The Stranger, before entering the black stone portal, is stopped by a man, bruised and battered, hanging by death’s door. It is Bruno, who has fought his way here, spurred by a powerful emotion. Kneeling in front of the woman, he lays his friend down and begs.

“Please, help him”

The woman recognises that face instantly, what is he doing here? Never mind, she can kind of guess the reason. He could never sit still when others are in need. And this is the reward that he received, an unceremonious death. But she knows that he would be happy to know that his old friend still cares so much still. The Stranger puts her hand on Bruno’s shoulder.

“It’s too late” She said “Bring him back to his family, they should have evacuated the forest by now”

“No” A realisation dawned on Bruno. The youth never returned to warn the settlement, the place where Mordia lived “You say he has a family?”

“Yes, a wife and a twin” Judging from his reaction, she can tell what is going on.

Bruno looks down at the body of his friend, once again someone had sacrificed their lives for him to live. Him, just another raider. Gritting his teeth, the man takes the charger, Mordia would want him to use it.

“I… there is somewhere I need to go”

“Take this” The Stranger throws at him something, the item that resembles a bullet “It’s a whistle, blow it when you exit this realm”

The man nods and leaves with fiery determination. He takes the body with him, Mordia deserves to rest somewhere proper.

The Stranger watches over him with a smile. One of Walker last effort, to take the whistle from the host proved its worth immediately. Is it fate or a machination of a deity? It doesn’t matter, trying to comprehend their motives is a lost cause anyway. The lowly people just have to struggle with the hand they have been dealt.

She steps through and is taken to the end of the world.

Meanwhile, Bruno, still carrying his friend, races through the darkness. In his way are countless monsters that he simply runs past. Others, he cut down without a second thought. They so much easier, those that can’t be comprehend are also impossible to empathise. The man had done much worse, he had killed a young boy, who still had a journey in front of him. A future filled with possibilities snuffed out in an instant.

The man is sure of it, tonight he will die and hell is waiting for him.

Outside the dark night is the familiar forest, now seems so alien. The man opens the top of the whistle and blows into it. A small squeaky sound comes out, calling to something.

And it calls back to him. Galloping noise is getting closer and closer. Soon, the horse with steel hooves is in front of him. Bruno had seen it not too long ago but now, it feels like a century has passed. The animal is cautious toward the stranger, but he has the whistle, guess it is alright.

Bruno takes a deep breath and hops onto the animal. Contrary to his expectation, he isn’t immediately thrown off. The man rides off through the forest to where he is needed.

___

They come from the forest, a parade of monsters. The barricade of the settlement is breached in an instant as eldritch creatures flood the place. Many try to run only to be consumed as they climb outside of the barricade. A few brave souls try to push them back through the breach to no avail. Without steel, they are easily overwhelmed.

But they buy enough time for the people to return and barricade their own home. All except one, the mayor walks the street. His son, the last of his family is already gone, now the last he has, his very own place is being swallowed by the dark.

The man turns around to see people, his people struggling to escape.

“AHHHHHHHHHHHH”

Letting out a war cry, the mayor picks up a sword and charges into the horde only to be smite in an instant. Like those who have fallen, they infect his mind with knowledge, the mayor stabs himself before being turned. Disappointed, the monster discards the lifeless corpse and move to other alive targets.

“It seems like I have misjudged you” Claudia Castellanos commented.

She turns to her children, telling them to go into the basement.

“Be quiet” She said “Look after each other for mommy”

The twin nods. Not understanding the full scope of the situation, they are not afraid. Nevertheless, they are sensitive enough to feel worry. They wonder where father is but decide not to ask. It will alright, the twin tells themselves, this is like storm. After it is all over, mother will open the hatch. Father will already be waiting and life will continue as normal.

Inside the basement it is so dark, they could hear the ruckus above. Despite their best effort, the twin couldn’t decipher what is happening. There is a huge crash which is then followed up by an eerie silence.

The children wait and wait for what seem like an eternity to their excited minds. Holding each other hands tightly, they wait for their mother, but nothing is coming.

“Is it safe?” Alessia asked.

“I think so” Alessio answered.

The two turns to each other but they can’t see anything in the dark. The wait is unbearable, but they refuse to come out, when everything is over. Mother will fetch them.

Suddenly, a creaking sound could be heard as the hatch is opened.

The dim glow of fire lights up the basement as Claudia looks on her children. “Let’s get out of here” She said, reaching down for them.

Alessia is the first to climb up with her brother right behind. Mother breathes a sigh of relief to see the two. “Everything is over now” She patted her daughter head as the son gets out of the dark basement.

The girl is soon showered by blood as a blade pierces through mother.

