[07: 11: 02: 12]
…
A chill ran down Cassian's spine as he stared at the last two system messages. They glowed blood red, the letters seeming to drip as though stained with fresh blood. His heart pounded in his ears, and though it was "just text," the effect was all too real.
[DING! ⍙⟟⏁⊑ ⏃ ADVISES AGAINST ANY ATTACK]
[DING! ⍙⟟⏁⊑ ⏃ JUMPS OUT OF THEIR BED AND SCREAMS, "WHY ARE THESE THINGS HERE?!"]
[DING! ⍙⟟⏁⊑ ⏃ SAYS THIS IS BAD! VERY BAD!]
[DING! ⍙⟟⏁⊑ ⏃ SAYS JUST WHEN THEY FOUND A DECENT TIMEBOUND]
Gritting his teeth, he asked, "Why such an adverse reaction… Who are these creatures? Are they supposed to mean anything?"
For several long, tense seconds, only silence answered him. Then, without warning, the system's voice returned in a cascade of digital declarations.
[DING! ⍙⟟⏁⊑ ⏃ SAYS ALL IS DONE UNDER THE ONE TRUE VOICE'S WILL. IF THESE MONSTROSITIES ARE HERE, THEN IT MUST BE FOR A REASON]
[DING! ⍙⟟⏁⊑ ⏃ ADVISES YOUR BEST COURSE OF ACTION IS TO FOLLOW THEM AND PROCEED ACCORDING TO YOUR INSTINCTS. AFTER ALL, THIS STORY IS YOURS TO UNFOLD]
[DING! ⍙⟟⏁⊑ ⏃ SAYS QUIETLY, "PRAY LITTLE HOOMAN, MAY THE SANDS OF TIME FLOW IN YOUR FAVOR."]
And then… silence.
Cassian exhaled through gritted teeth, dragging a hand down his face. "What's that supposed to mean… Hey! Reply at least—" He cut himself off, knowing it was pointless. The entity, whatever it was, had already gone quiet. Cryptic as ever. Just drop some vague, ominous hint and leave him to figure it out—fantastic.
He threw a glance at the sky. The fading light painted the ruins in deepening hues of orange and purple, stretching shadows across the ground like reaching fingers. His cracked watch displayed [05:52 PM]. If he had to guess, he had maybe an hour before darkness swallowed the city. For a moment, he wavered in indecision. Should he press on and follow these mysterious creatures, or seek shelter for the night? The cryptic messages all hinted that the answer lay with the monsters. And with his time always ticking down and no clues yet found for the main quest, his anxious mind churned with the urgency of his situation.
Drawing in a long, steadying breath, Cassian reminded himself, I know what I've learned from these interactions—both the system and that inscrutable entity are higher beings, maybe even gods. They're powerful, alive, and This is fun to them but their tone hinted at something serious... There is still no clue to the Main Objective but this screams like one to me.
If he ignored this, if he hesitated—would he miss something critical?
Would he fail?
His fists clenched.
"Haaaa…" he screamed softly in frustration, kicking the cold, cracked wall with enough force to send a shudder of pain up his leg. The sharp impact cleared his thoughts momentarily.
"I can't take any chances… I have to survive. I have to gain power—and I will not back down now. If I do, how can I ever face Arwyn?" His voice was low but determined as he locked his gaze on the distant, jagged mountains. "There's a very good chance this scenario is significant. I can't, under any circumstances, run away. I need to fight if I'm going to have any chance of exacting my revenge."
Shaking off the tempting lure of retreat, "Alright. Let's do this. But," he murmured to himself, voice dry, "no throwing yourself at the enemy. God gave you a brain for a reason."
He kept to the debris and rubble as cover, moving slowly through the ruined streets while following the orderly blood trails that had appeared where the greysnort corpses once lay. Every step was cautious, every sense straining to detect even the slightest sound. Soon enough, he found them again—two of the same monstrous creatures he'd seen earlier, methodically dragging a corpse away. He melted into the shadows and observed them with narrowed eyes.
This time, he took a better look.
Their bodies were gaunt, skin stretched taut over elongated limbs. Their fingers—no, claws—curved too sharply, each movement unnervingly synchronized. A low, rasping hiss escaped from their throats every few breaths, like a distorted whisper of something once human.
Cassian's gut twisted.
Slowly, carefully, he stalked them, noting every movement. Their posture. Their reaction time. The way their heads twitched at the faintest sound. Their behavior was methodical, eerily deliberate. He followed at a safe distance, silent as a shadow.
After several minutes of observation, an idea formed in his mind.
I need to figure more about them, it's safe to assume there are multiple monsters of this species that are dominant in this area.
Then, a restless impulse took hold. Cassian's eyes darted around until they landed on several small, jagged stones scattered near a crumbled wall. He crouched and scooped them up in his calloused hand.
"How will they react and for how much longer can they handle this stress," he whispered, his voice a mix of nervous excitement and calculated curiosity.
