Chapter 10: Chapter 10: The Shadow Lingering Beasts

Two grotesque humanoids with dark smoke coming out from their bodies crawled through the sand. Two guards stood at the gates with their spears at hand. Their eyes scanned the environment with vigilance. The beasts that were covering their body in sand slowly swam towards the blind side of the guards.

They made use of the darkness and their body emitting dark smoke to blend in with the dark. The guard's instincts tick as they felt something. The guard's sinews hardened as they tightly curled their hands on the shaft of their spear. They look at the shadow and found nothing. That didn't stop them from observing closer.

The two beasts became part of the wall. The guards were staring face to face with the two beasts but they weren't able to detect them. The two beast watch the guardsmen of throes go back to their post. The two beasts clambered up the Barbican and peek up the upper wall. They crept through the dark and landed down the main roads.

The patrols were everywhere. They carried torch ubiquitously. Their armor made clanking sounds as they march through the dark. The two beasts crawled through the shadow and evaded the patrolling guards. They wove through the branching alleyways and found themselves staring at the quiet slum district of the City of Oasis.

The houses were shacks of makeshift wood hurriedly built. Some slept within wooden barrels, hugging their dirty stained blanket to fend off the cold. There was a round clearing that made the two beasts cringe. Around the bonfire were poorly dressed men and women. Their garments were poor and worn, they were barely clean.

The two beasts had pale hides as if they were skinned; the shadow was protecting them, like a smoke that covered them from being seen. The flame revealed the grotesque appearance of the beast. Their heads were pudgy, their eyes were melted and their teeth's were finger-length. Their red eyes glowed slightly as it reflects the people hogging the fire.

A man was able to catch a glance of these beasts. He dropped the bottle he was holding. He pointed his pointer finger at the shadows. "Ah, monsters!" shouted the man. The people darted their eyes to the corner. They sneered as they turn their eyes back to the man.

"You drunk fool."

"You have too much to drink already whoreson!"

"Run! I saw beast! I knew I did!"

"Whatever man, just keep your lip sealed okay?"

The young man squinted. He eyed the man who went silent. He saw a line of blood around the man's neck. The man's eyes rolled back, his neck spurted blood as he drops face down. The young man eyed the man as if he didn't know what happen. Only when the woman hugging her child screamed suddenly that the young man opened his mouth.

He tried to shout but he found a long claw piecing his throat. One of the two beasts was looking down at him. He moved his eyes to the front. He saw the others who were sharing the fire get eviscerated by a shadowy beast. The young man was lifted up. He was thrown to the bonfire, his body got seperated.

His blood doused the bonfire. The light of the bonfire vanished, replacing it with a dim darkness. The two beasts made a crackling noise similar to a hyena's grunts mixed with a bug's crawling. The other people who were awakened by the noise saw the grotesque figure of the shadowy beast.

The two beasts bolted towards the man. With a quick horizontal swipe, the man was shredded by the beast's claws. Another person went to check out; he saw the beast shredding the man. He tried to run but the other beast tore his neck by biting it off.

A woman saw what happen but froze when the red eyes of the beast pointed at her. A trace of a liquid streak across her legs, she tried to move but she was disemboweled. The pain she felt made her scream to her lungs. This made everyone in the slums district wake up.

Those who had weapons came out with the teeth gritted. They held their fight tightly until they saw the beasts that were taller than normal men. Their bloodied figure stained with blood made them shiver. The bulky man with the shortsword charged at one of the best. He made a thrusting motion to the hips of the beast. But his weapon never pierced the smoking shadowy hide of the best.

He looked. His face scrunched up as his jaws chattered. The beast raised its pale blood-stained arm and brought it down to the man. Brain matter spread on the ground. The other men who thought they were brave took four steps back. The beast didn't howl. It continued to make a critter-bug-hyena-like sound as they pounce at the men who bared their arms.

The beasts were unstoppable. Even the ones who fought once in battles were able to discern how iron and steel didn't work on them. Knowing this they started to scream in despair. The loud sounds attracted everyone. They came out of their makeshift shacks and look at the beast that was hunting them.

There were only two of them. But they were fast and cunning. Their bodies were untouchable. Attacking them was futile. They realized that and started to spread. A guardsman of throes heard the scream and sprinted with his torch. He put his torch forward and spotted the two beasts eating the entrails of the people. Their nasty red eyes pointed at him. He shivered at the sight of the beasts. "Shadow Trekkers!" he showed his teeth. He readied his spear and gracefully retreated.

The beasts dashed towards him. They stopped at the edge of the torch's light. They circled around the guardsman before one of the beasts threw a corpse of a woman to the guardsman. His torch rolled away, he tried to recover his footing but the beast pounded at him. The two beasts tore his limbs. His body armor didn't help as the long sharp claws of the beast tore through his bowels. The guardsman lost his life. The last sight he saw was his arms being chewed by the beasts.

The two beasts continued to make their critter-hyena-like howls. The shouts of the poor echoed around the slum district. Men and women were hunted and only when the sun came that the shouts dissipated.

...

Nolan walked in the slums district. A scene of carnage welcomed him. Chewed heads, torn limbs, entrails are strewn everywhere, stained marks on the shacks, and bodies that were placed everywhere. There was no exception. From young to old, from strong to weak, the scene made those who were curious pale. Their faces scrunched up.

