The crimson landscape pulsed beneath their feet, the coral-strewn ground jagged and treacherous as Shroudkeeper and Veil of Ashes stood at the edge of a clearing. On the other end of the clearing, lay the yawning entrance of a massive cavern.
Faint echoes resonated from within— wet, chittering sounds that spoke of unnatural life. Coral formations stretched high around the two soulless Dreamers. The crimson trees were like red, frozen waves, their jagged tips gleaming under the dim, eerie light of the artificial sun that shone above the Forgotten Shore.
"Still time to turn back and do this with a proper plan, you know..." Maya muttered, looking at Cade out of the corner of her eye.
Cade had a smile on his face. Maya had never seen the maniac appear even the least bit gloomy. In fact, the lunatic seemed genuinely excited to jump into the clearing and announce his arrival to the Tyrant— or whatever monstrosity's lair that godforsaken cavern was.
Cade turned his face toward hers, still beaming.
"Honestly, that would be nothing short of a major sin right now," he said, waving an arm around the clearing, as if showcasing a beautiful scenery to a tourist. "We're already here. Can't you just feel it, Veil? The thrill that precedes a desperate battle?" He put a hand on his chest and exhaled deeply, the smile never leaving his face. "Ah, it's the best feeling in the world..."
Maya sighed and shook her head in exasperation. This guy... he really was a murderous lunatic. But unfortunately for her, he was now also her companion. So, she had no choice but to partake in his lunacy. Otherwise, he'd most likely end up dead, and despite their many differences, she really didn't want him to die.
"Alright, breathe, focus..." Maya muttered to herself. Turning to Cade, she said, "So, what? We just yell and announce that we're here to invade the lair of whatever monstrosity's in there?"
Cade shook his head, his expression turning a little serious— only a little.
He looked at her and replied, "I told you that I've been keeping an eye on them, didn't I? I got their foraging pattern down. Those Shadecoils will spill out any moment now. I've never seen the big one, though, so I don't really know what to expect. But that's a problem for later. In any case, stay on your toes."
Maya scoffed. "That almost sounded like a plan," she drawled sarcastically.
"It's called preparation," Cade countered. "There's a difference."
He paused for a moment and then, continued in a much more serious tone, "Now, look— there are about thirty or maybe forty Shadecoils in there. When they come spilling out, I'll quickly take the twenty-two kills that I need. And while I'm fighting, you'll be able to reap a few lives yourself, without being overwhelmed. After I'm out of the fight, though... there will be quite a few of them left— they will be your responsibility."
He glanced at the mouth of the cavern again before continuing, "I don't know how long forming the Core will take and for how long that'll render me incapable of fighting. In any case, your task is simple. You take care of the remaining number of Shadecoils and you guard me from the ones that happen to get too close."
"What about the Tyrant?" Maya asked, curious to hear his answer.
Cade remained silent for a while before replying.
"I don't think it's gonna come outside," he said eventually. "It never has, so I think it'll most likely stay inside its lair. Anyway, after you've dispatched the Shadecoils, you'll rest up and wait for me to regain my fighting ability— if I haven't done so already, that is."
"And then?" Maya prompted.
"Then, we'll go inside and pay the big guy a visit," Cade said, shrugging. "I'll be reinvigorated after forming my new Core and if you manage to kill a lot of Shadecoils, you'll be stronger too."
"But what if the big guy decides to pay us a visit instead of the other way round?" Maya asked, crossing her arms, unconvinced.
"Like I said— that's not likely to happen," Cade replied. "But if it does, you'll simply run. You neither have the weapons, nor the armor or the skills to face such an enemy. Don't worry, I'm not gonna force you to face it alone. I'm not that stupid."
"What about you, though?" Maya asked, her eyes narrowing. "What'll you do if the boss guy comes out and you're still incapacitated?"
Cade just shrugged.
"Even if that happens, which it most likely won't, it'll probably not attack me," he said casually. "Nightmare Creatures feast on souls and since we both don't have one, it'll likely think of me as just another dead body... probably." He added the last word in a more skeptical tone.
Maya didn't miss the small shift in his voice. "Probably?" she repeated, a little bit of worry apparent in her voice.
Cade let out an amused laugh.
"Look at you, all worried and caring about someone you seemingly want dead," he said mockingly, as if trying to lighten the mood. "I'm honestly flattered."
