Without warning, a shadow detached itself from the wall ahead—a hulking silhouette that seemed to absorb the light, its form wavering like smoke yet solid as the stone around us. Eyes that glowed like burning embers pierced the darkness, locking onto me with an unnatural intensity. The monster's jagged maw twisted into what could only be a grotesque mockery of a grin, revealing rows of needle-like teeth that dripped with a viscous, black ichor. A low, guttural growl emanated from its throat, a sound that resonated deep within me, igniting a primal terror I hadn't felt since childhood nightmares.
Adrenaline surged through me, sharpening my senses to a razor's edge. I could hear the blood rushing in my ears, a deafening roar that nearly drowned out the creature's unsettling growl. The chill of the cavern air burned with each ragged breath, and the metallic taste of fear coated my tongue. With a guttural yell that tore itself from my throat, I charged forward, swinging my axe in a wide arc. The weight of the weapon was a comforting extension of my own fury and desperation. "This ends now!" I roared internally, every muscle coiled with determination. I feinted left, then darted right, attempting to catch the beast off guard.
As I closed the distance, time seemed to slow. The creature's eyes flickered with an otherworldly light, and for a fleeting moment, I thought I saw multiple faces swirling within its shadowy form—faces twisted in agony, mouths open in silent screams. I summoned every ounce of strength, bringing the axe down in a powerful strike aimed to cleave the creature in two.
But instead of the jarring impact of steel meeting flesh, the blade sliced through empty air. My momentum carried me forward, and the axe bit deep into the rocky ground with a resounding clang that reverberated through the tunnel like a death knell. Shockwaves of force jolted up my arms, numbing them to the elbows.
"What in the name of the gods?" My mind reeled as I stumbled, struggling to regain my footing on the slick, uneven surface.
I whipped around, eyes wide and wild, scanning the shadows for any sign of my adversary. The monster was gone—as if it had never been there at all. The darkness pressed in, thicker and more suffocating than before.
"No, that's impossible. I saw it!"
Doubt gnawed at the edges of my thoughts, but confusion quickly gave way to a rising tide of frustration and fear. The oppressive silence pressed in, broken only by the distant drip of water and the pounding of my own heartbeat, which seemed unnaturally loud in the void.
"What was that?" I muttered, my voice barely more than a strained whisper swallowed by the darkness. The words seemed to hang in the air before being devoured by the void. I kept twisting and turning, the dim light casting erratic shadows that played tricks on my eyes. Every flicker seemed like a potential threat, every gust of stale air a phantom touch.
The clicking noise sounded again, sharper this time, echoing off the cavern walls and gnawing at my already frayed nerves. It was closer now, the sound of bone striking stone, or perhaps the chitinous legs of some unseen monstrosity scuttling in the darkness. My heart pounded against my ribcage, each beat a hammer driving nails of dread deeper into my psyche. Anxiety tightened its grip, morphing into irritation laced with terror.
"Is this some kind of sick game?" I thought bitterly, teeth clenched so hard my jaw ached.
Before I could steady myself, Malice's voice slithered into my mind, dripping with condescension and something far more sinister. His words echoed with a hollow resonance, as if spoken from the depths of a bottomless well.
[Human? Hah! I have ascended beyond such mortal trifles,] he scoffed, his tone cold and mocking. [Why would I ever want to be compared to such a horrid state of being as you, murderer?]
His words struck a raw nerve, cutting deeper than any physical wound. The guilt and shame surged to the surface, fueled by the oppressive darkness and relentless clicking that seemed to burrow into my very soul. Memories flashed before my eyes—faces of those I'd wronged, voices of the dead whispering accusations.
"Enough!" I snapped, the word bursting from me like a dam breaking, echoing violently off the cavern walls. I straightened up, fists clenched at my sides, knuckles white. "You are the reason I'm like this! You egged me on, pushed me into making these choices! I'm done. Done with you and your endless nagging."
My voice echoed off the cave walls, a thunderous roar that reverberated back, mocking me with distorted echoes that twisted my own words into malevolent gibberish. The ice clung to the ceiling like jagged teeth, casting broken reflections in the dim light like shattered glass suspended in time. My chest heaved with ragged breaths, the cold air burning my lungs and throat. The weight of exhaustion pressed down, heavier than the darkness itself, as if the very air sought to crush me.
A profound weariness settled into my bones, sapping the fight from my limbs. My muscles trembled with fatigue, and a cold sweat slicked my skin.
"What's the point anymore?" I wondered, a hollow ache spreading in my chest like a poison. I sank down onto the cold stone floor, the chill seeping through my clothes and into my flesh. Resting my head near the edge, I stared into the dark void below—an abyss that seemed to mirror the emptiness inside me, its depths unfathomable and unforgiving.
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The Book of Blood had warned me: Never fall asleep alone. The Skalecrows are everywhere, lurking on every floor, waiting to prey on those who are vulnerable and isolated. I could almost feel their gaze upon me, eyes gleaming from the shadows, talons poised to strike. The air seemed to thicken with their presence, a palpable malice that raised the hairs on the back of my neck. A part of me welcomed it. Perhaps this was what I deserved—what I had coming to me after everything I'd done.
