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Pathless: Bestiary
Nightmare Wraith

Nightmare Wraith

Nightmare Wraith is a being that personifies the deepest human fears and anxieties, a predator of dreams that turns peaceful sleep into an endless nightmare. Its victims, trapped within their own dreams, have no way to escape its destructive power as their fears are sharpened to the breaking point, driving their minds to the brink of madness. Nightmare Wraith is not merely a parasite that feeds on fear—it revels in it, savoring every drop of terror it can extract from the depths of its victims' souls. Its presence is silent and inconspicuous, but when it approaches a sleeping person, the entire dream turns into a terrifying nightmare, from which the victim cannot break free. Time seems to slow down, and every moment stretches infinitely, full of dread and a sense of helplessness. The most common cause of death is a heart attack—a sudden, brutal end to a journey through an abyss of despair from which there is no escape. Sometimes, however, victims wake up, left in a state of extreme physical and mental exhaustion, their psyche permanently damaged, unable to return to normalcy.

Nightmare Wraith resembles a humanoid figure, though its body is bent under the weight of the immense nightmares it carries. Its silhouette is hunched, and its ashen-gray skin seems to absorb all color from the dream world, with black streaks that resemble smoke—like the echo of burning fear. Tendrils growing from its legs move almost imperceptibly, creeping across the ground and ready to ensnare anyone who comes within their reach, like invisible chains binding the victim within their sleep. These tendrils, like cold, slithering serpents, work silently and relentlessly, wrapping around the victim's body and intensifying the paralyzing fear. Nightmare Wraith’s face is blank—no eyes, no nose, no mouth—just a smooth, gray surface that seems to gaze coldly and mercilessly into the soul. Sometimes, when particularly enraged, its surface pulses as though something inhuman is moving beneath it, further emphasizing its demonic nature.

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Despite its terrifying power, Nightmare Wraith is physically weak—it can be killed by piercing its heart or cutting off its head. It is not invincible, and in the physical world, it is a relatively easy target if detected. Its true power lies in its ability to haunt dreams—where its victims are most vulnerable. In the dream world, Nightmare Wraith is unstoppable, capable of killing entire groups of adventurers who are completely unaware of what is happening. Manipulating the dream reality allows it complete control—walls turn into shadows, the ground collapses beneath feet, and its opponents lose all sense of direction. Even when not hungry, it haunts those who dare enter its territory—it loves to induce fear, savoring the growing panic as its victims begin to realize they cannot wake up. It often leaves its victims on the edge of madness, exhausted, with an endless sense of threat that follows them for the rest of their lives.

It is the embodiment of that deepest, primal dread that cannot be escaped, that fills every corner of the mind whenever we close our eyes. It is a warning that the darkness lurking in the depths of our subconscious is more real than we would like to admit. Nightmares are not just the product of our imagination—they are something more, something that can cross the boundaries of sleep and enter reality, destroying everything we know and love. Nightmare Wraith reminds us that even the deepest sleep can turn into the worst nightmare, and our fears never truly leave us. It is the personification of elusive terror that seeps into our minds and reminds us of our fragility—both in the waking world and in the world of dreams.