Dread

  The heavy hooves of the horse began to vibrate the ground, sending tremors through the earth and causing the silt to dance from the surface.

  As the horse continued along the cy path, it gradually slowed its pace as the fog shrouded the area, rendering the way ahead uncertain and obscured.

  I looked left and right to see if I could spot anything.

  “Goddamn,” I muttered in anger.

  The horse began to neigh aggressively and shook me off, causing me to lose control.

  As my hand slipped from the lead, I fell to the ground, groaning from the pain.

  The horse ran away into the distance and disappeared.

  I stood up carefully, shaking off the dirt and dust that clung to my garments.

  Looking around wouldn’t help as the fog thickened, obscuring my vision.

  I breathed out slowly and continued down the unclear path.

  As I went on, a weathered brown fence emerged from the mist.

  “The Camp!” I mumbled.

  I hurried onward, and as I entered the camp, I was confronted with horrors.

  The air grew heavy with despair, and a chilling breeze wrapped around me like a shroud.

  The camp y in ruins, its former vibrancy now repced by a haunting silence.

  The green tents that had once provided shelter and comfort were now marred with harsh red stains, remnants of a struggle that had taken pce.

  Some tents had been ripped, their fabric hanging limply, while clothes and bags littered the ground, as if they had sought to escape some great terror.

  Long branches and fallen trees y cold.

  Each step I took felt like a burden. I took a deep breath, steeling myself for what y ahead.

  There was blood everywhere, and even the weapons that had once been ragged and sharp were now dull from their grim work fending off and sying these beastmons.

  They y scattered about, a testament to countless battles fought and the courage of those who wielded them.

  Minutes ter, a sudden WOOSH echoed in the distance, slicing through the heavy silence of the camp.

  My hand gripped the handle of my rapier tightly, and my breath, once trembling with grief, steadied as adrenaline surged through my veins.

  As I crept cautiously toward the source of the sound, my heart pounded in my chest.

  Then, through the fog, I caught a glimpse of movement.

  Something rge shifting just beyond the trees, and there I saw it.

  A monster loomed before me, straight out of the terrifying stories about creatures that stalk you outside your house at night.

  It was the kind of being that only emerges in darkness, searching for something to eat.

  Towering like an eight-foot grand door, its long, sharp legs seemed capable of cutting you down with even the slightest jab.

  Its body was cloaked in bck skin and white fur, marked with red stains that trailed along its jagged limbs.

  It feasted on a pile of human remnants huddled together, as if gathered in one spot for the monster’s grotesque meal.

  I hid behind one of the tall trees and gazed at the creature.

  I walked slowly once more, careful to make no sound.

  As I approached, the monster halted, pausing as though it sensed the presence of another nearby.

  I stopped and covered my mouth with my hand, trying not to make a sound.

  This creature did not have eyes, yet it had ears. Ears unlike those of a human.

  They were sharp and jagged like antlers, but gracefully flowed like a feather.

  They seemed to twitch and quiver in the air, trying to listen to every sound around it, its head tilting slightly as if listening intently to the faintest rustle of leaves or the distant chirping of birds.

  That’s no Beastmon?! I thought in my head.

  Beastmons look as though they were an animal that had been mutated, yet this was something different.

  Something unexpinable, a monster that appeared utterly otherworldly, as if it came from Gehna (Hell).

  A pce filled only with sorrow, hatred, and despair.

  It was a nd where all who had been punished for their immoral acts were taken, a realm of lost souls, each carrying the burdens of their past choices.

  They wandered through a desote wastend where hope had long since withered.

  It was a monster I had never seen before.

  My hand clutched the handle of my longsword.

  I wanted to fight it, but it would be reckless to do so. I didn’t know what this creature was capable of.

  I stealthily crept behind it when suddenly there was a loud SNAP.

  My heart pounded in the intense atmosphere, thudding violently against my ribcage, while my breath quivered with fear.

  The creature's head snapped around, its sharp ears twitching as it sensed my presence.

  I slowly gnced above me. The creature gazed at me with an intense focus, emitting loud humming noises that resonated in the stillness.

  It was a horrifying sight, as though, merely by looking at it, my soul was already being sucked away. Its features were grotesque.

  It had neither teeth nor eyes, only an open mouth that eerily resembled a deep abyss, as if it were a portal to some dark realm.

  It screamed, making me cover my ears as it suddenly caused my ears to bleed. It vibrated the whole area and even shook the ground.

  My face turned pale.

  This was nothing like those beastmons, this was something more terrifying, a creature that was more dangerous.

  After it stopped screaming, I suddenly found myself no longer shaking from fear.

