Chương 115: Bonds Tied In Viscera

17 hours before the final stretch. Ann sat against a jagged stone a little ways from a cave's entrance, her gaze fixated on her hand clenching and unclenching repeatedly, the sound of booming rain never lulled except when the sky would part for thunder. The initial shock of Brighthaven's final fall had worn off, and her body was coming back to its senses. The light bleeding had halted, and her wounds had scabbed over, but she had a feeling it was only a matter of time before she reopened them.

She sighed and tilted her head over to the side, where Silvester and River stood at the cave's mouth with intriguing stances. The silver-haired elf seemed to nervously puff his chest out from the cave's entrance while the Triton held its breath and remained deathly still. Why, you may be asking? Looking at them from the flat area where the pursuit camp used to be, stood a lone seething blotch of blood-red aura shining through the veil of rain.

Over the hours since they settled in the cave, several people approached the blotch of red, and every single one died in the wake of a glowing red brushstroke that lingered as an afterimage. The red dot that was farther down the mountain seemed to glare off in a random direction after every kill, and almost definitely, a challenger or a survivor would be compelled to come down to it.

Sometimes it stood and stared at its opponent while they brandished a weapon; other times it would stick its sword into the ground and pummel its challenger with a few crushing blows. A cold sweat ran down Silvester's brow and down his face as he nervously looked at the nightmare that had settled its sights on River and himself.

His eyes were exceptional as an archer, but in the pattering mirth of scattering thunder and an ever-present veil of rain, his only comfort in identifying the noble class's location was also stoking a reckless flame within him.

'Dreamer aura…' The red streams emanating from the monster shone brightly through the rain at an unbelievable concentration that rivalled June's. Nightmares were unpredictable and incredibly rare on their own, and finding one with a visible will was a statistical improbability that could be counted for happening throughout history on one hand.

He held his drenched bow in his hand just in case he needed to suddenly use it, but for now, Silvester continued to face the ONI, keeping it in his peripheral vision instead of directly viewing it. The uncomfortable staring contest went from seconds, to minutes, to hours, until Silvester watched its aura surge for a second before dimming, and with a plop, River toppled over and began dispersing into sparks. You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

Silvester felt his heart and breath were abruptly clutched by a stifling grip.

"R-River!?" Ann's eyes widened at the realization.

'He looked directly at it!'

ONI looked up into the dark mountains. Its eyes couldn't see who hid there, but it could feel four presences.

'Three presences now…' Its mask of an Oni's perpetual wrath continued to scream silently.

'Blade… do you still feel the lesser's presence?'

'I feel it! It still lusts with a carnal hunger, brother!'

'Then we shall KILL IT! TEAR IT APART!'

'Patience, brother, remember why we are here!' ONI angrily huffed, causing red, scalding steam to billow out of the mask's nostrils, and thrusted the sword into the ground before crossing its arms; the dimmed Will from killing the distant Aspirant flared back to its violently vibrant colour.

"DAMN INGRATE! I DECIDE WHY I AM HERE! NOT FATE!" The sword hummed back, its voice lost when the monster dropped its iron grip. The ONI began to walk to the mountainside where Ann, Silvester, and the third hid. Its steps did not increase in pace but almost like sliding on air; its strides seemingly turned into skating as physical neon blood manifested underneath its feet and evolved its steady walk into a quickening blur.

"SHIT! SHIT! SHIT!!!!" Silvester grabbed Ann and booked it the second River keeled over, and immediately after they ran out of the cave, a thin tree near the entrance came to life and started chasing them. He mustered every ounce of strength in his body to run, but when he glanced behind him to see what new abomination was after him, the chilling visage of Eren with pale skin, elongated limbs, and a torn grin a few feet behind him provided Silvester a hysterical boost.

The Wendigo hid in plain sight; the rain did no favours to the cohort, and now a ravenous beast that wore their friend's skin like a sock puppet was chasing behind them on all fours in a revolting gallop. Silvester suddenly leaped to the side down a steep, slick hill to hopefully get a few meters of leverage, but the chasing skinwalker quickly course-corrected and was now running downhill with each of its limbs stabbing the floor and propelling itself at a controlled yet insatiable pace.

"ANN, GRAB MY BOW!" Ann grabbed the drenched bow that Silvester loosely held in his hand and drew it. The water may have damaged the wood beyond repair and weakened its overall strength, but a point-blank distraction had to be made. She gathered the wisps of will and, with exceptional control, imbued a simple notion into the bow. SHOOT She let go of the bowstring, launching the arrow with a resounding twang as the string violently snapped.

The arrow flew true for the few feet it had to make and struck her old friend's rotten face in the eye, causing the Wendigo to lose balance and start tumbling down the mountain like a curled spider. Ann weakly clung to the elven man's back, she drained all the will her Aspirant body could muster for that single shot, and viciously coughed blood onto Silvester's back, nearly falling off if not for the fact that the man held onto her for dear life.

The elven man tried to slow his sprinting pace down the mountain, but with loose dirt and slick mud, it was only a matter of time before he either broke something trying to stop or took a tumble with Ann in tow. 13 hours remained until the final stretch. And only a few hours remained until the cohort was obliterated.