I awoke in a sickly state as the cold sweat trickled down my brow—and a burning pain in my throat... Bitter my vomit was, spewing from my open lips, the black vile reeks of liquor and a substance of harsh quality—not like that of liquor, no, something beyond foul that could destroy my innards from the very scent alone. A contradiction from that sweet berry scent.

My surroundings are humid—foreboding the mind to disorientation. Barren, I am from the fragments of candlelight. The cold air does not strike great confidence within me. My mantle and trousers can only do so much in this state. The scarf wrapped around my arm is no better, just in a strange way—this piece of cloth gives me a strange comfort I had never realized before. It was as if someone was holding my arm to keep me company.

Standing here forever will not benefit my condition; thus, pressing into the unknown is my only way out or at least – my destination. Through the void, this chilling breath creeps against my exposed skin in great capacity, causing me to shiver in discontent... Nothing prepared for this instant. The flickering flames vanish, leaving me in complete darkness. Now, left with my thoughts, I wander to the conclusion of my situation. A—sort of consideration occurs; my very imagination takes the conjuring arts, morbidly using my environment as an advantage.

The stench burdens my senses, rending my ability to reason. I guide my hand forward and move closer to the source... How unfortunate I am to see it in the form: The people whom I know and spoke in dialogue are now mangled corpses rotting together like debris, ready to burn in a roaring fire. How could they have ended up in this situation? For what purpose would someone cause such a great tragedy...? No longer can I think clearly... something—something is moving within me! What damn parasite lingers within me!?

“Use the gift, Karthuras! Raise our army!” The voice was like mine, menacing in tone with a ghostly echo, “Do it now! We must show Cresalin our capabilities...”

“What are you talking about!?” I demanded to know.

“Our purpose... She gave us this power—why waste such a gift?”

“No—I will not practice such disgraceful acts amongst the dead. Besides...” I chuckled in an agonizing state, “Souls cannot return from Sleeper’s realm.”

“This is true - body of mine, but we are not alone... Can you hear them? Scurrying around—nibbling the flesh from the rotting corpses?”

“Damnit, who are you!?”

“Your persistent Phantom...”

My arms stretched forward as my lips spoke without my consent: “Taketh the souls of rodents that scurry—allow the corpses to follow my whims!” I could hear the many rats squeal as a collective from the sudden shock—which ended with the choking of their tongues.

The corpses malformed disturbingly into the very rodents along human parts. They stood as the limbs crackled from every inch of movement. As a single entity following my unsought demands, they move accordingly to reveal a long tunnel...

“A tunnel that will lead us to our salvation; oh Karthuras, why do you linger onto your thoughts? Why not move forward and take the steps towards true freedom?”

I can no longer think to myself...

“Thus, we walk down that long path with a warm glow against our bodies. We become decadent to its embrace—"

And in that warming aura, we emerge into the abstract display, a nightmare of a place that could only be described as such. I see figures mutilated in their physical form to become these grey beings of steel and flesh. Vibrant blue eyes that glow in the darkness brighten their path as they turn their gaze. With such a small frame they have, I’m surprised they were able to hold themselves. As a collection of tools, they move in sync, twisting levers and pressing buttons from abstract machinery... The walls are decorated with the images of a demoness guiding her hand, showing the people of the ring’s destruction. Behind it—appears to be a castle, a single construct that houses the many under a single roof with a bright glowing sun behind it... As I stand here grasping the very details of my morbid surroundings, I become—I’m mortified at my position. I grasp onto the twisted pillars that reach upwards into the total darkness. I try to regain my breath, then choke from the stench of steel and rotting flesh.

“Karthuras...” Cresalin—calls for me? Her voice had shifted from its pleasant tune into something, a macabre of a song none could describe its contents. “Karthuras...” she said again, louder this time and—closer... Yes, she stands right behind me. I can sense her ominous presence, and by the great ring, I could never turn myself around to see her. I fear of her identity, who she truly is...

A beautiful sight she is, body of mine. Turn to her. See the woman who we will embrace for all of eternity...

My body moves from the voice in my head, showing my gaze to the demoness before me. No longer was she the sweet woman I once knew – and now, a being of foul creation: Her height is beyond my own; to her, I seem more like a child than a man. Her face drips down like wax warmed from the flame, with a slight open slit where she can open her mouth. Her eyes fall deep into the darkness of her skull’s sockets, not allowing me to see the pupils, its colorful oval. Her long-shriveled arms extended towards me with long feminine fingers, crookedly twisting and bent uncannily. The details of her appearance brought forth a memory that I fear to be true...

You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

She said, "You have already discovered more than my previous apprentice... I was right to have sent that letter to the Archphader regarding your involvement.”

“W-what?” I quivered in response.

“The young are always willing to work hard and learn quickly. My incentive, Cresalin, gave you the proper motivation to strive forward and become who you are now.”

I press my back against the pillar, hiding my fearful expression by hovering my hand to the front. Then I reply: “Hettalies... All this time, I spoke to you—falling in love to the extent I could only describe as an obsession! How—how could I be so blind!?”