I closed my eyes, desperate for silence—just a moment’s peace, some quiet reprieve from the constant tension that gnawed at my sanity. But it never came. Instead, I drifted into a haze where nightmares and reality blurred, shadows morphing into faces, whispers turning into screams. Waking later, the strange clicking noise had returned, louder and more insistent, drilling into my consciousness. I blinked, disoriented, trying to shake off the heavy fog of sleep, but the sound clung to me, sharp and relentless, like the scratching of nails against stone. The echoes bounced around the chasm, distorting in the shadows until it seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere. No matter how hard I strained my ears, I couldn’t place it.
A tremor of unease crawled up my spine as I stood, every joint protesting with a dull ache. The ground here was different—thick and damp, clinging like it had a mind of its own, refusing to let go. With each step, my boots sank slightly, leaving imprints that filled slowly with a dark, oily substance. And then I heard the noise again. louder now.
I glanced back toward the tunnels where the mother and her young had fled earlier, a fleeting moment of relief that they’d escaped battling with the guilt of leaving them behind. I couldn't risk harming them by staying. I shouldn’t have lingered.
The clicking noise wasn’t just in my ears anymore—it was in my bones, vibrating through me, matching the erratic rhythm of my heartbeat. Two tunnels branched off from this side of the ravine, yawning like dark, hungry mouths ready to swallow me whole. The thought of choosing one made my gut twist with dread. Going back was out of the question. The ravine behind me stretched wide and bottomless, treacherous. One wrong step and I’d plummet into the darkness below, lost forever in its cold embrace.
I tried not to think of Michael. His face flashed before my eyes, betrayal still etched across his features in those last moments before he died. His eyes had been wide with shock, mouth forming a silent question that would never be answered. The memory felt like a fresh wound, the kind that still bled when you least expected it. He’d return, I reminded myself, but it didn’t soothe the ache. The grief still pulled at me, sharp and unrelenting, like a dagger twisting in my heart. Why couldn’t I shake it?
I rubbed my hands over my face, but a sharp, acrid scent filled my nose, bringing tears to my eyes. It was harsh, unnatural—like metal and rot combined, a stench that seemed to seep from the very walls. Something was wrong here, something beyond the clicking, beyond the choices I didn’t want to make. The air itself seemed tainted, heavy, pressing down on me like an invisible weight.
The clicking intensified, morphing into a cacophony of chittering noises, as if a thousand unseen creatures were converging upon me. My muscles tensed involuntarily, every instinct screaming at me to move, to escape. Then, low voices broke through the sound, grumbling in a guttural language I couldn’t understand. The words were distorted, carried on the echoes of the cavern, but I could still hear the undercurrent of anger in them—rage bubbling up like a growing storm ready to unleash its fury. I strained, my pulse quickening, ears attuned to every inflection. I recognized the guttural tones. Elric used to speak in that language, the one I’d never managed to learn.
"Malice," I whispered under my breath, trying to calm the pounding in my chest that threatened to overwhelm me. "Can you understand them?"
His response came quickly, more a presence in my mind than an actual voice, his words laced with disdain. [We need to find the whore. She is the holder of the key. We can all earn our way out of this horrid place. To Salvation.]
"Salvation?" I muttered, my brow furrowing as a chill ran through me. "Isn't that what people used to call Penance?"
[Elric promised his followers a pathway to Salvation once their army won,] he replied, his tone dripping with sarcasm. [Of course, few actually made it.]
"Some god," I said bitterly, a dry laugh escaping my throat like a rasp. "Empty promises and nowhere to go." The words felt hollow, echoing my own disillusionment. The torchlight flickered, casting elongated shadows that seemed to reach out toward me.
Malice's tone was wry but cold, cutting through my thoughts like a blade. [A lot of gods promise more and deliver even less. They thrive on the desperation of fools.]
I exhaled slowly, the air thickening in my lungs as if the walls were pressing in. My chest tightened, not from the physical space, but from the weight of everything I had seen, everything I had done. Doubt gnawed at me. Is this the right path?
The thought was interrupted as the clicking noise in the distance morphed again. It grew sharper, angrier—like claws scraping against stone, dragging something unseen closer. The sound was unbearable, a relentless assault on my senses. I wanted to turn back, to flee, but my feet moved forward, compelled by some nameless force, as if the darkness itself beckoned me. Why can’t I stop? Why am I still moving toward this?
Then came the voices—rough, ragged, boiling with rage. They weren’t just fighting; they were losing control. Venomous words echoed off the cave walls, filling the air with a violent tension so thick it was suffocating. Desperation clung to their voices, twisting each word like a knife. I could feel their anger from a distance, a seething hatred that made my skin crawl and my blood run cold.
A sudden, piercing scream tore through the cacophony, a sound so filled with agony and despair that it rooted me to the spot. It was followed by a guttural roar, then silence—heavy and absolute. The air seemed to vibrate with residual energy, the atmosphere charged with unseen forces. My mouth went dry, and a metallic taste filled my mouth.
I swallowed hard, my throat tight. "What the hell is happening?" I whispered, the words barely audible. The torch flickered violently, then went out, plunging me into complete darkness. Panic surged through me like a tidal wave. I fumbled for flint, hands shaking uncontrollably, but the darkness pressed in, alive and hungry.
Then, from the abyss, a pair of eyes snapped open—glowing a sickly green, filled with malice and hunger. They were joined by another pair, and another, until the darkness was dotted with countless eyes, all fixed on me.
A cold, cruel voice whispered from the shadows, barely more than a breath against my ear. [We found you.]