Berserker

Chapter 5: Blood and Stone

The weightless sensation vanished as gravity reasserted itself on Jonathan.

His boots hit the solid ground, and he immediately dropped into a crouch, raising his pistol. He scanned his surroundings, tuning out the unnecessary and looking for movement or immediate signs of danger.

The scene that greeted him broke his flow and concentration. The desert scrublands of Eastern Washington were gone and replaced by something altogether more alien. Enormous, towering formations of dark gray stone stretched toward an alien sky. Their twisted shapes defied any form of natural geology that Jonathan had seen. What little vegetation that he could see was sickly and pale, clinging to the cracks in the stone.

He removed his rucksack while kneeling and reholstered the pistol. With practiced movements, Jonathan took the rifle from the top of his pack and leaned forward, resting the barrel on his calf to keep the muzzle clean. Then he pulled out his GPS unit and powered it on, waiting for it to acquire satellites. After several moments of nothing, he tried moving it around,

Jonathan dodged another swing, and his combat knife cleared its leather sheath. The troll's attacks were powerful but predictable. He ducked under a wild swing, knowing he couldn't match the creature's strength but could use its momentum against it.

His ribs screamed in protest as he moved. The gash across his torso was bleeding freely, which made his movements slow and sluggish. The troll overextended on its next attack, and Jonathan saw his chance.

He stepped inside the creature's reach, using its own weight to sweep its leg. The troll crashed forward, its stone axe clattering free. Jonathan lunged for the weapon, ignoring the burning pain in his side.

Armed with both knife and axe, he circled the rising troll. The knife probed for weak points while the axe kept the creature's attacks at bay. Blood loss was starting to affect his vision, turning the edges dark.

The troll charged again.

Jonathan feinted with the axe and drove his knife up under its jaw, where the stone flesh looked softer. The blade sank deep. Before the troll could react, Jonathan brought the stone axe around in a devastating uppercut to the same spot.

The creature crashed to the ground, finally still. Jonathan fell to one knee, chest heaving as he tried to breathe through the pain. Strange blue text appeared in his vision, but before he could read it, movement caught his eye.

Three more trolls entered the clearing, likely drawn by the sounds of gunfire.

Jonathan pushed himself to his feet, blood dripping from his wounds. If this was his last fight, he'd make it count. Marcus's face flashed in his mind, and something inside him snapped.

Rage flooded through him like liquid fire. His vision began to tint red as strength surged through his limbs. He no longer noticed the pain of his wounds, and his mind was consumed by something darker, more primal.

The first troll reached him with a roar.

Jonathan's leg shot out in a front kick, connecting with the troll's hip. The impact sent the large creature flying backward, crashing into one of its companions. Jonathan stared for a split second, his rage-addled mind unable to process how he'd launched such a huge monster with a kick.

The second troll's attack seemed to move in slow motion, but coherent thought was becoming impossible.

Red crept in from the edges of his vision like blood in water.

More blue text flashed, but he couldn't focus on it. Everything was becoming a crimson haze.

Jonathan felt as if invisible hands were pulling his consciousness backward. Not as if he was falling but sinking deeper into his own mind. Whatever was taking control felt ancient, violent, and absolute. His awareness retreated further and further, leaving only rage in its wake.

The last thing Jonathan remembered was his own roar mixing with those of the trolls as consciousness slipped away into darkness.