“Yttgrals”

Author’s Note: This is a Take Ten to Write story and has not been proofread for errors. If I feel inspired or if there’s interest in the story, I’ll post a revised, edited, and extended version at a later date. Happy reading!

Prompt: “Halt!”

Rain pattered onto Captain Bryrden’s helmet as he stood at attention atop the palace wall. His bow was drawn and he had an arrow notched.

He was ready.

From the blanket of fog in front of him, he could faintly make out the dark forms of those horrific creatures who were bent on destroying his home.

Yttgrals.

The captain shivered at the mere thought of them. So Hrenna help him, he wasn’t going to let those monsters infiltrate his home.

“Mirin antra hrec!” he shouted to his soldiers. ‘Do not let them pass!’

He was met by a fierce roar. Pride swelled in his chest, even as he heard the collective tremor in his soldiers’ voices.

They were scared. And justly so. Yttgrals were horrible monsters. Their skin was all different shades of disgusting brown, their hair all the colours of the rainbow. They were simply massive, towering over most saplings and shrubbery. They wore heavy boots that easily crushed anything in their path and their hands… Their hands created more destruction than Captain Bryrden had ever seen.

“Niren!” the captain shouted at the yttgrals. ‘Halt!’

The heavy boots continued toward the army, relentless and fierce.

Captain Bryrden took a deep breath as his heart beat faster and faster. He looked back at his fellow soldiers before raising his bow and yelling “Shanloh!”

‘Attack!’

~ ~ ~

“Are we there yet?” Mia whined, kicking at the mud with her yellow rainboots.

Matthew looked back at her and rolled his eyes. “Come on, Mia, you were the one who wanted to come out here in the first place.”

“I know,” Mia said, letting out a dramatic sigh.

Suddenly, she felt a sharp prick in her leg.

“Ow!” she squeaked.

She looked down and saw a single pine needle stuck in her leg. She winced as she pulled it out and threw it to the side.

Then, she continued on her way, mindlessly kicking over a pile of rocks as she passed.

She didn’t hear the screams as the rocks—and the army—went flying.

Final Comments: So, I decided to try something a bit different with this one. While I didn’t actually plan from the beginning to have a second part with a different POV, it was fun to play around with changing POVs. Also, we’re back to fantasy, so yay!

Overall Rating: 😀