The Vice Fortress Master's mind briefly flashed with horrifying memories of that colossal beast—the one that reaped the lives of hundreds of Nightmare Slayers and his… only brother.
That terrifying, unimaginably powerful beast—one so strong that none could stand against it on that fateful day.
Even with his older brother's valiant sacrifice, the most that the self-implosion of his Inner Slayer Dimension and Slayer Weapons had been able to accomplish was scaring the |Abyss Prowler| away. Shortly after, the East Fortress Master arrived, but by then, the 6th Stage 2nd Class Slayer—the last Vice Fortress Master—had nothing but his ashes remaining.
That day was ten years ago—the day when the East Frontier had nearly been overrun by a record-breaking Nightmare wave. The day known as Blackened Sky Day.
It was called this because, on that day, the skies in all directions were far darker than usual. Not because of some unusual phenomenon or natural occurrence, but because of the sheer number of giant Nightmares that somehow coordinated an attack on all sides of Mistalore's Defense Nation.
A terrible day indeed…
To elaborate, on that day, the only reason the East Fortress Master hadn't made it to the Vice Fortress Master in time was that there wasn't merely a single |Abyss Prowler|.
Yet, even though the East Fortress Master and the other Fortress Masters managed to take down two of the |Abyss Prowlers| with all their efforts, they were terrified to find hundreds upon hundreds of them lining the hills surrounding the Mistalore Defense Nation. However, rather than attack, they slowly turned around and vanished into the limitless darkness beyond. This marked the end of Blackened Sky Day.
But when the Fortress Master arrived on the scene of his Vice Fortress Master and saw the |Abyss Prowler| fleeing in a similar way to the others, he felt the worst of feelings. He felt that his Vice Fortress Master's sacrifice had been for naught… that his death had been meaningless…
Even now—ten years later—he hated the Nightmares and those dog-like |Abyss Prowlers| with every fiber of his being. This hatred was what led him to break past his limits and advance to the very pinnacle of the 2nd Class Slayer Rank.
All so as to prepare himself for the day those abominations might appear once again.
A heavy sigh echoed through the East Fortress Master's spacious office as he tiredly motioned with his hands. "Go now," he said to his Vice Fortress Master. "Protect the 12th Princess."
"Yes, sir."
The Vice Fortress Master then vanished, his expression reflecting a hatred similar to that of the East Fortress Master.
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For killing his brother, they'd pay. All of the Nightmares would pay for it.
Yet, out of everything, the most harrowing thought was the fact that the East Fortress Master and his Vice Fortress Master were not the only ones who carried such hatred for the Nightmares. Nearly every single Slayer stationed in the Mistalore Defense Nation abhorred the Nightmares, for none of them could forgive what they had done—and continued to do—to humanity.
— Sometime the next day, after the 12th Princess left the Fortress with a cold face and walked off in the direction of the Boundless Gorge —
FWIP!
A lean, quiet male figure appeared a few meters away from her, prompting her to coldly glare in his direction.
"What are you doing here?" she asked, cold as ice. "I don't require your protection."
"I'm here on the Fortress Master's orders," said the lean figure, his eyes closed as he slightly bowed. "I hope you'll forgive me for not adhering to your desire to be left without protection."
Yuna Mistalore eyed him down like a venomous snake before eventually clicking her tongue and continuing on her way.
The Vice Fortress Master dutifully followed behind, keeping quiet the whole way to the Boundless Gorge. On their journey, they passed many gruesome scenes, with corpses of both humans and Nightmares scattered about. Everywhere looked like a war-torn battlefield, with the howls and shrieks of distant Nightmares only adding to the horrors this nightmarish world had to offer.
— A few minutes and many miles later —
"We've arrived," said the Vice Fortress Master, taking out the Purifying Staff.
"I know," was all Yuna said before fearlessly entering the Boundless Gorge's narrow entrance.
That was when it hit her—the seemingly limitless amount of Dark Miasma permeating the dredges of the dimly lit Boundless Gorge. Luckily, the Purifying Staff was there to envelop them in a radiant golden light barrier. Without it, things could be looking dire right now.
"Don't walk too far away, Princess," the Vice Fortress Master said, his brown eyes wearily scrutinizing his surroundings. "The Dark Miasma density is far higher than expected. A massacre likely happened here—probably amongst the Nightmares themselves. A territorial or evolutionary scuffle, perhaps?"
Yuna didn't respond, simply moving her feet one step at a time, venturing further into the declined Boundless Gorge.
'With so much Dark Miasma around…'
She couldn't stop herself from worrying about that handsome man whom she knew little to nothing about. If she were honest with herself, she didn't even know why she was taking such big risks for a man she barely knew. Yet, for some reason, once she heard how he had stayed back and fended off the Nightmares, she found her heart beating unnaturally fast.
She hated this feeling. Absolutely despised it. And for weeks, she had been tormented by it.
And until she located and questioned the man who caused her to feel this way, Yuna would not relent in her search.
He would explain to her, very clearly, what sort of spell he had cast on her! And then she'd have him undo it!
In truth, Yuna had started keeping her distance from Cassius after his Platoon was announced because: one, he was certain to die, thus making her want no part in befriending him.
And two, she felt strange around him… something about him was…
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Well, whatever the case may be, it was most definitely a spell! And it would be one she'd soon have taken off her!