Chapter 138 - A Gruesome Sight

WARNING:

This chapter is a bit bloody. Decide yourself if you want to read it or not. Not reading it won't really cause much of a lack of information on the main story, but you will miss out on a little bit of a side character's background story.

See ya,

~Freakzilla

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There was a scream of a woman in the woods. Jack suddenly turned his horse, alerted. He wasn't sure if it was the voice he was searching for. He had never heard the brave Lady Katherine this frightened. However, he didn't hesitate. Whoever it was, she needed help.

"All free men with me!", he bellowed, and lead his horse into the bushes on the roadside. Eight warriors followed his command, leaving five to guard the prisoners. Jack's breathing was harsh as he rode as fast as possible in the hardly passable undergrowth, leaving the less skilled warriors behind.

Time was of essence. The scream had been faint, like it came from far away. But he knew Lady Katherine would only scream in the most dangerous of situations. He didn't want to imagine what would happen to her if he was late.

He smelled the blood before he saw it. It smelled like death, and a dreadful fear grew in his stomach. The horse jumped on a less worn side road. Instantly, a wet, dark liquid and a corpse caught his eye. His heart went cold, but a second look showed that it was only one of the draft horses. Jack didn't allow himself a breath of relieve. The wounds on the corpse looked like wolf bites, but he could see neither wolves nor the Lady in the vicinity.

"Milady?", he shouted, while circling the corpse, searching for a clue in which direction she could have gone. "Lady Katherine?"

There was a blood trail on the ground. It led to the trees on the other side of the road. His eyes gleamed with murderous intent as he gripped the reins harder.

"Over here, you slow bastards!", he called out to the soldiers behind him. The first ones were just about to enter the road. Without a second glance, Jack spurred the horse on, riding into the forest. The stench of blood didn't fade. It clung to his nose like a mother to her long-lost child, but the meeting was less than enjoyable.

Branches scratched his face as the undergrowth got denser. Time and again, he called out Katherine's name, and with every silence following it, the anxiety grew. The trail of blood here and there on the bushes and trees made him think of the worst outcome.

Every few meters he came across a tuft of wolf's fur caught on the thorns, assuring him that he was on the right track. He had the feeling that it should be harder to find them in the dark of a forest, but he didn't have the time to think about it. He could already hear the growls of the wolves, and the blood boiled in his veins, ready to kill them all.

On the last meters, there were signs of a struggle and a puddle of blood. Katherine must be heavily wounded, he thought, enraged. This sweet smiling girl should not die. Not now, not ever. He should have protected her better. Guilt ate on him, but now was not the time for regrets.

The tendrils withdrew and freed the view on a pack of wolves, bent over something on the ground. Their maws were a striking red, and the thing didn't move anymore, but a part of a sleeve was visible between the big bodies. It looked like a wedding grown, dirtied by blood. He was too late.

With a roar of wrath and agony, Jack lifted his sword and charged at them.

The wolves heard him and disbanded, evading his attack. But before he had the time to gaze at the body on the ground, they pounced at him again.

Jacks instincts were good. He had killed dozens if not hundreds of soldiers on the battlefield, and also a fair share of wild animals. However, every soldier knew that quantity could sometimes outdo quality. A good group working together was nearly unbeatable alone.

Luckily, this was not one of those cases. The leather armor protected Jack's vitals well, as he slaughtered his way through the wolves, his anger growing with every strike. Still, precious minutes ran by until the remaining two of the pack fled into the forest, whimpering.

For a second, Jack fought his d.e.s.i.r.e to hunt them down. He wanted to murder every last one of these evil creatures. They dared to harm the little sunshine of his life, the girl that was as close to a daughter as he would get. However, if there was anything left to save, he had to do it now. Slowly, inwardly preparing for the worst, he turned around.

Blood splattered over leaves and thorny tendrils, a dress, nearly unrecognizable. Her dark hair that took the maids hours to brush into an elegant wedding style, was all over the dirty ground. The wounds were gruesome. The wolves had already started to eat her flesh. A bite was taken out of her left arm, blood slowly tickled from her torn open throat, and the flesh on her waist was barely able to contain her organs.

Growing up as an orphan, Jack never had a family. Like this, it was easy to go to war and risk his life for a leaf of bread. He first got to know something like brothers when he met the men in his training regime, and Pete was still as close to him as a brother could be. After war, he remained a soldier because he liked the feeling of having clear-cut commands, loved the adrenaline in his veins.

Having had a few affairs, he never felt like he missed out on anything.

Only after meeting Katherine, seeing her smiling face, knowing her bravery and the mischievousness behind those clever eyes, the wish to have a family had started to grow in him. He wanted to have a child like this, someone who would grow strong and brave under his wing. Someone who he could protect when weak and proudly look on when grown up. Someone like her.

Now that she was lying on the ground dead, her body barely recognizable, his dream had shattered. What was left behind, was emptiness, bordered by a wall of guilt.

As his scream trailed off in the woods, he slowly stretched out a hand to this pretty little face. Millimeters before touching her cheek, he halted. This hand looked too big and rough in comparison, unable to touch such a delicate thing without destroying it. Pulling his hand back, his sight went blurry.

But in the blurriness, he suddenly noticed a soft glow. Katherine, her face, neck and all of the air around her, was glowing with a faint white glitter. It was nearly unseeable, like the moon was shining on them softly, only that the canopy of leaves was too dense for the light to fall through.

Wiping his tears away before they could fall, Jack now saw it clearly. The girl was glowing with a magic so faint that he didn't notice it before. With a hiss, he pulled a breath through his teeth. Did that mean - could that possibly mean - that she wasn't dead yet?!