08-10-2016, 04:38 AM
Justin and Gabriel had tended to Goku’s wounds as best they could. Neither were physicians, but Justin had once read a book on physiology and Gabriel had a working knowledge of battlefield medicine. Enough, they hoped, to help the downed warrior fight against the damage inflicted upon him. The holes piercing his flesh were strangely reluctant to close, and he had lost an awful lot of blood.
His pain was obvious. His muscular frame twitched and struggled, his eyes squeezed shut tight as needles were inexpertly applied to sew shut the wounds, and bandages wrapped tight around his body. It took the other four guards to hold him down as the ‘medicine’ was applied, and when it was finally over, the saiyan warrior was left to whimper in his sleep as his body tried to repair itself from the grievous wounds it had sustained.
Goku drifted in a world of pain and darkness. The external injuries were gruesome enough, but he could feel the deeper core of them. The monstrous being hadn’t just been trying to stab him; it had been attempting to rip out his bones for its own use! He’d fought some pretty strange and powerful enemies in his time, but he’d never come across anything quite as disturbing as that.
He was vaguely aware that he was being moved, supported by someone, but he couldn’t bring himself to open his eyes. The pain was excruciating, and every step made it worse. He tried, instead, to block out the pain by trying to meditate. This… was not something that came naturally to Goku, his mind a constant whirl of unfocused thoughts, but he did his best. If he could just block out the pain, that would at least help his body rest…
There was another unfamiliar power inside him, though. As his mind turned inwards he felt the Omnilium inside him. He’d used it to make clothing, but there was a sense that it could help him here, too. He couldn’t verbalise how he knew it, but he could feel the energy yearning to give him what he wanted – and right now, he really, really wanted to stop being in pain, because every moment was pure agony.
Suddenly, he felt his body impact the earth, and he let out a high-pitched squeal before the darkness rushed in to encompass him completely.
Gabriel looked startled at the rather, undignified, scream that Goku gave when he was dropped down to the ground. Night was encroaching once again, and they would have been foolish to continue the journey when the truly horrifying monsters of the Pale Moors were free to walk the verse as they wished.
They had managed to find a cave, a small hovel in which there was only a pair of enormous centipedes to deal with. They might not have been able to deal with the horde of zombies or the Shepherd of Bone themselves, but damnit, they were still proud warriors of the Kingdom and they weren’t going to be killed by mere insects. He had posted most of the remaining men at the front of the cave to watch it and ensure that they were warned before any others made their approach, and now sat watching over Goku with Justin.
The astronomer was not a difficult man to read; the wide-eyed horror he had for the damage inflicted upon the warrior spoke volumes.
“He’ll survive.” Gabriel attempted to reassure the man, “He’s strong, he’ll be back on his feet in a few days.”
“Do you think we can wait that long?”
Gabriel looked back towards the mouth of the cave, barely able to make out anything at all in the darkness, but he could see his men. The few remaining from the expedition.
“I think that if we don’t have him with us, we’ll lose more people. We can’t afford to lose many more before I won’t be able to keep you safe any longer.”
The astronomer sucked his teeth at that, and there was a long sigh as he nodded his head.
“Besides, he helped us greatly. We can’t leave him to perish in this damned place.”
Gabriel clapped the man on the shoulder.
“Do not lose hope.” He advised, “We’ll come through this, I am certain of it.”
Goku tossed and turned throughout the night, and in the morning his bandages were soaked through with blood where the amateurish sewing had failed to match up to the task of holding him together. Gabriel had not slept a wink all night, but blessedly their decision to make do in a cave far from the beaten track had done them good; there was no trouble all night, though the guards posted at the cave entrance had several times heard disturbing noises coming from without. If it were merely disquieting sounds which bothered them from here on out, Gabriel would be very pleased indeed.
The bandages were removed, the injuries swabbed, and new stitching applied. It was during this process that Gabriel took a momentous decision. One which he knew the astronomer would not approve of.
Rising from next to his wounded comrade, Gabriel shrugged his pack back onto his shoulder, and secured his weapon at his hip. “Juliet.” He said, “You stay here with Justin and Goku. Darius, Fenchurch, Johan and Rosalia, you form up with me.”
