Time seemed to come to a standstill. The camp was deathly silent and all I could hear was the thrumming of my blood in my ears. I concentrated and threw my mind out into the abyss, only to be bombarded by claws scraping against my mental walls. I opened my eyes and withdrew back into my own mind, panting with the effort. I looked down at my mother to see her twitching, her eyes open wide, but she was not seeing me.

“Mum?” I brushed a tendril of golden-brown hair off her face when she without warning grabbed my wrist, her eyes still blank. I hissed as her hand gripped harder and started to burn my skin.

“Run…” I strained to hear her whisper as the howling and roars of the beasts rose up from the surrounding forest. I scooped her into my arms and fled from the tent that now burned with bright orange flames. I looked around to see an already blood-filled pit, soldiers were lying dead, black steam filling the air like a poison and making for an excellent hindrance in sight. The smell made me sway and I gagged, almost heaving, but I had to get mum out of here. A growl from behind me made me jump and I swung around to see three Q’el emerging from the flames. The screams of dying men and women rang constantly in my ears and I held onto my mother tighter. I clenched my teeth and slowly backed away towards the spooked horses, towards the only escape. Snapping jaws came at me from every angle and I began to think that I may not make it out of there.

The bellow of a troll started to get closer and closer and the Q’el turned just in time to see a club fall on their heads. I shielded my mother from the blood spray and looked up with a smile to see my friend, Eske. He grunted and turned, his grey blue skin stained red and black, steam rising from the marks. He smiled, his two huge lower teeth seemingly getting bigger.

A low and guttural voice, almost inaudible, came from his mouth. “Are you alright?”

“I’m fine, Eske. But I need to get my mother out of here. She’s in some sort of trance; she must have been hit with too much evil magic.” I continued to jog towards the horses and I steadied my mount. Luckily, Bael hadn’t removed the saddle, so at least I wasn’t going to have a hard time getting mum up with me. The horn sounded and I heard the General shouting the order to retreat.

I turned to see Eske swing the mace again at a few more Q’el who ended up with flattened skulls. “Let me help.” He walked over to me in a few long strides, and I carefully placed my mother in his arms as I pulled myself up onto the horse. He gently gave her back to me and then whistled for his warg. I turned the horse and urged her forward, avoiding the dead bodies of soldiers and Q’el alike. I saw the General swing a leg over his horse alongside Bael and I breathed a sigh of relief. As my horse made its way up the earthen staircase and out of the pit I watched as more Q’el charged down, a few stopping to growl as I galloped through them. Where was Astra? I looked down into the pit, but the black steam was too thick to see anything. I turned back to concentrate on riding when an irregular jumped into my path. It was the same one that smiled at me…the leader…

I pulled up a few metres in front of it, trying to figure a way past the huge Q’el. It was the biggest one I’d ever seen; much taller than I was and loaded with muscle, teeth and claws. It growled and lurched forward. My horse panicked and she threw my mother and I to the ground.

“Sage, no! Come back!” I coughed and watched as she galloped through the horde of enemies. I looked for my mother and saw the Q’el approaching her limp body. “Get away from her!” I screamed and stumbled forward as I made my way upright. I drew my sword and charged at the beast. It looked back at me and smiled before it wrapped its jaws around her arm.

The sound that came next will haunt me for to rest of my life. As my mother’s near animal like scream filled my ears, fury tore through me and I lost it. I slashed the sword across its back and it let her go, but then proceeded to catch my sword in its mouth and rip it from my hands. I took up a protective stance over my mother and drew my daggers. My mother was not going to die like this. I tried to open my mind again, to gain an advantage over this thing and predict its movements, but I almost screamed with pain as evil magic tore through my mind. I came back and gripped my daggers tighter until my knuckles turned white. I never knew how much I relied on the ‘Gift’ before now; now, when I truly needed it.

The creature circled me and I followed it around, leaving no space for it to get at me. It stopped and its eyes narrowed in on me. It raised itself up but then stopped; it sniffed the air and came in closer, tilting its head to the side. A mask of curiosity covered its face but then something I couldn’t place. Without warning, it snapped and roared, eyes full of hatred and loathing.

It opened its mouth slightly and hissed. “…Ill breed…”

My breath caught and panic surged through me. Did this… thing… just speak to me? What in all the realms is this? It rose up on its back legs and a huge paw slammed into my face, knocking me to the ground and making my vision swim. Warm blood trickled down the side of my face and I looked back up to see it looming over me, ready to finish me off.

An arrow suddenly hits the Q’el in the shoulder and it falls over with a howl of pain. I glanced over to see Bael reloading another arrow from atop his ride with Astra clutching him for dear life. Eske came up behind him with a cart attached to his warg. I sighed in relief and collected mum into my arms and raced towards the cart, jumping into the back.

“Get out of here!” The General shouted as his horse raced up the earthen staircase with some men trailing behind him, a few in front.

Priestesses gripped onto men as horses reared and tried to flee from the massacre. Screams of pain and horror ricocheted around pit and in my head while the stench of the Q’el’s rotting flesh and blood filled my lungs.

I tore some of my mothers’ dress off and bandaged her arm the best that I could and cradled her in my arms as I watched the smoke rise up from the pit. I counted the men and women who made it out to try and pass the time that seemed to stretch out forever. Including myself, forty-three of six hundred and six people made it out. At least from what I can see. I clenched my fists. The Q’el…they’ll pay for this.