The Hare And The Tiger

Out there over the towering high mountains, the starless sky was shrouded in somber darkness, and the moon was nowhere to be seen. Underneath, the berserk western winds blew mightily, bearing the smothering smell of newly-burnt ashes. Together the smell blended with the sweet aroma of the beautiful juniper trees, and evoked a foreboding atmosphere in the murky forest. It was a deceiving place; the trees would lull wandering travelers in with their fresh scents, but they then would enchain them in their limb-like branches. The trees then used to voraciously infest upon their victims flesh; this seemed to explain the popular fascination that the green of this forest prevailed all year long.

Silence lingered over the grim scenery, but it was soon obliterated by the subtle trot of a little hare. The hare bolted across the clearing and rushed into the dark woods. It seemed that it was being stalked by a ferocious predator, because no living creature would enter the forest if it were unneeded. Following the hare's escape, a deafening roar reverberated intensely. A striped tiger lunged into the clearing, and scanned the area for a trace of the hare. It then stroke the grassy turf with its paw and sounded another vicious roar, for its delicious meal had cunningly fled. The tiger didn't penetrate the grassy hedge that encircled the forest, for the place terrified it and quaked its utter existence. However, it patiently waited for the hare to return.

Again silence reigned, and for the tiger moments drifted away like long hours as it anticipated the success of its trap. It stood its ground, keeping watch for the return of the feeble hare. As it waited, a shriek erupted fiercely, and the tiger winced, turned around hastily and set off into a brisk run. The horrendous shriek exploded again as the hare, or what became of it, emerged from the twisted forest. Its head was swollen and gigantic, but its body was more drastically altered, for it was that of a horse, coated in ensanguined reddish white fur. It had no mane, and from its rear end extended the thin tail of a writhing python. However, the pinnacle of ugliness was the hoofs; the hare-horse had massive, nail-less human feet that produced a loud thud as they continuously slammed the bare turf.

The tiger was already several leagues away, but the hare abomination didn't follow it at all. Its eyes opened wide as it agaped its mouth. From it rushed a fleshy hook reeking filth. The hook covered leagues in seconds as it soared across the clearing, and then it groped the unlucky tiger. With its vile red eyes, the hare beckoned for the hook to return. Again it agaped its mouth and swallowed the trapped tiger as the hook swiftly retreated into the hare's deep bowels. Using its sharp jaws, the hare gnawed and lustfully devoured what once was its predator.

Sculpting The Monolith

Before the fiery hearth I squatted. The flames danced and crackled as they fed upon the ashen wood, pouring a warm aura that disclosed my pallid face. It was a cold night outside, but the sturdy walls of my ancient hut were to much for the snow to overcome. And so, it was an exceptional winter night, a one suitable for work. My shabby tools lay before me on the creaking wooden planks. I beckoned to the bucket at the corner of the room and it flew gracefully towards me. Soon my work would be done.

I poured the molten flesh out of the bucket. It wobbled as it took its final form. Within moments I began running my frail fingers through it, refining its features. With my knife I cut off the unneeded parts, and soon disposed of them. The flames of the old hearth kept me warm and relaxed, for my business was perilous and difficult; a little mistake could cost me my life. However, I was a master flesh sculptor; for many years I have prevailed and became the rightful king of this peculiar craft.

Great friends were my tools. With their aid, I could masterfully control the flesh and put it under my ultimate command. I would tear apart the puny flesh with my knife and place fire therein. Then I would use my little shovel to flatten the outside of the meat, until the fire took its effect inside. Yes, fire. Fire the savior from plagues. Fire the bringer of strength. Fire the serpent that spews life into the static dead. Fire the essence of mighty Zornath.

My masterpiece was nearing its completion. Never have I carved a sculpture this complex nor have I even thought of accomplishing it. However, I succeeded, and the shattered shards of life were now being recollected and reassembled into a new, lively entity. My sculpture was one of a kind; not only a design of decomposed flesh, but also a creature, a being. But it had no goal, as if it existed without a reason. Its goal in life was my choice only; I could make it a moral prophet for a pound of flesh, but I could also turn it into the vilest monster mankind could ever behold. It was all up to me, and to the divine forces that dwelt in the sky, for I couldn't go against their bidding.

