Year of the Ram – Sixth Entry
Its was not my decision to cease my last entry. My lord
was very clear that I was to never document the events that followed
Wraith's demise. He believes that if anyone were to know the truth
about what transpired, then all of Ferus Mundus would suffer a
terrible fate. I asked many times, as I had to know how my master and
Animal managed to survive their encounter with Ghast. Eventually, my
master came to me in the night, he was distraught and looked as if he
was plagued by a heavy burden. I begged him to tell me what caused
him such grief. He explained to me that he has been ravaged by
horrible nightmares of what transpired, that every night he saw the
same scene over and over again. I swore an oath to my master to never
speak to anyone of his troubles, but instead he asked that I take
again to the pen and record his tale. It was his hope that by telling
his tale he could seal away the nightmares that haunted him. So it
was that my master told me of how the world came to be rid of Ghast.
Ghast had begun to approach my master and Animal, who
was on the verge of death after being bombarded with shrapnel and
bleeding profusely. My master tried to shield Animal away, but Ghast
would not be denied his vengeance and used his power to draw the
barely conscious Animal into this grasp. Ghast griped Animal by the
neck with a single golden hand and thrust his weapon clean through
Animals body with no hesitation, as if he had done so infinity
before. He then repelled his body far across the apex of the spire
until his lifeless body landed in a wet thud upon the ground. Animal
lay in a pool of his own blood with no sign of life.
Ghast turned back towards my master, who stood in
horror of the lack of emotion behind Ghast's actions. My master tried
endlessly to move his body, to jolt his frame into moving, standing,
running! But he could not, his body had surrendered to the
inevitability of death well before his mind had. “Good, accept it.
You should be the one to submit over the others. Wraith and Styx
deserved to die struggling in vain, but you... You deserve a death
that you accept. When you see him, tell father that I have avenged
her, tell him that justice is ours. Will you do that for me, brother?
Will you die for me so that father can rest in peace-” Ghast
stopped speaking. He noticed that my lord was not listening, nor was
he watching. My master's gaze was drawn elsewhere, across the tower,
to where a nightmare was about to be born.
There was something that my lord could sense that Ghast
could not. He turned towards where Animal lay and could see nothing
but the wolf lying in shallow pool of his own blood. But my lord's
attention was absolute, he described the feeling as though his soul
was being swallowed whole by some unseen force, whose presence alone
seemed to render his own existence insignificant. To put it another
way, it was as if something large and terrible filled the entire apex
of the tower and whose presence seemed to be erasing his own. My lord
believes that Ghast could not sense this presence due to the loss of
his Primeran body. Ghast only lives through the power of Mammon,
whose greed is so strong that it would not allow Ghast to die.
Therefore, Ghast uses his own powers, gifted to him by Mammon, to
perceive the world around him, and seeing as though he could not
anticipate this new presence, he could not feel the immense sense of
danger that was rapidly approaching.
Though he could not sense it, Ghast knew that my lord's
reaction was genuine and quickly motioned towards Animal's body. He
took but only a few paces towards Animal's lifeless frame before he
noticed it. Ripples, ripples in the blood emanated from Animal's body
in a rhythmic pattern. One two, one two, one two. Over and over
again, speeding in intensity until both heard it, a heartbeat. So
strong was it and so deafening the sound that my lord clutched his
ears to shut out the noise. The force of the beating cracked the
ground beneath Animal and spattered his blood across the floor.
Animal's entire frame convulsed with the force of each beat as if
something was attempting desperately to enter this world from inside
his own body.
Ghast made several attempts to advance towards Animal,
but the force of each convulsion pushed him backwards. Ghast
attempted to use his powers to draw himself towards Animal, but
nothing happened, as if his own power had pushed itself way down
inside of him for fear of being consumed by this monstrous force.
Then, almost as soon as it had begun, all was silent. Ghast turned
towards my master and spoke to him, but he could not respond. My lord
lay upon the ground, barely conscious and writhing in pain. His flesh
seemed to be burning, but upon closer inspection, was tearing itself
apart. Ghast then noticed a wisp of vapor trailing from himself.
Raising his hand, he could see that what ever was affecting my
master, was happening to what remained of his body as well.
Ghast stopped, as if he finally could feel what my lord
was sensing before. “So, you really are here. I felt you, but could
not see you. Let us face one another as equals, as we did once
before-” These were the only discernible words that my master could
make out. For as Ghast turned, hoping to see a familiar face, he
instead was greeted by something no one could have expected. Animal
barely stood where he was laying, his body seemed to dangle like a
puppet attached to strings. Streams of crimson blood trailed from his
wounds, but instead of running to the floor, they acted as a series
of multitudinous limbs, each one ending in a clawed hand, reaching
and grasping at the air around them. Animal's head rolled forward to
reveal large blood stained eyes and elongated teeth and claws, all
glowing with a crimson light. This thing, this demon, let loose a
roar that shook the very tower upon which held them. A maelstrom of
bloody streams spiraled about the creature and filled the tower with
a ruby glow that surely was seen for miles.
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