As the howls from the trees got closer, we quickly retreated back up to the top of the wall. Nix and Lin were keeping a close eye on the situation. Lin was looking toward the jungle while Nix was looking toward the city. I hadn’t noticed until now but there were howls coming from the city as well that seemed to be getting closer.

  From the still blazing bonfire and the few tents that were still burning I could just make out monsters exiting the jungle. There were a lot of them, all different sizes and shapes. They immediately went for the corpses, fighting each other over the free meals.

  They were our enemies so I felt no remorse but it was still an unpleasant sight to behold. I turned my head away from the carnage and tried to see any movement from the city side. Most of the magical streetlights still worked which allowed me to see movement on the streets below us.

  Soon monsters from the city burst forth from the gate and joined in the chaos. The beasts from the jungle growled at the newcomers who advanced more slowly once they became aware of the other creatures. With any luck they would all kill each other.

  So far, we had not been noticed but that could change any minute. We wouldn’t be able to reach the street the way we had come because of the monsters. We decided to carefully make our way farther down the wall, away from the gate and the creatures.

  Eventually there should be another set of stairs leading down and if not then we would have to use ropes or our magic to get us down. As we put distance between us and the monsters, our movement caught the attention of some flying creatures. I don’t know if they came from the city or jungle but they started swooping down to attack us, shrieking loudly.

  There was no light up on the wall which made it difficult to see our attackers. Torg and Lux brought their shields up while the rest of us kept our heads down. Their swords flashed out and blood splashed over us. “There are more of them heading this way.” Lin called out. Luckily our scouts could see in the dark better than the rest of us.

  I was sure all the nonhumans in our party could see better than us regular humans. Our scouts had skills that helped them see but their genetics likely helped as well. I nearly stumbled in the low light and decided I better focus on where we were going.

  After being attacked we decided to just make a run for it, foregoing our quiet approach. Our scouts took the time to fire a few shots before running. They easily caught up to the rest of us and informed us that monsters had started coming up the wall behind us. I didn’t bother looking since I wouldn’t be able to see anything anyway.

  This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

  It felt like we had been running for hours and my stamina was staring to wane. I was cursing the length of the wall when Lin spotted something ahead of us. It seemed we had finally come across another set of stairs leading to the streets below.

  The growls behind us had been growing louder as the monsters gained on us so we barely slowed down as we hit the stairs. Before we reached the stairs, Emily had made her wand glow so us humans wouldn’t fall on the dark stairs.

  We rapidly descended until we reached the bottom and came upon a locked gate. Emily blasted it apart with her magic and we were soon on the streets again. I had no idea where we were at in the city and even Emily seemed confused. The stairs had been narrow so it was a good spot to thin our pursuers.

  Torg and Lux planted their shields, blocking the exit while the rest of us made ready to unleash our spells and arrows. As soon as the snout of the first beast came into view, we let loose. It died instantly, tumbling down the stairs to rest next to the shields.

  More followed after it, with some able to reach the shield wall due to the sheer number. They were quickly dispatched by Torg and Lux using their swords. The number of bodies piled up, partially blocking the stairs. Soon the last of them was slain and silence briefly reigned before more howls could be heard.

  They had been mostly wolf type monsters and had been fairly easy to kill. However, we were all starting to get tired at this point. It would be foolish for us to try and make it back to the castle tonight. We would need to find somewhere to hole up.

  The dead monsters and pools of blood would soon attract more monsters so we needed to put some distance between us and the site of the latest battle. Our scouts led us into the unexplored streets, angling away from where the nearest howls seemed to be coming from.

  We seemed to be in a more run-down part of the capital. Emily still had her wand glowing so I could make out some of the buildings we were passing. Most were in need of repair and there was actually trash on the streets that I had to watch out for.

  After we got a good distance away from the wall, the hunt began for a good sturdy structure to hide out in. Most of the buildings we passed were falling down and would offer little protection if a monster found us. Finally, Nix spotted a brick building that looked like it might work.

  It was two stories high and the windows on the first floor had already been boarded up. There were two doors, one at the front and one at the back of the building. The back door was broken down but the front door was still in place. We carefully entered, wary of any creatures lurking in the darkness.

  We made a sweep of the building but didn’t find any nests of monsters. I wasn’t sure what the building had been as it was now mostly empty with some pieces of furniture all that remained. We used the broken furniture to block the back entrance and were finally able to relax.

  We ate a quick meal and then decided on who would take the first watch while the rest of us got some much-needed sleep. At one point we were woken up by Ann who was keeping watch. There were some noises outside but luckily nothing tried getting in and we went back to sleep.

  The rest of the night was uneventful and we woke up early, eager to get back to the castle. Lin was able to climb to the top of the building and point us in the right direction. Emily had never ventured to the slums of the capital so we would need to find our own path back.