"My God…"
The forest was just as silent as ever.
There, a man stared with apprehension at the bloodstains on the ground. A fierce battle must have taken place. The earth was gouged in places, and the darkness here was far more… profound.
The man did not necessarily feel uneasy in their presence. In fact, a deep sense of well-being washed over him as he ventured a little further into this macabre scene.
Nevertheless, he knew what it meant…
Turning toward the group of soldiers and carts standing a little farther away, he made a brief gesture with his hand.
A soldier answered his call.
He was of average height, approaching with hesitation. He avoided the scattered pools of blood and, when he was halfway there, he whispered:
"Captain… They don't feel anything."
The soldier's mood was grim.
The captain said nothing. He simply kept walking forward.
The soldier followed, his steps heavy, but before he could fully commit, he stumbled over a large rock.
"Shit!"
Cursing, he got back up immediately, unwilling to be caught off guard by anything.
His tunic was covered in dirt. Brushing it off, he took a deep breath and looked at what had made him lose his balance.
He rarely stumbled.
Especially in the embrace of darkness.
"What is this?"
Grabbing the strange rock with one hand, he forced himself to notice anything unusual. Its shape was far too atypical to be a simple rock, yet he saw nothing.
And yet, he could clearly make out the sturdy back of his superior.
"Strange…"
The soldier lingered for a moment and, though the fall had not particularly caught the captain's attention, his sudden stillness did.
The soldier saw his commander's silhouette turn toward him, then fix him with an intense stare for long seconds. His superior's eyes shifted between him and the object in his hands.
His expression grew troubled.
"What the…"
He clenched his teeth. His commander's stunned expression did not fade and, without really knowing why, he summoned a glass amulet.
It formed in an instant, settling onto his free hand.
It immediately lit up with a faint radiant glow.
It looked like a lone star in an endless void. The sight was beautiful.
Nevertheless, it now allowed the soldier to clearly see what he was holding…
There, a gaunt head of deathly pallor was staring at him. In truth, it was not really looking at him. Its eyes were covered by a strange black blindfold made of hair. Its skull, however, was bare.
It was horrifying.
The soldier stared at it for a few more seconds.
As he did, his hands trembled slightly. He felt like vomiting. The head had been violently torn from its body, and it was covered in blood.
Letting it fall to the ground, he took a few steps back. What he had seen was terrifying, but… what truly frightened him was that the head was not cold. It was warm. The battle must have taken place much more recently than he had imagined. Much more recently.
The one responsible for this was not far.
And two of their best had disappeared at the same time…
His hand rested on his scabbard.
The trees around them seemed alive, and the once-protective darkness had become treacherous. Who knew what it was hiding from him…
He was afraid, certainly—but he was not alone. An entire army stood a hundred meters away, filled with strong, fearless warriors. The jewels of their clan. Moreover, he was in very good company… his commander was beside him.
He allowed himself a brief distraction to glance at his superior.
The latter had already summoned the darkness, surrounded by it.
A murderous aura emanated from him and, even though the soldier knew he was not the target, he… he felt powerless.
Good, I suppose…
Forcing himself into a combat stance, the distance between him and the skull increased. Step by step, he slowly retreated.
But fortunately, the worst did not happen. In fact, nothing disturbed the forest's stillness.
He did not allow himself to relax, yet the tension eased nonetheless.
He waited until his captain parted from the darkness and became fully visible again before finally lowering his guard.
Facing him, his superior whispered in a deep voice:
"Call the lieutenants immediately."
His words lingered for a moment, revealing no emotion. The soldier did not react right away and, before he could say anything, the deep voice continued:
"…And tell everyone to prepare. We will leave this forest before dawn."
Those final words made the soldier tremble. He did not know what had driven his captain to make that decision, and he did not want to know.
Simply turning around, he obeyed.
He left the sturdy silhouette alone.
The soldier had not noticed it, but that silhouette was trembling slightly, cold sweat running down it.
Stepping toward the skull, he gave it a light kick.
The head rolled a few meters and ended up in the middle of the road, roughly where it had been before.
The sinister sound of it rolling made the commander hiss:
"Damn… This place is truly cursed."
A few minutes later, three new figures stood before him.
Four, counting the soldier who remained a little behind, leaving them space to converse.
Suddenly, one of them stepped forward. He was the youngest, barely twenty. His black hair was tied in a ponytail, and his black eyes were like two pools of darkness.
He observed the grim scene for a moment, then turned to the commander and asked without much ceremony:
"Where are Placide and Omod?"
At his question, everyone's attention shifted to the commander, a barely concealed apprehension burning within them.
He did not answer immediately. He remained there for a few moments, then let out a deep sigh.
"Look…"
He pointed with his finger toward the center of the road between them.
The three lieutenants followed their leader's gesture.
There was nothing unusual: earth—though somewhat damaged—trees, and… a skull.
They were not faint-hearted. Even the youngest was particularly resilient and had already seen his share of horrors, but… none of the three had noticed that head before their commander drew their attention to it.
Complicated expressions spread across their already tense faces, and the darkness grew more unfathomable.
Seeing that his subordinates were preparing for the worst, he continued:
"He… he is no longer there. Don't worry too much."
He emphasized the *too much*.
Their expressions twisted further, and then another lieutenant, with a noble bearing and sharp features, spoke up:
"What do you mean?! How is that possible? And where are the others?"
The man was angry, but he kept his voice low, swallowing most of the curses he wanted to spit out.
The captain ignored it and answered calmly:
"I don't know. But as you can see, this thing is still alive."
They already knew it: something that escaped their perception like this likely did so willingly. It was therefore conscious.
In the best case, of course.
In the worst, it belonged to something too strange and unspeakable to be fought…
That second possibility made everyone present shudder.
The soldier standing in the back turned particularly pale at his commander's words, thinking of the moment he had held it in his hands.
He could not help but look at his palm in horror and, as he did, a soft voice pulled him from his thoughts.
It was the third lieutenant, a beautiful woman with blonde hair flowing around her neck. She seemed warm, and her blue eyes would no doubt have shone brightly if they had not been shrouded in darkness at that moment.
She contrasted sharply with the other men, who were either too rough, too cold, or too dark. Yet her voice sounded strangely flat and composed.
"That is why you gave the order to leave before dawn."
She received a nod, but it did not satisfy her. She continued, still cold:
"And what about Placide and Omod?"
Suddenly, the air grew colder. A burning determination shone in her eyes. The two other lieutenants were also waiting for their leader's answer.
It did not take long.
He turned away and said:
"We have five hours. We must find them." voila la version que je vais publier en anglais ca passe?