(If you’re just here for the story, skip to the page break)
Hey there, thanks for coming to the party! And by party, I mean me rambling about my experiences as a writer and then sharing a short story with you… my kind of party, honestly.
Anywho…
I’ve now been posting fiction and other nonsense for two whole years! How cool is that? I was trying to figure out what I’d do to celebrate, and I realized there was only really one way: Look back on another old story, and rewrite it to make it shine a little brighter with my improved editorial skills. A lot of my old stories aren’t quite up to snuff on the editing side, and that’s because I really learned how to edit on Substack. As a writer, I think that’s one of the greatest gifts I’ve received in the last two years. I’m so grateful I’m a better editor. There’s still room for improvement, and my current work is evidence of that too!
I’ll be honest, my biggest embarrassment on this site is definitely The Trial of Isolation. That thing is a MESS. I dream one day of rewriting that whole thing, but for now, there’s not enough time for such a huge task. But It was my first attempt at editing a larger project, and I’ve come a long way since then. Maybe one day I’ll be celebrating by re-releasing that entire novella. I certainly think that’d be worth a try.
But until then, let’s make The Fall - originally called The Prophetic Fall of Tarn - shine. This story has one of my favorite action scenes in the world of Astra, and I personally think it deserves more love because it is both terrifying and beautiful in a way that I think has become my identifiable style (am I well known enough to have a recognizable style? Maybe…). So, let’s not get too sappy, but let me get a little sappy before we jump into this re-edit!
Okay, so two years? Goodness me, how did we get here? Honestly, I don’t know. But I do want to say thank you to the people I’ve met here. I regularly say that I originally joined Substack as a way to get past my anxiety about sharing my stories. I thought along the way, I might get a little better, find other people to read, and probably stay a relatively quiet and anonymous figure. Well, I am still mostly anonymous (mostly), but I think the rest has not remained true. Instead, I’ve gotten absurdly better at writing, made so many amazing connections with brilliant writers, and honestly, I can be a little loud out here sometimes. Very unlike me, but I’m happy about it!
The thing I’m most grateful for is the community I’ve found on Substack. I’m always out here thanking all the communities I’ve been lucky enough to be a part of, so I hope you know who you are, but just know I’m so unbelievably grateful!
Also, to my amazement, I’ve gotten a short story published, started making short story zines (template coming soon), shared my first full length novel, written two more novels, and countless novellas. I’ve shared a book with beta readers for feedback, and probably more things I can’t even think of right now! All that while connecting and finding community in ways I never before thought possible for me. I’m beyond grateful for that. And most importantly, I’m humbled by it.
But there’s still more to come! I’ve got more stories brewing and ready to share, and I’m going to start querying a trilogy to literary agents, and if that doesn’t work? Well, shit, I’ve got a damn good community behind me that would be happy to read some indie published books!
This is just the beginning for my writing. Things are going to change a lot over the next year in my life, but I’m looking forward to it. Change is a beautiful thing, and I cannot wait to take it all in, and write some beautiful work along with it. So stick with me, and I’ll keep sharing the wild, fun, and weird stuff that I love to write. One last time, thank you.
Alright, let’s get into this edit.
Originally when I came up with this idea, I was driving the backroads of Pennsylvania back in 2021. It was the middle of the night, and the roads were caked in mud, draped in fog, and my car was plowing through the rain. I thought about what could come out of that fog. What might’ve been hiding in the wetlands of PA. And from that came… a monstrous story in the world of Astra. So, give it some love as I give you, The Fall re-edited, one of the few stories that focuses on the northwest of Astra…
The Fall
“Commodore, do you have a moment?” a voice said from behind Commodore Beln. He stood in the dull gray hallway of the city-state of Tarn’s satellite base on the frontiers of the multicentury warfront. He paused a moment and looked over his shoulder. He heard the sounds of metal thudding as military issued boots pounded into the metal floor.
“Ah, officer - uh…” the commodore trailed off, realizing he couldn’t remember the officer’s name. He felt a rush of embarrassment. She was one of his closest underlings. It wasn’t like he didn’t respect her, he just had a lot of his mind - that was it. He chalked it up to fog of war and continued on, “what can I do for you?”
