The cave was silent save for the faint crackle of the dying embers, their light casting faint, quivering shadows across the jagged walls. Grey's breathing had evened out in his sleep, his body slack against the rock wall. The blanket Elsa had tossed him earlier lay loosely draped over his form.
But in the depths of his slumber, peace was an illusion.
The air was thick, suffocating, and every breath felt like inhaling shards of glass. Grey stood in a wasteland of ash and bone. The ground beneath him crunched and shifted, brittle fragments snapping with each hesitant step. A distant wind howled, a mournful cry that sent shivers crawling down his spine.
Crunch.
He froze, glancing down to see a fragmented skull beneath his boot, its hollow eye sockets staring up at him accusingly.
The wind grew louder, almost alive, carrying with it faint whispers that prickled at the edges of his consciousness. He tried to focus, to make sense of the voices, but the words slipped away like water through his fingers. The ground trembled beneath him, a low, rumbling groan that seemed to vibrate through his very bones.
Suddenly, he wasn't alone. Figures emerged from the fog, their silhouettes faint at first, then horrifyingly clear. They were people—at least, they once had been. Faces unfamiliar to him, twisted in agony, their bodies riddled with wounds too gruesome to comprehend.
One man staggered forward, his chest caved in, ribs jutting outward like jagged branches. His lips moved soundlessly, blood pouring from his mouth in thick, black streams. A woman crawled behind him, her eyes bulging unnaturally, veins bursting red as they rolled from their sockets and dangled grotesquely by thin, sinewy threads.
"Help us," their voices finally came, a chorus of distorted wails that reverberated in Grey's skull. "Save us!"
"Stop it!" Grey tried to yell, but no sound escaped his lips. His throat constricted, and his legs refused to move.
Then it happened.
A sharp whistle cut through the air, followed by a wet, bone-snapping crack. A massive, spear-like bone erupted from the ground, skewering the crawling woman and lifting her limp body into the air. Her limbs twitched spasmodically as blood poured down like a macabre fountain, pooling at Grey's feet.
Another snap, another thud. The man's body exploded, ribs shattering outward in a crimson spray, his torso collapsing in on itself. Their screams filled the air, piercing and raw, as one by one, the figures were torn apart, their shattered remains raining down like grotesque confetti.
The whispers turned into a deafening roar, the very ground splitting apart as an enormous skeletal hand clawed its way out from the abyss.
Grey stumbled backward, his chest heaving as he tried to process the monstrosity rising before him. The skeletal giant towered over the horizon, its hollow sockets burning with an ancient, malevolent light. Its bones gleamed unnaturally, slick with the blood of countless victims, each movement releasing a haunting creak.
Grey's knees buckled as the creature turned its gaze to him. A wave of despair crashed over him, dragging him to the ground. His head throbbed violently, the weight of the creature's presence crushing him. He tried to scream, but the sound lodged in his throat.
"What... what is that thing?" he managed to murmur, though no sound reached his ears.
The skeletal giant took a single step forward, and the ground beneath Grey crumbled. He fell to his knees, his fingers digging into the brittle earth. The blood began to rise, an endless ocean of crimson that swirled and churned with nightmarish fervor.
From the swirling tide, a figure emerged—a warrior clad in tattered armor, their long, flowing hair matted with gore. They stumbled forward, a gaping wound in their chest where a massive, jagged bone sword had pierced them. The blade jutted out, slick with viscera, pulsing faintly as if it were alive.
The warrior's eyes locked onto Grey's, dull and lifeless, yet brimming with an unspoken warning.
The whispers grew louder, forming coherent words now, though their meaning eluded him. "The price… the price must be paid."
Grey tried to crawl away as the blood surged higher, now reaching his chest. It was cold and thick, its metallic stench overpowering. His limbs grew heavier, his strength fading as the ocean swallowed him inch by inch.
The skeletal giant loomed closer, its jaw opening wide in a silent, soul-rending scream.
As the blood engulfed him completely, he felt it seep into his mouth, his lungs, choking him with its icy weight. The last thing he saw before he sank beneath the surface was the warrior, their lifeless body collapsing into the rising tide, the jagged sword still embedded in their chest.
Gasp!
Grey jolted awake, his chest heaving as he clawed at the blanket tangled around him. The dying embers of the fire offered faint light, casting jagged shadows that danced on the walls.
He pressed a trembling hand to his throat, his breaths shallow and rapid as if he were still drowning. Sweat clung to his skin, cold and clammy, as his golden eyes darted around the cave, searching for any sign of the nightmare's remnants.
There was nothing—only the faint crackle of the fire and Elsa's voice breaking the silence.
"You okay there, dreamer?" she asked, her tone light but tinged with curiosity. She sat up, her sharp eyes studying him from across the fire.
"Yeah," Grey managed, his voice rough. "Just a dream."
But even as the words left his lips, the vivid images of blood, bone, and despair refused to fade. The skeletal giant's hollow gaze lingered in his mind, a weight he couldn't shake.
He leaned back against the cave wall, his fingers unconsciously gripping the blanket as if to anchor himself. What the hell was that? he wondered, his heart still racing.
Sleep did not return to him that night.