  The dread that had once clung to me so heavily was now lifted.

  Those people… They didn’t deserve this.

  If only I hadn’t been too te…

  If only I had taken the time to see if something was amiss,

  then maybe…

  They still could’ve been alive.

  Never have I felt this way before. I was not afraid, rather, death became my courage.

  Was this what he had felt before? I found myself slowly beginning to understand him.

  The creature started charging at me, making loud THUMPING noises as its four legs hit the hard ground.

  As its sharp, jagged legs were poised to strike, I leaped to the side and rolled across the floor.

  Springing to my feet, I quickly regained my footing. The creature began to gnce around, searching for me.

  As I walked slowly, I found myself positioned before its humped back, I unsheathed my longsword, feeling the familiar weight of the bde in my hand, and closed my eyes for a brief moment.

  I drew in a deep breath, letting the cool air fill my lungs, steadying my racing heart.

  When I opened my eyes, they were fixed on one target, the creature before me.

  I made a run for it and jumped as high as I could.

  As I nded on its back, the creature started to shake me off. It made loud humming noises again.

  As the creature continued to shift and move restlessly, I gripped the handle of my sword tightly.

  The bde caught the fading light, reflecting the dreary hues of the darkening sunset.

  My sword pierced the creature, and bck blood started to gush out of its back.

  It let out a piercing scream that echoed through the air, and began to shake me off with increasing ferocity.

  I held onto my sword tightly to avoid being unched into the air.

  When I pulled the sword out of its back, I lost my bance and fell hard to the ground.

  My head struck the surface with a sharp thud, producing a ringing noise, and my sword CLINKED as it fell from my grasp.

  My eyes widened when the creature turned to face me, and just as it was about to strike with its leg, I rolled to my left.

  Its limb pierced the ground and became ensnared. As it struggled to free itself, I seized the opportunity.

  As I held my sword high, I struck the creature’s limb with all my strength, but instead of slicing through, a powerful shockwave reverberated up the bde.

  The impact sent a jolt through my entire body, rattling my bones and disorienting me.

  To my horror, the bde shattered into fragments, scattering like ice in the wind.

  Its limbs felt like hard steel. Suddenly, a cold breeze swept past me.

  When I looked behind, its tail smmed into me, sending me flying far away.

  I moaned from the pain and coughed blood.

  As its legs finally broke free, the creature rushed toward me, and I scrambled to my feet in a hurry.

  But its sharp leg was too fast and grazed my arm as I tried to evade it.

  I was beginning to lose consciousness; my body was running out of energy.

  Every moment weighed heavily upon me, and with each passing second, I was becoming increasingly weak.

  My vision blurred at the edges, fading in and out. When all hope seemed lost, a miracle occurred.

  A phenomenal miracle it was.

  When the creature faced me, I was shaken to my core. A chilling realization settled in.

  I knew I wouldn’t be able to get out of here alive, but I also knew that he would still rise and fight, even if he couldn’t stand steadily.

  As I lifted my broken sword, even though I was shaking, a gentle current suddenly surrounded me, making me tingle as if a rush of warmth enveloped my entire body.

  This warmth illuminated my entire being, merging with the sword I held, as if two forces were combining to create something far stronger.

  It felt like an extension of myself, and I was swept up in a surge of energy that coursed through me, igniting me with energy.

  I concentrated all of that energy on my sword, and a sudden cold breeze enveloped me.

  Yet, despite the chill, it brought a strange warmth, as if it were a part of me.

  The sword that had once been broken was now transformed into a sharper, rger weapon, glimmering with a crystalline sheen of ice, its power radiating like a beacon in the dim light.

  As I breathed out with all my strength, I lifted my sword high.

  Sshing from afar, the creature froze and howled in pain as it was struck by the powerful breeze from the bde.

  It staggered back, momentarily disoriented, as the icy gust enveloped it.

  I could see the frost spreading across its jagged skin, leaving behind a shimmering yer of ice that glinted in the fading light.

  When it crashed to the ground, the light surrounding me suddenly vanished, and my body gave out, colpsing to the ground.

  I continued to gaze at the sunlight filtering through the leaves, the golden rays dancing upon the forest floor.

  Rain began to fall from the sky, as though the Nirvana (Heaven) itself were mourning alongside me.

  I’m sorry. I couldn’t keep my promise…

  My eyes grew heavy, and for a moment, all I knew was darkness.

  It enveloped me like a thick fog, swallowing my thoughts and leaving me adrift in a void.

  Then, with a sudden jolt, I awoke in a room.

  One I had never seen before.