3 bar menu

Return of the Fallen Vol1 Ch39

Author: Blue_Rat

ch39

Rust’s scouts informed him of the locations of a few more goblin nests and so he led the way. The group did not walk to the next location but instead ran. Rust and Garn decided on this for a few reasons. 1, so they could arrive with blood pumping and their adrenaline still up. Rust didn’t want them to have any chance to cool off. 2, so they had little to no time to think about the killings they just committed.

Their thoughts at the moment should solely be focused on combat and combat alone. Any deviation from that could lead to a sudden realization that they had killed and could cause them to feel either pity or guilt or both for the goblins. This would only cause setbacks to their progress, instead of development.

Rust could not allow such feelings to develop and so he had to resort to a trick he had learned long ago. The trick was to make them kill so much that they never see the goblins as precious life but instead monsters that are naturally to be killed. Creatures that attack them on sight are no more than savages and are a threat to human existence and must be purged, or so the thought process would develop.

After only a few minutes, with the speed of their group they had managed to run a few miles through the swampy landscape. This time they had come upon a small embankment made from piled dirt. this wall of dirt stretched off into the distance blocking any water from flooding the area. The river, which ran next to it, moved at a snail’s pace in some parts and rapidly in others. To fall into such a river, you could easily become bogged down by the ever-changing pace and drown.

Climbing over the embankment, the group spotted a dip in the earth like someone scooped the ground out with a bowl the size of a small hill and poured it elsewhere. In this large carved out piece of land, there were nearly 40 huts but instead of them only being built out of sticks and mud, some of these little homes were made with mud bricks and had roofs made of braided long grass. A few even had what seemed to be small chimneys attached to them.

Next to these homes were large flat areas surrounded by wooden fences. And encaged behind said fences were large lizards with saddles and reins on them. These Lizards were the so-called Numachi Lizards that Garn had spoken of earlier. They were all around 7 or 8 feet in length and stood about 4 feet tall. They could move decently on land and were quite agile in the water, making them perfect for travel in the Mirian swamp.

Everyone stared at how much more advanced this village was and wondered why there was such a difference between this nest and the first village nest they came upon. The technological leap may seem small to an outsider’s eye but if you were actually paying attention, you would realize just how large the gap was between the two nest villages.

A goblin spotted Kazuki’s group and sounded the alarm. Around 30 goblins emerged from their homes, coming out with spears, clubs, and a few even had slings for throwing rocks. The first goblin village they came upon, the goblins immediately attacked them but these goblins stood just at the outskirts of their small village with weapons pointed, observing Kazuki and the others.

Kazuki’s group as well stood there, not entirely sure what to do. It was easy to tell at a glance that these goblins weren’t savages like the first ones, which caused Asuna and a few others to look at each other in confusion. A goblin in the village gave a low growl and a few rock-throwers stepped forward. They each loaded their sling with a rock and spun their slings in quick rotation.

There was another low growl from a goblin in the village and the rock throwers launched their stones in quick succession at Kazuki and the others. Kazuki looked at the arc of the stones and knew exactly where they would land and stood still.

The rocks came raining down and crashed just short of Kazuki and the other’s feet.

*thud thud thud thud thud*

With the goblins ape-like arms, that strength alone they could easily hit Kazuki and the others with a few rocks and with the slings added in the distance they could cover would be more than double yet they struck just in front of them.

(So they are just sending us a warning, interesting. It seems these goblins are far more intelligent than the first ones.)

Another low growl came from the village and the rock throwers loaded their slings once more. Just as they were about to launch a second volley, a shard of ice as sharp as a spear flew over and struck a goblin directly in the chest.

*Crgsh*

The small goblin was lifted from his feet and pinned to a hut behind him. Kazuki’s group and the eyes of all of the goblins went wide with disbelief and silence permeated the air.

Kazuki and the others turned to see a lone mage still holding his staff pointed at the goblin down below. Garn walked over and hit the young mage on the head with his staff, causing him to fall on his ass. Garn barked at the young mage.

“You! Who the hell told you to make a move!”

*Groar!*

The goblins seethed with anger and roared continuously. A few of them mounted their giant lizards and with that, they charged up the hill towards Kazuki and the others.

