Post by Christopher J. D'Dario on Oct 20, 2010 13:49:21 GMT
All was black; there was no light, no warmth, and no sounds. Yesterday this might have frightened the little girl who sat curled up in the darkness, but now it was a gift. Nothing meant it was over, it had finally finished. She opened her eyes and crept forward, her hand reached out to feel for the door. With a click the lock slides open and she pulls on the handle, dragging the heavy door back and letting the luminous moonlight drift into the small storeroom. She looked down at her dress, once beautiful and flowing was now tattered, torn and burnt and her legs and arms where covered in ash.
Holding back a tear she climbed over the rubble of a collapsed wall and slowly walked down a hallway, she looked back at her shelter and the wreckage that had almost sealed her in. Under the broken stone she could see an arm protruding out, clutched in its hand was a piece of fabric from her dress. Her lip trembled as a memory flashed though her mind.
"Get in the store room! Now!"
"But mummy!"
Her mother had lifted her out of bed and raced down the hallway towards the storeroom, she had seen the wall about to give way; it was buckled and bulging out. In the last second her mother had thrown her into the storeroom and pulled the door closed.
She turned away from the sight and walked into her room. The window had been smashed in and everything was covered in a think carpet of ash. She walked across the room and looked out the window. Flakes of burning embers fell like snow all over the narrow street. She climbed out the window and dropped to the ground, the thick piles of ash billowing out in a cloud as she landed. She coughed and quickly ran out of the cloud, her skin and clothes stained black. All around her lay bodies, only visible as humanoid shapes of ash, she imagined if she touched them they would crumble and float away, she didn't dare test that thought. Stumbling around a corner she looked up at the great walls that surrounded the city, walls that had stood proud for centuries and had protected those behind the walls, parts of them where smashed, shattered like glass and torn away like cloth.
"Check the ballista’s! Make sure they are loaded and have plenty of ammo."
"Yes sir!"
"Archers, string your bow's and prepare your arrows."
"Prepared sir!"
The General paced along the length of the wall, every twenty feet he passed a Ballista and positioned between them where archers. Spearmen where lined behind them, their pointed blades reaching high above them, the spears where long enough to jab at enemy troops at the base of the wall's. But they would be used differently tonight. As the sun began to take its last steps into night massive fires where lit, casting the wild shadows across the stonewalls. The General stopped above the gate and peered down at the river of people making their way into the city. From all across the land they came, bringing little supplies and begging for protection.
"Anyone who isn’t in the gate by night fall will be left outside."
The General said to one of his officers who immediately ran off to convey the message.
Anyone who was capable of holding a weapon was given one and sent to the walls, battle hardened veterans stood alongside stable boys and old men, even the women where given bows and crossbows. This wasn't a battle of honour; it was a battle for survival. As the last rays of sunlight disappeared behind the horizon horns sounded all along the wall and the gates began to slowly gride shut. A few last people made it though the massive metal gate before it locked, the others where left outside to howl and scream for the gates to be reopened. Weapons where lowered down to them, they would not be entering the safety of the city, but they would not be left defenceless.
She looked away from the ruined wall, up the hill towards the heart of the city there fires still burning, a few houses collapsed and sent hot embers high into the sky. The Keep, the greatest symbol of safety and strength in the city, was now an inferno. The flames rose high with a living tower of smoke billowing towards the heavens, for a second she thought she could see something moving in the smoke, a massive dark shape curled around the top of the keep, basking in the fire and breathing the smoke. She blinked and the image was gone. A cold shiver ran down her spine and she started off towards the main gate, as much as she tried not to touch the thousands of bodies filling the streets, most of them impaled with arrows, she sometimes had no choice but to climb over them. She reached the gate, it had been forced open from the inside, the metal bent outwards as if from a giant kick, dried blood and bits of gore filled the folds of the crumpled metal. Black birds pecked at the meat and bone, they ignored the girl as she squeezed her way though the gap in the gate.
The landscape that greeted her was a burning wasteland. Beyond the fortified walls seemed to lay a million dead. She sniffed back tears, her father had always taught her not to show weakness. She started walking out into the blackened wastes, something moved above her and she looked up. Fire filled her vision before all went black.
