The Leviathan

Submission for IronAge Media's prompt 'The Fiend.'

“Captain!” Hedvin shouted as the grotesque leviathan grew ever closer to their skyship. It had appeared during a sudden burst of lightning, and had been chasing them ever since. The leviathan was a large bulging mass, but whether it was flesh or something else none could tell. “It’s gaining on us, we’ll have to fight!”

The battlemages were on the way to the front lines to protect their general who had been sent to deal with the civil war personally. The general would be near defenseless if they didn’t arrive. And if they couldn’t defeat this, all their training would be for naught.

“How can we take it down?” A man screamed as he shot a bolt of lightning at it. Not all believed it could be defeated, Hedvin was uncertain, but he was still willing to fight and hopefully help the other’s from despairing.

“Does anyone know what it is?” the captain asked, panic stricken

The youngest of the group, Rivan, a young lad of nineteen summers who had distinguished himself by his studies, approached their captain. “Sir, I am afraid I have come across nothing that describes it.” He paused, hesitating, then, “perhaps it is one of the leviathans that exist on the other side of our reality?”

“What are it’s weaknesses?” Hedvin called, throwing blazing balls of fire at the thing to no avail. It only rippled and came at them even faster than before.

“I don’t know,” the young man said franticly, tearing through his notes, papers flying every which way. “I’ve only ever seen them mentioned in passing. Never anything about them. Every instance of their mention is always doubtful of their existence.

At that moment something latched onto poor Riven. The rest of the battlemages watched in horror and Riven’s mind was torn in two. The gruesome spectacle that left the man unable to form any rational thought and the others in total fear for their lives and sanity.

Before the battle mages could even begin to register what they had seen another of their order was attacked, this time turning into a fine dust that trailed off behind them. They were in shock, and began to realize that they would not be escaping.

Hedvin tried to restore order, shouting for them to use light, since their captain had been reduced to a babbling thing at the sights he had witnessed. The captain of their air vessel was bravely, but fruitlessly, trying to outrun the entity. It would have to be a fight for their very lives.

“Light, light!” Hevin screamed. “Try light; it might be our only chance!” He had no idea if it would work, but they had to do something, and it was better for his comrades if they were doing something. He wasn’t going to die babbling like their captain.

The battlemages directed radiant beams of divine light towards the leviathan from the void realm. It rumbled, jiggling like giant mass of gelatin. It seemed that their magic had had some effect, but not enough. Angered, the leviathan came at them as quick as the lightning it had sprung forth from.

Hedvin thought they must look very heroic to the crew. But their last stand was ultimately to be in vain. The leviathan reached the ship and tore it in two as if it were merely ripping a blade of grass. Those who were not instantly killed outright plummeted down to the ground miles below. Riven had just enough sense to him to slow his fall with magic before blackness overcame him. He had one final glimpse of the leviathan before he lost consciousness. There was no knowing if it saw him or not.

The End,
God bless