Blasted morning.
Through the cracks between the thick branches of the trees, the grey-gold light of morning was shining through. Cool winds gently blew between the countless trunks, stirring some of the less unfortunate animals that didn't have burrows to shield them. Birds began to stir, chirping and singing their morning songs to awake those who were too stubborn to get up on their own. Slowly, surely, the woods began to buzz with life, animals coming to life all around. As the sun rose higher, the forest only grew louder, until it was nearly deafening. At least, only to the keen ear. Or someone who had been listening to only silence for the past ten or so hours.
It was better quiet.
Standing perfectly still amidst the center of it all stood a large man. At least, at first glance it would have appeared to be a man. Upon closer examination, one would see between the helmet and half-mask the blue that had appeared as eyes was a pale blue glow, and the rest empty black sockets, as if darkness radiated from within the creature's very skull. Around the eyes, one would see the old, yellow bone of the skull. The coarse, grey-black metal of its armor seemed to radiate the cold that chilled the winds of the forest, though little of it could be seen over the collection of furs that adorned it. A short brown-grey kilt, stitched together out of wolf pelts, and a huge cloak of made from some unfortunate bear. It's chest and shoulders were patched around with various smaller furs, though they were mostly raccoon and rabbits. Around its neck were the skulls of little animals: Mice, squirrels, small birds.
It had been standing there the entire night, along with the previous day. In the curved horns of its helmet were the beginnings of a pair of nests, straw and twigs criss-crossed over them. On his shoulders and the top of his head sat a few birds, and even one squirrel was brave enough to begin crawling up one of its legs. If not for the glow of its eyes, one would assume that someone had died standing long ago, and refused to fall. Clutched in its right hand, one of the blades resting on the ground, was a massive battle axe, the blades in pristine condition, despite the wielder's own.
Off in the distance, a scream pierced the air, silencing the forest for a moment. But only for a moment, as it was quickly back to its little ocean of sound. The creature's head slowly turned to the side, stirring the little bird that had been resting on the helmet. With stiff movement, it gently rolled its shoulders, coaxing the birds into flying off. The squirrel, startled by the initial movement, was already gone and up a tree, and was now staring curiously at the creature. Its left hand moved up, and brushed the would-be nests from its horns, and then turned in the direction of the scream. Its foot lifted up, and dropped heavily on the ground, its first step in the direction of the cry.
She will not come to harm.
Lifting the axe up until the pole rested on its shoulder, the skeleton stepped through the forest, on a direct path towards the scream. It hadn't taken but a few steps when another pierced the air, but was silenced midway. It stopped dead, recalculated the area, and began to walk once more, albeit more hurriedly. Low growls and grumbles escaped it as it moved, signifying its anger. It would have already been there, moved faster, if not for the blasted armor it needed to wear to protect itself. The stuff was so cumbersome, but so useful. The grip on the hilt tightened, a small squeak escaping the leather. Almost to the spot...
The creature came upon a little cabin in a cleared out section of the woods. Off in the distance, between the trees, it could see the road, though it was quite a bit away. Too far for someone to escape to without being noticed. From within, it could hear the sounds of a struggle: Things bashing around, something crashing, sounding suspiciously like a vase or glass, a muffle shout. A louder, male shout. The creature didn't need to hear more. Didn't want to hear more. It would not tolerate this, whatever it was. Though, it had a good idea of what was happening inside. Or, at least, what was likely to happen. Stepping up to the door, it raised a foot up, and placed it on it. There was a loud thump as the metal connected, and everything inside went quiet all of a sudden. The creature pushed on the door, letting out a strained groan as it did so. The wood creaked beneath the forced, bending inward. Small cracks sounded, followed by a few more loud ones. Finally, with a crash, the door burst inward, sending splinters flying through, the shattered remains falling to the floor. The creature's foot slammed into the ground, cracking the floorboard beneath it. It looked up, its cold, dead eyes taking in the scene before it.
