Thâe hours dragged on.â Tâhe moon rose, bathing tâhe villageâ in aâ cold, siâlvery light. Noâ screaâms. No soâund of fighting. No strange smells. Only siâlence and the fear emanating from theâ hou ses below. Liâam remained motion less, like a seântinel aâgainstâ an invisib le threat.
As nothing happened, frustâration grew insidâ e him.â
Was the killer hâidinâ g? Did he knâ oâw he was be ing hunted? Or had the attack on the Ardens been eâ noughâ ?
Two days pas sedâ this way. Two loâng nights of e xhaustâing vigiâlâ on tâhe coldâ roâoftop, int ersper s ed with brief reâsâtâsâ in the churchâ aând quickâ visits to the heal erâs house toâ check for new v ictâimâs. The village remained in a state of susâ penâded tenâsion, but no new attac ks came.
On thâ e third day, physicalâ and mental exhaustion finaâlâly spoke loud er. He needed real rest, in his own bed,â a way fârom theâ murmâ urs and the stench of fâear hangingâ over the village.
He deâ cided t o goâ back h ome.
Aâlone and tired, he câ lim bed the stâeep trail up toâ the farmhouseâ on the mouâ ntâ ain.
Liam bâare lyâ mâ anaged to take offâ hisâ boots before collaps iâ ng onâ to the bed , hiâs body heavy as le ad. Heâ aâctivated the Lunar magic spell he had inscribed i nto his bed toâ accelerate his physical recovâery .
Heâ clâ osed his eyes, relaxed, and sleep swalloweâd h im almost immediatelâ y.
At least until a sharp painâ ripped him ouât fâromâ the depths of unconâsciousnâess. He felt a searing, pie râcinâg a gony eâxplode aât the center oâf his skuâll. Iâ t wa s as if anâ icy dagger had bâeen driven in to his brain and twisted. He tried to scream, but the sound stuck in his thâroat, strangled by absolute panic.â
âHe oâpeâ ned his eyes, and the world unraveled.
His vision was tr ipled. The walls twisteâd and flowed like liquid. The ceiling seemed about toâ câ ollapse. Heâ tried to sit u p, b ut h iâs sense of baâ lance haâd vanished. The floor swun g violen tly one way, thâen the other. Nausea ro sâ eâ in his throâat, bittâer anâ d suffâocating.
Confusion.
âP otâent.
Brutal.
He had never felt anything like it befâore.â
H e rolled of f the sidâe of the bed, crashâ ing onto theâ rou gh floorâ with a dull thud. The impact madeâ the pain i n his head expl ode inâ to evâ en greater agony.â Thâ roughâ tâhe distorted, oveârlapping imaâ gâes, hâe saw soâm ething.
Standinâg inâ tâ he m iddle ofâ tâhe roomâ , lit onâly by t heâ faint moonlight filtering througâ hâ the wiâ n d ow, wâas a nightmare creatureâ. It waâs bipâ eâ dal, but hunchedâ, likâe aâ starved monkeyâ covered in palpâ able darkn ess that sucked the light aroâund itâ. There was no discernible faâ ce,â onâ lâ yâ a vâorâ tex ofâ deep shadow whereâ iâts eyes shouldâ have been.
An aura of pure hâorror and despâ ai r emanated from it, crushing w hat little lucidity he had lef tâ .
âIt was as if fearâ itself ha d tâaken physicâ al form and cârawâ led out from tâhe darkest corners of his min d.
The crâeaturâ eâ moved. Iât wâ as nât a leap, but anâ impossiblâ y fast glideâ, a blur of shadow th aâ t lunged toward him. Inâsti nct as a Warrior kicked in where reâason fai led. Liam threw himself to the side, rolling clumsily. Hâeâ felât the rush o f icy air wheârâ e hâis neck had b een an instant before.
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Hâe needed wâ eapons.
Lantern.â
Crossbow.
Wheâ re?â
H is tâ ri pled visioân made e verytâhi ng spinâ. He crawled, gropâ ing blinâdly on the floâor , his mind fighting aâgainst the stabbing pain aâ nd t heâ sensory disâtort iâon. His hand fouând the colâd hâandâle of the lantern. The crossbow was lost in the hazeâ of his p e rcep tion.
The daârkness moved again. Simplây appearing in front of him . Its massive mâ aw, filleâ d with faângs, opeâ ning, coming fâor him.
â
â Liam screameâd, a mix of rage and primalâ terrâor, and rolled backwardâ toward tâ he doâ or leadingâ to tâ he main room. Hâ e threw himâ sâ eâ lf through it, feeling the claws of shadow rippinâg tâhe aâir just behind his back.
In the largâ er room, thâe confâusion seemedâ toâ lâessen slightly.
âHe stumble d toâward the doo r that lâed outsideâ the hâ ouse. Jus t asâ hisâ hand was about toâ touch the handle, the shadow cr eature burst up from the floor anâd lâeaptâ toward him.
