Darkness

"Darkness"
Written by Sheik7574

I apologize for the terrible condition of my writing. It is difficult for me. I am of the Baq clan. For those that don't know, we Baq have the worst vision in the Middle Kingdom. Thanks to the infinite graciousness of the gods, my remaining senses are powerful enough to make up for this. My sense of smell is over a thousand times more potent than that of man. I have ears which can rival a dog's, being able to sense vibrations from over two miles away.

Do not fret, for I am made for the Mines in which I work. I have no need of your blessed peepers, I have a nose that can track you to the ends of Hell. Ears that can catch the movements of earth worms and beetles, furlongs beneath the Eath. So you see, I am not entirely helpless. This leathery skin of mine shall stay intact.

In the land of mines, the Baq are held in esteem for our ability to function in the outside world. Among the clans of Blight & Darkness, we are hounded by a great many afflictions.  Some cannot speak, others cannot walk. And then there is my sister Kri, the anomaly of the Mines.

The mute are dumb, but she can see. And not as the humans, nor the tittering Elves, those grey spheres of hers can spot leagues away! Dwellers of the surface, housed in horse and carriage, bring rumors of work for her wondrous eyes.

Dangerous work for which I am infinitely grateful. A killing for delivering explosives or sabotaging the equipment of lesser beings. Weak humans, clumsy ogres, I could do the same I wager. Kri doesn't hesistate to tell me this is not so, as if their eyes could overpower my senses! I pay heed regardless, the girl has wisdom beyond her age.

At birth all Baq are able to see fairly well, it is the combined long hours in the tunnels and mines and toil of subterranean life which rob us of our eyesight. The elders worry that we may evolve so our offspring has no eyes at all. Though it wouldn't mean much to us because the majority of our populace has no need to see, it would definitely bother the other races.

I can only imagine the screams of horror, the jeering, and ferocity of their attacks. Though we face this on a small scale it is nothing we cannot handle. Every so often a few children disappear during the year and some wise guy thinks it grand to lay bombs in our tunnels. We generally try not to excite ourselves over such matters, but this does not sit well with everyone. Some believe the only way to make these attacks stop is to give the surface dwellers a taste of their own medicine. Baq who think this way are known as Sarapi, they allow their claws to speak for them.

Sarapi are a mild minority, mostly youth, but their numbers are growing as are the intensity of the attacks. We Baq do what we can to keep the peace between the races acting as the middle men between exchanges. Because of our leniency amongst the surface dwellers the Sarapi view us as traitors and make it their mission to clash whenever possible. I am not a violent individual and generally try to avoid unnecessary conflict; life in the mines is difficult enough.

I remember one time when a Sarapi chieftain, Typhon, attacked my sister. He claims it over a beetle's nest, but I know it was for her eyes. Everything revolves around her damnable eyes!  The elders are no doubt keeping tabs on every member, searching for a suitable mate. Humans have long perfected the process, as always we left scrambling behind. But I digress, on with the story of sorts.

These beetles which Typhon demanded, they are quite a delicacy amongst us tunnel dwellers. No doubt he attempted to flex his rank to get her to comply, and when faced with refusal, he turned belligerent.

Lunging at her he tackled her to the floor and began to slash wildly with his claws. Caught off guard by the viciousness of the attack, Kri was scratched pretty bad before she could make use of her fangs.

I had just woken from a brief siesta and was leaving the Mine when I heard the commotion. Thinking it nothing more than a petty squabble between a misguided Sarapi and poor Baq I ignored it. But when I still heard the sounds of battle several minutes later I became worried and decided to look into this matter. Even if it was none of my business I could not stand by and allow a youth to be killed!

Coming upon the burrow, the first thing that hit me was the blood. It was like stepping into a morgue. Pungent, raw, death was near. A creeping wave of nausea hit me like freighter, and then I heard her cries. Doubt and control went out the window. I did not care that the elder's punishment for confronting a chief was torture, Typhon would be long dead before that.

