Nameless: The Last Ship

[This is part of my Creative Writing Experiment.]

"Lord Warrior," said the novice acolyte as he gave a hurried genuflect. "Those monsters have breached the walls, we must evacuate now!"

Gigal nodded, looking one last time at Nessa's portrait before throwing a large tarp over it. The sounds of battle within the halls of this final stand had rattled the remainder of the Shadowstar cultists within. Gigal's small retinue of guards moved quickly to take her towards the Northern tunnel, an escape route designed by the old King that would take them right to the docks.

"What of the Urn?" asked Gigal without breaking her stride.

"It's already being ferried with the first boat to the master," replied one of her retinue - who was suddenly cut down by a large battle axe. A crazed, bald dwarf sprang from the adjoining corridor - making short work of more of Gigal's guards, who were unable to fight back effectively having heard what happens the worms within their enemy touch their skin.

As the last of her allies fell, Gigal charged forth herself in a full sprint - surprising her diminutive opponent as she sprang off a nearby wall to sail right over his attack. He spun around just in time to see the arrow that would pierce his brain and kill his body. Gigal didn't hesitate to flee, and picked up the pace through the tunnel and straight to the docks which were now on fire.

The few remaining guards were being overwhelmed here, so without hesitation Gigal spotted the closest ferry that still seemed operational and raced to it. Weaving and dodging past the clumsy worm infected that noticed her. Once she was on the boat, she set sail immediately - catching the tide that would pull her vessel out to sea, and out of reach of the deep ones.

She was fortunate that the cultists had begun loading rations on board, for she would be at out at sea - alone - for longer than she liked. It was during those days of lonely drifting that her mind thought of Nessa with a pang of regret.

When she finally made land, all her searching for the Shadowstar cultists led to nothing, as if they had all packed up and gone into hiding. After a captive for so long, this freedom felt terrifying. Her only skills were that of combat though, so when she learned of a caravan hiring adventurers to clear out some "cursed" hamlet, she signed up immediately.

Nameless: Pretty as a Picture

[This is part of my Creative Writing Experiment.]

All that was left of Silvain.

Nessa blinked back the tears as she watched her last ally turn into dust. Filled with rage she turned to the slowly approaching  Lord Warrior, whose helmet was now missing. A mess of long blonde hair contrasted against the pitch black armor and Nessa was surprised that the Lord Warrior had a familiar, feminine face.

"Gigal?" she asked with more than a hint of confusion.

"Hello sister," replied her old arena team mate, as she suddenly sprinted forward into an attack. Her emotions unchecked, Nessa countered it sluggishly and was too slow to evade the follow up, catching an armored shin to the face, knocking her out cold. When Nessa regained consciousness,  she found herself stripped of all her gear, her ankles and wrists chained to a single point to the floor behind her.

More troubling was that she found herself in an intricate magical cage, facing a canvas filled with monstrous shapes. Gigal stood nearby but she was busy talking with one of her Shadowstar minions while a few others chanted in an unknown tongue around her. Finally Gigal turned around as the panicked minion left the room in a hurry.

"Congratulations," she said as her gaze locked with Nessa's. "Thanks to your interference by damaging the urn, the plans of the Shadowstar here are ruined for now. Furthermore, with the costly battle against the deep ones that I can't help but thing you had a hand in starting - they are withdrawing entirely from this region."

"Gigal... why? Why are you helping them!?" asked Nessa angrily.

"Because they helped me escape. They gave me the the opportunity and the means to take down Tectuk and I did. Most importantly, because they didn't leave me behind." Nessa felt that last one was definitely directed at her. Gigal continued, "So now I'm going to do what the rest of you did to me. Your friend Jann was very forthcoming with his imprisonment techniques. I'm told time moves much slower for those inside a painting."

"Wait, Gigal... you can't be serious."

"You left me in a place where I was regularly abused and had to fight for my life. Now you will get to experience that. Forever."

"Please, no! Let me go, you can't do this!" begged Nessa.

With her middle finger raised in a final gesture to her captive, Gigal didn't even break her gaze as she gave the command to proceed. Nessa screamed as a bright flash of light engulfed her, and as it faded she was gone from her shackles and from the cage - transported into the picture with the horrible creatures within.

Darkest Dungeon: Battered and Broken

Reports from Darkest Dungeon - spoilers ahead! You can follow the rest of the story here!

With the manor cleansed all that was left was to break through the army of brigands surrounding the hamlet lured by the promise of easy riches. I knew what they pinned their hopes on that damned 16 pound cannon which claimed the lives of yet more of our number. Blunder Buss, Quark, Zermu Terlu, Techno Viking, Gigal, Yarnheim and that dark elf Valaria, each of them slaughtered by the oncoming foe.

Then the gods heard our cries of help!

Ultimately it was Yuria, her Paleshade, Skrmischa and Dr. Vahlen who managed to reach the dreadful weapon and in a marathon of a fight filled with suppression techniques, destroyed it and all the entire battalion of brigand scum that accompanied it. With the way now clear, most of our number are taking advantage to leave this accursed place. Not I though, I am too old and weary - there is nothing left for me to see. That might sound ironic coming from a blind man, but I think I shall stay on as the new care taker of this place. As they say, to fight the abyss, one must know it.

-Corynx

Darkest Dungeon: Ringing Ears, Blurred Vision

Reports from Darkest Dungeon - spoilers ahead! You can follow the rest of the story here!

By the gods, the Weald is a terrible place. While Blunder Buss, Zermu Terlu, Party Girl and that ex-gladiator Gigal defeated the Hag Witch - the rest of us were running supply runs and chanced upon a most terrible weapon whereupon the main brigand host had gathered. Knowing a chance encounter should not be squandered I tasked numerous teams to try destroy this forbidden machinery. I regret to say, they have all failed.

