Warning: Depictions of mass murder.
It was an ordinary day. The sun burned its way through a cloudless sky, casting light and shadow upon the dirt streets of a remote mountain village. Raul sat on the steps porch of his ramshackle home. Faria was fetching the water for the day, and he had already done the prep work needed for purifying the water. To pass the time, he chose to partake in a favorite pastime of his: people watching. He always thought people were fascinating, and he found that observing them was therapeutic.
He could recount stories. There was one time when the herald from Kakariko was able to come up to share the latest news.
Despite having connections with some of the higher ups in the government, he always presented himself as very down-to-earth. He never wore any silks or fine jewelry, instead opting for an overcast gray wool traveler's cloak and a tawny tunic. The only valuable thing on his person was a pin with the insignia of the royal family. He never spoke in a pompous tone, he delivered the news bluntly - much to his audience's approval. He was standing at the corner of the general store in front of a small crowd.
Raul remembered being in the back of the crowd, arms crossed and listening skeptically. Old Man Jo was wandering up and down the street, rambling to himself.
Ciph was relaying a new expansionary fiscal policy to everyone. Most of the people there didn't understand what that meant, so he explained that it meant the government was reducing taxes and that this would have the effect of increased investment and consumption. This way when people bought raw iron from them, more money went into their pockets. It was at that moment that Jo shook his cane at Ciph, proclaiming that the new policy would do nothing to help their situation, consequently it would worsen it by causing overwork. Ciph actually got off the platform and walked up to Jo. He would sometimes do this to be on the same level and not appear all high and mighty. At least that was how Raul saw it.
The herald explained that this would benefit the community given time. Old Man Jo swatted the air, saying that he was a middle class man who came in to share news from outside; How could he possibly grasp what they went through everyday? It escalated into a heated argument until Ciph conceded.
Today, Otho was shucking corn on his front porch, taking care to remove all the silks. Ciph was at his spot relaying the latest tidings of the outside world, especially regarding Kakariko and the Death Mountain Area. Apparently there were monster attacks going on around the country. More eerily, sometimes whole villages just vanished out of thin air. Ciph was retelling a tale he heard. In it, there was a boy who was fetching some water from a river when he heard screeching and howls from behind him. When he rushed back to his hamlet, there was no trace of anyone. Not even the animals were left behind. The people in the flock murmured among themselves. Just at the fringe of the crowd, Raul spotted the new guy - Nozall - leaning against the outside of the store jotting something down in his notebook.
It was very rare to get new residents. Most people living here never left the boundaries of the hamlet - only in cases of trade. Naturally everyone would be curious about them. Nozall was a controversial historian living in a city in southern Hyrule with his wife and teenage son. His wife worked as a librarian and their son was following in his footsteps. They lived in a townhouse with a library and small flower patch near the heart of the metropolis. The place was built very differently than what Raul was used to. The cobblestone streets whistled as the people went about their lives. The stone buildings stretched to the sky as they gleamed brightly in the sun. There was a defensive wall that wrapped around the polis like a choker, and aging wooden guard towers dangled off of it. The differences didn't end there. There were public parks, colleges and plazas where events such as concerts, debates, even plays would take place. Nozall told him that their hometown had a nickname, the City of Gardens. When he heard about it, he couldn't help but be amazed. It shook him to his core to find out how it all came apart.
It was an ordinary day.
Tenei had gone to work at their local library for the day. Their son was at university by the time Nozall had his morning tea and began researching for his next book. People were outside minding their business. Nozall remembered writing about a sneak attack when suddenly something went BOOM from outside. Shrieks rang through the air. He jumped from his desk to see people sprinting past his window. He rushed to his front door to see what they were running from.
One of the guard towers was blazing. Demonic soldiers were running rampant. One hinox stabbed an old man through his throat. Another demon disemboweled a woman as he dashed by. A moblin drove a sharp spear through a child's heart. They smashed windows and threw torches in. One monster even dragged a girl into an alleyway.
Nozall immediately fled his house. He had to weave his way around the terrified civilians and assailants before getting to his wife at the library. The main entrance was barricaded. He raced back to find his wife in a crowd. Keat managed to escape school and keep out of dodge. They bumped into each other in a square as they ran out together.
