[One Week Later.]
[Unknown Realm.]
The landscape was a graveyard of silence, broken only by the ragged breathing of a lone figure.
Sunny sat heavily on the cracked earth, his body a map of violence. Bruises blossod across his skin in dark purples and blues, weaving between fresh cuts and crusted bloodstains that marred nearly every inch of him. A deep, jagged laceration carved a line across his cheek, weeping slowly.
gripped tightly in his hand was a tal rod, slick with a viscous black goo that dripped onto the dry soil. Scattered around him in a grotesque circle lay the carcasses of massive black spiders, their limbs curled inward in death.
He moved his gaze all over the landscape, his chest heaving as he tried to stabilize his core. His face was pale, drained of color from exertion and blood loss.
"I can't move on," he stated, his voice raspy. He wasn't admitting defeat, but stating a tactical fact. He moved his gaze on the terrain in front of him, his eyes fixed on the jagged black rock formations that jutted from the earth like broken teeth.
"These fucking things ca out from these rocks..." He nudged a spider carcass with his boot. "Not only that, each of them have the strength of a god rank warrior."
He exhaled, a long, shuddering breath, closing his eyes for so seconds to center his mind. When he opened them, he looked up at the oppressing red sky. The strange, alien sun was dipping lower.
"These things cos out the mont the sun set down... I can only move in daylight, making sure not to step into any dark space or shadow."
He forced himself to stand up, his legs shaking violently under his own weight. The gravity here felt heavier, or perhaps it was just the accumulation of fatigue.
"No matter what, I must get off this place and look for a higher ground."
He moved his gaze ahead of him. There stood a solitary hill, rising about 50 ters from the ground surface. It wasn't a mountain, but in this flat wasteland, it was a fortress. Although he wasn't that high, if he hid himself effectively near the peak, he will survive the night.
With a deep breath, he exhaled the pain and started his journey again, dragging his body forward one agonizing step at a ti.
"In all my life, I haven't faced such a difficult task! I am exhausted, my bones feel like it will break any second from now..."
He looked up at the hill, asuring the distance.
"But..." He continued, his eyes hardening with resolve. "I must reach that hill. That is my goal and nothing will stop for now."
He kept on moving, a speck of defiance against the desolate horizon.
_
High above, hidden within the veil of heavy clouds, Ezekiel hovered. He stood with the grace of a deity, staring down at Sunny, who was currently heading east.
"Where is he going?" Ezekiel muttered to himself, frowning slightly.
He turned his gaze to the west, his vision piercing through the distance to see the artifact pulsating hundreds of miles away. He blinked, realizing the discrepancy, and raised his head to the sky to check the position of the sun.
"I got it now..." A look of understanding crossed his face. "If he heads to towards the artifact, the Sun will set and the creatures will get to him before he even close half of the distance... So he is leaving this journey for tomorrow."
He folded his arms on his chest, staring at Sunny who kept on moving towards the hill. The kid was learning. Survival here wasn't just about strength; it was about timing, and determination.
_
After so minutes of walking that felt like hours, Sunny finally arrived at the base of the hill. He paused, looking over his shoulder at the setting Sun. Its dying rays had just reached the hill peak. In so minutes, the land below will welco the darkness, and with it, death.
"Let's start climbing."
He placed the goo-covered rod on his back, securing it tightly, and moved closer to the hill surface. The rock was rough, volcanic and sharp.
"Here I go again."
He grabbed a jutting rock, his fingers digging in, and started climbing up. As he climbed, the Sun descended rapidly in the horizon, shadows stretching out like long, grasping fingers across the valley floor.
WHOOSH!!
SCREECH!!
The sound was distinctive—a high-pitched, chittering scream that vibrated in the bones.
Sunny looked over his shoulder, his eyes widening. Below him, erging from the twilight, were the ten-legged black spiders. Their mouths were unhinged, as wide as a shark's, filled with rows of needle-like black teeth.
The creatures moved with terrifying speed under the shadows of a boulder. But the mont their body touched the lingering Sunlight, the flesh instantly turned to Stone, causing the creature to force its leg back into the shadow with a confused hiss.
They were testing the light, waiting for the shadow to creep up the hill.
"Shit!! I need to move faster!" Sunny hissed.
Adrenaline flooded his exhausted system. He increased his speed, scrambling upward desperately as the Sun rays moved passed him, receding toward the peak. The line of safety was vanishing.
With one last hold, his fingers bleeding, he forced himself at the top. At the exact mont he hauled his body onto the flat plateau, the red Sun completely disappeared from the horizon.
SCREECH!!!!
BAM!
BAM!!
BAM!!!
SCREECH!!!
The world below erupted into chaos.
Sunny lay on the hill top, pressed flat against the stone, listening to the Shrieks and heavy footsteps of the monsters. His breathing was heavy, rattling in his chest, then he forced it to gradually slow down to a silent rhythm.