Justin looked genuinely startled at this announcement. “What do you mean? Where are you going, Captain?”
“We can’t travel like this any longer. If your calculations are correct, we are traveling parallel to a road. I will secure us worthier means of transportation.”
Gabriel’s expression brooked no further protest, and Justin thought it wiser to defer to his friend’s judgement than continue to question it. There were good reasons why they had decided to forego use of the roads, but with Goku in his injured state he could see the logic in taking the risk – at least for the duration of the saiyan warrior’s recovery.
“As you say.” The astronomer yielded, dipping his head to the Captain. “But, please, do be quick about it. If we are set upon it will hardly be troublesome to take from us and, well, try not to get gouged on the price? These folk are untrusting of outsiders.”
The Captain smiled thinly. “Of course, Justin. Don’t you worry. We’ll be back before you know it.”
They said that the Pale Moors were not simply full of monsters, but turned those who spent too much time there into monsters themselves. It was a rumour that Gabriel had never paid much heed to, but as he and his men stood in the middle of the road, it was something that he suddenly understood all too well.
The sun offered some scant protection from the worst elements of the Moors, but even its light was dim that gloomy morning, as though the celestial body itself were loath to bear witness to the crime that was surely going to take place here. It was all too easy to see what was going to play out on this little spit of packed earth, and Gabriel hated himself for it. But he had a duty to attend to, and it was a duty which he needed to take seriously.
The first two travellers were unsuitable. An old woman and her grandson heading to Darkshire for supplies for their ratty little village. They looked upon the armed and armoured men with well-deserved suspicion, but made no complaint when the men parted to let them through.
The second was a lone man on a fine black steed. His plague doctor mask showed no sign of even recognising the existence of those who had stood in his way, as the Captain was quick to usher his increasingly-uncomfortable men to the side of the road to let the strange man past. It was better not to question such things in this dark and terrible place.
The third, finally, was suitable. A covered wagon pulled by a pair of sturdy and dour horses. Gabriel nodded to his fellows and they formed up to block the path.
The merchant who was running the wagon was fat and unkempt, wearing rags more befitting to a peasant than a man of wealth. The wagon itself was filled with boxes, and he had with him a pair of guards of his own – men of the sort that Gabriel knew all too well. They were rough and ready souls, no doubt mercenary sellswords looking to make some coin protecting the weak from others of their kind.
“Hail and well met.” Gabriel said, his voice loud and clear.
The merchant looked upon him with a scrutinizing eye.
“You ain’t Darkshire lads.” He said, “What’re you doin’ blockin’ my way? Move your arses or I’ll have the lads move them for you.”
Gabriel steeled himself, and shook his head in turn.
“I have need of your wagon, good Sir, and all its contents. I am prepared to offer you ten gold crowns for the lot.”
The merchant laughed uproariously, and his ‘companions’ snickered to themselves as well.
“From the Kingdom are you?” He asked as he stopped laughing. “What good would Kingdom gold do a man like me, eh? And even if it did, the wagon alone is worth more’n that. Get out of my way. Now.”
Gabriel’s hand grasped the hilt of his sword, and he pulled the weapon free. Even in the gloomy half-light of a Pale Moors morning, the weapon gleamed like silvered death, and the sellswords were quick to produce their own weapons; the one on the left a thick cudgel, the one on the right a brutal-looking axe.
“I apologise, Sir.” Gabriel said, calmly as he could, “But this is a matter of grave importance. I have offered you all the money I have. If that is not enough, I shall be forced to take what I require.”
The mercenaries were outnumbered, but they were being paid to do a job. The Merchant’s features twisted into a grimace of pure hatred, and he pulled from beneath his seat a well-oiled crossbow. The bolt streaked towards Captain Gabriel as the two mercenaries rushed forwards.
Gabriel reacted with startling speed, his blade cut the bolt clean in two. In the same instant, the mercenaries met the Guards and discovered what it was to face off against men who fought for more than mere money.
Goku no longer tossed and turned in his slumber, which Justin took to be a good sign. The man’s bones had made some alarming clicking noises a few hours hence, but since then he seemed to have settled into a true sleep. His face was placid, his body still, though his chest rose and fell at regular intervals and his heart – from what Justin understood a very important part of the body all things considered – seemed to be beating strong and true.
