The night wind whispered faintly through the dark forest, carrying with it the acrid scent of fear and sweat. Kenzo and old William were moving farther and farther away from the place where Kenzo had seen the Warden kill the two other prisoners. The ground cracked softly beneath their hurried steps. In the near-total darkness, only the pale, cold rays of moonlight pierced through the dense foliage, granting them a fragile semblance of vision.
They weren't running. No… running would have been too loud, too risky. The forest was crawling with other dangers lurking in the shadows. But they were moving fast,very fast,putting more and more distance between themselves and that cursed Warden whose presence still weighed on their backs.
– « So… how does the Warden's power work? » William suddenly asked, his voice low but steady, breaking the tense silence. After all, it was Kenzo who had woken him to flee. More than that ,Kenzo had claimed he'd figured out the Warden's power.
– « Honestly… it was pretty simple. We should've thought of it sooner. I'm not completely sure, but I noticed something… Every time the Warden forced an order on us, it happened right after he spoke. And yesterday… just now, when I saw him kill those two prisoners… when they changed… I could see his mouth moving. I was far away, so I couldn't hear what he said. That's why I'm convinced his power only works if we can hear him. » Kenzo replied calmly, eyes fixed ahead, trying to convince himself his reasoning was sound.
– « I've been here for months… seeing the Warden's power, I thought it was linked to spiritual beings or a Spirit God. So I convinced myself there was no physical way to escape it… » William answered, his voice heavy with exhaustion.
Spiritual beings? Spirit? Is that how awakened powers work? Isn't it something personal? Kenzo thought, his heart tightening. He wanted to ask more—but stopped himself. After all, he was here for a test. Maybe powers manifested differently in this world. There was no point drowning in useless questions.
So he simply said:
– « Either way… if we can avoid being controlled, then we just need to make sure we can't hear him. So let's put as much distance between us and him as possible. »
Their pace quickened. Fear gnawed at their stomachs, a bad premonition rising in their chests.
And then,deep in the forest where the moon was their only witness,they heard muffled screams. Hurried footsteps hammered against the soft ground, drawing closer.
Both men stopped dead, ears straining, minds alert. The cries became clearer. Shapes emerged between the trees.
Six prisoners.
Six desperate souls running for their lives, faces twisted with terror. Only two of them carried swords, held clumsily. The other four were unarmed, fleeing with bare hands, hoping to escape death.
But they weren't the danger.
Because behind them, slithering through the darkness, came the creature they had prayed never to meet.
The Nightmare Viper.
Kenzo's blood froze when he finally saw the living horror in full.
A monstrous serpent at least two and a half meters tall, a colossal mass of scales whose yellow eyes glowed like twin malignant moons. Its body, half-cadaverous, seemed rotting from within, exuding the stench of carrion and decay. This was the Void Creature—the unstable infected one whispered about by the other prisoners.
It was hunting.
It was tracking.
And it was advancing, inexorably, toward them.
Without a word. Without a cry. Without even consulting each other, Kenzo and William exchanged a look filled with pure terror… and immediately burst into desperate flight.
Breath ragged, muscles locked with panic, they ran as fast as they could. The damp ground slipped beneath their feet. Thorns tore at their clothes and cut into their flesh, but they had no time to feel the pain. The only goal was to flee. Flee far. Flee fast.
From time to time, in a moment of madness mixed with morbid curiosity, Kenzo glanced back.
And he saw the horror unfolding.
The first prisoner, awkwardly armed with a sword, tried to face the beast.
A pointless madness.
The Viper launched itself in a prodigious leap, its deformed jaws snapping shut with a wet sound. With an awful scream, the man was bitten in half, his blood spraying across the dark leaves.
A few meters farther, the second prisoner collapsed, struck by a brutal tail swipe that shattered his bones like glass. His body fell lifeless as the creature moved on to the next.
A third screamed in terror, tripping over a root before he could escape. The Viper coiled around him, slowly crushing him under Kenzo's wide eyes.
A fourth, unarmed, tried a desperate escape to the right. But the Viper, with inhuman speed, appeared in front of him and swallowed him in a single bite.
Only two remained.
Gasping, at the end of their strength, Kenzo and William kept running, hearts pounding so violently they felt ready to burst. The fifth prisoner, wheezing, collapsed, his leg caught in a dead trunk. The Viper descended on him, crushing him with a nauseating crunch.
One left.
Behind them, the last survivor was still running, breath ragged, only a few meters back.
– « We have to split up, kid… If we stay together, we'll both die… » William panted, his voice carrying grim resolve.
The idea was logical… and desperately foolish. Kenzo knew it. Both of them were exhausted, still wounded from the afternoon fight against the rotten hound. Splitting up guaranteed nothing—not for either of them.
This might be the end.
Fate seemed determined never to let them leave this place.
– « We have to count on the fact that it hasn't fully noticed us… After all, it was only chasing the six prisoners… » William continued, a fragile hope flickering in his tired eyes.
– « Okay… If we survive, let's try to meet again near the cave… alright? » Kenzo replied softly, throat tight.
– « Alright… And don't worry, kid… you're young… your life can still be better… » William whispered, an awkward smile stretching his cracked lips.
Then they separated.
Each taking a different direction.
Behind them, the Nightmare Viper finished off the last prisoner, its long scaled body sliding sinisterly over blood-soaked ground.
When Kenzo could hear nothing but the rustling wind, he stopped, gasping. He steadied his breathing, cast a wary glance behind him, then started moving again, as far away as possible.
But suddenly… a familiar, rough voice shattered the night's grim silence.
– « Here! You filthy serpent! I'm right here!! » William shouted.
Kenzo's heart clenched. He spun around, eyes wide.
What are you doing, old man…? Why…?
– « Come on! Come heeere!! » William kept yelling, again and again, taunting the beast.
Kenzo gritted his teeth, fists tightening against his aching chest. He turned away, tears in his eyes, and ran.
Faster. Farther.
Until William's voice could no longer reach him.
Until even the echo of his sacrifice faded from the air.
The Nightmare Viper was gone now, drawn away by the old man's shouts. But the gesture left a gaping wound in Kenzo's heart.
Kenzo stopped, crouching at the base of a tree. He wrapped his arms around his chest and curled in on himself, trembling. A dull sadness flooded him, a grief he couldn't fully understand.
Why…? Why save me? Why give your life for a stranger? I don't deserve it…
Silent tears slid down his dusty cheeks. Bitter confusion gnawed at him. No one had ever done that for him. Not in his world. Not here.
But then, another emotion crept in, sliding insidiously into his wounded heart.
Anger.
No… not just anger.
Vengeance.
A dark fire ignited behind his dilated pupils. If this place wanted to take everything from him… then he would repay it a hundredfold.
The hunt had only just begun.