Chronicles of an End: Valax Part I
Author's note: Hey everyone. Sorry about the wait. This...
Author's note: Hey everyone. Sorry about the wait. This was originally going to be a one chapter story, but ended up being much longer then I had originally intended. So I decided to break it up into two parts, instead of one ridiculously long story that I would still need a long time to finish. Along with finishing part two of this, I will very likely write other stories in this universe in the future. As always, comments and constructive criticism are welcome. And for those of you who are looking for some yiff (you know who you are), I'm still deciding whether or not to include that in this series so I will have it set to clean for now.
Chronicles of an End Valax: Part I
Kingdom of Naug
Late summer.
A young dragoness sets out on horseback from the small town of Gurn towards the mountains in the north-east. With her travel two wolves, and pack horses carrying various goods. She carries a wood-frame pack of supplies on her back, nestled between her blue wings, and a gleaming steel long-sword on her hip. Valax was her name, a deadly gladiator in years past; she was now a simple merchant traveling with her canine companions Allen, and Darren who were twin brothers. Both wolves were nearly identical, but for the fact that Allen's coat was a foggy grey, and Darren's fur was black as the darkest night. Gurn was set on the shores of the wide western sea, and was in nature a fishing town.
The small group of traders was on the way to the capitol city of Lidnon, on their usual route which went to the base of the north-eastern mountains, and then wound its way south into the heart of the great plains the nation was situated upon. The traders stopped at various cities and villages where they bought and sold goods to the people to make a living, and as a result had many friends in throughout the land. Their faces were known well and their coming was welcomed as they usually carried goods that poor farmers and working men needed for survival, as well as various curiosities they procured and sold to wealthy nobles.
Normally such a small group of merchants would be prime targets for bandits and rogues, but they were rarely harassed by such filth as the trio consisted of three fearsome warriors. Valax, who was deadly with her sword, then the brothers who were proficient in various forms of magic, and expert marksmen with their crossbows that were always within reach. The few groups who have tried to rob them usually ended up viciously slaughtered on the side of the road, and the three traders gained a well earned reputation for their prowess.
Even so, the trio considered hiring guards to accompany them, as the realm was not as safe as it once was. Rumors of discontent were traveling throughout the kingdom. There were tales of people disappearing in the night, only to have their butchered corpses found days later, or not to be found at all. Worse yet, fell beasts were said to be walking the lands. Babbling travelers had been seen running into town pubs, and raving of nightmarish monsters slinking towards them and killing their companions before passing out from fear. These creatures were only described as shadowy figures by the fear crazed citizens, and seemed to be sighted the most near the mountains. This caused a slight pall of nervousness to hit the travelers as they set out, as the first half of their journey was full of stops to mountainside towns and they hadn't the extra coin to hire any capable mercenaries.
The road they took snaked its way through a rather large forest on the western part of the kingdom, and thus the three were flanked by trees on either side of them. The first day of their journey passed in silence, as the trio just gazed around them, taking in the beauty of the landscape. Birds were chirping, flitting to and fro among the trees on the sides of the road, and the occasional rabbit made a shy appearance. They kept a swift pace and crossed the bridge over the Tor River near sunset and Valax grinned, pleased with their progress. They stopped for a moment to replenish their water-skins before continuing. This river wound its way out of the mountains they were headed towards and marked the halfway point to their first stop. The traders would then take the road north where it forked a good way ahead.
As the sun dipped below the distant horizon Allen directed the group to a small clearing on the left side of the road. Dismounting their horses Valax, Allen and Darren agreed to make camp here for the night. While Darren was picketing the horses near some fresh grass, Allen scavenged around for branches and the like to make a fire and Valax spread out the bedrolls.
"Damn tinderbox!" Allen growled a moment later, as he struggled vainly to get a spark from his tinderbox, dropping it a few minutes later in frustration.
"I'll get it going," Valax said as she took a breath and sent an unnecessarily large stream of flame from her mouth onto the pile of branches igniting it instantly. Allen jumps up in fear; cursing a bit before sitting down.
"Valax, you know that scares me to no end!" The grey wolf growls to the dragoness.
"Which is exactly why I love doing it." Valax replies with a fang-filled grin. Darren comes into the campsite at this point and notices her sitting with a large grin on her scaled muzzle, and his brother with an expression of anger and fear.
