Of Mollocks

The barren Xali Desert loomed to the north. The unending horizon of the sea stretched southward. Behind them to the west lay their home cities of Mizeroth and Paneroth. Before them lay the unexplored southeastern range: the Qara Mountains. The colonists moved eastward along the Dalan River Plain. The Kerean Post, an ancient watchtower built on a small mesa, served as the center of their winter encampment. But now, as the air warmed and spring blew life into the landscape, the colonists packed their possessions, ready to venture onward, past the reach of common civilization. None had ventured past the Qara Mountains, nor crossed the Xali Desert from the north. They sought a promised land. Two thousand settlers tore down tents and loaded wagons, beginning to filter eastward from the Kerean Post. Fifty horsemen accompanied the settlers to scout the terrain and protect them from the unknown dangers of their migration.

As the colonists began to move towards the snow-capped mountains, a bitter, chilled wind rushed down from the mountains to meet them. A foul whisper rode the frozen breeze. The horses became jittery and the nervousness spread like a disease among the settlers. Then, as suddenly as it started, the wind ceased. But it seemed to have summoned clouds. The air grew cold as storm clouds choked off the living giving light of the sun. The darkness enveloped them and their hearts. Some of the settlers began to speak of return to Kerean Post. Discontent settled in. Flakes of snow soon filled the air. The wind returned with a renewed ferocity and the colonists braced themselves for a bitter storm. Soon, the snow built on the ground and the procession stopped to weather the spring flurry.

Then, the ambush began. Five dark forms appeared in the distance, obscured by the falling snow. They grew larger, but no clearer. The colonists huddled together and the men grabbed any sort of weapon and moved to the edges of the circle with the riders circling around the settlers. The soldiers called to each other in the blinding storm, relaying orders and directions. The dark shadows now grew darker and larger as they approached. The horses' restlessness intensified and the men blinked in the blinding snow. Women snuggled against carts with whimpering children, wrapping themselves with extra blankets.

The lead silhouette passed through the veil of snow and gained texture and form. Leathery gray skin seeped from beneath the rusted iron breastplate the beast wore. It charged the settlers, lumbering towards them on two elephant-like legs. Standing the height of six men, its gaze fell on the defending soldiers. Two fiery eyes glared from behind the spiked war-helmet it wore. It clutched a blade the size of two men in its hands and it lifted it above its head with ease. A jet of steam blew out from its flattened nostrils. Four others followed it in the attack. It bellowed a war-call and swung its weapon when it came up on the first defenses of the colonists.