Kimi couldn’t help but stand close to Sam and look up at him.

“Sam.”

Sam gave her a nod and a thumbs-up, reassuring her. Kimi nodded back and gripped her short sword. Concentrating her power she guided it to her ring and shouted.

“Everyone, don’t look up. FLASH BANG!”

A bright white orb the size of a head rose up into the sky like a shooting arrow. As a few goblins were nearing the top, the light rose higher and higher and grew brighter and brighter until it was brighter than the sun.

*Flash*

Nearly a dozen goblins had been distracted by this and looked up at the glowing orb. The instant their eyes came in contact with the light, the goblins immediately fell to their knees and grip their face in pain, doing their utmost to bury their gazes and shield themselves.

No one needed a signal after that for Kimi’s Flash Bang was the signal. Sam ran down the hill with his huge sword in hand. Those that were too slow to move were cut in half like paper. Even one of the large Lizards a goblin was riding had been caught up in Sam’s swing and was cut in half. Shin laughed and ran down the hill. With his incredible speed, halfway before he reached the bottom, he leaped at the height of his movement and jumped over the head of a goblin rider and landed behind him on the lizards back.

*Gshink*

Shin thrust his sword into the goblins back, killing him on the spot. With a slight push, the goblin’s body slumped to the side and fell off the giant lizard, crashing limply on the ground below. Shin grabbed the reins and attempted to ride it but the Numachi Lizard was a loyal one and started attempting to roll and buck, trying to do everything in its power to shake Shin loose. Shin started to become surrounded and leaped from the Numachi Lizard, cutting his way back to his allies.

Asuna, Kazuki, and Danny threw themselves into the small horde. A spear was thrust at Asuna’s chest and she roared in her mind.

(Blink!)

The tip of the spear seemed to have buried itself into Asuna but her body had already vanished and reappeared at the side of her enemy. Asuna slashed the throat of this goblin before moving to the next and slashing another throat with her dagger.

Danny stood below a lizard rider and repeatedly knocked away the spear that appeared before him. Finally, with a powerful blow, the goblin’s spear was knocked into the air and his guard was broken. Danny swung down to kill his enemy but a tail came flying at his face.

*Bang*

Danny raised his sword just in time and blocked the tail whip, diverting most of the force away. The rest of the impact traveled into his body, causing him to slide back a few feet. Gritting his teeth, Danny put power into his lower half and steadied his legs making him come to a stop.

The guard protecting him was about to yell some guidance at him but Danny jumped back into action with no hesitation. He could feel the blood orb memories flooding into his mind and his body leaped forward. The goblin rider had recovered and thrust his sword at Danny.

Being in the air without the capabilities of flight, was dangerous during a fight. Danny seemed to have nowhere to go as the spear inched closer and closer to his chest. At this moment of disaster, at this split second, a bomb seemed to go off in his mind and a flash of insight struck him. His body twisted strangely and rotated. The goblin’s spear was deflected by Danny’s sword and flew off to the side. Danny, though, wasn’t done, his body still spun in the air almost like a top and he extended his arm.

*Chi chi chi*

His blade dug itself into the giant lizard’s head but he didn’t stop. With his momentum still bringing him forward, Danny spun one more time and cut from the right side of its chest down to the creature’s navel.

The Giant Numachi Lizard and the goblin rider collapsed to the ground dead.

Rust’s and a few soldiers’ eyes shone as they admired Danny putting the magic blood orb’s memories to good use.

“Hmm, he must have thought he was really about to die just then and his mind and body went into self-preservation mode. That’s what allowed him to tap further into the blood orb’s memories.”

Garn nodded with Rust’s assessment and continued to watch his precious treasures go to work.

Kazuki as well was fighting but he was hiding his true skill. A spear or rock was thrown over and Kazuki would put on a show by desperately dodging these attacks. Of course, now that he knew everyone else’s skill was not as low as he initially thought, he pulled a few moves out as well. Nothing as dazzling as Danny’s sudden spin move, but still, Kazuki had his moments.

