Chapter 2: TIDE OF DARKNESS

EDEN

BATTLE OF THE FELL

****

Rust had slowly begun to erode the gold-plated locket that lay half open in Caspian's armoured grip. Nestled within the steel locket was a faded photo of an ethereal beauty. Dark flowing hair, with purple eyes that seemed to shimmer even through the washed-up film. She had fair skin with graceful shoulders, now forever stuck in the most regal of poses.

Caspian gazed at her with solemn eyes, barely paying any heed to the growing sensation of despair that surrounded him.

Ashen flakes fell from the sky, covering Caspian's bronze armour in black soot.

When a lone flake kissed the edge of his steel locket, Caspian finally snapped out of his reverie, raising his head to peer at the space before him.

Currently, he sat atop an impregnable wall of dark stone that stood several thousand meters above the ashen-snow soil. The sky was a dark grey, weeping several ounces of ash flakes with every passing second, dousing the world in a colourless mix of grey.

Knights clad in uniform bronze armour circled the mighty walls, hastily carrying around all sorts of battlements. Some pushed carts filled with arrows, others nocked massive 4-meter-long steel bolts into ferocious ballistas made from the unyielding bones of a Dark disaster.

Caspain was seated next to one of such contraptions, dangling his feet off the side of the stone wall, beside him a group of Retainers placed the massive ballista bolt onto its mildly lubricated slot. While they cranked back the woven steel string of the ballista, Caspian peered into the ash-white horizons, with his ruby-coloured eyes.

Nothing seemed to move within the vast plains of ashen-snow soil. All there was, was an endless plain of withered soil for as far as the eyes could see..., but Caspian's eyes could see further.

As the feeling of dread slowly rose, Caspian witnessed a tide of darkness, slowly spilling out of the ashen-snow horizon and onto the vast plains, like a sea of dark flowing water.

As time passed, the ground began to tremble. From where they stood, the knights could already make out grotesque shapes out of the tide of darkness. Then their expressions grew grim and sullen.

Immediately, Caspian rose to his feet, his eyes still placed solely on the consuming tide of abominations. Slowly he tied the locket behind his neck, tucking it inside his armour. Then he proceeded to wrap his eyes with a white cloth. The knights behind him scrambled into formations, all sorts of squads and platoons hastily taking their position, with Retainers and Cardinals taking up a bulk of the force.

Caspian stood at the head of one of such platoons, gazing coldly into the sea of horrors, his subordinates didn't share his otherworldly vision, so, fortunately, they were spared from the sight of the ghastly abominations that barrelled forward wanting nothing but to splurge on the millions of human flesh that hid behind the great wall.

Caspian saw their depravity and hunger, almost like they were right beside him. He saw them as clear days, from their rolling black hides to their numerous eyes and steel-like claws. The mere sight of them could cause men to buckle their shoes and run in the opposite direction, but not Caspian and neither would the army behind him. These men were Dawn knights, after all, they had no fear of darkness.

"Take Aim! and FIRE!!"

A knight clad in gold armour roared, his voice flying across the soon-to-be battlefield, like the waves from a massive trumpet. Immediately thousands of arrows were set loose finding their place in the hide of the winged abominations since they had come the closest.

Under timed instructions, the thousands of knights that lined the walls let their arrows loose. The sky wailed as dozens of ballista bolts tore through the sky, striking the largest of the abominations.

Now that the tide had grown closer Caspain could easily Identify the largest threats that spanned across the battlefield by scanning for the number of revolting cores nestled in their abdomen. A knight with a bloodgift that let her project her thoughts into the minds of others, stood behind Caspian.

When Caspian Identified a threat, she would relay the information to her superiors who would then give out the most reasonable decision.

Currently, the largest threat that they had taken down was a Minor Disaster– with all three of its cores seething with hunger and perversion. The rest were Minor Terrors and Crisis– with their single and double core respectively, nestled deep in their revolting bodies.

Unfortunately, higher-ranked winged abominations had begun to grow dangerously close to the walls. Caspian tried his best to relay as quickly as his eyes could see but they were just too many of them.

One particularly horrid creature, with four wings and six light-less eyes, was currently cutting through the air at a frightening speed, heading right for Caspian's platoon.

"Four cores."

Caspian said, mostly to himself.

"Take the damned thing down now!"

The telepath beside Caspian roared upon hearing her captain's words. Immediately another black bolt of dark steel shot through the air heading right for the four-winged Minor Calamity. The creature seemed to have been caught in a tight shift but right at the last moment, the creature spun in the air, letting the dreadful bolt graze its tough dark feathered hide.