It took three days, but they made it to a coastal city out west to stay with a family friend. Having left everything behind, they had to start over from scratch by tutoring local students to earn some money.
Nozall said he began hearing of other attacks from other refugees and assumed that their temporary residence could be next on the chopping block. Once they earned enough money between the three of them, they bought supplies to make emergency packs. Sometimes Keat would work for provisions when his clients didn't have money. They also devised several escape routes and meet up points in the event of another attack. They tried to get as many people as they could on board with it. Soon a local entrepreneur capitalized on the idea of the survival kits, making a killing selling them. Regardless, the city was attacked and hundreds of people died despite their planning. The family had to run for the hills, leaving their friends to their fate. They eventually found themselves up here.
Back in the present, Raul couldn't help but wonder if anywhere was truly safe. And if they'd be taking in more refugees with more or less the same tale. If so, how soon would they have to turn people away? Raul swatted a mosquito. He couldn't help but feel sorry for what that family went through. Especially Keat, the kid was unable to fit in and make new friends here no matter how he tried. His eyes shifted toward their house.
'I guess one good thing in all of this is that Tenei is teaching us reading and arithmetic; and Nozall about history.' Thought Raul. 'And Keat is tutoring anyone who needs extra help.' He wiped a tear from his eye. 'Imi is finally learning her alphabet.'
Hiking his way was a girl with black hair in an unkempt braid and wearing a dirty dress. She balanced two pails of water, trying as hard as possible not to spill any of it. As she made her way towards her father, a stone dug its way through her thin leather sandal and into her right foot. "Agh!" Cringing, she balanced on her left foot as she tried scraping it out with her calf. Some water abandoned the ship. Raul hustled towards her.
"You okay, Faria?" He inquired concernedly. Raul extended his hand to take one of the buckets from her. She set the other down and took a cursory look at the bottom of her foot. It was gushing blood.
"Yeah, I'm alright. Stepped on a sharp rock, I will just have to wash it." She glanced at the earth around her. "Dang it… I didn't mean to spill any."
Raul let out a small sigh. "S'okay. Still have most of the water, and this is why we try to keep a little extra at home." Raul looked towards the front door of his home. Then back at the gaping hole in his daughter's foot. "This looks pretty bad. Let's get you a clean cloth. Then you'll need to apply pressure to the wound. Want me to carry the other pail?"
"Nah, I think I got it. Home is so close. Thanks though."
When Faria started to limp, her father wrapped his arm around her shoulders, walking with her as though he was a crutch. When they entered home, Hola had Faria sit on a wobbly stool. Raul poured both vats of water into a cauldron. It was murky and Raul could have sworn he saw something swimming in it. Grimacing, he reached for the moonshine next to him and poured some in. He bundled wood underneath the pot and struck a match to it. Hola pushed the curtain aside as she reentered the room with an empty pan and a few clean rags. "Honey, could you get Dilan and Imi from the terrace? They're going to help me pickle food soon."
Raul wandered his way through town and to the terraces. Since they were so isolated from the rest of Hyrule, they had to grow their own food supply. The closest town was Kakariko at the base of the mountain. One thing that he was grateful to the gods for was making the soil up here very fertile. Up here, corn, beans, tomatoes, pumpkins, apples, potatoes and anything else the residents could get their hands on flourished. Weaving his way up and down, left and right, he finally found Dilan tossing fruit into a barrel. Imi was up in an apple tree, dropping some to him to catch.
Unbeknownst to them, demonic marauders observed the residents at their vantage point hidden at the edge of the settlement - waiting for the ripe opportunity. Some of them grasped metal canisters in their gigantic hands. A darknut knelt down to open a large sack, handing its contents to everyone in the group. A lizalfos at the furthest fringe of the group surveyed the terraces, noting the presence of the father and his two offspring. He lowered his telescope, reviewing the plan with his squadron. "Don't move until I give this signal," he sternly commanded as he positioned his fingers into an L-shape.
