SWNOVELS Chapter 16: The First Report
Nathanael, Joshua, and a team of twenty men, including Jacob had been waiting with some concern and impatience for about forty-five minutes when Thomas and Jonathan were spotted coming out the main gates of the city at the base of the mountain. Twelve of the twenty men stood guarding the portal from the Acheron side atop the ridge outside the city when Thomas and Jonathan were spotted. “Hey! There they are!” Jacob called out to Nathanael as they stood on the brow of the hill. “But it’s only two of them. It’s Thomas and Jonathan!”
Six of the men went forward to meet them as Nathanael’s countenance fell upon hearing the news, fearing the worst. A few minutes later, Thomas and Jonathan approached with their escorts and immediately went through the portal to speak to Nathanael and Joshua at Kaal Bek. They were out of breath and panted as they caught their breath. Nathanael looked at them patiently, waiting for them to catch their breath. Once they did, Joshua spoke up. “Where’s the rest of the team?” he asked pointedly with some concern.
“Don’t worry,” Thomas replied slowly as he began to relax a bit. “They’re all right. They’re checking out the citadel. It took us two and a half hours to reach it.”
That news astounded Joshua and Nathanael. “Two and a half hours!” Joshua exclaimed.
“Let them speak,” Nathanael ordered. “You saw the size of the city and its state from here. I’m frankly surprised they reached it so quickly. Go on, Thomas; tell us what you found.”
Thomas then proceeded to report what he and Jonathan had seen: from the cyclopean architecture to the great numbers of the ancient dead and the bizarre skeletal remains of a great number of them. He also told them of the fantastic gates of the citadel and the overwhelming size of those gates and walls. Nathanael looked at Joshua and said, “I think we need to send more recon teams in. The size of the city is being a hindrance. It’s going to take a lot more people to secure it.”
“I think your right,” Joshua replied. “The city is so vast that securing it for the people may be a problem without more people.”
“What is city like just inside the gates?” Nathanael asked.
“It is a ruin,” Jonathan replied. “But there are structures intact inside the city, particularly just inside the main gate. The biggest problem I see is cleaning it up. There’s one thing though that Thomas failed to mention. There’s a pall of darkness over the whole city: a noxious, elusive evil the likes of which I have never felt anywhere before. It even surpasses what we felt when around General Gulez. At the front gates, the evil wasn’t too obnoxious, but the closer we got to the citadel, the worse it became. The dead in the streets reflected this. The closer we came to the citadel, the more numerous the remains were and the more violent and disfigured they were. If I were in charge, I would stay well away from the citadel. It literally freaks me out to no end. I’m scared to go in there, and it takes a lot to scare me.”
Thomas nodded, saying in agreement, “He’s right. The atmosphere near the outer walls at the main gates wasn’t too bad. It just puts me a little on edge. But the farther into the city we pushed, the worse the feeling got. I was frankly glad when Harry told us to come back here to report.”
Nathanael glanced at Joshua and grunted, saying, “Is that so? In that case, we may need to alter our plan a little. What do you think, Joshua? What do you think about securing a perimeter just inside the main gates as a starting point? We’re going to have to start somewhere anyway.”
“Seems to me that’s what needs to be done,” Joshua stated. “I’ll gather some more men and we’ll begin securing the wall and gate.”
Nathanael nodded slightly, replying, “Sounds like a good plan to me. Thomas, Jonathan; take Jacob and his team and return to the citadel. Tell Harry what we plan to do. Be careful. I’ll reopen the portal again in three hours.”
Joshua touched Nathanael on the arm in a parting gesture and rushed off to gather his team. Thomas and Jonathan’s spirit fell a bit with the thought of having to go back to the citadel, but swallowed their fear and said, “All right, Nathanael. We’ll relay the message.” They went back through the portal, quickly procuring Jacob and his team of eight men and leading them back into the city.
A man stood beside Nathanael as he watched them walk away saying, “You have some brave friends there. It’s a commendable trait.”
“That it is,” Nathanael agreed. “They’re brothers and we’re family as is Harry, John, and Arabella. Their love for them will overrule their fear of this place.”
“I hope so,” the man returned, briefly putting his hand on Nathanael’s shoulder. “I sure hope so.”