Into the Dark

[Atelos]

Atelos got up, his mind hazy and his vision blurred. A pale figure extended his hand, most likely Shang Tsung. The details of the man’s face remained a mystery beyond the pale complexion and the dark, coarse hair. As Atelos got onto his feet, both men stumbled around, trying to find some sort of balance. Atelos reached towards the back of his shoulder blade and ripped one of the drow’s venom coated daggers and let it fall to the ground. The poison coursed through his body, making time seem to slow and his body not responsive. He reached out his hand, and grabbed onto the Sorcerer’s shoulder before speaking with a horrible slur.

“Sorcer’ is that you?” The words came very slowly to him and he had some trouble speaking. “I think...I think that’s the last of em’. Can we find where they came from?” He raised his hand to clutch his forehead as a sharp pain ran through his brain as if some animal was clawing at it.

Shang Tsung moved Atelos’ hand off of his shoulder before stepping forward and inspecting the trodden dirt. Shang’s style of speech seemed nowhere near as impaired as Atelos’, “I had no idea you were such a lightweight Captain.” A sly smirk rose to his face, but not long after he clutched his own head in pain. The drow’s poison began to seep into his brain, a cluster of headaches began to fire off in his brain, drowning out  the sorcerer’s tracking ability.

A pained smile came to the Spartan’s face. He thought for a minute trying to come up with a clever retort, but his already slow wit was impaired. “Well Shang?”  Shang looked up at the Spartan before shaking his head sullenly.

“I can’t seem to focus right now. We’ll have to see if we can track it in the morning. We should go catch up with the recruits.” The sun was beginning to kiss the horizon, flowing beautiful shades of purple and orange in the sky. This beauty was rather bittersweet as night in the Moors were especially dangerous. Atelos nodded at Shang before beginning to head out of the woods to meet with the recruits.

The squad of recruits sighed a breath of relief once they saw the two primes exit the forest relatively unharmed. The group rushed to the Prime Duo and Atelos’ knees buckled as they caught up to them. The recruits let out a concerned gasp before Shang could explain the situation. “Drow Poison. Nasty stuff but we’ll get over it by morning. Come with me, let’s gather some firewood for the night.”

The recruits’ faced paled at the idea of sleeping outside of the city. Recruit Lopez spoke up against the Triumvir, “Sir but what about the monsters that come out after dark.” Her voice quivered in fear, reflecting the other recruits legs. The stabbing pain in the Sorcerer’s head left him little room for patience, “Atelos and I are Defenders of Darkshire and will protect you. Even in these states you have little to worry about. Come get firewood with me, it will get dark soon.” His voice had a little tone of annoyance before he headed off, leaving Atelos to his own devices.

The Spartan lifted his heavy arms off the ground in an attempt to pull himself up but everything in his body felt lethargic. His eyelids dropped for a mere moment, with every blink everything felt more tired until he fell asleep.

Atelos’ eyelids fluttered open as he say Shang and the rest the recruits sitting next to an open fire. The recruits eyes were wide with fear as the lived on the edge, while Shang looked passive and groggy. The Spartan lifted his torso up, rubbing his head, as he felt a pulsing sensation pound through his head.

“Glad you’re back with us Spartan.” The sorcerer’s voice scratched Atelos’ eardrums. The Spartan lethargically got up from his seat and sat next to the sorcerer. The warm crackle of the fire brought a smile onto his face.

“You all must be tired after looking over me. I can take watch.” The sorcerer gave him a swift nod before heading over the the area Atelos had taken his nap. The recruits attempted to fight off the sandman, but constant fear and stress is tiresome. With all of their backs against one another, one by one, they winked out of consciousness.

The Spartan sat by the warmth of the fire, the bronze shield laid down by his side. Hours went by with no interruption, his yawning became more and more frequent. His senses weren’t as alert, but the pounding migraine was slowly becoming a thing of the past. A cold metal was placed against his throat before a gritty voice whispered.

“You killed my brethren Dh’ione. Now it’s time for you to watch your’s die.” Black shadows loomed and tiptoed to the other sleeping group members, unsheathing their poison tipped daggers.

Without pause, Atelos launched his helmeted head back into the Drow’s face, the dragger slicing the upper part of his neck, missing his jugular. The drow fell back onto his ass and Atelos turned to grab his shield. Habit took over as he let a spear form in his hand, “Spartans!” he shouted as he jumped, thrusting his spear into a drow’s throat. With a jolt, everyone was awake and immediately was thrust into battle. The sneaking drow no longer cared for stealth and the recruits and Shang rushed to defend themselves. A drow was overhead Shang as he awakened, the poisoned dagger plunging into the sorcerer’s stomach. Two long blades unsheathed from the sorcerer’s arms and he deflected the blow. He immediately jumped onto his feet, getting into an offensive stance, preparing to slice the drow up. The recruits managed to defend themselves quite well, rushing for their shields and got into formation. A few drow tried to penetrate the squadron, but were thwarted by their excellent positions. The drow would strike, be blocked by the large shields, and the recruits behind the front line would make an offensive strike. Atelos felt a bit of pride as he looked at the recruits, before ripping the spear out of the drow.

The drow Shang was facing took a more evasive stance, attempting to avoid every blow the Sorcerer threw at him. The drow let a sly smirk crawl onto his face before the Sorcerer had decided he had enough. Shang raised a leg and let out a cry, a flaming skull erupting out of his hands and colliding with the drow. The drow that had threatened Atelos had jumped onto his back, stabbing his stomach with the poisoned blade. Atelos arched back, forcing the drow to collide with the ground. Atelos turned himself over on top of the drow and brought the spear up ready to plunge into the drow’s chest.

“Wait.” Shang spoke with conviction. “These drow never stop coming. We need this one for information.” Atelos nodded his head and dropped his spear to the ground, still sitting on the drow, immobilizing him. The drow looked up with hatred and spat in Atelos’ face.

“Death before dishonor!” His voice was coated with venom. Atelos’ breathing became deeper and slower. His neck jolting in both directions, letting out disturbingly loud cracks of his vertebrae. He eyes began to gloss over and his body language changed.

“We can arrange both.” The Spartan’s voice shifted half an octave up and he had a creepy smile on his face. Atelos shifted into a better position and grabbed the drow’s hand. Without any words nor hesitation he snapped the drow’s fingers one by one until the all of the digit’s on the drow’s hand were broken. The drow’s screams of pain and mercy fell upon deaf ears and the Spartan happily giggled during the process.

“Now let’s see if you’re a little more talkative.” Atelos tilted his head a little before speaking again. “I sure hope not. This is the most fun I’ve had in ages.