He looked through his telescope once more, double checking the paths up to the settlement. As soon as the family re-entered the village, he gave the signal. A sub-regimen slithered their way up to the entrance and hid behind some buildings. More of them gradually made their way up and hid behind rocks and bushes. The demons closest to the town adjusted their masks, making sure once more that no outside air was getting in. One of them gave another across him a thumbs up. He cracked the can open and threw it onto the street.
The villagers stared at the hissing object in bewilderment. They couldn't figure out where it came from or what the yellow-greenish cloud coming out of it was - until they tried to breathe.
Everyone began to choke and gasp for air. More tins were dropped onto the streets. Someone screamed out, "ATTACK! WE'RE BEING ATTACKED! RUN, RUUNN!" They scrambled like ants into buildings or towards the exit of the town. Which was nearly impossible when they were going blind and being strangled.
Raul saw everything from inside his front window. Monsters wearing strange masks with giant lenses and a tank at the mouth area with a hose attached were pouring in - butchering everyone they came across. He spotted Old Man Jo try to make it back to his house. He tripped on a stone and fell onto the ground. He attempted to pick himself up, but a hoof pinned him down and the creature stabbed him through his neck. Raul gasped and covered his mouth. Old Man was practically the village grandfather and was always there. His memories of him flashed before his eyes, the time his father died and he was there to console him. To when he gave a speech to all the boys on being a man. Now the man was lying dead in a pool of his blood, becoming nothing more than a memory. His murderer broke into his neighbor's house. Raul heard a horrifying scream and things breaking.
Raul cowered underneath the window. He and Dilan stacked furniture against the doors to the outside. They had stuffed rags into the cracks in the walls, hoping that the cloud wouldn't seep into the house. Now the whole family tucked themselves under the front windows.
Dilan peeked up through the window, "Pop, I think the gas is getting thicker. It's practically all green outside." He was practically shaking and his voice squeaked. There was another outcry from outside, and Dilan ducked back down. Imi cuddled against her mother as she heard it, burying her head in her chest. Muffling her sobs as best she could. Hola stroked her hair and held her close. Faria snuggled against her mother while hugging her knees and adding pressure to her wound. She seemingly paid no mind to the carnage outside, only staring at the trail of blood on the floor.
Outside, the whole populace felt as though they were being set ablaze. Blisters appeared all over their skin. An iron gauntlet squeezed everyone so tightly that they suffocated further. The scent of bleach was pervasive. Naturally, they began to feel nauseated and began to vomit. The beasts used that as an opening to attack.
Most of the attackers were driving their stakes into the people, drawing out their pain as long as possible until they bled out. One of the executioners went so far as to dismember humans with his axe. Almost all of them were cracking jokes at the victims' expense. While an acheman was slashing at someone with his javelin. A woman saw it through her tears and cried out. He smirked, pointed at her and mumbled something about getting strangled with his intestines. They cheered in approval.
The woman back-crawled away, bumping into a corpse. She attempted to shield herself by crossing her arms in front of her. The moment when he was about to assault her, he was tripped by someone. Looking down, he saw that a teenage boy was looking up at him with bloodshot watery eyes. The acheman scowled, and plunged his spear down. The kid rolled out of the way in time for it to get stuck in the dirt. The boy kicked his ankle and knocked him off his balance. He then bolted off. The devil grunted, and he aggressively threw his lance at the boy. He again miraculously dodged! This time, he stole the spear! That little shit, the demon thought to himself. He was in the distance by now. "Get him!" He turned back to the woman, but she already fled the scene.
Keat could hardly believe that the stunt had worked. And he possibly saved someone's life to boot! However, this was no time to stop and contemplate. The gas was everywhere, and it was making him nearsighted. And the longer he stuck around, the higher his chances of getting killed were. This spear should make a decent walking stick. Maybe I can also ward away the horde. Everywhere he looked, there was carnage. Several armed silhouettes were coming towards him. He picked up his pace. Do I save people from dying? Should I try to find mom and dad, or do I just emancipate myself?
