Blood Born Angel
Emissary of Oblivion
"I see her! Over there!"
Layla crashed through the brush panting and sobbing. Her bare feet stomped and tripped through the undergrowth; raw and bloody from her journey. There were tears streaming down her dirt covered face, and her breathing was choked by sobs of pain and anger. Blood soaked her robes and skin, though not much of it was her own.
"Quickly! Catch her!" The men chasing her were not far behind. They pursued just at the edge of sight no matter how fast she ran. They were going to catch up, and then she'd be their next victim. Her thighs were aching and her lungs burned with each labored breath. She couldn't keep going forever, pretty soon she wou-...
Her foot caught on a fallen tree that had sunken into the earth. She gave a short cry as she tumbled over and began falling down a steep hill. Her small body bounced and rolled through the trees and brush and she came to a stop as her body slammed into a large oak tree trunk. Her scream of agony echoed through the forest as she laid there sobbing and holding her broken ribs. She could hear the men atop the hill shouting at each other to hurry down. Layla couldn't just lie there. She needed to move.
She began to drag herself through the bushes. Her teeth were clenched in pain and her eyes were full of hot tears. She couldn't let them get her, she needed to get away, very far away. As she dragged herself through the dirt her hand grasped something very unexpected; the rough stone of a grave marker. She stopped dragging herself to look at the headstone. It must have been ancient. All the words engraved into it's face were worn away and most of it was covered in lichen. She twisted her head to look around and could see other markers hidden in the tangles of nightshade vines and hazelnut bushes. This was a graveyard.
With all her might she dragged herself into a standing position leaning heavily on a gnarled and broken tree trunk. The russell and crashing of the her pursuers came from a little more then a dozen meters away, and she looked to see at least six men holding torches and various melee weapons watching her from the foot of the hill.
"End of the line girl. Your mommy and daddy got what they deserved, and now you need to take your punishment too." The speaker smirked at her taking a step forward with a club in hand. Layla clenched her teeth and dug her nails into the bark of the dead tree.
She shouted, "Get away! One more step and I'll kill you!" The men only laughed and the one got even closer. Her body was trembling like there was an earthquake. Her eyes stung, her body ached, and her heart felt like their was a giant gaping hole in it. She began sobbing again and held herself like a wounded animal. "I hate you.. I hate you all. So leave me alone. Or, DIE!" She let her anger and frustration out and the air seemed to ripple with her scream. The man stopped with a perplexed look on his face and stared at Layla's eyes burning with hatred. She raised a shaky hand over the hallowed earth below her and grit her teeth as she reached out to the power that filled this forgotten place.
"Duna! Fea en' i' ba!" she shouted and her voice sounded unnaturally loud and clear. The man hesitated for just a moment before once again moving toward her at a brisk stride. "You're gibberish doesn't scare me. Little bra-!" He stopped mid-sentence as his ankle got caught on something. When he looked down he could see a skeletal hand grasping his foot from beneath the soil, and he shouted in terror trying to back away, only to fall on his back amongst the other hidden graves.
The earth heaved and split as the sleeping dead rose from their slumber. disgusting corpses covered in mud and festering flesh rose from the earth as if from some cheesy monster movie. But these monsters were much more lifelike. Their half-decayed bodies incredibly real in front of all the men and Layla. The first man who had tripped scooted back as fast as he could, but Layla was not going to let him go.
"Ndengina ho!" she commanded, but the creatures didn't seem to listen. They groaned and took small half-steps in whatever direction they faced. Her words unheeded. She clenched a fist in her torn robes and growled once more, "Khila lle tura!" Her voice once more rung with unnatural power, and the dead froze in place for a second before turning to face the men that had pursued her. They were all petrified at the sight before them, unable to grasp what they were seeing. The one on the ground flipped himself over and began to stand back up but was dragged back down by a snarling skeleton with only tidbits of flesh still on its bones. He screamed as it dragged him into a bush and tore into his flesh with sharp finger bones and gnashing teeth. The others began to back up the hill tripping over themselves in their stupor. "M-monsters! Let's get the hell out of here!"
They struggled to climb the steep incline grasping at trees and roots to help them ascend, but death was on their heels. Quite literally. Layla held herself against the dead tree panting softly and letting her tears drip down from her chin as she watched them one by one get torn apart. Before her undead minions were even done she turned away and began limping out of the forest. She began to cry again. She was alone, her family was gone, and she had killed people. There was nothing left for her.
After stumbling through the dim light for hours she made it back to where her cabin had been. She walked through the broken front door and solemnly went into her old room. As she made her way to her torn up bed she was surprised to see a little bag with a drawstring hiding under the covers. She gingerly opened tugged it open to find her mothers little runestones that she had always kept with her. There was a new one in the bag, and when Layla pulled it out she saw it had a triangle with two bracket like angles on its side carved into it. She grasped it like it was the most delicate flower in the world, and her heart ached like it never had before. She placed it back in its bag and curled up on the bed. She held the stones closer to her heart as she drifted off in exhaustion...
