43 Chapter 42 & 43

A/N: This is a chapter with a length of two chapters.

As soon as they were well-rested and in high spirits, the trio left the nail-like cluster of buildings, casting themselves back into the hell of white sand, azure sky, incandescent sun, and everything in between. They avoided the Nightmare Creatures like a plague, not eager to cross paths with any monsters like the day before yesterday.

Though they couldn't harvest any soul shards, they were content with not losing their lives. Trudging through the white grains of sand, Dane, Flynn, and Jeanne spoke softly. Dane was trying to distract himself from the heat. They found it weird to speak inside their heads, so the cohort resorted to speaking and repeating it in their minds later.

"If we get out of here, we're going to have quite a story for the media," Dane commented when Flynn complained about the absurdity of this Death Zone. For something worse than the Hollow Mountains to exist yet be utterly unknown to the people was a phenomenon.

Jeanne laughed and said bluntly, "Those bloodsuckers won't let me rest till I'm dead and buried,"

She paused, wore a weird expression, put the hilt of her gladius near her face like a mic, and emulated a journalist's voice.

" 'Ma'am! Ma'am! Can you tell us how you felt?' They'll ask me every morning.

"And I'll say to them every time, 'Scared enough to piss my pants' "

Flynn chuckled, his amulets and chains clinking and jingling. "My pride won't let me say something like that."

"Neither would mine, but I have no choice," Jeanne shrugged, "there's an Awakened journalist in the Southern Quadrant who can tell when someone's lying, and he hounds everyone like a dog. He's the most entertaining yet insufferable person on the network. No doubt he'll show up on my doorstep."

Dane and Flynn exchanged a look, smiling. Oh, how great it was that they lived in the Northern Quadrant. They knew exactly who she was talking about, and he was not known for being pleasant. Their smiles turned into stifled laughs as they looked at Jeanne pitifully.

The rest of the journey went safely with ceaseless chatter, and they wound up at another site of ruins with hours to spare before nightfall. They didn't stop there. There was no underground cavern there, it seemed. Flynn assured them that it was still safe to stay the night, but Dane was not for it.

"Your Ability is not infallible. Changes are bound to happen, and we'll all be better off underground than up here," he refused.

Two hours flew by. They still hadn't found a suitable place, and Dane caved. They walked back to the ruins and settled into the building smack dab in the center of the ruins.

Its walls were crumbling in on themselves, and the entrance was but a cave-like mouth that could barely allow them to enter one behind the other, crawling. Perhaps the run-down state of the structure was for the best, Dane considered. It would shield them from being seen by the Dead of the Night. Dane also did not want to look upon them.

Flynn and Jeanne crawled in after him. They stood in a relatively wide place. The ceiling of the structure was high, nothing like the entryway. The tall Sleeper summoned his flambeau.

Its light lit up the cavernous settlement.

There was no sand inside. The structure had its own floor made of the same stone as the building. The twenty-foot-tall roof and the floor were mottled with dried blood.

Dane gasped slightly, his eyes narrowing. He was looking at the other end of the building, opposite the entryway. Resting against the wall was a glass vase, and it glinted against the fire's illumination. Within it was a mysterious, black powder. It didn't seem anything out of the ordinary, but he was on guard.

"What is that?" Flynn whispered. He came forward, standing shoulder to shoulder with the legacy. "It isn't dangerous…not at all."

They walked closer slowly, ready to flee if something happened. Jeanne stood at the back, clearing her throat nervously.

The light brightened the space around the vase. Dane looked at Flynn, unsure, and the man nodded. Dane returned the nod. He knelt on one knee and touched it, only to quickly pull it back as if expecting it to burn like scalding water.

Aside from the vase shaking on its circular base, nothing happened. They peered into it. When Flynn came closer, the wall was illuminated. There were words on it. Written in red streaks, the handwriting was dirty, and they left marks as if flowing down after they had been written. "Blood," Dane whispered, shivering.

Jeanne appeared to gather her courage as she came closer, stopping beside them in front of the wall. Dane's eyes took in the horrific words written in the language of the Waking World, and he swallowed. He couldn't bring himself to speak.

The girl read them, her voice trembling and hoarse, barely a whisper. Then, her voice resounded in Dane's head. She read, "In this u-urn lies the remains of the ever-valiant…Sleepers who braved the Desert, only to f-fall," she gulped. "The brave Jone…the crafty Ken…the traitor, yet one we loved dearly, Grenn…the dear friend, Fey…the love of my life, Helena…and soon me, Morren. I-I have burned their b…b-bodies myself. If you are reading this…should you, or your comrades d-die…burn their bodies for if you don't…it will possess them…defile them…and become them…and then it will become you."

After what seemed to be minutes, Dane spoke resolutely, "Jone, Ken, Grenn, Fey, Helena, and Morren…rest now…your nightmare is over."

"And ours has only just begun," Flynn whispered under his breath.