Three hours passed. The monolith took its new devastating form; a fleshy humanoid being, but it was so gigantic in proportions that it was crammed in my hut. Hastily, I led the monolith outside. My plan had been accomplished. One thing remained though. I closed in on the monolith and with a firm tone I uttered, "I have carved thee from raw flesh, and fire has given thee one life". In response to my speech, the massive monolith agaped its mouth and growled maniacally. As it did that, I slipped a rolled parchment of paper through its mouth into its deep bowels. On the parchment I had written "DEVASTATE MANKIND AND PLEASE LORD ZORNATH".

Rituals Of Flesh And Blood

The newly-ignited firewood crackled softly, obliterating the silence that reigned over the grave, dark forest. The night sky overhead was pitch-black and completely starless. Once in a while, a fiery meteor would blaze throughout the somber sky, leaving a flickering aura in its path. Then it would burst to rocky rubble as it exploded intensely. A blinding flash would ensue, only to be followed by a monolithic, earth-shaking bang. The protective halo of the planet was too hard for one meteor to pierce, but together the group of barraging meteors would batter the halo and easily smash the planet.

Below the celestial encounter, the sound of briskly-walking footsteps and the cracking leaves underneath resonated in the forest. An obscure figure emerged from beneath the murky trees into the clearing illuminated by the sparkling flames of the firewood. The figure was humanoid and tall, but his head was shrouded with a black hood. Besides that, nothing could be made of the figure, and even with the aid of the gleaming fire, for he was extremely dark. He stood grimly in the middle of the clearing, his head levitated and fixed at the ongoing explosions in the sky. Suddenly, he raised his right arm high and delicately swung it to the left. Within moments a rain of meteors crashed down on the defensive halo, shattering it at many locations. The crashing meteors painted the sky with bedazzling colors, and even the grim figure pulled his hands to his veiled ears when the sound of the explosions reverberated. As soon as the shrill noise faded, the figure's arms sprung towards the sky and he sounded a maniacal laugh. 

And as if an answer to the wicked chuckles, an object tumbled down hastily from the sky. The figure ferociously lunged and groped the object before it impacted with the hard floor of the forest. It was an altar; a stone altar emblazoned with delicately-carved runes, but it seemed that the years have taken a heavy toll on it, for it was damaged and wrecked at many of its corners. It also had a perfectly round top, apparently for sacrificing. The figure stroked the altar and then set it on the ground in front of it. He brought out a candle from his cloak and magically lighted it. Following that, he pressed the flame of the candle against the altar and then he extinguished it. A red, incandescent glow emanated from the top of the altar and washed against the pallid face of the figure. The glow betrayed the darkness and disclosed the horrific design of the figure's face. It wasn't a human; its body resembled that of a tall, slouchy man, but its face drastically differed. For instance , a long, yellow-tinted bird beak protruded like a mountain from its grey, feather-covered face. Over the beak two bead-like, pupil-less eyes loomed cruelly. The hood concealed what remained of the hideous creature's twisted face. Its hands were also clad in leather gloves.

The bird-faced man bellowed a shrill, ear-ripping shriek. He then drew his gloved hands to his beak and he forcefully agaped it. After that, a low growl reverberated from his bowels as his stomach began to expand, as if he had eaten a gigantic object. The object inside him began to slowly move inside his body, and so his stomach returned to its normal size and now it was his chest that was swollen and large. The creature growled ear-splittingly again. The growl squeezed the object out of the creature's chest; it was now crammed in his beak. A third vile growl followed. With a torrent of blood and vomit the object was thrust outside the creature's beak.

The object wasn't technically an object; it was a human's charred remains, a mutilated cadaver. The bird-faced man heaved the repulsively-rotten corpse and softly set it on the altar. Carefully, he poured blood on the corpse from a flask he had with him. Again he lighted his coarse candle and this time he malevolently scorched the human remains. As the flames fed upon the body, the bird-faced man burst into hysterical laughter as if he accomplished his ultimate goal.