On the rooftop of the general store, an aeralfos stood with a bow and arrow ready to shoot anyone who managed to get out of the cloud. As he was grabbing a projectile, all he could think was: Is this what all my training was for, to slaughter unarmed men, women and children? In the pea soup, he could make out the forms of his fellow soldiers trapping someone. It reminded him of the methods human nobles used to hunt wild boar or foxes. He shook his head. And for what, so we can take their iron resources? This isn't a battle, this is a slaughterfest. Abruptly, a teenage human popped out from the fog. He hacked harshly, falling to his knees as his breathing returned to normal. The aeralfos pulled the bowstring back. The boy happened to look up and he spotted him on the roof. Instinctively, his grip tightened on his pike and he opted to stand. Right when he was about to shoot, he wavered. He ended up lowering his weapon. He nodded at him to flee. The lad's eyes widened and his jaw fell. Shaking, he backed away, then scampered away. The aeralfos glanced up towards where the chap was escaping - the Northern Forest. You may not be so lucky next time.
The poison began to bleed through the cracks in the walls back at Raul's house. The family attempted to stuff them as best as possible. In spite of their best efforts, it still oozed in slowly but steadily. Hola lowered her gaze and clasped her hands together, praying to Eldin for protection. He patted his back pocket to check if his pocket knife was still in it. Sure enough, it was.
Out of the blue, there were heavy footsteps outside on the porch. The whole family tensed up, becoming as still as statues. Raul could hear his heart pounding. The thing blocked the light and it stood still. It took a few steps back. The shadow raised its club and smashed the window in. The shattered glass landed on Faria's head. "AIIGGH!"
The savage jumped into the house. The girls clung to their mother as the ogre lifted his spiked mace. Raul sprung to his feet, swinging his pickaxe at the masked moblin. It in turn redirected its weapon at him. The women dashed into the bedroom. Dilan, unsure of what to do, grabbed the flame poker from the hearth. Raul charged at the hellion with all the rage and fury in him.
Beneath the mask, the moblin smirked. He effortlessly deflected every one of the human's blows before kicking him in the groin. While he was hunched over, the brute kicked him to the floor - snapping a rib.
"Next time, bring your A-game!" The savage howled with amusement as the man writhed on the floor. He focused his attention on the runt. He was shaking as he held the poker with two hands. Before he could blink, the moblin slammed Dilan to the floor. He began to crawl away when the fiend kicked him in the face. "Stay put, you swine!" It practically stood on him as it bound his hands. It then returned to Raul, who was still writhing in agony. It pressed its hoof on his spine, aggressively tying his hands with a rough rope.
With that, it walked over into the other room. Raul and Dilan teared up as they heard the women screeching and wood being smashed. The sound of flesh being pummeled permeated their ears, and then they heard a body fall to the floor. "MOMMA!" Imi wailed. More objects were thrown around and shattered. Raul pictured Faria fighting back with everything in her and Imi taking cover under the bed. After minutes of destruction, the moblin came back in with Faria and Imi in bondage. Both of them were battered and bloodied. He unceremoniously shoved them onto the floor.
Imi squirmed in her bonds. "Why are you doing this to us?!" Tears flowed from her eyes like a river, voice as shrill as a falcon.
The monster pointed its baton to her face, blood dripping from it. "Shut your damn trap, or I'll beat your face in," he snarled. The girl choked back her tears, keeping her snuff eyes on him. The creature scowled. He made his way to the front and demolished his way through. He flung the door wide open, exposing everyone to the green death. Raul glared daggers at him as he left. He could feel his sadistic leer. If you were going to kill us, you could have made it quick. You motherfucker!
His eyes began to burn and Raul clenched them as hard as he possibly could. "Don't give into it!" He shouted out. It was hard not to, though. The atmosphere was strangling him and what didn't help was the constant choking. It was difficult to get up on his feet with his broken bone and his hands being restricted. Just as he balanced himself on his knees, his stomach began to turn. He ended up vomiting his breakfast and falling face first in it. His skin was practically being roasted. Ulcers began to appear on everyone's skin. Time felt like an eternity until...
The miasma gradually dissipated and the sun shone through.