The officer trotted up to him and passed him a folder as they continued walking along at the same pace down the hall, “A crew member of the supply caravan came back. One survivor. No salvage. She barely made it alive - and man, commodore, she’s got a story to tell.”
“A story? That’s a first.” Beln said as he flipped open the folder and fingered through the soldier's statement. “Huh. Already censored.” The entire debrief was already blacked out in ink. He wondered who above him was taking such liberties to cover up whatever was happening on the warfronts. “Take me to the retrieval team then. We’ll get a debrief from them since someone is trying to hide something from us.”
“Well, that's the thing commodore: she came back on her own.”
Beln stopped in the hall. “On her own?”
The officer nodded, “Limping, bleeding, and shrapnel seeping into her internal organs… but alive. Broken bones, scorch marks, internal bleeding. On. Her. Own.”
“How long does she have?” Beln asked.
“Not sure. Medical team said she’s stabilized. Could be permanent. Could slip away at any second. With the rolling blackouts and lack of supplies… we could lose her if -”
Beln raised a hand and the officer stopped talking, “I need clearance to talk to her before the admiral does, officer. Something tells me he’s involved in the cover up.”
“That’s why I came to you, sir.” The officer replied with a confident nod. “We don’t have clearance - she’s hands off by orders on high - but I talked to the staff in the medbay and they agreed to give her some space for the night.”
“Perfect. Let’s go.” They turned left at the next split in the hallway and Commodore Beln looked directly at the officer, worry in his eyes, “You know this stays between us, right?” The officer matched his gaze. Her features were firm and serious. She gave a single nod then looked forward.
.
.
.
It wasn’t long before Beln and the officer had slipped into the small infirmary and locked the door behind them. The officer pulled the curtain shut, as Beln settled into a seat at the side of the injured militia member’s bed. The soldier looked surprisingly peaceful to Beln given how beat up she was. Her face was already beginning to scab over from minor burns, and her arms were wrapped and suspended. It appeared her legs were in casts and split apart under a thin white blanket, and there was a translucent dome covering her stomach that Beln averted his eyes from, afraid of what he may catch a glimpse of beneath it if he looked too hard.
“Why isn’t she in a full suspension chamber?” Beln whispered, leaning away from the woman and back towards the officer.
“We don’t have the supplies for that, sir.” She whispered back, “We barely have the supplies to keep our ships functioning. We diverted most of our forces East… her supply truck was supposed to bring what supplies we could give to the eastern front. Medical supplies, equipment for vehicle repairs, rations, soldiers - sir, we’re in a war on all sides with the mines depleting below us. Faren has us in a vice grip.”
“And yet the admiral keeps pushing our luck at sea to the west and now the lakes war in the east is collapsing. Ayeke, we can’t even get supplies to the east. Plains above, do we even have an eastern front anymore?” Beln mulled the thought over. There hadn’t been a word from the East in 72 hours. He feared the worst. No message over comms arrays, no communication between the divinators. He was beginning to grow nervous, but the admiral seemed indifferent. That’s why he needed to speak with this woman. He needed to know what was going on.
“Let’s wake her up and find out. Maybe she knows.” His officer said as she stepped forward and gently said, “M173? Can you hear me?” The woman’s eyes opened slowly. He could see her pupils dilating and adjusting to the light. Her face contorted in pain - as if her body was slow to remind her that she was gravely injured.
She looked at the officer, “Officer Len…” She croaked out. Len. Of course that was her name. Beln shook his head, annoyed with himself.
“Yes.” Len said with a gentle smile. “I briefed you before you left.”
“I remember…” The woman said with a tired smile.
“Good to know your memory still works, soldier.” The commodore said, drawing attention to himself.
“Commodore Beln!” Her voice cracked and she flinched with pain trying to salute him. The sling suspending her arm fought her every step of the way. It eventually won and she let her arm drop in shameful defeat.
“Don’t worry about the formalities, soldier. I need a full debrief of what happened out there.”
“I already gave a full debrief, sir.”
“I know you did, but I need this one,” he paused to open the file Len had given him, “off the record.” He showed the heavily blacked out file to the soldier. She let out a gasp that sounded like a fish searching for water.
“Yes sir, Commodore.” She said, “I’ll tell you as much as I can remember.”
“Very good. Officer Len, please begin the recording for our files.”
“Yes sir.”
.
.
.
Devor Tenra. Militia member M173. 3rd generation member.
