Surviving the Guilt - Chapter 11 and 12

Chapter 11 - All for themselves

They continued their journey. The wall always in front of them. 

Milton had never seen anything so huge. The tunnel before was already something he couldn’t explain. The construction of this wall must have taken hundreds of years.

Marrek gave Siany the map. It was hand-drawn by somebody without any particular skill, and the paper was very thin. 

Siany overlayed the almost translucent paper on her own map. The scale of everything seemed to match more or less.

“If this is correct, we will have to cross the zone of danger, he marked here. Stretching right in front of the gate.”

Marrek thought for a few seconds before he replied, “We have no other choice. They specifically want them through this gate. And we wouldn't have enough gold left if we were to ship these dolyaks to Lion's Arch.”

The decision was made. They walked further south and left the road. Apparently, the way to the Tengu city was used so little that there wasn't even the hint of a trail. 

The wall was so enormous that Milton always thought that they had to be close to the gate. They still walked a good distance on lush green grass before Siany stopped.

"There, that is the gate," she yelled and then looked down on her map, "and we will cross into the marked area now." 

Marrek nodded, and they all began to move again.

The land lying in front of them did look different. It had many smaller and bigger bumps on the ground. Sometimes it seemed like different sheets of grass lay on top of another. A lot of rocks were scattered between the green grass.

Only a few hundred steps more, and they would be at their goal. Milton was nervous. They were walking up from a bigger dent in the ground when the second dolyak stopped moving and looked panicked. They all turned around just as the ground underneath the dolyak gave in. Its hind legs fell down the hole that opened up in the dirt. It tried to crawl up, but its front legs gave up due to the heavy load it was carrying. 

Siany ran towards it, putting her arm out. Little rocks were starting to twirl around her, building themselves into bigger chunks. She sent those underneath the dolyak, trying to keep it above the ground. 

She screamed, "Bring me my staff!" Marrek rushed to the first doylak which already started to flee. He unbelted Siany's staff and quickly ran to her. Siany put her other arm out to Marrek. The staff slipped out of his fists and flew into Siany's open hand. 

The doylak was still sinking. But with her staff, Siany was able to increase the size of the rocks she sent underneath the animal.

The stones pushed the doylak’s hind legs up. It was able to regain control over its front legs. It quickly rushed up the dent and to its fellow animal friend.

Siany was panting quickly. Marrek went to her and took her into his arms.

Milton was smiling, he looked to the dolyaks who weren’t running forward anymore but in small steps walking backward. He noticed a bump moving underneath the grass, always around the scared dolyaks. 

Milton wasn’t sure what to do. Then he remembered how things ended up when he wouldn’t act. He took his sword and waited. The bulge on the ground was making its way to Milton. He waited some more. Then he acted! Ramming the sword into the ground, right in the middle of the moving dent.

It screeched underneath the grass, but it stopped moving. Marrek and Siany heard that noise and ran to Milton.

“What was that?” Marrek yelled.

“I don’t know,” Milton answered, “but I think I’ve stopped it.”

Marrek looked concerned but proud of Milton.

Suddenly the ground all around them started to crumble and move. Cracks opened. Rocks and dirt spilled out of an opening, making a pile on the grass. Something crawled out, no, something was the pile of dirt. It was a crab, the size of a dog, but made out of stones.

Marrek screamed, “Run to the gate!” 

Milton grabbed the holster of the first dolyak and pulled it until it ran with him.

Marrek and Siany followed. Everyone struggled to keep themselves on their feet due to the shaking ground.

More cracks started to open up around them. The ground vibrated as if a horde of centaurs was stampeding, but worse.

More of the crabs tunneled their way to the surface, immediately focusing on the group running away.

Siany stopped and screamed. A huge flaming wall, just like the one at the swamp, emerged in front of her. She took her staff and pointed it to the wall of fire. The flames got bigger and brighter.

The crabs didn't even stop for a second and simply walked through the fire. Their bottoms started to glow like melting steel, leaving a trail of burned grass behind. 

Siany was shocked, insulted in her skills. Never before did something, anything, cross through her fire that easily.

