I still had the smell of dampness in my nostrils, the wet ground had soaked into my boots and part of my pants. The trees had thinned out as the battle grew more intense: hordes of Wanderers had appeared out of nowhere, and Xavier and I found ourselves in an apparently endless fight.
The area had finally been cleared, we could hardly believe it, and both of us, tired and covered in mud, said goodbye with satisfaction. As usual, Xavier had one of his many unmissable commitments and, in the blink of an eye, vanished in a flash of light.
Protocore particles floated in the air, glowing like falling stars and, like them, dropped to the ground and went dark. The air still felt tense, but my Hunter's Watch wasn't picking up any trace of Metaflux. Maybe I was just paranoid—it wouldn't be the first time post-battle anxiety gave me a panic attack triggered by my own mind.
I shake my head, it's time to get out of this abandoned forest.
The borders, marked by a thick iron mesh that used to be electrified, I'd crossed a while ago, and I figured I had another half hour of fast-paced walking to go. My pistols marched with me, holsters open, just in case of emergency.
The night was so dark that I had only the faint light of the moon to guide me, and sometimes I had to use my Hunter's Watch to light the path a bit—I didn't want to attract unwanted attention from dark presences. I was exhausted, and the commander had already been informed of the mission's success with Xavier. Then again... with all his fancy teleportation, couldn't he have just dropped me off at the edge of the forest?
I gave myself a little flick on the forehead—what a fool for not asking him, but he vanished so fast!
Lost in a thousand thoughts, and now starting to feel a bit hungry, I noticed I'd arrived at an open clearing. No trees, just tall vegetation that didn't obstruct long-distance vision. A light mist was rising from the ground: the pale moon now had a bit of a beard from the humidity rising into the sky.
The light grew even dimmer.
The heavy feeling in the air became more and more present. A shiver ran down my back, and instinctively I quickly brought my hand to one of the pistols, still warm from the battle just finished.
I looked around, but saw nothing, heard no strange sounds, and the watch picked up nothing.
"Hey... I didn't pass through here before," I muttered, still scanning the surroundings.
No, I wasn't crazy. I would have noticed a clearing this large on the way in, and not even being caught in my own anxiety would've made me miss it. I turned to retrace my steps, but in the pitch black I confused the paths winding between the trees. In the growing confusion, my breathing became heavy.
"Since when am I... afraid?" I was stunned by my own mind—for the first time I felt a feeling that had never belonged to me until now.
The abyss of darkness stretched before my eyes left me frozen, arms at my sides, paralyzed. I knew panicking was useless, but even so, two tears ran down my cheeks and I gave in to that unfamiliar emotion.
Fear: maybe of the void, of nothingness, of disappearing—or maybe fear of getting lost, of losing him? Now that I had found him again, after all the trials we'd gone through.
In front of me I no longer saw a nighttime forest, but when I closed my eyes, all I could see was his face and those two ruby-red eyes, burning, staring into my soul. No one had ever looked at me the way he did.
I started to breathe again—I had found the answer, and now my fear had a face. The battle I had just fought had left me wrecked and exhausted, but more than anything, it had made me think: what would have happened if I hadn't fired that last shot in time? What if that Wanderer had hit me with its attack?
"I would never have seen him again, simple as that..." I thought, as more tears ran down my cheeks.
I shook my head, trying to get these thoughts out of my mind—they were killing me—but suddenly my watch lit up: yellow, orange, then red, purple; the Metaflux levels had spiked in mere seconds.
Behind me, lights and Protocore particles swirled in the air. Gusts of wind shook me and the plants around me. An invisible force burst out like a grenade tossed just steps from me: it exploded in a flash of light and I was thrown into the trees. That two-meter flight left me dazed, and the lights that had seemed to converge into a single core now floated around a massive creature. My watch blared, the alarm had reached central command, real-time messages asked for updates on the situation.
I was stunned, still leaning against a tree, vision blurry. I tried to stand, but my strength failed and I stayed on one knee. The creature noticed me only a moment later, and despite my blurry vision, I managed to focus on it: it was a Despairra Gravitas. My last ounce of strength, fueled by adrenaline, was used to grab my pistols—flung near me—aim at the creature, and fire.
The monster, barely scratched, turned toward me, and the last thing I remember was a thick, heavy cloud swallowing me—red, like blood running down a wall. I felt myself being consumed, and the sensation made me faint, not before feeling a warm, gentle touch lifting me from the ground, supporting my back and the crook of my knees.
It felt like I was flying. I felt held. I felt a familiar warmth. Then nothing. Darkness.
«Don't worry, kitten, I'm here for you,» a voice echoed in my dream.