Date: Sun, 10 Apr 2016 00:56:19 +0200
From: Helion Solaris <helionsolaris@mail.com>
Subject: Apeiron: From Dark Beginnings

It's quite a long time since I've written anything. This one came to me in
a dream/nightmare. If anyone would like to help with editing, I'm horrible
with that, and formattig drop me an email. Or just send one to let me know
what you think.

General disclaimers apply. Not your thing? Bye. Too young? Seeya. Suitable
for +18/21 only depending on where you are. It's all fiction guys.

Remember to DONATE!!!

			=============================================

"In this godless land bitter winters are the only certainty, that and the
evil that festers in the hearts of men." - Anonymous.


"The war is over. Rivers of blood shall nourish this place for years to
come. From this day on the cries of women and men alike will echo in these
forests, suffocating with cropse upon defiled corpse it will die off. These
spineless creatures stood no chance against us.No one can stand against The
Gru'Q. It was two cycles ago that we seized our chance to overrun their
lands.  We spread out and consumed their entire empire. They became
soft. Nothing like the legends of fierce warriors with emmense power-The
Great Empire of The Northern Star. They had forgotten.  Forgotten the
reason they first learned to fear the night. That we are far more than
tales they could scare their children with-"

"Oh shut up, Trauk. Your overzealous rambling might actually spoil my lust
tonight."

"Ha! Your lust has never been spoiled before, Raot."

"You might succeed in changing that. Just finish packing your gear so we
can leave. I have grown tired of these lands. Too much sun." The smaller of
the two creatures says as he finishes with his bundle, "High Lord Taurin
has commanded we move with the troops to the mountain tunnels east of here
and return home quickly."

"I can agree, Raot. This place is not meant for our kind." The larger
creature moves and quickly gathers his things and ties his bundle.

"The other camps have already moved and it's just us tonight,
Trauk. Surrounded by all these ripe specimens just waiting to be plicked."

The sun sets as the pale green skinned companions remove their protecting
visors revealing even paler eyes of a milky-gray composition. Their helmets
clunkon the forest floor. Brutish, angular faces with sharp striking
features and bald heads grin at each other. Their fangs glint in the
twilight and they crack their necks. The smaller one, the size of a normal
human, snifs the air and bares his fangs even more. The taller hulking
muscled one follows suite. The canopy is silenced anew as if becomming
aware of the presence of the monsters for the first time.

"I can smell them, Trauk. Ripe for the picking."

"As can I. It's time to pay this village a visit."

Snow starts falling as the last light of day fades and the sky fills with
bats. Tonight will be a cold one.

			=============================================

They came out of the nowhere. At first it was small attacks on the outer
towns and villages. It had been at least 190 cycles since the last reported
sighting of a Gru'Q. We call them Ravagers. Then came the hordes from the
Northern Peakes. They sent thousands upon thousands to battle. Only to
disable the empire, according to Ranvir the old village commander. A show
of force and revenge for long forgotten wars. They took the men first then
pillaged the villages, raping and abusing the women and children. The
elders and royal advisors did not expect anything. We were in an era of
peace. No civil disputes nor wars with the Eastern Continent Forces. So
there was no need for soldiers to be trained. The last generation of
fighters were well into their 70th cycle. Only a few fighters, those who
chose to learn out of curiosity, were young enough for battle. They were
called to the royal palace when the attacks were confirmed as
legitimate. Five hundred and sixty five warriors in the empire against an
enemy vastly stronger. Teams of twenty to were sent to each provincial
capitol. Everyone fled to the Khoudzia. The capitol was overcrowded now
many rumours were saying. Most of them did not make it and those who stayed
behind in their villages were abandoned. We were on our own.

"Ma-Luce! Ma-Luce! Jaurn keeps pincing my hips!" A curly haired boy hollers
as he scampers into the kitchen, breaking Lucile out of one her
contemplative moods. The older woman pushes some unruly strands of her long
gray mane behind her left ear. She smiles down at the tiny boy.

"It's okay, Sweetie. Jaurn you'd better leave little Vollo alone!" She
yells towards the living room.

"Yes Ma," Came the weak reply

Vollo makes himself comfortable at the table and with a wide saphire gaze
smiles up at her. He reaches out and touches her left cheek. She leans over
and squeezes him tight. He smiles and kisses her on the cheek.

"What's the time, Vollo?"

