The Vampire & Her Witch

”Demons! Demon attack!” The frightened cry reverberated through the cold morning air as the driver of one of the lead wagons sprinted toward Sir Carwyn in the rear, hoping against hope that the knight would be able to save him before a demon arrow claimed his life.

”They’re coming out of the ground!” Another voice shouted, the words nearly lost beneath the whistle of arrows cutting through air and the wet thud of iron points finding flesh.

”Holy Lord of Light, save us there are—urghg!” The shouted prayer cut off suddenly, dissolving into a wet, choking gurgle that seemed to hang in the sudden stillness before more screams erupted further up the column.

”Hya!” Carwyn cried, tugging on the reigns of his horse and turning him in place before charging in the direction of the shouting. Frightened farmers abandoned their wagons and carts, running back the way they’d come while leaving their horses and mules to panic where they stood, trapped by the harnesses that bound them to their wagons.

In a matter of mere heartbeats, Sir Carwyn arrived at the head of the caravan to find several thick, heavy arrows sticking out of the lead wagon and two of his men clutching at bloody wounds while hiding behind the wagon for cover.

Looking forward, the young knight stared in momentary shock as first four, then six, then ten flat tailed demons emerged from the tall grasses by the roadside, unleashing arrows from their twisted, demonic war-bows as they appeared.

There weren’t supposed to be any flat tailed demons this close to Airgead Mountain, but Carwyn recognized them from the stories that had circulated since Lord Owain Lothian’s raid in the summer. Long, sharp teeth protruded from their mouths and on their backs they wore dull green and brown cloaks covered with clumps of grass and leaves, making them look like a piece of the land come to life as they fired their arrows.

The first volley hissed through the morning air with the sound of angry wasps. A black-fletched shaft seemed to hover just inches above the ground as it whistled underneath the lead wagon, followed immediately by a man’s scream from behind the wagon when the arrow bit deeply into his calf. Another arrow arrived half a breath later, falling from the sky like a bolt of thunder as it reached the end of a long arc over the wagon to bury itself in the mud just inches from a cowering soldier.

As if the deadly archers weren’t enough of a threat, something even more terrifying emerged from the tall grasses behind them.

Strange serpentine demons with glittering scales in different patterns slithered forward across the sodden earth, wearing suits of chain mail armor covered with steel plates that had been embellished with strange glyphs or depictions of serpent demons slaying even greater demons. The armor looked like it was both a work of art and a tool of war and the scratches and dings on the armor made it clear that these men were hardened veterans who had survived many battles.

Each serpent demon’s armor was unique and distinctive and they wore strange helms that covered their faces with cages while brilliant plumes of brightly colored feathers stood out like the blade of an ax rising from the tops of the beaten metal domes. In their claw-like hands, they carried hooked swords or sharp spears, and every weapon had been embellished with gold inlay and even more brilliant feathers.

In all his years, Carwyn had only heard of one knight among the demons, the Crimson Knight who was said to be a human heretic who sold their soul for the dark powers of demon-kind. So far as he knew, however, the Crimson Knight never left the slopes of Airgead Mountain so there should have been no need to ever worry about a knight among the demons.

But now, standing before him, he couldn’t think of anything to call these serpent demons if not knights because no one but a knight could bear such impressive weapons or armor!

But how? Sir Carwyn thought as he struggled to free his shield from the bindings that secured it to his saddle while he rode. How had demon knights, the likes of which no one had ever seen before, arrived on this backcountry road without anyone seeing them coming?

Even if they hadn’t encountered any soldiers or watch keepers, surely someone would have seen them and come running to the village to report it. A herder or farmboy, a hunter with his hounds... someone, somewhere should have spotted this many demons before they could come so far from... from wherever these demons had come from!

”To me!” Carwyn shouted as he glanced over his shoulder, wishing his men would hurry before it was too late to save their wounded companions. ”Brave men of Raek, to me!”

-THUNK-

Sir Carwyn barely raised his shield in time to stop an arrow from claiming his life and the impact of it was enough to send shivers down his arm. In the upper corner of the shield, the wood splintered and cracked around a sawtoothed arrowhead that protruded nearly an inch beyond the wood.

Moving more by instinct than conscious thought, he forced his horse to turn yet again, riding back toward cover around the bend as he shouted to gather his men.

”Beware of their archers! Bring shields! Gather together!” Sir Carwyn shouted as he waved to the handful of soldiers who traveled with the caravan to retrieve their weapons and prepare for battle. ”The Holy Lord of Light is with us! We will not fall to these creatures of darkness!”

”For the Hounds of Belvin!” Sir Carwyn shouted, holding his shield up high before his men so they could all see that the man who bore the crest of two snarling hounds had no fear of demons, even with one of their dark arrows protruding from his shield.

”For the Hounds!” The men cried as they raised their shields, following Sir Carwyn Belvin as he led the charge into battle against the demons. He might not know what manner of demons the strange serpentine men were, but it didn’t matter.

The only thought in Sir Carwyn’s head as he led the charge was that he refused to let these demons destroy the hard work of his village... but since they insisted on coming, then their tails would be his prize!