Silhouettes
1894 Words
“With all grace of Artemian Planas, I hereby lend you some of my power. Do not fear. Grasp this power,” he focused his palms on us.
Shards of light shot towards us like shooting stars. Burning desire filled my heart and mind as it landed on my body. I instinctively gathered my teammate’s hands. They both gave me a puzzled look. I focused this overwhelming energy onto them. It flowed out like a river.
We began humming a single tune. The sound flowed around us like a chorus. Soon, angelic voices accompanied us. We kept on singing until balls of fire and ice broke through the shrouded sky. Some streaks of morning light peered from the holes above.
The beasts ran amok on the land while quarreling with their own heads. I swung my sword at some of them. It surprised me as to how easily they came off. Oozing grayish silver liquid flowed out of their necks. Their bodies slowly diminished into a thin fabric.
Vampire hopped on my back without warning. I did not sign up to be a human springboard. He flew to his enemies gracefully. He swung around their necks like that one move in a famous fighting game, except their necks came off.
Kun bashed his bombs into some of their heads, exploding upon impact. On others, he choked his enemies with explosives. The bodies dispersed large viscera accompanied by grayish silver liquid. Kun raised his thumb at me.
“MORTALITY!” a dark male voice notified us from above, “RockCoonCoon Wins!”
“What is wrong with this game?” My mind was boggled.
“I don’t know, man. It’s weird, but it works,” Kun replied.
“Ooh, can your sword do that thing?” Vampire chimed in.
“What thing?”
“You know, that thing when it expands into a whip or breaks into pieces which bites the enemy.”
“Ahh, were you referring to Soul Fighters Calibrator EX? That is one of my favorites.”
“Same here,” Kun joined in.
“Hey, when this is all over, come over to my house and let’s see who is the strongest fighter.”
“Do you have Sleep Castling?”
“Even better, I made an emulator for it.”
“Dude, what is that?”
“To put it simply, it is a software you can use in your computer to play your favorite games which were playable only on that specific console.”
“That sounds cool! I can’t wait.”
“While you kept on chatting there, Artemian Planas nears its collapse every second,” a stern authoritative voice came from above.
“Our apologies, Shining Guardian,” our tongues twisted, ending the conversation.
The armies slowly lessened, and the tremors stopped. Some iron beasts fell from the sky, almost hitting us. The Shining Guardian whispered words of apology. The sun shone brighter the more enemies we defeated. The remaining beasts retreated, and the fallen beasts littered the land.
“I’m going to check how Girly is doing. You guys take care of the rest,” I decided.
“Hold on, who says that you can boss us around?” Vampire’s temperament suddenly changed.
“Where is this coming from, Vampire?”
“I know what you are up to.”
“I don’t like your tone, man.”
“Guys, since there is not much left to do here, why don’t we all go together? What do you say, Keita?” Kun cut in.
“Sigh, fine. I still remember the truce, Vampire,” I offered my hand.
“Yeah, you don’t have to remind me,” he left my hand hanging.
“Great! It’s settled, then.”
Upon hearing this, water drizzled down on the burning palace. Inside, the once adored pillars froze in perpetual agony. The halls were unusually silent. Dried up bodies formed an inverted roof symbol. At the tip, fingers moved, followed by gasps.
“Help… us…” a limp young female gestured towards us.
“Did you see where a female with twin tails holding a heavy weapon pass by?” I cradled the body.
“No, do not proceed in finding her.”
“Why? What happened to her?”
“A gray entity took over her body, then she drained our bodies with a single point of her finger.”
“We have to stop her. First, let me grab some water.”
“Do not bother as it does not quench the thirst of the body. Instead, I request that you lay me to rest beside my countrymen.”
“As you wish.”
She smiled, then her face sagged. I forced her eyes to close with my palm. I placed her back to where I found her. The stars from my memory fell down to the abyss where my heart dwelled. I could not believe that something took over her so easily.
“We can still save your girl,” Kun sat beside me.
“I need to breathe in some fresh air,” Vampire walked out the door.
“What is wrong with him? Anyway, we need to act now.”
“On second thought, I think we should focus on finding Girly,” Vampire rushed in and locked the door.
“What is going on?”
“Let’s just say that the Shining Guardian is handling things pretty well outside.”
“Whatever, weirdo. I think we should split up to cover more base.”
“No, I cannot allow that. Nothing good ever happens when we split up. Didn’t you hear what just happened to Girly?” My eyes grew wide.
“You worry too much, old man.”
“I said I’m not old.”
“That is not what you said earlier.”
“Whatever. We must find her before she completely loses herself.”
We walked towards the hall on the right, but a strong force repelled us. We had no choice but to venture on the other hall. Upon walking this direction, I noticed that the hallway had split into three different paths.
“I guess the inevitable has come. Your choice, Keita,” Kun sighed.
“I should go and check the left path,” Vampire offered.
“No, we should not split up,” I pulled him back.
“It is going to be fine. A little peek and I will be back.”
