Chapter 8: Invaders
"Void wanderers!" A curdling scream hisses through the tavern from the door. Everyone's heads spin around on their shoulders to face the shaggy man caked with scrapes and mud catching his breath in the doorway.
"Void wanderers have breached the city! Run!" He wheezes before making a break for it. The tavern falls quiet for a moment before breaking out in a sea of panic. Mugs of liquor spill, making the floor slick as numerous people try and shove their way out the tavern door at once. I turn to Cynthia who is frozen in terror as she turns to face me. I watch the chaos stir around me, not entirely sure what this entails for me. Perhaps if I were more knowledgeable on these void wanderers I'd react similar to the rest.
"We need to get you back to the palace." She exclaims in a rush, grabbing my hand.
"Come out the back." Russ mumbles quietly while dismounting a heavy battle axe from off the wall. We both comply and follow him back into the kitchen area of the tavern. Multiple racks of spices and meats hang from the walls. Russ pushes open a small wooden door for us. The chaos in the streets can be heard from the rampant shrieks and fleeing crowds. Dark discombobulated figures descend from the night sky, barely illuminated by the pale moon rays like dark angels. Their broken figures infect the streets with scratchy snarls, pouncing on people trying to flee. The putrid rotting scent hits my nose once more. My heart begins to pound against my chest as I clutch the hilt of my sword instinctively. I know I'm no use in battle and if one of those things got a hold of me I'm dead.
"Come with us, Russ. They'll let you seek shelter in the castle-" Cynthia pleads as we are nudged out the back. Russ simply shakes his head, grappling the axe with both hands. His eyes spark with determination.
"I'm a dead man anyway, I got a town to protect. You two head on. I'll see you soon." He waves us off with a weary smile and starts jogging off into the chaos of the street. Void wanderers tear from the skies, their leathery wings batting like an out of sync war drum.
"Russ!" Cynthia yells after him, it's no use. I grab her by the arm and begin running back the way we came as fast as my feet can take us. The patter of my soles against the stone get louder as they compete against my racing heart. The lack of light in the street makes it difficult to navigate the labyrinth of streets. I shoulder dive through a few anonymous figures dragging Cynthia behind me, her wrist tightly in my grasp. With a jolt I feel my foot snag a heavy mass on the ground. Bodies. It's too dark to make out a face, I can feel Cynthia's fingernails clutching my skin as she makes her way over the mound. We continue down what I believe is the main street, the weak light of dying lanterns from houses nearby provide a little more clarity. Granted, this wasn't exactly the clarity I was looking for. More corpses lay staggered across the cold cobblestone road. I don't feel any desire to get closer. The inhuman shrill of cries mixed with human ones swarm around us, I'm no longer certain if the people I'd been pushing past were really humans after all.
I shake the thought out of my head and continue down the street. Another screech tears from close behind us, the hollow cry echoing off the sullen buildings. A void wanderer pokes its ugly head around the corner and leaps after us like a starving wildcat. I take this as we need to hurry up and begin sprinting forward blindly. I look back at Cynthia who is struggling to keep my pace and I feel something heavy strike my front. With a thud I'm thrown back on the ground, disoriented. I quickly come to my senses and adrenaline rushes through me, jumping up back on my feet. I grip my sword under my cloak and get ready to strike whatever it is that I ran into.
"Wait!" Cynthia shouts quietly, It takes a moment for my eyes to adjust better to the darkness but I can start to make out the silhouette of a young woman dressed in peasant clothes.
"My baby... I can't find my baby-" She sobs "I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry. Please help me find her!" She topples over, clutching the fabric of the cloak near my ankles. I take a deep breath and look around where I stand.
"Master Darwin you can't be so careless- We need you alive." Cynthia attempts to reason with me. I furrow my brows and stare deeply into the darkness. The woman's sobs become drowned out by the volume of my own thoughts. I remember the day Emi was born. I remember holding her for the first time and how her tiny finger would clutch mine. The tender feeling overtakes me like a swollen ache in my heart. If Marcia ever lost Emi- If I ever lost Emi...
"I have to, Cynthia. You take her back to the castle. I'll search for her baby and find my way back." I respond, a certain softness on my tongue. I look down at the woman at my knees, her small stature even more evident as she stares up at me with a look of hope. "Go with Cynthia to the castle, miss. I'll look for your baby."
"Y-yes, thank you sir. Thank you so much." She stammers, hands quivering as Cynthia helps her off the cobblestone road.
"Promise me you'll come back alive." Cynthia murmurs to me as she passes by. "Promise me."
"I can't make promises I can't keep." I say, turning away from them. Facing the streets alone is much more daunting. I take a deep breath and muster all the courage I can. I need to hurry up and find that baby before something else gets to it.