He fell backward into the abyss.
Her hand caught him at the last moment, grabbing his shoulder and stopping his descent. He had his eyes closed the whole time, terrified to death.
She groans in anger irritated by his weakness. He opens his eyes, and as he breathes a sigh of relief, she grabs his throat and, with I t, throws him ten feet ahead of her.
"Pathetic!"
She said, loud enough for him to hear, then the ground she stood on broke away, shattering into shards of glass.
The floor shattered around her, and without breaking a sweat, she leaped to safety, then ran straight forward, and in a swift move, she picked Dorian up and wrapped her arm around him; she ran off with him, carrying off like an accessory.
"Hey my put me down," he screamed at her. "I can run on my own!"
She didn't listen to him and continued running
"Hey, I'm talking to you."
She did respond and Dorian got angry, but mostly at himself. He felt his knee graze her hip, and he blushed. Then something round bounced against him, and he wondered what that was. He looked down and saw it was a served head, hanged by the roll of bullets on her hip. His alarm bell rang.
Why is she carrying her head around on her hip? He looks at her and soon finds that that fear he had for her yesterday. What's she going to do to me!?
The destruction was catching up with them, but she ran at an accelerated pace, going through the deepest parts of the forest; this place had a crisscrossing collection of trees with large roots that protruded out of the ground, making the terrain more difficult to run through.
Next time, I better design a smaller world, she thought. I wonder who's doing this, I hope they can fight.
Straight ahead, she could see a shining blue light; it was the northern gates. She ran straight for it, putting in more pace than before. The pounding got louder and louder and even caught up to her.
It mirrored her every step, but the destruction wasn't enough to stop her. She made it to the northern gate, she threw Dorian down on the ground.
Stay behind me? She said,
Seeing the head on her hip, Dorian knew better than to disobey a command. Then the eyes of the severed head opened and emanated lights of varying colors. It turned towards the northern gates and the gates emanated the same glow as the gate.
It looks like the head of a middle-aged man, lean, with stress and bone lines on the face. The lips were sewed shut with red thread. The base of the neck was black and it was kept alive by magic through the engraving on the forehead. She turns back to him and says,
"It looks like people are waiting for us out there so watch your back okay, I won't always be able to do it for you, let's go, Dio"
Hellena, the war mother, walked into the gates and Dorian followed behind her. Instantly, he felt the air get denser and dryer; it smelt putrid and foul.
The first thing he saw were rolls of black burnt dead trees that looked like silhouettes under the thick hanging fog, instantly he knew he was in the dead wood,
That pig is here, Hellena says to her selves, she spits and says,
You disgust me; show yourself, Belarus. Is this what you call an ambush, or are you trying to insult me?
Then a voice came out from within the fog saying,
" I see your senses are still as keen as ever Hellena."
"You won't be doing that for long, I started an eye collection, you see."
The man chuckled and said
"My, I missed you," he walked out of the fog; Dorian looked around and could see more men coming out, and then he looked at their leader, Belarus. He was a literal man pig with a pouted silver tusk.
"You will always be my favorite of the war-mothers Hellena."
"Is that supposed to mean something to me? Belarus, shut up and tell me what you want?"
He chuckles and says,
"What do I want? Like you don't know that already," he chuckled and said, "It's you, of course, these guys. They're the ones here for the kid, not me; I just want to have you all to myself".
"Trust me, you wouldn't like that outcome; I really love pork stew!"
Belarus grunted
She smiled at him then turned to Dorian and said.
"Dio be on your worst behavior, you hear me, these people are scum, they're morrudars, you can rip them apart."
They are!?
"When you have the chance, kill as many as you can"
What!? I can't do that
"Yes you can"
"I can't!? I don't know what you're talking about"
"So how do you transform"
"What are you talking about?" Belarus interrupts. "Are you talking about strategy?"
"I'll be with you In a second," scum. Hellena says.
"Oh I love it when you talk dirty"
"So how do you turn, how do you transform into gluttony"
"What are you talking about?"
"Don't you remember, don't you remember becoming gluttony"
"I don't know, the last time I was hurt and I blacked out
What do you remember
Hellana kept his eyes on the men around them as she spoke.
"I remember the black dog, I remember…" Dorian could remember snippets of being eaten by the black dog. "It ate me, how I'm I still alive"
"So you got chewed up, huh? Is that it?"
Dorian seemed a bit distressed talking about these things.
"I don't know"
"I'll just hurt you then, see if that works"
"What!? I don't know if that's how it works"
"It's better to work we're greatly number"
She kept her eye on them all as she spoke to him...
He remembers what she said by the river
"I won't hurt you"
Memories of Estiah filled his mind; someone who had promised to love him had ended up putting an axe through his head.
"There's just over thirty of them, " she said. "I can take them on but you're here so they get to you before I wipe them out, plus this pig is here but we'll try it anyway"
"What do you mean we'll try it anyway"
She doesn't answer him she speaks instead to Belarus
"What do you want him for" she said to Belarus
"It's business"
What kind
"A bounty on him,"
'I expected as much', she said to herself
A bounty? Dorian's eyes widened, and he felt like a large lump was stuck in his throat; he couldn't believe it. Bounties were no small matter in hell. You'll have every creature around coming for you, demons, monsters, and spirits all vying for salvation
"A disciple of Hades put it up, and now everybody wants a piece of the new sin. Aires already has two, so I guess that's why you're here, Hellena," Belarus said. "Hey, kid!" he screams at Dorian. "How does it feel being the most famous man alive"
"What!? What does he mean by that?"
"Don't listen to him, dio".
"Come on, tell him, Hellena, what have you been lying to the poor boy? Everyone wants a piece of you kid, her too. Let me tell you something kid…"
"Shut up, Belarus," Hellena cuts him off.
He chuckled and said.
"Guess what you are a kid? , you're the firstborn sin, and as such, it's your right to consume whatever you please, and if you were to consume the other six of you, it's like the prophecy says then, "You'll bring about the death of all life, and we just can't wait for that."
"Don't pay attention to him Dio and sorry about this"
"Sorry about what?"
In a flash, she pressed the gun against his chest and fired a blast into his lung; the shot went through him and knocked him to the ground.
"What are you doing baby!?" Belarus screamed at Hellena. "Don't hurt the merchandise!"
He gestures for his men to go in after her
Dorian wraiths in pain, he felt his heart beat faster and faster.
Hellena fought off the men as they came after her. They came with bows, arrows, and spears, and a few shot at her with guns.
Dorian felt the monster rising to the surface again.
Is this what life has become, a constant chaos?