[b]DAY 6: BLACKHEART – NEVER GIVE IN[/b]

Blackheart was in a completely hazy state. She felt numb and she had trouble connecting with her mind as if it had suddenly become an external part of her. She also couldn't see anything, everything was black, even though she could feel that she was blinking, but still, her eyes didn't register anything. She tried to move her feet, but they obeyed her just barely. Her body felt so heavy, it was like made of lead. What had happened to her? It was so hard to think… It was her willpower that wanted her to get going, but her body just wasn't on the same page. She could smell a weird musty scent, and although she didn't recognize it, she had a feeling that she was underground somewhere or in a badly ventilated building.

She had a strong sensation that she wasn't in a safe place. Her mind was slowly waking up and she tried to force it to work. What was her most recent memory? She had been out in a battlefield, together with her fellow Celestial Beasts. And they had spotted their enemy, the Nightstrikers… they had planned an attack against some major town on Earth. But she and her companions had ruined their plans and had forced the Nightstrikers to flee. But then… Blackheart struggled to remember… She never left that area. She lost her consciousness soon after she had made sure that the humans were fine and not in imminent danger. Something had hit her, hard, because everything after that was just blackness. 

Blackheart highly suspected that she had been captured by the Nightstrikers. Why they hadn't killed her already, she had a second guess. They wanted information from her. They would come to her sooner or later and try to squeeze the knowledge out of her. But no, she wasn't going to give them any piece of information that would help them to win this war. No matter what they would do, she wouldn't budge and they would be just wasting their time.

She was alone for a long while. Bit by bit she started to get back her consciousness and mobility. She had come to the conclusion that she was blindfolded and shackled as well. She had tested how much she was able to move and it turned out that she was greatly restrained. She could pretty much just lay there and wait for her captors to come. They probably wanted her to be completely awake, just so their torture methods would be more effective.

A horrible screech of a door made Blackheart's ears hurt. It was time. But she wasn't afraid or anxious, she would face whatever would come with pride and courage. She wasn't a general of Celestial Beasts for nothing.

A few soft steps came close to her. She could smell their distinctive odor of decay.

“It appears you are awake”, one of the Nightstrikers said with his dismal and emotionless voice.

Blackheart simply remained silent. There was no need to speak.

“Now that you have come to your senses, we would like to talk with you for a brief moment”, the same voice said. “We hope that you will decide to be cooperative. If not… well, then there are consequences.”

“You are wasting your time already”, Blackheart blurted out. “I will not tell you anything.”

There was a short moment of complete silence. “Well, that is unfortunate. Perhaps we need to convince you a little.”

Immediately something was struck at Blackheart's back, it felt like a spear but had a spiky tip that would shred flesh as it infiltrated deeper into the body. It was also unbearably cold, it was like it was freezing her insides. But she could endure the pain and probably the Nightstrikers noticed it as well. Another one of these objects hit her back as well, doubling the agony she felt. And as if they didn't cause enough suffering as they were, the Nightstrikers started to twist the blades so the spiky heads would tear apart her flesh from the inside. And yet, she didn't give her torturers the satisfaction of crying from pain.

Though they probably thought that this would make her talk, because the dismal voice said: “It would be wise to start working with us now. We can do worse.”

“Then bring out your worst”, Blackheart said defiantly.

Third one of those spear-like objects made its way to the flesh of her back. But this wasn't the only thing Nightstrikers did then, they also began to slash various parts of her body with burning hot blades. It was the combination of ice, fire and metal that tried to mutilate Blackheart's body. However, this still wasn't something that would break her. She did grunt a little, but still refused to yelp from the agony. Then something pierced her neck and it felt corrosive, it was melting her flesh. But it still didn't cause her to surrender.

But after a brief moment, Blackheart started to feel really weak. Perhaps there had been something toxic in the blade that had hit her neck, or maybe she had just lost too much blood. Her head hit the ground, she could feel her consciousness fading again. Slowly she was slipping into a state of numbness, all the pain just diminished into oblivion. She felt nothing and her awareness faded to black.

