Step By Step

Shesheba was a pale-faced creature who embodied the figure of a deathly ill woman whose bottom half morphed into the dead rotting flesh of her stallion.

She stood over 9 feet tall with wild black hair curated out of poison and acid. One strand was enough to rot the insides of an entire town, killing them instantly.

In her right hand, she wielded a large rusted sword with a thick serrated blade that was honed enough to decapitate any head with one swing.

She was feared, even by the Wickeds and Demons for she was the reason why many towns within the Trousia Region no longer existed when the curse first made an appearance.

A river of blood could be found in each town for Shesheba and her herd killed everyone, ate their flesh, and left the muscle, tissue, and bone for other starving Wickeds.

Flesh gave them strength and expanded their lifespan by five years.

The normal lifespan of a Kaireth was only three before their body turned into piles of ash.

When that happens, you can hear Shesheba mourn for her cries creating a splitting headache.

(“If that’s the case then these Sentries will die.”) Sophie sighed, (“And that would suck for obvious reasons...I can’t read a damn map! I need them to stay alive.”)

Suddenly a cascade of screams echoed from behind, cutting deep into their ears.

The ground began to shake as large hooves pressed into the earth, dropping the sentries' hearts into the pits of their stomachs and erasing everything from their minds.

The serenade of shrieks closed in and the hot breath of the corroded horse was pinned against their backs.

Several swishes from an overly large weapon whistled in the air and the nearby Wickeds darted into the holes with ugly smiles.

Shesheba had arrived.

“SHIT.” both Head Swan and Sophies thought. Swiftly he picked up the pace and the rest followed.

Dread, melted onto their skin and they began to sweat.

Smaller gallops paraded behind her.

In just a couple of seconds, she was going to catch up with them and that would be the end of their adventure.

Quickly Head Swan extended his right arm, forming his fingers into a two and then a one.

With hard nods, the group split into two; three Sentries diverted to the left while the other three went to the right. Despite the change in numbers, Shesheba and her herd stayed focused on them.

(“Nice going Head Swan! Shesheba is severely tunnel-visioned.”) Sophie clutched her fist.

Suddenly Sheshebas pace slowed down and so did the rest of the herd.

A soft smile presented on Head Swans’ face but it didnt last for long.

The large weapon swung, catching him off guard and taking his breath away.

With deep inhales, he calmed his nervous heart and soul, bracing his body for the blade.

He only had a couple of seconds before the blade made contact and in those seconds, he jumped.

Across the blade, his body rolled and as he did, Sophie tightly held on until Head Swan landed on his feet.

The blade crashed into the nearby Tall Leaf Tree as Head Swan wobbled back and forth, regaining his balance and composure.

Shesheba cried out in anguish at missing her target and Kaireths let out a bloody gurgle before proceeding to give chase once more.

As soon as Head Swan leaped over a small ravine filled with black water that stank like decay, his foot snagged on a branch, sending the two forward.

Without missing a beat, he snatched Sophie from his back and hugged her tightly. The two slid into a nearby Tall Leaf Tree.

Kaireths swarmed the entrance, hissing and clacking their mouths.

Shesheba slowed down, approaching them with the blade in hand, ready to strike again.

Head Swan swung his left arm out and screamed, “ne̊sa forth aw lome̊ du aw chyiå yu daw gawgi gå tsawʻå tsa–”

A loud crack came from above and red lightning struck upon the Kaireths near the entrance, instantly turning them into ash.

A ruby fire started before the opening and the rest of the Kaireths backed up. Shesheba’s ever-morphing face twisted; each face holding a print of anger and sadness.

With a deep inhale, she screamed her infamous wail as her stead backed away from the growing flames.

Quickly Head Swan covered Sophie's ears and muttered, "yosi̊tapu yo ne̊ låsa , yosi̊tapu yo ne̊ yiyai" and a barrier of light surrounded both of them, blocking out the painful scream.

Soon the screeching came to a halt and there was nothing left but the crackling sound of fire.

Head Swan jumped to his feet, “I can't believe that I'm seeing…Red Lighting…I will inform 4827 about this.” He let Sophie down and she turned to see the flames.

(“Something was watching us. The lightning strike was to perfect to be a coincidence. But I wonder who? Which creature carries the power of lightning? Could it be a God that intervened?”)

