บท 30: Whispers of madness
Xander quickly took cover behind a burnt oak tree to avoid being spotted by the Implings scouring the area. Though his hands remained on the trigger of his revolver, he had no intention of engaging the Ethereals without learning more about the area.
Deserts and wastelands were quite common in the Nightscape, but what was disturbing about this rocky terrain was the presence of several wooden totems with monstrous faces engraved on their rungs.
The last time Xander had encountered totems was inside Esther's nightmare, and things had taken a turn for the worse soon after. It was easy to guess that these wooden poles had been planted by someone to perform a summoning ritual.
While the presence of Implings was nothing extraordinary inside a Death Nightmare, the appearance of a Goblin Berserker in Windbell Park raised several questions.
Being highly territorial creatures, the Implings would never allow a Goblin to come anywhere close to their home. Any encounter between these two types of Ethereals always ended in feuds. The only way a Berserker would willingly cooperate with a horde of Implings was if it wasn't part of a Goblin pack, but had been summoned from a fading nightmare.
Everything suggested that someone had been using the totem poles for summoning Ethereals from other nightmares.
While Xander was busy with his thoughts, a dull droning reached his ears. It was a quivering male voice that sounded almost intoxicated.
"She sees us all. She is the mother and the daughter, the beginning and the end. We are her children. Her blood spilled on the face of a rotting world. But...but a mother never abandons her children. No, I know she will save us from suffering. Yes, she will. For she is our mother!"
The frenzied whispering was coming from deeper within the wasteland, but from here Xander's vision was blocked by the boulders scattered around. He peeped around the corner of the oak tree to get a closer look at the Implings, but what he saw left him dumbstruck.
These weren't the same kind of Implings he had encountered in Windbell Park. Each of them had two pairs of arms and twisted black horns coming out of their foreheads. They didn't have dull red skins like their common cousins, but their coats were black and scaly.
"I know...I know he is coming. But he is weak and foolish. He doesn't love the Goddess. We cannot allow him to insult our faith. Mother, I will smite him in your name!" the same frenzied voice cried out from the distance.
Suddenly, the bleak gray sky turned a shade of deathly black and the Implings started screeching like insects. The cacophony of frantic clicks and frenzied hissings soon became so unbearable that Xander had to cover his ears to block out the noise.
The Elder Implings stood their ground while the lower-ranking scavengers started scurrying across the rocky trails on all fours.
Out here in this cramped space, there was barely enough room for Xander to swing his scythe without hitting a rock. He knew if he tried to take the little runts head-on they would flank him from every directions and climb all over him.
Fighting the Implings didn't seem like a wise idea, so Xander waited for the first pair of scavengers to run past him and then swiftly changed positions, seeking cover behind a large gray boulder.
Listening to the noises around him, Xander could make out when a group of Implings was nearby, and it helped him sneak past them without ever peeking from cover. With cautious steps, Xander traversed the rocky trails, weaving between the boulders and leafless tree stumps on his path.
"Where is that one hiding? We must find him and put an end to his heresy!" the frenzied voice cried aloud.
Avoiding the Impling running around him, Xander made his way through the maze of gravelly tracks and eventually reached an enormous crater in the middle of the wasteland. It was shaded by the rocky precipice of an overhanging cliff and littered with skulls.
Right in the center of this barren crater was a man clad in black robes, holding a black conch shell covered in thorns.
"Where are you, Dreamwalker? Show yourself!" the man screamed at the top of his lungs as he looked around frantically, seeking a glimpse of the intruder. "Come on, Dreamwalker! I know you've come to undo our labor."
Hiding behind a rotting stump, Xander peeked from his left. The man pacing the crater was dressed exactly like the cultists, but his eyes were missing. It looked like someone had carefully hollowed out his eyeballs, leaving behind two gaping holes squirming with maggots.
Running down his scarred cheeks were streaks of bloody red which reached all the way to his upper lip and then disappeared inside his mouth. As he whispered his feeble curses, his teeth chattered, and the uneven lump in his throat bobbed up and down.