Charging into the room I latched onto the back of Typhon, sank my teeth into his shoulder and started shredding his back with my claws. He roared in fury, not expecting to be attacked from behind. Because he is larger, he was easily able throw me off. Landing on the floor I rolled to my feet and reset my stance, readying myself for a second round. Seeing me as the more obvious threat he abandoned Kri and turned to face me, just as I hoped he would.

Kri had hesitated a few seconds wondering if I would be able to handle such a foe. Snarling, I spat froth and fur, gesturing wildly towards the door.  I did not want her to see what I was about to do. I had no time time to contemplate such matters, Typhon was starting the attack! We met each other suspended in the air, and as we rolled about in the dirt we came again with tooth and claw. The battle was fierce; our cries could be heard throughout the catacombs, nearby a crowd gathered.

They began to cheer and rant, the world itself was drowned out. All I could hear were shouts of “Kill the filthy Baq!”

“Rip his eyes out!”

“Atta boy Padfoot!”

All the noise was making it difficult for me to focus on the battle. I couldn't differentiate between the sounds of Typhon's feet or the stomping of the hectic crowd. I began to second guess myself, even lashing out at poor lady Grey at one point, something I still regret to this day. This change in efficiency was not missed by Typhon who began to memorize and time my motions.

My claws began to hit air more frequently and I felt the rake of Typhon's razor sharp nails in my sides. I stumbled over a root and hit the ground, prompting a gasp from the crowd. Typhon laughed as he prepared the Sarapi ceremonial. A headbutt, followed by a swift double kick to the chest, where he will land upon my chest and rip open my throat to drink the contents. To add insult to injury he will probably force my sister into some twisted barbaric ritual his kin practices.

I roll and push off the wall with wobbly feet. Twisting my body I turn and thrust with my claws. I am slightly off in my judgment and end up only grazing his jugular; unfortunately it is not enough to tear the vein. His skull meets mine with a hideous crack; I am thrown backward and fall on my back, disoriented. Typhon mounts me kneeing me in the chest as he does so, the full 178 pounds cutting off my oxygen.

He raises his arm, the crowd cheers, she screams; it comes down at break neck speed. I twist in a feeble attempt to protect my neck. This last tremor is what saved me. His prominent nail only ends up delivering a serious gash along my temple. The second blow however, does much more damage, tearing the skin and ripping to the bone, nearly severing my shoulder.

Here it comes, the dreaded third slash. This one is sure to finish the job. I grit my teeth and close my eyes, and dip deep into my internal reserves. Both arms shoot up, I find myself covered in blood. He doubles over cursing, unable to complete the motion he opts to strangle me instead.

I am too weak to fight him off, too much blood has been lost. I cannot breathe, my heart pounds so very loudly.  I can hear his as well, screaming for retribution, he does not want his life to end either.

A voice filled with power and authority cuts through the explosive din, “Cease this madness at once!”

Typhon ignores the elder Malakai, and applies more pressure to my windpipe. I try to pull back my arms so I can plunge them in again with more force but my arms do not move. It is as if they are frozen.

“Move dammit! If I must die then I will take him with me!” I screech in my mind, frustrated with the weakness of my body. Suddenly there is movement and hot air rushes past my face. An unholy shriek, surprised gasp, muffled thump, and terrible silence.

The others tell me I had fallen unconscious. Apparently my sister had stepped in at the last moment and in a fit of rage, incapacitated Typhon with a flying kick. They'd never seen anything like it.

“Well that's Kri for you. Mute and dumb.” I give him a little wink as I slink deeper into my length of dying kaliptus leaves.

I would not be able to work in the mines for some time. Would Kri be able to act alone? Certainly she had been wounded as well. I hail one of the passerbys and ask of Typhon. Good news followed, the Sarapi have ceased all anti-Baq activities.

An unofficial ceasefire? Better than nothing I suppose.  Perhaps when I recover I'll ask Typhon if we can end the business altogether.

I know I changed his opinion of Baqs, the only thing is whether it’s enough. I suppose we'll find out in two months time, once we're released. And if not, then I'll just have to kick his sorry Sarapi ass all over again. For now though, I'm content to sit back and enjoy the not-so-excellent medical treatment we Baq have to offer.