Attracted by the sudden burst of light and Sunny's belligerent cries, the Carapace Demon appeared out of nowhere in a storm of fury, at least, that was what Yoru presumed as he heard Its towering legs tear through the ashen sand, throwing clouds of it into the air.
"Yeah, right here, you pile of scrap! Come and get it, fat lobster! This is my island now!"
Yoru rolled his eyes.
'Those taunts can't be necessary.'
Which, admittedly, was a hypocritical thought. He himself had insulted nightmare creatures more than once. But... it was completely different when he did it.
Anyways with each insult Sunny threw, the louder the demon became. The sheer intensity of its presence forced Yoru to step back from the edge of the branch, instinctively shielding Cassie as a precaution in case everything went wrong.
He gritted his teeth, counting down the seconds, waiting for the moment the plan reached its critical point.
And that point came almost immediately.
A brilliant white flame erupted below, blooming outward in a radiant explosion of light. For an instant, it was as though a miniature sun had been born at the base of the great tree, its brilliance scattering the gloom that suffocated the Ashen Barrow.
Bathed in that harsh glow, Yoru could clearly see the silhouettes of Nephis and Sunny standing near the edge, their attention fixed on the inferno below.
Behind him, Cassie stood facing the light as well.
Strangely, she did not look afraid.
If anything, there was a faint trace of awe on her face.
Yoru frowned.
'What's there to be in awe of? You can't see anything!'
That was when the island suddenly trembled.
The ground quaked violently beneath them, forcing Yoru to stagger as he struggled to keep his footing.
'B-Bloodydamn!'
Protecting Cassie should have been his first instinct, but something else seized his attention before he could act.
That something was an utterly wrong... change. A change that affected the world itself.
The rustle of the scarlet leaves suddenly felt quieter, the sound of the waves crashing against the shores of the ashen island louder. It was as though some invisible pressure descended on the world, making everything feel slightly different.
It was as if Yoru gained a sudden limpidity, but for the sole purpose of understanding what kind of danger he was in. Everything else was merely a shadow compared to the stark change he was experiencing now.
In that singular moment, Yoru felt more terrified than he had ever been in this hellish place. More so than when he was being eaten alive by a scavenger all those weeks ago.
Then, the air became colder, and a wall of thick fog appeared above the dark waters.
The fog crept onto the island, spreading slowly but relentlessly until it covered every surface in its path. Before long, it swallowed the great tree itself, enveloping the four Sleepers standing atop its wide branch.
Nephis and Sunny stepped back from the edge as the mist closed in around them.
Yoru held his breath, as the image of the scene he had once read flashed in his mind.
Cassie's voice trembled with tension as she whispered:
"Don't look. No matter what happens, don't open your eyes."
Hearing her like that was unsettling. She never even spoke of her terrible visions with this much strain.
But long before she had even said so, Yoru had already closed his eyes.
He didnt know what lurked within the mist - or perhaps the mist itself was the horror.
But he understood one thing clearly.
It was something that should never be seen.
Cold dread steadily began to seep into his bones as the mist roamed over his body, coveting him. This sensation of being possessed made Yoru feel all the more horrified.
As the mist caressed his skin, he heard Cassie's voice whisper once more, except this time, it was distorted and coming from the wrong direction.
"Don't look… don't look… don't look…"
Her voice became louder, covering all directions and overlapping itself.
"Don't look, don't look, don't look, don't look!"
Yoru found himself short of breath and struggling to remain standing. The chant grew louder, more frantic, until it twisted into something inhuman, the words stretching and warping into shrill, unbearable cries.
"DON'T LOOK DON'T LOOK DON'T LOOK DON'T!!!"
He tightly clasped his hands over his ears and grit his teeth.
The overlapping voices slowly morphed again.
The shrieks became softer, melodic and... familiar. Even the incessant chant began to slowly change, replaced with words Yoru couldn't even dream of ever hearing again.
"Nathan..."
