The coral-like creature's face slowly morphed, its once featureless surface shifting into something similar to a human face. A mouth tore open down the middle, jagged and trembling, followed by two sunken pits forming where eyes should be.
The face was crude and wrong, twisted into a constant sob. Then, thick black tears began to spill from the empty sockets, flooding down its ridged surface like tar.
River's expression froze. A cold, invisible hand clenched around his chest.
He swallowed hard, but the dryness in his throat refused to budge, scraping against his nerves like sandpaper. His mind went blank as terror seeped into his bones, turning his limbs to stone and his thoughts to ash.
How long had it been watching them? Minutes? Hours? The thought curled like smoke in the back of his mind, impossible to grasp but suffocating all the same. Why was it watching them? What did it want? Why was it crying? Was it even real?
As if reading his thoughts, the creature vanished behind the tree without a sound, slipping from view so completely it was as if it had never been there at all.
And… according to his Seismic Sense, it really wasn't there.
River waited and held his breath, reaching deeper into the earth with his power. His awareness bloomed outward in a pulse, flooding the ground beneath and around him as he tapped the ground with his foot. Every detail lit up in his mind, giving him a clear view of his surroundings. And yet, there was nothing there. Nothing had ever been there to begin with.
Still uneasy, River didn't fully trust what his Seismic Sense was telling him. The image of the coral figure still burned behind his eyes, so it had to exist. Nothing else made sense. With a sense of caution, he slowly pushed himself up to his feet and summoned Viper's Lament. Then, he moved toward the coral tree with slow, deliberate steps, eyes locked on the spot where the figure had been.
Iris furrowed her brows, watching him with a puzzled expression. "What are you doing?" she asked, but he didn't answer.
He halted a few steps from the coral tree, one hand resting on the hilt of Viper's Lament as his eyes swept the area. Every instinct urged caution, but as he edged around the trunk, checking every angle, every shadow–
Nothing.
Wherever he looked, the result was the same: absolute emptiness. It was like the figure had never existed at all.
So what the hell had he seen?
A figment of his imagination? A hallucination? Had the Dream Realm finally sunk its claws into his mind, warping what was real and what wasn't?
It just didn't make sense.
Then, without warning, a hand settled on River's shoulder. His body tensed instantly, his instincts flaring in shock. He spun around, breath caught in his throat—only to find Iris standing behind him, her brow furrowed with concern.
He hadn't even sensed her approach. That wasn't like him. What the hell was happening to him?
"River," she said softly, her voice laced with confusion, "is something wrong?"
River stared at her, his heart still hammering. He opened his mouth, but no words came out at first. The words tangled before they could form, caught somewhere between disbelief and confusion. He didn't even know how to explain what he saw.
"I'm not sure." River finally said, his voice low. "I thought I saw something."
Iris's eyes narrowed. "Like what?"
He glanced back at the coral-like tree. "At first, I thought I was looking at a strange piece of coral… before it blinked at me. Then, it slowly developed more facial features until it began crying. And in an instant, it was gone."
Iris looked at him for a long moment, the flicker of unease passing through her expression. "And you're sure it wasn't—"
"I checked. I couldn't find anything."
Her mouth pressed into a thin line. "We should still check to make sure."
River ran a hand through his hair, the feeling of those empty eye sockets still seared into his mind. "Yeah…." He knew she was right, but something about the creature or whatever it was made him uneasy. It made his skin crawl. And more than that, it made him feel guilty.
He felt personally responsible for the tears flowing out of the socket, but he couldn't understand why.
'Is it because it reminded me of my Grandma?'
He wasn't sure, but whatever it was about it that was making him feel this way, he wanted nothing to do with it.
***
River let out a quiet sigh of relief as the cliff finally faded into the distance behind them. Nearly half an hour had passed since they left, and despite checking again and again, they hadn't found anything. Just him and Iris, alone on that barren ledge. That fact only unnerved him more. Still, with daylight fading, they couldn't afford to linger. So they left, putting the whole situation behind them.
Or at least, he tried to.
Despite his best efforts, River couldn't shake the feeling of being watched. The feeling lingered just beneath his skin, like an itch he couldn't scratch. It got to the point where every so often, he glanced over his shoulder, eyes scanning his surroundings, searching for where the feeling could come from. Yet, the fact that nothing was ever there was driving him slightly mad, not that he would ever admit it.
"Was that the last one?" Iris asked, wiping some blood from her cheek as she glanced around.