"Valax are you terrorizing Allen again?"
"Maybe..."
"Good, the wimp needs it."
"HEY!" Allen shouts indignantly as Valax and Darren start laughing.
Once the laughter subsides Valax reaches into her pack where she pulls out some fresh pork, and an iron spit. They had salted food for every journey, but the fresh food was always used on the first day. Roasting the meat over the flames, a rich smell begins to permeate the air. Eventually Allen calms down, and the three travelers begin to talk, joke, and laugh. More often than not the jokes were at another's expense, but were not truly meant.
After a while the meat is fully cooked, and Valax cuts off portions of the meat and hands them to her companions. The three tear into the meat, and continue laughing and joking between bites. They loved travelling together, even if it was always to the same places. The three always managed to enjoy themselves in small ways, such as insulting each other around the campfire. Little did they know that they were being watched.
In the trees behind the travelers was a strange creature. It gazed at the travelers with its many eyes, and was filled with a ravenous hunger. It desired oh so strongly, to rip them apart and feast on their blood and juicy flesh. Its empty stomach growled as the being took in their scents. Too long it had gone without proper food! Too long had it lain dormant in the abyss feeling its hunger grow! Too long had it been unable to hunt and destroy as its instincts demanded! Now it finally had the chance to feast upon living flesh once more.
The creature began so slink its way towards the light of the campfire, but just as it got close and extended one of its many tendrils in preparation to pounce, it felt a sharp pain course throughout its twisting shadowy body, and the limb turned to black smoke. The creature then felt a thought pop into its head. The will of its master had been revealed to it. It drew back into the forest, and as it did the pain vanished and its tendril was restored. The being then decided to follow its master's plan. It bedded down to rest for the night, and would tail its future prey until they reached the appointed place in the mountains.
The travelers rose along with the sun the next day, and began to break camp. Their new stalker rose with them, and kept watch from the treetops, waiting impatiently for them to continue their journey. After a short amount of time, Valax, Allen, and Darren were riding along the path on the way to the small town of Granis. This was their first stop on their trade route and was on the fringe of the mountains.
As the travelers made their way along the road, the being that had watched them the night before was keeping up with them through the trees. At about mid after-noon the travelers reached a fork in the road. The trail split here with one part heading north, and the other south and out of the forest. They were pleased with their progress, as this meant they would reach Granis by sunset.
A few hours later Darren stopped his horse and called to his companions, "Hey guys, stop for a second." he says as he gets off of his horse and walks to the edge of the road, his eyes scanning the tree line
"What is it?" Valax inquires from her saddle.
"Something's following us."
"You sure Darren?" His brother asks slightly annoyed "It's a big forest and who knows how many animals are in it."
"I sensed it this morning," Darren explains " I thought it was just a bird, but then I felt its consciousness following us for the last few hours, and we travelled a lot farther than birds would normally stray from their nests. Other animals were also fleeing, as this thing neared them. Then a few moments ago, for just a second, its mind changed to something... well it felt evil and twisted against my mind." He shudders as he says that "But then, it just went back to being a bird."
One type of Magic that Darren had mastered was the ability to reach out with his mind. He could search the area with his mind and touch the consciousness of anything close by, communicate with it, and even control it if he so wished, provided the one he wanted to control wasn't strong enough to resist his will.
There had been instances of him sitting at the campfire with his eyes closed, and his black ears twitching every few minutes for hours on end while he gave an occasional grunt or chuckle. Whenever Valax or Allen would ask him about it, he would say "I'm just talking with a squirrel" or something similar.
The creature in the woods heard this brief exchange and was suddenly filled with a searing pain that spread through its body. It had to control the urge to howl in agony, as it felt like its back was stabbed with thousands of burning needles. Its master was angry with it, and it was letting its slave know. The being knew that the pain was a warning, and was just a small taste of what awaited if it were discovered before the time was right.
The being had known that the black one could sense him, and had used its powers to disguise its mind as a robin to fool him. It even hid its movements as those of a robin flitting from one branch to the next, but had lost its concentration as it nearly fell out of a tree, and allowed its hunger and bloodlust to surface for a moment before regaining control. Berating itself for its mistake, the creature backed a bit farther into the trees, in hopes of making the black canine lose interest.