"It's almost 7 o'clock. It's almost bedtime." He squeaks out.

"That's right. Go get everyone and lets head down." She gets up and starts
putting out the lamps. Vollo jumps down and struts towards the living room
yelling with every step.

"It's bedtime everyone, Ma-Luce says we have to head down!"

Joy filled laughter and conversations can be heard coming from the living
room. Then some groans and scuffling as all the children start moving to
the kitchen. Everyone arrives and Lucile is greeted by the faces of twelve
children, five girls and seven boys of ages ranging from six to
seventeen. Each face is as diferent from the other as can be imagined,
except for the two sets of twins. Lucile pulls herself to her full one
hundred and eighty nine centimeters.

"Alright children you know the routine. Teens help the little ones first,
then the Mids and finally we'll go down."

"Yes, Ma," A chorus answers.

Everyone starts moving down the hall. They open a door in the floorboards
and the little ones file down into the basement. This is the same routine
she has followed since she started taking in children. Their parents were
either killed, missing or in a same place somewhere. The evacuations were a
mess and so many peole were left behind.

She knows exactly what is out there. What lurks in the shadows waiting for
a chance to pounce. As a girl her grandfather and father told her stories
of the beasts from the north, living in the highland forrests. This village
has not had an attack in a while and she knows it's only a matter of
time. These creatures are nothing if not persistant.

Bang! The hinges rattle on the front door.

"They're here." She whispers, " Orien, you barred the front door?"

"Yes, Ma." The oldest child replies. His shouldier length mop of raven hair
glints and his deep brown eyes look at his mother in fear.

"Good, now go down and you lock that door."

"But Ma, you need to come down too."

"No Orien, I need to be up here tonight. These ones are stronger than the
others." She removes her evening robe revealing a intricately designed
suite of armour. She gracefully ties her hair up in a single bun, "If
things don't go well up here you must do what I told you, you must."

"Yes, Ma." The teen gapes at the woman. Reluctant to leave her side at
first he enters the basement knowing it's better not to argue and barrs the
door.

Bang! The door rattles again.

She curses herself for being so naive. She should have put wards up in case
creatures as strong as these ones were to find them. Finally the door is
ripped apart with a green burst of energy. It splinters and smoulders on
the floor and two sets of boots clank as they enter.

"Where are the children, Ugly?" Raot growls at Lucile.

"Where you won't find them, Scum." Lucile sets herself in a solid
stance. Moonlight streaming through the doorway illuminates the scars up
her torso, neck and the left side of her face.

"Move aside and you won't ne harmed. We do not want old, tough, dry meat."
Trauk spits at her.

"Trust me, you are not getting anything tonight." Lucile starts to chanting
and makes small circles with her hands.

"Oh, we have a witch!" Raot says as he clasps his hands
together. "Muttering an old protection ward, are we?"

"I'll break that in ten seconds." Trauk grins.

"Enough talk. Die!" Lucile lunges forward pulling two sabres from her back
swoops down on Raot. They seem unaware of her advance. She slices into his
neck and retreats to her starting position.

Raot clutches his neck and groans. Trauk looks stunned and gathers himself
for an attack.

"She's been well trained. Watch out."

Trauk flings his arms up and bright blue flames burst out of his hands
barreling down the hallway heading straight towards Lucile. She quickly
crosses her arms in front of her and the flames die out. Raot whose neck
has healed quickly, gains his composure and grabs his throwing daggers. He
launces five in quick succession. She dodges the first three, but the last
two impale her upper left arm. Blood spurts out rhythmically and stains the
walls. Lucile quikcly covers the wound with her right hand closes her eyes
and whispers a few words.

"Nice, she's giving us a go, isn't she?" Trauk readies himself for a last
attack. Raot falls into step behind beside him.

"You might have stood a chance if you were facing footsoldiers, woman. But
we're commanders and have trained for far longer than you've been alive."

They advance rapidly and Lucile uses the last of her remaining strength to
conjure a lightning ball. Trauk unsheathes his broadsword and flings it at
her stomach. As it embeds itself in her bowel the lightning bolt brusts and
electrifies the whole first floor. Trauk and Raot fall to the floor writing
in pain. Lucile's cropse hits the floorboards with a dull thud and lies
still, her eyes filled with a glassy gaze on the basement door.

Blood pools silently beneath her.

