Charlie Sweeney
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The beginning of the end- PT 2
Yodaka slowed down to a walking pace as he approached the entrance of the Barn. He could see the sour expression of disapproval on Jounka’s face as he got closer to his two brothers, who had used the distraction of their brother to also assume their huge Djinn forms
By Charlie Sweeney4 years ago in Fiction
The beginning of the end
How long had it been since the ancient warrior had first seen this view? Yodaka stood at the top of the hill looking back down towards the Great Barn. The Barn had been derelict since anyone could remember and sat near the end of a large field at the bottom of the slope he now stood atop. It must have been impressive in its day with the main hall a vast cavern that could easily accommodate four large houses. At the back end of the Barn was a small warren of rooms, of various sizes, which were probably used for storage, housing farm animals and offices. Now they were used by the Clan as sleeping areas’ and the Elders Council meetings during the Gathering. As he looked at the Barn it brought back many memories, some good and some bad but always evoked a feeling of pride, as this was their Barn and everyone knew it to be so. Yodaka’s gaze now drifted over to the right of the Barn, towards the Green Forest, as he saw members of the Clan weaving their way through the trees and out into the field. They walked in single file, as was the Clan way, using well worn trails in the overgrown field which snaked round towards the front of the Barn. To his left stood the Great Hedge, some distance away, which ran down the side of the field and disappeared into the distance as far as you could see. Where the hedge met the slope and made its way upwards, there was a gap large enough for three or four of the Clan to pass through abreast. He again watched as a steady stream of the Clan came through the gap, some stealing a glance up towards him and nudging their young ones forward to stop them staring and gawping up at their Clan chief. In the far off distance behind the Barn he could also make out the Clan coming towards the Barn in a steady stream. Yes, this gathering would be the biggest anyone could remember. He had been standing watching everyone arrive for some time now, the sun had already moved half way across the sky and was just beginning to start its decent into the blackness. At the front of the Barn there seemed to be a small bottle neck developing, which was strange considering that one of the enormous doors was fully open, in fact nearly falling of its hinge. He looked closer and soon discovered the reason for the slow entry into the Barn. There on either side of the entrance stood his two brothers, Jounka and Blacken, living legends to the Clan, immortalised in stories and used to keep young ones in line if they misbehaved. “Blacken will steal you away in the middle of the night if you don’t go to sleep”, “Jounka can swallow a young one whole, if they are bad” that sort of thing. As the Clan filed past them, they slowed and dipped to show their respect to the two warriors. He must admit, they looked very impressive and slightly intimidating, standing either side of the entrance. Jounka was almost as big as Yodaka and had over the years put a little bit of weight on his midriff, however Yodaka thought that even with this Jounka might be able to take him in a straight up fight, of course, he would never admit that to him or anyone. There are only three other Clan members that have ever seen Jounka in battle, being it was so long ago, the thought of it still sends shivers down his back, the red mist in his eyes as he hacked at The Hoard, cutting down dozens at a time, fighting his way through their defensive line like it was not there. On many occasions he had kept a safe distance just in case he had been caught in the blood lust whirlwind. Jounka’s demeanor was always dark with his stern face and seemingly sour mood, however, Yodaka knew this to be a front, as Jounka had a heart as big as a Barn. Now his other brother was a bit of an enigma, Blacken “the Ghost” “Night Crawler” “Shade.” Even as youngsters he was always distant and really only associated with their mother and baby sister Tigera. Blacken was the smallest of the brothers and famous for his unexplainable ability to suddenly appear beside you without warning. Extremely supple, agile and strong even when he walked down the path, it looked like he was floating. During the battle of the Great Hedge, Jounka had done his usual thing and cut through the Hoard’s front line, deep into their ranks. I had followed him in, however as we stopped, we found ourselves completely surrounded with what appeared to be no gaps in their line. When suddenly I felt something brush past my back and Blacken appeared at my side. To this day I don’t know how he managed it and he never talks about it. Now that was a battle to remember.
By Charlie Sweeney4 years ago in Fiction