***

Following Flynn's words, a palpable fear reigned over the trio. Dane silently shook his head and began setting up the tents. 'Possess them, defile them, become them, and then become you…' Dane thought, pondering. Some creatures could emulate human characteristics. He even knew of some almost demon-like ones that could possess people. The one described on the wall seemed to fit the bill.

But was it a Nightmare Creature? He recalled how the dead rose every night. Was that the defilement and possession Morren spoke about? The Desert itself would devour their souls after their death, perhaps. Dane did not know which theory was correct and did not want to find out.

When he was done pitching the tents and had started the fire, the desert outside growled. Soon, it was all he could hear. Inhuman cries, roars, and screams accompanied by the clamor of battle were all that remained. He could not hear the fire's crackle even though he was right by it. His bottom seemed to be jumping whenever the earth tremored. With a scowl, he stood up.

He paced around restlessly. There was a pit in his stomach, but he wasn't hungry. Flynn stood and walked toward Dane. "Can we spar? I can't sleep, and my skills are rusting."

"Why not?" Dane said, summoning the Basket Blade and the Mercurial Maw. They took their positions opposite each other in the center of the cave-like building. 

Flynn had saturated his core, and while Dane wasn't sure what Rank the man's weapons and armor were, his Memories were probably better. The Sleeper was taller than Dane by a head, and he made for an imposing figure with his spear and tower shield.

Dane held the Mercurial Maw in his left hand, and the Basket Blade was in his other hand. Flynn raised an eyebrow. "A sword and an ax? My teacher said swords are meant to be paired with shields."

"I didn't bring a shield. Besides, anything in your off-hand can be useful…potentially," he said. He rolled his shoulders, trying to chase the chill away. "Let's finish this quickly. It's cold," he said between chattering teeth.

Flynn nodded. He took a step forward, standing sideways. The tower shield shielded his left side well, and his right lashed out with the spear. Dane sidestepped it, but Flynn strained his shoulder and arm as he moved and swept the blunt haft at him.

Dane transformed, letting the spear sweep past his foggy spirit before returning to his flesh and striking with his sword. His sword fell on Flynn's tower shield. He deftly raised the ax and swung.

Flynn gritted his teeth and pushed into Dane with a savage shield bash, and Dane was caught off balance. The strength of a fully saturated core was something to be feared.

He immediately transformed and flew through the man, letting parts of the fog recede to blind Flynn with the light. The man groaned with shut eyes and turned instantly, blocking a strike of Dane's sword, having sensed it with his Ability.

But Dane was relentless, landing a rain of blows with sword and ax on Flynn's shield as he weaved through and between his spear. Flynn had a lot of strength, speed, and power, but he was slowed down by maneuvering the long spear and the weight of the heavy shield.

Dane's weapons were shorter and lighter, and he was terribly agile. His speed shot up randomly when he transformed, making it hard to react.

'Let's test it,' he thought. He focused, and his heartbeat became as fast as it could as his lungs pumped oxygen into every part of his body. His mind turned sharp and clear.

Raw strength permeated through him. His blows turned harder and more forceful yet incisive and precise. Flynn was still far superior physically.

Dane's skill and Flynn's were the difference between day and night, but so were the attributes of their bodies. Flynn could also predict Dane's attacks by sensing the danger with his ability. Unable to find purchase against each other, they fought for a few minutes before stopping. "Enough…phew," Flynn sighed through labored breaths.

Jeanne stood and walked closer. "One of you boys up for a spar with me?"

"It's too cold for me. I can't be away from the fire for too long," Dane refused, nodding his head toward Flynn. The man's lips curled. "Scared of a lady?" he mused sarcastically.

Dane felt his cheeks burn. Now, he was tempted to fight to clear himself of the accusation. Sense won in the end. He chuckled, "Take it how you want."

Jeanne cocked her head to one side. "Is it bad to fear a woman? Such backward thinking…I really ought to beat some sense into you, Flynn," she smiled eerily, "I may not have a full core like you two, but I'm still going to kick your ass."

Dane scratched his head as he moved to the fire, looking at Flynn with amusement. "For your information, my core is only a tenth full or less. I gave Flynn most of my shards," he revealed.

They both gave him a baffled look. "What do they feed you Legacies?!" Flynn asked.

"I'd tell you, but then I'd have to kill you," Dane shrugged with a grave expression but broke into a laugh when they looked at him guardedly.

Jeanne shook her head and summoned her twin gladii. Dane watched the fight as he rested by the fire, a warm smile on his face. Jeanne transformed into a humanoid entity of rock, filling the cavern with the reflected blue from her face, uncovered by the armor. She looked the same other than all her features becoming sculpted rock.

She was already stronger than Flynn. With her core fully saturated core, she would be a terrifying, veritable monster. When they finished sparring, Flynn came limping back as Jeanne smiled sweetly. "How many more spars before I can whack the misogyny out of you?" she questioned.

"I'm not misogynistic. It's just a common tease amongst us men!" Flynn spat.

Dane held back a laugh, and the trio forgot about the terrors that they were separated from by but a wall.