Of Ice, Death & Monsters

I looked outside the cave alongside Carey, Robert, Katya, and Andrei. All of us found ourselves staring at the outskirts of the forest, where I can only assume our newest party member, Rodion, came from.

We could hear a low growl and an angry hum in the air grew closer. Katya took charge as she gathered us all. “We hide; don’t bother trying to outrun it; none of you can. Try to distract it as much as possible. Work together as much as possible and only split up if you know where to go.”

Well, we tried to listen, or I did, but her words kind of drowned out in my mind when I saw the horrific beast that strayed out of the forest: a towering monster that looked like an oversized Minotaur.

On its head, instead of any bull-like horns, there were antlers caked in blood that came from its currently impaled victims. Their bodies splayed out like a sacrifice upon an altar. I could feel myself almost throwing up. I wanted to close my eyes, but every time I blinked, I could only imagine myself on those horns instead.

“Hey hey! Don’t doze off now! We have to go!” Katya slapped me awake as I took in a deep breath.

Carey turned back to the cave. “Why don’t we just hide there? I don’t think it can see us just yet.”

“Because the Bes isn’t the only thing we have to worry about.” Rodion then turned to the approaching force behind the cave, which was three hooded figures with ivory masks upon their faces. All of them were menacingly walking towards us.

Katya stood between us and the robed men, carefully drawing upon a shadowy spear. “Not another step closer or do you wish to be skewered?”

“Do you yourselves wish to be gorged? We hope not, for we offer a fate much kinder than the aches of the wilderness, oh, Keeper. Your ancestors have tainted this land; this is only retribution. But, you are not your ancestors, it does not have to be this way.”

All of them raised their hands as small balls of fire erupted from their palms. “Allow us to help, in exchange for-”

“We will not grant you the travelers.”

Robert turned to Katya, frowning as he shook his head. “What’s so wrong with them? They can’t possibly be worse than…” He looked at the giant monster that was slowly sniffing them out.

“That…”

Andrei took out a shortsword, raising it up defensively. “They are so much worse than that thing. Whatever happens now… don’t trust them…”

“Ah, what a shame. I thought we could do this peacefully. But alas, much like your ancestors, there seems to be no other way you desire to act aside from… conflict.” They sighed and unsheathed ritual daggers as Andrei, Katya, and Rodion stepped forward.

The Bes, however, was not to be ignored; sensing conflict brewing, it narrowed its eyes toward the rest of us, letting out a terrible roar and charging straight ahead.

I didn’t know what to do… I don’t think anyone knew what to do. The next few memories came by like such a blur. Flight, fly, or freeze? It felt like we somehow did all three at the same time.

Instinctively, I froze, then dropped to the floor like a brick as if I were trying to look for cover. Carey jumped out of the way and into the side of the cave as Robert ran straight ahead, trying to get as far as possible.

The Descendants raised their hands into the air, back-stepping as they fired blasts of flames upwards. Immediately, the Keepers all dove to the side as the Bes charged towards them, antlers down as it tried to gore anyway, so unlucky enough to be in their way.

It moved so fast, like a charging rhino. I felt its heavy steps as it nearly crushed me; luckily. However, I came out relatively unscathed however…

“Stop running! It’s drawn to movement!” Katya shouted out to Robert as he got away, but it was already too late. The Bes continued its charge, and even with the Keepers trying to race towards the beast, and even the Descendants firing blasts of flames towards its hide, nothing impeded the rage of the monster as it impaled the poor man on its antlers.

His screams were deafening. I could hear how they echoed throughout the shoreline. I don’t know how to explain it… But I felt it. I felt his death, I felt his pain, his agony. My whole body cringed as I shook, trying to get the image of Robert’s face, contorted in his own misery, out of my head.

The Bes reveled in its kill, drinking the blood of its victim as it roared in triumph. Everyone watched, unable to take their eyes off such a harrowing sight.

My mind was a whirlwind. I kept on hearing ‘Why me? Why me?’ Why me indeed? Why am I hearing this? Why am I suffering? I just wanted to give money to my family… wait, no. I don’t want to do that, I don’t even keep in contact with my family anymore. Why did I think that?

Why did I feel like I just failed them then? Why do I have such a pain in my chest? What was happening to me? I looked up, as if I could find answers in reality and not in my mind. There, I saw the remaining Keepers snarl at the Descendants as if they were wild beasts.

“You bastards!” Andrei called out as he charged with his short sword towards one of them, cleaving downwards, aiming directly at the head of the Descendant right before him.

“This was your fault! None of you should have been here!” He gathered up threads of shadow and shot them outwards like throwing needles, but none of them found their mark as the Descendant burnt them away with their flames.