For now, she was safe from the torture. But Nightstrikers would be back again, this time only more merciless.



[b]DAY 7: THE CROW – TIME TO FEAST[/b]

It had been one of the longest days in ages. Somehow it felt like it had been going on forever as if the undead sun had been crawling across the sky and scorched everything in the world below just out of frustration. This sort of hot and endless day brought misery to a lot of the poor wretches in this world, but to some of the common ones it had been a blessing, mostly because night time was the most dangerous phase of the day. Insanity gained strength from darkness and the madness of the moon. And in general, when the sun was up in the sky, it was the time of humans. But whenever the world was wrapped in darkness, it was the time of beasts and monsters. Humans had to hide so they could live to see another day.

Two women were walking near a crumbled town. They were very nervous, glancing all around them and took a fright of every moving shadow. Just a little while ago they had seen how an unnaturally large man had butchered someone and had started eating him while he was still alive. They had left the scene as fast as possible, but were still very shaken about the gruesome incident they had witnessed. Just like everybody else, they had just got lost into this nightmarish land, having no clue how everything worked around here. Doom would claim those who didn't learn the rules fast enough and unfortunately, such seemed to be the fate of these women.

The world around them was almost completely silent. A horrendously howling wind was singing to them about despair and macabre plays that had taken place here recently and if only the women could understand the winds, they would learn that they were marching into a tragedy. They hadn't seen anyone around for a good while, so they probably thought they were somewhat safe. As they entered the crumbled town, their fate was sealed. This was the territory of someone who didn't like it when people would wander into her domain. And she was well aware of the intruders as soon as they had set a foot on the crumbled town.

The Crow was in her usual place, sitting on a broken pillar at the town square. Through the eyes of her undead crows she could see how the two women were walking among the corpses of buildings that had suffered a great calamity a long time ago. Her little helpers had scattered all around the area to keep an eye on every living thing that had the nerve to walk through her territory. The Crow managed to follow the journey of the women all the way as they infiltrated deeper into her town. Eventually they would make their way to the town square where The Crow was waiting for them. The women had stopped at the border of the town square and looked nervously around, their gazes examining all the messed-up pavement, dead trees and the broken pillar, then noticing the tall woman who was sitting on top of that half of the pillar that was still standing.

And The Crow stared at them judgingly. These two were intruders and hadn't brought her any offering. Therefore, they had no right to leave unscathed. Her stare was cold as ice, however the women couldn't see that because of the crow mask that hid half of her face. But they were aware that something bad was about to happen as undead crows began to gather on the branches of the dead trees behind The Crow. She made a sudden and sharp motion with her arm and right away, the undead birds took a flight and cawed ear-piercingly, flying towards the two women that turned around and attempted to run away.

The women were fast, but the birds were faster. Soon they would feel a wave of sharp beaks pecking various parts of their bodies and they were flailing desperately with their hands to defend themselves. Both of them were unfortunate and tripped on the rocks as they couldn't see properly because of the blur of feathers, beaks and bare bones. Without mercy, the crows started to gather on top of their bodies and their beaks would pierce every part of their bodies, it felt like they were being stabbed by hundreds of knives. Their eyes were poked out, making the women scream horribly from the pain and the birds were inflicting deep wounds everywhere. Sometimes they would bite and take out shreds of flesh and then the rest would insert their beaks on those wounds and make them deeper. Blood was spilling on the dry ground and the agonizing moments of the women would just go on and on – because nothing is allowed to die in this world.

After this moment of torment had continued for a while, The Crow, who had just been observing this torture from afar, decided to glide down. With calm and slow steps, she walked to the victims of her crows. And the birds stopped pecking for a moment, allowing their master to reach the women. Once she was by their side, she turned their bodies over, exposing their front side. The Crow prepared the sharp claws on her hands and she struck her hands inside the ribcages of the women. Her hands dug deeper and deeper all the way until she reached their hearts and violently, she yanked them out of their bodies. Still beating hearts rested on her hands, but then she gobbled them up, devouring them with just a few bites and the blood dyed her lips red. She licked her lips and then returned to her pillar while the crows then resumed to torture the women by stabbing and shredding with their beaks, eating pieces of meat from here and there, feasting on the women while they were still alive and painfully aware of it.