I started on the water, working the guns on a cruiser. After depletions in the supply chain - too many soldiers on the water, not enough supplies crossing the continent - I was relocated to the supply chain run from the city-state of Tarn, heading out east to the great lake region near Faren’s capital city-state.
It was an easy enough job. Drive the truck, fight off the usual fanatics, counter-ops, and random highway robbers, then take the supplies out to the front lines in the east.
Supplies consisted of medical equipment, quick patch and sealant, replacement parts for the lake cruisers, heavy plasma artillery rounds, energy weapons - both hand-to-hand and ranged - as well as several militia members… M233 to M238. I don’t recall their names… I’ve been trying.
I was driving the Heavy terrain convoy. My gunner - M113 - Tont - he was reading a book about… local lore - it was - he kept talking about…
.
.
.
“The ancient kings of Tarn often made attempts over the course of thousands of years to push eastward into Faren territory. These often failed due to guerilla tactics, unfamiliar terrain, and unpredictable wildlife. The taming of Faren’s surrounding lands did not come from the civilization of the western Tarnish people, but from within when the Faren authoritarian - Lord Campton - took control and rallied his people, creating a war against Tarn that would last for centuries before both sides became depleted, and united with the goal of defending against a new enemy - The northern crusaders of the icelands. It was believed then tha -”
“- Okay okay, enough, Tont. I don’t need a whole damn history lesson.” I said, cutting him off before he could continue. I never liked hearing about the Faren-Tarn alliance. It always made me uncomfortable when thinking about the way things were now. Tont had his legs up on the dash. Not much could stop the slow moving machinery winding down the forest roads on its thick tread, so we weren’t really on alert. He had the gun ready overhead though. He could’ve opened the hatch at any point to engage an enemy.
In retrospect, it was stupid - a misuse of protocol - but Tont always said we were safest in the forest between trades and I agreed with him. It was when we arrived at the outposts that we needed to be worried. That we needed to stick to our posts.
“To know the history of the lands is to -”
“Know its people. I know. But shit, can you talk about anything else? Anything at all?”
The sun was setting, and a heavy fog was falling on the dirt road. I can't remember the exact location but I know the terrain was a mixture of forest and marshland. I was getting tired, but my shift at the wheel wasn’t finished until sunrise the next day. I took a heavy breath and pushed on into the night. Tont kept reading. I was barely listening, but at least it kept me alert.
“The Monger is a monster of great size and proportions. It’s believed to be a creature of a god, though which has failed to be proven -”
“I’m sorry, what? The monger?” I said before he could continue.
“Yeah, the Monger. What’s wrong with that name?” Tont asked, putting the book down in his lap.
“Don’t you think that name’s kind of silly?” I laughed. Laughing made me tighten my grip on the wheel.
“Silly? I wouldn’t think it was silly if I saw one.” Tont continued.
“How would you know?”
“Didn’t you hear the description?” He asked, raising an eyebrow.
“No.” I guess I wasn’t listening as closely as I thought. He went to begin the passage again, but I held up a hand, “Don’t bother.” I said with a laugh and a shake of my head.
“Sure thing, Dev.” We continued into the night. Every now and then, I’d hear a bump in the back. I remember Tont making a comment about how loud these guys were compared to other militia soldiers we’d taken to the front lines. Sometimes these ones got to the point where we would bang on the metal that separated us to quiet them up. They seemed pretty unruly to me, but that’s what you get with the fourth gen types. They’re practically babies still.
They would settle when we hit the wall and that was good enough for me. As it got darker and harder to see, I tried to focus on the road. I could still hear Tont talking, but only bits and pieces really came to me. Things about creatures that shook the earth. Or gods that came down to smite the unbelievers. Kings that lived for thousands of years and ascended to other realms. You know, the nonsense you read about in local legend books. And this was Faren land after all. The wilds of the eastern northwest where myths came true and legends never died.
But at the noon of night, something rocked the top of the vehicle. It felt like we were lifted from above - like a hawk picking up a mouse, only dropping it when it saw something more appetizing. I stopped the vehicle and turned on the high beams that surround all militia standard convoys. Of course, with the fog, it made things worse, but this was the standard operating procedure.
