Darius' eyes stared over the moistened cloth tied around his mouth and nose, as he surveyed the destruction around him. This village had not just been razed, it had been brutally stricken from the face of the continent. Stepping through what was left of the charred wooden gates, he entered the catastrophe which was all that remained of the small farming outpost just south of Mobliz.
A branch snapped underneath Darius' footing causing a startling cracking sound amongst the silence and dull whoosh of the dying fires. Kicking the branch aside, he nearly gagged as he realized that what he had broken was a charred human arm...just the arm.
The sound of heavy wings caused Darius to crane his neck upwards, his concern turning to relief at the sight of the large Shou Dragon touching down upon the burned ground. Snapping his jaws Avalon nodded forward, signifying that Darius should proceed further into the deathtrap of a village. Folding his wings to his side he rumbled a single word.
"Survivor..."
Nodding tersely, Darius continued into the outpost this time watching every step he made. Hearing footsteps running behind him, he began to turn and draw his wand.
"Mavin..."
Avalon nodded for Darius to keep moving. However Darius waited until he saw Mavin burst from the smoke before continuing on. Trying to catch his breath, Mavin slowed to a walk beside Darius. His voice was muffled beneath the cloth tied about his own mouth and nose.
"Throm's reports were correct. Someone or something wiped this place from the map."
Nodding, Darius replied, keeping his eyes on the path ahead of him.
"Let's just hope that it's not who he thinks it is..."
Mavin nodded, and the trio continued in silence, finally reaching the heart of the small village. Every single building appeared to have been razed completely to the ground. The ground still snapped and smoldered reacting to the intense heat which it had been subjected to. Bodies were strewn about as if part of the wreckage. Some were merely burned to blackened crisps. Others were missing limbs and had clearly been the victims of a sharpened edge as well as the flames.
Avalon snorted nodding ahead of the group. Darius and Mavin looked into the smoke, but it revealed nothing. Snorting again, Avalon buffetted his great wings clearing the smoke ahead with but a few strokes.
Before the trio lay three bodies which were hung from a single unscorched building by meat hooks. They were arranged in order of size, ranging from the first who could be no older than six. To the second who could have been within young adulthood. The third was clearly an adult...still it was hard to tell as the skin had been removed from all three bodies.
Pulling down the cloth covering his mouth, Darius retched the contents of his stomach all over the ground. His breakfast hissed and steamed as it hit the hot surface that was once a small road.
Avalon nodded to the body which was hanging in the middle, and nudged Mavin closer. Mavin nodded gravely and pulled on a thick set of leather gloves. Patting Darius on the back as he slowly made his way forward, he muttered.
"Get back to the Bastion. Send a crystal broadcast back to Westbridge advising them that we have a survivor."
Though he was the team lead, Darius was in no mood nor condition to offer any sort of response save a short nod. Pulling the cloth about his mouth again, he jogged off into the smoke.
With great care, Mavin lowered the skinless form, to the ground, wrapping him within his cloak which he had set down.
"You're safe now, can you speak?"
A gargled moan was his only reply. The rumbling voice of Avalon once again sounded from the dragon.
"No voicebox..."
Mavin muttered a small curse as he realized that the Shou Dragon was right. A large gaping hole was left where a voicebox should have been. This was probably their best link to who had committed such an act. Whoever had done this had been quite careful to leave nothing of themselves behind. Wrapping a single cloth about the victim's eyes which now had no lids, Mavin turned to Avalon.
"I am going to return to the Bastion...from there I will summon in our survivor, I trust you can find your way back?"
Not bothering with a reply, Avalon turned to keep a watchful eye on the survivor. Not bothering to wait for an answer Mavin uttered the spell that would carry him back to the airship.
LATER ABOARD THE BASTION...
The clattering of someone coming down the stairwell, caused Mavin to look up from his charge only to see Darius come bursting into the Common Room. Both shook their heads at the sight of each other's blood covered garments. Stepping forward, Darius knelt down beside the dying man who lay before the great fireplace.
"I was unable to reach Throm via crystal broadcast. He seems beyond the reach of mental communication was well."
A low moan came from the man on the floor. Mavin stood pulling Darius to the side. Leaning close he whispered in his ear.
"We can't just do nothing. Your the team lead, you'll have to make the call Darius."
Nodding, Darius gazed into the fireplace which was barren of any flame at the moment and replied.
"I already have. This man is beyond the healing of our Bath House. He won't survive the trip to nearest civilzation save Vector...and he certainly won't survive being shot down as we are no longer welcome within these lands. We shall set a course for northwest of Torregiano. There is a small house there that will be our only recourse..."
Shaking his head, Mavin peered towards the sad form upon the Common Room floor.
"We can't do that to him. He has been through enough. You know the kind of life that leads to. I don't even have to mention that we aren't exactly the welcome type there either. We'll have better luck with the Vectorians."
Darius' face set to stone, as he wiped his hands clean on a towel he had brought down with him. Reaching into an inner pocked of his robe he pulled out his spectacles and set them carefully upon the bridge of his nose.
"Yes and should we do that, we shall no doubt be under blame for the destruction of yet another Vectorian outpost. I wouldn't choose this course of action unless it was the only thing we could do. Looking at the big picture, it is answers we need...those answers may prove to be more important than this man's life...or ours for that matter. As you said, I am the team lead...this is my decision to make."
Mavin slowly paced over to the skinless man upon the floor. Reaching down, he drew the cloak he was wrapped in tighter to control the bleeding. Pointing a long finger at the fireplace, it burst into flames cause the bloody man to issue yet another moan. Mavin waited until the flames receded to a dull flicker before standing and joining Darius before the stairwell. Looking up he nodded.
"Is Avalon aboard yet?"
Darius nodded, casting one final glance at their passenger.
"All right, let's do this then..."
Posted by Throm at October 24, 2006 10:40 AM | TrackBack