Losses were immense.

Those slain by the brigands were: Elvis, Dieannin Avery, Peacefulness, Maco Meng, Raven Daydream, Cale, Ana Hernandez, Nick Hernandez (no relation), and MissBarbara. With most of the supplies and funding going towards the Darkest Dungeon expeditions, it is all we can do to hold back this foe for as long as we can for they are legion. If only the Unkindled one was here... Zermu Terlu's scowl is terrifying.

-Corynx

Nameless: No Freedom from Fate

[This is part of my Creative Writing Experiment.]

With one final push, the large metal gate finally broke from its hinges, collapsing with a deafening crash inwards into the torch lit hallway behind it. The gladiators were now in uncharted territory but there was no time to be cautious as the heavy foot falls of the armored guards drew closer from all directions. Gigal, bow in hand, quickly leaped ahead of everyone, her slender long legs letting her reach the upcoming intersection first and following her nose, turned right. The kitchen contained the means to their escape.

For all her speed she lacked the reflexes to evade as a door on her right suddenly opened with shield-bearing guardsmen charging through and knocking her off her feet. She screamed in agony as one of them then stabbed her in the thigh with a stone sword while the rest of his companions rushed down the hallway to combat the other escapees. In desperation Gigal flailed wildly against her bearded attacker but the man simply caught her hand and after staring down at his beautiful, scantily clad prize for a moment, dragged her helplessly back into the room he had come from and locked the door.

The rest of the Sisters of the Sand along with the slowly dwindling numbers of Scar's group were being pushed back by the sudden appearance of the guardsmen - their numbers compensating for the lack of skill. Seeing that it was a losing battle, Scar suddenly whistled and he and his two remaining men broke from combat and ran in the opposite direction leaving Ash and her girls to handle the ever growing number of enemies.

"We have to fall back," muttered Nessa with gritted teeth, just as she parried away an enemy blade. Ash knew that but without a clear opening not all of them would make it. It was then she saw the dilapidated, secondary support beam above them.

"Indas! The beam!"

The towering woman knew what Ash wanted and right after pushing back a pair of guards, jumped up and slammed on the aged timber with all her might, sending it loose from its bearing and right into the line of guardsmen, knocking them all to the ground. Before Ash could give another order, Nessa and Nerith tumbled over the downed enemy line and quickly slit as many throats as they could. Only three of the guardsmen made it back to their feet with Ash spearing one through the face and the other two having their skulls crushed together by Indas' huge hands.

The sounds of battle ringing down the hall signaled that Scar's escape hadn't gone so smoothly either. While the brunette sisters looted what gear they could, Ash and Indas reached the door the guards had come from and, seeing Gigal's bow lying on the floor as well as hearing her cries and whimpers from the other side, they tried desperately to break it down.

It did not budge.

Screams of death followed by marching feet indicated that they were out of time. With tears of frustration on her face, Ash signaled the rest of her team to keep moving; towards the smell of roasting meat, towards the kitchen, towards freedom and leaving Gigal to her fate.

Nameless: Sisters of the Sand

[This is the start of my Creative Writing Experiment.]

The crowd cheered as Ash rolled to her side, just before her opponent's heavy stone axe slammed down on the spot she had just been. The ugly brute didn't have time to raise it again as an arrow suddenly found it way through his neck, spouting blood like a fountain as he fell to his knees and slumped forward - dead on the sand. Blowing a strand of red hair out of her face she nodded thanks to her savior, the blonde archer Gigal. The woman reciprocated the nod and let her piercing blue eyes find her next target. There weren't many to choose from.

The brunette sisters Nerith and Nessa were finishing off one more opponent between their jagged bone knives while Indas, the towering and muscular giantess was busy choking the life out of her adversary - his legs kicking the air in vain as he tried to pry free from her grip. With a loud snap the kicking stopped and the broken body was tossed like garbage to the side, much to the pleasure of the crowd. Ash grinned as she retrieved her spear. These were her team mates. These were...

"The Sisters of the Sand win again!" exclaimed the green robed announcer from a high balcony, his skinny arms outstretched. "Surely their luck cannot hold out forever! Send in the next group!"

Ash cast the announcer a deathly sideways stare as the rest of her comrades regrouped around her. That name was something he branded them after their all female group happened to win a few rounds in the previous weeks. They weren't expected to survive as none of them started out as fighters. They were all slaves. Slaves gone "bad" in the eyes of their masters, and now just entertainment for the crowd. Even the lecherous Merzol and his gang of rapists - the ones now lying dead in the sand were just entertainment.

"Always time for a fuck," was Merzol's motto, and Ash heard it a lot in the shared slave pens beneath the arena. Women, men, girls, boys, dogs, rats, dead, alive - it didn't matter to Merzol. That's why she made sure to kill him first.

As she watched the next group of five men march in she knew their next fight would be a lot different from the last one. Different from any they had already fought. It would be their last. This was Scar's team, the reigning "champions" composed of barbarians and renegade soldiers. People who were adept at the art of killing. People who long lived in the underbelly of the bloody arena.

The bald, muscle bound leader signaled his men to stop just as they neared Ash and her girls. The crowd hushed in anticipation.

"Are you ready?" he asked in his usual deep, monotone voice. Ash looked to each of her friends and nodded.

Both teams suddenly sprinted in unison for the old, and often unused western gate of the arena. It took a few seconds before the onlookers cottoned on to what was happening.

"GUARDS!" yelled the green robed announcer. "THE GLADIATORS ARE TRYING TO ESCAPE!"