The Battle For Blogland - Chapter 10: Welcoming Party

Done.
You guys are going to all hate me for the ending, I know.
Yup. Oh, also there's a massive Dethklok reference in this chapter for anyone who knows what I'm talking about. Which is probably no one, mind you, but it's in there anyway.

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Theme: "Home" by Sevendust
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yi89ilPBuI8
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10
WELCOMING PARTY

The few days that came to pass went as expected and according to plan. We walked – occasionally jogged – towards the general direction of Central, still guided by Nixion and Ivy. True to her word Sparky kept us all at it until a rest and a break was absolutely necessary which she allowed but with betterment and distaste. The sun – as if it was feeling cheated out of being the centre of attention in the weeks that had kept us occupied otherwise – was hotter than ever on our backs and necks. Scorching, blazing, and beating us down with all its malice and fury. The nights were still freezing, but had been tuned down since the last recollection we had of having to sleep out in the open; before Ivy, Johanna and Gabriel; before the city.

However, despite the horrible heat during the day that followed our painfully persistent tracking, and despite the cold at night during the short times we had to rest, the days passed in a weird half emptiness that was never properly filled. This was the knowledge of us not only having lost Star Inkbright, but now also Lavender Hope, Gabriel Cobalt and Johanna Remus. It was not the same kind of loss that Star had been, but it was still a loss. And under the new circumstances no loss was an easy loss, and every loss was another toll upon our small group.

With the pace that we had up and were being forced to keep, we made it back to Central within two and a half days. It was a surprisingly short amount of time thinking back on it, but then we were walking pretty quickly for almost eighteen hours for two days straight with no rests along the way.

When we did arrive at Central, though, things were not in the best condition.

Nothing to do with the areas themselves had actually changed. Both the tree-houses were still standing, the benches still in place, the lake still full and the forest still green. The volcano was still upright and not even one of the trees had toppled over. Everything about the general area was fine. However, almost every spare inch of Central was filled with either shambling Hollow Men or a decaying zombie. It seemed that the story Ivy, Gabriel and Johanna had told us upon reunion had been true. Zombies were there. Although, the zombies did not seem to be particularly like any other species of zombie I’d seen before. They were not acting like a normal human would, which would indicate that they had tasted flesh. But they were not savage, mindless creatures of the undead either. They were acting like the Hollow Men were; standing there; blank; unmoving; waiting. Waiting for us, presumably.

The sun was beginning to set upon our arrival. We hurried over towards the creatures and each scattered behind trees that resided around the near outside of Central. We all crouched so as to try and get a better cover position and quietly observed the Hollow Men and zombies in Central. The setting sun made it hard to see, but we all still managed to make out enough of our opposition from our view points to know what we were up against. When the sun had set low enough so that everything as far as Central was just black silhouettes, we each turned back around to look at Sparky who had begun to address us again.

“Well, you can all see what’s there and what’s not,” she said with anger biting the edges of her words. “Hollow Men. Zombies. We’ve all gotten through both before and gotten through worse too. It’s just a whole lot of useless drones who can barely fight.”

“They can still do damage though,” said Lynxia.

“Yes,’ Sparky admitted somewhat bluntly. “They can. But we can still do this.”

“So how do we get there?” asked Nixion.

“We go in straight,” said Sparky. “Now, while everything’s still blacked out. We don’t have long. We run for it and start taking them out before they can know what’s happening.”

“Is that the best idea you’ve got?” I asked sceptically.

“Probably not,” Sparky said. “Let’s go.” And she started running for Central, her makhaira already beginning to be drawn.

Ivy made a weird sort of noise, which gave some indication to the fact that she was returning to normal. Then a glowing indigo light consumed her, and she was gone.

“Oh what the hell,” Flame muttered, and we each tore after Sparky and Ivy towards the swarming mass of Hollow Men and zombies.

***

What followed was, to be quite honest, nothing especially different compared to the previous two bouts we’d all had against the overwhelming odds of enemies. We reached them and we attacked while they acted accordingly. While it wasn’t convincingly different to the other two we’d already been through, there were a few noticeable changes to the battle itself that were clear to any who’d bothered to take note of them. The most evident of these changes was the attitude and style that each of us had adopted while on the battlefield. The way we hacked away at the cancer that had dug its roots into Central was far less tactical and far more brutal. Our attacks were fierce and without any pretence of holding back. Every strike was executed with everything each of us had in us. It was messy and destructive and effective. We were all fuelled by the hatred and anger that had leaped to take the stage in the absence of depression and emptiness that had been bought with the death of Star Inkbright. The last we had been in Central, seven of us had been fleeing from overwhelming odds. Since then, we’d gained three survivors to the mix and lost four more. Six of us had returned to fight for what was ours under odds that were even more unlikely to overcome.

We had our lives – check. Rage – check. Desire – check. Numbers – check. Targets – check. Location – check. Weaponries – check. Magic – check. And that was all we needed to unleash everything we had on the beasts that had taken everything that belonged to us. But everything we had was still not nearly enough to take out the masses of Hollow Men and the masses of shambling undead that occupied every spare space in the location that was ours. We had our rage and our fury and our motivation, but they had their masses and their numbers; and they were winning just by that. Eventually, the red rage died down and the fury was restrained. Fatigue settled in and attacks became less effective, while still wild and hateful.