His chest stilled as heard those words.
"Nathan, I miss you... open your eyes for me... come home to me."
Her voice was exactly as he had remembered it, full of love and caring. It was the most beautiful thing he had heard in a very long time.
'Mo- mother...?'
But that was Impossible. It couldn't be her. Yoru knew that...
But what if it was?
He felt his mothers touch, a warm and comforting feeling that he missed so dearly. He felt her hand wipe his tears as she gently called to him again:
"Look at me Nathan. Don't you want to see me after all this time?"
Yes of course he did. But he couldn't. As much as he wished he could… he couldn't…
Then, his mother's voice became cold.
"Why not?"
Yoru flinched at the sudden shift.
'I...I can't.'
"Do you not love me anymore?"
She sounded cruel and sinister, completely unlike the mother he knew.
'Of course I do…. its just-'
"THEN OPEN YOUR EYES!!"
Yoru recoiled at the scream and shut his eyes even tighter.
He hated the thing for using his mother's voice, he wanted nothing more than to tear it to shreds and condemn it to an eternal pain.
But he was too weak.
So instead he sat still and refused to open his eyes. As he did so, the voice slowly retreated.
"Nathan... my beloved..."
Soon, he was able to hear the rustling of leaves and the sound of waves again. He could also hear Cassie, Sunny and Neph breathing ruggedly beside him. It seemed that they too were assaulted by the terrifying mimic.
And also…
Somewhere beneath them, the Carapace Demon roared and hit his scythes against each other. The loud clamour of steel resounded beneath the great tree, sending an almost palpable wave in all directions. This wave seemed to expel the unnatural fog, creating an enormous sphere of clean air.
In the next moment, the whole island trembled as the demon clashed with the unknown horror that had been hiding in the fog. Something shattered with a deafening thunder, and the ground shook again, causing the branches of the great tree to sway.
Yoru felt a pair of trembling hands reach around him.
They were Sunny's hands, drawing him in closer. He felt Nephis and Cassie to, as they all embraced one another.
Holding each other, they listened to the sounds of the furious battle and waited.
***
An eternity seemed to pass before the battle finally ended.
Silence returned to the Ashen Barrow. In the aftermath, Nephis hesitated for a brief moment before speaking in a quiet, raspy voice.
"We can open our eyes now."
Yoru slowly did so.
What he saw left him both stunned and uneasy.
The sun had begun to steadily creep over the horizon from the east and covered the barrow in its dim twilight. Beneath them, the surface of the island was torn apart and upturned, almost unrecognizable. It was as though the Ashen Barrow was pummeled by several rounds of heavy artillery fire.
Atop that ruined surface was the Carapace Demon. He was heavily wounded and in a terrible shape, with several limbs missing and a spiderweb of cracks covering his once pristine carapace.
Two of his arms were gone, leaving him with a single scythe and a single pincer. Most of his rear legs were either broken or severed, forcing the behemoth to walk in a strange, unsteady gait.
However, he was still alive. More than that, none of the armour plates covering his vital organs were seriously damaged, his metal shell still strong and impenetrable.
Sunny gazed at the demon gravely and turned to Nephis.
"What… what do we do?"
Changing Star looked down. There was a cold glint in her calm, grey eyes.
Stretching her arm to the side, she summoned her sword and said:
"Finish him off."
Sunny replied after a few moments of thought, wearing a look of hardened resolve.
"How are we going to deal with its armour?"
Nephis weighed the sword in her hand and glanced down.
"I will break through the armour. Can you two create an opening?"
Sunny shared a brief glance with Yoru and they both wordlessly nodded at Nephis.
After fighting side by side with each other for so long, a strange and dangerous rapport had been formed between them all. They understood each others capabilities to the highest degree after being forced to entrust their lives to each other.
So if Nephis said she could destroy the demon's armour, then so be it. Sunny and Yoru would see to that without a doubt.
