, with a loud roar, it lifted both fists into the air, and slammed the ground hard, breaking it apart. Siow could not believe waht he saw. The ground trembled and shook, and then, it began to crack, light emerging from its depths. Then, arms began to reach out into the open air, grabbing his men and pulling them down into the earth, as more and more demons emerged from the firey pits of hell. They were surrounded. Siow's men battled on valiantly on, but the Succubus was too strong. The newly emerged demons were also quick, jumping about so quickly, slitting the throats of the soldiers, sending blood into the air. Siow and his men fought hard, killing the demons, only to find another dozen men falling to the Succubus's wrath. Siow gave the signal to his men, and the calvary surrounded the demon. Then, without warning, they unleashed hooks, attached to steel wires, binding the demon to the ground. The first few hooks were futile, but as the numbers increased, the demon slowly began to falter, and finally, it was brought down. The lesser demons, at the sight of thier master's peril, retreated back into the depths of the underground, leaving only the Succubus in chains. Siow edged forward.
'We have you now demon!' he raised his sword, and plundged it into the demon, only to find the demon erupting into hundreds of bats, flying in all directions. The bats rised into the air, and once more, the towering Succubus stood mighty above Siow's men.
'FOOLISH MORTALS! YOU ARE NOT WORTH MY TIME! I EXPECTED A LITTLE... COMPETITION FROM THE HOUSE OF NESH... BUT ALL I SEE ARE A BUNCH OF WEAKLINGS!'
Just then a bolt of thunder hit the demon square in the face.
'ARRGH!!' it shouted, and paced backwards.
'Never underestimate us, you wretched demon!'
General Olaf, his hammer in hand, rushed towards the demon, and raised the hammer for another strike. The bolt caught the demon right in the chest this time. Behind him, the remaining of Nesh's forces arrived, alongside an arsenal of catapults.
'GARH!' the demon tried to go for the artilary, but the bolts were too much for him to handle. Another bolt went straight for the face, but this time, the Succubus caught the bolt, compressed in, and threw it back at Olaf, causing him to bounce a few paces back. The demon reached forward, fist held up high, and pummeld his strength to the ground. It stopped in mid air. There, below him, Lord Nesh stood, his outstrecthed hand stopping the demon's death blow right in the tracks.
'A WORTHY ADVERSARY.... '
Lord Nesh sprang forward, avoiding the demon's grasp, and laid a punch to the demon's knees. The Succubus immediately fell in pain. The lowered demon sufferd another one to its jaws, and it was tossed into the air, alas came crashing down on the castle's walls.
The demon laid there, motionless. Lord Nesh stood up, and approached the demon, when suddenly, laughter filled the air.
'INTERESTING, MORTAL. THE MASTERS MAY HAVE GOOD USE OF YOUR... SERVICES'
'Don't give my these bullocks demon! Now, come back here so I can kick that foul a** of yours and send you back where you came from!'
The demon laughed, and raised its hand. A flare immediately illuminated the skies. A signal.
'SOME OTHER TIME, MORTAL, WE SHALL MEET AGAIN.' and with that, vanished into thin air.
Lord nesh was about to give chase, when he heard a familiar galloping of horses from afar. He stood there, silent. No.. it can't be.
Slowly, emerging from the fallen stone of the drak castle, shadowy figures began to appear. Nesh's men drew their swords, and prepared for the worst. The figures began to emerge out of the smoke, but they were no demon. Humans! Very much alive humans on horsebacks. Lord Nesh stared blankly at the human figures, unsure of what he saw.
Phillip and the MoonGlades stared back, riding the Dark Nights. Only they had bloodshot eyes, and wings behind their backs, the crest of the moon glistering brightly under the moon lit sky.
No comments:
Post a Comment