“This feeling will only last in the short-term, my love... Come,” she pressed her long fingers against my shoulder, then guided me through the vast space. My eyes could not stop looking at the grotesque things moving and working the machine in ways of torment. Like stabbing the very chest of one’s enemy or perhaps the strangling of necks. The steel bounds with the intestines to connect separate parts that flow a blood current from one part to the next... I feared questioning the purpose they served, knowing deep down it would be used for malignant means.

#

Hettalies led me down a narrow path of interconnecting tunnels with scattered carts containing stones and ore. The blue eyes of beaming light from the creatures became our only light source, their gazes pointing out the details by turning their heads. She tells me, "You are well-versed in my history... but do you know my true reason for being in this world?”

I replied: “Not that I can recall besides the common. You are our sworn protector.”

“Sleeper indeed placed me onto this world for that reason, but there was more to it... He wanted me to create beings in his new – ideal world. Such a precise creation took time and effort. First, I combine both human steels into one mesh. It’s a shame the body could not handle such insertions. That’s when I had to give them the gift all demons have, ‘Immortality.’ Of course, I could not allow them to have free thought, so I had their brains taken from their very skulls, thus answering their steel helms and covered expressions.”

“This new world—why would he care for a new creation if willing to leave us behind? Would he not care again?”

She replied: “This world is nothing more than a breeding ground for his future creations. Once I have given him the proper tools to create a new breed of life form, he will allow me complete control of this world...”

We enter a hollow room lit by the ignited cauldrons around us. The structures were twisted and turned into ways that questioned its intent. Rigged edges that will cut the very hand that dares touch its foul design. At the very end, a wall of machinery is littered with parts and tools that turn my stomach in foul directions, my imagination being the culprit to such pain...

She continued: “My true form may not be pleasurable to your lustful eyes and so—” her body morphs into Cresalin’s form, “I can shift into the woman you desired,” she smiled gleefully and expressed herself in a charming posture. “Admittedly, I would not mind allowing you to take me in your demon form, throwing and using me to your heart’s content! And when you get bored of my beauty,” She shifts back into her demon self, “You can then indulge yourself in the innards of demon flesh...”

I took a step back and held my breath from the display, and her words made me question: “My—demon form?”

“Yes, I cannot have a mortal by my side with his limitations. I need you to become something more, someone who is callous – full of hatred, disregards empathy in the pursuit of pleasure and power. Your morals hinder such capabilities, which is why I had to inject you with that parasite.”

“So, this is where it all ends for me?” I uttered in despair.

“Do not sound so pathetic! You will become something more to me...” She waves her hand, gesturing for those things to take hold of me. I did not resist, nor did I have the strength. She continued: “Once this is over, you will learn to thank me—if not I, then—” She unveils the black cloth over her belly, showing me... showing me the—bulge inside her belly, “For our child who will be the first to spawn from a demon...”

My head turns away in despair... My child will be born into this maddening world as I become a foul being, corrupted by the demoness in front of me. They drag me away as I yell foully from the top of my lungs and into this hollow room! They bound steel against my limbs, clothes ripped and cut off from my body except—the scarf? They could not remove its binding around my arm. It tightens against my flesh, never wanting to let go of me... They gave up on its removal, then took upon the tools from the wall, then directed those rigged edges towards my exposed body! It turns in a continuous circular motion with a loud hiss screeching in my ears. When it touches my skin—I fall into a deep slumber...

#

I awaken to a dark sky with crimson-shaded stars flickering into the great beyond. My head is on a soft lap with a black dress over the skin... This comfort is unimaginable, and that sense of fear is no longer present. I look at the stranger who holds me in her embrace, being the one who had given me this scarf, the faceless woman. She looks down at me with her smooth face, using her gentle hands to rub the sides of my head slowly. “Do not fret, Karthuras. For I am here with you during your troubling times...” Her voice—is angelic, a sweet tune that puts my mind into a euphoric state.

I ask her: “Why would you care for a stranger like me who has never once spoken to you?”

“Our souls have bounds to those around us that none can explain their purpose... The demon had poisoned you with her potions that swayed away my guiding hand; it’s a shame I could not save you from the many lies. Perhaps it was for the best...”

“Why so?”

“In your current form, you cannot fight her—nor her followers. No sword can cut the very soul from her shell... However, this was your only chance for salvation. As long as my scarf remains whole, I shall remain by your side until the end of time.”

I questioned: “I can’t believe in your existence... After dealing with these horrible past encounters, I created you out of need for my persistence... How can any of this be real? How would I know you are a true being and not part of my imagination?”

“Would you rather remain in total isolation...?” I did not give her a response. “Then let us take part in this relief—and enjoy the scenery together.”

I gaze upon the void once more – the dark beauty of it all conflicts with my thoughts. I felt compelled to ask for her name, but she did not reply with one nor give me a reason to remain silent... instead, she continued to comfort me. I am perplexed at the idea of this woman being an actual entity, not a trick of my reality.

As I lay here, waiting for my life to end. I am left with this final thought: “The very concept of ‘love’ is a tragic comedy. A questionable substance is portrayed in ways of mannerism; I am a fool to believe in its existence. As for isolation, there is honesty in silence—and no more whispered to my ears...”

End