One such moment came when a rock was thrown at him from his blind spot. Kazuki without looking caught the rock behind him and threw it at one of the giant lizards in front of him, striking it directly in the eye. With Kazuki’s strength, the rock went through the eye and out the back of the skull like a bullet. The lizard was dead before it had even hit the ground.

A soldier or two admired his accuracy but that was about it. To catch a rock thrown at you was not something difficult and to throw it at an enemy was something even a child could do. The impression they got from Danny and Kazuki was completely different. Everyone thought the same thing, except for Garn.

1 minute goes by then two then 10. by the end of it, the ground was soaked in blood, turning the dirt into slick mud. Everyone had fought very well for such weak opponents but when the ground became too wet, Kazuki and the others began to either lose their footing in the mud and get stuck for a moment or slip and almost fall. The beginning was a fine example of what to do but the end was nearly a shit show.

When every last goblin was killed, Kazuki and the others sat down for a break.

Rust though barked at them.

“It ain’t over just yet, finish the rest.”

Rust pointed at the huts, indicating that there were more enemies to be slain.

Asuna and the others heaved heavily and stood up. Garn though interjected.

“That isn’t necessary. Everyone, good job, let’s head to the next nest.”

Rust eyed Garn curiously but Garn just signaled for him to lead the way. As everyone began to leave, Master Garn snapped his fingers and two mages pointed their staves at the small nesting village before they both shouted.

“Flame!”
“Ignite!”

Two balls of fire shot forward and began to burn the small huts. The mages launched more and more until every hut was burning.

Kazuki and the others watched for a moment but suddenly terrible shrieks and roars echoed throughout the village.

*Uroar*
*Errrrrrr*
*Groar*

The shrieking noises were terrifying to behold but what came next was truly horrific. The doors to these huts flew open and small goblins holding even smaller goblins came running out in a panic.

Asuna and the others stood still frozen in place.

(Woman, children.)

The mages, however, didn’t stop and instead increased their rate of fire and switched aim from the huts to the women and children.

“Flame!”
“Ignite!”

The fireballs seemed to multiply and fly over like a hail of burning arrows as they struck and killed dozens of goblins in an instant.

Kimi shrieked.

“Noooo!”

Kimi, Asuna, and Sam ran over and knocked the staves away from the mages, causing them to stop and look at them in surprise.

“What are you three doing, we have to finish them.”

Kimi screamed at them.

“They’re just a bunch of women and kids. You can’t!”

A few of the women and children goblin were at the tree line and were about to disappear into the swamplands when a wall of flame lit up and consumed them.

*Fsshhhhhh*

Asuna and the others looked in the direction the spell came from and were surprised to see that it was Master Garn who had just finished the last of the women and children off.

Master Garn yelled at Kimi, reprimanding her.

“Kimi! They are monsters through and through. The sex and age do not matter. If you were out here alone, do you know what they would do to you? If our side was the weaker one, do you think they would let us off? Shake off your childish naïve thoughts, girly, this is the real world we’re dealing with.”

Kimi was at a loss for words as she struggled to speak.

“b…but…but.”

Garn shook his head.

“No buts, no excuses, and no mercy. Anything that isn’t human is to be exterminated, lest it festers and grows, consuming our food and killing our people. If it isn’t human, you kill it, plain as that. It’s good that you learn this now, instead of later on and make a mistake. Remember they are not us and we are not them, their species is below us and cannot be allowed to exist. That is the Treia way. Whether it be Goblinkind, Azirian’s, Elves, Dragons, if they aren’t eliminated they will grow in number and become a threat, that is the Feya continent’s history. You must always keep that in mind from now on, OK?”

Asuna and the others were stunned and silent. Kimi collapsed to her knees and shook her head.

“This can’t be right. It just can’t be.”

Garn knew Kimi was upset but he felt he neither said nor did anything incorrect. Still, he couldn’t just tell her to shut up. Garn looked over everyone and finally sighed.

*Haaaa*

“Everyone, let’s rest for a bit before we continue.”

Kimi heard the word continue and her shoulders trembled. She couldn’t help but start to cry. Asuna hugged her and did her best to comfort her, but even her heart was now feeling heavy as she thought.

(Is this who these people really are?)