DAWN Chapter 10: The Fate of a Warrior

Chapter 10: The Fate of a Warrior
    Everything had become still. Rayne slowly slid down his battle mask and cautiously drew his sword. Kerra and Sickleclaw had, it seemed, also sensed that something was wrong and had prepared themselves.
    Sickleclaw bared his pale yellow fangs and his claws gleamed as his lean muscular body bristled with anticipation. His cold, intelligent eyes slowly scanned the forest, looking for whomever it was that dared to cross their path, and waited to strike.
    Kerra had entered a battle trance and her pupils had faded to a pale blue as she focused her concentration. Rayne knew that she was prepared to use her magic at a moment’s notice.
    Rayne strained his senses. But all was still. Rayne’s breath warmed the inside of his mask as their surroundings were drained of warmth. A heavy chill settled in Rayne’s chest and his grip on his sword tightened, whitening his knuckles.
    Rayne once again strained his senses to detect any hostiles and finally he heard something. A sound, as quiet as a whisper, boomed through the quiet forest.
    “Why do you fight?…”
    It sounded like a creature’s dying words, as though the question had been barely breathed. As the sound faded Rayne heard what sounded like a person’s last rattling breath. The sound seemed to emanate from the entire forest.
    “Why fight what cannot be killed?… I am Fa’ruin… I am death… ”
    The air rattled again and Rayne felt the icy feeling in his chest slowly begin to spread and felt himself break into a cold sweat. Sickleclaw let out a serpentine hiss and Rayne slowly turned as an enormous figure strode from the shadows of the forest.
    All life seemed to drain from the ground on which it stepped as it strode silently towards them. Its skin resembled that of a corpse long forgotten, gray and lifeless, however it appeared to be muscular and it wore a breastplate that consisted of what appeared to be human ribs and wore a tattered cloak over its right shoulder.
Although its right arm appeared to be similar to a human arm its left arm was enclosed in a solid layer of chitin and was larger than the other arm. The arm appeared to have a rock like texture and two short spikes jutted from the back of the limb. Its left hand was encased as well and the chitin had created three jagged claws.
    Faded, gray, bandages wrapped the beast’s neck and head, covering its eyes. However, its fangs and lower jaw could still be seen. Its fangs resembled those of Sickleclaw and its jaw resembled that of a dried corpse. Its breath rattled in its throat and as it exhaled its breath could be seen in the cold the creature seemed to be emanating.
    Rayne’s hands began to shake.
    “Why do you look for the dawn when the moon has smothered the sun,” the creature raised its armored arm towards him and opened its palm. Kerra slammed the ground with her open palm and the earth erupted toward Fa’ruin, who casually swept his armored wrist to the side. The dirt and stone arced away and slammed into the trees. The beast glared at Kerra and hissed, “Tell me little one, how do you intend to kill a being that has claimed the life of a god? To oppose me is to invite the embrace of death…”
    A roar split the air as Sickleclaw lunged for the beast. Sickleclaw slashed at Fa’ruin with his razor-sharp claws and the monster calmly swiped each vicious blow aside. Rayne charged forward, hoping to help his newfound friend and the following moments seemed to slow.
    Sickleclaw savagely slashed at the creature but the beast calmly and gracefully spun around the attack and behind the Deina. Fa’ruin raised his armored arm and brought it down on the warrior’s back with a gruesome crack. The force of the blow threw Sickleclaw onto the cold ground and the Deina quickly began to stand but was rewarded with a knee to his side, which knocked him once again to the forest floor.
    Kerra began to focus all of her magical energy to do something to wound this monstrosity but Rayne knew that would take too long…
    Rayne tried to move faster and help Sickleclaw but there was still so much distance between him and his friend. He saw the Deina begin to struggle to his feet. He saw the once great Deina general cough up blood and teeth but Rayne knew that Sickleclaw could hold out for just a few more seconds and give him enough time to come to his aid. He wasn’t prepared to see what happened next.
    Fa’ruin’s armored claw plunged into Sickleclaw’s back, puncturing flesh, ripping through muscle and spattering Deina blood. Sickleclaw screamed in pain as Fa’ruin lifted him off of his feet and flung him at the ground behind him. The beast then drew a sword with a jet-black blade from the inside of its cloak As Sickleclaw writhed on the forest floor Fa’ruin gazed down at the Deina and his fangs twisted into a gruesome smile.
    “Only mortal…”
    Fa’ruin slid the blade across his chitin arm, causing sparks and a screech, and slammed the blade into Sickleclaw’s chest. A shriek of pain tore through the forest and Fa’ruin brought his armored palm down onto the sword’s hilt, burying the blade deeper into the Deina. Sickleclaw gave one final twitch and moved no more.
    The beast removed his sword, rattled a chuckle, and disappeared into the shadows just as Rayne reached the shattered shell of his Deina blood brother. As Rayne looked into the Deina’s lifeless eyes Fa’ruin’s ghostly rattle softly echoed through the woods…
    “Such is the fate of a warrior…”