“Get away from them!”

Claudia Castellanos, battered with an eye missing yells at the imposter. The ‘mother’, who was so gentle a moment ago, turns her head completely without moving her body. The head opens up to reveal a row of teeth lining the inside which is filled with eyes.

“Ah… ah…” Alessia breathing is becoming shallow, the girl always has trouble with that.

Alessio drags his sister away from the monster’s crutch, it is not focusing on them at the moment. No, the twin with untainted minds are the ultimate reward, to be savour. And the monster would prefer there not be any interference.

It lunges at Claudia, pushing her down. The gaping head tries to clamp down on her own but the woman stabs it with a machete. Kicking the monster away, she reaches for an axe in the corner and smashes it down on the creature’s head. Hit after hit after hit, Claudia chops without any hesitation. The ground and her dress all stained red as the children watch in horror.

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All her effort is for naught, however, as this is just a normal axe. Without steel, the monsters can never be slain. The thing shoots its tail piercing her in the stomach. It stabs her again and again and again then throws the woman out of the door.

The scenery outside is revealed to the twin. The settlement they had grown up in is no longer there, it is now infested with monsters. They break into the building and drag the inhabitants out for the real treasures, the children. The deities send them as envoys, as messengers, as missionaries, as teachers. They have many sights to show indeed, so much to teach the untainted mind.

The once quaint corner of the wasteland is turned into hell itself. But after the monsters are done, the people will see the world for what it really is. They will join into pray for the deities. The children of this place will lead the next horde as they dawn on the next world.

This is the cycle that has perpetuated the universes ever since the starts of time. No, even before that.

“Ugh… mommy” Alessia calls for her mother but there is no reply. The children don’t care about wisdom for knowledge. They just want the warmth of their parents, something that is denied from them in the most violent of manner. The monster that slew Claudia once again morphs into her, the dress still stained red with blood.

“Mommy’s here” It said gently “Come here dear”

Alessio holds his sister tight, trying to keep her away from the monster. He tries to be still, hoping that somehow the creature wouldn’t see them. Of course, such a childish attempt doesn’t work in the slightest.

Claudia Castellanos is not down for good, however. She jumps on the monster and stabs it with a knife. Her strength already extinguished, the blade could barely the skin. The creature simply shrugs her off. Around the building, the other monsters also converge. The windows are covered with various eyes, gazing inside.

At the door, their neighbours and playmates appear one by one. “Come join us” They all said, the children walk toward the twin, asking them to go “Play with us!” They said, looking like their normal everyday self.

Outside, the conglomerate of monsters soon forms a cyclone, a storm with the settlement as its eyes. The land is slowly spirited away, only the two human children left before the transcendence.

“No, no, no, no”

The kids start to cry, they call to their mother and their father. They cry out for help and from the dark, someone answers. The distance sound of galloping is followed up by a yell.

“Get away from them!”

A horse with steel hooves charged through the storm. Someone jumps off it into the middle of the horde, the charger on his arm glows, charged with mana. A shockwave shoots out, blasting the horrible beings away. The monster with open head tries to stab the man with its tail but fail. He cuts it down with a steel knife with great prejudice.

Among the monsters, he can see those with tentacles and spiral patterns, acolytes of Scy’lla. It reminds him of his fellow friends and poor Marissa.

“You bastard, I WILL KILL YOU ALL”

A row of spikes penetrates the man, sending him back. Several straight through the heads and yet Bruno still stands. The monsters pounce on the man only to be stopped by a magical barrier. But how, such a creation would be easily broken. Then they notice on the surface is a spiral pattern. The same can also be seen slowly appearing on the man’s skin.

Drawing power from the unknown with desire and pure force of will, Bruno engages with the horde. He slays many of them in an instant. The old citizens of the settlement are cut down easily, their evolving form still fragile.

The monsters also strike back, they cut off his limbs, but new ones grow to replace it. Every wound they inflict would heal instantly, but that is without a price. The replacement is filled with the spiral, slowly, the human known as Bruno is stripped of. He hasn’t realised it, his bloodlust unleased. The more he slays, the more he endures, the more he ascends.

The children look out in horror.

The person who came to their rescue was no more. He is now covered in scales with spiral pattern, his movements becoming more erratic.

“DIE DIE DIE!”

Blood fills his eyes, Bruno could see nothing but red. In the endless stream, the man could see a light shining, it calls to him, promising salvation. All he has to do is to grab that light.

Enticed, Bruno reaches out for the light only to be interrupted as his arms explode in pain. The barb wire surrounding them move violently, cutting him up, inflicting as much pain as possible. The man suddenly realises, he hasn’t felt that for a while now.

