Every step Cullen took, it felt as if a spear shot through his chest. Every time he looked forward, it felt like his eyes were burning. His entire body and soul screamed at him to turn around, but he paid no attention to it.
He stepped forward, and the pain worsened. A throbbing headache took over Cullen's mind, preventing him from forming any thoughts. All he had was the will he started with. And that pushed him on, even when all logic was left behind.
It was a vicious cycle of moving closer, experiencing heightened pain, then getting used to it as much as one could. Then, he would keep advancing and doing it all over.
Eventually, he lost count of how many steps he had taken. Cullen could barely even remember his own name. But whenever he was on the verge of insanity, he would look at his compass and keep walking his path.
And although he couldn't realize it at the time, his mental fortitude was rising at a rapid rate. His mind was constantly adapting to the increasing pain. As long as Cullen made it out alive somehow, he would gain a strong resistance to most of The Island's mental attacks.
After what seemed like forever, Cullen took a step forward, and the pain suddenly stopped. He sighed in relief and instantly collapsed to the ground. Covered in a pool of sweat, his whole body ached even though he hadn't been hurt physically.
'Did I reach the other side of it? No… the pain would have slowly decreased if I were moving away. That means…'
Cullen looked at his compass to see it pointing directly in front of him.
Once again, he was frozen in fear.
'Am I in the eye of the storm? Does that mean its mental attacks only work past a certain distance away from the main body?'
Although he didn't want to see what awaited him, Cullen knew that avoiding looking at the Abomination would only hurt him. Determined, he lifted his eyes, ready to face it head-on.
What he saw shocked him.
While Cullen expected a nightmarish beast, all that was in front of him was a floating orb, glowing green.
'This is its core? It's out in the open and unprotected… I didn't think an Abomination this strong would also be this weak.'
But after thinking for a bit, Cullen realized that it wasn't vulnerable. In fact, that whole mental assault was its defense. Most creatures wouldn't even be able to get close to its core, so there was no reason for the Abomination to protect it further.
'I came here to train my mental endurance, yet I never expected to kill this thing. Therefore, I haven't even thought of how to use its ability. Maybe something similar to the necklace, but it copies this Abomination's power instead… No, that would be harmful to everyone around me.'
Cullen sat down for a while to think about it, completely baffled at how to use this new power.
'Maybe I can create some sort of object that will trigger the attack if you look at it. This way, it won't affect my allies as much as the enemy. However, it might be annoying to have to carry around. And if I accidentally look at it, I will have to experience that pain all over again. At least I'll be able to train with it…'
After a bit more thought, Cullen decided to make a locket that would trigger the effect if you look at its inside. This way, he will be able to carry it around normally while still using it for battle or training.
Cullen gripped his dagger and moved to the core. It was around a meter in diameter and seemed to have no response to Cullen's presence. This Abomination obviously wasn't a sentient one, or it would have put up more of a fight when he reached the center.
Lifting the dagger, Cullen prepared to strike the core and pierce it with a single blow. But when he stabbed the core, a terrible pain shot up his arm as his hand reeled back, and a clunk rang through the air.
The core remained undamaged.
'This might be tricky.'
About 10 minutes later, Cullen was back on the ground, lying in exhaustion. He had tried countless methods to break the indestructible core, but not even a scratch had gotten through.
The area where the Abomination's mental attacks were blocked was a circle around 5 meters from the center, so Cullen was very limited in the power he could exert in this confined space.
As a result, he was now lying down with injured arms and his excitement crushed.
The worst part was that if Cullen didn't kill the Abomination, he would have to walk all the way back through the excruciating mental attacks again. This was the main reason why he hadn't given up.
'The only object I have that can deal real damage is the dagger, yet it has proven to be far weaker than this core. I tried punching it with my bare fists, but that didn't go too well either…'
Cullen looked at his bruised knuckles and grimaced, regretting having tried something so stupid.
'The only thing I haven't tried is the armband from the Ghost Monkey. It may allow me to strike from inside the core, but I have no idea what would happen if I re-materialized while contacting another object. Especially one that's stronger than myself… I would rather not lose my arm trying that.'
In the end, he truly saw no possible way to kill the Abomination. The core was simply unbreakable with Cullen's current strength. He could try again if he grew stronger, but it would take way too long to do that in this small space.
Defeated, Cullen had no other choice but to leave and face those horrors again.
'Still, it should be easier now that I've developed some resistance against it. Also, the worst will be at the beginning, and will gradually decrease since I am leaving the center instead of approaching it.'
He spent a few more moments in the serene area, then closed his eyes and stepped into the wall of pain.
Immediately, Cullen was struck by the worst of it. His ears rang, screaming filled his head, and he tasted blood that wasn't really there. However, unlike the last time, Cullen still could think rationally.
'All I need t-to do… is keep moving forward. There should be nothing stopping me… from sprinting away from this nightmare.'
Cullen was still unable to open his eyes. The pain caused them to stay shut, but he was also afraid of the Abomination causing hallucinations.
He took a step forward, and an instinct developed from the last time braced him for more pain. But this time, it only subsided.
Cullen bent his knees and launched himself forward. Then, again and again, his slow movement turned into a run as the relief spread across his body.
'I was moving incredibly slowly the first time, but now I am practically sprinting through this. It shouldn't be too much longer until I reach the end of its influence.'
Sure enough, the mental attacks slowly diminished to nothing. Cullen opened his eyes and immediately began thinking about how to proceed with his training.
Until he saw what was in front of him.
The same core that he failed to damage was still floating there. Actually, even his surroundings were the same. It was like he never left.
Cullen's eyes widened as he tried to comprehend what was happening, the reality of his situation setting in.
'This Abomination's powers are far more than what I originally thought. On top of the mental attacks, it can also change my sense of direction.'
Cullen had opened his eyes the first time around purely because he was following the compass. However, doing that felt like they were burning, and he started to see things that weren't really there. He didn't think he would need to, so he just walked in a straight line and ended up back where he started.
'Either the Abomination caused me to turn around without realizing it, or it somehow brought me back with a sort of teleportation… the latter would be much worse. Maybe all I need to do is keep my eyes open?'
He looked at the core and immediately shot down the idea of trying to break it again. There was still no way he could do that. Instead, his only option was to try to escape the tricks this Abomination used.
Although it had gotten easier, it was still draining for him to experience that pain again. Cullen had to be sure he would break free on his next attempt, or he might be stuck here for much longer than anticipated.
'If I'm lucky, it shouldn't be able to interfere with my compass's ability. As long as I focus on one that tracks an object outside of here, it should lead me back. I'm not even sure if I'll ever be able to leave if that doesn't work…'
Cullen found the compass leading to The Island's core and saw where it was pointing. Then, he realized something.
'The effects of the Abomination were decreasing up until the moment I appeared back here. That means that I was either about to escape and was instantly brought back here, or…'
The other explanation was that the mental attacks did not increase the closer one got to one's core. In fact, it would increase or decrease anywhere. The severity of the pain he felt was also an illusion, tricking him into believing he was leaving.