Skip to main content

Entry 23

And now, here we are. Back at the beginning, from whence this adventure came.

"Archers along the ridge! Shield wall!"

The shields went up. Some men prayed, and some men cried. For those who believed in neither, they silently lamented whatever losses may be ahead.

Little could be seen beyond the wall of interlocked wood; more fear came from anticipating the piercing rain, rather than watching the clouds gather. Each second lasted an eternity.

Five seconds.

Ten seconds.

Fifteen.

Were they even there? Had they fl-

Thump.

A shield, somewhere down the row. The first arrow had landed.

Then all at once, the deluge released.

Within moments, that same thump found itself echoed from every surface currently holding our line intact. Varied screams shot out, reaffirming that many wouldn't come back from here. As openings appeared in the wall, other soldiers were forced to step overtop those corpses and close the gaps.

And almost as quickly as it began, the hail ended. Though, we found no moment of reprieve: while the arrows kept most of us pinned down, bandits had begun swarming from side passages and crevices in the rock. The Confederate reinforcements broke off from the barrier as quickly as they could, rushing to beat back the flow of enemy bodies.

From off to my right, Rells shouted, "Defensive circle, fill the ga-

No, not this one.

SIGNAL TERMINATED
SESSION INCOMPLETE

I was wrong. Another failed replica of a dead world, and we're no closer to the solution. Computer, locate next simulation. Criteria: approaching final cycle, minimal resistance, high likelihood of destruction. Filter results.

LOCATING SIGNAL...
LOCATING SIGNAL...
LOCATING SIGNAL...
SIGNAL IDENTIFIED - SIGNAL #2096587341
ACTIVATE EARLIEST SIGNAL SOURCE?

Affirmative, activate source. Set start coordinates at six months prior to total spatial collapse.

VERIFICATION CODE REQUIRED

Verification code: Alpha Lima Thirty-Two.

ACCESS GRANTED
BEGINNING SOURCE TRANSMISSION...

Let's hope this is the right one; the cost of failure is too high.


Labels:

Comments

  1. Kanah BelflowerApril 10, 2022 at 10:17 AM

    Log Number 749 - Another Dead Land

    No more bright futures, no more happy worlds.
    Fire, famine, disease and decimation seem to await me at my every dreaming hour, and I can't stop them.
    The VP over in publishing said, and I quote: "The end of the world doesn't sell anymore."
    But it's more than that. Something is wrong with these places, these planes of existence.
    Forty years of life and I've never feared my own mind; not until now.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Entry 14

I needed to make a choice. Either I could intervene in this massacre, or I could turn around and return to a land that may not want me around much longer. Reaching down to pick up a somewhat unused sword from a body, I noticed an insignia emblazoned along the front of the corpse's leather chestplate. It resembled a sword pointed down, with a half-sun shining above it. A memory rushed to the forefront of my mind: a page in some book in the Academy's library, showing that exact insignia as the mark of Triton. Of course there would be Tritonian soldiers in the pass; if was a major border trail between their land and that of the Kyrlund.  Yet, the Freehold Confederacy had worked with Triton to trick Bovica during the final stages of the rebellion. Bovica's rival nation obviously desired the Kyrlund for themselves, but an outright conflict between a group who allied with them only a short time prior would be seen by many as dishonorable. And if there was one thing the leaders of
Post a Comment
Read more

Why I'm Spamming Old Unreleased Content

I'm sure you'll notice the growing log of crappy, unfinished content that I have shoved onto the site as of...well, today. I came to this realization a few weeks ago, but relating to my unfinished games moreso than documents, and that was how many things I create yet never show to the world. Bad or not, I shouldn't leave content dormant and hidden when it could spark a better idea in someone else. This influx is partially to get some ideas out of my head, but it's also to hopefully help someone else bring about their own. So, I hope you enjoy these posts. Seeya :)
Post a Comment
Read more

Learning to Love in a World of Hate (The Elder Scrolls)

This is a lorebook within the Elder Scrolls universe that I wrote for a lorebook contest back in 2022. I hope you like it :) --- My mother and father fought often - one worked a mill, the other a kitchen. They never lied nor put their knuckles to use, but brutal honesty lays the truth harder than a fist ever could. Our trips west were marred by icy demeanors and frigid replies, colder than the Alik'r heat had any right to allow. Yet they never parted ways. Not when I was a seed, not when I was a sapling, not even after my trunk stopped growing and my limbs stopped reaching. I admired that. The dedication, the desire to see things through despite their misgivings. I didn't always understand it, but as the years wind down and my light dims further, I think I finally see it for what it was. Love, real love, isn't dictated by constant adoration and pandering, but by cooperation and understanding. Passion is spicy and short - home simmers long and sweet, rooting beneath the surf
Post a Comment
Read more