I followed my script, pulled out the loudspeaker and spoke into the comm system, “To any invading party, this is an armed caravan transporting goods under the Tarn banner. Any attack on this caravan is an attack on the Western Tarn alliance of our lord of the beyond, Ayeke.”
We sat in silence. I reached for my rifle, but Tont stopped me. He technically was my equal but he had been in a few months longer and was able to pull rank of experience over me.
“Hold your position. Deploy the squadron to investigate. I’ll check the top. Remember, follow protocol.” He crouched up on his chair, worked the gunner’s hatch open and took up position.
“Testing testing…” He whispered over the comm channel.
“Heard.” I said back. I remember the sweat beading on my palms, and the dryness in my mouth. We were in a dark foggy forest, floodlights on, and a warning in my own voice I swore I still heard echoing throughout the forest. I just threatened a firefight because our truck was rocked - but that’s what I was supposed to do. I went back over the comm, “Squadron lead, M233?”
“Ma’am?” She said back without missing a beat.
“We may be overreacting, but it pays to be safe. I need your squad to do a full search of the minimum safe radius.”
“Understood. M233 out.”
“No sign of anything up here - not that could’ve done that at least. Think I saw a stray beast running off… a little wolf-like thing? Maybe a fox. Doesn’t matter, it’s gone now. Just trees, marsh and wilds far as I can see.” Tont said.
“Should I kill the lights?” I asked.
“Negative. Might be scaring off a big animal if that’s what gave us the startle.”
“It wasn’t a startle.” I said back as calmly as I could. “I was following the protocol.” I didn’t like the protocol. I felt like I was overreacting.
Tont just grunted in response. It was weird seeing his legs swivel around in the chair next to me but not being able to hear him other than through the comm. Not long after, I saw the squadron making their rounds. One of them gave me a wave through the window. Another reminder of how fresh this squadron was. I nodded back, but didn’t take my hands off the wheel.
“Minimum safe radius is clear, ma’am.” M233 called over the comms.
I rehearsed the next steps, “Protocol calls for a further search to maximum radius for confirmation. Can you confirm?”
“Confirmed, ma’am. We’ll get right on it.”
It wasn’t long before I saw their flashlights bending through the distant fog, darting about looking for anything that could’ve been the cause. They were taking a while though, and within a few minutes of them spreading out, they were converging on a location.
“M233, report.” I said over the comm.
“M233 reporting. We have a visual on something. Some sort of light… ‘bout 10 meters out.”
“We don’t have visual here, M233. Give me some coordinates.” Tont said over the comm.
“Uhhh, 10 meters north of me at uhhh, 120-ish degrees? I can’t be certain. This fog is making everything so hard to see - my visor is sending off some weird numbers. Might be more like 80 degrees… hold to confirm.”
“I can’t see it on my end. Not at either location.” Tont said. “Approach with caution. You have no cover. Repeat, no cover.”
“Should I go help?” I asked.
“No. Stay in position. The driver needs to be prepared at all times. Protocol -”
“Yes, sir.” I replied, a mixture of panic and spite dripping from my voice. I knew Tont was trying to help, but I didn’t appreciate him taking control of the situation even if he did have seniority. I was tired of the protocol, we needed to help each other. Sitting in the driver seat while the team approached something unknown made me sick to my stomach.
“Approaching lightsource…” M233 said. “It’s - Gods above -” We lost her signal.
A different soldier’s voice came over the comm, “Engage target, engage target!”
Screams echoed from the fog. Blue muzzle flash followed. There was a slight delay as the sound of their rifles burned through the air, echoing across the forest. Before I could react, a deep guttural roar erupted from the fog. The muzzle flash continued with the echo of rifle fire screaming into the night.
The air ran cold and I felt my hands reaching for my rifle. As if he saw me, Tont snapped, “M173, hold position!” He screamed over the gunfire. Soldiers were screaming - pleading - over the comms, calling for backup.
“But they need help and I -”
“Hold your damn position, Dev!” I didn’t respond. I couldn’t. What was I supposed to say? But I still grabbed my rifle, and sat motionless in the driver’s seat. My knuckles felt like they might bleed from the force I was putting onto my rifle. Within 30 seconds the gunfire ended. The screaming stopped. Everything was quiet again.
