Elena was still sitting in her rocking chair, the sun leaning towards setting on the last day of the second week, the day of Rayn's promise.
Her anxiety had reached its peak, a mother's instinct screaming inside her that everything was not alright.
The air outside the window grew colder, but it wasn't the cold air that made her shiver, but a vague sense of danger creeping into her heart, caused by the surrounding silence that had always been there but was now different.
Her eyes were fixed on the edge of the forest. At that moment, her attention was caught by an unnatural movement among the dense trees, it wasn't the usual movement of forest animals, it was heavy, multiple, and hesitant movement.
She focused her tired gaze, and her heart felt a cold grip. She saw shadows moving, large, green shadows. Monsters.
She even saw gray, horned monsters among them, and their numbers were many.
They were not just predatory beasts crossing the forest.
They were emerging from among the trees slowly and cautiously, as if spying on the village, Orcs, Goblins, small numbers at first, followed by larger numbers.
She felt her blood freeze in her veins. What were they doing here? In such numbers?
Elena suddenly rose from her chair, her heart pounding violently, a cold panic sweeping over her. She had to do something. She had to warn the villagers. She had to find Celia or Kyle.
She rushed towards the front door, opened it very cautiously, and looked out. The scene she saw made her freeze in place, a shock stronger than the shock of seeing monsters emerging from the forest.
The monsters were not just spying on the village, the village itself was... in utter chaos. Screams, sounds of fighting, monster roars, the smell of smoke, and fire rising from some houses. The monsters were already in the village streets, the attack had already begun, and she hadn't known.
The Orcs and Goblins, including the more terrifying demonic types, were gnawing at everything, attacking houses, breaking down doors, and killing anyone they found in their path. The scene was horrifying and brutal, beyond her worst nightmares.
Then she saw him. In the heart of the chaos, Kyle was fighting, fighting with extraordinary ferocity, with incredible strength, amidst a sea of monsters. He wielded his sword with deadly skill, felling Orcs and Goblins with a single blow, moving with a speed that defied his size.
He seemed like an impenetrable wall, trying to prevent the tide of monsters from advancing further into the village, especially towards her house. He fought with desperate bravery, but the numbers were overwhelming.
Elena watched Kyle fighting with a heart seized by fear for him and gratitude for his courage. He seemed to be specifically trying to protect the street where her house was located, as if he knew Theo might return here, or perhaps to protect her.
But Kyle's battle, despite its ferocity, was not enough to stop everyone. She saw a group of small, more cunning and agile Goblins, sneaking from behind Kyle, avoiding direct confrontation with him, and rushing towards her street, towards her home.
Three small Goblins running quickly, their yellow faces bearing evil expressions and their eyes gleaming with greed.
New panic swept over Elena. They were coming towards the house, towards her. There was no time to escape anywhere else in this collapsing village, the only safe place was inside the house, to try to hide.
She quickly retreated from the front door, slammed it shut, and locked the flimsy latch.
Her heart pounded wildly in her chest. She heard the sounds of the monsters outside approaching, she had to hide. Where? In Theo's room. It was the only room where she felt safe, the room that carried his scent, that reminded her of him.
She rushed quickly through the dark main room, towards a small corridor leading to the bedrooms.
Darkness enveloped the house, and there was no sound but her rapid breaths and violent heartbeats. She reached the door to Theo's room, opened it quickly and entered, then closed it quietly behind her. The room was dark, but a faint glimmer of light filtering through the window illuminated some familiar furniture.
Theo's bed, his small desk, the bookshelf he loved.
She was trembling with fear. She heard sounds in the main room, they had entered the house.
Light footsteps echoing in the house, creaking sounds, the sharp and annoying Goblin language. They were searching for something.
She eagerly looked around for anything she could use to protect herself, there was no real weapon. She spotted a small knife on Theo's desk, a knife he sometimes used for wood carving.
She gripped it, her hand trembling. She had never used a weapon in her life. She was just a housewife. But she had to try, for herself, and for Theo.
She approached the old wardrobe in the corner of the room, pressed her body behind it as much as possible, and placed her hand over her mouth to stifle the sound of her breath, which had become too loud, and her faint crying. She tried to be completely silent, invisible in the darkness.
She heard footsteps approaching the room door, then they stopped. Did they hear her? Did they know she was here? Moments of absolute silence, a silence more terrifying than any noise.
Then, the door suddenly opened violently, a faint glimmer of light from outside entered the room, revealing a small shadow moving quickly, a small Goblin.
It looked much smaller than the Orcs, but it was evil and ugly, with yellow eyes gleaming in the dark and a mouth that curved into a savage smile.
It didn't notice her immediately, it was scanning the room with its eyes.
Elena didn't think. She didn't plan. She did what survival instinct made her do. She rushed from behind the wardrobe, the small knife in her hand, and aimed it at the Goblin, who was surprised by her sudden movement.
