CHAPTER 53: LOUD AND FRANTIC.

As she watched his presence fade into the endless darkness, Mia raised her hands to her chest, her teeth sinking into her lower lips. Staring at his disappearing silhouette, the crimson haired lady felt a heavy feeling weigh down on her chest.

Amidst the solemn silence that settled within her, she muttered under her breath, "Be safe, Dean. Please be safe..."

Mia’s heart tightened at the words, and her face paled.

The thought of the harrowing creatures he could encounter darkened her features.

Closing her eyes, hands placed against her chest, she could hear the thundering echoes of her heartbeat.

It was then that a voice reached her ears.

"Mia, we should get going."

Aezel paused for a second before he added, "You don’t have to worry, he will be perfectly fine."

’...He had been able to protect himself before they even met him. And as much as he hated to admit it, the little rat was quite the... tough cockroach.’

’A funny one, maybe,’ Aezel thought, a light smile creeping up on his features.

The crimson haired lady’s eyes fluttered open, her usual stoic expression creeping in. Right about then, she glanced at Aezel and nodded subtly.

***

The ascent was nothing short of grueling. However, amidst the pain and the agony that rippled through every fiber of her being, to the jagged rocks that bit into her palms as she pressed on, the crimson haired lady eventually reached the summit.

Aezel following right behind her. However, due to backing Livia, his ascent up the hill was rather slow, as opposed to Mia’s rapid ascent.

Dropping into the dune structure, the crimson haired lady wasted no time in flinging the golden rope. She twirled it for a few seconds before tossing it down.

Aezel swung his arm into the air, grasping hold of the golden rope. Grimacing, he wrapped and tightened the rope around himself before he continued with the ascent.

Without having to worry about himself, nor Livia falling from such great heights, Aezel’s ascent was much more faster. Each clangor of steel against hardened stone brought him closer and closer to the dune structure’s broken window.

...And one step away from the harrowing fangs of the dark mist.

***

Deep within an endless darkness, a figure could be seen stealthily moving through the shadows.

Step, Step--!

I followed behind the nightmarish aberration, or rather, the faint shadow it cast— from a safe distance. Just enough to ensure that I wouldn’t be killed before I could blink.

Tak, Tak--!

With each step that I took, I felt a cold chill run down my spine.

Each step forward intensified the cold chill slithering down my spine, along with an unrelenting chill that whispered for me to,

’Turn back—!’

The whispers crept into my mind once again. But this time around, they were louder, more harrowing, and...

’Fool! They’re trying to get you killed!’

Relentless.

However, I pressed on.

Tak, Tak-!

’Have you forgotten.’

Tak, Tak–

’...Garren’s words.’

It was at that moment that I faltered.

Creak.

My legs came to a halt, trembling hands tightly clenched together.

The heart of a man is a wellspring of ambition, secrets, deceits, and lies Dean. Men will weave stories, wrap themselves in the warmth of feigned affection, only to use it as a knife when the moment is right.

’Always keep this in mind.’

The memories resurfaced once again. Memories I had fought hard to bury within.

Clench.

My nails dug into my palm, the memory of betrayal creeping in with each breath of mine.

However, with but a light exhalation,

"Hah..." I took another step forward.

...The creepy voice, however, continued with its relentless whispers.

’You-’

"Shut up!" I scowled, my voice hoarse and strained.

The whispers receded slowly but surely, leaving only the sound of my own labored breaths.

"Hah, Hah..."

My face paled but I moved on. ’I’ve started this. I’ll end it.’

I steeled my mind and pressed on. With slow and steady steps, I continued stalking the stoneikz.

The towering aberration was taking slow steps, yet each step brought it forward by numerous feets. Each step brought it further and further into the darkness.

...And the further it walked, the thicker the darkness became, overflowing to the point of being cold to the touch.

Right about then—

Click--!

It felt as though all source of light had been erased from existence.

In an instant, everywhere went... dark. An impenetrable darkness shrouded my surroundings, and the suffocating quiet now felt alive.

Ba- thump, Ba- thump!

Teeming with malicious intents.

Gritting my teeth, I scowled and pushed past the tremors, moving faster and faster. Staring at my surroundings, an uneasy feeling slowly gripped me.

One which I didn’t like one bit.

It almost felt as if I was being watched by countless unseen eyes. Each one bearing incomprehensible malice, and each serving as harbingers of death and destruction.

I shuddered at the thought.

Step, Step--!

The further I walked, the faster fear and dread consumed me.

However, nonetheless, I kept moving forward.

***

"...."

’Weird.’

I tilted my head to the left.

The reason?

Although the nightmare scavenger loomed ahead, I could now see every inch of its menacing armor with absolute clarity. And as the image grew clearer,

Ba- thump, Ba- thump--!

Realization, cold and brutal, dawned on me.