The dead and their guts were scattered all over the streets. Every building was broken into. practically taken apart, with glass sprinkled everywhere along with scraps of siding. The survivors were dragged out of their homes to the square; the matrons and girls were towed by their skirts as they struggled to stray inside. Some were even yanked over by their hair. Raul clawed the ground as he reached out towards his home, crying out, "HOLA!" As he was pulled to the square, the corpses of his neighbors triggered all kinds of memories. From drinking whiskey on the porch, to weddings, to brawling. Now it was forever lost. When he was shoved in with the other survivors, he tried to piece together who may have escaped the bloodshed by running a checklist.. Nozall: Alive. Biras: Dead. Old Man Jo: Dead. Naythn: Dead. Salin: Dead. Otho: Missing Ice stabbed at his heart, his blood boiled in his veins. But above all, shock weighed heavily on him. Why did this happen? What did we ever do? Raul kept pondering to himself.
He attempted to eavesdrop on their captors, thinking that maybe they would casually mention why. They had removed their face coverings at this point so it was easier to figure out what they were saying. There was a small mob surrounding this one winged lizard-man. Its quiver was nearly full and a crossbow hung at his hip. They hissed at him,
"How could you let them escape!?"
"You had the perfect chance to off potential future combatants! What the hell is wrong with you?!
The aeralfos calmly, with conviction, stated, "There is no honor in killing unarmed civilians in times of war or during peace. Massacring defenseless humans will only create more needless conflict.
This didn't give them pause. Rather, they shouted that they would get him discharged. If he couldn't do his duty, he had no place in the Dark Army. One acheman punched him in the face, sending him toppling down. He shouted that it was his fault that the kid who stole his weapon was still alive out there.
A static sound filled the air, stealing everyone's attention. Eyes bounced all over. In front of them, black dust began to coalesce and swirl into a tornado. A light zephyr ran past everyone. Just as quickly as it came, a man as white as snow materialized out of the void. The villagers were so stupefied that they were speechless. Nozall's jaw dropped the moment the Wind Sorcerer appeared. "My gods! He's supposed to be dead!"
The Wind Mage sneered, taking in one big gulp of air. "Mmh, smells clean here."
One of the eldritch beings knelt before him. "My lord, approximately two thirds of the populace have been eradicated. There are reports of several escapees, but," he paused to gesture towards the survivors, "all the survivors are gathered here. What do you want us to do with them?"
Vaati simply frowned as he threw a side glance at them. "Do what you like with them, make them slaves or guinea pigs," Everybody huddled closer together. "I'm more interested in how effective the gas was."
Meanwhile, Raul was feeling around his back pocket. His heart skipped a beat when he nearly fumbled the knife, almost dropping out of his hands. He began to slice his way through his bonds. Maybe I can free my kids from whatever's coming next. As soon as the ropes broke, he scooched his way back towards Imi and Dilan. "Run while you still have a chance." He whispered to them as he cut them free. Right when he was about to get to Faria, WHAM! He landed on his hands and knees. Before he could even register what happened, something bludgeoned his nose. His hands were seized and his tool was confiscated. The sounds around him distorted and faded into silence. His vision faded to black, the last thing etched in his mind was Faria yelping.
Vaati observed the scene and sniggered. He continued listening to his commander's report. His toothy grin stretched from ear to ear. "Looks like I'll need to tell the Queen of Poison that I'll need more of this!"
Dilan and Imi were both at the edge of the crowd. They figured they'd hide behind some bushes and wait until the invaders left. Life doesn't always turn out the way we want it to. One of the barbarians dashed towards them. The pair bolted away and the demon soldier gave chase. They eventually made it to the outskirts of the village. Imi ended up tripping on a stone and tumbling down. The monster grabbed Imi by her pointed ear, bellowing, "You are more trouble than you're worth, you know." She whimpered and strove to pry his hand off. He was about to beat her with his metal fist when suddenly a projectile struck him in the eye. He roared and turned his attention to the other human. He was standing further away and was holding several rocks. He hurtled another one at him. The shaitan dropped the girl. He was going to teach him a lesson until he heard his superior's voice.
Don't bother. Their lives have no consequence.
The imp watched them shrink in the distance. "We'll get you someday!" He shouted at them.
Author's note: I had to figure out how to write intense action for this chapter. To get an idea, I listened to Minecraft, The Island by Max Brooks. And watched a few Youtube videos by Jenna Morecci. If you see something that can be improved, please leave a comment.