"Yeah," River said, scanning the horizon one last time. "From what I can tell, there's nothing near us for now. So we can take a quick break."
Iris let out a breath, stretching her arms above her head. "You know… I never really asked how you're so good at detecting Nightmare Creatures."
"It's part of my aspect," River replied without hesitation, crouching near a patch of flattened coral. "I can pick up on heat signatures using Glacial Veil."
The explanation slipped out smoothly, a cover story he'd made shortly after he first got Seismic Sense to hide the truth. It wasn't that he didn't trust Iris—he did, more than most—but not enough to lay everything bare. Some things were better left off as a secret.
Then, yet again, a shiver crawled up River's spine.
He turned his head.
And there it was.
Just barely within view, far off among the coral blades, the face stared at him. Its crimson shape is nestled between the scarlet and black earth. Its tears burst out of its sunken, empty eyes as it slowly reached its hand out toward him.
River froze.
Iris didn't notice. She kept talking about how useful his ability was, unaware of what had pulled his attention.
He blinked. Then, it was gone.
His chest tightened, but he said nothing. It was all in his head. He just needed to focus on the journey ahead of him. It wasn't real. And with a deep breath, he turned back to Iris.
"Actually, we need to move soon. Something stirred up the creatures nearby, and they're heading this way," River said, doing his best to keep his voice steady as he crouched beside the scavenger's corpse, quickly harvesting what he could. He did his best to avoid staring at Iris as he did so, not wanting his body language to convey his fear.
Iris pushed herself to her feet with a tired groan. "Seriously? It's like this place goes out of its way to make sure we never get a break."
"Yeah… it does, doesn't it?" River muttered as he turned away from her as he sensed the best available path for them to take. He wanted to get out of there as soon as possible.
With the path in mind, they quickly shattered the soul shards before departing further north. They walked for nearly ten minutes before stopping.
"Iris. Two signatures ahead," he said quietly. "Scavengers. A pair of them. They've burrowed underground. I think they might be injured."
"How bad?"
"Not that bad," River muttered, narrowing his eyes. "I can't tell specifically, but they'll probably still be able to put up a fight."
Iris lowered herself beside a jagged ridge of dead coral. "You think they'll notice us coming?"
"Probably. But that's what we want." River said as he crouched low, placing a hand on the ground as he judged the terrain's layout. The scavengers were about ten meters away from them, near a few coral trees and a few large stones. If they were smart about it, they could lure the two scavengers out and take them out before they even realized it.
"Here's the plan, I'll point out the area where the Scavengers are burrowed and you'll lure them out by causing noise. I'll lie in wait behind them and take one out before it can react. Then, we'll both attack the last scavenger together."
Iris raised her eyebrow. "So I'm the bait, huh?"
"I'm sure you'll survive… probably." River said, keeping his voice light.
Iris gave him a flat look. "Wow. It's comforting to know how much faith you have in me."
River smirked but said nothing, the glint in his eyes enough of a response. After a few quiet moments spent finalizing the plan, they split—River slipping into position while Iris began her slow, careful approach toward the scavengers.
A quiet breath escaped him. "I vow to end this quickly," he murmured under his breath, feeling a surge of strength building up in his legs. He kept low, every nerve tuned to the vibrations pulsing beneath the ground, tracking Iris's movements as she crept into position.
Seconds passed. Then, a faint scrape of stone, the deliberate crunch of her boot against the coral.
It was subtle but enough.
The earth stirred. One scavenger burst from the blackened soil, followed quickly by a second as their massive bodies lurched out of the ground. With them out of the ground, River lunged forward, the earth cracking slightly beneath his feet.
He closed the distance in an instant, leaping into the air as he positioned his blade perfectly to kill one of the scavengers in a singular blow. Yet, just as he was about to stab the blade into the back of his head, he saw it.
Wedged behind a coral blade right next to him, the face waited, its hollow sockets locked inches from his own. The tar-thick tears streamed endlessly down its surface, pooling at the base of the coral-like oil. Its mouth hung open in a jagged, gaping sob as if River had personally wronged it. And worst of all, its cracked and blistered hand with black coral growth reached for him with trembling fingers just short of his skin.
A sick twist of guilt struck deep in his gut.
And with it, his blade hesitated.
The strike veered at the last second, carving itself into the scavenger's shoulder as it knocked it slightly off-balance, a splash of dark ichor bursting from the wound. The creature shrieked and thrashed, stumbling sideways as it dug its pincers into the dirt.