It hit like a deafening thunderclap, instant and chilling.

...Due to the rapid rate at which my heart was beating, I’d subconsciously started walking faster in order to catch up with its pace.

As a result...

’Crap!’ I felt cold chills slithering down my spine.

I was closer than ever to the nightmarish aberration.

’Who could have thought that this crappy body would eventually lead to my demise.’ My face darkened at the thought.

However, realizing my error, I immediately dove behind a large, ashen rock, just as the creature halted. In that moment, I felt a suffocating gaze sweep past the rock I hid behind, and my body froze, every muscle locking in place.

Ba- thump, Ba- thump–!

My heart thundered in my ears. My hands trembling violently as I clenched them together, trying to stop the sonorous tremors running through them.

However, it wasn’t working.

"...."

Nothing was working.

...Within those harrowing moments, I dared not breathe. I dared not move.

I dared not. But then-

Tak, Tak–!

I heard its footsteps once again. This time, resounding farther away.

I waited a bit longer, and after I was pretty much sure that the creature was long gone—not too far away to not see its hulking silhouette—just far enough to not get killed while stalking it, I exhaled sharply and stepped out of the shadows.

This time around, I made sure to follow behind the stoneikz, all while maintaining a considerable safe distance. However, the farther I walked, the deeper the scowl on my face became.

It soon turned into a deep frown.

And the reason?

Just stalking the nightmarish scavenger was already a deadly mission in and of itself, but as if to make matters worse—as if fate itself was against me, the natural terrains—at least, those I could hide behind, slowly started to dwindle in number.

And that meant...

’I was walking on a flat, open terrain. One where the comforting presence of rocks and jagged outcrops continued to dwindle as I walked further.’

My face paled.

I didn’t need anyone to tell me the implications. Even a fool knew what that spelled.

’Shit!’

I scowled. "This is definitely not going to end well."

I grimaced, then paused. Turning back, I muttered under my breath, "It isn’t too late to turn back, right?"

The question intensified the fear and dread within me. They slowly crawled towards me. Slowly eating me from the inside.

However,

"I have already come too far to turn back now," I muttered under my breath, hands tightly clenched together.

...Though, despite the grim sense of danger, and the annoyance building up within me, I dared not let my eyes slip off the stoneikz.

"...."

That was no different from courting death.

Something I was less inclined to face. For now.

...At least until I figured out if it still worked or not.

***

After a long while—what seemed like tens of lifetimes—I had no idea of how long I had been following behind the nightmarish creature.

All I knew was that I was hurting all over, and my legs were growing heavier with each passing second. Before long, it became almost impossible to lift my legs. Staring into the endless darkness, I couldn’t help but grit my teeth.

’Where the hell is the bastard even heading for?’ I thought in dismay.

However, ironically, despite the annoyance and the pain rippling through every fiber of my being, I kept going.

I had no other choice. I had already come too far to stop now.

That, I was very much clear of.

***

Eventually, I was able to figure out where the nightmarish scavenger was heading for.

Right beyond the horizon, within the depths of the endless darkness, laid the colossal necropolis I had seen moments prior. And the closer I got to the bleeding gate—the more t-his strange, harrowing sense of unease slowly started to settle within me.

And as if to make matters worse, it only continued to increase in intensity as I walked further.

It was almost as if I was heading towards my doom. A-almost as if I was walking right into death’s embrace.

My face paled at the thought.

’Paranoid thoughts Dean. That’s what they had to be.’ I told myself.

All in an attempt to ease the sense of dread rising within me.

Though I could see from my trembling hand that it wasn’t working.

Shuddering, I couldn’t help but gaze ahead.

"..."

The stoneikz finally stopped at the base of the necropolis, its massive frame kneeling against the ashen ground.

’Huh.’ Mouth agape, I blinked.

Just to make sure that I wasn’t seeing things. But opening my eyes once again, I was still met with the same scene- a scene that seemed to have been drawn right out of some crazy fantasy.

I couldn’t believe my eyes. But at the same time, I knew my eyes couldn’t be deceiving me.

’B-ut...’

Just as my mind scrambled to process what I was seeing, and before I could even make sense of it,

Whoosh—!

There was a sudden shift in the atmosphere.

...A dark, suffocating presence suddenly descended upon the entire space. And then-

...From within the necropolis, a towering silhouette emerged in the endless darkness.

Ba- thump, Ba- thump!

My breath hitched as I crouched lower behind my hiding spot, gaze locked on the monstrous figure.

My body trembled as a primal all-encompassing terror gripped me, coiling and tightening around my chest like an iron vice.

For a brief harrowing moment, the very act of breathing eluded my grasp! And as the colossal entity drew closer, the surrounding grew darker, and my world slowly shrank to the sound of my heartbeat.

Ba- thump, Ba- thump--!

Loud and frantic, they echoed through the stifling quiet.