“Do you think they’ll be much longer?” The astronomer asked his one remaining guard. “Only, we really do still have a very long way to go, we can’t afford to fall behind, I’m certain others will have noticed by now.”
Juliet had seen the expression on her Captain’s face before, though she dearly wished that she had not. She knew just what it meant, and she was pleased that she was not going to have any part in it. The astronomer’s babble annoyed her, though.
“You should know better than to worry about Gabriel.” She said, “He’ll do what is necessary and he’ll be back here before you know it.”
Justin blinked at the sudden, sharp rebuke. “Well, yes, of course.” He said, “The Captain has always done his best, I’ve no doubt about that, I just meant that I would feel much better if we were on the move again.”
As though summoned by the mention of his name, Gabriel’s voice suddenly rang out through the cave.
“I’m back. Come along, you two.”
It wasn’t possible to bring the wagon to the cave, and manhandling Goku across the uneven terrain was an unpleasant challenge. Soon, though, they were safely back with the wagon. Crates filled with food and drink – most of it of questionable heritage – made sturdy enough seating, and the saiyan could be laid out easily enough across the back of them.
Justin remained in the back, with Gabriel and Juliet driving the coach forwards. The horses were entirely unperturbed by their sudden change in Master, and with a ‘HYAH!’ the beasts trotted along the road, pulling the cart with them.
Travel would be slower by this means, but it was at least less exhausting – and whilst there would no doubt be dangers to be encountered on the road, off the beaten path had not been any better.
But Gabriel would always carry the knowledge of what he had done with him. Juliet could see the weight of it pressing down on the man’s shoulders, his noble features just a little more drawn and wan. Juliet’s hand grasped his own and squeezed, trying to offer what support she could.
By the side of the road, the Pale Moors hungrily accepted another offering. Three shallow graves, a good man forced to sin. Fresh, sweet blood to nourish the grave dirt.
Far away from the travellers, in a place devoid of any light, a finger trailed over a watery pool. They had been scrying for a very long time, but it wasn’t until now – when darkness called to darkness – that they had finally found what they were looking for. Though none of the group could hear it, three words were whispered which ought to have sent shivers down their spines, if only they could have known it:
“Send, the Sisters.”
His pain was obvious. His muscular frame twitched and struggled, his eyes squeezed shut tight as needles were inexpertly applied to sew shut the wounds, and bandages wrapped tight around his body. It took the other four guards to hold him down as the ‘medicine’ was applied, and when it was finally over, the saiyan warrior was left to whimper in his sleep as his body tried to repair itself from the grievous wounds it had sustained.
Goku drifted in a world of pain and darkness. The external injuries were gruesome enough, but he could feel the deeper core of them. The monstrous being hadn’t just been trying to stab him; it had been attempting to rip out his bones for its own use! He’d fought some pretty strange and powerful enemies in his time, but he’d never come across anything quite as disturbing as that.
He was vaguely aware that he was being moved, supported by someone, but he couldn’t bring himself to open his eyes. The pain was excruciating, and every step made it worse. He tried, instead, to block out the pain by trying to meditate. This… was not something that came naturally to Goku, his mind a constant whirl of unfocused thoughts, but he did his best. If he could just block out the pain, that would at least help his body rest…
There was another unfamiliar power inside him, though. As his mind turned inwards he felt the Omnilium inside him. He’d used it to make clothing, but there was a sense that it could help him here, too. He couldn’t verbalise how he knew it, but he could feel the energy yearning to give him what he wanted – and right now, he really, really wanted to stop being in pain, because every moment was pure agony.
Suddenly, he felt his body impact the earth, and he let out a high-pitched squeal before the darkness rushed in to encompass him completely.
Gabriel looked startled at the rather, undignified, scream that Goku gave when he was dropped down to the ground. Night was encroaching once again, and they would have been foolish to continue the journey when the truly horrifying monsters of the Pale Moors were free to walk the verse as they wished.
They had managed to find a cave, a small hovel in which there was only a pair of enormous centipedes to deal with. They might not have been able to deal with the horde of zombies or the Shepherd of Bone themselves, but damnit, they were still proud warriors of the Kingdom and they weren’t going to be killed by mere insects. He had posted most of the remaining men at the front of the cave to watch it and ensure that they were warned before any others made their approach, and now sat watching over Goku with Justin.
