And All Things Will End
You heft your sword at an angle, aiming at the place from which the left arm sprouts. The blade strains against the arm, but it successfully cuts through. The severed arm falls to the ground, twitching. The beast swings its other arm at you haphazardly. You dodge backwards and with deft hands bring your sword on this arm. It falls as well, the fingers grasping at air. They flail, and try to crawl towards you. You ignore them and focus on the beast, which retreats into the blackness of the cave.
The immediate threat removed, you turn and look at your companions. They return your gaze with a mixture of awe and surprise. They had not expected you to face that monstrosity with such zeal. Or survive, for that matter. You try to prevent your pride from spreading onto your face, and succeed in containing it within a soft smile.
Your spotlight is stolen by bloodless screams that echo from all directions. Aela pulls herself closer to you, while Hunter swings his torch around. He looks at you once more.
"Come on! We can still find the source of this!" There is a force behind these words, but no conviction. He starts down another passage, stops, and turns around and walks in the opposite direction.
A song that you don't quite recognize plays quietly through the tunnel. You can't focus on the melody, but it is old. Primal, even. Your mind is filled with ancient people with boulder-shaped hunches in their back, circled around a soaring fire humming it in tandem. The stars dance to it, though not one of them knows why. Perhaps there is no reason beyond its very existence. Does existence require a reason? Certainly not, for why else would we remain beyond base urges?
The torch falls from Hunter's hands, and they surround his head in a tight grip. He doubles over, his head pulsating. He screams, but you cannot hear him over the swelling of the ethereal orchestra.
"I can't..There is NOTHING!" Is all you can make out. He lurches upward, and he looks at you. For a moment his gaze is pleading, begging you to either continue moving forward or finish him. Perhaps they are related. You do not move. He blinks, and everything changes. His eyes are blank now. He recovers the torch from the ground and holds it above his head. He looks at you once more. It is the same gaze as before. It seems as though he could not keep the voice at bay.
He lets go of the torch, and it falls upon him. He does not move, does not scream. The flame begins in his hair, and dances down to his body. It licks his limbs, and plays against the stomach. Swirling, it eats him, biting gently in between caresses. Flesh falls against the ground, blackened. The bones lose their structure.
Well, you cannot take this path now. You turn and walk down another of the innumerable tunnels that snake underneath the mountain.
The song fades as you depart.
For a brief moment you believe you have found respite, but bloodless howls echoing from all directions quickly prove otherwise.
Eyes line the walls of this cave. Every time your hand brushes against the rock you pluck one out.
The immediate threat removed, you turn and look at your companions. They return your gaze with a mixture of awe and surprise. They had not expected you to face that monstrosity with such zeal. Or survive, for that matter. You try to prevent your pride from spreading onto your face, and succeed in containing it within a soft smile.
Your spotlight is stolen by bloodless screams that echo from all directions. Aela pulls herself closer to you, while Hunter swings his torch around. He looks at you once more.
"Come on! We can still find the source of this!" There is a force behind these words, but no conviction. He starts down another passage, stops, and turns around and walks in the opposite direction.
A song that you don't quite recognize plays quietly through the tunnel. You can't focus on the melody, but it is old. Primal, even. Your mind is filled with ancient people with boulder-shaped hunches in their back, circled around a soaring fire humming it in tandem. The stars dance to it, though not one of them knows why. Perhaps there is no reason beyond its very existence. Does existence require a reason? Certainly not, for why else would we remain beyond base urges?
The torch falls from Hunter's hands, and they surround his head in a tight grip. He doubles over, his head pulsating. He screams, but you cannot hear him over the swelling of the ethereal orchestra.
"I can't..There is NOTHING!" Is all you can make out. He lurches upward, and he looks at you. For a moment his gaze is pleading, begging you to either continue moving forward or finish him. Perhaps they are related. You do not move. He blinks, and everything changes. His eyes are blank now. He recovers the torch from the ground and holds it above his head. He looks at you once more. It is the same gaze as before. It seems as though he could not keep the voice at bay.
He lets go of the torch, and it falls upon him. He does not move, does not scream. The flame begins in his hair, and dances down to his body. It licks his limbs, and plays against the stomach. Swirling, it eats him, biting gently in between caresses. Flesh falls against the ground, blackened. The bones lose their structure.
Well, you cannot take this path now. You turn and walk down another of the innumerable tunnels that snake underneath the mountain.
The song fades as you depart.
For a brief moment you believe you have found respite, but bloodless howls echoing from all directions quickly prove otherwise.
Eyes line the walls of this cave. Every time your hand brushes against the rock you pluck one out.