Thus, Rachel's hatred for the barbarians was kindled and it was not long before she became a knight, solely for the purpose of wreaking bloody vengeance. Though a female, there was no arguing against her zeal and her admittance was almost immediate under the sponsorship of her mentor, a veteran knight whose wife was murdered by savages. Battle after battle, Rachel constantly sought to be where the fighting was thickest and her recognition grew, though her only concern was ever the death of each barbarian within reach.
One day, as several enemy fighters were captured for interrogation, Rachel crept into their cells at night and killed every one of them. This earned her a fierce reprimand and a permanent place in the rearguard to curb her murderous impulses. As much as it frustrated Rachel, the redeployment ended up saving her life on the day the meteor fell.
When the meteor struck deep into barbarian territory, on the very front line of the war, thousands died instantly and more suffocated to death in the ashes. Rachel was far away enough to see the impact and not be caught in the blast wave, as were the rest of her battalion. The commander gave the order to search for survivors and they marched until nightfall... none could have predicted what would happen next.
Encountering a group of fleeing barbarians, the battalion prepared for a fight, but the savages simply ran past. Rachel was the first to see what was pursuing them and tried to warn her commander, but it was already too late. The Nightspawn was upon them and by dawn, the only survivors were those who carried the torches, including Rachel.
Figuring out how to survive these horrors from that very first night, the remaining knights decided to stock up on as many torches and firewood each person could carry, and move away from the meteor. Yet no matter how far they went, they could still hear the monsters in the darkness as they spent each night shivering around their bonfires.
One night, the battalion's second-in-command, now leader of the group, reminded them all of their commander's last order, which was to search for survivors, and so they did. What Rachel didn't count on was barbarians being included, which she vehemently protested against, but for the sake of survival, she would force herself to endure their presence.
Refreshing Feed...