The astronomer was not a difficult man to read; the wide-eyed horror he had for the damage inflicted upon the warrior spoke volumes.
“He’ll survive.” Gabriel attempted to reassure the man, “He’s strong, he’ll be back on his feet in a few days.”
“Do you think we can wait that long?”
Gabriel looked back towards the mouth of the cave, barely able to make out anything at all in the darkness, but he could see his men. The few remaining from the expedition.
“I think that if we don’t have him with us, we’ll lose more people. We can’t afford to lose many more before I won’t be able to keep you safe any longer.”
The astronomer sucked his teeth at that, and there was a long sigh as he nodded his head.
“Besides, he helped us greatly. We can’t leave him to perish in this damned place.”
Gabriel clapped the man on the shoulder.
“Do not lose hope.” He advised, “We’ll come through this, I am certain of it.”
Goku tossed and turned throughout the night, and in the morning his bandages were soaked through with blood where the amateurish sewing had failed to match up to the task of holding him together. Gabriel had not slept a wink all night, but blessedly their decision to make do in a cave far from the beaten track had done them good; there was no trouble all night, though the guards posted at the cave entrance had several times heard disturbing noises coming from without. If it were merely disquieting sounds which bothered them from here on out, Gabriel would be very pleased indeed.
The bandages were removed, the injuries swabbed, and new stitching applied. It was during this process that Gabriel took a momentous decision. One which he knew the astronomer would not approve of.
Rising from next to his wounded comrade, Gabriel shrugged his pack back onto his shoulder, and secured his weapon at his hip. “Juliet.” He said, “You stay here with Justin and Goku. Darius, Fenchurch, Johan and Rosalia, you form up with me.”
Justin looked genuinely startled at this announcement. “What do you mean? Where are you going, Captain?”
“We can’t travel like this any longer. If your calculations are correct, we are traveling parallel to a road. I will secure us worthier means of transportation.”
Gabriel’s expression brooked no further protest, and Justin thought it wiser to defer to his friend’s judgement than continue to question it. There were good reasons why they had decided to forego use of the roads, but with Goku in his injured state he could see the logic in taking the risk – at least for the duration of the saiyan warrior’s recovery.
“As you say.” The astronomer yielded, dipping his head to the Captain. “But, please, do be quick about it. If we are set upon it will hardly be troublesome to take from us and, well, try not to get gouged on the price? These folk are untrusting of outsiders.”
The Captain smiled thinly. “Of course, Justin. Don’t you worry. We’ll be back before you know it.”
They said that the Pale Moors were not simply full of monsters, but turned those who spent too much time there into monsters themselves. It was a rumour that Gabriel had never paid much heed to, but as he and his men stood in the middle of the road, it was something that he suddenly understood all too well.
The sun offered some scant protection from the worst elements of the Moors, but even its light was dim that gloomy morning, as though the celestial body itself were loath to bear witness to the crime that was surely going to take place here. It was all too easy to see what was going to play out on this little spit of packed earth, and Gabriel hated himself for it. But he had a duty to attend to, and it was a duty which he needed to take seriously.
The first two travellers were unsuitable. An old woman and her grandson heading to Darkshire for supplies for their ratty little village. They looked upon the armed and armoured men with well-deserved suspicion, but made no complaint when the men parted to let them through.
The second was a lone man on a fine black steed. His plague doctor mask showed no sign of even recognising the existence of those who had stood in his way, as the Captain was quick to usher his increasingly-uncomfortable men to the side of the road to let the strange man past. It was better not to question such things in this dark and terrible place.
The third, finally, was suitable. A covered wagon pulled by a pair of sturdy and dour horses. Gabriel nodded to his fellows and they formed up to block the path.
The merchant who was running the wagon was fat and unkempt, wearing rags more befitting to a peasant than a man of wealth. The wagon itself was filled with boxes, and he had with him a pair of guards of his own – men of the sort that Gabriel knew all too well. They were rough and ready souls, no doubt mercenary sellswords looking to make some coin protecting the weak from others of their kind.
