Warrior of the Void Book 1, Chapter 36

–A new home for ourselves. With the feasting horde washing over our once-home we had no choice but to leave.

How long it has taken us to find this retreat, none of us know… 

It is a castle, made in the style of ████. It stands on the edges of the Wretch’s territory, sparing us its predation… For the time at least. The land it stands on is ravaged and rent, but remains solid. ⛋❖◈◈ tells us there is no need to worry about it crumbling down on us and killing us all…

⋈⧪ of ⧬⧬⧕

What horrors have become of us, I wonder. With every day, the foul light that basks the land further twists my companions. ⛋❖◈◈’s mouth is overgrown with fangs– he tries to hide this deformity from me with a mask cut from the curtains, but I see them! I hear how they grind and scrape when he speaks!

⛛⬩🞗🞗🞚 and ◬◭◮⧨ are changing too! They’re slowly taking the shapes of beasts, I know it! Their change is merely delayed by their cowardice. They do not brave the outside like ⛋❖◈◈ does in search of food and sustenance. They stay in, trying to ‘keep things under control’ and ‘reassure’ the people that share the castle grounds with us…

But I see their looks, their HUNGER! It is in their gaze, all of them! ⛋❖◈◈, ⛛⬩🞗🞗🞚, ◬◭◮⧨, the rest of the refugees–! They want to eat, and…–

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‘ I am the meal. For I have not changed–’ 

Before Muur could look into the diary much deeper, a sound from right beyond the door caught her off guard. Specifically, the sound of something sharp and deadly tapping along the wall– at a cadence that she could only describe as ‘deeply frustrated’, each tap lingering just long enough to produce a faint, teeth-grinding echo.

“Himiko?” Muur asked before her brain could catch up with her mouth, recognizing the sound of the bird-woman’s knife-fingers.

The sound near immediately cut out, leaving Muur in complete silence for a few seconds, before something began tapping away at the wall. Where the previous noise had sounded annoyed at the very least, these taps were confused. Like whoever was responsible for them was trying to feel around in the dark for something that wasn’t there.

The door must have been hidden on the other side – which would have fit in with this bargain bin Resident Evil mansion – because Himiko, if it really was her, passed by it twice as her taps moved along the wall.

Unfortunately for the bird-creature, as much as Muur liked to flirt with her, she wasn’t keen on being an idiot and opening the door. Staying in the, so far, safe room away from soul-eating monsters was very much fine by her. Especially since she still had that bed to check up properly…

“You look… unrested,” Algar said as he sat down in front of Muur during breakfast, in full wargear and sporting designer eyebags, “I hope you don’t mind if I sit here?”

“And you look like you have gone three days without sleep.” The lizard woman snorted, waving at him to go ahead. “Want to talk about it?”

“Night exercise,” He grumbled, fumbling with his gauntlets before giving up on taking them off with a sigh and grabbing his bowl of soup, “Joint exercise. The Void Hunters and us, the Black Blades on one side. With the Brass Blades and the Stone Torches facing us. It was a disaster.”

“My only question is how the yells didn’t wake me up.” Muur muttered, she didn’t know who the Stone Torches were, but the Brass Blades hadn’t exactly endeared themselves to her. 

“The Immortal Flames allow other military forces to use their training fields for this sort of exercises,” Pausing long enough to drink some soup and tear into a loaf of white bread, the man sighed, “It was the single most embarrassing circus I have seen in my entire life. Each group was to attempt to achieve objectives, specifically taking and holding landmarks and… The Brass and Stone lost. Badly, eleven and twenty four points, to our sixty-four.”

“And I’m completely certain they took this with grace and professionalism as a sign they need to train more.” Muur drawled sarcastically, loading her plate with some more honeyed vilekin meat. Giant bugs were damn good eating, as it turned out.

Poor Algar gave her a look, the food in his mouth the only thing that stopped him from grumbling, “Oh, they did. Even begged us to show how ‘they could begin to approach our excellence’,” He mumbled after swallowing his food and putting down his bowl, “The operation was meant to last all night. But they bungled it up with such abject skill that we were done far before the planned hour. Meaning that we had the honour of being drilled for the rest of the night, while the Brass and Stone sat on their thumbs, gawking at us like starry eyed kits.”

“Astounding.” Muur snorted, patting the poor man on the shoulder.

“I only hope that this is where it will end,” He sighed one last time before getting up, “But Twins know that bruised egos aren’t likely to let this rest. In any case, I wish you a happier day than mine.”