Before it stood a man, standing over a woman lying in the floor. He looked like a simple man, easily pegged as a peasant from his clothing and thick beard. The woman was also clearly a peasant from her dress, though exceptionally beautiful for her social stature. Long, blonde locks flowed from her head, draped over the side of her face and over the floor. Blood seeped from a gash in her arm, staining the floor. The man held a hatchet in his hand, the blade red and wet. They pair stared up at the creature, him with fear and rage, her with hope and wonder. Its free hand rose, gripping the top edge of the mask, and ripped it off, showing its skull to them, the yellowed teeth gnashing together. Before either could react, it let out a savage roar, and charged the man, dropping its axe in the process.
He let out a cry and swung with his axe. The blade thunked into a shoulder, digging into the hide that covered it before bouncing off the metal plating beneath. The creature barreled into him, tackling him down to the ground. The breath was knocked from the man, and there was a snapping sound. He let out a scream, but a metal clad hand covered his face, silencing him. The hand with the axe came swinging around, trying to slice at the creature, but its other hand came up, catching the clumsy man's wrist. The grip tightened, and a muffled cry escaped as the hand contorted around and dropped the hatchet. There was another loud crack, the man's wrist shattering beneath the might of the monster.
It's hand lifted from his face, and clamped around his neck. It reached down and picked up the hatchet, then slowly stood up, bringing the man with him. He held him up in the air, then shoved him against the wall, holding him there for a moment. The creature raised the axe up, and the man's eyes widened. He began pleading, begging for his life, offering what little money he had. The hatchet raised high above the skeleton, at its precipice. The man offered the girl in exchange for his life. A guttural sound escaped it, and the axe swung down, embedding itself into the man's skull and the wall, pinning him there. Blood spattered out from the wound, splashing over the front of the monster, staining its face and chest.
Releasing the man's neck, allowing the axe to hold him to the wall, it turned back to the girl. She was clutching her arm, blood seeping through her fingers, staring at it horrified. It took a step towards her, and she shrunk away, crawling backwards, slipping around in her own blood. A small noise escaped it, sounding like a whimper, and it turned back to the corpse behind it. There was a loud ripping sound, and it turned back, holding up long strands of the man's shirt. It made towards her, while she moved back, and knelt down. As gently as it could, it took hold of her wrist, and tried to pry her hand off of her wound. She screamed and cried for it to leave her alone, but it only ignored her as it pried the hand away, and quickly set to work, wrapping up the arm in the makeshift bandages. Seeing it did not mean harm, she stopped struggling, and allowed it to work, sniffling and crying all the while.
Once complete, it left her alone for a moment to retrieve its axe. It slipped it beneath its cloak, through a small loop that acted like a sheath. When it turned, the girl was still sitting there, gazing at her arm, at the blood still seeping through. It made its way back towards her, and gently lifted her up. She didn't bother to struggle - likely, she knew it would only mean her falling down to the ground and bashing her head. It made its way out, not bothering to retrieve the mask, and glanced around for where the road was. After a moment of searching, it began to head in the right direction, the cobblestone becoming more and more visible through the lessening trunks.
Jitters stepped from the shade and into the morning light, staring out over the expanse of grass opposite its side of the road. It looked to the right, and saw the city in the distance. No travelers were on the road now, but it could see the silhouette of an armored man, presumably a guard off in the direction of the city. It set the girl down on her feet, and pointed towards the direction. From beneath its kilt, it retrieved a little sack and gave her a few silvers from, and gave her a little push to get her going. She started off at a walk, then burst into a run, as if eager to get away from the monstrosity.
Satisfied with its work, it settled down at the base of a tree, its back resting against it. It tilted its head back and allowed its jaw to fall slack, taking on the appearance of a long dead warrior. The light in its eyes dulled down until they were nearly non-existent, only able to be seen from nearly right on top of it.
Good job. Time for a rest.
Vash