I tried to contact them, “M233 report.” Nothing. Not even silence. It sounded like someone was holding down the call on her comm, but not saying anything. Like her voice was trapped on the other end. It made my skin crawl. “Is anyone there…? M234?” I pleaded. My voice cracked. I felt like I was going to cry for a moment. I swallowed deep and took an even deeper breath. “Please respond or you will be considered KIA.”
Silence.
“I’m switching to a secondary channel. Just us.” I said to Tont.
“Understood.”
I switched channels, “Testing…” My voice was shaken, but I still tried to follow protocol. Was this even a rule? I don’t know anymore.
“I hear you.” Tont said. “Dev, get ready to exit the vehicle.”
“Exit the vehicle?”
“We have an approaching light source.”
“Flashlight?”
“No. Too big.” He sounded panicked. “I’m going to cover you, but you have to go. Now.”
“Negative. I’ll cover you if you cover me. We’ll both get out of this.”
“Dev, there’s no time for -” The vehicle rocked and shuddered and I heard him scream over the comm - it broke through the reinforced roof of the convoy as his scream crescendoed into curdling pain. The echo made my grip tighten on my rifle and my teeth clench down ‘til they hurt. My blood ran cold as his legs pulled away and out, the hatch slamming shut behind him. I heard the scraping of sharpened bone against metal and a sudden flash of light that drowned out the floodlights. As the caravan rocked back into place, its lights flickered out.
It was dark, but I heard the sound of fluid dripping down from the gunner’s hatch. Wherever that thing had gone, it took the light with it.
I switched to an open channel. “This is M173 of the Western Tarn alliance. If anyone is out there, please respond.” I whispered it to try not to attract whatever the ball of light was. I checked my rifle. Full charge on the clip, but that was all. I took the safety off, and reached across the cabin into the passenger glovebox. Whatever the fluid dripping from the ceiling was, I got on my arm. I jumped away in disgust, and knocked Tont’s book on the floor. When it hit the ground, I paused, waiting to see if the unknown outside heard it. Then, I slowly reached into the glovebox and pulled out the emergency energy pistol. I holstered it and slowly opened the door.
I wish that rusted door had been replaced sooner. The strained groan made my blood run cold as it echoed through the forest. I swear, in the fog I saw refracted light shimmer in the distance then disappear. It was deep in the forest, but I knew it was there. Maybe that’s where it took Tont. I backed away from the source of the movement and began to head towards where the squad was lost - maybe there were survivors that could help me save Tont. I stumbled over rocks and broken trees in the dark. My eyes hadn’t adjusted to the dark, and I wouldn’t dare have a flashlight on. I stopped to catch my breath about 5 meters out from the squad’s last known location when I heard a cough and a groaning sputter. I looked to the source and saw a soldier in the green frontline body armor. His chest piece was shredded open, revealing his opened chest cavity with blood pooling in his lap.
I slid down quietly next to him. It was M237, I think.
“Ma’am…” He whispered. His voice was strained and forced. I don’t think he could make his voice louder than a whisper. “Ayeke’s not here. Only a fiend.” He said through a bubble of blood expanding from his badly burned mouth. The bones of his cheek and jawline were exposed. It looked like an energy weapon was discharged right next to his face. How was he still alive? I had to stop myself from throwing up into his lap. He let out a labored breath and handed me what was wrapped in his hand.
I thought it may be a letter to a loved one, or tags, or even just a charm to Akeye, but it wasn’t. It was a charged clip for my rifle. With his dying breath, he made sure I took it. His body went limp next to me, his eyes staring into mine. Forever.
I turned back towards the caravan. I left it abandoned, but I’m sorry, I didn’t really care anymore. I thought I may die. I needed to find Tont, he had to be alive out there.
He was known as a survivor. Fought on both fronts - on land and sea - and had more confirmed kills than anyone I knew. He was practically working the convoy route as a vacation before heading back to the front lines. Shit, Faren might have us surrounded, but they’d never have someone like Tont. If anyone could survive whatever this thing was, it had to be him. It had to be.
I made my way back to the caravan and looked around. Nothing in sight. Back where I had seen movement before, I saw the light, but it was getting closer. I crawled under the caravan in a panic. I tried to control my breathing, but if this thing had good hearing, it probably heard my panicked breaths anyway.
