Chapter 399: Darkness Calls

'It hasn't attacked yet. Why? Is it fighting Excelsior right now? I can't hear any fighting. Is it this darkness? Does it kill any sound from traveling far? All senses?' He questioned.

Though as he questioned the nature of the situation, he came to realize what was beside him, not knowing for how long it had been there, but "something" stood in the shadows. Just as his eyes turned to the right in reflex of what had moved by him–

"Ngh!"

Removed from his shoulder without any perceived attack, his artificial arm was flung from his body, thrown into the overbearing darkness.

'What was that…? What is this?!' He thought.

The sounds he heard from the entity that lurked in the darkness around him were perplexing, unable to be identified or deciphered; the light breaths of a woman, the rugged grunts of a man, the growling of a beast, the hissing of a serpent, and even the light croaks of an amphibian.