I WON'T JUST LAY DOWN AND DIE

AMBUSH

Clip-clop, clip-clop, clip-clop... sounds of horse galloping sounded as they threshed the road that led to the capital. The journey was two days long and the first day had come to an end thus they set up camp in a clear site they found nearby. The strong-looking men stood guard while the sisters prepared food and shared it with everyone present.

They were not necessarily in the wild and thus the smell of the food would not attract the wild animals or demonic beasts. The roads were not frequently used nonetheless most of the beasts around it had been driven into the deeper parts of the forest.

The wind sang and the trees danced swaying their branches and leaves to its rhythm.

The unsuspecting victims lay down, resting their tired necks after a long journey, necks that seemed scrumptious to the beasts that hid in the bushes ready to attack.

Grey-furred wolves and ware bats stood in wait, patiently waiting for the right moment to strike. The moon hung high as sounds of soft rhythmic breathing were heard, a testimony to the fact that everyone was asleep including the guards.

The beast, who seemed much more intelligent than the lot, moved slowly into the camp. A thick fog descended, and howls echoed through the night. They were beasts and knew for a fact that their prey were weak, to make it fun they decided to make their presence known. The guards were the first to wake but their vision was obstructed by the thick fog.

They heard rustling sounds behind them, then in front of them, then at their sides, seemingly in all directions.

They knew that they had been surrounded. The wolves howled once again happy with their hunt.

Before the wolves could make their move, a swish was heard followed by the disappearance of one of the three guards. A head fell as another swish sound was heard. Unlike the wolves, the ware bats did not like playing with their prey and instantly killed the guards that the wolves had been playing with. They hissed at the wolves, and the wolves growled in response annoyed that their fun had been ruined. They left the sight and made their way to the center of the camp.

All the guards that stayed up were massacred but not before they shouted alerting the main group of the imminent danger.

The kids were fast asleep and thus did not hear the screams but the nuns who were half asleep heard it. They made their way out of the tents, trying to figure out what was going on, but their vision was obscured by the thick fog, which now had a tint of red mist in it. They knew that they had been ambushed.

" Theresa, clear this fog, I will put a sleeping spell on the kids so that they do not wake up amidst this chaos" Ruth exclaimed as she went back into the tent.

She knelt in front of the kids and recited a prayer.

" Oh mother of all, your mercy and grace protect the children of this world, let them slumber amidst this chaos lest they become hurt... "

The kids glowed an eerily white glow and their breathing became much more relaxed seemingly in a deep sleep. Ruth left the room unaware that one of the kids did not receive the blessing.

She took out four rods with intricate designs from her robes, walked around the tent, and plunged them into the ground. The rods formed rectangular, semi-transparent shields around the tent. She heaved a sigh of relief after the protective barrier activated.

She was too preoccupied with her actions that she had failed to notice the fog was still present, after noticing it, she rushed to where she had left her, fearing something might have happened to Theresa.

The fog was too thick for her to see even an inch in front of her. She made a fist with her right hand and struck the ground causing the waves of the hit to clear about a meter of the fog around her. The fog almost immediately started to fill the space that had been created but not before she caught a glimpse of Theresa.

Theresa was surrounded by wolves and ware bats, the beasts were not attacking seemingly afraid of the prey in front of them. Theresa stood there with shallow cuts all over her body and lying beside her were the corpses of beasts. The fog closed the space created by Ruth blocking her vision once again.

"It seems she has things handled over there, I have to look for survivors"

" Oh mother of all, all life cometh from there, give me sight to behold the life of your children", she chanted as her eyes glowed purple, her vision had become infrared but could only perceive the heat signatures of humans.

They had started this journey with a total of five guards but she could not see the heat signatures of any of them, proof of their demise. She could only see that of Theresa which looked vibrant, a testament to her vigor. She looked in the direction of the kids expecting to perceive twelve heat signatures but surprisingly they were only eleven.

She was alarmed and rushed back to the tent with the only thing in sight being their heat signatures. A swishing sound was heard as a ware bat attempted to grab her. With a clenched fist, she punched a hole in the unsuspecting beast, which had thought it had easy prey. She didn't linger to inspect her attacker and continued toward the children.

Howls could be heard throughout the night as the wolves tried to get into the tent. They stood around the tent, scratching at the barrier. Ruth reached the barrier and passed through it easily, seemingly unaffected by it. The beasts who could see clearly despite the fog, were surprised. They tried scratching and hitting the barrier again and again but to no avail.

Ruth entered, looking anxiously around for the missing kid.

" Sister Ruth, what's wrong" she heard a voice that startled her. The kids were supposed to be in a deep sleep, a sleep that even an earthquake could not break unless she undid the spell. She looked to the side only to see Maxwell sitting on his sleeping bag, rubbing his eyes, a sign that he had just woken up. She was surprised not only by the fact that the boy was awake but also by the fact that she could not see his heat signature.

The only thing that she could perceive with her blessing was a human heat signature, and the fact that she could not perceive his heat signature meant he was not entirely human.

She took a step back, ready to attack if the boy made any sudden movement.

" Don't " A warm motherly voice echoed in her mind, calming her nerves as she knew the source.

She looked around once again and noticed that all the children were accounted for and there were no breaches in the barrier.

Maxwell looked at her curiously, trying to figure out why the sister was up this late.

" Max, go to bed, I just came to check up on you," she said placing her hand on his head.

All the children of the orphanage were given a mana mark, which is meant to locate them as well as prevent impersonation and Maxwell still had his, which meant he was the real deal. She heaved a sigh of relief, tucked him in bed, and left.

" I see, so that's how it is," she thought to herself as she came out of the barrier. The beasts pounced on her, attempting to tear her to shreds. With her eyes closed, she evaded their attacks, occasionally throwing punches, each of which found its mark in the body of a beast.

*********

" Pazuzu, I think you have to step in, Isis' toys cannot easily be broken with such half-assed methods," a being whose figure and face were obscured said as it looked at the events of the camp.

Figures had gathered around a large table, with a projection of the events of the camp displayed at the center of it.

Pazuzu, the demon god of wind, sat across the table with his hands folded behind his head. He had assumed the appearance of a handsome middle-aged man with pitch-black hair and pitch-black eyes. He was dressed in a black suit with a blood-red tie.

" Do you think, I am stupid, if I descend, that witch will have an excuse to kill me, this is the best I can do with the little you gave me" Pazuzu exclaimed.

" I think she has even noticed my actions, the fog I created to block her vision is disappearing." Puzuzu continued as he snickered at the clear attempt to get him killed.

The place remained quiet,

"Hypocrites, if you don't have anything else to say, leave," he said, as a strong wind rushed across the table, clearing it of the illusory figures who had once sat around it.

********

The fog began to clear, and the beasts noticing they had no chance of beating the two women rushed into the forest. It was still in the depth of the night, the moonlight illuminated the campsite showing the corpses of beasts and men alike.

Theresa was now covered in blood, red and black, the blood of the beasts she had killed.

Ruth had also killed beasts but surprisingly had nothing on her, a sign of her skill.

" Aren't they the children of the God Pazuzu, why will they ambush us?" Theresa asked as she manipulated her mana to rid herself of the blood and its lingering stench.

" I think I know why, it might have something to do with Max," She said as she looked in the direction of the tent.

"Max, who... No what are you"