His legs carried him to one of the bodies. A guardsman eyed Nolan, he was about to open his mouth. But he saw Nolan eyeing the scene with intense focus. His face hardened, his eyes dimmed. His fingers traced the wounds of the victims. He moved the bodies. He inspected the pieces of torn limbs, scurrying around with great interest.

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The guardsman eyed Nolan. He looked at him with a disturbed look on his face. The guardsman would have bothered Nolan if it weren't for the two sigils sewed on his cape. The Dove of Thorns and The Snake of Woes and the way he was garbed showed that he was a bleak walker. The guardsman followed Nolan silently until they reach the round clearing where there most of the corpses are.

Nolan squatted near the corpse of a man placed on top a doused bonfire. "I know it."

"Know what, Sir?" said the guardsman.

"Shadow Trekkers, they are the ones that killed these people," said Nolan, standing up and folding his arms.

"How could that be?" The guardsman took a deep breath. The nerves on his face hardened. "Those monsters lurked the barren land. How could they come here, Walker?"

Nolan said, "Look around the city. It's covered in sands and Ithese beasts probably used the sand to cover themselves. They do not have noses and only have gills on their ribs. They can stay quiet enough to blend in the shadows. This man right here got thrown because their cloak of shadows got dissolved by the bonfire. Once it got put out the monsters were able to massacre the city." He pointed at a bloodied gauntlet. "That belongs to a guardsman and clearly the gauntlet got spit out after being chewed. Along the way, I saw a torch stained with blood as well."

Nolan moved to a spot. He took a dismembered hand and gawked at it. "This hand still smells of alcohol but the pointer finger has been extended stiffed." He looked at the direction where the finger was pointed. His eyes followed the trail of blood as well. "I can guess this man was drinking some ale when he dropped it and pointed at the direction. Probably spotted the monsters and died."

He left the hand and sauntered towards the doused bonfire while sniffing. He looked down and squatted. He pointed a finger the corpse placed on top of the extinguished bonfire. The guardsman pace towards Nolan with his mouth rounded. "What is it, Sir?"

"This guy probably was the first one that died here. This man here," he moved the head of the man. "Probably saw that drunken man got killed. He looked like he died and got toss to shut the fire off."

The guardsman twitched his fingers. Nolan placed his vision at the man and shook his head. He walked along the corpse-ridden street and darted his eyes at the worn weapons scattered or still at the hands of somebody's corpse. He pried open a corpse's hand and examined the tip of the weapon. The guardsman squinted trying to gather anything.

"This proves it." He eyed the dark bit of the weapon's tip. "The work of Shadow Trekkers alright, there's no denying this."

The guardsman breathes in. He wrapped his fingers around his spear's shaft tightly while swallowing his voice. The wind blew slightly from the north. Nolan smoothed his cape and pocketed the weapon. "You don't mind if I take this?"

The guardsman shook his head. He looked at the corpses and then looked at Nolan. "How many do you think of these monsters are, Sir?"

"Two at most," said Nolan.

"Two!?" shouted the guardsman. "But there are many corpses around!"

Nolan's expression stayed aloof. "We're not dealing with just normal beasts here." He took the weapon out. "These types of monsters are vulnerable to magic and can be hurt by elements. At best fire would temporarily smolder their hides. Steel and Iron cannot hurt them as you can see why you can't smell an atrocious smell of the abominations blood. Shadow Trekkers can only hurt by anything magical or through concoction and blade oils."

The expression of the guardsman darkened. He jerked his spear and quivered at the thought of facing the monsters. Nolan glanced at the guardsman before shaking his head. "They are strong and fast. They can tear through non-enchanted armor easily. Their reflexes are far better than any trained soldier. But make no mistake, they can be killed."

"Walker," said the guardsman. "How do you know all of this? Have you killed these Shadow Trekkers?"

"Yes," Nolan nodded. "I killed these monsters while I was journeying through the barren lands. They are hard to kill if you don't know how to. Sometimes a good rune can make a difference."

Nolan's eyes turned blank. His skull-like countenance made the guardsman shiver. He felt his spine tingle. Nolan shook his head lightly. The dim light in his eyes returned. He looked at the guard and nodded his head. He pocketed the weapon he got and walked across the body-ridden streets. The searing sun shone his cape. The snake of woes and the dove of thorns that was sewn on his cape fluttered.

The guard stood still as Nolan blurred from his line of sight. He spun and saw more guardsmen pacing around the streets. A cart was being pulled by an ox. It parked near one of the shacks. One of the guardsmen saw the guardsman standing still. He approached the guardsman and manhandled his shoulder. The guardsman rounded his eyes. He bit his hip, he cocked his head.

"What's wrong?" said the man.

"Shadow Trekkers," answered the guardsman. "A Bleak Walker said that this place has been massacred by those abominations."

The man's brows knitted together. His countenance turned into a grimace as he realizes that the situation was not normal. Even if they closed the whole district news will spread. They can seal the street but the smell of blood that stained the air won't vanish. Oasis City has now two abominations to worry about. And they didn't even know that there were only two from a horde of abominations.

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