h e r o

Air rushes by me like a tempest.

My body ricochets against the sides of the rock walls as I tuck my head and hands in toward my chest. Somehow, through the chaos and adrenaline, I hear the sound of the noctite crashing into the water below, breaking the surface tension of the water.

A moment later, an impact rolls through my body so fast and violent that it nearly knocks me unconscious, my body plummeting into a frigid lake.

Bubbles rush up past me; water floods my nasal cavities, burning with discomfort; the chill from the water instantly soaks through my clothes, causing my lungs to constrict; the sensory overload and pain sends my mind spiraling in chaos.

I open my eyes, but all I can see is a black abyss, save for the soft cerulean glow of noctite, gently descending to the bottom of the lake.

Now, drifting ever deeper into the depths of my would-be tomb, I begin to pump my limbs, swimming as quickly as I can away from the noctite. I know that I only have precious moments to maximize my chances of survival as oxygen rapidly drains from my body.

I can feel the frigid cold cutting into my muscles, slowing me, and I try my best to fight through it, swimming toward the surface, but as the last shimmers of light fade from view, replaced by a horrible and complete darkness, I can’t even tell which direction I’m swimming anymore.

I don’t know if I’m swimming up or down, away from the noctite or toward it.

I don’t know how deep I am in the water.

As a chill ripples along my already-freezing skin, an overwhelming dread begins to claw at me from the shadows.

An itch running through the marrow of my bones, causes me to turn.

And what I see…

Turns my muscles to stone.

Two eyes, staring at me, from far away.

Barely visible in the dark waters, they glow with an otherworldly light.

I have no idea what I’m looking at.

Only that it’s massive.

And that I stand absolutely no chance against it.

In the face of a Transcendant, I feel my body begin to shut down, as if offering itself up voluntarily.

A crippling cold envelops me like a abyssal curtain, and a darkness more empty than anything I’d ever felt before descends upon me. My consciousness begins to evaporate from my mind, my lungs straining against my chest, as I cling desperately to my last strand of hope.

A brilliant, emerald light pierces through the endless abyss.

And the world falls away.