A solemn expression returned to the creature's grotesque face as the ashen smoke rose in tendrils from the desecrated corpse. The creature moved its arms in intricate shapes, as if performing an esoteric ritual. It abruptly stopped and set off swiftly into the murky woods. A minute later, two sounds came into earshot: the first was that of creaking and the second was of glass breaking. Massive shards of glass were tumbling from the sky; the planet's protective halo had been devastated.

Merging With Sword Onto Them, Piercing Where They Might Part II

After beholding the shocking scenery, I felt the warriors' morale astoundingly decrease. The dreadful aspect of our formidable enemies hindered us from attacking; we simply stood facing them, cautiously scrutinizing their cruel eyes. One of them then released a shriek so ruthless that we all instantly and firmly protected our ears with our hands. Hearing of the creatures' shriek was drastically different from hearing them shriek. The incident made me doubt our chance in the battle; if the creatures could evoke so much agony by shrieking, then a physical confrontation with them would be much more horrendous. There were eight of us to six of them, but against a menace as terrible as the Olorundu warriors, that didn't matter at all.

Absolute silence lingered following the awful shriek for long, unending minutes. We were paralyzed by our own fear, but what ceased the Olorundu warriors from thrashing us remained a mystery; they broodingly stood facing us, eyeing us ferociously. The looming silence was then obliterated by the alarming sound of a hooting owl, which probably was significant for the Olorundu warriors, as they strode towards us. Before fear incapacitated our strong will, we unsheathed our honed swords and stood ready for the upcoming clash with the titans.

I lunged valiantly towards the closest of the Olorundu warriors and swung my sword to his right side. As I had expected, he was very cunning and effortlessly parried my futile blow with his own sword, sending my attacking arm away and making me open for attack. He tried to maim me, but I was also too fast for him, as I hastily crouched and sidestepped. It seemed that my evasion angered him beyond limits, because he uttered a dreadful shriek and assaulted me again. Still, he failed in crushing me, but he came closer this time and I was extremely lucky. Luck had saved me once, I thought, but it won't save me forever.

The fierce encounter continued. Momentum and adrenaline forcefully hazed my senses, and so I wasn't aware of my colleagues. The only thing I was aware of was my fear: the fear that the Olorundu warrior was going to triumph. I had taken several mighty blows and blood trickled and oozed endlessly out of my limbs. I had to change my plan, but I needed some time to think. Quickly and without further consideration, I jabbed at my enemy's chest and set of on a run back to the village. After my senses awoke, I beheld a morbid scenery that discouraged me and made me want to die: I didn't see my colleagues. I only witnessed six Olorundu warriors approaching, leaving seven mutilated cadavers behind them.

All was lost. Actually, we didn't expect to victor, but we hoped to slaughter at least one Olorundu warrior. But what I once deemed a difficult task was now an impossible one. A sour taste of regret overcame me as I anxiously waited for the six warriors to come and ravage me. Regret for my wasted life. Regret for my shameful failure. Seconds went by like meandering hours, and only contributed in increasing my nervousness. I then remembered the children. The children that I was sworn to defend. The children that I failed in protecting. As that thought brushed against my decaying mind, I felt tears flow out of my eyes, and got ready to slit my throat. If I were going to die, I would die by my own sword rather than the loathsome claws of the nasty Olorundu warrior.

But I never killed myself nor did the Olorundu warriors. Something uncanny occurred as I began to stab myself, but I don't remember the events because my vision was clouded by the vortex of contradicting emotions that battered me violently. All I recall was seeing a blinding golden radiance and hearing an angelic, melodic chant. Following this fast action, I beheld the Olorundu warriors' flesh disintegrating. Pleasure washed over my senses, but all my emotions faded away when I saw a celestial bridge unfold in front of me. The bridge was completely made of gold, but it was shabby and featureless. As I studied it, I heard the alluring chant again and saw a brilliantly radiating angel lingering joyfully at the other side of the bridge. I quickly sped towards the angel and joined him. As we ascended into the sky together, I beheld the remaining villagers as they merrily entombed the rotten flesh of the Olorundu warriors. Around them, the children I was sworn to protect danced as gleefully and happily as if the Olorundu warriors had never existed.

