The Tale of the Black Gate. The House of Blackcoat. (On Hold)

They Ride in Black

As the sun had slowly and gently swept through the rustic landscape. With the castle known as Black Gate in ruin covered in vines. And there’s Saber valley filled with its beautiful landscape with its healthy green grass and rivers and pine trees that could scrape the clouds with the small shacks and homes in their midst. The squirrels scattered in the pine tree as the elks had screeched into the cold morning air of the Varnon realm waking any creature that slept. But of course there are creatures that seem to never sleep. Creatures like the saber tooth, owls, black tigers, and of course the most dangerous being man. Man no matter where they are the most dangerous.

Even if that man is a woman holding a newborn child. A mother’s instinct is a powerful tool in her arsenal, the will to protect her child from any harm she senses. This mother was Asha a beautiful tribal girl of the Black Forest.

Her tribe the Gray hairs have survived many winters. Even her son Joseph a young curly haired infant of only nine months had survived the winter of Varnon. But of course it was also due to Asha’s mothering abilities for her husband wasn’t around due to his life style.

She had sat there in her bedroom that morning holding a book she had found in the forest many years ago.

Its spine was black and with gold stripes. The title of it appeared to be washed off. But there where numbers inside a long with various titles with names such as John, Isaiah, and Acts and so on.

She grew to love these stories but of course had to hide the book from the others. If they figured out she had an item from the outer realm it might be thought of as priceless and be stolen from her or perhaps it might be thought of as bewitched.

She would place it under her pillow and would often retell the stories to her young baby boy.

Cracking the book open she had begun to read her guilty pleasure but a friend had popped her head in to the small hut make a surprise visit. As if she where naked Asha had covered herself up and had smiled.

“Hey!” It was Vyna a member of the tribes hunting party and possibly one of the greatest archers in the area.

Do to her surprising entrance she had heard Joseph cry and had begun to shake her head. “I should’ve been quieter I didn’t mean to Asha,” she said. “It’s okay. He’s just hungry is all.” Asha with her light bird bone arms had taken the baby boy into her arms and had sat down into her oak chair.  She had a beautiful slim figure for a mother then again she was only in her early twenties with enough house work of her own to keep herself fit. Moving her auburn hair from her eyes she slipped an arm from her surcoat and had exposed breast bringing to Joseph to suck upon them.

“I still don’t see how we woman can do such things,” Vyna chuckled. “That’s because you’ve held a bow in your hand for too long.” She looked at her friend’s fire engine red hair and smirked. The two where almost exact opposites of each other when it came to romance and life style. Asha the soft green eyed mother who wanted nothing more to find the right father, husband, and home for the baby and herself, while Vyna the brave strong brunette huntress who at times thought like a man when it came to love. At times she would stare at the butcher’s son a handsome yet naïve lad. At times she would think of him bathing and such. At times her imagination would get worse in her sleep.

“Well when you find a husband that suits your need then I’ll settle down,” she said jokingly. “I hope that won’t be too far from now,” Asha sighed. As Joseph clung to her breast she smiled at him,” I always wondered why he left.”

Vyna rolled her eyes, “That’s an easy question to answer. He was a snake who cared about nothing but himself.” 

The young mother sighed but soon all had gone quiet as the sound of thunder had suddenly rumbled in the air.

But the sky was clear as day for it to do such a thing and the smell of the air was all the same.

The sound of horses neighing and screeching had filled the air coming towards the village. Asha had slipped her shirt back in her sleeve and held Joseph close as Vyna rushed outside to see a hoard of horsemen in black cloaks barraging through the village with sabers of cold steel. The sounds of screaming and terror filled the air as she ran back in the hut. A person had boomed out, “Phantoms!”

The Phantoms…these creatures are said to be the reapers of Varnon sent by God that had turned wicked. No one really knew their origins except that they would appear at random and begin to slaughter and feast upon the souls of many men and slaughter who ever stood in their path leaving many widows and orphans.

Asha had seen the reapers wrath before when she was just a child. Luckily for her all she had to do was run far away from the screams and ear piercing shrieks of the beast that had sent shivers up her spine. The cold feel of their black sabers they carried brought an intense of aura of darkness. Thunder rolled in the air as blue lightning cut through the clouds like a blade straight from the black smith’s oven.

Vyna held a strong grasp of her friends arm making her drop her basket of goods she packed,”Get Joseph we have to go with the others!” Taking her hand the two girls had ran into the midst of the chaos. The sound of their fellow comrades yells and cries fell as they fled the village with the reapers nipping at their heels.

Like the legend said they only attacked men and had slaughtered any who stood in their way. “Don’t look back.” One of the women had cried.

Not paying attention to their words Vyna had looked back to see the hooded rider but also saw her village engulfed in blue flame. It wasn’t hot…but cold and soulless like the marauding creatures that stalked them.

Asha had took Vynas hand and pulled her away from group.

“We need to leave them behind!” Asha had took her away from the heard and had slid down a small hill.

As they riders fly past them all had went quiet.

“What do we do now?”

Vyna looked at the ruins of the Black Gate and had sighed,” We find shelter…all of the survivor will go back to what’s left of the village to claim what’s left. All we need to do now is survive the night like we’ve always had.”

A loud yanked had came Asha hair by a cold armor plated hand of a reaper as she clutched onto her baby. "NO!," Vyna thinking as fast as she could had grabbed a small stick and had stuck into the creatures horse making it stir out of control. "IT STRAYED FOR THE BABY!," Asha shouted as th beast let her go. "Come on we have to run now!"

The two girl and the infant had bolted away from the beast as lightning began to crash to the ground.