A few minutes pass filled with deathly silence and the sporadic creaking of
the house. Trauk is the first to regain consiousness. He checks the
surroundings to see if there was anyone else in the house.

"We need to finish this before dawn." He manages to croak out. He kicks
Raot, "Get up!"

Trauk grabs Lucile by her braid, pulls out his broadsword and tosses her
aside. He studies the door and begins the counter ward.

"She was good, old and weak, but good." Trauk exhales, "This might take
awhile."

Raot pulls himself upright and sniffs the air. He looks around and frowns.

"Trauk wait, I don't smell them anymore."

"Don't be fooled. She added concealment elements to the ward."

A deep crimson glow emenates from Trauk's arms and hands and spills out on
the floor like a pulsing fog. It gathers around the basement door and seeps
inside.

"There we go. Now lets get started."

The door flings open and golden flames lick out engulfing both of
them. They stumble back in pain and shock. Three figures emerge from the
basement.

"Orien, we can't fight them." A blondhaired girl says flicking her hair
back.

"I know Amara, but we can slow them enough for the rest to reach
Ranvir. Good concussion flames by the way." He replies eyeing the stumbling
creatures. "Thiem can you blind them?"

The silent thrid child gazes at Trauk and Raot. He looks crippled by fear
but puts on a brave face. His delicate eyes are pure darkness and hair
glows white in the darkened hallway.

"I believe so."

His slim frame dips low and he raises his hands at the monsters and utters
a single word.

"Darkness."

As Trauk and Raot were about to return fire they went blind. The woman had
taught the children some spells, Trauk thought. Pity they had to
die. Especially the white haired one.

"Very good, children. But not good enough." Trauk rumbles and moves his
hands to his eyes.

He touches his eyelids and opens them suddenly Amara's body rises into the
air and starts seizing up. Orien jumps in front of her and a rapid series
of blue energy blasts fly out of his chest heading straight towards the
creatures. On contact they freeze the creatures.

The house is silent and the teens stare at each other. Suddenly both Trauk
and Raot begin the move. Amara screams and she's is ripped apart, her torso
is flung backwards hitting the far wall. As Orien's mouth opens to scream
he is silenced with a single green beam through his forehead.

"No underestimating this time." Raot states simply. Both creatures turn to
the whispy boy left standing.

"He looks young, Trauk. He looks delicious. It looks like we will have
share tonight. "

"Oh yes, I will have him first." Trauk grins.

Thiem realizes that it's too late and he can't do anything to save
himself. He hopes that the others made it to the commander. As Trauk raises
his left hand Thiem is lifted off the floor and his clothes disintegrate
from his body leaving his young nude form prone to the monsters. Raot looks
down into the basement and finds it empty. He roars in anger and sets his
sights on Thiem. Thiem tries to muster a counter spell for protection, but
he can't move a muscle. The creatures cackle and jeer at him. A single tear
runs down his cheek and Trauk licks it off. Trauk and Raot's clothes
disintegrate as well and as the boy's gaze inadvertantly falls downwards
his whole body tenses and he starts weeping. Trauk leans over his left
shoulder and whispers.

"Your ours now..."

			=================================================

Out of breath Ranvir stumbles through the doorway. The sight that greets
his eyes cause him to rect violently. The corpse of his good friend's
daughter in a pool of blood. Two beautiful children and promising young
fighters dead next to her and finally...

He races to Thiem's side. The boy tried to crawl toward the door but
couldn't manage. He's barely alive. Blood as well as something else is
seeping out of his anus. The stench is unbearable. He is bruised all over
his pale skin and his eyes are so swollen that Ranvir cannot even see
them. As he touches the boy, Thiem convulses and yelps out loud. Groaning
the boy tries to crawl away from the source of the touching.

"It's me, Thiem. It's Ranvir. You're safe now." Ranvir clutches the boy
tightly and starts weeping. Why hadn't he stayed with Lucile that night?
Why didn't he and his wife come over and help? Though in his heart he knows
that his presence wouldn't have made a diference. If Lucile coudn't handle
this what chance did an eighty five cycle old man have?

Dawn breaks in the horizon and Thiem's body fills with life. He immediately
starts breathing normally and Ranvir backs off in shock. He had only ever
seen this once before. Thiem's body is surrounded by an orange glow. The
swelling on his eyes reduces and he opens them for a brief second. Just
enough that Ranvir sees that a golden hue has replaced the boy's once pitch
black irisses.


To be continued