Merging With Sword Onto Them, Piercing Where They Might Part I

A piercing screech reverberated boisterously in the darkened forest, sending shrill echoes of atrocity into the gloomy, starless sky looming overhead. The screech was ominous and disheartening, for it signaled the depressing death of another one of us; the death of another man. Heaps of mutilated, burnt bodies occupied a grand space near the ragged gates of our humble village. With the passing of every moment, more blood of ours was shed, and the enemy closed in on us. Our remaining warriors were terribly discouraged, because they knew that demise was imminent; the fact that they were going to encounter the enemy horrified them. They knew that they barely had a chance against the mighty hordes of Olorundu.

As more time went by, we suffered more and more fatalities. Our grim messengers grievously fetched the desecrated carcasses of the fallen warriors, while priests wandered about, blessing the sick and comforting the sorrowful women who lost their sons in the ferocious battle. After we retreated into the village, all became silent, except for the occasional sobs of scared children. The silence was punishing and unbearable, yet it persisted and continued to torment those in the village, but it didn't really matter; most of the villagers realized that surviving the Olorundu warriors' assault was very difficult if not impossible. All that mattered was their dignity. They wanted to destroy the Olorundu warriors, or at least die trying and preserve their pride unscathed.

After the village's leaders quickly met, they decided to play their last card and send us - the elite force- to confront the fearsome Olorundu warriors. As I got ready to head out to the battlefield, anxiety dismayed me; the upcoming battle was truly terrifying. We, the elite force, were the village's last chance, and our failure in stopping the Olorundu warriors meant the village's evisceration. But then I looked at the mournful faces of women and heard the hopeless screams of children. Children who were unlucky enough to die young. Children who were never going to witness life's beauty. The mere sight encouraged me, and I felt a surge of vigor pump in my veins. I was going to do it for the children.

When we neared the ravaged gate, the dreadful grunts of the Olorundu warriors came into earshot. The sound didn't manage to scar our courage, for we knew that our cause was honorable. We then beckoned to the remaining guardians to unbar the rusty, metal gate. They instantly obeyed us and began to do their task. As the gate opened, fear again began to grip my heart. The fact that my death was certain was very daunting, for  challenging the Orolundu warriors was a very great burden. The other warriors accompanying me were also apprehensive as me. In order to strengthen their low morale, I raised my sword up in the air and bellowed a war cry so loud. The warriors joined me and vowed to fight with all their might.

Finally, after the gate was completely unfastened, we trudged into the dreary wilderness, and for the first time beheld the fearsome warriors of Orolundu. Terror reigned over me as I witnessed their wretched shapes, for despite having heard many tales of their wickedness, I never expected them to be this vile. Their bodies were identical to ours in shape, but they differed in color, for they had a scaly green skin. Their heads though were drastically different; they had heads exactly like those of lizards, but they were much larger. In addition to that, they had long, pointed tails and sharp claws on their lizard-like hands and feet. Their stature was immense too, as they towered over even the tallest of us. After witnessing the true forms of the Orolundu warriors, despair engulfed us all and diminished what remained of our already waning hope.

Into The Gaping Hole Part III

As I frantically lunged towards my escape rope, another massive explosion occurred and again it clouded my  senses; All I felt was tumbling down violently on a flat, hard surface, followed by a searing pain incinerating my back. My blood burnt with agony and only brought me fatal suffering. After arduous, excruciating minutes, light emanated from somewhere above me, so my senses became intact again, and to my revulsion, I beheld a sight I abhorred very much. Uncannily, the jewelry had completely vanished; now, I was in the midst of an irregularly-shaped cavern with a shabby lantern on one wall. The walls terrified me, for they were carved of human flesh: disgusting, ensanguined flesh, with slimy eyeballs gravely bulging out of it in a repulsive manner. They eyeballs loomed glumly, and the sheer sight of them terrorized me, so I fixed my gaze upon the stone floor, but that didn't end my dismay, because the smell of the subterranean cavity was sickening and smothering.