Layla crashed through the brush panting and sobbing. Her bare feet stomped and tripped through the undergrowth; raw and bloody from her journey. There were tears streaming down her dirt covered face, and her breathing was choked by sobs of pain and anger. Blood soaked her robes and skin, though not much of it was her own.
"Quickly! Catch her!" The men chasing her were not far behind. They pursued just at the edge of sight no matter how fast she ran. They were going to catch up, and then she'd be their next victim. Her thighs were aching and her lungs burned with each labored breath. She couldn't keep going forever, pretty soon she wou-...
Her foot caught on a fallen tree that had sunken into the earth. She gave a short cry as she tumbled over and began falling down a steep hill. Her small body bounced and rolled through the trees and brush and she came to a stop as her body slammed into a large oak tree trunk. Her scream of agony echoed through the forest as she laid there sobbing and holding her broken ribs. She could hear the men atop the hill shouting at each other to hurry down. Layla couldn't just lie there. She needed to move.
She began to drag herself through the bushes. Her teeth were clenched in pain and her eyes were full of hot tears. She couldn't let them get her, she needed to get away, very far away. As she dragged herself through the dirt her hand grasped something very unexpected; the rough stone of a grave marker. She stopped dragging herself to look at the headstone. It must have been ancient. All the words engraved into it's face were worn away and most of it was covered in lichen. She twisted her head to look around and could see other markers hidden in the tangles of nightshade vines and hazelnut bushes. This was a graveyard.
With all her might she dragged herself into a standing position leaning heavily on a gnarled and broken tree trunk. The russell and crashing of the her pursuers came from a little more then a dozen meters away, and she looked to see at least six men holding torches and various melee weapons watching her from the foot of the hill.
"End of the line girl. Your mommy and daddy got what they deserved, and now you need to take your punishment too." The speaker smirked at her taking a step forward with a club in hand. Layla clenched her teeth and dug her nails into the bark of the dead tree.
She shouted, "Get away! One more step and I'll kill you!" The men only laughed and the one got even closer. Her body was trembling like there was an earthquake. Her eyes stung, her body ached, and her heart felt like their was a giant gaping hole in it. She began sobbing again and held herself like a wounded animal. "I hate you.. I hate you all. So leave me alone. Or, DIE!" She let her anger and frustration out and the air seemed to ripple with her scream. The man stopped with a perplexed look on his face and stared at Layla's eyes burning with hatred. She raised a shaky hand over the hallowed earth below her and grit her teeth as she reached out to the power that filled this forgotten place.
"Duna! Fea en' i' ba!" she shouted and her voice sounded unnaturally loud and clear. The man hesitated for just a moment before once again moving toward her at a brisk stride. "You're gibberish doesn't scare me. Little bra-!" He stopped mid-sentence as his ankle got caught on something. When he looked down he could see a skeletal hand grasping his foot from beneath the soil, and he shouted in terror trying to back away, only to fall on his back amongst the other hidden graves.
The earth heaved and split as the sleeping dead rose from their slumber. disgusting corpses covered in mud and festering flesh rose from the earth as if from some cheesy monster movie. But these monsters were much more lifelike. Their half-decayed bodies incredibly real in front of all the men and Layla. The first man who had tripped scooted back as fast as he could, but Layla was not going to let him go.
"Ndengina ho!" she commanded, but the creatures didn't seem to listen. They groaned and took small half-steps in whatever direction they faced. Her words unheeded. She clenched a fist in her torn robes and growled once more, "Khila lle tura!" Her voice once more rung with unnatural power, and the dead froze in place for a second before turning to face the men that had pursued her. They were all petrified at the sight before them, unable to grasp what they were seeing. The one on the ground flipped himself over and began to stand back up but was dragged back down by a snarling skeleton with only tidbits of flesh still on its bones. He screamed as it dragged him into a bush and tore into his flesh with sharp finger bones and gnashing teeth. The others began to back up the hill tripping over themselves in their stupor. "M-monsters! Let's get the hell out of here!"
They struggled to climb the steep incline grasping at trees and roots to help them ascend, but death was on their heels. Quite literally. Layla held herself against the dead tree panting softly and letting her tears drip down from her chin as she watched them one by one get torn apart. Before her undead minions were even done she turned away and began limping out of the forest. She began to cry again. She was alone, her family was gone, and she had killed people. There was nothing left for her.
After stumbling through the dim light for hours she made it back to where her cabin had been. She walked through the broken front door and solemnly went into her old room. As she made her way to her torn up bed she was surprised to see a little bag with a drawstring hiding under the covers. She gingerly opened tugged it open to find her mothers little runestones that she had always kept with her. There was a new one in the bag, and when Layla pulled it out she saw it had a triangle with two bracket like angles on its side carved into it. She grasped it like it was the most delicate flower in the world, and her heart ached like it never had before. She placed it back in its bag and curled up on the bed. She held the stones closer to her heart as she drifted off in exhaustion...