Arthur didn’t share his fathers views on many things, but mainly their view on the locals were vastly different. If there really were monsters coming from the storms, he would be risking his life to save people that his father claimed were no better than apple trees. Arthur couldn’t remember a defining moment when he started to sympathize with the villagers, but he could remember throughout his life anytime his father put them down, Arthur would think “but they are still people”. Despite class difference and money, they were still all people. He might not have spent much time with them, but he would protect them to the best of his abilities.
Over the years Arthur had trained with a skilled warrior and personal protector of the family, Sir Gunther. Gunther had fought in many battles for the kingdom, but now enjoyed a less stressful job as the Harrow’s guardian. Arthur remembered years of training with Gunther, as the old knight passed down all his wisdom to the young lord. Despite the land being a peaceful place, Lord Harrow thought his son should know how to fight, in case Arthur was ever attacked and didn’t have a guard near by.
So trained for combat and mind set on protecting his people, he waited in the village till nightfall. The villagers were a little scared at first when they saw his stride into their village, covered in weapons but after he explained he was there to protect them, they invited him into their homes. He stayed with the village elder and had dinner with his family. During dinner they all talked and shared stories, Arthur learned more about the village that night than he had in the all the years living in the castle. Arthur felt reassured that he was doing the right thing and saw the gratitude for his protection in his peoples eyes.
After the dinner the children went to bed and Arthur sat by the fireplace with the elder, waiting for the storm to come. “I can’t thank you enough for coming down here to protect us, please at least let me help you fight” Said the elder, who wasn’t so old that he couldn’t swing a sword. Still, someone had to lead the village and Arthur didn’t want to have to worry about him during the fight. The conversation grew more tense as the night went on, as both men waited for the storm to arrive, bringing the shadow monsters with them.
Suddenly a crack of thunder was heard and lighting flashed through the sky. Arthur stood up and gathered his weapons. He waited by the door, staring out the window. Soon it began to rain, a light sprinkle of water soon turned into a downpour. Arthur wore extra layers and a blue cloak with his family’s royal symbol on it. He stepped into the rain and readied his weapons. He was ready for the rain, now he would be ready for a fight. Clouds loomed overhead, rain soaked the earth and the thunder let out a deafening roar. If Arthur didn’t know better, he would assume he would be fighting the storm itself. Then he spotted something creeping out of the darkness. Hidden by the cover of the night and the sound of the storm, small shadow creatures invaded the village.
The creatures were like large monkeys in shape and besides their glowing eyes they lacked any real features. All of the villagers stayed in their homes and the creatures quickly spotted the only human around. The shadow creatures didn’t make sounds, no signals or squeals of delight over the thought of a meal, they just all crept closer. Lighting flashed and the area lit up for a split second and for that split second the creatures were gone. As if they only existed in the darkness, invisible or maybe nonexistent in the light.
Arthur fired his crowsbow at one of the creatures before they could organize an attack. The crossbow bolt flew through the air and struck one of them in the head. The creature gestured like it was screaming, but only the distant crackle of thunder could be heard. The beast fell to the ground and its purple eyes faded into the night, the shadowy outline of a body following behind it. Relieved with the knowledge that these things could be killed, Arthur raised his sword and shield and charged into the group of them. He was surrounded on all sides, but if he lashed out and thinned the numbers on one side quick enough, he would be able to turn and fight the other side before they got to him. This would take speed and a great deal of luck.
A group of the shadow apes jumped into the air attempting to land on Arthur, he countered by holding up his shield and butting them back while they were mid-air. He then put all his force into a long slice, cutting several of the creatures along the midsection. As he fought it seemed the creatures grew in number. It was too late to retreat and Arthur would see this to the end.
Arthur slashed and hacked the shadow creatures, slicing their limbs off. Sometimes this would kill them, other times they would just grow new limbs. Their behavior was also unpredictable. At first they would rush at him, then they tried jumping on him, next they began jumping around and attacking randomly to confuse him. As he killed them, their strategies would get better. Also their claws were razor sharp and though he blocked most of their attacks, anytime they got one through his defenses, they would leave deep burning wounds. His shield was also starting to wear down as they seemed obsessed with jumping on it and slashing it with their claws. Arthur was wearing armor, but it didn’t cover ever inch of skin and if his shield broke the shadows would be able to strike him more often. Maybe they planned it, but Arthur didn’t want to give them credit or admit that they might be smart enough to plan things like that.
Arthur moved around the battlefield and swung his sword like an old pro and he killed more shadows than he could count. He was feeling pretty confident about the battle, but then his shield finally broke. One of the shadow creatures threw another one and hit Arthurs shield with such force, the worn down thing shattered. Arthur grabbed a hand axe and threw it into the crowd of shadows, loud thunder rumbled, which happened every time he killed a shadow creature. The Rain poured down as hard as ever. Making him feel heavy and tired, but he continued on. Next he reached into his belt for his one handed war hammer. He could crush a skull with it, so he figured it would be enough to crush a shadow creature. He swung both weapons through the air, slicing and crushing anything that came near him. Arthur fought bravely and continued on but was loosing blood and getting tired from fighting for so long.
His vision started to get blurring, but then he spotted lots of little lights appear. Candles being lit and movement could be seen through the rain and mist. Thunder roared and the purple eyes surrounding Arthur began to dwindle. It was the villagers, not all of them, but the ones who could fight. They carried axes, shovels, hammers and pitchforks. They watched as Arthur fought to protect them until they couldn’t bare to watch any longer. Since Arthur narrowed down the creatures numbers, the villagers had a real chance of winning, especially if they worked together. Thunder and lighting cracked and boomed. Then the cheer of humans filled the air “Git back to hell with ya!” cried the blacksmith swinging a giant hammer, crushing one of the shadows to bits.
Arthur’s vision finally gave out and he collapsed. When he finally woke up, he was in a bed surrounded by smiling faces. “We won, you saved us” The elder said as he pushed his way through the group of people to see Arthur. “Thank you, M’lord” Arthur just smiled and fell back to sleep, he was too exhausted to stay awake for too long.
