The following is a pulpy Dark Fantasy tale akin to the works of Robert E. Howard and his tales of Conan. This is just something that came to me in the mists of dreams really and something I'm working on to the side of 'War of the Damned'. It's something new, something different, and I hope you all enjoy reading it.

Tainted Souls

I

Moving amongst the shadows of the forest, Arlenia kept a single arrow notched on her longbow, fingers holding the missile loosely by its white guide feathers. Hey eyes flicked to the side, seeing the Orc raiding party moving beneath the tree line, their jagged weapons grasped in their fists. Stopping on a fallen log, crouching in the darkness the Elven princess drew the string of her bow back until her thumb brushed against her ear. Aiming carefully she released the first shot, the arrow passing between the twisting branches and dying leaves before striking one of the Orcs in the neck.

The creature grasped at the shaft protruding from its flesh, dark blood bubbling around between its fingers as it gasped for breath. Frothing blood poured from its gasping mouth and the other raiders came to a sudden halt, grunting as they stared into the forest to try and find their attacked.

Arlenia notched another arrow and loosed it, sharp blue eyes watching as the arrow buried itself into an Orc's cheek bone, punching through bone and into the soft meat inside its skull. The creature collapsed to the ground in a heap, while its comrades raised crossbows and sent bolts spiralling into the forest. One hit the log beneath Arlenia's foot, digging out chunks of wood, and she silently leapt off her perch and scurried through the shadows to find a new vantage point.

One of the Orcs, wearing a black sash across its chest, pounded on its chest with the hilt of its serrated blade, weapon clanging against armour as it let out a guttural roar trying to command the emaciated and twisted creatures surrounding it. The crossbow men started to reload, before a knife came spinning from out of the darkness and caught one of the raiders in the shoulder.

Arlenia smirked, leaning against a tree and taking aim with her bow once more, as she watched a woman burst out from behind a tree with a raised sword. The blade came striking down and opened the neck of one of the Orcs, spraying its black blood from the wound.

"That a girl Rynn," Arlenia whispered to herself, shooting an Orc in the back, watching the arrow dig deep just beside its spine.

Tossing back the hood of her dark green cloak, the warrior Rynn raised her blade to block a downward swing, and kicked out against her attacked. The bottom of her boot hit the side of an Orc's kneecap, shifting the bone beneath the skin and making the creature howl in pain before the armoured plates of Rynn's gauntlet smashed into its throat, crushing its windpipe and sending the raider to the ground clutching desperately at its deflated neck trying to draw in a breath that would not pass the damage.

Rynn ignored the dying creature, moving on to the next one and impaling it through the chest with her sword. The tip of the blade broke through ribs and cleaved through its heart, bursting from its back and dripping gore. With a swift kick to the creatures chest she pulled her sword free, just in time to parry a quick thrust towards her mid section.

The leader was moving slowly towards the knight, with only four of his raiders left alive, but his eyes continued to cautiously scan the woods, searching for the archer in the darkness that had struck down enough of his warriors already. Notching another arrow, Arlenia shot at the brute, frowning as the arrow pierced his kidney with little immediate effect. The shot would be fatal, but not quickly enough, so she readied another whilst Rynn head butted an Orc in the face, crushing its nose with a spurt of blood down its chest.

The commander let out a roar of anger, snapping the arrow buried in its flesh off leaving a small stick embedded in its lower back. It moved forward, raising its large two handed sword to bring down on Rynn's head. With a quick glance up at the large weapon about to come crashing down, Rynn dived forward, rolling beside the Orc's legs and bringing her sword up to cut through his calves.

As steel tore through muscle and tendon, the creature roared in intense pain before a second arrow burst through his throat. The remaining four raiders shared glances with each other as their leader died before them.

Getting to her feet, a smile spread across Rynn's features, her sword held by her sword, blood dripping from the tip and soaking into the soil. Cracking her neck, the knight took a step forward, and the Orcs each took an involuntary step backwards.

Holding her sword in front of her, the smile didn't fade from Rynn's lips as another arrow whistled through the trees and struck dead another fiend. The remaining three raised their weapons and charged the visible threat. Rynn leapt to the side, dodging an angry slash and leapt from a fallen log, swinging her blade through the air. The edge of her steel bashed against a skull, splitting the bone and pouring brains over its fading and cracked leather garments.

Landing carefully by falling to one knee, Rynn drove her blade upwards through the guts of the nearest Orc, feeling her sword slide under ribs and through its lungs. She looked up at the raider she'd impaled and watched the shock and pain register in its eyes before her hands twisted the grip, turning the steel buried in its torso. Blood ran down the groove along her blade and dribbled over her gauntlets, running in rivulets down her bare forearms.

"I'll see you in hell when its my time," she snarled and pulled the blade free, letting the dead creature collapse to the ground.

Looking around, Rynn saw the final beast with two arrows stuck into its chest, and a glance over her shoulder revealed Arlenia emerging from the thick foliage of the forest. The Elven princess pulled back the hood of her dark green cloak and began to move around the corpses, pulling her arrows from each body, inspecting the heads to ensure they were still usable.

"They grow bolder each week. It won't be long until they decide to invade," Rynn said, wiping the blood off her blade on a scrap of an Orc loincloth before sheathing it at her hip once more.

"The Elves cannot stop them, and the Prince of Orthel seems to be aiding them," Arlenia said, slipping her recovered arrows back into the quiver on her back.

Rynn stood for a moment, eyes looking for her thrown dagger, whilst Arlenia took a small knife from her boot and cut the steel heads from the ruined arrows. She dropped the heads in a satchel on her hip and tossed the wooden shafts into the woods whispering a small prayer to the spirits of the forest to welcome back the carefully chiselled wood.

Finally finding her dagger Rynn pulled it free, wiping it clean in the grass.

"We need to free Ashavaria. She's the only one who can bring the armies or Orthel to bear in time," the knight finally said.

Arlenia looked up at her companion, and for the briefest of moments a look of fear passed behind her eyes before she nodded.

"To the south then... the badlands await. Are you ready to go home Rynn?"