Yoru stepped forward, peering down at the limping Demon as it dragged itself toward the tree, leaving a trail of azure blood behind.
"I'll distract the creature from the sky. I guess you two will figure out how to bring him to his knees."
Yoru turned to face them.
"Would you like to fly down there?"
Sunny and Nephis both nodded and felt the familiar sensation of a tether being formed.
The genie opened his mouth to say something but seemingly stopped himself, instead simply gritting his teeth and shaking his head.
"Alright then. Let's... slay a demon."
Without another word, Yoru casually leaned back and fell off the branch plummeting towards the floor below.
Behind him, Sunny watched him go, then glanced at Nephis.
"…Was he crying?"
Nephis blinked once.
"He did seem… a little sad."
Then, as if it didn't matter, she stepped forwards and added:
"Tell Cassie the plan."
With that, she similarly approached the edge and calmly walked off.
Sunny scoffed under his breath.
"Trying to act cool after crying… pathetic..."
At that moment, a quiet voice spoke behind him.
"I assume the Demon is still alive?"
Cassie stood there, a faint but forced smile on her lips.
Despite the heavy, cold, dark feeling gripping his heart, Sunny tried to make his voice sound relaxed and carefree.
"Yeah, but just barely. Don't worry too much. This whole thing will be over in no time."
After explaining the plan and offering what little reassurance he could- Oh! And promising Cassie a meal of juicy demon steak - he took a deep breath, then stepped off the branch as well.
***
Yoru stared down at the demon, hovering just out of it its vast reach.
The pair exchanged hateful glares with one another, sharing the same loathsome murderous intent.
For serperate reasons however.
The Carapace Demon hated him because it was in its nature to do so. Like all nightmare creatures, it instinctively sought to extinguish the flames of desire burning within living souls.
Yoru's hatred, however, came from the creature hidden within the mist.
At the time, he had wanted nothing more than to butcher the mist for using his own mother's voice against him, but with it being that much more formidable than himself and not even present, his anger could only be directed at the metal behemoth before him.
So despite how fearsome the demon looked, he was more than ready to slaughter the thing.
Of course, that would not be an easy task, even in its current state.
At this distance, the damage dealt to the demon's body seemed even more debilitating. Its carapace was fractured in several places and covered in cracks, each seeping with azure blood... sadly, none of the cracks were near the vital organs. His horns were shattered, as was one of his front legs - in addition to several rear ones that were either broken or torn off completely.
The stumps of his two severed arms were pressed tight against his torso to stem the heavy bleeding. The other two were hanging to the ground, almost brushing against the ashen sand.
The giant monster looked broken and tired. However, it was still terrifying, perhaps even more so than before. Because, despite the horrible wounds, his gaze was still firm and full of evil intelligence. It was still radiating madness and bloodlust.
After a few more seconds of silent tension, the demon slowly shifted its malicious gaze away from Yoru and looked toward the distant tree.
Following its line of sight, Yoru witnessed a peculiar scene.
Nephis and Sunny were gliding low across the ashen ground, sword Memories already drawn as they rushed toward the demon with lethal intent. Behind them thundered a much larger figure.
Scavy.
The Carapace Scavenger charged forward with savage enthusiasm, its black pincers snapping violently as though announcing its challenge to a superior predator.
Seeing the absurdly fearless charge, Yoru grinned and brandished the Bloody Requiem.
"Look up, you iron bastard!"
He spun the onyx spear once before launching it downward with all his strength, aiming for one of the fractured plates along the creature's flank.
However…
Without even sparing so much as a glance, the Carapace Demon shifted on one of its forelegs and the spear struck an invulnerable part of its metal carapace instead.
Yoru clicked his tongue.
He had not expected the attack to seriously injure the monster, but he at least hoped the demon would use one of its remaining arms to the deflect the blow.
Unfortunately, the demon possessed more than enough intelligence to choose where it could afford to take a hit.