"Its hear!"
The alarming shout came a second too late, from the midnight sky dropped a creature of darkness, cloaked in black scales it seemed to move with the night, the archers fired in wild volleys and the ballista’s launched their spears high into the night, nothing hit the beast as it descended like death himself upon the city. Giant claws dug into the stonewall and ripped chunks from it; sending stone and men alike screaming into the air, between parted jaws came an all consuming fire. Blasting away a third of the walls defences within seconds. Screams of burning men and women filled the air, the screams spread though the streets as the arrows returned, plummeting down onto the people as they fled from the beast.
The remaining archers and Ballista turned their weapons on the creature, launching a deadly volley at it, the wooden arrows snapped and broke on the hard scales and the Ballista spears where easily dodged, it took to the sky again and dragged its tail along a length of the way, carving out chunks of rock and stone. With a deep sucking noise it sent another jet of flame along the wall, soldiers and Ballista where incinerated instantly, those not under the direct blast where left to burn to death as the beast soared over the city, raining fire onto the buildings and snatching people from the streets to be eaten. It took off over the valley in front of the city; an uncountable mass of people had arrived during the night, that mass was now fleeing. The beast flew almost lazily over them, hurling jets of flame down into the tightly packed mass. It cut them off with a wall of fire and began to easily rip into the crowds of people, feasting upon the bodies as they tried to attack it and burning those that tired to escape.
It took flight again; the wall of fire was slowly moving towards the city walls, those left alive would be trapped between both walls. The beast landed in the main courtyard before the gate, people where bashing on the metal trying to escape, it raised its massive tail and lashed out at them, smashing their bodies and buckling the metal. It climbed over houses, shooting fire into the streets and buildings as it went. A spear from the keep rocketed down and hit it in the shoulder above a wing. The roar it let lose rolled like thunder across the land as it took to the sky again, heading straight for the keep it landed on the roof, smashing a hole in the top it took a deep breath before letting out a massive jet of flame, like a waterfall the fire descended into the keep, bursting out the windows and melting the stone. It roared in victory over the city, it continued hunting though the streets for any survivors; anything that moved was set ablaze, anywhere one of them could hide was smashed, hours passed during its hunt and the city was all but destroyed.
The rising sun saw it take shelter in the burning keep, there it curled itself around the super heated rock and slept though the long day, when night fell it awoke and continued its hunt.
Holding back a tear she climbed over the rubble of a collapsed wall and slowly walked down a hallway, she looked back at her shelter and the wreckage that had almost sealed her in. Under the broken stone she could see an arm protruding out, clutched in its hand was a piece of fabric from her dress. Her lip trembled as a memory flashed though her mind.
"Get in the store room! Now!"
"But mummy!"
Her mother had lifted her out of bed and raced down the hallway towards the storeroom, she had seen the wall about to give way; it was buckled and bulging out. In the last second her mother had thrown her into the storeroom and pulled the door closed.
She turned away from the sight and walked into her room. The window had been smashed in and everything was covered in a think carpet of ash. She walked across the room and looked out the window. Flakes of burning embers fell like snow all over the narrow street. She climbed out the window and dropped to the ground, the thick piles of ash billowing out in a cloud as she landed. She coughed and quickly ran out of the cloud, her skin and clothes stained black. All around her lay bodies, only visible as humanoid shapes of ash, she imagined if she touched them they would crumble and float away, she didn't dare test that thought. Stumbling around a corner she looked up at the great walls that surrounded the city, walls that had stood proud for centuries and had protected those behind the walls, parts of them where smashed, shattered like glass and torn away like cloth.
"Check the ballista’s! Make sure they are loaded and have plenty of ammo."
"Yes sir!"
"Archers, string your bow's and prepare your arrows."
"Prepared sir!"
The General paced along the length of the wall, every twenty feet he passed a Ballista and positioned between them where archers. Spearmen where lined behind them, their pointed blades reaching high above them, the spears where long enough to jab at enemy troops at the base of the wall's. But they would be used differently tonight. As the sun began to take its last steps into night massive fires where lit, casting the wild shadows across the stonewalls. The General stopped above the gate and peered down at the river of people making their way into the city. From all across the land they came, bringing little supplies and begging for protection.