Opening his eyes, Bruno can see that he is reaching for the twin, shivering in fear. He is now among the monsters.

But from the dark, a voice called out to him, it summoned pain upon the man. Agony is a human sensation, it brought Bruno back to his sense. The man also realises something a tad bit too late. Walker had infected him with the barb wire, his power to inflict pain but not the black stone, the medium of Azu.

The voice is soon silenced as Walker is smothered by the darkness. The barb wire falls off, having inflicting pain one last time.

[doN’T wOrry” Bruno said, his crackling voice returning to normal “I will protect you!”

The scales that have covered him shatter and fall off. Underneath is the man called Bruno, human but also vulnerable and he is now surrounded by monsters.

He can still fight and as long as he continues to resonate to Scy’lla, he won’t be put down. But now, there is nothing to drag him back if he goes too far. And the monsters are all too eager to push him over the edge.

The horse races through the horde, stopping in front of him. It needs to go, but not before dropping behind something.

The body of Morida Castellanos slides off and lands next to his wife. But it isn’t all, the animal nudges Bruno to take a case it is carrying resembling a coffin, a final gift. Having not enough time to think, the man takes the case and the horse gallops away into the dark. He is now left behind for good, no other help would arrive again.

“Back off” Bruno swings the case at the encroaching monster. Scy’lla influence no longer affecting his magic, the barrier is broken easily.

The lock is broken opened and the case bursts open, the man grabs it in time. Opening it, the man is greeted with a construction made of steel. Not a sword, no, it belongs to the Stranger after all. But it isn’t a mere revolver or rifle either.

A lumbering device with an open chamber, inside the case is also a slide of bullets that seems to fit in. Loading the weapon, Bruno holds up the thing, bearing its weight on his arms.

A box loaded with gears and bullets, operated with a handle. From it extends six-barrels all oiled up, ready to unleased death. Weighting more than an adult, such a weapon is not meant to be operated by a mere man. But Bruno is more, using power granted by Scy’lla, he holds it up with one hand. The other, he cranks the handle.

The barrels spin up and the mechanical beast spring up to life. The sounds of gear creaking and turning signalling the chaos that is soon to come.

All hell breaks loose as the weapon spits out a torrent of thunders. The spark lights a beacon along with the storm of steel bullets. The monsters charge forward only to be torn apart by the weapon.

Realising that Bruno could barely control the beast, the creature tries to surround him. But they underestimated the man’s burning resolve. He turns the weapon around, decimating them with a hail of destruction. A weapon created by a heretic to oppose God, the gun pushes back the horde, wielded by a single man.

The sound of thunders wake up a dying Claudia, who is still barely clinging onto life. She could barely see nor hear, her body rigid and moving. The woman turns her head to the side and sees a familiar silhouette.

“Ah… you idiot”

She reaches out weakly to grab his hand. Claudia isn’t sure if it is her dying imagination or not, but the woman can feel him holding onto hers. The woman takes her last breath and passes away, having lived a life worth living in this wasteland. Claudia has one last wish, however, that her children will get to taste the happiness that she got to experience.

Whether anyone could hear that wish or not is a different matter. But today is the end of a century when the cosmos bridges this world with another. Perhaps out there, a deity could hear her last wish?

Around them are monsters falling like leaves, cut down by manmade fury.

But everything has to come to an end, that’s the fate of mortals. Soon the bullets run dry and the machine once again returns to a life of silence. Bruno cranks the handle and the barrels still spin but nothing could come out.

Around him the horde remains, and the man can’t tell if there are less monsters out there or not. Nevertheless, he isn’t going to give up now.

He had taken and taken as a raider, ended a budding life. And yet, fate decides that he will continue to live with the lives of others. First were the people of the town that had crucified him and his friends, then the knights sent to stop them. The next to fall was Mark then finally a life he thought was long gone, Mordia and also Michael.

Now, Bruno will sacrifice his life for another, two others to be precise. That is his decision, how he spends the life that fate has given him. And even without Walker’s guidance, he won’t fall into the depth ever again.

Clutching his steel knife, Bruno continues the fight till the bitter end.

In their home, the twin hugs each other. The thunder is over but the sound of fighting remains. Out there, a human is still struggling.

“It will be alright” Alessio assures his sister with something he doesn’t believe himself.

“Is it?” Alessia had her doubt.

“Of course, I promise you it will be alright” He said “When did I ever lie to you”

“You did take my pudding and blame it on Dad” The girl reminded her brother.

The children hold onto one another, their minds exhausted, the two falls asleep. Outside, the storm still rages on, patiently waiting for the last mortals to be extinguished.