A worried expression appeared on Valax's scaled face, and her wing's twitched in anxiety. Darren wouldn't say anything like this unless he was certain there was danger. His magic had alerted them every time they were jumped by bandits, and was a large reason why they were able to defeat them so easily. Allen looked at her and worry was plastered on his grey muzzle as well.
Darren suddenly winced as if stung, mounted his horse, and urged it into a full gallop, causing the pack horses began to follow him at the same brisk pace. As he passed Valax, she saw a look of pure terror on his muzzle, and he was riding as though he were being chased by demons. Allen and Valax push their horses ahead as well. Valax was very worried now. What could Darren have sensed that would make him flee like this? He didn't get scared unless there was a very good reason behind it.
Their stalker had caused this reaction in Darren. It had fallen back into the trees in an attempt to make him lose interest, but had made a crucial mistake. The creature had found a small clearing in the woods and in this clearing there was a wild boar. The creature felt is hunger again, and lost control. It swooped down on the boar, wrapping its shadowy tendrils around the large hunk of juicy meat before it could flee and viciously twisted causing its spine to snap, killing it instantly. It then began to feast, knowing to expect terrible agony for blowing its cover so soon after being detected by the black wolf.
Darren had followed the creature with his mind, and when it lost control to kill the boar, he'd been overwhelmed by the evil and twisted thoughts of the being and he had then dove into the consciousness of the boar to escape the being's mind and try to catch a glimpse of it. What he saw filled him with a fear that he had never known before, and his instincts took over and commanded him to flee as fast as he could.
For nearly an hour Darren pushed the horses to their limit, while Valax and Allen barely managed to keep up. They were near Granis when the Darren finally stopped the horses. Everyone dismounted and Allen walked over to his brother with a very annoyed look. He was about to shout angrily at him, but calmed down once he saw how much Darren was shaking, with his tail between his legs.
"Darren, are you okay?" Allen asked concerned. Darren turned to face him, and Allen and Valax saw his gold eyes filled with terror.
"I don't know what happened," he gasped back, trying to compose himself "I caught a glimpse of the thing that was following us, and... and... I don't know. I felt a fear like I have never felt before."
"You saw it?" Allen asked a shocked look spreads on his muzzle as Darren nods. "How?"
"It... it moved back into the forest, and I followed it with my mind. It went to a clearing, and I sensed a wild boar in it. Then that things mind went... it went... well evil. I have never felt that kind of hatred or bloodlust in any natural creature." Darren shuddered as he said that. "I panicked at that point, and I went into the boar's consciousness to get away, and see what it was..."
"Well what was it?" Valax inquired. Darren just shook his head and refused to answer. Allen and Valax exchanged glances. They were really, REALLY worried now. What the HELL had he seen to make him freak out like this? Darren NEVER got scared.
"Darren, we need to know what you saw," Valax tells him in a firm but calm voice, "so we can know what to look out for. If something was able to freak you out this bad... well it could be a danger to all of us." Allen went up to his brother and put a paw on his shoulder to try and comfort him, and that gentle touch seemed to be all he needed to finally calm down.
"Okay, I can't really describe it," Darren said in a much calmer voice, "but I can show you with my mind." Valax and then felt a presence in her consciousness, and she instinctively recoiled from it before recognizing it was Darren's thoughts. She then saw an image in her mind of a forest clearing, and in the trees was something unnatural and horrifying. She couldn't make out many details as it seemed to be a living shadow that had no definite shape. One thing she did se though was what looked like eyes, one red, one black, and one white, arranged in a triangle shape on what looked like the creatures head.
"Okay, what in the world was that?" Allen asks with a burr of fear in his voice.
"I have no idea but it's probably near and still following us." Darren whimpered, his yellow eyes darting every which way.
"Look, let's just head into town and calm down a bit," Valax interjects. "We'll rent a night at the inn, get some hot food, and start trading tomorrow." Darren nods at this, and the three then mount their horses and lead them towards the town's gates.
The traders rounded a bend in the road after a few minutes of riding, and the gates came into view. Granis was surrounded by a wall of wood that was about twenty feet high with guards posted and each gate, and archers patrolling on top of the walls. The small town was set on the fringe of the mountains, which was a bit of a problem as many gangs of bandits had their hideouts in the hills, and the farther into the mountains you went, the more likely it is that one will find orcs, or even a troll. Few survived such encounters, so the town took measures to avoid getting burned to the ground.
