"Underneath the cold, dry skies,
Creatures bleed before our eyes.
No mercy for the weak or dying,
Obey the Lord or blood shall be flying.
Pleading, thirsty, screaming for the whip to stop its course,
These are the slaves of Lord Gruntilda ScytheGore!"
~ Ode to Death, extracted from the depths of the Minjonian Camp.
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T H E T H I R D I N S T A L L M E N T: 'B i g B r o t h e r. . .'
Far onward, the hills became sporadic with craggy outcrops of serrated boulders and ravines like gaping maws willing to swallow up any who are bold and foolish enough to cross such a wide abyss with a beginning though lacking no end. This feature continued until dunes of pasty sand curved the land. Here, a menacing structure pierced the sunless heavens like a blade with its pointed, steel crowns. Curves of iron swirled from the rims of windowpanes and rooftops. Great slate statues of gargoyles and demons grimaced and snarled at incoming prisoners, baring their stone fangs and curling their tongues with contempt. The fearsome silhouettes of Minjoes bristling with weapons marched stiffly across the polished windows and amidst the dim tangerine glow of a firefly lantern inside. A massive bolted drawbridge blocked all entry. A fat, red Minjo waddled up to the door, dwarfed by its sheer size. Leaning out a window close by, another Minjo, black, nodded leisurely and clicked the glass shut tight. With a grunt the red monster pushed vigorously upon the handle of a wooden helm. There was a moan as the seal cracked open, then came plummeting to the earth at an alarming speed. The Minjo screeched and jumped out of its path with amazing agility for one of his size. His comrades chuckled from above and vanished into the darkness, nearly dodging a tossed rock.
Awesome numbers of multi-colored Minjoes flocked the winding and gloomy hallways of the castle. The soft noise of moaning echoed hollowly against the narrow corridors and was soon silenced by a threat or a crazy banging of prison bars. A single door at the end of a poorly lit hall stood out from the others; instead of blackened lumber it consisted entirely of steel with bolted hinges. Its icy face was stained by blood-spattered handprints dragged and plastered as a reminder of what horrid things occurred in the gloom below and following this sealed entry. Behind it, stone steps snaked into murky shadows of the dungeons and slave barracks. A female hyena soughed as the final torch gave a dying hiss and diminished to the darkness. The only source of light became the calm glow of the moon coming in through thick bars jarred between the windows. The prisoner's expression soon shifted to sneakiness as she soundlessly lifted herself to her feet. Brushing her paws against her rugged shorts, she quietly approached a figure hustling about in a brown cloak beneath the protective shield of darkness that enveloped her almost entirely.
"Are you ready?" she sounded nervous. She was soon answered by a pair of striking azure eyes under the cowl. They blinked once, and the concealed head nodded softly. A paw lifted the hood from its features and the mysterious being was soon revealed. It was a female honeybear, small cuts and bruises of abuse blemishing her pale peach hue around her snout. Her hair radiated a brilliant gold, cut extremely short with intense purple highlights on the tips of her spiky dreadlocks that dangled over her eyeridges and against her cheekbones. In one paw, a paper was clasped tightly against her chest and heart.
"Yes." She replied simply to her friend. The hyena could easily tell that she too was as frightened as her right now. The bear tugged at crumbling slabs of stone from the wall in their cell. Scraping was heard as the block loosened and soon popped free into the outside world. Crawling on her belly, she craned her neck to the dog. "We have to hurry before someone sees us, Sibbania." Sibbania gave a vigorous nod and knelt on her forepaws. She cringed softly as the gravel skinned her palms, yellow eyes gazing into the newly made hole in the wall with uncertainty.
"But....what if they catch us...or....shoot us?" she asked shakily.
"I'm afraid too, Sibbania. As long as our stars are watching us, nothing bad will happen." The bear's eyes glanced slowly to the heavens above, her mouth moving in a slight whispered prayer. Black spreads of clouds rolled from the plains and blotted out the shimmering bodies. She frowned with a combination of dread and anxiety, wriggling deeper into the gap until the night breeze caressed her cheek as she cautiously peeked her head from the darkness of the prison. Trying not to make a sound, she wobbled to her feet all the while breathing in the fresh oxygen. Sibbania gulped and entered rear-first. A whispered, feeble voice bid her from behind the rows of steel. A badger child with sunken cheeks and hollowed eyes gazed at her with sorrow, trembling from the frigid cold of the stone floor.
"Good luck..." he murmured before melting into the ebony gloom of his cage. Sibbania nodded before crawling backwards to supposed freedom.
The hyena gave a breath of contained joy and excitement as the silky sands stroked her tender paws. The air was moist and cool, refreshing from the stuffy atmosphere of the prison. The bear stumbled on loose earth before gaining balance and snatching Sibbania's claw in urgency. Soon, the duo frantically struggled to avoid the guards' razor-sharp eyes. Faraway shouts and gaining footsteps gave hint that they have been spotted. Gunfire rattled and hissed within the bear's small ears as her heart began to thrum insanely in her breast.
"Run!" she screamed. Bullets spewed dust and pebbles so close, they ricocheted against their heels. Raucous laughter ensued along with the clicking of metal boots merely a few feet away. The bear hissed through her teeth as a bullet found her hip. Sibbania gawked at the sight of blood moistening the coarse texture of her friend's shroud. Shaking her skull back to its senses, the honeybear gave the dog a reassuring gaze.
Then, a horrid bang that sounded over the rest came in a tidal wave across the dunes. Sibbania made the fatal mistake of turning around to see the source of such a noise. Everything seemed to have happened in slow motion as the bullet intended for her indeed found its target. The hyena's body rocked as it pierced through her ribs and lodged itself in the muscle of her heart. She wobbled for a bit, then crumpled limp to the earth with her face to the sky. The bear cried in horror and hobbled to her friend's aid. She knelt beside her and nuzzled her paw against her moist cheek.
"I guess the stars weren't....hhhhhh...watch...ing....me tonight..."
"Don't die, Sib....you can't...You were so close... You are my best friend.... the only one I ever had in this...land..." the bear sobbed. Tears sprinkled the hyena's snout. Sib's lips curled into a feeble smile.
"They got me....Go. You... you can make it.... I'll...be watching you... with the... stars..." Her paw went flaccid and her eyes creased shut as she let death take her soul. The bear gazed at the lifeless body and released the paw from her grasp. Tears clouded her vision and her throat gave hiccups as she struggled to cease her crying.
"We got one!" a gruff voice shouted behind the hills. The honeybear shambled with her wounded pelvis. She crouched 'neath the shelter of a pile of tumbleweeds and rubbed out her footprints hastily with her sleeve. Silent, she watched as a gang of Minjoes punted Sibbania's body with scorn. A green Minjo spat on the wound and fired his Magnum rifle to the heavens.
"Huhuhuh...this'll moike a luverly coat, dontchya think, Gorle?" he chuckled, slinging the corpse over his massive shoulder. The one named Gorle, a villainous, red one, cackled and shed a gap-toothed beam. The bear shuddered from the cruelty of these beasts. She waited until the group left with their prey in tow, and emerged from the prickly bramble. A tattered paper was unfolded in her paws and her swollen blue eyes stared at the face that was upon it. Another honeybear, with angry eyes glowering at the camera, seemed to stand in all his black and white glory before her. The word 'WANTED' was plastered in a large font above the photo. She embraced the poster to her heart and dragged herself to her feet.
"Big brother....I'm coming..."