Regular Visitors

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Word count: 700

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They came here again.

Their odd, rectangular ships floated above the town, casting a huge shadow over the streets.

Among the numerous crew, there was only a single human being. The rest consisted of living armor. When they first came, we tried to fight back, but it was useless. Our weapons and magic never worked against the armor. Even our beasts didn't stand a chance. And when our Queen tried to refuse our submission to them, they threatened us with genocide.

These knights listen to their master on the word. No second thought, no slightest hesitation. They can speak our language somehow, but their language is so different from ours.

They show up only when they want something. Wood, metal, meat, grain, fur... We have no idea what they need it for, and we are not sure if we want to know.

But I want to know.

I am not royal nor noble, not even a knight. I am just a mere farmer. But all of my crops go to them. And I want to know what they need it for. Why do I need to work so hard to meet their status quo? Why do we need to content with just scraps of what they leave behind?

And I am going to find out.

They are getting ready to leave. I managed to sneak into their ship, hopefully unnoticed. It looked huge from afar but being this close, it was enormous. I tried to stay as low as possible but curiosity got the better of me. I carefully walked through various halls. It was like a maze and everything looked the same.

I heard a distant echo of footsteps. It sounded like a soldiers marching. I quietly rushed in the opposite direction. Frequently looking back I overlooked the one in front of me. I bumped into it and the impact sent to the ground. I looked up. It was looking right into my eyes. At least it felt like that.

My heart was pounding as I waited for it to do something. But nothing happened. The knight just stood there, staring at me. Its intense gaze was drilling through my soul. The blankness in its face was unsettling but it looked like it was... thinking.

It suddenly held out its hand. I flinched at the movement. The knight kept its hand in the air and tilted its head. Now there was no doubt. It was thinking. Curiosity again won over the fear and I slowly reached out with my hand. The knight gently grabbed it and carefully pulled me on my feet.

A low rattle came from it. Three words formed within the static: "Be no scared."

My eyes widened. It spoke to me. The knight told me I don't need to be scared. I have no idea why, but I believed it.

A loud rumble resounded through the halls and the ship began to tremble. The knight looked down the hallway and swiftly marched to the source of the sound. Still holding my hand it dragged me with it. For whatever reason, I just went with it. This strange knight gave me a feeling of security. They always looked so vicious and dangerous when they visited us. But this one looked just curious.

At the end of the hall was a huge metal door. The knight opened them with a single touch and led me to a room filled with different machines and button s. The knight let go of my hand and went right to the buttons. There was a window and I took the opportunity to look out.

I couldn't believe my eyes. We were outside our world. All around were just stars scattered across the blackness. The ship suddenly took a turn to the right. In front of me appeared an indescribable beast.

It was reaching out for our world, wanting to devour it. Numerous ships surrounded it. Something reached out of them towards the beast. It flinched and backed a bit. The ships continued and the beast retreated, the fleet keeping it at bay.

I looked at the knight standing by the s. They didn't mean harm. They protected us.