[b]DAY 8: VORGAARN – MAD MOON[/b]

The beast wanted out, Vorgaarn could feel it. There was still daylight left, but he had this strange sensation in his soul; the monster inside him was feeling wild and ferocious. It just wanted to kill and maul everything on its path. And somehow it felt more vicious than usual, Vorgaarn couldn't really remember cases when he had started to feel the beast to awaken during daytime. This worried him, maybe even was disgusted with himself. It's not like it was his fault, it was a curse that he couldn't break. He had tried to contain the beast within in the past, but very unsuccessfully, as he had learned soon after. No matter how much he would try to prepare for the full moon, every sense in him would shatter for the night, that's just how it was. Only by dawn he would get his awareness back when the beast would go to slumber, gathering strength for another hunt during the full moon.

Unfortunately, he had gotten close to a settlement. It was a painful thing to note, because he knew that he would hunt in the streets tonight, and he could do nothing about it. But he still tried to make as much distance as he could, walking away from the town. And all the while, the wolf was getting impatient, waiting for the silvery moon to initiate the transformation.

The daylight was diminishing away faster than Vorgaarn would like. The last rays of the sun had started to disappear and the shadows were growing stronger. It wouldn't take long before the night would arrive. Vorgaarn tried his best to keep moving, though he was feeling exhausted. He didn't want to hurt anybody, he was desperately trying his best to keep the townsfolk safe from the beast. He could only go as far as possible and hope that signs of wild life around here would keep the beast distracted enough.

Inevitably came the moment he had dreaded. The world around him got veiled in darkness and then came the moon that would bless the beasts. As soon as its light shone on Vorgaarn, he began to transform. He bent on all fours, his anatomy started to shift. His nails became horrific claws, a thick fur covered his body and it would protect him from blades of all kinds. His face turned into a wolf's head and as soon as this part was complete, he raised his head and howled at the great moon. Vorgaarn was eager to seek for prey and despite his best efforts at his human form, he would now head to the town to hunt.

The streets of the town were quiet and devoid of human presence when the wolf came to the town. There was just a stray cat coming his way, however it did flee as soon as it saw the huge beast. And Vorgaarn didn't really care about it, for he wanted something larger than a small animal. He dashed through the streets in the light of a few lamps that were still giving out light. He wandered around for a good while, not encountering any of the denizens. His thirst for blood only got stronger and he wanted it now. So, if there was no one around outside, he had to come get them inside. He could hear loud noises inside some tavern, drunken singing and just noisy chattering. Those poor bastards had just given themselves away to a beast and the wolf didn't waste any time, he started to break down the door with his monstrous strength; splinters of wood were scattering all around and soon Vorgaarn was able to infiltrate the building while the people there were still trying to realize what was happening.

It was total chaos. Drunken men were no match for the beast that roared ear-piercingly and was just a blur of claws and teeth. Blood was gushing everywhere in the dim hall as the wolf was tearing apart every individual he could reach, his claws making deep lacerations on their bodies. No one had weapons, no one knew how to defend themselves against a mad beast like him. He just ripped everyone apart, it was a complete massacre, the screams of death and agony filled the cramped place. No one was able to escape and, in the end, just blood and mangled corpses remained. But the beast wasn't still satisfied, he once again ran out into the streets to kill some more.

Perhaps the moon's glow was causing madness to thrive in the beast's murderous mind. Vorgaarn intruded into many other houses by shattering the doorways and then hunting out all the people he could find. He would spill their guts by slashing the stomachs open, crush their skulls with his powerful jaws and tear apart the limbs. No one was spared. Death and fear conquered the little town that night as the mad beast rampaged around it, killing anyone he came across.