I drew upon what remained of my scarred courage and tried to discern the oddities of the cave, pondering how I got in it and how I can find a way out. A sour taste of despair restrained me from logically thinking, for all that came into my mind was speculations related to magic and esoteric teachings. Was it a time slip? Or was the blast strong enough to transport me into the earth's fathomless bowels? Nothing made sense, except regrets and laments. Sadly, it appeared that my greed had lead me to my demise. Just as I started to think of a solution again, a cacophonous shriek resonated and again perplexed my hearing. Following the shriek, I heard the eerie sound of steel ripping through flesh from a far corner of the cavern. Without a moment's thought, I turned to the direction of the sound, and beheld a horrendous scenery that made my heart tremble with fear: a wide cut had been made in the fleshy wall, and out of it crept two creatures so gruesome and bizarre.

The creatures resembled devil-like men, but with yellow skin and a couple of razor-sharp horns on their bald heads. They were shorter than the average man and wore wooden armor reminiscent of ancient China, while their vile faces were very dragon-like. Hate and resentment emitted from their wild eyes, which were red-colored and furious. The creatures' yellow skin was very slimy, but was completely hairless. Also, they had teeth and claws so sharp as if they had been honed. Fear paralyzed me as I uselessly tried to back away from the peculiar abominations, but all my attempts were futile, because they were agile and fast. They ferociously charged at me, and when they closed in on me, one of them eerily spoke in a sinister, horrid voice. It said: "WE ARE THE DEMONS OF MOLOK, AND YOU SHALL BECOME ONE OF OUR KIND!!" As it uttered its last word, it chuckled evilly and drove its malignant dagger into my heart. No pain was felt, but I witnessed my pallid skin altering its color to a bright yellow.

Into The Gaping Hole Part II

Diamonds, sapphires, rubies and opulent amounts of gold coins filled the deep hole, reflecting the faint glow of my worn-out torch with a shimmering radiance that burnt my eyes. Amongst the extravagant treasures were also diadems, rings and jewelry studded with rare gems. The quantity of the riches was also prodigious; the cumulative collection of gems and gold obscured the ground of the hole, so I predicted that there must be layers over layers of them. Shocked by the possibility of this speculation, I sped towards my torn leather sack and extracted my shovel from it.

I didn't wait for the sun's rise to commence looting the valuable contents of the hole. Within an instant, I began cramming assorted jewels into my shovel. Afterwards, I emptied them cautiously in a spare sack I had with me. For long hours I collected my precious prize, overjoyed not only by my luck, but also by the ease of the task compared to the punishing difficulty of mining, which was a risky job that relies on sheer luck and has nothing to do with skill. What I plundered in minutes overshadowed what a tyrannical king gained in a lifetime.

If it had been possible, I wouldn't have stopped working until the hole was devoid of any riches, but when the level of the gold declined and became out of my shovel's reach, I considered abandoning the ongoing task; I had already amassed a marvelous fortune that would guarantee any living man a luxurious life, yet it all appeared scanty whenever I fixed my gaze at the remaining jewels. Greed tightened its firm grip on me, but still, I managed to avoid jumping into the dark pit, despite my burning desire to do it.

A plan was what I needed before I could plunge into the hole. A mechanism, to be more precise. A mechanism that would hurl out the riches of the pit, but most importantly, a mechanism that could help me get out safely. Motivated by my lustful greed, I searched my sack for any tools of use, and to my glee, I found everything I needed: a collection of strong metal studs, a metal reel and some long ropes. First of all, I knotted a long rope around a stud which I had hammered into the ground beside the hole.This would be my method of escape from the pit. Afterwards, I inserted another long rope into the metal reel and then pinned the reel horizontally onto the edge of the pit using a stud. Finally, I emptied my sack of it's worthless contents and tied it to one side of the rope coming out of the reel.

My plan was to load the gems into the sack, close it and then pull the other side of the rope revolving around the reel until the sack reached the edge of the pit. Following that step, I would firmly fastened the side of the rope I pulled around a stud I had already hammered into a wall inside the hole so that the sack stays lifted. Finally, I would use the other rope to scale the hole's wall, exit it and store the gems in my spare sack. This witty method worked for hours, as I accumulated riches beyond any man's imagination. It all went fine until I heard deafening blast to which the earth beneath me shook madly. As horror began to swipe aside my greed, I decided to exit the gloomy pit and set off with my treasures. Alas, it never happened.

TO BE CONTINUED.