Shadow Slave

Left on the top of the tall mound of crimson coral, Cassie stood alone in the darkness.

Now that the Quiet Dancer had left her side, she was back to her previous self.

Lost.

Weak.

Frightened.

Utterly helpless.

The oppressive nothingness surrounded her from all sides.

But that nothingness was full of sound.

It swelled with the deafening cacophony of the nightmare horde's onslaught. Cassie heard howls, growling, inhuman screams, shrieks, and the scraping of chitin.

She heard the clangor of steel and the sound of flesh being ripped apart.

She also heard countless human voices calling out to any kind of deity that could save them. Full of fury, agony, bravery, fear, resolve, sorrow, strength, helplessness, hope, faith, despair, disbelief.

She heard them dying.

Standing above it all, Cassie shivered. She wanted to press her hands against her ears, but didn't.

…Her terrible vision was coming true.

And she was back to being lost in the darkness.

Just like before. Worse than before. Almost like on that first day in this cursed, forsaken, lightless land.

In this forgotten hell.

Back then, she had found herself stranded on a similar mound of coral. Only what surrounded her was the dark sea and not a horde of Nightmare Creatures.

But Cassie didn't know that. She didn't know where she was, and what was hiding in the boundless darkness. She only knew that she was alone, and helpless.

That she was going to die in that lonesome, cold nothingness.

she hugged her knees and tried not to cry.

death, a cold and indifferent voice came out of

"...What are you doing?"

her ever since. Without even asking anything in return,

because she

the darkness and destroyed the bitter, all-encompassing prison of her loneliness. How was Cassie

pretended to be callous and cruel, but was actually

had

she had to

Or die with it...

Cassie stood, listening to the sounds of slaughter, a sudden gust

turned

paled, and her

'No!'

alone, away from the battle and anyone who could have heard her, Cassie closed her eyes and whispered

there is a

***

smaller, but still held on. In fact, it was slowly pushing the horde of the Nightmare

summoned their melee weapons and joined the vanguard, reinforcing its dwindling numbers. The Artisans had done

endless reserve of fresh bodies. With no more abominations crossing the bridges of crimson coral and lunging forward to join the massacre, its mass was slowly

to give the rest of the humans time to mend the

opposing forces seemed to finally be

to turn that balance in their favor was one last furious

"Come on! Hold strong!"

"Lit yourself on fire!"

"Follow the Immortal Flame!"

feeling that the fate of this battle was about to be decided, a

The light dimmed slightly.

suddenly stumbled and froze for a few moments. Their faces became

the Crimson Spire, an impenetrable wall of darkness was slowly devouring the world. It was approaching the battlefield with terrifying speed, numerous bolts of

A storm was coming.

the black water that swirled around the island of the cyclopean

then, it began to

and moved forward, swallowing the

cursed sea was coming to devour

guarded the Crimson Spire, however, did not react in the same way as the usual Nightmare Creatures

away to find shelter, they howled and shrieked in eerie triumph, and then crashed into the Dreamer