It wasn't until the sky started to show signs of sun coming to take its place again when the wolf ran out of the massacred town. Few survivors were left behind, terror still in their hearts. They didn't come out until the golden rays of the sun hit the windows of their homes. That was when they dared to venture out, looking around with horrified faces. They were feeling anxious to go and investigate who were still alive and also a question was burning in their minds: will the ravaging beast come back again and finish what he had started?



[b]DAY 9: MARIVANA – CURSE OF DECAY[/b]

It felt like that just a moment ago there had been sunlight illuminating the world, a pleasant breeze that played with your hair and singing of the birds that calmed your soul. And now, suddenly the land was dark, the winds were cold and cruel and wanted to bite you and there were no signs of natural animals. Marivana knew the reason for this, it just happened to be one of the peculiarities of Perfect World. She had just stepped from the verdant and beautiful lands of Winged Elves to the Black Mountain, its name was quite fitting because this region was lacking even the tiniest amount of sunlight. Black Mountain was a cursed, barren and miserable place, but there was one settlement resting at the center of the great hills, known as Tusk Town. It was the place where Humans, Winged Elves and Untamed had banished their criminals. Marivana thought that she didn't have business in that remote town, but then happened something that changed her mind.

Marivana was carrying an important letter from the Elder of Archosaur to Elder Huo in Whetstone Keep. It wasn't urgent, but it would still be desirable that it would get to the hands of Elder Huo as soon as possible. Marivana had kept a steady pace and she hadn't been bothered by monsters or Wraiths during this journey, but as she made her way to Black Mountain, she became more aware of her surroundings. This was a well-known place for Wraiths to attack travelers, so she was keeping an eye for any sort of movement, no matter if it was just as small and insignificant as a sway of a branch in a tree. And luckily, the terrain was so barren that there weren't many places to use as hideouts. But Wraiths were cunning creatures and they shouldn't be underestimated.

Suddenly she felt how the winds became more violent and blasted at her with remarkable strength. It was almost like a warning of some kind, there was something strange about the atmosphere. Marivana turned her head to see behind her, but saw no one. Then she glanced all around her, and still, she didn't spot any other creatures. She even looked up in the sky, but there were just heavy clouds hanging low. She got a weird feeling and stayed more vigilant from that point on. Black Mountain creeped her out a little bit and it would be great to get past it as quickly and uneventfully as possible.

Then Marivana saw something odd. She stopped to observe it. Something was moving ahead of her; it was probably a creature of some kind. Its presence was fluctuating, for a few seconds it would be visible and then suddenly it would get almost concealed. A horrid stench was following it, even from such a distance away Marivana could smell a rotten, disgusting odor that followed it. Was it a Wraith? Marivana got a feeling that this being wasn't a kind one. She took a hold of her twin blades, ready for an attack.

The being noticed her. It stopped on its tracks as well and began to examine her with its gaze, estimating her strength. Then its form became completely visible. It was repulsive to look at. Its anatomy resembled a humanoid being and it had dark clothing concealing its body. But what made it so revolting was the fact that on some parts of the body it had rotten flesh and fungi-like growth sticking out. Half of its face was covered by a mask, and so its red eyes could be seen gleaming.

Marivana didn't give more time to prepare. She dashed at her foe, her blades ready to slash. She swung her weapons with skill, but the creature was surprisingly fast and agile. It evaded her attacks easily, almost in a taunting way. Learning that her enemy was a really swift one, she started to put more effort into the combat. She tried to strike more accurately, and for a bit, it seemed to work as the creature started to have trouble with her attacks and she did manage to get one slash in; one of the being's growths burst open and stinky blood got splattered on the ground. And for a while, it seemed like Marivana was having the upper hand.

But then the creature managed to make such a strike that it immobilized Marivana right at that second. It had suddenly taken a grasp of the woman's neck, its sharp red claws digging into her flesh. For some reason this made Marivana lose the control of her body almost entirely, she dropped her weapons and could only wait for whatever the being was planning to do. The claws punctured her skin, causing her to bleed. The creature slowly removed the cloth that had masked its face and revealed an insect-like mouth. Then it brought its hideous face close to Marivana's and blew a disgusting green cloud at her. It made her gag horribly and tears formed in her eyes. Then the creature just dropped her, just left her there and turned away from her, soon vanishing completely. Marivana couldn't do anything for a while, other than trying to breath in fresh air as much as possible.