Blood spilt from the side of the abomination, right below its left wing. Unfortunately, that was not enough to bring it down, in fact, it was already preparing to lunge forward again when Caspain suddenly disappeared from his current position.

Almost instantly, he was before the abomination, gazing right into all its six eyes from behind the white cloth that sealed his sight. Immediately a lean blade materialized in his hands and in one fluid motion all the wings by the left of the creature came right off.

The harrowing creature wailed painfully as it crashed onto the floor, with its fetid blood raining right after it. Caspian meanwhile, had a much more graceful landing than the grotesque thing did. Although his bronze armour was now stained with drops of dark blood, still he cared little for that.

After all, the abomination was severely wounded but it was far from being defeated a different kind of madness now seemed to have overcome it. All six of its eyes now locked onto Caspian and his slender blade, glaring at him with murderous rage.

The creature might've lost its wings but it still possessed; six powerful limbs which ended in steel-like claws, a viciously nimble tail with powerful muscles rolling underneath its dark feathers, and a mighty beak that gleamed like it was coated with adamantium.

Caspian kept his eyes on the thing for a while, before dashing forward. Despite its Minor rank, its class being at Crisis was enough of a reason for any knight to proceed with caution, but Caspian was no mere knight.

He flashed forward appearing underneath the creature's raised neck. Caspian immediately struck at its underbelly, finding some way to evade its iron-like claws that descended upon him like collapsing pillars of flesh.

When his blade struck its underbelly it barely drew blood, managing to sink only a couple inches deep. Caspian wasn't worried though, he immediately infused his blade with a bit of Celestial will.

A golden mist suddenly began to surround Caspian, circling his lithe frame. The golden Aura spread from his person to the silver blade, coating it in fiery gold flames. Immediately Caspian had begun to give off a tyrannical aura filled with murderous intent.

His platoon stared at him with familiar eyes filled with awe and reverence.

The next moment he was above the abomination, and with a terrifying speed he spun downwards. His subtle frame turned to a hurricane of burning silver steel, vertically splitting the abomination in two.

Blood shot out from the creature's gaping centre, and after a couple of spasms, it rolled and fell to the side, lifeless.

Caspian stood atop the severed corpse, his bronze boots slightly sinking into the revolting organs of the fallen Crisis.

Before he could heave a sigh of relief, Caspian's neck snapped to the side. Barrelling towards him was some hairless creature with mouths all around its body and three cores seething at its harrowing centre.

Cas had no time to react, so instead he braised himself for the deathly impact. Fortunately for him, a ballista bolt cracked through the sky, immediately pinning the creature to the ashen soil.

Caspian stared blankly at the nailed abomination, then he threw a glance at his second in command, sending her a court nod with his usual forced smile.

He barely saw her return the gesture, when the trembling earth caught his attention. He looked forward and saw the once-distant tide of abomination right before him.

It was like the gates of hell were opened right before him. There were too many of them to count, burrowing through themselves just to reach Caspian first.

The first wave of abominations had arrived in all its horrid glory.

Caspian stood alone, the numerous beasts completely overshadowing his small frame.

Anyone would have frozen at the sight, but Caspian had little time for that.

He instead clutched onto his blade and drew a horizontal arc in the air. He gritted his teeth as he strained the muscles in his arms, almost like the blade he pulled on had gained several more ounces.

The result was a line of rolling gold flames that immediately consumed the abominations closest to him.

They let out ghastly howls as they burned, since they were only Minor Terrors the flames would keep them off him for a while.

After that, he retreated a couple of meters back till he was standing with the recently descended Dawn knights.

His platoon was yet to descend but surely they would join him after the good men beside him had died and the number of abominations had been slightly culled.

Hopefully, he would still be alive by then.

For now, he had to fight, he clutched onto his slender blade and pulled it closer to his person. With the army behind him rapidly multiplying, Caspian shot forward.

The odds were stacked impossibly against them, but they had no other choice than to face the sea of revolting creatures with everything they had.

****

Caspian laid on a bed of corpses, the stench of which was revolting, but he could pay it little attention. Most of his focus was consumed rather by the gaping hole that occupied the space his torso had once been.

He could barely remember what had hit him, but the pain was sharp and vivid.

He gazed up at the open sky staring at the ashen flakes as they fell from the dead sky.

With the last of his strength, he clutched onto the locket on his chest. He didn't have enough strength to bring it to his face but holding onto it alone was enough solace.

He had no idea when he had begun to cry, fearing what would come after his death, but just then as the world around him had begun to dim, a deathly presence enveloped him fading his consciousness into nothingness.