When they neared the gates the two guards lowered their weapons and demanded what their business was. They were both rather intimidating, as one was a tiger equipped with a heavy steel claymore, and the other a lion with wicked looking halberd.
"We're just traders hoping to buy and sell goods here." Valax replied in a friendly manner.
"If that is true then you should find lodging at the Inn." The tiger told them "Then you should talk to Maxwell about setting up a stall in the market. He'll either be in his home, or in the market square. The town has stables near the north gate for your horses as well. If you need anything else the barman at the Inn should be able to help you. Also know that any we will not hesitate to act if you break any laws." The lion then pounded on the wooden gate with his fist, and it was slowly opened from the inside to admit the travelers. As they passed through he gave them a menacing glare before turning his eyes back to the road.
"Hmm, usually the guards here recognize us," mused Allen.
"Maybe they're new," replied Valax.
In the woods surrounding the town, the traders' strange stalker saw all of this and was pleased. It had easily kept up with them through their fear induced sprint and was now disguising its mind as a squirrel. They were heading in the right direction! Another day or two after they leave this pitiful waste they call a town, and it would be able to pounce. It relished torturing the wolves for pain the black furred cretin had caused it. As for the dragoness... its master had plans for her.
Valax, Allen, and Darren went down the main street of the town, taking in the familiar sights. The houses here were small and spaced in a way that allowed for easy movement of horses, and people while avoiding an overcrowded feel. In the center of the town was the market square where store owners kept their shops in small buildings, and travelling merchants could set up their stalls. Near the edge of the loud noises of the market was the Four Horseman Inn, where they usually stayed when they stopped in Granis. Allen and Valax stepped into the Inn, while Darren took the horses to the town stables.
The Inn was very clean as if the owners spent their time digging in corners for miniscule bits of filth. There were some tables scattered around the rather large common room, with a fire crackling in the corner, and a staircase leading to the rooms on the upper floor. As usual at this point of the day, the place was moderately full of people talking, drinking, and laughing.
"Hey, Valax and her dogs are back!" said Drammen the Innkeeper from behind the bar. Allen rolled his eyes, while Valax grinned a little.
"Hello Drammen." She replied.
Drammen was a black stallion, who was well known in town for brewing the best ale in the northern parts of the kingdom. His family had built the Four Horseman when the town was founded, and they had kept it running for eight generations.
"So where's Darren? He didn't get attacked by chickens again did he?" Drammen asked with a grin.
"No, not this time. We're being very carful to avoid farmer Marsh while we're here." Allen told the stallion with a chuckle.
Farmer Marsh had a rather large farm going just beyond the town's north gates, which his family had built by clearing out a large section of the surrounding forest. While being a good friend with Allen and Valax, he was not on good terms with Darren. The first time they had come to Granis Darren had gotten a little too drunk, and had accidentally destroyed farmer Marsh's wagon with a magic powered sneeze. Marsh's chickens followed him everywhere with him being one, so he clucked a few times to his feral counterparts, and they viscously mauled Darren while Marsh was pecking at him angrily and shouting obscenities at him. Every time Marsh sees Darren, he usually gets attacked by a feathery mob even though he had paid for the damage.
"That's good." Drammen replied smiling. "So the usual rooms for the usual price?" Valax nodded and slid some coins across the bar. Drammen pocketed them and went to the back room to grab the keys, his hoofs clopping loudly on the wooden floor. A loud thud was heard by Valax and Allen as something slammed into the door of the inn.
"OH GOD GET "EM OFF ME! GET OFF ME YOU WHITE-FEATHERED BASTARDS!" yelled Darren's muffled voice through the door. Valax rushed to open the door while Allen fell on the ground laughing. A pile of flailing limbs, fur and feathers stumbled inside a second later followed by Marsh who proceeded to give Darren a viscous kick between the legs causing him topple to the ground. The other patrons of the Four Horseman burst into fits of laughter as well, as Drammen came back and started neighing in laughter at the scene before him.
"That's for my wagon you ingrate!" Marsh clucked angrily as he walked out with his chickens following him while Darren was on the ground groaning in pain. Valax helped Darren to his feet while trying to hide hisses of laughter, and sat him down in a nearby chair.
