Prologue: The Final Battle

Elena screamed.

 

'Idiot.' she thought to herself. As an experienced soldier, she couldnt afford to make mistakes like that. Any movement, any sound, any careless fidget could lead to her discovery, and therefore, her death. She didnt know if the enemy had moved on, for all she knew, they could standing right next to her. She had to keep her wits about her, unfortunatly, they werent that sharp.

 

Her pulse quickened as panic slithered through her head. She had to get out of here, lest she join her fallen comrades. Without thinking, she lept to her feet. A stupid move, she immediately felt a sticky, hot liquid begin to trickle down her muscled thigh. The trickle turned into a river, and the river turned into a pour. She winced at the pain, a burning ache reverberating through her entire body. She ripped off a long piece of her burgandy tunic and wrapped it around her injury, ignoring the screams of protest the wound gave. She surveyed her surroundings, and a wind of horror almost knocked her on her knees. She had had an idea about what damage had been done in the battle, but not in her darkest thoughts had she ever thought that she would have to prepare herself for the sorrow she felt at the scene laid before her.

 

The fresh corpses stood around four feet off the ruined ceder floor. The bodies before her displayed the signs of battle so gruesomely, you couldnt decipher a human soldier from a troll. Severed heads hung from the rafters, and the beautiful wooden tables where she had once sat with her father during the royal feasts were now the resting places of gouged eyes and crushed limbs. Elena had been in many battles, but nothing, not even the legendary Battle of Gilgoroth could measure up to the destruction of human life she saw spread before her. She stumbled blindly over arms and legs, her eyes oblivious to anything but the sea of death of which she, for whatever reason the gods had in mind, she was a sole survivor of. With every step she took, her leather boots sounded the squelsh of blood. The floor was more slippery than she had evaluated, and she felt her footing fail her.  Her wrists screamed out in pain as she broke her fall, landing on the broken body of a Foreland soldier. The youth laid in a pose of fierce struggle, his hair, once a bright blonde, was matted with blood escaping from a large puncture wound ledged deep in his skull. The soldier had once been a handsome specticle, but the fight had taken its tole. His pink lips were cracked and bleeding, no longer delivering breath. 

 

"Brell?" she cried softly, her heart crumbling at the realization. She took him into her arms, his once hard body now limp as a piece of silk. His beautiful head tilted with the sudden movement, and it revealed on the left side of his face a large chunk, still dripping with fresh blood. The flesh was torn and ragged, bearing the ravenous teethmarks of a vicious creature. She couldnt help but picture a hideous beast tearing cruely at the beautiful face of her cousin, only to be inturupted by the fury of the battle around him. Brell's ice blue eyes were frozen in a perminant glare of terror, the positioning of his fingers attested to that fact. Elena felt her stomach lurch, and felt the bitter, acidic taste of vomit climbing up her throat. Elena fought the urge to relinquish the contents of her stomach, and closed her cousins eyes, not wishing to look at the fear any longer. She took off the remnants of her black silk cloak, and draped it carefully over the tired body. Muttering a quiet prayer for the dead, she carefully rose, not wishing to re-open anymore wounds that would slow her down. She angrily wiped away the tears betraying her sorrow, and with quiet and careful steps continued towards the barred double doors at the end of the hall. Everytime her foot hit the floor it brought a heart wrenching memory of her childhood in this magnificent castle: sitting at the festivals with her brothers while she watched her father admiringly as he conducted the feasts, climbing through the rafters to play practical jokes on the stuffy court nobles, her first kiss with the stable boy...

 

Elena shook her head, forcing her thoughts back to the present. There was no reason for such thoughts. Things had changed, people were dead, and things would never be the same. She would have to remember that. A heavy thud in the corridor past the doors stopped her in her tracks, and she felt her heart leap into her throat. Holding her breath, she tuned her ear to the steps coming up the long corridor. They kept a quick but calm tempo, indicating a heavyset figure, tall, but heavily dressed with some kind of silver armor. She may not be the wittiest soldier, but her master had trained her to be the best tracker anyone could find. The footsteps grew closer and closer, nearly matching Elenas thumping heart. Then suddenly, silence.  Scanning the room quickly, she set her sights on an over turned table. Scurrying quicker than a discovered mouse, she ducked under the wooden table and pulled a corpse over her small body. Keeping her breathing controlled and quiet, she closed her eyes and waited for the figure to come in.  

She could hear the old hinges groan with protest as the intruder rammed the thick door. One more heavy hit and it would splinter. Just as the thought was processed, the beautiful carved door exploded, debries flying everywhere. Elena's fear was undeniable. Without making a sound, she grasped the hilt of her trusty blade, readying herself for her final battle.

Reviews

[Silvario]

Very nicely done! :)

I went into this not knowing what to expect, what genre even I was getting into. This prologue starts out rather general then begins to drop hints along the way to eventualy fully reveal the setting/genre - which was much to my delight as Im a huge fantasy fan - We also recieve subtle hints here and there of a back story as references are made to past battles and so on. All well constructed by this talented author to leave us with wanting to know more. Not to mention leaving us with the suspence of what might become of the this character we can only assume is the main player in the story to come. Cleverly written, handsomely detailed, all in all an intrigung introduction.

well done indeed :)