'This is beyond crazy...' he thought, staring at the darkening sky. 'One more noise, and they'll instantly discover my location. If that happens I am dead.'
He turned his head to the side, peering over the edge. He stared at the black silhouettes of different sizes and shapes moving all over the place. It was a sea of monsters; so were smashing into one another in a brutal fight for dominance, their screeches echoing through the night.
'These things could climb,' he realized with a shiver. 'If they know I am here, they'll instantly swarm this hill and et on the top. Jumping down is a death sentence so...'
He closed his eyes, blending his aura with the rock beneath him.
'I will stay quiet still the very end... Tomorrow, when the sun rises, I will continue my journey.'
With that thought, he kept his eyes closed, letting his mind drift away from the hellscape to preserve his sanity.
'I wonder how Ellen and Josephine and everyone is doing. Haha, I would like to eat her food, even if Josephine can't cook, I will die to eat anything.'
The thought of ho was the only thing warr than the cold rock beneath him.
___
[Eldoria]
[Night Ti]
The city of Eldoria was quiet, but it was the silence of a held breath, not of peace.
Josephine sat on the balcony of the royal quarters, her gaze fixed on the full moon that hung luminous over the realm. Her arm rested gently on her belly, which was now visibly showing the lives growing within her.
"Where are you, Love?" She whispered to the wind.
"Why are you out here so late?"
Josephine didn't jump. She recognized the voice instantly. Jinx stood behind her, wearing a slight frown, and a night dress and coat.
"Besides, you're four months pregnant, you should get your rest," Jinx added, walking towards her with soft steps.
"How can I rest when he has been gone for four whole months?" Josephine asked, her voice cracking slightly. She turned her head to Jinx, who stopped beside her.
Jinx stared at her for so seconds, seeing the dark circles under Josephine's eyes. She exhaled, and sat down on the couch opposite her.
"I can still feel the bond through the contract, and I am sure you can feel it through your mate bond. So he is alive..."
Jinx turned her head to the moon, her expression hardening with resolve. "Wherever he is, I am 100% sure he will co back to us, to Eldoria... We really need him right now."
She reached out, placing her hand on Josephine's other hand, which was resting on the couch. Her skin was warm, grounding Josephine.
"Eldoria is in crisis... Everyone is hoping and praying for---" Jinx paused, catching herself. She shook her head, dismissing the doom and gloom.
"Forget all that. Co on, you need to get inside... It's late."
She started getting to her feet, but Josephine's voice stopped her.
"Jinx. Do you think Eldoria can Survive this new enemy?"
Josephine asked all of a sudden. The question hung in the air, heavy and terrifying, stunning Jinx into silence.
After staring at Josephine's side profile for so monts—seeing the fear of a mother—Jinx sighed softly, closing her eyes. There was no point in lying to the Queen.
"We're facing soone in a whole different rank..." Jinx admitted quietly. "Eldoria has also lost its third defense and even so nations and race are all wiped out... I know the odd is bad, but we will survive!"
Suddenly, a fierce smile broke across Jinx's face. "You know why?"
"Huh?" Josephine turned her gaze from the moon to Jinx, surprised by the shift in tone. "Why?"
"Because Eldoria is the greatest," Jinx declared, her eyes flashing with pride.
"No matter the obstacle or enemy, we always step on them and move forward. True, we lost a lot of planets and territories, even so nations getting wiped out by them! I don't give a fuck! All I know is. Eldoria will survive this!"
Josephine stared at her for so seconds. The conviction in Jinx's voice was infectious. She smiled softly, feeling a fraction of the weight lift from her shoulders.
"Thank you, Jinx. For everything... You and the commanders have helped Eldoria continuously, I am forever grateful to you all."
"Haha! Don't say such things," Jinx laughed, waving her hand dismissively. "Eldoria is also our ho! We will even die for it!"
Jinx lowered her gaze to the city below, watching the faint lights of patrols moving through the streets. Her voice dropped to a solemn whisper.
"We, not only the commanders, I will also die for Eldoria."
"How is Nioh?" Josephine asked again, changing the subject to sothing more imdiate.
"He is recovering well... Morgana is so skilled," Jinx answered. She stood up and stretched out her hand toward Josephine. "Co on, I am not leaving you out here."
Josephine stared at Jinx's hand, then back at the moon one last ti. She wasn't ready to go inside yet.
"Sit with then," She said firmly.
Jinx blinked a couple of tis, surprised, then nodded her head. "Ok."
She gave up, and sat down beside Josephine, staring at the moon with her. The two won sat in silence, united by their worry and their hope.
So ters away, on a higher, shadowed balcony, Morgana stood alone.
Her arms were folded, her expression flat and unreadable as the wind whipped her dark hair around her face. She wasn't looking at the city; she was looking at the stars, calculating.
'Where are you Sunny...' her mind echoed into the void. 'If you don't co back in two more months, Eldoria will surely fall... Even with my strength, I can't stop this new enemy...'
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