By then, Sunny and Nephis had already reached the creature from opposite sides while Scavy continued its reckless frontal assault.
Predictably, the demon targeted the echo first.
Scavy stumbled in the ash just as it entered striking distance, its large frame momentarily losing balance.
The demon exploited this mischance and brought down its massive pincer at the beast, aiming to pulverise it in one tyrannical swing.
But the attack struck nothing except sand.
At the very last moment, Scavy twisted aside.
It had been a feint.
Sunny had deliberately ordered the echo to bait the attack, manipulating the demon into committing to a predictable strike. After all, he was nowhere near wealthy enough to throw away a valuable echo against a stronger opponent without a plan.
Still, because of Scavy's size, the manoeuvre could not be executed perfectly.
The pincer caught two of the scavenger's legs during the evasive movement, crushing them instantly.
Even so, the opening had been created.
Now, Changing star and Sunny were in a perfect position to strike - unopposed.
Sunny slashed with the Azure Blade, feeling it hit the polished armour and bounce back without leaving even a slight scratch on it. Dull pain radiated through his hands.
On the other side of the behemoth's massive body, Nephis achieved more success. She had attacked the already injured front leg of the monster, cutting deep into his flesh through the wide crack in the metal plate.
Severely damaged, the leg wasn't able to support the weight of the giant creature anymore. It buckled, sending the demon reeling.
The demon attempted to compensate for the loss of another leg by shifting his body weight to the opposite side and thrusting his scythe into the ground to remain stable.
But just as the blade hooked into the ground, Scavy crashed into the flat side of the embedded scythe with all the force its wounded body could muster.
The demon lost its balance.
For a brief moment, time itself seemed to slow.
Then the towering monstrosity toppled.
Its colossal body slammed into the ashen earth with enough force to shake the entire battlefield, sending clouds of dust soaring into the air as violent tremors rippled across the ground.
Before the dust had even begun to settle, a silver-haired figure burst from within it.
Nephis soared upward before twisting gracefully in midair. In one smooth motion, she gripped the hilt of her longsword with both hands and aimed its point downward toward the fallen demon.
The demon still had yet to recover and the merciless descent of Changing Star was rapid.
Watching her plummet from above like a streak of silver light, Yoru could not help but feel a flicker of admiration.
A soft white radiance ignited beneath the skin of her hands. The white flame flowed outward, into the hilt of the silver sword, and then into its blade.
The sword suddenly turned into a sharp radiant edge, burning with incandescent white light.
Like a falling star, Nephis descended upon the collapsed giant.
The impact was almost blinding.
Then, her radiant blade collided with the strange alloy of the giant's lustrous armour… right at the spot where his heart was supposed to be.
.…With a flash of white light, the incandescent sword pierced through the metal of the demon's carapace and plunged into his body, unleashing a fury of fire inside the adamantine shell.
It seemed as though the giant was suddenly illuminated from within, with beams of light shining through the cracks in his armour.
Then, Changing Star's sword had reached the Carapace Demon's heart and sliced it apart, incinerating everything around it and making the azure blood of the fearsome creature boil and evaporate.
His arms slowly rose, as though trying to pull Nephis into a final embrace. But then, as his body twitched, they fell to the ground.
The proud guardian of the Ashen Barrow was dying.The scarlet light in his one remaining eye was dimming, any semblance of intelligence quickly disappearing from his gaze.
The demon heavily slumped, all remnants of strength abandoning his mighty body. Turning his head with incredible effort, he cast one last look on the great tree.
But soon enough, the last glimmer of light was gone from the eye of the Carapace Demon. His head rolled back and fell.
They won.
[Bear Your Tragedy]
Yoru ignored his flaw and slowly descended toward the ground, yet instead of feeling relieved or even victorious, only one thought occupied his mind.
During the entirety of that battle - which had lasted barely more than a minute - he had thrown exactly one spear that accomplished absolutely nothing.
So, in the end...
What the hell had he actually done?