Fight 2
[Time remaining : 00:34:03]
Kale and Captain Hyun were finally dropped down onto the ground, one where they were sickeningly aware of its wriggling nature. They had arrived back in another meadow, maybe the same one where it had all began, but they had no way of telling.
Within sight they could see those that still remained, captured and tied up like themselves. Kale doubted that there were any survivors left after the goblins mad attacks and rampant hunting. Including himself and Captain Hyun there were only eight others and the soldier who was making noise on the floor.
"Let me go you bastards, I am going to…"
Before Brom could finish his sentence he stopped and thrashed around on the floor as a goblin stabbed the spear it held into Brom's arm, smiling as it twisted the spear and jumped on the spot, sending more shudders of pain through Brom's arm.
"ARGH"
His cries scared everyone and warned them to keep quiet as the Goblin Leader watched on in pleasure, it enjoyed the sounds these strange creatures made, it was a shame it wouldn't get to hear them for much longer.
Kale grunted as he tried to move his limbs but they had been tied tightly, he was slowly losing sensation in his hands and feet. Looking at the other captives nearly everyone sported injuries where they had been stabbed or clubbed, only a few lucky ones like Kale were in near enough one piece.
In the meadow Kale could see five crude wooden pillars spaced out and facing directly upwards, all surrounded by the goblin hordes that had hunted them…there were easily over a hundred if not more. How were they meant to survive this?
The goblin leader barked out commands in its harsh tongue as it pointed at five of the captives, turning around it stared at Kale and smiled menacingly. It would save that one for last, it wanted it to feel the fear of dying. The goblin leader wanted to savour the horror of this strange creature as it suffered, as it had enjoyed the horror of eating the young.
The other one captured with it hadn't earned the goblin leaders attention, it was already near death.
The goblins swarmed forwards at the goblins leaders commands and carried the five it had picked into the meadow, screaming and crying they struggled to resist but the goblins had no mercy. They were unceremoniously dumped by the wooden poles as one of the captives was released. The person they had released was Edward Wilson, a lawyer from the Reunited Nations, struggling as best he could Edward couldn't overpower the numerous greens hands that clawed at him, holding him in place against the wooden pole, snickering and nipping at his body with their teeth as they laughed.
With manic glee and excitement, one of the goblins drove a spear right through Edwards' legs as he screamed in pain, only to cry again as another was driven through the other leg. This was how they were to be secured to the poles, vines and strips of what Kale assumed to be skin were tied around the ends of both poles keeping the victim in place. Growing pale as he watched Kale grew scared as they impaled spears through the arms as well as the legs, leaving Edward stuck standing in pain as he cried aloud.
What had they done to earn this nightmare? Why did they have to suffer through such torture?
The goblin leader shrieked louder and louder as each person was submitted to this torture until it stopped shrieking. The goblin leader dropped its club, tossing it away easily as it walked out into the meadow with its green hands raised high. Its forehead pulsating and wriggling, the bulging maggot implanted into the goblin leaders head was beginning to move, stretching and twisting beneath the skin.
"Ka..le."
Looking over Kale saw Captain Hyun, barely concious as he struggled to stay awake, he looked like he was on his last breath.
"Stru…ggle… when they…release you. The… timer…"
His energy gone Captain Hyun sank back into unconsciousness as Kale checked the timer.
[Time remaining : 00:27:02]
Kale understood, it had taken the goblins time to set everything up for whatever it was they were planning, if they could drag out that time then they would have a chance of returning. There were only five poles and six people left, one person had a chance to make it.
Back in the meadow, the goblin leaders forehead split open further as the white maggot revealed itself, it extended up for metres from the goblin leaders head as it began to sway. The smaller goblins swayed in kind as they raised their hands and followed its actions as it let out an eerie shrill, one that was responded too in kind.
A deafening blast erupted in the sky, like that of a demonic ship come to port. Air for miles around that covered the land was pushed against the tree canopies as they bent low, the grass flattened as the sky began to twist and turn, growing dark. Kale could see nothing as the world grew dark, he could only feel the ground writhing underneath him but still there was no light to see by.
Slowly the light came back, the two moons in the sky grew bright again but this time they were different, they were shivering and changing shape, spinning as they grew and extended. What Kale had believed to be two moons hanging high in the sky was in fact two more of the strange maggots that inhabited this place.
Even Brom had ceased his cursing at the sight.
Heaving on his side Kale vomited, he couldn't hold in his disgust any longer, he had willingly eaten and put that thing inside of him. All around he could hear were various levels of disgust similar to his own, it would seem that other people had also found the maggots as he had, the lucky ones were those that had eaten the goblins instead.
The people stuck on the poles screamed in terror as the maggot extending from the goblin leaders head let out another ear piercing shriek. This time the azure blue sky above them started to twist and turn, separating into millions of separate bumps that clamoured and cried.
The sky was alive, this entire planet was alive.
A devilish chuckle spread from the goblin leaders lips as it walked back amongst the trees, out of the meadow, the white maggot extending from its forehead peacefully wrapped around its shoulders. The other goblins grew enraptured as they stared into the meadow, looking forward to what was about to happen.
The first victim was Edward Wilson, his throat was already hoarse from shouting as a small blue maggot landed on him from above, it landed with a wet slapping sound. Thrashing in horror Edward couldn't get it off as it travelled down him, sinking into the ground beneath as it left a bloody furrow in its wake.
Paralysed with fear Edward looked at the bloody line carved through his body, he could feel no pain, it didn't hurt at all, but that only made it worse. The single blue maggot falling soon turned into a downpour as they surged down like a tide, the sky was closing in. The goblins shrieked and howled as more blue maggots fell, the victims on the poles were struck dead with horror as even the ground rose up and began to swallow them. The last thing they saw was the looks of fear from the other captives, even Kale and Brom shared in this as they watched them disappear, eaten and swallowed by the planet.
The meadow grew quiet as the ground lay flat, the blue maggots had stopped descending. There was nothing left of those tied to the poles, even the poles were gone. Kale regretted not dying to a spear at the start, that was a quick death compared to this, how many of those maggots lived below?
This wasn't a death Kale would choose for anyone.
Rushing forward the goblin leader roared as the goblin horde sprang into the meadow, furrowing and digging into the ground in frenzy as they unearthed and raised bloated crimson maggots to the air. Goblins fought over the red maggots as they began to feast, tearing the maggots open with satisfying pops as the scent of iron filled the air.
"My god."
Brom swore to god as he watched, the maggots they were eating were undeniably made from those they sacrificed. They were recycling every part of those they ate, even the blood that landed on the floor was soon absorbed by the maggots beneath.
"You with the trash."
Tilting his head Kale could just about see Brom, the spear still impaled through the flesh of his arm.
"Regardless of who gets picked… struggle and fight as much as possible, they don't want to kill us. They want to sacrifice us."
"...Listen….to him."
Captain Hyun was barely able to talk as he awoke once more, he wanted his words to reach everyone but they only reached Kale.
The Goblin Leader roared and overpowered the cries of glee from the goblins still feasting, it was ordering the next offering to begin, the next five poles to be stacked.
[Time remaining : 00:18:27]
Just over fifteen minutes had passed for the first offering at this rate one of them could survive but only if the others helped.
It all depended on who would be picked next.