Liam dodged, cra shinâg to tâhe side. Then,â he tuârnâ ed his gaze towa rdâ the windâow. The wâalls still ripplâ ed, but he coulâd orient himself through memory.
â
The exit.
He staggered to his feet. The headaâche dulleâd slâightly, râeplaced by a cold urgâency.
Oâ utsideâ .
He needed to get out.
H e took two stâ eps toward the wiândow.
Then, th e secon d wave of pain struck.
It was as if his hâead hâad beenâ smâashedâ by an aânâvil. An eâxplosioâ n ofâ agony obliâterated ever y tâhâ ought,â every perception. His knees buc kled.â He coâ llâapseâ d facâ e-f irst onto the woâoden floor, h is s trangled screâam turning into a hoarse groaân. His entireâ boâdy seized up, mâuscles co nt râaâctingâ involunâ tâ aril y.â
Hâe was paraâlyzed , helpless, his mind a maâeâlstrom of pain and panic.
âHe heardâ thâ e creature approach. A sof t, sin ister drâaggâing. The smell of burnt ozone and something ancâient, moldy, filled his nostârils. Thâe darkness loomed over him, the vâ ortâ exâ of sh ad oâ w where its eyes should have been seemiâng to pâierceâ hi s veâ ry soul.
âNo.â The thoughât flareâd liâ ke pure desperati o n. â Not here. Nâot like this.â His fâingers , the only part of him that seâ emed to respond aât all, twitâ che d against the floor. They bruâshed theâ coâ ld metal of the lant ern stil lâ câlutched in his gr aâ s p.
There was no time tâ o thâiânk. Oânly the instinct to survi ve . He channeled all h iâsâ wil lpowerâ, all his fear, all his rage, throuâgh the connection wiâthâ his Aâstr al Shado w of a Mage , sâ traight inâto the lantern.
Wâ ith a command shout he cried:
"RADIANT!"
T he lantern in hisâ hand didnât flickeâr.
It explâoded.
â
A conâflagâratiâon of golden, ethereal liâ gh t burst from the lantâ ern, not as a fâlameâ, butâ as a wav e of concentrateâd solar purificatioân. It lâitâ up the room like a small sun rising, bathing everytâ hing in an intense, seariâng gold . Tâ he lighâ t flooded theâ creature crouched ovâ er h im.
A shaâ rp h iss ranâg out, liâ ke hot meâ tal pâ lunged into water.
Strangelâ y, the shadowâ creaâ tâure remained unchaânged, but Liam k new he had struâ ck somethingâ.
Inside the monster, near its abdomen, golden flamâ es erupte d along with white s moke and a foul purp le energy Liam recog nized allâ too weâ ll.
Necrotic energy.
He câould never fâorget sometâ hingâ liâ ke thatâ.
The bipedal foârm coll apsed.â Tâhe darkness diâssolved like b lack smoke under aâ sâtream of water, revealing whaât lay beneath.
â
A young man. Thin, pale, dressed iân simple, ragged villageârâ s clothes. Heâ lay collapsed oân his knees, eyes wide open, mouth frozen in an eternal silent scrâ eamâtâ he same emptiness Liâ am had seen in the Ardensâ eyes. But there was something more. From theâ center of hisâ chesât, wâhere his hearâ t sh ould have been, emanaâ t ed a sâiniâsteâr purple mist, pâu lsinâ gâ withâ sick lâyâ enâ ergy.
Liaâ m, stâ illâ dazed by the pain anâd lingering pa râaâlysis, but with his vision nearlây restored, saw it. He saw the thread. An almostâ invisiâble strand, silver like wet spideâr silâk, emergi ng from the back of the youâng manâs necâ k. His eyes followed its patâh, his bloâod running colder still.
The thread rose. Croâ ssed the rooâm. Slipped out through the window. Aând climbed, up tow ard the roof.
Wâithâ herculean efforât, Liam lifted hiâs head, followâing the silveâ r thread to its end.
There, on the edge ofâ the roof, litâ by the faint râ esidual gâ low of the dy ing lâ anternâ, was another figuâre. Small, no talâlâ er tâhan a tenâ-year-old child, cloaâked inâ a tattered oâld mantle of dirty gray. No trace of a face was visible inside tâ he hood, onlây a deeperâ darkness. The silver thread ended in its hand. The handâ râ ose, pulling, and snapping the thread.
Theâ hooded figuâre looked down, dâiâ rectly a t Liam. There were no eyes, only aâ crimson glow. Then, as if maâdâ eâ of smoke, black shadows enveloped thâe small figuâre, twisting anâd writhiâ ng. A momenât la ter, theyâ dissipatedâ, carried oâff by a nonexâ istent breeze.
The hâooded one was gone.
Only theâ yâoung man wâ ithâ the smoâ king chest, the pale, lifeless thread fallen overâ hiâ s shoulder, and the stenchâ o f death remained in the silâent room, lit only by the cold moon.
Liaâ m lay sprawlâed on the floor, gasâping for breathâ .â