The Higher Plain Ch 20: The Of The Black Beast

(Krelzor)

The moment we stepped outside, the world felt different.

I had no words for the sight before me. To the south, beyond the open fields and into the thick expanse of forest, a massive pillar of black smoke twisted into the sky, turning the blue into something dark and sickly. It wasn't the kind of smoke that came from a simple fire. It churned, thick and heavy, like an unnatural force had birthed it into existence. The wind carried the scent of something rancid, something wrong.

My stomach twisted.

"What in the gods' name..." Aldric muttered beside me, his voice sharp with disbelief.

I looked up at Faylina to see her usually strong face pale, beads of sweat glistening on her skin. Her breathing was uneven, her fists clenching at her sides.

A sinking feeling settled into my chest.

"Faylina... a-are you okay?" I asked, reaching out and touching her shoulder.

She flinched at the contact, then turned her eyes to me. For the first time since I met her, I saw something I never expected to see on her face.

Fear.

"I... I don't know why," she whispered, "but I have a bad feeling. A very bad feeling."

I swallowed, glancing back at the smoke rising over the forest. If she was afraid, then what the hell was I supposed to feel? The air around us suddenly felt too thin, the weight of something unseen pressing in from all sides.

Aldric straightened, his jaw tight. "We need to move." He turned to his men. "Get a scouting party ready immediately. We need to know what we're dealing with—"

Another tremor rumbled beneath our feet, cutting him off. It was faint, but it sent a chill down my spine. The horses nearby whinnied, kicking at the dirt, their bodies restless with unease.

Something was wrong.

And whatever it was... it was coming.

***

(Deep in the Southern Forest)

The air grew thick, suffocating. A black smog slithered through the dense trees, creeping over the ground like it had a will of its own. Leaves shriveled and crumbled into dust as it passed, their once-vibrant green turning to lifeless gray.

The first to suffer were the small creatures. A rabbit twitched violently as the smog touched its fur, its body convulsing before it collapsed. Its flesh melted away, turning into a dark, viscous liquid that seeped into the ground. A deer tried to flee, but the smog coiled around its legs, dragging it down. It let out one last panicked cry before its skin bubbled and dripped away, its bones sinking into the growing pool of black.

The ground itself became tainted. The roots of ancient trees, once strong and proud, blackened and crumbled to ash. The forest, once full of life, became silent.

And then, the liquid began to move.

The inky substance slithered over itself, pulling together, congealing like flesh knitting itself from nothing. A massive form began to rise from the decay, its shape grotesque, shifting, as if the very world rejected its presence.

First came the limbs—jagged, uneven, made of rotting sinew and melted bone. Then the torso, hunched and pulsating, covered in deep cracks that oozed a toxic, black ichor. The head was the last to take form, its mouth stretching too wide, revealing jagged, dripping fangs that excreted thick, bubbling poison onto the dying earth.

Two eyes snapped open.

Red. Burning. Full of hatred.

The creature exhaled, its breath alone causing the surrounding foliage to curl inward and die. The poison leaking from its mouth pooled beneath it, creating a swamp of death with every step it took.

And then, as if drawn by some unseen force, its gaze lifted.

Beyond the forest, beyond the smoke and ruin it had birthed, there was something in the distance—something bright. Something that should not exist.

The beast growled, its form convulsing as more of the dark liquid slithered toward it, growing it larger, stronger.

The hatred burned deep.

The light did not belong.

It had to be snuffed out.

With a deafening roar, the monster began to move, dragging its colossal, rotting form forward, the very ground melting beneath it as it advanced toward its target.

***

(Krelzor)

I was sweating buckets as the black fog rolled into camp, choking the soldiers and turning every breath into a struggle. My heart pounded so hard I thought it might burst out of my chest. "What's happening?" I asked aloud, voice cracking with panic as I tried to make sense of the chaos. The acrid stench of smoke and decay filled the air, and I could see men stumbling and gasping for breath around me.

Then I felt it—a firm, unexpected pressure around my waist. I jerked my head around and, to my astonishment, saw Faylina. She was holding me up effortlessly, her arms cradling me as if I were a precious treasure. Even more shocking was the sight of her body expanding, growing larger before my eyes until she towered over the surrounding trees.

Through the gaps between her outstretched fingers, I squinted and saw it—a monstrous black beast, rising ominously above the ruined city. Its hulking form seemed to be carved from the same dark smoke that now invaded our camp, its red eyes glowing with malevolence. My mind reeled as I tried to connect the dots between the suffocating fog, the beast. 

"Dear god."