Although none of our opponents were actually living, striking something down in the follow events of what had transpired since The City was a relief and a release. It gave reason to our anger and small compensation for what we had lost and satisfaction to know that we were still here and still fighting. But the Hollow Men were stronger and tougher and the zombies were actually fighting in addition to the danger of their bites. Each strike against them that quenched small amounts of blood thirst that consumed us brought more and more to our fronts. Others came, almost as if to seek vengeance on us in honour of their fallen comrades. When one Hollow Man fell two more followed to take its place, always swinging their hardened arms and attacking with everything they had. When one zombie was taken out, its fellow members of the dead stepped in for it, growling and fighting with their limbs and their mouths. And they weren’t going to tire for they had nothing to tire for. They wouldn’t stop attacking us until they killed us or we gave way and retreated. And after a long, long while of fighting and striking and burning away at the enemies that occupied the space that was our very own land, one of these options was beginning to be seriously considered. It was not like The City. The Hollow Men and the zombies were not merely petty obstacles to be cut down with ease, not simply things blocking our paths from some kind of exit. They were actually fighting – and what was worse – they were actually wining.

During the chaos and battle and bloodshed and destruction, many confusing things happened. Things that defied normality of thinking and things that defied the way that each of us had come to settle into. Things that none of us had done because none of us had ever needed to – certain attacks and certain ways of obliterating an enemy; ways both scary and effective. But probably the most confusing thing that occurred was nothing to do with any us. It had no relevance to our own battle or the way we were fighting. This thing was short, quick and barely even something noticeable. But it still happened and each of us actually saw it. This happening was the sudden appearance and disappearance of something. There was a flash of something through the masses of enemies, a half muffled strangled cry, and then it was gone; presumably lost amongst the Hollow Men and zombies. Even though we all saw it, no one could have done anything. We were across the whole other side of the lake when it happened. None of us had even understood what it was, still caught up in defending and attacking. Meaningless, as it was.

Sparky sent surges of electricity through Hollow Men and zombies, leaving them twitching on the ground while different surges turned the zombies almost inside out as every bone in the body inverted themselves with a touch from Nixion. Flame sent streams of fire to envelop multiple enemies at once as I threw shadow blades that pierced the skin of the things trying to kill us. Ivy tore apart everything in her way with energy that varied in colour with every new blast and Lynxia speared everything that tried to take her life with shadows of different shapes according to her needs. Though the enemies were adjusting and attuning to the styles each of us had, enhanced with brutally, and countered them accordingly. Magical strikes were dodged and ducked under, physical attacked were battered away and weapons were avoided altogether.

We were beginning to lose energy, we were losing strength, we were losing determination, we were losing ground and we were losing it fast. We were all suffocating; gas was billowing into the air seeping from the fallen Hollow Men, the zombies in general rotted and stank and we could all barely breathe with every strike we’d imposed against the enemy during battle. It was once again quickly becoming less a point of taking Central back and more matter of personal survival. Attacks became desperate and vicious. Curses were shouted and yelled under constant fending against our enemies. Everyone was injured everywhere. Everyone was bleeding and clutching shoulders or ribs or wherever else that hurt the most. Hollow Men swung their powerful fists into our heads and bodies and zombies leaped at us with wild strikes and attempted bites. During the retreat under force and barrage of attacks, we’d all been forced together again; everyone fighting almost side by side in a desperate attempt to keep upright and fighting. This was the last ditch effort we had in us and it was quite evidently not going to be enough. Nothing we had was going to be enough. Everywhere ached and our heads pounded and our lungs were full of gasses that weren’t natural. Attacks were futile, magic was useless – but anger burned and thrived more than ever. Not only the anger directed at everything for the loss of Star Inkbright, but now the anger that there was nothing that we could do against the things that had done it. Because nothing we had was doing anything, and every single one of us was falling back and losing more and more strength with each passing second.

The plan to take back Central had failed, we had failed, and there was nothing we could do about any of it. Nothing was enough and we had exhausted all the options available. Dying was non-preferable. Fleeing again was undesirable. But keeping up a proper fight any longer was plain impossible. We couldn’t fight; we had no energy, we had small numbers and we still had no land. Central was beyond our reach, for now at least, and no amount of damage we may have managed to inflict on the creatures who had taken it would have made a bit of difference to that fact.

We were being driven back, right out of Central and towards the outskirts once more. The swarming masses were all driving everything they had into killing us and we were all exhausted. One slip and that would be the end. The attacks from the Hollow Men and the zombies were raining from all sides and every angle and everyone was pouring everything into fending for our lives. No energy was left to attend to an attempt at an attack. Everything was defence - and half a retreat while we were at it. We couldn’t afford to let any attacks in because if something struck, we would fall. We couldn’t afford another loss and we wouldn’t allow another loss. But there was nothing we could do anyway when it happened.

There was a scream and, through all the fighting we were still pulling off, we all saw Lynxia Lost stagger sideways as a Hollow Man swung its fist into her temple. There was a quickened panic and another scream, but before any of us could do anything, a savage member of the undead sunk its rotting teeth into her neck.