In all his years, Xander had encountered many terrifying Ethereals, but he had never come across a creature like this. Though at a glance, the robed figure looked human, the sharp spines protruding from his hunched back suggested otherwise.
The grotesque abomination was both disgusting and terrifying at the same time. Armed with nothing but a conch shell and a shattered human skull, the man seemed completely defenseless, but Xander had a hunch that he had some other trick up his dirty sleeves.
If his previous experiences had taught him anything, it was that looks could be deceptive in the Nightscape, and behind every frail and helpless figure was a monstrous shadow waiting in the darkness.
"The world shall be cleansed, Dreamwalker. You cannot stop the inevitable. It's written in the stars," the robed hunchback screamed aloud before blowing on the conch shell.
Almost immediately, the Implings responded by screeching in their shrill voices. The blowing of the conch shell was a signal for them to spread out and search the area more thoroughly.
Xander quickly figured out that the robed man was controlling the Implings from the crater, and the totem poles were also his doing. Despite looking like a frail cripple, the hunchback was far from helpless.
As Xander looked on, he observed the blind hunchback raise the shattered skull above his head and summon an Elder Impling.
"You must protect me. I know the Dreamwalker is nearby. Do not let him get close," he commanded, pointing the skull at the little shriveled ivy bush beside the Impling.
It was clear that he was as blind as a bat, and couldn't even see what was right in front of him.
Taking on the Implings was going to be a waste of time, so Xander focused his attention on the hunchback. While the blind man was looking in the other direction, the Dreamwalker quickly switched positions and moved in behind the egg-shaped rock at the edge of the crater.
From here, Xander had a clear shot at the blind summoner. All he had to do was put a bullet between his eyes before he could blow that conch shell again. Aiming his revolver, Xander was about to pull the trigger when his Chronica chimed thrice, and his system panel displayed a new objective.
[Last Memory located.]
[Appease it to end the nightmare.]
"That can't be good," Xander mumbled, pulling his revolver back. As he carefully observed the blind summoner's attire, he realized that it was the same cultist who had hung himself from the tree in Windbell Park.
It finally dawned on Xander that the summoner in front of him wasn't another Ethereal, but the cultist's Last Memory. This complicated his situation even further since no weapon in existence was capable of destroying a Last Memory.
Dealing with agitated Last Memories was one thing, but fighting one that was distorted into a terrifying abomination presented a daunting challenge. Normally, even the most hostile of Last Memories could be reasoned with, but for that, the Dreamwalker needed to get close to it.
To test how good the hunchback's senses were, Xander picked up a cherry-sized pebble from the ground and chucked it to his left. The blind guy instantly turned in the direction of the noise as the pebble clattered against the gravelly ground.
"Who was it? A shadow? No...no, it must be that serpent!" the hunchback exclaimed, swallowing short, erratic breaths. "Find the heretic, "he commanded the Elder Impling.
Xander waited patiently for the Impling to move away from the Last Memory. Once the Ethereal was at a safe enough distance, Xander quietly descended into the crater. He was about to rush the hunchback when the gravelly ground caught his attention.
Taking another reckless step would alert the blind cultist, and all it would take for him to call the Implings to his aid was a single blow into the conch shell.
Without moving an inch from his spot, Xander pulled his lifted leg back and carefully measured his options. While it was true that he couldn't kill the Last Memory, he could always subdue it.
Putting his revolver away, Xander pulled out the Dagger of Diminishing from his jacket. Having never used the weapon before, he had little idea about its true capabilities but pressed into a pickle, he had no choice but to give it a shot.
As soon as the hunchback turned around and looked in Xander's direction, Xander threw the dagger and hit the cultist straight in his chest. He tried to scream, but not even a whisper came out of his mouth. The dagger's power crippled him, forcing him to drop to his knees.
Seeing his window of opportunity, Xander rushed out of cover and approached the cultist.
