The Shattered Crowns

P.O.V. Daenys

A Karnen slunk through the edge of the battlefield, where Daenys and Mirak guided the women and children away from the vicious onslaught. It hissed, a low, clacking noise that made both Daenys and Mirak whip around in alarm.

They quickly ushered the women and children into a cluster of homes. Daenys notched an arrow, pulled back her bowstring, and released, the shot striking the Karnen in its remaining eye. It roared, staggering back. Mirak's hands trembled as he swung a stray plank of wood, managing to strike the creature's head.

The Karnen, blinded but undeterred, rose again. The wood snapped under the force of Mirak's strike, leaving him weaponless. Its four claws snapped open, razor-edged and ready to dissect them. The creature's jaw unhinged with a sickening crack, bloodied spittle dripping from its fanged maw. The arrow jutted firmly from its eye socket as it charged.

Mirak grabbed Daenys' arm. "Run!"

"Where are we going?" Daenys asked, breathless.

"To find a hiding place—maybe higher in the trees," Mirak replied, his tone clipped.

"We can't just leave them!" Daenys hissed, trying to yank her arm free.

Mirak glared back at her. "Neither of us can kill it! We need to hide while we still have a chance!"

"We can do something!" Daenys protested, but her voice faltered as she glanced back. The one-eyed Karnen stormed through the fractured bridges behind them, unrelenting.

Mirak snapped, "We are doing something—surviving. Now, let's go!"

Daenys threw a single glance over her shoulder at the dead before allowing Mirak to pull her along.

They weaved in and out of crumbling rooms, fear keeping their feet moving. At last, they reached the edge of the carpenter district. Daenys' eyes darted around until they landed on her father, standing with a small group of hunters. Around them, the bodies of men and Karnen alike littered the ground, blood pooling beneath them.

"Daenys! Mirak! Over here!" her father called.

The remaining hunters surged forward, attacking the one-eyed Karnen. Its claws made quick work of the first hunter to exploit its weakness, shredding him in seconds.

Daenys and Mirak reached her father as he knelt down to her level. He cupped her face gently, his calloused hands steady despite the chaos.

"You two need to find safety," he said, his voice calm. "Neither of you is strong enough to take on one of these monsters."

"Come with us, Dad," Daenys pleaded.

Mirak nodded in agreement. "The hunters can handle it. We need to go!"

Her father sighed, brushing a stray lock of hair from Daenys' face. "Do not tell your mother, but you take after me, my little girl. The way you smile at everyone you pass, that stubborn heart of yours—you got all of that from me. You may have her looks and brains, but you and Nalla have my spirit. She'd kill me for saying it, but I feel dangerous today."

He smiled faintly, his eyes soft but filled with steel. "Remember this, Daenys. Your grandfather said it to me, and now I say it to you: A society grows great when old men plant trees whose shade they know they shall never sit in."

Daenys' voice broke. "Papa, please… come with us."

But her father straightened, his face set with determination. "Mirak," he commanded, "take Daenys and hide. Consider this a father's last wish. Make sure she survives this day. She has too much to offer Lorian to die here."

"Dad, stop!" Daenys cried, trying to pull free as Mirak grabbed her.

"I love you, Laenys, Daenys, and Nalla. You'll all be fine without me," her father said, his gaze lingering on her before he turned to face the advancing Karnen.

The snap of bowstrings filled the air as arrows struck the beast, but they bounced harmlessly off its carapace. Its claws tore through iron blades and leather shields as if they were parchment. The shattered bones of men scattered like dust, and the ground was littered with shredded armor and blood.

Her father hefted a massive hammer, gripping it tightly. A grim resolve darkened his features as he stepped forward. Only three hunters remained at his side.

Daenys dug her heels in, resisting Mirak with everything she had. "Dad, no!" she screamed.

The hunters struck together, coordinating their attack, but there were too few of them. The Karnen's four arms sliced through their formation with lethal precision. They fell, their weapons barely scratching its armored hide.

Her father was the last man standing.

He swung the hammer with all his strength, the weapon colliding with the Karnen's skull. The beast staggered for a moment, hissing ferociously. Its claw lashed out, slicing through the air as her father narrowly dodged.

But the Karnen's other claw ripped through the wooden shaft of his hammer, splintering it in two. Now holding only a smaller mallet, he continued his assault, slamming it against the creature's carapace. The blows bounced off harmlessly, and the Karnen advanced.

Her father paused, looking over his shoulder to give her one last smile. "You'll change this world, my little bird."

She didn't want to change the world. She just wanted her father to stay.

The Karnen's razor-sharp teeth plunged into his neck. It ripped through flesh and veins with horrifying ease, and her father crumpled to the ground. Blood pooled beneath his body, but his face remained eerily serene, his final smile frozen in place.

"Dad!" Daenys screamed, her voice breaking.

These creatures were no longer myths from old stories.

They were real.

The massacre unfolded before their eyes. Thunder rumbled in the distance as lightning illuminated the battlefield. Mirak dragged Daenys away, but she didn't move willingly. Her fingers dug into his shoulder, her eyes locked on the Karnen and her father's lifeless body.

A primal fear dominated Mirak's features. What hope did they have when hunters—strong, seasoned warriors—could not kill the creatures? Did it even matter if they kept running?

With a burst of effort, Mirak shoved them both into a pavilion at the edge of the village. Their breaths came in ragged gasps, their minds racing.

The Karnen stalked into the clearing, its claws scraping against the wood as it prowled. Purple blood leaked from its ruined eye, but the creature stood as tall as the largest men in the village, its black armor absorbing the light.

Daenys felt terror curl deep in her chest, tightening its grip like a vice. Her skin grew cold and clammy. The only thing grounding her was Mirak's hand on her arm. He said something, but the words didn't reach her.

Her mother's voice echoed in her mind instead:

Daenys, there will come a time when neither your father nor I will be here. You'll feel like you can't move, like the world is ending. But that's when you must stand. You must keep moving. You have no choice. That's what makes a leader—pulling others out of the depths when no one else can.

Daenys clenched her jaw. Why did it have to be her burden? It wasn't fair.

"Daenys!" Mirak whispered harshly, shaking her arm. "Focus!"

"My father is dead," she hissed back. "I don't know if my mother or sister are alive. For all I know, they're—"

Mirak cut her off. "Do you think I'm not eaten up with guilt over my own mother? She could be dead right now, but we won't know if we don't act. We have to survive."

Daenys' voice dropped to a whisper. "Is it wrong to want to be done with all of this?"

"Daenys…" Mirak said, his voice softening.

"Is it wrong to wish it would just end?"

Mirak grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her hard. "We'll mourn after we survive. Right now, I need you. I can't do this alone."