Chapter 10 – The Massacre in the Woods
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– The Ambush The moon lit the forest path. Kael moved through the undergrowth, daggers in hand, when a whistle cut the air. A steel projectile grazed his cheek.
"We've got him," whispered a man hidden among the branches.
Thirty mercenaries armed to the teeth emerged from the shadows. They wore black masks and had tattoos on their necks: the mark of Nyxarion.
"So you're the Black Wolf." The captain spat to the ground. "My lord wants your head."
Kael lowered his gaze… then smiled coldly. "You made a mistake coming here."
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– The Roar of Shadows The daggers hummed, and from the earth dark tentacles rose, twisting like snakes. The men charged with war cries, launching arrows, spears and swords.
Kael moved like a ghost. Each strike of his daggers was a streak of shadow that tore flesh and bone.
A man screamed as his arm flew off. Another fell with his chest opened, devoured by shadowy blades.
The ambush turned into a slaughter.
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– The Macabre Dance The mercenaries attacked in groups, but it was useless. Kael vanished into the darkness and reappeared behind them, plunging daggers into throats, torsos and backs. Blood stained the grass, the shadows swallowed the bodies.
"He's not human!" one shouted before being pierced by dozens of black blades that tore him to pieces.
Kael did not stop. Each blow plunged him deeper into that wild state, that frenzy he didn't know whether it was power… or madness.
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– The Futile Resistance The captain gathered the last ten men. "Form a circle! Don't let him get close!"
But the darkness itself moved against them. Sharp shadows sprang from the ground and pierced legs, bellies, throats. One by one they fell mutilated, screaming, until only the captain and a young man trembling with fear remained.
Kael walked toward them, his daggers dripping blood. "Is that all?"
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– The Survivor With a desperate roar, the captain lunged forward. Kael dodged and drove both daggers into his torso, ripping him apart in an explosion of blood.
The young mercenary, horrified, stumbled and fell to his knees. "P-please… don't!"
Kael looked at him in silence. The surrounding shadows seemed to pause. Finally, he lowered his daggers. "Run. Take a message to your master: the Black Wolf does not kneel."
The man, missing an arm and with eyes broken by fear, staggered away into the dark.
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– The Report In Nyxarion's fortress, the survivor was thrown before the throne. The villain watched him with eyes like embers. "Speak."
"M-my lord…" the man stammered. "My companions… all… dead. That monster… mutilated twenty-nine men… only I could escape…"
He raised his face, pleading. "The Black Wolf… is invincible."
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– The Villain's Wrath Nyxarion watched him in silence. The entire hall held its breath. Then he raised a hand.
A black aura emerged from his body, and the subordinate began to scream as his flesh burned away, crumbling to ash. In seconds, nothing remained but dust on the floor.
"Useless," spat Nyxarion, his eyes gleaming with fury.
He rose from the throne, striking the ground with such force that the stones cracked. "That bastard… that damned Black Wolf dares to challenge me."
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– Cliffhanger The villain's generals bowed, trembling. Nyxarion, with a twisted smile, raised his hand toward the map of the continent.
"Very well. If he wants to play hunter, let him play. I will summon my true warriors. Let the world prepare… for I myself will crush him."
And in the distance, deep in the forest, Kael cleaned his daggers under the moonlight, unaware that he had just sealed his fate against one of the continent's most fearsome enemies.
To be continued…