Chapter Text
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Freezing night falls on ruthless lands
feel the Shadow’s grip on your feeble hands
pulling you closer, faster
to meet your sweet demise
the Moon mocks you with her soulless eyes
looking down on mortals from her celestial throne
she feasts on misery, fear
and the sight of crimson smearing stone
—☽ —
You should have died there.
Half buried in the snow, turning it red while the cold made every parcel of your skin turn blue. You should have ended like them, slaughtered, then devoured by the monsters of the mountain.
But there you were, pushing your wounded and frozen body up, bare feet numbed by the snow, mind lost in the mist, unable to think properly and unable to remember . Yet, you felt yourself being guided by an invisible force towards a small light in the distance, arms clenching at your stomach, where you could feel your blood coating the remaining tissue around a seemingly deep wound.
Your vision was hazy, your body weak, but you could still hear the horrifying rumbling of creatures roaming around you. You weren’t afraid. Not of them, but rather of the dark slowly closing on you, of the idea of getting forever lost, trapped in the embrace of these cold shadows, powerless.
So you stopped walking, and despite the pain, despite the fact that each step you took made your tired eyes see a fraction more of darkness, you started running. You ran as fast as your injured body could, towards the light that you hoped deep down was your salvation.
—☽ —
The light that a few moments ago had looked so bright in your eyes was no illuminated being waiting for you, but a small oil lamp, hung before the entrance to what looked like a cave inside the mountain, concealed behind a wooden door.
The roars sounded closer by the second, so gathering all the strength you could manage, you threw your body at the door. It opened immediately, and while you leaned on it, pressing it closed again, you finally managed to take a few deep breaths. Your wounds did not hurt as much as before, but your body remained as bloodied and tired, still shivering from the cold. The sounds of the monsters slowly faded outside, and you hoped it meant you were safe at last.
The light had chased away the shadows, but your head was still spinning and you felt your body draining more and more of its energy by the second. However, for a reason you couldn’t bear to think of at the moment, you didn’t feel ready to give up.
When your vision finally became a little clearer, you let your eyes wander around. A path was drawn in front of you, a few more lamps fixed on the stone walls illuminating the way. Your legs began to move again, and you marched forward, breathing heavily and still tightly holding a wound you didn’t feel anymore, not quite sure what you hoped to find at the end of the tunnel.
It felt endless. Like you had been slowly walking in this same passage for hours, without seeing anything more than humid stone brightened by the faint light of the oil lamps. You could feel your feet leaving small red stains after each step you took, the pain of it making you lose balance from time to time, dulling your vision with colorful spots.
Until you finally reached somewhere new.
The place you laid your eyes on could only be described as an old and murky dungeon. Empty cells roaming the sides of a large room, with inside each one what looked like hellish torture instruments, soiled by dark dried blood and left to rust. At the end of this horrific chamber and past what looked like mutilated corpses hooked at the ceiling, you spotted another door, and despite the sick feeling slowly growing inside you, you went towards it, trying to ignore the sound of liquid slowly dripping from the remains and onto the floor.
Behind that door was a small flight of stairs that you climbed with great effort, internally cursing your body for succumbing so easily to a few injuries. When you finally reached the top, a metallic elevator stood before you. So seeing no other options, you stepped inside, and pressed the button that would take you all the way up and hopefully out of this hellhole.
—☽ —
You had never seen a place this breathtaking.
Or at least you assumed you hadn’t.
The elevator had taken you up to a small room, from which you had now accessed someplace you would have thought today only existed in books. The hall you were in resembled a palace, with floors of marble, beautiful papered walls and the most magnificent chandelier hanging above you.
You could have observed longer, admired the details of the dark wooden balustrade lining the immense staircase, or lingered on the way the light of the fireplace made everything look so majestic, but you felt your body reach its limit, too weak now to even stand properly. You strangely couldn’t feel any pain anymore, but the exhaustion from all you had just gone through remained. So there, hidden in a corner under the staircase, you finally let your body fall on the floor, curling on yourself, feeling numbness where deep wounds should have been. Your torn clothes and your dry blood felt uncomfortable on your skin, and your long hair kept sticking to your face, as it was full of dirt and blood, while being wet from the melted snow. Despite it all, you closed your eyes, feeling yourself slowly drift into unconsciousness, body feeling heavy and mind still drowning in heavy haze.
—☽ —
You do not know how long you slept. But you were awoken by a loud buzzing sound, tormenting your head and preventing you from remaining in Morphea’s sweet embrace.
Putting your newfound energy into the action, you push the palms of your hands onto the ground and bring your body up into a sitting position.
That’s when you hear the faintest sound of laughter, muffled by the everlasting buzzing.
You look around, unable to locate the source of the noise. Until a small fly invades your field of vision, followed by a second, then a third, another, and one more. Soon, a thick swarm of the dark insects surrounds you. You suddenly breathe faster as an unfamiliar fear overwhelms you and a dark figure emerges from the cloud of bugs.
You cannot move, your widened eyes fixated on what now looks like a tall woman looking down on you. You feel and hear your heart beating hard inside your chest, threatening to come out, and it seems the woman does too, for she now wears a grin on her bloodied face.
You do not react as she slowly bends towards you, extending her arms, fingers delicately brushing your cheeks before her hands cup your face, tilting it up in her direction.
You do not react as she approaches her face to yours, dark hair falling out of her hood, pooling around her face.
She tilts her head to the side as she gently inhales, eyes closed, lips sealed tight. After a few seconds, she lets out a pleased sight followed by a whisper, barely audible, voice sweet and dangerous, underlined with a little laughter.
“ Found you .”
She opens her eyes, and all you see is gold .