Raelyn's breaths were ragged, every step forward feeling like a fight against the suffocating darkness. She could still hear the distant echoes of battle behind—the fierce clash of Luna's blade against the Butcher's monstrous cleaners. Her skin crawled at the thought of that grotesque creature, somehow returned, twisted even further beyond human recognition.
The tunnel twisted and turned, each corner feeling like a lifeline as Raelyn stumbled through, desperate to put distance between herself and the horror behind her. She didn't know where she was going; all that mattered was escape.
Her foot snagged on something thick and rope-like, nearly sending her sprawling forward. She looked down, and her stomach lurched. The ground beneath her wasn't just blood-soaked—it was covered in veins. Thick, pulsing veins, snaking across the floor and up the walls, radiating warmth like living flesh. They beat rhythmically, like a heartbeat, each pulse sending a shiver through the walls and floor around her.
Swallowing back a wave of nausea, Raelyn pressed forward, lifting her feet carefully to avoid the pulsing veins. Every step felt like a trespass into something's living body, each vein twitching underfoot as though aware of her presence.
Then, from the darkness ahead, a faint, shuffling sound drifted toward her. She froze, her breath catching in her throat. A sick;y yellow glow appeared, floating in the dark and Raelyn's heart skipped a beat as she recognized the shape—a single, massive eye, unblinking and bloodshot, starting straight at her.
Raelyn took a shaky step back, her heart pounding. The eye was attached to something large, something with arms that twitched and writhed as if pieced together from countless broken bodies. It crawled forward, each movement jerky and unnatural, the bones cracking and shifting as as dragging itself along the tunnel floor.
"No..." she whispered, feeling bile rise in her throat. It wasn't just an eye—dozens of them blinked open across its grotesque from, each eye swollen and bloodshot, tracking her every movement.
Raelyn stumbled back, her back hitting the wall as she tried to breathe, but the thick air felt like it was chocking her, sticking to her throat like oil. The creature slithered closer, dragged itself on twisted limbs, its eyes unblinking, locked onto her.
She heard a whisper. Soft at first, barely a murmur in the darkness, but it grew louder, a sickening chorus of voices chanting from the creature's twisted mouth, its words a garbled mess of agony and rage. The voices echoed in her min, each one speaking as if it knew her deepest fears, her darkest memories.
Why do you run?" the voices hissed in unison, a mocking edge to their tone. "Don't you know you can't escape?"
Raelyn's body shook, her fingers curling into fists. She pressed herself harder against the wall, feeling the flesh-like surface give slightly beneath her. The voices grew louder, drowning out everything else, an endless cacophony that burrowed into her mind like nails scratching at her sanity.
"stay with us," the voices cooed, the eyes all blinking in unison. "You belong here."
Her hands trembled, her vision blurring as she fought the urge to scream. She wanted to turn and run, but her body felt frozen, locked in place by the monstrous thing's gaze. Every nerve in her body screamed for her to move, but the fear rooted her to the spot, her heart hammering in her chest like a drum.
The, from the darkness behind her, a familiar voice ran out a—voice filled with strength and determination.
Raelyn!" Luna's voice was fierce, cutting through the whispers. "Get down!"
Raelyn dropped to the floor instinctively, just as a bright flash of silver cut through the air above her, slicing through the creature's monstrous form. Luna lunged forward, her blade glinting in the dim light as she struck with ruthless precision. Her expression was one of steely focus, her movements swift and unyielding as she drove the creature back.
The eyes shrieked, a chorus of wailing agony, as Luna's blade tore through the mass of writhing limbs and bloodshot gazes. The creature recoiled, its grotesque body convulsing as it slithered back into the darkness, its many eyes blinking in horror.
"Are you hurt?" Luna asked, pulling Raelyn to her feet.
Raelyn shook her hand, still trembling, but Luna's strong grip steadied her. The whispers in her mind faded, replaced by the comforting solidity of Luna's presences beside her.
"Let's keep moving," Luna murmured, her voice low but determined. She kept a firm hand on Raelyn's shoulder, guiding her through the twisting tunnel. "There's no stopping until we're out of this nightmare."
Raelyn nodded, her heart still racing, but with Luna by her side, a spark of hope flickered within her. Together, they pushed onward, their steps echoing in the dark as they ventured deeper into the horrors awaiting them beneath the blood moon.