Wish

Dreams || Chapter 5

Chapter 5: Twilight War

Abruptly, Talo awoke from the sounds of clanking metal. "Huh... wait, what?! Where am I?!" He looked around to see himself in the midst of a great battle under the vast twilight sky. Men and women in knight's armour came running past him, the sounds of pained groans and cries rising a panic inside Talo. He stood up and started stepping back before he hit something. He turned around to see a nightmare. Unnatural. Inhuman. Evil. Those were the words repeating in Talo's mind as he realised he was standing in front of a Darkborn.

He had never seen one in real life before, and he wished that had never changed. It had no fingers or toes, just sharp points at the end of each 'limb'. The entire thing consisted of pure black, besides the gaping hole where the face would be, consisting of multiple purple layers. Moving in unnerving, uncanny ways towards Talo, he tried to escape, but he was paralysed by fear as it creeped ever so closer. Desperately attempting to regain control as the Darkborn lingered above him, a knight rushed forward and stabbed their sword into it. Strange, glowing purple liquid fell onto Talo's cheek, dropping from the cut on the Darkborn. Was that it's... blood? The Darkborn snapped its 'head' to the knight, then started trying to tear them apart.

Finally giving a scare bad enough to snap Talo to movement, he started to run. He was not sure where, but fear took more control than clear thought. Sounds of beating metal, evil hisses, screams of terror and the sounds of tearing flesh and breaking bones made his skin crawl. Pushing past everything to no avail, yet another Darkborn stood in his way. However, this one was much bigger and deranged.

Skidding as he tried stopping, he looked back to see if there was anywhere else to go. It seems his brain might've finally woken up, and reason slapped him in the face. He saw that they were in a large trench, but he could run up a ramp on the other side that led to somewhere covered in smoke. Even then, it had to be better than being shredded to pieces by whatever evil stood in front of him. Decisively, he began sprinting back where he started, once again pushing through the knights. He wanted to help... but how could he? He was a kid, and had never fought against a Darkborn before. How could he do anything but mess it up?

Running out of breath as he heard the sound of explosions and mutilation, he finally got to the ramp. Pacing upwards, he finally reached the top. He looked down into the trench. Pools of red and purple blood were everywhere, torn apart pieces of bodies scattered around, and the Darkborns all writhing in evil. It was a horrific site.

But something kept flashing in Talo's eyes. A vision. A vision of something, somehow even darker than the Darkborns, somehow even more intimidating, preparing a spell. Dark, evil purple energy circling around it. It morphed and glitched the sky around itself, and started to form something at its fingertips. It let it all go. An enormous purple beam washed upon a fleet of knights and... people. Just people. No armour, no weapons. Just people. And their children.

"What the hell is going on?!" he put his hand to the eye he was seeing it through. Whatever he was seeing seemed to be how the trench was made. And now, even more destruction was being made. What was going on here? Talo looked up to the twilight sky. Its beauty was overshadowed by the death cast upon this cursed plain. And overcast by smoke. Eyes irritated from it, he looked behind himself to see what the source was. It was a village, and presumably the last of its residents burning down. He could no longer hold back tears.

Not only was the irritation stronger, but seeing the burning skin of a child as they faded out of life... it was too much. He heard the ominous hissing of a Darkborn and the cries of a woman and her son. He looked in their direction, as a Darkborn was ready to strike. He wasn't going to let that happen. He dashed in, and cut off the Darkborn's unnaturally slim and lanky arm with a slash of light encased over Talo's arm. He sent small darts of light at the thing, as he grabbed the hand of the mother and threw the child on his back and ran.