Her face turned to pure anger. She pointed her staff against the dozen creatures. Her hand holding the staff began to froze, and ice started to build up around the crabs. Pressing harder and harder against her staff, so did the ice around the crabs. She began to growl, channeling all her energy into the ice. The staff splinter in her hand. Three of the crabs gave in to the force of the ice and exploded. But the rest were still taunting their claws against her, trying to move even though they were frozen to the ground.

More crabs came out of the cracks, and a puddle of water was already building around the few that were frozen.

She turned around to see Marrek and Milton next to the dolyaks, fighting.

The dolyaks kept running towards the gate, Milton left of them, Marrek on the right. Both kicking and fighting away the creatures that kept emerging from the ground. Milton dragged the heavy sword behind himself, struggling to use it against the monsters.

Milton looked back, Siany was running towards them. The creatures she froze to the ground were slowly melting and carving themselves out of the ice.

Marrek kicked away one of the creatures and screamed, "They will never open the gates as long as there is danger out here! Stay with the dolyaks, Milton!" Milton kept running with the dolyaks. Marrek stopped moving, and the creatures following the dolyaks chose him as their new target.

The crabs quickly surrounded Marrek. He fought off one after the other. Sometimes his sword got through one, but most of the swings he took sounded like he was hitting solid rock. Destroying one meant that dirt and rock exploded around Marrek. He struggled to stand or move on the loose, crumbling corpses that build up around him. The crabs simply kept coming at him, crawling over their dead kind.

Marrek slipped on a rock. Crabs swarmed on him the second he reached the ground.

Siany was some distance behind him. Many crabs blocking her way to Marrek. She swung her staff, and the creatures were pushed through the air, clearing a pathway to Marrek. The crabs on Marrek were catapulted away.

She helped Marrek to his feet.

Milton arrived at the gates. He ran up the stone stairs and had to crawl through all kinds of ivy and plants that grew on the wall.

He hammered with all the strength he had against the stone gate.

"Open the gate," he yelled, "we have your stone, but we need your help!" He kept bashing and knocking, scraping the skin of his knuckles. He screamed, "PLEASE!"

Siany was back to back with Marrek. She was sending lightning bolts around and pushing the creatures away, but they just wouldn’t die without brute force.

Marrek was able to destroy some with his sword. It felt like for each one they killed, two new ones emerged from the ground. Again, rocks began to build up in a circle around them.

The crabs got bigger and more numerous.

Two of the crabs made it to Marrek’s legs. Intertwining their claws, trying to crush his feet. Siany knocked them away using her staff. 

Then, she raised it. A strong breeze began to blow and quickly turned into a tornado with Marrek and her in the eye of the storm. Rocks from the creatures whirled around them. It didn't kill the crabs, but they couldn't come near without being pushed away.

Milton’s hands were bleeding, leaving prints on the gate. He used his whole body to bang against it. Hoping someone would open it.

Siany was shivering, trying to keep the tornado alive. Some of the creatures mindlessly tried to cross the barrier, unsuccessfully. 

Suddenly, they lost interest and moved away.

Siany was exhausted. The stones around them fell to the ground, the wind stopped. She let go of her staff. Marrek picked it up.

The creatures all gathered on one spot. The ground shook once more.

A lava fountain spilled out of the ground, right next to the creatures. Molten magma fell down on them, they didn't move or melt. The magma cooled on them, making them bigger.

The earth opened up where the lava spilled out. It looked like a blooming flower. Something big started to crawl out of that opening. 

It must have been at least six times bigger than the other creatures. It looked humanoid, with its two legs and two arms but everything was bulky, and molten rock was dripping from it.

The other crablings gathered around the giant and followed it. It must’ve been their leader.

Marrek and Siany looked at each other. They were both exhausted. The small crabs already needed a colossal force to be destroyed. The big one wouldn't even crumble. 

Marrek took a deep breath, then he charged the leader with a battle cry. Siany pointed her staff towards it and sent dozens of lightning bolts in the direction of it. They quickly flew past Marrek, looking like blueish fireworks.

Those bolts hit and exploded a few of the crablings in front of the leader.

