Chereads / Antithesis of fate / Chapter 7 - Chapter six: Temple of nothing pt2

Chapter 7 - Chapter six: Temple of nothing pt2

Niko's eyes tracked the green waypoint ahead, flickering in the distance like some damn quest marker in an RPG. He couldn't help but roll his eyes. This island was starting to feel like a glitchy game he couldn't escape from. But no matter how bad it got, there was no reset button here. No do-over.

The ground under his boots softened, then became slick, almost like wet mud, except it wasn't wet—it was sticky, like the earth itself was clinging to him. The air grew hotter, oppressive, and the smell of sulfur began to linger in his nostrils. The trees above seemed to shrink, their branches curling inward like a clawed hand.

Then, without warning, everything shifted. The obelisk in the sky, the one closest to them, pulsed with a blinding light, its glow burning into the very fabric of the sky. The heavens seemed to tear, the clouds splitting apart in jagged lines like the rips of old fabric. The world didn't just change—it exploded into chaos, smooth but violent, like a wave crashing on a shore.

The ground beneath their feet groaned and trembled, as if the island itself was awakening. The earth shifted, cracking open in places, revealing an eerie red glow beneath the surface. Where solid earth had once been, now there were swamps, slick and black, bubbles rising from the muck like the island was exhaling something foul. Trees bent and twisted, their once-straight trunks now curling into grotesque shapes, as if reaching for them.

The air was thick with sulfur, stinging their lungs, and the temperature spiked—what had been an oppressive but bearable heat now felt like a furnace blast. It wasn't just the heat. The air itself was heavier, pressing down on their chests, suffocating. Even the sounds of the island changed. The usual jungle hum fell silent, replaced by the low groan of shifting stone and a distant rumble like the belly of some great beast stirring from its slumber.

Then the fog rolled in.

Niko started to choke, he grabbed at his throat than the air with his hands trying to grasp at fresh air that wasn't there. He felt light headed like he was going to pass out and never wake up again. He had to do something anything in order to survive. He didn't care about the man next to him; he didn't care about anything at that moment.

He needed to live!

Summoning his essence he turned into a shadow not needing to breathe he effectively saved himself from the fog. But he wouldn't be able to keep this up for long while the sun was up. Beating down on his will to live. 

Looking over he saw the man on the ground gasping. Niko thought the man was dumb for not having a way to escape from toxic air. Now he'd die and Niko won't know what to do next. He was too weak to live by himself. Sure he might be able to find him again but the chance is unlikely.

He had two options: stay in his shadow state in order to hope that the man gets up and would be able to get them out of the fog. Or leave him and pursue the temple of course Niko was already moving towards the objective; it made no sense to wait for some who MAY get up in time to rescue him. He rather die trying to escape than hiding waiting for someone else to save him, that's just the type of person he is.

He was currently at 35% of his essence capacity this means he could keep this up for four more hours most likely. Luckily his marker says his destination is three hours away. Picking up the pace he rushed through the swamp in his shadow form a small blob on the floor darting under wood and other things in the swamp.

One thing he was glad for was that the man had the decency of giving him equipment.

His weapons were actually equipped enough to deal with the enemies on this island. Turns out the trial was essentially placed on easy mode even though the trail was one of the hardest ones to get.

He never liked depending on others, but in this case, he had to admit: the man had done him a solid. It didn't make up for the crap he was being dragged through, but at least it wasn't a total waste.