BATTLEFIELD

Smoke rose softly from the chimney on top of the straw packed roof the morning was about to bring the morning sun Lucas Forsmythe was leaning against the fence that was the boundary of a wheat field near the house, he watched the orange sky getting brighter with the dawn creeping over the horizon it was almost time to leave Lucas headed back inside. He gathered all the provisions he would need for the journey a few apples and a loaf of bread along with water inside a tanned leather bladder, he put on the padded tunic which would serve as his uniform for the coming battle as his wife came from the bedroom holding a baby wrapped tightly in a blanket she had a weary smile “Thought the little one would like to wish his father good luck” Lucas smiled and approach them he gently caressed the baby’s soft pink head and kissed his forehead and whispered to his son “I’ll come home to you I promise” he looked up to his wife and lightly stroked a thumb on her check and then swept the long wavy black hair away from the delicate features of her face “I hate to leave you my love” she pulled him in for a kiss placing her free hand on her husband face she could feel the rough texture of the stubble on his chin she pulled away and locked eyes with him “Then you better make sure that God doesn’t take you before your time”.

A knock came on the door both turned with surprise Lucas approached it then pulled on the handle and the door creaked open revealing a man in a finely made tunic and garments Lucas could tell that he was a knight by the trappings on his clothes, the man looked at him speaking with a gruff voice “Lucas Forsmythe?” Lucas nodded “Aye that’s me let me just gather my things” the man remained silent but nodded, Lucas gathered his belongings along with the large axe that he used to chop trees it was old but certainly could cut down anyone that was in its way. Lucas gave his wife one final glance and kissed her again “The devil himself will have to stop me from coming home” he looked at the baby then headed towards the door, upon leaving the house the knight headed towards his horse which he mounted and waited for Lucas to mount his own horse, when Lucas was ready the two men rode off down the road towards the town.

The sky was dark with blackened clouds thunder rumbled overhead, the men were rigid with unease all of them row after row in single file Lucas looked at the forest of pikes and spears which swayed slightly, the caw of crows came from overhead Lucas saw them circling. The knight who collected Lucas rode a horse through the crowd of soldiers “Steady men!” the banners swirled in the breeze each one bared the markings of the noblemen in loyalty to the king. Across the field the opposing force although larger lacked a cavalry so the horses would cut through them easily to allow the rest of the men to charge in, the opposing men began to shout and chant bashing their shield to the rhythm of the drums as they began to rumble with thunder rolling overhead. The knight drew his sword “Horses at the ready!” the cavalry were in front of the pikes they drew their weapons to get ready, Lucas tightened the grip on his axe he could feel the change in the other men it went from unease into fear but Lucas thought of home of his wife and son waiting for him to come back to them and he was not going to let anything stand in his way. A loud cheer from the enemy side roared into the sky and began to run towards them, the knight raised his sword high and then swung it forward “CHARGE!!!” Lucas and all the men roared loudly and stormed toward across the field the sound of thousands of footsteps drowned out even the thunder above them, the horse cavalry galloped hard and fast the hooves kicking up soil and grass as they got closer and closer to the sea of enraged soldiers, the sounds of hooves were met with a clash of metal as the cavalry forces tore through the men trampling many whilst the knights on horseback hacked and cleaved at men on the ground.

Those that weren’t trampled continued to charge towards Lucas and his men both sides rushed towards the other, it was like two waves on the sea crashing into one another only it wasn’t the sound of the ocean instead it was the howl of pain and the clashing of metal. Lucas was lost in the confusion of bodies all of them trying to kill one another, he turned as a man with a sword at him trying to gouge his gut but Lucas jumped back out of the way the sword came down from overhead Lucas block it with his axe, he pushed away the sword and struck the man with the end on the axe handle knocking him off balance Lucas quickly swung the axe with buried deep in the man’s neck, the man gargled a scream as blood spurted from his mouth Lucas pulled out the axe and swung it around to catch another soldier in the gut. The battle was brutal and bloody the green of the grass now stained red, man fought against man, sword met with flesh with blood spraying into the air, the cavalry horses charged through the crowd the knights carving through the enemy forces, Lucas ran through the raging swarm of soldiers killing anyone that tried to attack him one of his fellow-men was pinned to the ground by another desperately try to avoid the dagger that was being slowly pushed towards his chest, Lucas swung the axe behind him then brought the blade down hard into the man’s skull then pulled the man off his comrade he grabbed his colleague by the arm when suddenly the ground nearby erupted knocking several of Lucas men into the air. Many more eruptions occurred Lucas realised what it was “CATAPULTS!!!” the enemy force had held back the catapults until the other soldiers were closer, the men began to panic the knight on the horse yelled to his men “MEN PRESS FORWARD!” he pointed to the other horsemen “KNIGHTS CHARGE AND TAKE OUT THOSE CATAPULTS NOW!” Lucas had made his way to the knight “Sir we need to pull back and get clear of their range!” before the man could speak several impacts were scattered across the battlefield the final one struck right next to Lucas and the knight the horse and both men were launched into the air everything went to black…

Crows cawed the battle was long over a crow was perched on a tattered banner which was stuck in the ground the others were picking out the dead flesh of the bodies strewn across the battlefield, the grass was no longer green but dirtied with mud-covered corpses and blood. Lucas lay against the horse of the knight he had spoken it was unfortunately killed in the assault with the catapults Lucas gasped suddenly and opened his eyes to the field of the dead his breathing was panicked as he found that he was covered in several corpses, he looked around frantically hoping to see any sign of life there was nothing.

