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.

hugged her knees

of death, a cold and indifferent voice came out of

"...What are you doing?"

Without even asking anything in return, not before, and not after learning of what Cassie's Aspect was able

she

the darkness and destroyed the bitter, all-encompassing prison

who pretended to be callous and cruel, but was

had to

to live

Or die with it...

stood, listening to the sounds of slaughter, a sudden

and slowly turned to face

later, her face paled, and her lips moved

'No!'

anyone who could have heard her, Cassie closed her

storm… there is

***

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

suitable Memories to replace them summoned their melee weapons and joined the vanguard, reinforcing its dwindling numbers. The Artisans had done the same, abandoning their siege engines and throwing themselves into the crucible

crossing the bridges of crimson coral and lunging forward to

of the human formation and rallying fighters around her, with Effie stalling the entire horde to give the rest

opposing forces seemed to finally be evenly

it would have taken for the humans to turn that balance in their favor was one last

"Come on! Hold strong!"

"Lit yourself on fire!"

"Follow the Immortal Flame!"

fate of this battle was about to be decided, a gust of

The light dimmed slightly.

for a few moments. Their faces became as white

of darkness was slowly devouring the world. It was approaching the battlefield with

A storm was coming.

closer and closer, the surface of the black water that swirled around the island of

began to

black whirlpool swelled and moved forward, swallowing the crimson coral meter after

sea was coming to devour the

Crimson Spire, however, did not react

shelter, they howled and shrieked in eerie triumph, and then crashed into the