Threads of the Soul

As day slowly turned to night, the sense of unease remained ever present. Many could still feel eyes watching them, yet no matter where they looked they could never find the owner of the eyes. Yet, despite the unease and discomfort, as it prevailed many did what humans are best at. They adapted and accepted.

Like a frog in a steadily boiling pot, they grew used to the feeling until it was little more than background noise. It never left, yet they simply began living with it as if it was normal. Such was the adaptability of humans.

Thus, when the sun finally set and the blanket of night was drawn across the sky, plunging them once more into darkness, many didn't think much on the matter as they rested their heads and tucked in for a good nights sleep.

Of course, that didn't mean that everyone slept. There were always exceptions for one reason or the other. They had naturally left a small contingent of eight guards on watch, four patrolling on the inside and the other four on top of the wall, ready to defend in case of a sudden attack. Yet their job tonight had been made increasingly difficult by the events that had unfolded hours before.

Yes, due to Astra's electro-shock therapy using the cities power grid, a majority of the street lights were non-functioning. Even if they were receiving trickling of power, a lot of them had simply blown their bulbs, meaning that the area surrounding the library, otherwise known as the source of the disturbance, was completely plunged into darkness.

Thankfully they could still use the electric cookers for food, as well as generators for power emergencies, but when it came to lighting they had to revert to primitive measures. Torches were built from anything long and stiff such as street signs or rebar and wrapped in excess cloth and smeared with animal fat. They were placed strategically throughout the perimeter, as well as carried by the guards as they patrolled.

Seth himself was still awake, still being ruled by his night-owl tendencies and his dreadful pre-apocalypse sleep schedule that kept him awake until the early hours of them morning. He was still studying hard, forcing his tired mind to memorise the alien words written within his teachers tome. The lights inside the Library also didn't work. They weren't blown, but they weren't going to waste precious generator fuel on lighting it up like a beacon in the night, especially when most were sleeping.

But that didn't matter to Seth. The pages of his heavy tome were being illuminated by the flickering light of his soul, manifested into a hovering ball of eery, azure fire by his [Life Lantern]. A handy little tool, although perhaps not worth the trouble he went to acquire it.

He had recalled Bearemy from outside, keeping him by his side to act as protection, as well as make it seem that his boss Corvus was interested in him and wanted to keep him alive.

As for the man himself, Corvus was situated on top of the wall. His lifeless eyes, hidden behind the depths of his namesakes mask, were peering out into the inky blackness of the night and waiting for anything to rear its ugly head.

His remaining puppets were positioned outside, stood like eternal guards as they remained completely still as if they were, well, statues. The ordinary kind.

Seth glanced down at the exterior of the wall, ignoring the empty shell of the Shelled Drake, as he examined the spattering's of blood staining the black river of tarmac from his educational beating of Sirius. Naturally he also glanced at where he had left the pathetic wretch, but there was nothing there but a patch of dried blood.

At some point in the last few hours, the worm had wriggled away, taking the bladed feather with him. Whether he was going to use it to defend himself or take his own miserable life, Seth had no idea. Nor did he care in the slightest. If he never saw that pathetic traitor again, then he would be glad. However, as he was examining the remnants of his lesson on loyalty, he noticed something out of the corner of his eye. Well, the corner of Corvus' eye. It was getting harder by the day to separate himself from the puppets in his mind.

Alas, he put that existential nonsense to the side for another day, if even at all, and focused on the oddity that had caught his eye. Not too far away from him, barely a few metres, was another figure perched on the wall. It was a bespectacled man with messy, unkept hair. He maybe only a few years younger than Seth himself, and was currently gnawing nervously at his fingernails as he gazed off into the veil of darkness.

It was Alfie. The man who had earned his friendship by saving him from the mind altering pheromones of the flower, when he was still trying to escape from his old office building. Seth had met him once again when he had entered the library for the first time, recounted stories and discussed missing limbs, but he had been occupied at the time trying to deal with Astra's secondary mutation to put much focus on it.

He felt a bit bad about ditching his friend to study and socialise, but it wouldn't have been the end of the world to do so. That already happened, after all.

However, he never expected to find him out here, never mind during the night when it was most dangerous. Alfie wasn't a coward or adverse to danger, as he showed by saving Seth's life on a few occasions, but he also knew his limits. There wasn't much he could do when it came to fighting monsters, although he had told Seth he helped out by creating bottles of scent masking as well as bait scent for the hunters.

Although none of that explained what he was doing up here, at this time of night.

As if sensing Corvus was watching him, or perhaps just talking out loud to himself and allowing others to over here, Alfie pointed out into the black gloom that surrounded the Library before speaking with a soft and meek voice that was little more than a whisper.

"There's something out there. A lot of somethings, I can see them... See their scents. They reek of blood."

Having no reason not to trust Alfie, since those miraculous synaesthetic senses had saved his life once before, he had Corvus quickly call over one of the patrolling wall guards and gave the guard an order to shoot a flaming arrow into the distance. If they could get a look at what they were fighting against before it reached them, they'd have a better chance of not only surviving, but thriving in the battle.

As they waited for the guard to fulfill his orders, since he wasn't exactly prepared to let loose a flaming arrow, Corvus lowered his head to contemplate what it could possibly be lurking in the dark. After all, there was countless animals that called the night their home. Foxes, Cats, Bats, Moths and many more. And who knows what kind of horrific abominations they had been twisted into.

Yet, as his eyes landed on ground and began to imagine the possibilities, he was torn from his thoughts by what he was witnessing.

The stains of blood, which had long since dried after the savage beatings, were glistening in the firelight as they became liquid once again.

The newly formed droplets started to drag themselves across the ground, leaving trails as they moved like crimson rivers, yet after a few moments the trails began to follow loyally after the droplets.

Slithering like Scarlet serpents, they retreated into the comfort of the darks embrace, leaving now sign of the battle that had occurred, however one-sided it was.

By the time the guard had arrived with his blazing arrow, readily nocked in his bow, the sense of dread had become noticeable in Seth's mind once again.

As the arrow flew through the air, illuminating the world around it as it soared, the statues below the wall moved in unison. Each took a step forward, sinking themselves into a strong horse stance as they prepared for battle.

Those with shields raised them before themselves, placed their weapons on top and ready to thrust. Neptune, with his trident alone, held it aloft ready to stab or throw, while the unarmed Diana simply raised her fists ready to give out another beating.

Before the arrow even landed, Seth had a feeling of what he was about to face. So when the projectile clattered against the ground and illumated the looming threat, Seth was not surprised to see a horde composed of sadistic, sharp toothed smiles and crimson faces. Although these ones were not garbed in their wicked clothing, as they were freshly spawned, it didn't change what they were.

Unfortunately, while the survivors had better defenses and more to fight against this sizable batch of Hemogoblins, their enemy had come prepared as well.

Their numbers extended beyond the frugal light of the arrows flame, but there was more than just crimson skinned goblins. A lot more.