“Hail and well met.” Gabriel said, his voice loud and clear.
The merchant looked upon him with a scrutinizing eye.
“You ain’t Darkshire lads.” He said, “What’re you doin’ blockin’ my way? Move your arses or I’ll have the lads move them for you.”
Gabriel steeled himself, and shook his head in turn.
“I have need of your wagon, good Sir, and all its contents. I am prepared to offer you ten gold crowns for the lot.”
The merchant laughed uproariously, and his ‘companions’ snickered to themselves as well.
“From the Kingdom are you?” He asked as he stopped laughing. “What good would Kingdom gold do a man like me, eh? And even if it did, the wagon alone is worth more’n that. Get out of my way. Now.”
Gabriel’s hand grasped the hilt of his sword, and he pulled the weapon free. Even in the gloomy half-light of a Pale Moors morning, the weapon gleamed like silvered death, and the sellswords were quick to produce their own weapons; the one on the left a thick cudgel, the one on the right a brutal-looking axe.
“I apologise, Sir.” Gabriel said, calmly as he could, “But this is a matter of grave importance. I have offered you all the money I have. If that is not enough, I shall be forced to take what I require.”
The mercenaries were outnumbered, but they were being paid to do a job. The Merchant’s features twisted into a grimace of pure hatred, and he pulled from beneath his seat a well-oiled crossbow. The bolt streaked towards Captain Gabriel as the two mercenaries rushed forwards.
Gabriel reacted with startling speed, his blade cut the bolt clean in two. In the same instant, the mercenaries met the Guards and discovered what it was to face off against men who fought for more than mere money.
Goku no longer tossed and turned in his slumber, which Justin took to be a good sign. The man’s bones had made some alarming clicking noises a few hours hence, but since then he seemed to have settled into a true sleep. His face was placid, his body still, though his chest rose and fell at regular intervals and his heart – from what Justin understood a very important part of the body all things considered – seemed to be beating strong and true.
“Do you think they’ll be much longer?” The astronomer asked his one remaining guard. “Only, we really do still have a very long way to go, we can’t afford to fall behind, I’m certain others will have noticed by now.”
Juliet had seen the expression on her Captain’s face before, though she dearly wished that she had not. She knew just what it meant, and she was pleased that she was not going to have any part in it. The astronomer’s babble annoyed her, though.
“You should know better than to worry about Gabriel.” She said, “He’ll do what is necessary and he’ll be back here before you know it.”
Justin blinked at the sudden, sharp rebuke. “Well, yes, of course.” He said, “The Captain has always done his best, I’ve no doubt about that, I just meant that I would feel much better if we were on the move again.”
As though summoned by the mention of his name, Gabriel’s voice suddenly rang out through the cave.
“I’m back. Come along, you two.”
It wasn’t possible to bring the wagon to the cave, and manhandling Goku across the uneven terrain was an unpleasant challenge. Soon, though, they were safely back with the wagon. Crates filled with food and drink – most of it of questionable heritage – made sturdy enough seating, and the saiyan could be laid out easily enough across the back of them.
Justin remained in the back, with Gabriel and Juliet driving the coach forwards. The horses were entirely unperturbed by their sudden change in Master, and with a ‘HYAH!’ the beasts trotted along the road, pulling the cart with them.
Travel would be slower by this means, but it was at least less exhausting – and whilst there would no doubt be dangers to be encountered on the road, off the beaten path had not been any better.
But Gabriel would always carry the knowledge of what he had done with him. Juliet could see the weight of it pressing down on the man’s shoulders, his noble features just a little more drawn and wan. Juliet’s hand grasped his own and squeezed, trying to offer what support she could.
By the side of the road, the Pale Moors hungrily accepted another offering. Three shallow graves, a good man forced to sin. Fresh, sweet blood to nourish the grave dirt.
Far away from the travellers, in a place devoid of any light, a finger trailed over a watery pool. They had been scrying for a very long time, but it wasn’t until now – when darkness called to darkness – that they had finally found what they were looking for. Though none of the group could hear it, three words were whispered which ought to have sent shivers down their spines, if only they could have known it:
“Send, the Sisters.”
![[Image: x1oIYhu.jpg]](http://i.imgur.com/x1oIYhu.jpg)