She plunged the knife into its side with desperate force. The Goblin let out a sharp, painful shriek and fell to the ground, thrashing for a moment until it stilled.
For a moment, she felt a strange sensation, a sense of temporary power, of small victory. She had killed a monster, but this sensation immediately vanished with what happened next.
She heard other sounds outside the door, the dead Goblin's screams had attracted its companions.
In a moment, two other small Goblins rushed into the room, their yellow eyes burning with anger and greed. They saw her standing next to their dead companion, the knife in her hand.
She had no chance. Two against one, she was already exhausted from fear and effort. She tried to strike one of them with the knife, but it was too agile, easily dodging the blow.
She managed to make a small scratch on another Goblin's arm before one of them struck her with its claws powerfully in her stomach.
Elena fell to the ground, the knife falling from her hand. The pain was sharp, like fire burning inside her. The two Goblins immediately pounced on her, their savage growls filling the room.
It wasn't a fight, it was a brutal mauling. Elena screamed at the top of her lungs, a scream of despair, pain, and terror, a scream Kyle heard outside despite the chaos of the battle.
She felt their teeth tearing her body. She felt indescribable pain in her right hand. In her last moments, she saw one of them devouring her hand, and the other gnawing at her liver.
Life was slowly receding from her, and her vision blurred.
Amidst this horror, she heard a tremendous sound in the main room, the sound of fierce fighting, then the sound of the door opening violently.
She saw Kyle's massive shadow rushing into the room. He was covered in blood and dirt, his eyes burning with blind fury.
In an instant, and with incredible strength, Kyle eliminated the Goblins who were gnawing at her body. His movements were swift and brutal, as if he was fighting with greater ferocity than ever before.
The last Goblin fell to the ground, and a sudden silence fell over the room, broken only by the sound of Elena's weak breaths and the distant sound of battle in the village.
Kyle slowly approached her, his face covered in dust and blood, his eyes looking at her with a gaze that held deep pain and boundless pity.
He saw her torn body, her missing hand, the horrible wound on her side. He knew it was too late.
Elena tried to raise her left hand towards him, but she couldn't.
Her strength was completely exhausted. She spoke in a very faint voice, barely a whisper, a voice choked by blood and pain, "K-K-Kyle... Th-Theo..."
All that mattered to her at that moment was her son. Was he okay? Did he survive? Would he return?
Kyle knelt beside her slowly, and spoke in a calm and sad voice, a voice that tried hard to be reassuring in her last moments, "Elena... Theo... he's fine now... he's returned... he just arrived home"
Elena looked at Kyle, her sunken eyes gleaming weakly. Hearing that Theo was fine, that he had returned home... it was all her exhausted heart needed. A very faint smile, a smile carrying all love and all comfort, appeared on her bleeding lips.
"He-returned" she whispered, and a look of contentment and peace replaced the fear and pain in her eyes.
These were her last words. The light in her eyes gradually faded, just as it had faded in Kyle's eyes before her, then completely extinguished.
Her body relaxed. She was dead.
Kyle watched life recede from Elena's eyes, and he felt something break inside him. His friend, the mother who raised and protected Theo, had died so brutally.
The anger he had been restraining suddenly erupted with full force.
Kyle slowly stood up, his fists tightly clenched, his eyes burning with blind rage and absolute despair.
He looked one last time at Elena's lifeless body, then turned and left the room, left the house, his voice rising in a savage roar of anger that surpassed the roar of any monster.
He returned to the burning village streets, and to the ongoing battle, but he was no longer fighting to protect anyone, he was fighting to avenge, to avenge Elena.
He unleashed his enormous anger and power, killing monsters indiscriminately, without mercy, as if every blow he delivered was a blow aimed at a cruel fate that had taken his friend from him.
He killed Orcs, Goblins, and demonic creatures, moving among them like a whirlwind of destruction, leaving behind a mountain of corpses.
Until he died, but he died feeling regret and sorrow, even though he delivered what he wanted to Theo, but he thought about what would happen as soon as he opened his room door and felt regret.
Theo was opening the wooden door to his room, carrying the injured Rayn on his back, to see the scene that almost made him lose his mind.
His mother's body, lying on the ground in the dark, terribly disfigured, her blood flowing onto the floor, her right hand missing, clear signs of brutality on her body.
The shock that hit Theo at that moment was powerful, the shock of seeing his mother dead so brutally in his very room, the shock of seeing the extent of the destruction and horror that had reached his home.
Her missing hands, her liver was gone, her body almost completely disfigured, but she, despite all this torment.
Was smiling a reassuring smile.
While Theo fell to his knees, and screamed, screamed loudly.
But there was no one to hear him now, she was dead.
Elena, his beloved mother, was dead.