Head Swan squatted down, “Get back on. We’re headed out while the fire is still burning. This is our chance to escape before the fire attracts more enemies.”

She nodded her head and climbed onto his back.

He opened his mouth, “ne̊sa forth aw lome̊ du aw chyiå yu daw gawgi gå tsawʻå tsa ri̊wi̊”

A soft, glowing wave came from his feet. The flames that flickered widely barely contorted and the Kaireths movement was minimal.

Sophie smiled, (“Portaries Anitus. The Spell of Speed. I haven't seen this smell utilized in a while.”) Head Swan rushed through the flames, past the Kaireths and Shesheba, (“But it doesn't last long. Only a couple of minutes….”)

Head Swan continued on his path forward until he reached an open area where dead grass and crumbling dirt laid.

Standing in a straight line with their bare hands uncovered and palms facing out were the rest of the Sentries.

On each of their palms was the seal of Nano drawn out in their very own blood.

It was a spell of Ultimate Protection that was rarely used for it took years off of your life.

Head Swan speed up his pace and as soon as they got close enough to them, the Sentries bowed their heads and began to chant;

“oh mighty shlu arthur

chtu shku shte tshuepsha kʼe shte wewsu

kʼa troyoyu shku ra ryo chla

ra lipna chu kʼahi

klo pri rihtu

chtu shku pri

wu chi yi sme ryute

mu mye sne

lakirpu.”

From the palms of their hands, a white galaxy-colored barricade began to emerge.

Sophie’s eyes widened as the milky substance spread to the right, left, up, and down.

She had only ever seen the spell be performed once and the last time it happened, several Sentries ended up dying.

Although it was the Ultimate Protection Spell, meant to keep anything that harmed them away, it only lasted for so long.

With a couple more steps, Head Swan and Sophie phased through the wall, reaching the other side where the sentries stood.

Heavily, he exhaled, jogging in place before coming to a lull.

It wasn't very long before Shesheba and the herd of Kaireths stood along the line of Tall Leaf Trees.

Rapidly her face was morphing into several expressions of agony and despair, each one screaming in a different tone. She knew if she continued to follow, she would catch on fire and so would her herd.

Frustrated, she shrieked and the Kaireths followed, getting on their hind legs or stomping the group.

The Sentry with a deep voice stepped out of line and to Head Swan, “Don’t forget, Head Swan, the Harbinger has a good memory.” He placed his hand on his shoulder, “If she smells us or sees us again, we’re dead. We could have done something else besides this.”

“Thank you for the reminder, 7987.” Head Swan huffed, “Don’t forget, Kaireths are fast creatures, especially as a group. If it were just a small herd of them, I would’ve allowed you all to fight. But it wasn’t now was it?”

7987 huffed, “We could’ve used fire to scare her off.”

“How little you remember, 7987. Fire will only attract more evil. Harbingers are intelligent creatures. I understand your frustration but we do not serve to fight. We serve to assist people out of the forests.”

7987 threw up his hands and proceeded to walk away.

Head Swan looked to the rest of the group who began to lower their hands, “Good work everyone. We only have 45 more miles until we reach the city of Nora. Keep your eyes peeled and your bodies ready for anything. We dont know what brought the Harbinger here but-”

Suddenly, within the jarring shrieks, Shesheba cried a faint, “Mother!”

The faint cry ripped through their stomachs, ached their heads, and silenced the forest.

It was the first time they had heard a Harbinger speak any sort of language outside of the terrible noises they put out.

Sophie gaped from the back of Head Swan to get a look at Shesheba who began to mutter a muffled, “M-M-Mother….M-M-MOTHER”

The Sentries began to talk amongst themselves;

“Mother?”

“Shesheba has a mother?”

“If she does, she has got to be worse than her...”

“Oh God….”

4827 looked at Head Swan, “What do we do sir?”

Head Swan inhaled, “There’s nothing we can do but keep moving but write it down in the report. Hopefully, Section 6 will look into it.”

But he highly doubted it.

Section 6 was King Arthur's special operation team that observed the nature of the Monsters, informing the Sentries of their movements to make their missions easier.

But they were already swamped after the Shortal District incident and barely had time to give a report to them about their missions three months ago.

“Let's move,” he demanded as he bolted into the second half of the forest and the others followed, leaving Shesheba to cry for her mother.