The shadow in the darkness

A smile like this only meant one thing, his aid was about to have a very good time. It was not often that his face showed a change in its expression but when it did something was about to happen. Although he could tell that a lot of anger resided behind that smile.

Tom did not know what had caused Moirai to feel that very way but he pitied these Shadowprowlers they had chosen the wrong target yet again. They would come to know just how much hatred he currently felt.

Moirai staggered forward picking up the sharp tooth, which was still stuck inside of the corpse of the monster. It was covered in blood and appeared to have been broken in several places. It was the weapon Moira had used to put a gruesome end to their lives.

The creatures did not show any respect to either of them and disappeared in the darkness to attack them. Moirai did not seem too perturbed by the fact as he just continued to smile creepily.

The detail which seemed strange to Tom was the fact that his eyes had been closed all this time. The strange runic pattern at the top of his head lit up in a dim but very unsettling light. The state of his body could only be called disastrous as it was covered in injuries.

He did not know why he still could fight on like this but a body like this could not be judged by normal standards. A body like this was made for battle and knew no rest until every last enemy had been bested.

The countless traces of violence on this body disappeared with the passage of time and a calculating mind pushed it onwards to the enemy. The danger of this body lied not with its capabilities but on the person utilizing it.

Solely the combination of Moirai and such a body could produce such outstanding abilities. They came together to bring forth a combat style this world had never seen. It was as destructive as it was deadly.

It could go toe to toe with many magicians without using any magic and that made him wonder what was the true extent of Moirais capabilities. The more he saw about his fighting style the more he could learn for his experiments.

It did not take long before the first creature decided to attack, launching its body forwards in hope of tearing its target apart. Its aggression was welcomed by the embodiment of madness wearing the guise of a human.

Their first collision ended with the monster sinking its sharp teeth into the arm that had been stretched out towards it. In return, the weapon was thrust several times into its throat full of rage

By severely underestimating the craze of its prey it had sustained a life-threatening injury, instead of backing down it pushed its teeth even deeper into the flesh. The response was yet another encounter with the sharp tooth covered in its own blood.

This exchange could not persist for long before one side was bound to give in and as the spawn of evil could not continue it was lifted off the ground and smashed onto the ground with full force. Afterwards, its lifeless body was kicked over and over again.

Tom could confirm Moirai had a really bad mood.

For the time being, the young magician had kept watch that no one would come to intervene in this fight. He conjured several small needles to keep the other wolfs waiting in the dark at bay. After Moirai was done with the corpse the next one courted death.

The eerie smile had never left his lips as his closed eyes faced towards the being that was about to regret its decision to step forward. The grip on the weapon was still strong and the injury on his arm seemed to not affect him in the slightest.

The steps were never steady but yet he did not seem to fall as he moved closer to the enemy. It was slow and tedious, but a certain glimmer of menace was exuded into every single movement.

An unidentifiable murmur could be heard leaving his mouth, leaving Tom wondering what thoughts crossed his mind. The voice seemed distant and abnormally cold. It told a different story in comparison to the rest of his body

Carrying neither bloodlust nor hostility it stood in sharp contrast to the violence that just oozed out. It was inconceivable that a warrior of his calibre could have such a side to him. How could someone so strong appear so removed?

Tom questioned himself as he looked at the human who grew more mysterious with every passing second.

The battle commenced as both sides engaged in a cruel dance to death. It was by no means marvellous or elegant. The fight was unrelenting and unforgiving as both sides wanted to destroy one another.

Blood was scattered on the ground as they inflicted serious harm on one another. Between the fierce growls and pained moans, it became more than clear that this conflict could only be brought to an end with the death of either of them.

Tom watched this kind of battle with great elation as he noticed a delicate detail, which told him that it was already over. Moirai had begun to purposefully test his limits by keeping himself very close to his enemy.

This recklessness was not without its risks as the injuries continued to pile up on his body but suffering the most was the Shadowprowler, which was crazily bleeding as well. Once Moirai had shortened the distance it had become a bloody onslaught of stabbing and slashes.

The higher frequency of wounds was taking its toll on both of their flesh. It was wonderous just how much punishment they could endure, Tom thought to himself. Yet neither side had slowed down as the fighting seemed to have only grown more ferocious.

Surrounded by the dead it was more than obvious that one of these two would join their ranks soon. The conclusion had to come but the winner had already been predetermined.

Its end was unsurprising but came suddenly as the monster found itself being impaled by the sharp tooth in its abdomen. It gave off one last deep growl before it collapsed in front of Moirai. His aid was just a bit faster and killed his enemy with one last attack with his weapon.

This time around even he had to breathe heavily as the fight had left more than its mark on him. The smile on his face still had not vanished; it was lusting for more. And there was plenty more for him to choose from.

It was still wondrous how a human could be capable of causing such great destruction. Constantly defying logic and expectations, Moirai struggled regardless of what stood before him. Being on the brink of death was the moment he was at his strongest.

After all, he did not know it any other way. Resting easy with his circumstances was nothing short of impossible. His life was one of constant combat.

Although Tom was prepared to intervene should he gauge Moirai to be unable to continue, he was by no means worried about him. Expecting Moirai to lose such a battle was something only those would do, who did not know him at all.

Way too many had paid dearly for severely underestimating Moirai. He had come to see their lapse of judgement with his own eyes and the consequences their attitude brought with it. Nobody had taken him fully before it was already too late.