Quietly, he edged forward until he was roughly twenty meters away from the pair. With a swift, practiced motion, he hurled one of the small rocks to the opposite side of the debris. The stone arced in a parabola, clattering against the broken pavement. For a moment, everything went silent. Then, in perfect unison, both creatures abruptly stopped their labor. Their heads whipped around, eyes narrowing in unison as they fixed on the source of the sound.
Cassian's heart thumped violently. He froze in his hiding spot, every muscle tensed. He forced himself to remain motionless, barely daring to breathe as he watched them. Slowly, the creatures released their grip on the corpses and straightened, their hunched forms becoming tall as if to scare.
A series of hissing and screeching sounds—high-pitched and unnerving—escaped their throats, and then, as if agreeing silently, they both turned their gaze upward, craning their necks to survey the sky. A single, guttural, high-pitched cry.
"Arg!"—ranged out in unison, echoing in Cassian's ears and sending a shiver down his spine. He swallowed hard, his internal voice urging him.
Calm down. No rash decisions—control your impulse. He forced his thoughts away from the urge to attack. Instead, he focused on gathering information. He needed to know their patterns—their numbers, their weaknesses, how they reacted when disturbed.
The creatures scanned the area, their hollow, milky eyes shifting with a slow, unnatural movement. When nothing presented itself, they finally returned to their previous positions, picking up the bodies once more and continuing their march.
They react to sound, how precise yet to know.
Cassian remained still. Thirty seconds. He counted in his head before allowing himself a slow, controlled exhale.
He repeated the test multiple times, carefully adjusting his distance. No matter where he threw the rocks, their response was always the same. Always in sync. Always eerily precise.
They're following a pattern, he realized. They don't think. They just react like it's hard coded in them the protocols of how they should react.
Even though he was never one for high-risk moves, for the last half hour, Cassian had been using these small experiments to map out the creatures' behavior. Every throw of a rock, every careful observation, confirmed one unsettling fact: the monsters moved in perfect synchrony. No matter the distance, no matter the direction of the sound, both of them reacted in unison. It was as if they were connected by a single, unyielding command—a chilling testament to their coordination.
A shiver crawled up his spine. Are they even alive? or are they hive minds?
As dusk began to settle, the ordered trail led Cassian toward the base of the mountains. He looked up and saw a massive, crumbling wall that once surrounded a city, now merging seamlessly with the rugged slopes of the mountains. Despite the ravages of time and battle, portions of the wall still stood tall, a testament to a long-forgotten strength. Just as he was taking in the sight, another creature emerged from a different street. This one, identical in appearance to the two he'd been tracking, carried not one but two greysnort corpses. The moment the three met, there was no greeting—only a silent, almost ritualistic acknowledgment. Without a word, all three turned and began marching in parallel toward the forest.
Gritting his teeth, Cassian hesitated for a long minute before following. He slipped into the forest, every step careful and deliberate. The woods were thick, and the undergrowth crackled underfoot with every stray twig. Cassian moved slowly, aware that even the smallest sound might betray his presence. Deep within the forest, the dense canopy eventually broke into a clearing. Here, a man made path wound its way to a large, fortified building.
The structure boasted turrets, outposts, and tall, broken walls—a remnant of a once-mighty research facility that now lay abandoned and battered. Cassian watched as the monsters entered through a broken section of the wall, their figures dissolving into the shadows of the facility. Cassian's breath came in ragged bursts, his heart beating wildly in his ears.
Do I follow them in or retreat for the night… I'm sure whatever's in there would be significant and so would be the numbers of these monsters.
Looking at his system as he saw his effective Essence well it was 5/5 so 4 max lighting bolts and 1 Expedite and then he would be out of fuel.
I need to find myself a proper weapon that I can use… My deck card would provide a massive boost… fuuuu so much to do.
His mind wandering, multiple thoughts clouding his vision—instinct screaming one thing while caution whispered another. Before he could decide, a sharp crunch shattered the night.
A sound from behind. The hairs on his arms bristled as dread coiled in his gut. Slowly, as if fearing the very act of turning, he spun around. There were two monsters as they stepped forward with eerie precision, their skeletal frames moving without sound, milky-white eyes locked onto him. The corpses they had been dragging hit the ground with sickening, wet thuds—discarded without hesitation, like meaningless scraps.
His pulse exploded in his ears.
Shit—!
Adrenaline surged, every second etched in excruciating detail as time slowed. He had mere moments—seconds—to act which would ensure his survival.
"[Expedite!]"
The spell fired through his body like a live wire, the world around him slowing as his own speed surged. His vision blurred at the edges, muscles igniting with unnatural swiftness. He twisted—just as the first set of claws tore through the air, missing his throat by a whisper.
The second strike came faster. Too fast.
Dodge—!
He barely managed to throw himself to the side, boots skidding against loose gravel as jagged talons sliced through the space where he had stood just a breath ago. Adrenaline screamed through his veins.
They were fast. Faster than the greysnorts. Faster than anything he had fought before. And worse—they were coordinated. And in that heart-stopping instant, as the tables turned and the hunt became his own, terror and resolve collided in the cold grip of night.
The hunt was on.
…