Marrek was only a few seconds away from the leader. He jumped high in the air and sliced off a part of the left arm from the leader. Lava spilled out, burning part of Marrek's leather guards. Before Marrek could hit the ground, the beast smashed him away. He flew several feet through the air, crashing on his back.

His whole body ached. The smaller crablings quickly started to run toward Marrek. The leader shifted his focus to Siany and began to charge towards her.

Milton was crying, pressing against the gate. Nobody would open it. He turned around and saw Siany shooting bolts against the giant, while Marrek, on the ground, tried to survive the crablings.

Milton looked to his sword, he knew there was nothing he could do with the blade. 

Then he saw the dolyaks, which stood nervously at the bottom of the steps.

He quickly rushed to them and opened every belt he could. The heavy load of rocks fell down off the dolyaks. The wooden saddles broke a little because of the fall.

Milton took one of the dolyaks by its holster and ran towards Siany and Marrek. The other dolyak followed, both had panic in their eyes. The two animals were much faster than before. Milton struggled to keep up the pace but didn't let go of the doylak or his sword.

They had almost reached Marrek who was still on the ground with crabs all over him.

Milton took all the energy he had and ran past the dolyak, as it kept charging into the direction Milton sent it.

He reached Marrek and took his sword, pushing and slicing away the crabs on Marrek’s left side as he screamed, “ROLL OVER!”

Marrek rolled over, where Milton had created an opening. Just a blink after that, the dolyaks charged through the crabs, dismantling and crushing them. 

Marrek quickly stood up and killed the last few crabs that were left alive by the dolyak stampede.

The two doylaks kept going without course. Milton raced as fast as he could. He reached the second dolyak and grabbed onto his holster. He violently pushed it into the direction of the enormous leader who was in front of Siany. 

Her bolts of lightning didn’t have any impact on the giant. She stopped her attacks and focused on defense instead, trying to survive.

The dolyak running ahead noticed its fellow dolyak and changed its course, too. Milton screamed louder with every step they got closer, one hand steering the dolyak.

He closed his eyes. Then they crashed into the giant. He could feel the hot rocks bashing into his body. He fell but kept holding onto the dolyak, being pulled further and further.

He only opened his eyes when he couldn't feel any heat dropping onto him anymore. His fist opened, and he let go of the dolyak, the second one just missed him.

Milton looked back. Marrek and Siany were jogging in his direction.

They helped him up and hugged him.

The doylaks started to tire. Marrek ran after them, and he brought them back to the gate. Siany and Milton already were at the steps again. She was putting bandages around Milton's hands.

Dominion Killing Zone

Time passed; they all rested shortly. Then they put the rocks back onto the dolyaks. They had to use additional belts to make sure that the wooden saddle wouldn’t break anymore. Siany took off all the bags of provisions and laid them next to the dolyaks.

They waited at the gate. It was hard to know how long. The adrenaline in their blood made everything appear slower than it actually was.

Then, the gate opened. 

Milton slowly walked forward, trying to get a glimpse of what was behind, but all kinds of plants blocked the view.

Marrek gave the dolyaks some pets, then he pushed them a little. 

They started to walk toward the gate. 

Slowly up the stairs.

And through the plants.

The gate was closed as soon as the second dolyak passed it. 

Then there was silence.

Milton felt betrayed.

"That's it?!" He exclaimed, "No reward? No apologies? Not even a thank you? They just take the dolyaks, and that's it?!"

Marrek placed his hand on Milton’s shoulder. 

He smiled and said, "They always pay the Consortium at their gates in Lion's Arch. That way, they always talk to the same person. This is where our next destination is. Where your father is, too."

Siany said she would go back to the Grove; she had some business to attend. Marrek agreed to bring her the payment when he would join her there.

They split the provisions. Siany got two bags since her travel home would take longer.

She hugged Milton, and she promised him they would see each other again. Milton knew he would miss her. She was the only person ever to treat him like a real person, not just a child.

She went to Marrek and hugged him, too. They whispered something, Milton couldn’t hear, then they smiled.

Siany went west, Marrek and Milton north-east. 

They turned around after climbing up a steep hill. They saw Siany in the distance, she looked at them, too. They all waved a last goodbye before Marrek and Milton went downhill.