Then she vomited. And to her horror, there was quite a lot of blood in it. But that wasn't the only bad thing happening to her as she soon realized. Something was pulsating in her hands, something under her skin wanted out. And in an instant, fungi-like tumors burst out and not only from her hands, but from other various places in her body as well; chest, neck, face, stomach, legs… She was bleeding as more and more of those growths burst out and she could only watch in horror what was happening to her body. She screamed in horror and in a frenzy, she tried to tear them out, but more just kept coming. She discovered that she couldn't really do anything about them, she needed help. So she stood up and picked up her twin blades and began to run along the road, praying in her mind that someone in Tusk Town would know how to help her.

It was a race against time, for she wasn't sure if she would make it to the town before the curse would take over her body entirely.



[b]DAY 10: WITHERED – ESCAPE ROPE[/b]

The woods were veiled in a complete darkness, just like they always were. Ever since Shadow Lord had taken over, there had been nothing but perpetual darkness and madness, which was understandable because these were the only things that constructed the fragile mind of Shadow Lord. They were the things he held close to his wicked heart and the forest pretty much reflected his desires. This patch of land was a trap, if you were unfortunate enough to get lost in this dark forest, you were imprisoned, there was no way out of here. And Shadow Lord's madness would gradually make you lose your sanity and you would become just one of the wretches that were stuck in the woods, being just the husk of the person you used to be.

Withered was one of the forest's victims. He just got lost in the woods, only to realize later that he couldn't find a way out. No matter which direction he took, there was nothing but the same woodlands all over again and he could have sworn that the forest was playing with his mind and making him wander the same places time and time again. It had made him anxious and desperate, but he never managed to get out before he started to lose his sanity. Bit by bit the forest's mad energy got into him – he was just a simple bird – and he turned into a mutated and insane creature that used to be a pheasant. And now he roamed these woods, not really being aware anymore what he was doing or what his purpose was.

And it was inevitable that occasionally Withered would meet others who had got lost just like he was. Some were those who had just entered the forest and some were those that had been here for a while. He was unable to feel fear anymore so even if he came upon a predatory beast, he would just sing a song and be just a nuisance. He was also a master at managing to slip away from the dreadful jaws and claws right before they would sink in his flesh. That's how he had managed to survive so far.

And one day – or night, it was hard to tell – he met a rat. And this rat gave him a gift: it was a rope.

“Use this and you can escape from this forest”, the rat had told him before their ways separated.

The rat had sad little eyes, Withered could tell that he felt sorry for him for some reason. But soon his mind was occupied by something else and he forgot about the rodent almost completely. The rope was hanging from his neck and he was weirdly enthralled by it. He thought that it was a magic rope that could take him away from this place, he just didn't know how to awaken its powers. He wandered around for a while, just feeling like that the rope was a great treasure he had a hold of.

Some time passed, more or less, and Withered came upon a large dead tree. He probably had passed it many times before, but for some reason, this time it piqued his interest. This was the largest tree in the forest and it was completely black and dead. Its tall figure felt threatening somehow, it was an entity that had seen death and agony and would stand tall even if the rest of the woods would be cleared out. Withered looked at the ominous branches that were like bony fingers. Then his gaze shifted at the rope on his neck and something clicked in his simple bird brain. He wafted up on one of the branches and looked around for a bit.

Then Withered began to mess around with his rope. He tried to get it entangled into the twigs as well and tightly as he could. Once he was done with this task, he admired his own work. He knew now how the rope functioned. It would truly give him the only way out of Shadow Lord's land.

And just like that, he hopped off the branch, fell for a second before the rope stopped him. A strong twitch happened and it broke Withered's neck with a disgusting cracking sound. His little body was left hanging from the tree and even in death he still had a mad expression on his face.

There he would stay and rot, and the black tree would take care of him.

But at least he was finally free.