The light got brighter. I wonder if I would’ve gone blind if I was fully exposed to it. I heard a strange groan and a chitter like a massive insect. I used the light that made its way to me to find the emergency hatch into the back of the caravan and snap it open. I thought I’d be safe inside. I fumbled, throwing my rifle up into the hole before pulling my body up.
I poked my head up just in time to see a claw as big as me scraping its way into the back. The soldiers hadn’t sealed the back hatch - a break in protocol that in the moment I thought might cost me my life - and this creature was rummaging around like somebody looking for food in a jar. I froze for a second, then slowly reached for my rifle. The creature’s claw was getting closer, and I feel like I should’ve been panicking, but I wasn’t. It was so clear. I don’t even remember it fully - I wasn’t thinking, I’m not sure what forced my hand, but I couldn’t’ve been thinking straight.
My rifle was in my hands, and I blasted that monster right in the palm of its slimy claw. The hold blazed with blue light, and I saw its hand begin to sear before the shot had even fully registered on the creature. The air was electrified, and I swear I saw a munitions rack light up like the very energy of the blast activated it. It let out a disgusting screech and its claw slammed against the top of the caravan, jerking the entire vehicle up.
I tried to duck out of the hatch, but I got stuck with my arms spread out. Instead of ducking out, I threw my arms against the floor and rocketed up off the dirt road and into the air with the caravan.The creature’s arm was thrashing against the walls, trying to get loose from the back of the caravan.
When he did get loose, the entire truck went into freefall. And there I was, falling through the air, half in, half out of the emergency hatch in the bottom of the caravan truck. I fought to get loose, to get free. I only just got out before the caravan landed and smashed into a tree. I landed in a muddy pocket of dirt that I think broke my fall. I heard a warning klaxon almost immediately.
There was a containment breach inside the caravan. One of the artillery rounds must’ve been damaged in the thrashing. The bright light that I knew as the creature's form galloped towards the caravan and began to slam against it, letting out a bellow and a monstrous screech. The klaxon didn’t grow any quieter, and I realized I was too close. I needed to get away before I was stuck in the blast radius of an artillery leak that this thing was making worse.
I stumbled away, limping as I went. I’m not sure how, but I managed to come away from this with my rifle still in hand. Just as I was about to break free of the tree line the klaxon stopped and there was a pause. A pause before the entire caravan went up like a plasma bomb.
I don’t remember feeling any of it. I don’t remember it burning my skin, or throwing me out of the tree line and across the road. I don’t remember much other than getting up when it was over.
Before long, I was standing on the road again, looking at the blue flames of superheated air and lost cargo. I realized all at once, that the creature was standing inside the flames, its own light diminished by the fire, but its form whole in its horrendous glory.
It was like an angler on land with claws like a poisonous reptile. Its mouth gaped with ciliated teeth that were sharp despite the way they rocked about in its gaping oceanus maw. The creature was all of three stories, with a giant pod of light hanging past its face and down in front of its primordial body. It less walked on land, and more dragged itself on the knuckles of its claws on what could fairly be described as a stump of a lower body with small flippers instead of legs.
It was the horror of the deep washed upon land. A curse from the gods, I swear it. I always thought our lord of infinite oceans would never curse us with such a thing, but here such a beast was, and it was clearly of the depths. But why? Why would Ayeke do this to us? I wasn’t thinking that then, but it's hard not to wonder now. I do remember thinking about all the blood dripping down its body. The explosion may have left it unmoving, but I saw blood seeping from between cracks in its hard outer shell. Its maw had a gooey mix of saliva and blood seeping from its lipless jowls.
It saw me. I think it knew I was sizing it up too because it brought its claws to the earth and began to drag itself forward. I could see where its claws dug into its own wrists as it forced itself to move across the land. I backed away, trying to steady my rifle.
I backed right into a tree and let out a gasp before realizing what it was. When I refocused on the creature, it had ripped a tree from the ground and was holding it like a cudgel.
It held the tree to its own baiting light, and it went up in flames.
I gasped and steadied my rifle, taking aim on the creature's head. I took a shot at its colorless eyes and the creature staggered back before bellowing in pain and throwing the flaming tree at me.
I dove down in time for it to miss me, leveling the tree behind me, but as it rolled downward it landed on my leg before I could get away.
Fire was spreading all around me. I think it burnt me, but I can’t remember feeling it. The fire was spreading from the tree, and the ruptured caravan. I was trapped and I knew I only had one way out: Kill the beast.
