He tried to turn around but the horse seemed reluctant and fear. The soldier, who thought his horse was scared for no reason, finally gave up and resumed their march to join the others up ahead.
While in the back, near a dead tree that was burning, the body of the soldier whose head was missing was tightly wrapped around a giant eel-like long creature with sharp fins and large spikes. The sharp fins occasionally snap back and expand, from the edge of its neck to the tip of its tail.
The last soldier approached his group, then he said to one of his closest comrades:
"Hey," he said, "did you see our friend in the back earlier approaching?"
The soldier's friend frowned. "What are you talking about? Wasn't he back with you?"
"Yeah, but I left him."
"You're so stupid, my friend! Why don't you help him?"
"Jerk!" snorted the soldier. "You're not helping him yourself. Now you're blaming me."
The other soldier chuckled. "Never mind," he said, "just, forget it. Maybe he turned around and went home."
"Hmm, I think you're right. I saw that he was really scared."
"Yeah, he's a pussy!"
They both smirked and laughed at their comrade, and they thought he was a coward. In fact, without them knowing it, their friend had become a corpse, and his corpse was eaten by swamp creatures.
The soldiers from the two different kingdoms continued to move forward even though the water level of the swamp had reached the height of their horses' bellies. And the archer soldiers were still shooting their fiery arrows to burn more and more dead trees around the swamp.
They all still look calm although some are starting to feel anxious and worried. But, because their horses can still walk well, they can breathe a little easier. Because that means the bottom of this swamp is not mud but hard soil.
Jumara is the same. His gaze is so wild, every time there is a suspicious movement on the surface of the water, that's where his gaze is directed. The sword in his right hand is always on standby.
While Leyman, who was on Jumara's left side, slightly backward, seemed to be starting to worry. In fact, without realizing it, his breathing became irregular. It was clear that the commander of the Angholi troops was in deep anxiety.
Tens of feet in front of the soldiers, the calmness of the swamp surface was slightly disturbed by the back of a giant eel-shaped creature, with sharp fins on its back, and large spikes. It swerved in such a way, only for a moment, and then disappeared again under the water.
Only this time, the creature seemed to be hurtling towards the soldiers directly from beneath the surface of the water. Thus, from the movement of its large and long body, the creature created a form of ripples and small waves on the surface.
Jumara, who first realized this, then quickly raised his hand.
"Hold your positions!" shouted the commander of the Maghabean troops. "Archer!" he shouted again, then he pointed the tip of his sword at the point where something large beneath the surface of the water was moving toward them.
The soldiers who were surprised by Jumara's voice immediately responded. And the archers immediately aimed their arrows at the same point—a point that didn't stay in one position only as of the movement of its body that might be very long snaking under the surface of the water.
They don't know that yet.
The soldiers gulped. Anxious, that's for sure. Fear, of course.
Meanwhile, the horses that were ridden by the soldiers at the forefront began to show their uneasiness. And the soldiers were trying to calm their horses.
The closer the movement of something was towards them, the more restless the horses became.
"Fire...!" Jumara shouted.
The archers shot their arrows and hoped that whatever creature was now heading towards them would be frightened and then run away.
"Prepare your weapons!" again, Jumara shouted.
But the archers' hopes did not come true when so many arrows shot towards the creature, the creature suddenly appears.
Groar…!
The creature revealed its form, and suddenly it made the horses that were ridden by the soldiers could no longer contain their fear. So, the horses immediately moved away in various directions.
There was chaos, not only for the Maghabean soldiers but also for the Angholi soldiers.
The horses paid no heed to the cries of their riders. A few of the soldiers fell from the back of their horses and then fell into the water.
The creature was indeed similar to a moray eel, but with a much larger size—the size of a coconut tree. The creature has a dark body color with a few white spots on the belly.
Like a cobra, the creature showed its horror to the disorganized soldiers, arching high above the water's surface.
The creature hissed loudly with its mouth agape as if it wanted to frighten the soldiers even more with its rows of teeth that were long like an array of huge spikes. Two rows of teeth in the lower jaw, and three rows of teeth in the upper jaw.
The creature's eyeballs seemed to be able to reflect the flames of fire that burned dead trees in the middle of the swamp, and that added to the horror of the creature's face in the eyes of the soldiers.
And the long fins on its back vibrated rapidly, making a strange creaking sound that made the soldiers' guts shrink even more.
Among the soldiers who were torn apart to save themselves, there were still some loyal soldiers who accompanied Jumara to deal with these unusual creatures.
The archers seemed to be given the opportunity by circumstances to be able to target their arrows directly at the creature's body.
Not waiting for orders from Jumara, who was silent because they were stunned by the creature's form, they shot their arrows at the creature.
Starting from ordinary arrows to arrows whose sharp ends are blazing with fire.
TO BE CONTINUED ...