Dozens of mothlike creatures littered the ground. They were black as pitch with small, angular wings that could not fly. Their mandibles were sawn off at strange angles, and their insect eyes were misaligned so that one was always staring at either the ground or the sky.
In front of the monsters was a large burrow that had been carved out with their broken mouths.
Inside, an impossibly large moth peeked out from the burrow. Her wings, too, were dysfunctional, replaced by tattered red silk. Her mottled skin was covered in bits of the same red thread, which was flaking off into the air and falling like bloody snow.
The face looked feminine and almost human if not for the two antennae poking out from her forehead. Her two black eyes were almost completely concealed by a veil of red, giving her the appearance of someone grieving.
'A Widow.'
The deranged moths around her were her dutiful attendants. The Watchers bowed their heads, buzzing together in what Noble could only describe as a dirge. They would comfort the Widow with their song... and their sacrifices.
The corrupted funeral scene was punctuated by two red figures being dragged through the Watchers. They were encased by the red silk like two crimson cocoons. Or burial shrouds.
'Could it be?'
"There!" Orrin whispered. "Drusus and Livia!"
The two bodies were moving slowly toward the widow, whose large front arms were spread. She welcomed them into her jaws of death.
'Not on my watch.'
"Bel!" Flint lifted his sword, ready to attack.
"Get ready!" Noble aimed at the ceremony, sending them like human bullets into the fray.
Noble called on her Zenith. The blade materialized, reflecting the sunlight and alerting the creatures below to their presence.
But it was too late. Before the moths could shift their gaze from the ground to the sky, the three humans were already upon them.
Freezing the pallbearer on the left, Flint brought down the hilt of the sword on the monster's skull. The head shattered like glass while the body stayed encased like a statue.
Noble attacked the second pallbearer. Unlike its companion, it was not frozen. Releasing its hold on the crimson cocoon, it turned its head one hundred eighty degrees to welcome Noble into its maw.
The moth's two front legs cracked and turned upwards, defying the logic that formed their joints. One eye and two clacking arms reached up to snatch Noble as she descended, but it was for naught.
Even before the beast noticed Noble, its fate was sealed.
Maneuvering past the clumsy arms, the Zenith found a spot between the skull and body. It sliced through the overlapping scales, coming out cleanly on the other side.
Before the arms could wrap around the floating Master, the pallbearer's head was rolling on the ground with a soft thud.
[You have slain an Awakened Beast: Mourner.]
Orrin landed beside the Master. A large shield with a flame on it crashed into one of the sentries, pushing it back from taking the place of its fallen brethren. Orrin removed the shield and thrust his sword between the creature's offset eyes.
But the moth scurried forward without regard to the blade in its skull.
"All the heat is in the back. Stab there!" Flint called.
Orrin removed his weapon, defending himself with the shield when the Mourner lunged forward. He pulled back at the last moment, allowing the creature to slip past him and move toward the closest cocoon.
Before it could sink its broken mandibles into anything, the moth let out a deafening shriek. Tossing the shield over one shoulder, Orrin used both hands to thrust the point of his weapon into the moth's abdomen and splitting it open. Red silk spilled out, mixed with blood.
The Mourner collapsed where it stood, sending bits of red dirt and thread in every direction.
Using her levitation, Noble threw the three dead bodies away from the humans and toward the coming swarm. They crashed into the others, creating a moment of chaos for the people to breathe.
Orrin rushed to the red silk and cut at the chrysalis. He pulled back the shroud to reveal the corpses beneath.
"No!" he screamed, a tear running down his cheek.
The sight of Livia and Drusus' pale faces and blue lips filled the Shieldbearer with righteous indignation.
"There will be time for that later!" Noble watched the other Mourners trample their dead to get to the living.
Flint grunted, pulling the man to his feet. "Get up, you fool!"
Standing, Orrin grabbed his shield and clanged his sword against it in challenge. "I will kill you all."
The three warriors prepared for the next onslaught.
"Blondie, get them out of here!" Flint motioned to Drusus and Livia.
"I'm already on it." Noble nodded, the purple in her eyes swirling slightly.
Free from their captors, the two cocoons lifted from the ground and hovered in the air. If she was correct and the creatures could not fly, then the sky was the safest place for them.
The red cocoons had barely made it over the humans' heads when the next wave of Mourners attacked.
Noble floated above the first, stabbing it in the abdomen, then used the momentum of her swing to slice through a second without missing a beat.
The jagged edge of one of the wings raked across her chest plate, leaving a streak in the robust steel.
Noble touched the gouge.
'So sharp!'
The remaining moths began hissing louder, their dirge fluctuating in pitch. Noble swayed, her eyes filling with tears. She was filled with a deep sense of sadness.
Child of Promise looked at the dead abominations on the ground.
Such senseless death! Wouldn't it just be easier to die herself? That would end the bloodshed. Noble lowered her sword for a split second before coming to her senses.
Laying down her life for monsters? Never!
'It's a mind attack!'
Forcing back the foreign feeling, Noble combated it with one of her own. Soon, the men with her were filled with a sense of courage instead of despair.
The song quieted, and the remaining Mourners formed a circle around the three warriors. They paused, and the world went still.
Flint flinched. "I don't like this one bit!"
He stood back to back with Orrin.
Neither did Noble. To have this level of coordination meant that they were being controlled directly by the Widow. The creatures' gazes shifted upwards simultaneously.
"Watch out!"
Noble felt the surge of desire a moment before the Mourners' mouths opened.
Strings of red silk sailed through the sky, covering the air in a tapestry of crimson.
It wasn't like the soft thread that was wrapped around Drusus and Livia. This was hard and solid, like chains of steel.
Noble avoided the falling rain, cutting the cords with the Zenith when she could not avoid them. Unfortunately, one of the cut strings coiled around her wrist. The rope hardened almost instantly.
Noble pulled, but the cord only tightened.
Her Zenith flashed through the air and slashed at the hardened silk. The crimson bond split and instantly crumbled, sending a rain of red dirt tumbling to the ground.
She ducked as the next vine shot over her head. Another and another came. Noble cut and dashed, fighting against the blanket until it nearly blocked out the sun.
She looked up and her heart sank.
Noble realized what they were doing.
She had to stop them.