"Anyone who isn’t in the gate by night fall will be left outside."
The General said to one of his officers who immediately ran off to convey the message.
Anyone who was capable of holding a weapon was given one and sent to the walls, battle hardened veterans stood alongside stable boys and old men, even the women where given bows and crossbows. This wasn't a battle of honour; it was a battle for survival. As the last rays of sunlight disappeared behind the horizon horns sounded all along the wall and the gates began to slowly gride shut. A few last people made it though the massive metal gate before it locked, the others where left outside to howl and scream for the gates to be reopened. Weapons where lowered down to them, they would not be entering the safety of the city, but they would not be left defenceless.
She looked away from the ruined wall, up the hill towards the heart of the city there fires still burning, a few houses collapsed and sent hot embers high into the sky. The Keep, the greatest symbol of safety and strength in the city, was now an inferno. The flames rose high with a living tower of smoke billowing towards the heavens, for a second she thought she could see something moving in the smoke, a massive dark shape curled around the top of the keep, basking in the fire and breathing the smoke. She blinked and the image was gone. A cold shiver ran down her spine and she started off towards the main gate, as much as she tried not to touch the thousands of bodies filling the streets, most of them impaled with arrows, she sometimes had no choice but to climb over them. She reached the gate, it had been forced open from the inside, the metal bent outwards as if from a giant kick, dried blood and bits of gore filled the folds of the crumpled metal. Black birds pecked at the meat and bone, they ignored the girl as she squeezed her way though the gap in the gate.
The landscape that greeted her was a burning wasteland. Beyond the fortified walls seemed to lay a million dead. She sniffed back tears, her father had always taught her not to show weakness. She started walking out into the blackened wastes, something moved above her and she looked up. Fire filled her vision before all went black.
"Its hear!"
The alarming shout came a second too late, from the midnight sky dropped a creature of darkness, cloaked in black scales it seemed to move with the night, the archers fired in wild volleys and the ballista’s launched their spears high into the night, nothing hit the beast as it descended like death himself upon the city. Giant claws dug into the stonewall and ripped chunks from it; sending stone and men alike screaming into the air, between parted jaws came an all consuming fire. Blasting away a third of the walls defences within seconds. Screams of burning men and women filled the air, the screams spread though the streets as the arrows returned, plummeting down onto the people as they fled from the beast.
The remaining archers and Ballista turned their weapons on the creature, launching a deadly volley at it, the wooden arrows snapped and broke on the hard scales and the Ballista spears where easily dodged, it took to the sky again and dragged its tail along a length of the way, carving out chunks of rock and stone. With a deep sucking noise it sent another jet of flame along the wall, soldiers and Ballista where incinerated instantly, those not under the direct blast where left to burn to death as the beast soared over the city, raining fire onto the buildings and snatching people from the streets to be eaten. It took off over the valley in front of the city; an uncountable mass of people had arrived during the night, that mass was now fleeing. The beast flew almost lazily over them, hurling jets of flame down into the tightly packed mass. It cut them off with a wall of fire and began to easily rip into the crowds of people, feasting upon the bodies as they tried to attack it and burning those that tired to escape.
It took flight again; the wall of fire was slowly moving towards the city walls, those left alive would be trapped between both walls. The beast landed in the main courtyard before the gate, people where bashing on the metal trying to escape, it raised its massive tail and lashed out at them, smashing their bodies and buckling the metal. It climbed over houses, shooting fire into the streets and buildings as it went. A spear from the keep rocketed down and hit it in the shoulder above a wing. The roar it let lose rolled like thunder across the land as it took to the sky again, heading straight for the keep it landed on the roof, smashing a hole in the top it took a deep breath before letting out a massive jet of flame, like a waterfall the fire descended into the keep, bursting out the windows and melting the stone. It roared in victory over the city, it continued hunting though the streets for any survivors; anything that moved was set ablaze, anywhere one of them could hide was smashed, hours passed during its hunt and the city was all but destroyed.
The rising sun saw it take shelter in the burning keep, there it curled itself around the super heated rock and slept though the long day, when night fell it awoke and continued its hunt.