Judging solely based on a superficial knowledge ignores the aspects that enabled Moirai to stay alive until this very moment. There was a lot hidden beneath the surface, which rarely saw the light of day.

By observing from the sidelines, he could see that there was much more to him than the first impression indicated. Yet, after all the time he had been watching, he never could answer who Moirai really was.

Discovering new facets was a daily occurrence as Moirai continued to surprise him. The desire to understand his mysterious aid had never faded, it was shining as brightly as the flame in his hand.

That kind of curiosity was pulling him towards the strange being that referred to itself as Moirai. The NPC was not a human, albeit looking like one, it was not a monster despite possessing such a strength.

Who and what is Moirai? What was the purpose behind his existence? Tom's mind was clouded in questions and more emerged simply by spending time with Moirai.

Finding their answers could only be done by staying at his side and continuing to observe his every action. Unravelling the entire truth was something which piqued his interest.

Because whether it was the fight against monsters or magicians, he never revealed his true face. Veiled in a layer of obscurity his entire persona was a gigantic enigma.

What was the origin and the purpose of this NPC so intently focussed on fighting? Sooner or later he would come to know what the developers have planned out for it. Until that Tom decided to learn as much as he could.

Strangely enough not one of them had stepped forward, a development which seemed unfitting coming from that kind of creature known for its vengeful spirit. Were they planning something?

Such a change was not something they would be able to come up in the spur of the moment, there has to be something directing them from the shadows. Which raised the question, why had it not taken any action sooner?

Furthermore what kind of being was even capable of doing so? There had never been a documented case about this in all the literature he had read. Tom's wariness skyrocketed as his mind began to try and make sense out of all of this.

The smile on the face of Moirai had not ceased far from it, it had become even more twisted as if the hunger on the inside was growing in its intensity. An insidious chuckle escaped his lips as his body began to slowly heal.

His next acts would draw all the attention to himself as his fists viciously descended onto the body of his last victim. As the horrible sounds reverberated through the air many angry growling sounds could be heard.

This was a blatant provocation to them, as he did not show the slightest bit of respect to them.It did not take long before another set of attacks was directed at the vile person. Sadly for them, Tom had decided to get rid of these monsters since he did not know what was waiting for them in the dark.

Yet Moirai did not pay any attention to the murder of the Shadowprowlers and continued the rhythmical beating. Over and over again did his fist crash down on the corpse which was shaking after each impact.

He seemed obsessed and even Tom questioned himself if he had lost his mind. There was no deeper purpose to discern in the current situation. Just an unhinged NPC swinging wildly at the poor beast that had lost its life.

There was no indication of his aid stopping any time soon, although the surroundings had returned to its eerie stillness. It was solely Moirai that filled the silence with his strange act.

But this situation was suddenly interrupted as Moirai stopped all of a sudden. His eyes were still closed but his face looked deep into the black of the night. Tom did not hesitate and illuminated the general area by producing a gigantic wave of flames.

This magic spell tore through the veil of the night and torched several Shadowprowlers which could not dodge it in time. Although it could not even scratch the being that easily caught the spell. It was only visible for the fraction of a second, but Tom had never seen or heard about a horrendous creature like it.

Its skin was as ashen and pale as if it belonged to a cadaver. Walking on two legs it did not appear like a monster but it was clearly taller then the any chosen one could ever become. It had 2 arms on each side which were weirdly stretched out and even longer than the body itself.

Its legs were crooked and should not be able to carry its enormous body, but it stood straight and stared right back at him. Its face was plastered with different eyes which all looked directly into his very soul with a deep sense of longing.

At the very bottom of its face was a small crevice, which served as its mouth. It carried the same twisted smile Moirai had. Its teeth were glistering in the dim light and were rotten to their core. Its tongue was dancing around its teeth knowing no rest.

Thick droplets of saliva trickled down and dripped onto the lifeless ground. It was a figure born out of the deepest nightmare.

As the light vanished, the darkness took hold again and swallowed it whole. Yet, the sound of its breath filled the entire vicinity. It was slow and unsteady, every breath was accompanied by an aura of great pain.

Suddenly its voice echoed in the surroundings, it was husky and agonizing. Multiple voices overlayed one another, fighting desperately to be heard. Each of them carried different sentiments, some were full of terror while others were pleading. Their union formed a sweet melody which gave their suffering substance.

" Are... You...Here... To...Set...Us...Free?"

"Or....Kill...US?

Every single word was spoken in a nerve-tearing shrieking sound.

Tom felt a chill crawling down his spine as he desperately tried to stay calm. The terror of the unknown assaulted his mind. Overwhelmed by the revolting appearance of the monster, he was struggling to not lose his bearing.

Trying to stay calm when faced with something like this was not something he had any experience in. He suddenly understood just how the other chosen ones must have felt, that found themselves in such a situation.

For a split second, he regretted calling them idiots, but his personal fear quickly swept away that kind of thought. He knew just too well, that he did not have the slightest chance to win a fight against the abomination.

He only managed to calm himself down by reminding himself about the fact that all of this was only the born from the evil minds of the developers. The only negative side effect this encounter could have was him opening his eyes at the spawn point again.

The more he thought about the more he was able to suppress his instinct to run away. There had to be a purpose for its arrival here. But just like Moirai, he could not make any sense out of it.

All of a sudden he only heard a single voice which undoubtedly came from a young and innocent child. It was innocent and sounded rather happy.

" Welcome to the Graveyard of Hope"

The voice faded into the night and left behind a bitter solitude. It was never heard again.