“What if you don’t come back?”
“Look man, if you act like this you will lose all of us sooner or later. At least one of us should survive.”
“Are you sure about this?” Kun asked.
“Definitely. You two should check the others, too.”
“Meet you on the other side.”
“You make it sound like my death sentence.”
“Be careful,” I reminded him before going in.
“We should get going, too. You take the middle path and I will take this one.”
“Come back to me safe.”
“I will.”
I took the well-lit path. It started straight, then it slowly bent. The scene changed from elegant tables and pillars to simple furniture and empty walls. The light dimmed by a fraction which was quite noticeable. I summoned my sword in case something jumps at me.
When I reached the end of it, I realized that I was thrown back from the starting point. Fortunately, I was not alone. Kun and I must have switched places. We have not heard from Vampire yet so he could have taken the correct path.
Kun joined me on the left path. Small hints of light guided our way like faint stars in the night sky. Ancient woven tapestry lined up the walls. I could not quite make anything of it as the images got soiled, and the holes made it even worse.
One particular tapestry caught my eyes. It looked almost the same as the one I saw next to the table, but the division was inverted. It had three silhouettes of people at the center with a gray figure behind them. I stopped to think what it meant.
“We don’t have time to stick around,” Kun slapped my knee.
“Ow! That hurts you sadistic bastard,” I snapped back at him.
“Am I? Who was it that left me to die back there?”
“I said I was sorry!”
“You did not even say anything to me when I found you half dead in the woods.”
“I said your name.”
“Don’t play smart with me.”
“Oh? Then why did you leave me there that time?”
“I do not want to talk about this anymore.”
“Come on Kun, at least tell me where you have been.”
He paused for a moment then said, “We should move on.”
I wanted to push him, but I closed my mouth instead. My feet dragged themselves behind Kun. Images of him vanishing from my eyes resurfaced on repeat. I tightened my fists until I felt something drip from them. I stopped in my tracks for a breather. He looked at me with concern.
“Do you forgive me, Kun?” I muttered under my breath.
He said nothing and continued walking down the path. I guess he did not hear me. Suddenly, I heard a low sniffling voice, almost asthmatic. It must be Girly! I ran towards the sound. It led me to a dimly lit room. The light flickered slowly as I explored.
I saw a silhouette with twin ponytails sitting on a low sofa. I lifted my foot as I took my advance. The dry air complemented my beading sweat. As I placed my hand on the sofa, something tugged my leg. I jumped, retracting my hands.
“Quit messing with me, Kun!” I hissed softly.
“It is not her, man. Step back if you want to live,” his voice was light but serious.
I looked back at the silhouette. It turned its head towards me with a cutout face, smiling from ear to ear. It squawked hauntingly. The sofa split in half using its bare hands. I bounced away from the menace before it lunged at me. Soon, two more joined it, which were slightly shorter.
“New Quest! Defeat the Eclipsed Shadows and gather Lunar Essences from them,” a notification message jumped out of nowhere.
“What the heck!” My heart raced at the message flashing in my face.
“You are such a scaredy cat. You never change,” Kun shook his head.
A round vial replaced the message as it evaporated from sight. I slid it in my back pocket. Kun stunned them with his bombs. I slid my sword against their necks. A golden yellow substance oozed out from them. I quickly poured it in the vial.
Suddenly, the room shook. It got a little brighter until the darkness formed in the likeness of Girly. She floated a few feet from the ground. Three dark blue orbs circled around her. Diluted eye symbols formed on her palms.
“Girly, snap out of it! Get a hold of yourself!” I screamed at her.
“It is no use, man. She could not hear you.”
“What do you suggest I do?”
“Beat her. I am afraid that is the only way.”
“I can’t stab her with my sword. She would surely die.”
“Would you rather we die? You saw what happened to them back there.”
“Girly, I know you are still in there. Answer me!”
“Xah Ichte Vih,” her voice slithered.
“She will be long gone if you keep on dallying like this,” Kun reminded me.
I rubbed my teeth. I breathed in and filled my diaphragm. I summoned my sword and activated War Javelin. I looked away as I threw my weapon at her. It exploded, but the light vanished just as quickly. The orbs surrounding her negated my attack and absorbed it.
Kun threw a flat disc at her. He activated Twine Capsule. The disc exploded, revealing a thick twine forming a net. It enveloped her entire body. The orbs spun rapidly, disintegrating its captivity. Then it emitted sound waves, setting me on my knees.
She lunged towards me, then grabbed my neck. The air crashed to my larynx as I exhaled. I tried calling out to Kun, but glottal sounds are all I could make. She looked directly at my eyes—I still saw the same stars buried underneath the fog.
Then she cried horribly in pain. Sky blue mist surrounded us. Her neck snapped to the direction of the perpetrator. She hissed at him and spat some violet liquid with her tongue.
“Focus, hero. Do not inhale the gas, but look away!” A familiar voice shouted.
- Writer