I readied my rifle, but I couldn’t see the creature yet. I saw its light approaching, but I wasn’t sure at first. All of the light looked the same, but it could’ve been the fire spreading.
Soon it was looking down on me through the flames. It let out a roar. I felt the world around me shake. It was coming to confirm the kill, and here I was aiming at it.
I fired a barrage of shots into its other eye. It stumbled away, and I heard it land with a wet thud. The shaking of the earth knocked the flaming tree loose, and I pulled myself out from under it. I remember not fully having control of the leg that was pinned - like it was lagging behind or something. I went to fire again, but I was out of ammo. I felt lucky for M237’s extra mag, and I made sure to thank him as I reloaded and began firing on the monster again.
The forest around us was being consumed by the spreading fire. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I was scared I was going to die from the fire, not the monster, but I steadied my breath and continued firing on the monster. For a moment, it stopped writhing. It was my turn to confirm the kill.
I took a few steps forward and looked over it. Before I knew what was happening, a claw from the beast jutted up, and came down upon me. I lifted my rifle just in time for the claw to slam into it. The rifle exploded in my hands, searing my face and my fingers. I remember feeling that - even as the world was spinning around me.
In retrospect, I think the rounds in the rifle reacted with something on the creature, but I don’t know. I fell back onto the ground and struggled to pull the pistol from its holster. The monster loomed over me and let out a roar unlike anything I had ever heard.
A battlecry.
A cry of pain.
A final whimper of defiance.
I didn’t know what it was, but I took aim at its glowing ball of light and fired on it with my pistol. It dangled down over me. I felt its heat, but I quickly propelled myself through the mud on legs that begged me to stop from the pain, but I needed to get away from the creature.
After the third or fourth bullet, the creature stopped. Hesitated.
And it sat down… it was almost calm. It was… I don’t know. I just don’t know. It let out a wail into the forest. I fell back against the only tree that wasn’t ablaze and let out a deep breath. It was too weak to go on and I thank the gods because I was too. I dropped the pistol next to me, and watched as the creature looked up into the sky. Then, it started to wail. Cry. I swear, I swear on the Fates and the gods, and anyone else you’d want me to, sir, it was wailing. It barely held itself up by its claws as the uncontrollable fire of its bulb spread to its body, lighting itself on fire as it screamed to the heavens, like it was forsaken by the gods themselves. The monster turned to ash before my eyes. Turned the whole forest to ash.
I blacked out, and woke up in a forest completely leveled and turned to charcoal overnight. All except the tree I was laying against. I never found Tont’s body. I found his book though. Can you believe it was untouched by the fire? I’m telling you, I think - I think something’s going on with the gods. With Ayeke. The nurse wouldn’t let me keep it. Said it was too triggering for me. Said it would keep me up thinking about it. I think she’s full of shit.
But I stood up, and dragged myself back to base. Nothing but an emergency pistol with a low battery, a book, and me. Nothing stopped me. Nothing attacked me. And thank the gods, a security convoy found me at the fence of the base and brought me in. That’s how it happened, sir. Everything I can remember.
.
.
.
Beln left the soldier’s room baffled. Len followed behind with urgency in her step, “Commodore, we need to speak with a high priestess immediately.”
“I know.”
“We need answers. This doesn’t make any sense.”
“No, officer. It makes perfect sense.”
“Sir,” She said as she caught up to him and they stepped outside of the medbay, “with all due respect, how does this make sense?”
“He’s sending us a message, officer. Ayeke is warning us about something. What’s he telling us? Are we doing something wrong? The Admiral must know something.”
“I don’t know, sir, but I can already tell they’re going to frame this as a caravan that went against protocol and endangered the frontlines. M173 will be discharged - medically if she’s lucky - and scapegoated as a fiend among mortals.”
“We need to get behind what’s happening before then. This isn’t a holy war, but our god is destroying our caravans. Killing his own people. We need answers.”
“Is he - Is he against us?”
“If he is, then we’re in danger. And if the Admiral knows and is refusing to pull back, there’s more than just Faren against us.” The commodore paused and thought for a moment, “We need a divinator. Find us one. One outside of the militia.”
“Yes, commodore. Absolutely, sir.”
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