“If you would have accepted then we could have found a way to save them all.” Another one answered as they lunged towards Andrei, yet were blocked by Katya’s spear, sending them flying back into the shoreline.

“Death is much more preferable compared to your ways!”

“Then, death, is what we shall grant you. We shall take care of the travelers in your absence.”

One of them threw a dagger at Rodion, who easily deflected it with a swing of their sword. But it was merely a distraction as they rolled over to where I was lying, grabbing me by my shirt with their inhuman strength and throwing me to their side.

“The other one is in the cave. Get her.” They nodded to one another, but Katya grabbed at her shadowy bosom, throwing bits of darkness on the floor before they rose up like flames.

“You shall not pass.”

The Descendant was about to fire off another gout of flames, but the Bes reared its ugly head yet again. It got on all fours and charged directly to the middle of the group. Once more, they all jumped to the side as it broke through the shadowy barbs on the ground, roaring in pain as it stumbled away.

Rodion moved quickly, running towards the cave to protect Carey as Andrei and Katya were left alone to fend against the remaining three Descendants. However, one of the robed men tried to chase after Rodion, swiftly dashing to the cave, but not before Katya thrust her spear into their thigh, drawing blood as they fell over.

But such a small victory in the heat of the moment was just that, only small. The Bes turned around again, I could swear it was literally fuming with rage as it let out a bellowing roar, smashing the ground all around it, upheaving the earth. Katya jumped away in time, trying to grab me, but she was tackled by one of the Descendants.

However, Andrei’s footing was shaken as he fell beside the fallen Descendant, who took out their dagger and shoved it right into his stomach, twisting it as he screamed, but the robed man covered the Keeper’s mouth with his hand before its palm burst into flames, muffling his scream. Unable to fight back, his eyes slowly dulled, his body slowly jerking until he breathed in one last time, slumping over dead.

Katya was now fighting off against the remaining two Descendants still standing after she managed to kick one off her, twirling her spear as she parried each one of their blows while dodging their bolts of fire.

I was still there by the shore, staring up into the sky. I didn’t know what to do, I didn’t know what I wanted to do. I just wanted to live… I just wanted to run away. Maybe… Maybe I can run… Maybe I can make it out of this crazy place.

I tried to stand up, but my legs were frozen in fear. I looked around, trying to find anything to help. But that’s when I made eye contact with the beast. I stared at it and it stared back at me. There was a hunger in its eyes, like a man who has gone without a meal for weeks. I pleaded with it, or well, as much pleading as one can do with just their eyes.

But that was all I could do and all I could hope for as the Bes charged once more, this time, toward me. Katya lunged towards it, but her path was blocked by the Descendants, and so the monster found its next prey, its next victim: me.

It opened its maw, and its saliva dripped across my body as it bit my abdomen, crushing my ribs and puncturing my lungs. I screamed, but only blood came out of my mouth. It was… so painful, between this and burning alive, I didn’t know what was worse.

It didn’t feel quick at all as I felt my whole body under the weights of its jaw, eating me alive until I felt myself slipping, my vision cloudy, became black, and I felt nothing more.

'Why… why… not like this… I had so much to do.'

'I have to redeem myself…'

'I have to find a way to escape…'

'I need to protect the others!'

So many voices roused within me, were they mine? I didn’t know. They all sounded like me, but each one rang with a different mixing memory, each one endlessly sounded off against the other until I opened my eyes once more.

My body was racked in pain, but it was also covered in those strange, shadowy stitches that were on the Keepers; they protruded outwards, impaling the mouth of the Bes as it roared in agony, spitting me out on the earth.

Instinctively, I stomped my foot on the ground and raised my hand upwards, creating a massive earthen wall that slammed into the Bes’s jaw, causing it to stumble backward. Then, I grabbed the shadowy stitches on my body, and like Katya before me, I threw it in front of the Bes as it exploded like flames, manifesting sharp tendrils that impaled the beast's body many times over.

The Descendants and Katya stared at me, the former... And I could feel the Descendants' smile, but the latter had a confused look on her face. “What… you were dead?”

I didn’t have the answer for the how and why, but we also didn’t have the time. The Bes was about to regain its senses, but that’s when we noticed its feet were wrapped in vines, causing it to stagger and nearly fall.

We turned to stare at the cave, finding Rodion and Carey, the latter of whom made a vine motion with her hands. “G-Guess I have one now?”

Then, several shadowy needles were flung straight towards the remaining Descendant's body, causing them to jump backward, as from the forest, Matthias and Godwin stood beside two other Keepers whom I feel like I knew, all of them waving towards the lot of us, yelling one word.

“Hurry!”

And thus, we all ran towards them as fast as we possibly could.