The Firstlings

Aaron held the short sword in his trembling hand, marveling at the beautiful craftsmanship of the slender blade, light dancing across its surface in the high sun. Foster gave him the sword as a gift for his achievements. He said the blade was a remnant of an old friend, made through a unique forging process, lost in the fall of his homeland.

They moved to actual blades after almost a week of training with the wooden swords. It took some time to adjust to the weight of an actual sword, but now he could swing it as effortlessly as the wooden ones. The feeling of wielding a blade in battle called to the core of his being, and his heart always raced with the thrill.

There was something different with the weapon, however, as he could feel the blade trembling in his hand.

Foster made sure to spar with practice swords, though they were now real blades, not wooden ones. He told him that, as an amateur, until he could learn to care for a blade, he should only use it to practice his form and build on his foundation. When he told him about the trembling, Foster shrugged it off, saying it was his excitement.

But it wasn’t.

The blade was trembling faintly.

Looking closer with his Sight, trying to gather anything from the shiny blade, he came up with nothing. The sword was unassuming and plain, but to Aaron, it felt like the blade was hungry, calling for battle. It brought a smile to his face, knowing that he could wield such a wonderful weapon and that it was his.

A partner in battle.

He put the blade away, unable to keep the wide smile from his face, as he walked through the camp to meet with Bently. Seeing his sibling's training made him hopeful for the future, as their efforts showed with their dramatic increase in skill. They were now training with spears and learning to move and fight as a unit.

The military sent help, though General Briant had complained until Bently stepped in. Ever since he had gone through his changes, the other humans looked at him in reverence. Aaron was pretty sure it was due to his higher Race attribute, which caused the humans to act strangely around the man.

Coming to his tent, he saw Bently standing tall with Karla at his side. As he came near, he couldn’t help but notice Karla looked concerned, which caused him some alarm, but looking at Bently, you would think she was acting. He chuckled at the thought of the man's constant stoic expressions: ‘Show a worried face for once, you big oaf!’

He hurried his steps as they noticed him and walked over, Bently taking the lead as Karla’s short frame had to run to keep up.

“How is the training going?” Bently asked with a smile.

“Not fast enough,” he smirked at the man, still bewildered over their tacit agreement. Aaron peered around him looking questioningly at Karla.

“We come bearing grave news,” she answered his stare. “There has been a sighting.”

“The Horde is on the move,” Bently stated firmly.

“How long?” Aaron asked, his heart racing from both excitement and fear. He didn’t know if they would be ready for what was to come.

“We felt it was best to show you,” Karla replied softly, her blue eyes full of worry.

He agreed, following them from the camp and heading towards the northern side of the city. Aaron groaned as they passed the slums, still unable to accept the human living conditions. Traveling the rocky terrain around the City, they ended up on a high ledge, overlooking a large ravine.

Staring, at a Horde of Beasts as far as the eye could see.

Aaron's breath caught in his throat as he felt the fear Karla held in her eyes and could see where the woman was coming from. ‘How the hell are they supposed to face that!’ He scoffed, looking at the assortment of beasts that had no business being together.

He noticed massive amounts of fangs, even some that were larger, giving them the appearance of an alpha. There was a cloud of large carrion birds swarming above the horde, but it was hard for him to make out precise details. They looked more scaly than birds, except for their wings. He could see that their size was misleading, being far larger than they appeared, as they soared high above.

There were other beasts he had never seen that were graceful, larger than a fang, and built out of solid muscle. They had a feline look, except for their ears, which flopped loosely around their massive heads. Verona showed him drawings of recorded animals, he knew some simple things, like cats and dogs, or even birds.

Smaller animals were dashing through the crowd, but he couldn’t make out any details from where they were. He couldn’t help but wonder where they were getting food to sustain such large numbers. Fights were breaking out between groups in the horde as they attacked one another relentlessly. He wondered what kept them from breaking up or killing each other off. Then he noticed the real terror on the scene, as something in the middle of the horde began to rise.

What, he thought at first, was a large boulder, shifted, and stood.

His jaw dropped in shock, terror gripping his heart, at the sight of the largest beast he had ever seen in his short life, even larger than his Mother. The Beast had a body that looked like a fang but was massive, towering over the horde. It had two heads, one looking dominant, standing tall, and peering through the canyon.

Red eyes burned with murderous hunger as it sent waves of aura billowing from its body. It's howl tore through the cavern, affecting all the beasts surrounding it and sending them into a frenzy, overcome by ravenous urges.

The head was massive and had the same skin stretched across its face like a fang, but with a crown of fur atop its head. But the other head... Aaron tasted bile and rage in his gut when he looked at the grotesque form of the second head as it slumped to the side.

Hideous black veins ran through its wrinkled skin, sludge foaming from its mouth and its tongue flopping as it moved. Its eyes rolled about in its head crazily and independently of each other, giving it a horrifying look. Aaron could faintly hear it growling and whining as if fighting an invisible foe.

The corruption he felt from the beast was like what they had seen in the Labyrinth. He questioned, and not for the first time, what was happening. Why is corruption spreading?

Where was it coming from?

It was all just too much.

Fear put a lump in his chest as he gripped his sword tightly. He couldn’t see how he and his siblings could help in such a situation. Doubt crept in, and he had a fleeting thought of taking his sibling and leaving, but he shrugged it off. They would not run in fear; never again would they be such defenseless newborns.

They would fight alongside the Humans.

A battle for the right for all of them to exist... for Humanity.

He chuckled at the thought. He wasn’t human, so technically, he wasn’t a part of humanity. But when he pondered further, he couldn’t help but see himself as part of it. It was a crazy thought—not seeing yourself as a man but still having humanity. They were neither beasts nor men. He didn’t know what the hell they were, and neither did the Humans.

He gritted his teeth with determination.

“How long?”

“They’ve been digging at the side of the canyon and will soon break through,” Karla whispered. “A week at most.”

He followed her eyes and saw the horde digging at the walls at the side of the canyon. The beast had torn chunks from its surface, creating a massive scar and weakening its surroundings. It looked like it would come crumbling down at any moment.

“The Army is preparing,” Bently confirmed, the same stoic look froze on his features. He turned to Aaron and smiled wide, golden sparks dancing in his green eyes. “Are you ready?”

Aaron smiled fiendishly, returning his enthusiasm, golden sparks dancing in his palm as he raised his hand into a fist. “I can’t let you have all the fun.”

“Are you boys done?” Karla smirked, turning to leave the horrible sight and prepare for what was to come.

Aaron chuckled as they turned, heading back towards the City and his camp. Nearing the edge of the slums, Karla came to his side, nodding to Bently to go ahead. He looked at her, wondering what the woman could possibly want.

“I want to show you what you fight for when you help us,” she stated, looking at him with conviction burning in her eyes. Her voice carried a sorrowful but hopeful ring.

He looked at her and nodded, not understanding her intentions but seeing no reason to refuse.

“Come, I want to introduce you to some people,” she said, turning away towards the slums.

He watched her walk away rather cheerily and mumbled as he followed her, “What the hell could be in the slums?”