Lucas tried to push the bodies away when something caught his eye out far in the field was a white horse stood unyielding amidst the flies and the heaving smell of decay, upon the horse was a figure dressed in a black robe Lucas was too far away to see who it was however he could see the figure climbing down from the horse and began to walk out into the field. The figure stepped warily over the fallen with the flock of crows circling overhead, the vacant eyes of the dead seemed to follow the mystery figure as it wandered past them, after reaching the centre of the expanse of dried blood and fresh decay the figure stopped it looked to the crows and signalled to one of them, one of the crows circled then swooped down and landed gently onto the hooded man’s shoulder the man turned to look at the ebony corvid and spoke in a deep but crooked voice “What is the count my friend?” the crow chirped and cawed in response the man nodded “hmm two hundred and ninety-five very well time to collect” he raised his left arm upward and gave a swift and loud snap from his figures. Lucas tried once more to free himself from under the pile of corpses but still struggled to get loose, Lucas stopped when to his right he heard something moving nearby, then from the left and even from ahead of him then he noticed that the bodies were beginning to move.

All across the field limbs twitched and bones cracked, Lucas was terrified by the sight as everyone that was strewn across the battlefield was starting to slowly rise up. The bodies clutched at the sodden dirt and pushed themselves awkwardly onto their feet, even the bodies that were on top of Lucas began to move and eventually got themselves up and off the frightened man until one by one all two hundred and ninety-five bodies were standing in the spots where they had fallen. Lucas no finally free to move stood upright and looked around at everyone, he couldn’t understand it they were dead some with gaping wounds others with arrows still pierced into their bodies all with vacant faces but they were standing and all of them were looking in the direction of the hooded figure. Across the sea of the dead the figure strolled through amongst them but then stopped when he saw Lucas standing in the crowd then started to approach him, Lucas was frozen on the spot as the mystery man got closer the man spoke “You are a curious one” Lucas tried to speak but he struggled to find the words then man spoke again “You are uncertain of your fate” the man’s voice although deep was piercing like it was reaching into the soul Lucas finally found his voice “What is going on here?” the hood turned to the dead “Their time has ended, now it is time to make the crossing” Lucas didn’t understand what the figure meant “But it is impossible how can these men be alive?” the man got closer he raised a hand and gestured to the dead “Simple…they are not alive, not anymore” he then pointed to Lucas “You however, you seem to have a choice” Lucas was confused but he was becoming agitated “What do you mean I have a choice?” the man was almost upon Lucas the crows cawed overhead “Dear child you a between life and death, you can either stay in this mortal world and return to you life with you wife and child or you can come with me and to eternal peace” Lucas began to feel cold with a shiver which was felt to the bone “Who…who are you?” the man stood right before Lucas and upon seeing the figure’s face his blood ran cold, up close he could see the bleached white features and the black of the eyeless sockets of the skull face glaring back at him the deep voice spoke out “I am the collector of souls, the rider on a pale horse, I ferry those to their judgment, I am the black winged angel…I am Death” the reaper glanced Lucas up and down “Now before I depart you have the choice” Lucas creaked out a reply “Am I dead?” the reaper shook it’s head “You were injured in battle but your soul is stuck between death and the living, which means you can choose either come with me…” Death reached out a pale skeletal hand “…Or you can remain here and live out the rest of your life, the decision is yours” Lucas looked to the hand that was being offered and then to the dead men that was surrounding them, amidst the horror and fear Lucas had only one thing in his mind the one thing that since he had left he had kept in his heart and that was thought of returning home and seeing his wife and son.

Lucas realised that he had been stood silent for a while, he looked up and into the deep sockets of Death’s eyes tears welling up in his eyes “No, I’m not ready to die just yet my family need me to come home” Death gave a slight chuckle and placed the bony hand onto Lucas’ shoulder “Then return home to them but I must leave” the hooded figure turned away and start to walk back to the centre of the field, Lucas had a questioned he wanted to ask he quickly yelled “Wait!” Death stopped and turned back at him Lucas spoke again “Do you when…do you know when I will…” Death nodded “I know when everyone will make the final journey, your time will come Lucas Forsmythe, not yet, but child you will see me again when the time is right” the reaper turned around again and continued its way across the field and through the dead, after reaching the centre of the battlefield the black feathered wings materialised and unfurled out as the deep voice spoke into the air “Now it is time for the final journey, prepare your weary souls” he raised his hand and snapped his fingers again, the instant the snap rang out the bodies that were standing suddenly dropped down to the ground Lucas glanced around quickly at the fallen around him they were dead again.

The souls had been claimed leaving only Lucas standing surrounded by the dead, Lucas’ heart was pounding in his chest he still wasn’t sure that what he had seen was even real or some hallucination from the stress of battle, a voice spoke out from close by “Lucas?!” Lucas turned to his right to see several of men from the army that he recognised one ran over to him “God almighty I cannot believe that you are alive” Lucas couldn’t believe it either “Neither can I…what happened?” another man spoke “When the order was given to charge the catapults it helped turn the tide and we were victorious”. Although pleased to be alive and among friends, Lucas refused to take his eyes from the dead that were lying in the field he was terrified that they would rise up again” another in the group noticed that Lucas was not seeming right “Lucas are you alright? You look like you’ve seen a ghost” eventually snapping back to reality Lucas turned to the men “No I’m fine…come on let’s head for home” the men began to leave the battlefield Lucas was certainly happy to leave that place not only did he have a brush with death he had stared it in the face and it was a face with those black empty sockets that he would not soon forget.

END