In Nica's Shadow

NOTE: This story is discontinued and completed. It was written at a time I was very sick and thought. It would not turn out well. I have shifted the energy of writing to a new story that is a more intense form of BDSM and romance but doesn't delve as deeply in pending death and doom. In the realm where mortals tread, I observe their frantic scurrying, stumbling from grace, and bowing before false deities. They sacrifice kin and companions, seeking fleeting solace. The art of traversing known realms and conquering fear eludes them. I have allowed them to wander aimlessly for far too long. The foul scent of hope pollutes the world as they yield to fear, devoid of valor and pride. I dispatched my begotten sons, time and again, to seduce and ravage the sins of the masses, heralding an era of death and desire. Plagues and wars unfurled as my sons painted the world in chaos. A sly grin emerges upon my lips, for I delight in the spectacle. It reminds me of a nursery rhyme from a bygone era, whispered at a child's bedside. The darkness weaves strange reminiscences of the bittersweet. A child afflicted by plague's boils and the mother's dread realization of transmitting her malady. Through the ages, naught has changed since their first steps upon the earth. Agony and despair linger in the air, the essence and longing of existence. Amidst the apparent serenity, a subtle note of turmoil wafts—a melody of corrupted souls. For even in their docility, these creations can wield ruthlessness. Alas, they revere strength, unaware that the mightiest often shatter, crying like infants as their bones snap between my fingers. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Should you seek a tale of systematic oppression, generational torment, vile assault, and the macabre, I extend an invitation to the narrative of innocence's demise—the beauty found within life's darkest corners. The battle yet wages, and perchance, as my final thoughts manifest, redemption shall unfold its melodic strains. Or perchance, I shall pen their ultimate sentence—an exquisite requiem, unbridling my vengeance in the shadows cast by Nica.

DerekJPerna · Fantasia

Classificações insuficientes

53 Chs

CH10 - Nightmare

Lily tosses and turns as she struggles to focus on how to identify her dreams. Her mind is pulled in so many different directions as the red mist permeates every former of her subconscious.

She struggles every waking moment to identify the present from the past, dreams from reality, and horrors from the righteous. The spectacle of life constantly clouds her mind.

Her body trembles as she finds herself walking through the forest once more. Near the usual cave entrance, her constant nightmare unfolds yet again. Closing her eyes tightly, Lily tries to force herself to wake up, to break free of the terror, but she can't. The red mist settles into the darkness as the young Sera begins her escape once more.

Lily feels compelled to walk towards the clearing where Sera had spoken to her. If she endures the dream again, she must know what happens to the child. Perhaps in that answer, this will stop; these horrendous moments replayed in her head in every sickening detail.

Even before Sera is seen at the mouth of the cavern, Lily begins to weep as she crumbles to her knees. Overcome with broken emotions, she barely hears footsteps through the snow. Tiny hairs rise on Lily's neck as she feels rather than sees a presence near her.

"Who are you looking for?" A woman's soft voice asks her.

"I am waiting.." Lily hiccups as tears fall, "I am waiting on a slaughter to begin."

"Are you?"

"Yes, I cannot stop it..."

"Have you tried?"

"No." Lily's voice trembles. She has not tried to stop it. She still has to face down the monsters where she stands. She couldn't bring herself to. She has heard the sickening crunch of their bodies tearing the flesh from Sera. She hasn't dared to experience it herself.

"Would you dare to?" The woman asks.

"No, I can't. I am not strong enough. Plus, I can't. The scriptures say I am only to bear witness."

Lily trembles as the woman behind her sighs heavily before speaking, "The scriptures are..."

"Are?"

Lily feels deeply disappointed in the woman as she woman admits, "I cannot say as my Mistress will not allow it."

"Please..." Lily begs as she sounds the monsters beginning the hunt pierce the sky. "Please help her. I cannot."

"My Mistress wouldn't want it."

"Please," Lily turns and witnesses a familiar face of a young woman barely as old as she is. Her body is surrounded by a black dress with a cloak, making her appear almost formless.

But there is something familiar about her emerald eyes and burgundy hair that flashes a momentary memory through her mind. She searches her thoughts for a memory, a name, something, when it suddenly dawns on her. In desperation, Lily begs, "Please, Nica?"

Nica cringes as if being recognized slaped her across her face. She turns towards the caves, hearing the creatures bounding forward as she looks to Lily in genuine fear, "My Master wants to know what you would give to stop it. To save her?"

As Lily is about to answer, she hears the cry of Sera's daughter for the first time. As the two breaks through the clearing, Sera tries desperately to calm her child. Begging her silence so she can at least escape with her life.

"Please, keep quiet. I know they are coming, but Enyo spoke to me. She promised me she would keep you safe. That you would be protected. Please stop crying so I can spare you from the world we live in," Sera begs of her child as she rocks her child softly in her arms.

Lily sobs as she hears the pleading between the mother and daughter, "Please save them..."

"There will be a penance. You will have to sacrifice all."

"Make it stop, please, and I will do anything."

"You will trade your life for theirs?"

"Yes! Take me." Lily breaks as she knows in her heart that there is nothing the mother can do to console the child. That their fate is sealed and is not ready for the mother to die again and to witness the death of a child barely out of the waddling stages.

"Please, Master, forgive my disobedience," Nica says as she walks into the clearing, the red mist falters, breaking the spell.

"By the Gods!" Sera exclaims as she falls to her knees, trembling at seeing a dark figure moving forward.

Lily blinks back tears as the red mist disappears, and she realizes this is not a nightmare. This is a single moment in time recaptured again and again. That every time Sera had died that she could have tried to save her. Lily screams in pain as she feels a mark being etched on her skin, cut into her at the base of her neck. She feels blood trickle down her neck.

The pain is overwhelming as her mind is terrified of what will come next. Her body wretches at the idea that they will all be devoured. She has seen the destruction of Sera's body time and time again. Soon she will feel it firsthand in a way she has never handled. She will endure a pain far more significant than she has ever realized.

The blood drips down Lily's neck as she trembles in fear. Her life is gone as she struggles to find solace in the moment. Struggles to find peace in saving the life of another. As fear sweeps through her body, Lily slips into the darkness and loses consciousness. Succumbing to the nightmares that plagued her all her life.

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