River landed heavily, knees bending to absorb the impact, his breath caught tight in his chest. His heart hammered fiercely, each beat weighed down by an unbearable sorrow. Tears welled up, blurring his vision as a crushing wave of guilt settled deep in his bones, making it hard to breathe or think clearly.
'I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I'm sorry.'
He couldn't understand what he was apologizing for, but his mind wouldn't stop. It was as if his mind wasn't his own, feeling emotions that he'd never felt before. And before he could force the words away, a sudden, brutal force slammed into him. Pain exploded through his side as he was flung backward, crashing hard against the jagged coral blades. The air whooshed from his lungs, and his body skidded across the rough ground before coming to a heavy, shuddering halt.
But with the pain came a jarring flash of clarity. The words echoed sharply in his mind: Faded Promise. The moment the thought took hold, he forced the memory to slip away, quickly de-summoning it. The second it was gone, it was as if a weight was taken off his shoulders, the strange sense of guilt slowly fading away.
But there was no time to linger on the fleeting clarity. The scavenger lunged again, pincers flashing with deadly intent. River's body moved on instinct; with a sharp pivot, he narrowly dodged the blow. He stepped back slightly, putting just enough distance for him to regain his bearings. His breath steadied for a moment as he sized up his opponent, then surged forward with renewed focus, ready to engage once more.
'I won't miss again, you bastard.'
This time, River didn't hesitate. With the speed from the Memory still coursing through his body, he dodged its blow yet again, aiming for the scavenger's exposed underbelly. His blade sliced clean through the chitinous armor, eliciting a guttural screech from the beast.
The scavenger staggered, its movement faltering as dark ichor spilled from the wound. River pressed the advantage, closing the distance and unleashing a flurry of precise blows, each one sharper and surer than the last. The creature's mental and physical defenses crumbled under the assault.
Finally, with a powerful thrust, River drove his blade deep into its mouth, silencing the scavenger for good. He stood over its twitching form as he turned to look towards where Nyx was fighting. She ended the battle quicker than he had, as she harvested the soul shard with ease.
With the scavengers finally dead, River let himself collapse onto the ground. His breath came in ragged bursts, his body trembling from the blow he'd taken, though the worst of it had been absorbed by his armor. Pain still pulsed along his ribs, but nothing felt broken—just bruised and burning. He'd walk again soon enough, especially with Iris's healing memory to help.
A moment later, he felt the strength from the memory begin to slip away. The vow had been fulfilled. That was when the pieces started to fall into place.
'The hallucinations started after I summoned the Memory.'
A bitter taste crawled into his mouth. He couldn't understand why he hadn't realized it sooner. It was so obvious in hindsight that the enchantment specifically mentioned flooding him with emotions and memories. But then again… maybe that was the point. Maybe distracted him from realizing that it was the root cause of the hallucinations by flooding him with guilt and paranoia.
But what was the point of it distracting him from the truth? What was it trying to tell him? He didn't believe the Memory had been trying to sabotage him; there had to be a purpose behind the Spell giving it to him. Some message buried beneath the misdirection.
But then, a sharper thought cut through the haze.
'Wait… was this even something that the Spell gave me?' River felt a strange feeling of revelation formulating in his mind. What if the item itself wasn't created by the Spell but instead by someone else? If so, who created it and why? Was there some deeper purpose behind the emotions being stored in the Memory? Was getting the Memory even accidental?
River felt the pull of a spiraling conspiracy in his mind and forced himself to stop. If he truly wanted to understand the Memory's purpose, he'd have to keep wearing it and subjecting himself to the memories inside it.
But was it worth it? He wasn't sure he wanted to endure the weight of those emotions again. Still, if he wanted answers, this was the only path forward.
He closed his eyes as he lay his back against the jagged ground, his breath steadying. "Shit…" he muttered, the thought of putting the Memory back weighing heavily on him. The itch of curiosity still gnawed at his mind, but for now, he wasn't going to use it unless absolutely necessary. He needed a break to clear the fog clouding his thoughts.
Just as he let himself settle, a low rumble stirred beneath his feet. The ground trembled faintly as though it was murmuring to him. River's eyes snapped open, his heart tightening as he stared up into the sky.
Above him, dark storm clouds gathered fast, slowly beginning to blot out the sun. Then, a single droplet of rain plummeted from the sky, landing with a cold splash against the cracked earth just inches from the River.
He stared at the droplet for a few seconds. "Motherfuc-"