"Don't get ahead of yourself, maniac," Maya shot back quickly. "I'm not worried about you. I'm just worried that someone else will get to kill you before me, that's all."
"Haha, figured as much..." Cade replied, chuckling. "Anyway, it'll be alright. Rest assured, I'm not gonna die that easily. So, come on, let's get going. They'll be dropping in any second now."
Maya looked at him for a moment. She wanted to retort, but Cade seemed confident in his ability to stay alive if something unprecedented happened. And Maya didn't doubt his confidence. The bastard was a force of nature; he would be able to get out of any predicament he found himself in.
So, she gave him a reluctant nod and summoned the Nightcarver. As the curved blade wove itself out of a glimmer of frost, she began to move forward into the clearing. However, at that moment, Cade suddenly caught her arm. She turned around.
Cade was looking in the direction of the cavern. His expression was unreadable.
"What's wrong?" Maya inspected.
Cade kept looking at the entrance of the cavern for a few more moments, before turning to face her.
"I'm positive that the big one won't come out," he replied, looking directly into her eyes, "but if it does, you are not to engage it under any circumstances whatsoever. Don't even think about trying, Veil. You see something other than the Shadecoils step out of that cavern, you turn around and you run away. Do you understand?"
Maya scoffed, freeing her arm from his grip. "Who do you think I am, huh? Some kind of noble hero? Please. If it comes out, I'm not thinking twice about leaving you. I'm not looking to die anytime soon, you know..." However, internally, she wished that it didn't come to that.
Cade gave her a wide smile.
"See, that's why I like you," he said. "You're smart. Unlike a lot of people I know."
Before Maya could reply, a sudden sound drew their attention. It was coming from the cavern. The Shadecoils were about to come out. They both turned to look in that direction.
Maya took a deep breath, calling upon her blizzard and swirling it around herself. Her body and armor were coated in a thin layer of frost. She felt much more confident when she was augmented by her Ability. Cade also summoned the Voidfang and breathed out some Darkness to wrap it around the black blade.
***
The creatures spilled from the cave like a flood, their malformed bodies moving in disjointed, unsettling rhythms. They were grotesque, with glistening, crimson, rubbery skin stretched taut over exposed sinew.
Each creature was roughly the size of a large horse, walking on two elongated hindlimbs that ended in sharp claws. The forelimbs appeared even more lethal. They were longer than the entire length of the creatures' bodies and ended in hooked, obsidian talons. Their eyeless faces were dominated by split, serrated maws that gaped unnaturally wide, revealing rows of jagged, dagger-like teeth.
A pale, lightless sheen coated the Shadecoils' red bodies, making them look like twisted effigies carved from the very Dark Sea itself.
Cade exhaled slowly, adjusting his grip on his blade.
"Friendly-looking bunch," he muttered dryly, his eyes narrowing at the approaching swarm.
Maya scoffed beside him, conjuring a swirl of frost in the palm of her freehand.
"They're ugly enough to make those Striders look like pets," she quipped, though her fingers trembled slightly as the blizzard within her Winter stirred to life.
"Good thing we're not here to appreciate their looks," Cade said, stepping forward as the Shadecoils began to disperse. They didn't attack immediately. Of course, they didn't— there were no souls for them to devour here.
But the fact that they didn't attack... didn't mean that Cade and Maya wouldn't.
Moving with slow steps, Cade walked directly into the path of an especially large Shadecoil. The ugly monstrosity turned its eyeless face toward him, regarding him with quiet scrutiny.
Cade's smirk turned vicious. He made a quick, fluid movement with his sword hand, leaving a trail of black mist in the air where the Darkness-clad Voidfang had just moved.
The Shadecoil had no time to react. Before the black mist disappeared, its grotesque head disconnected from its body, dropping to the coral-strewn floor. The creature's torso crumpled to the ground, and the Spell hissed the confirmation of Cade's first kill of the day:
[You have slain an Awakened Beast, Bloodless Shadecoil.]
[... The Darkness within you takes root.]
[The abyss within you deepens.]
Cade's smile widened. This was it. He had just announced himself as an enemy to the horde of grotesque abominations. The real battle was about to begin.
As the first Shadecoil's body collapsed to the ground— decapitated— the others uttered guttural screeches, and started chittering without control. They'd just acknowledged the presence of predators among their number.
First of the remaining abominations lunged toward Cade and Maya with a squelching noise.
The world became a blur of Darkness, frost and steel.
