Day 17 of Winter, AV 511 The Sea of Grass Nearly Midnight |
The place felt so very cold. Eldon stalked around the area slowly, spear in hand, axes firmly held in their beds on his waist, and even Vanah felt the nervousness that was radiating from Eldon's body. The only creatures around that didn't pick up on Eldon's intensity was his small hunting pack of dogs. Morse, Unlu, Danadeh, and Nejin all either slumbered softly in the chill of night, or slowly padded around at Eldon's feet, hoping for his attention. Eldon, however, would not part with his focus. The skies, clear and dark, sparkling with the shimmers of starlight and moonlight beckoned everything he had. He knew that if that monster would appear, that he would come through the sky. The Zith monster was a flier, of course, and Eldon had experienced first hand just how dangerous the thing could be. But this was Eldon's third night to stand out here, right where his father died, right were he was abducted by the monster, right where his life went spiraling into a jumbled mess of agony. This was his third night praying to any god that would listen, begging for something to push the Zith on him so he could, once and for all, finish this. Be it his vengeance, or his own death, he was going to make sure everything ended. Death is how this ended. The bells passed in silence on the plains, unlike the ever busy streets of Syliras where Eldon retreated to not even a year ago. The sky alone called out the visible change in time. The moon alone was the clock Eldon trusted. Eldon sighed heavily, the first sound he made in hours, and it was enough to rouse each of the Akinva Deerstalkers awake or alert. Each one of them wanted to see Eldon safe. Loyal creatures they were. Morse, thankfully, was the first to truly perk his head up and assume silence, true alert and predatory silence. Eldon only caught onto this after each of the animals, Vanah the Strider included, assumed complete silence. Something was nearby. The Dogs senses it, perhaps didn't smell it, perhaps didn't see it, perhaps didn't hear it, but they knew something was around. Eldon licked his lips in nervous anticipation as he twisted his grip ever so slightly around that vicious, dual-headed spear. This weapon, he swore, would rest only when it held the bastard that stole his father to the ground. There was a shriek then, sudden and short, but it was answered by two others, differing pitches, and Eldon then felt the hairs on his arms stand on edge. That sound was a Zith, for certain, but judging by the other screaming, there were at least two others. Eldon was trapped! |