"Again? Come on Darren," Allen gasped through his chuckles, "you're a mage for crying out loud! I mean its kind of embarrassing getting defeated by chick-" Darren waves his hand at his twin, and Allen's voice suddenly cut out. Allen's paws go to his throat in confusion. His muzzle was forming words, but no sound was coming out. Realizing what happened, Allen starts yelling mutely at his brother while making obscene gestures the whole while. Everyone's laughter came back in full force; the whole scene was too absurd!
Allen rounds on Valax at this point with his muzzle forming mute words.
"Sorry *hiss*," Valax says through her hisses of mirth, "I can't' *hiss* hear you, *hiss* hiss*." Darren starts laughing at this point as the pain in his groin died down, but this earned him a punch in the face from an irate Allen. He would've tried to undo the spell himself, but he couldn't as he and Darren both knew that Allen was the weaker mage, and would have no chance in counteracting Darren's spell.
Once the laughter died down, Valax picked up the room keys where she pocketed one, gave another to Allen, and the last to Darren.
"Come on guys, let's get some rest." The blue dragoness told her friends as she walked over to, and up the stairs. Darren followed her with Allen close behind, arms flailing, obviously trying to get Darren to reverse the spell. Darren just went to his room and gave his brother a smug look before locking him out. Allen freaked out at this, and started banging his paws on the door. Frustrated, Allen unlocked the door with magic, but even then he couldn't get into his brother's room! Darren had conjured up a barrier behind the door which prevented anyone outside the room from pushing open the door. Upon sensing the magic, Allen gave up and went to his room for the night, vowing to make his brother's life hell for the next few days.
That night, Valax was afflicted with a terrible nightmare. In the depths of her mind she was deep inside a dark forest, her blood stained sword in her claws, with bodies strewn about. The bodies were of living shadows that disappeared after lying on the ground for a few minutes. Fatigue was in her limbs, her breath was heavy and despair was flooding her mind as another wave of her mysterious assailants appeared in the trees and charged at her. With many a slash, stab, and bursts of fire-breath, another seven bodies added their black blood to her blade, and fell to the ground where they disintegrated. Taking advantage of this momentary respite, she turned and ran through the trees, hoping to find a clearing where she could spread her wings and take to the skies.
Eyes reduced to slits in fear, she darted around the trees, and their branches looked like claws and arms reaching out to claim her, while shadows appeared in them and dropped down to pursue her. Bursting through the undergrowth, she ran until she found a gap in the forest canopy above her. Thanking whatever deity that may have been responsible she spread her wings and with all her strength drove them down and launched herself into the air, flapping desperately to gain altitude.
A sense of horror filled her as her head cleared the tops of the trees. Everywhere she looked, all she saw was the glow of flames spreading from tree to tree, and her sight went farther than it should have allowing her to see cities, towns, and homes. All were burning. Then she heard the screams, and saw people running in every direction, only to be snared by the flames, or butchered by the shadowy terrors that were chasing them, their blood splattering onto the ground. Soldiers were attempting to rally together to fight the shadows, but suddenly began giving bloodcurdling screams of agony as their flesh began to boil, running off their bodies as a viscous liquid onto the ground, while maggots sprang from the dirt and began to eat them alive. Some even had their limbs ripped off of them while howled in pain, only to be silenced a moment later by the limb crashing into their skulls, splattering bones and brain onto the streets.
Then she saw the children running every which way, screaming in terror while others huddled in corners sobbing and crying out for their parents to save them. Some weren't moving at all, and were silent as they lay in pools of their own blood, remnants of their final agony still etched onto their young and innocent faces.
Valax hovered above the forest, frozen in place with horror and despair. Her mind couldn't cope with what she was seeing. She heard a rustle from the trees, her eyes darting down to see a dozen of the shadowy monstrosities jumping up out of the trees. They grabbed her, slammed her into the ground, while one seized her sword and approached her where she lay on the ground. Valax felt her fear increase even further as she recognized this shadow; it had red, black, and white eyes, arranged in a triangle.
It looked at her, and made a grating gurgle sound that sounded vaguely like laughter. She then felt a foul and twisted presence envelop her mind, her consciousness recoiling against it as a single thought forced its way in to her mind:
"This chaos will happen, and you will help bring it about." The shadow then thrust the sword towards her chest, and as the shining steel pierced her scales Valax woke up in a panic.
To be continued