Cade ducked under a black talon that shot toward his face, looking to crack his skull open. Stepping into the attack, he glanced up at his gruesome attacker, and slashed the Voidfang up with all the strength he could muster. His strength had increased considerably because he'd almost completely saturated his Beast Core.
Cade's Darkness-augmented sword cleaved through the creature with brutal efficiency, black ichor spraying across the coral-strewn ground. As he dodged a streak of black blood, the Spell hissed the confirmation of the kill once again.
Cade smiled, feeling the thrill of battle rush through his entire being.
But he didn't stop.
A second Shadecoil lunged, poised to tear him apart. But Shroudkeeper wasn't an easy prey. In fact, he wasn't prey at all. He was a predator, and these sorry beasts had found themselves on the wrong end of his sword today.
Cade dodged the beast's attack with fluid precision, sidestepping as its talon cut through the air. He brought the Voidfang down in a graceful arc. The Shadecoil's elongated limb fell to the ground. Before it could even register the loss of its limb, Cade thrust the tip of his black blade under its malformed jaw, piercing the monstrosity's head with a squelching sound.
He kicked the abomination off with a grimace, freeing his blade from its head. Black blood sprayed across his armor.
What a mess... he thought, disgusted by the gore.
But he had no time to worry about his attire; he had no time to linger.
Without wasting another second, he moved like a tempest. Each and every one of Cade's strikes was precise and devastating, claiming life after defiled life. Another beast lunged at his side, but he pivoted sharply, driving his blade through its chest and opening it up with a brutal downward motion.
Cade wasn't using his Darkness right now— at least not to its full extent. He'd only used it to augment the Voidfang. He had become much more lethal than he was when he'd first entered the Dream Realm— even without calling upon his Aspect Ability.
He could have used it to take care of the Shadecoils more quickly. But dissolving into and materializing from the black fog was taxing.
Besides, he didn't want to make the fight too easy for Maya. She needed to learn to find her way in a swarm of abominations. Because this would definitely not be her last fight of this magnitude.
However, Maya seemed to be holding her own. Beside him, she unleashed a frigid gust of wind, the blizzard swirling around her like a tempest given form.
The cold tore through the abominations. It slowed their erratic movements and coated their limbs in frost. One creature whose legs had been stiffened by ice, shattered as she brought her sword down in a wild arc.
During the past two weeks, in confrontations such as these— against overwhelming numbers— Maya mostly called upon her blizzard and Cade mixed his Darkness with the snow storm. Then, using his Darkness-form, Cade took care of most of the monsters himself. He occasionally bought a few half-dead creatures to her to let her gather fragments.
As a result, Maya hadn't really seen much of actual combat. Her training had mostly been with Cade and even though Cade was an awesome teacher and a ruthless sparring partner, a real battle was something entirely different.
Cade didn't miss Maya's clumsy swings. "Keep your feet planted," he called over the chaos, dodging a creature's wildly thrashing limbs. "Don't just swing— aim."
"I'm aiming at not dying!" she shot back, parrying a creature's claw with a grunt.
He smirked despite himself. "Fair point." He dodged to the side and twisted sharply. His Darkness-clad blade cut through the air, slicing off his own attacker's legs. Cade put it down with a sharp stab to the head.
The battle raged on. Cade's blade was singing as he cut down one abomination after another. The creatures were relentless. Their sheer numbers were threatening to overwhelm even his precise strikes. But he moved with deadly purpose, counting each kill with a cold, detached focus.
Eighteen. Nineteen.
Maya, emboldened by the thinning numbers, fought with surprising determination. Her blizzard slowed the creatures just enough for her to dodge their frenzied attacks. Frost clung to her armor. The Skerrian Aegis was shimmering in the dim light.
The icy girl slipped once, narrowly avoiding a talon aimed at her throat, but recovered quickly enough. Then, she sliced through her attacker with a desperate cry.
Twenty. Twenty-one.
The final kill came swiftly— Cade's blade severed the head of a snarling abomination. As the Spell announced the kill, he staggered slightly. The grotesque creature's body crumpled to the ground, black ichor pooling around its twitching limbs.
Cade followed just a moment later, his knees buckling and his vision turning dark as the formation of his new Core began.
In a vast echoing darkness, he heard the Spell's voice, laced with contempt and full of pure loathing:
[The abyss within you is overflowing with Darkness...]