"It's over. I've found you now. Time to end this nightmare," Xander said, grabbing the hunchback by his left hand and lifting him up.
As Xander looked into the hunchback's eyes, the Implings stopped moving and a circle of bright white light surrounded the crater.
"I am not here to hurt you," Xander whispered reassuringly, and pulled out the dagger from the cultist's chest. "You need to stop this madness."
The Last Memory started morphing, and its hunched back straightened. Its missing eyes regenerated and it stood up straight, dressed in plain white clothes, radiating a dim white light.
"You cannot stop us, Dreamwalker. Shamura will rise again, and bring order to our chaotic world," the Last Memory whispered in a much calmer voice.
Xander released him from his grip and looked him in the eye. "You sacrificed yourself for a dark deity without even knowing her intentions. She isn't going to save you. All she wants is power. Shamura will plunge our world into chaos."
The Last Memory shook his head. "Only a heretic would doubt the Goddess. She is our mother. She will remove all pain and suffering from our world and exalt us to our immortal forms."
Xander scoffed at this. "Is that what your prophets told you? I hate to burst your bubble, but Shamura feeds on suffering. She wants to drag the real world beyond the veil and claim it as her domain. She doesn't care about human lives."
"No, you're lying!" the Last Memory protested turning away.
"I've seen everything. I've been inside the vision of your revered prophet," Xander replied.
"What did you see?" the Last Memory asked, turning around sharply.
"Endless suffering," Xander answered. "Shamura's army will trample everything in its path and destroy our world."
"You lie, Dreamwalker." The cultist's voice trembled this time as if he doubted his own beliefs.
"You know I'm not lying. I can't lie to a Last Memory. No Dreamwalker can."
Xander's words drained the color from the cultist's face, bringing him to tears. "They said Shamura would cure all disease and help us break free from our mortal shells. Moreas told me that I would be blessed with eternal life in the world beyond. He said I would be happy at last."
"Your Death Nightmare seems to suggest otherwise. Look around you. Your Last Memory is trapped inside a barren wasteland. And beyond this lies an endless desert. Does this look like paradise to you? You were always a puppet in their hands."
"The Goddess will have mercy and—"
"She is no benevolent Goddess, she is a self-seeking power who delights in suffering," Xander stepped closer to the Last Memory and whispered in his ear, "Those Implings you summoned, crossed over to our world and slaughtered dozens of innocent people. They didn't even spare the kids."
As realization dawned on the cultist, he stumbled backward. Overwhelmed by guilt, he balled his fists and bit down hard on his lower lip. "I never wanted to hurt children. Moreas said the Implings and...the Goblin were just a distraction."
"A distraction for what?" Xander questioned.
"A distraction to help him and his companions to flee the city," the Last memory whispered back. "What have I done, Dreamwalker?" he asked, holding back his tears.
Xander grabbed the cultist's right hand and spoke as calmly as possible. "You can't undo your mistakes. But there's still time to stop Moreas before it's too late. Where can I find him?"
The Last Memory shook his head. "He didn't tell me. All I know is that he is gathering the tainted relics. He needs three of them to summon Shamura's first general."
"Where are the relics located?"
The Last Memory shook his head again. "I don't know, Dreamwalker. I don't know."
Xander understood that this particular cultist was one of the new initiates and had limited information about the cult's greater plans. His job here was nearly done, and all that remained was closing the portal.
"Will I ever find forgiveness?" the cultist asked reluctantly, his voice choked with tears.
"I don't know about that. But I'll help you find peace." With that Xander pulled the Last Memory close and uttered the final incantation. "Free me from this nightmare as I free this Last Memory from death. The river guides us all. The river guides us all. The river guides us all."
Everything around them turned hazy as the Last Memory faded into the light.
A glowing white portal opened under Xander's feet, and as he opened his eyes on the other side, he was back in Windbell Park.
The first rays of the morning sun were filtering through the fleecy clouds and the red portal behind the birdwatching tower had disappeared, leaving behind just a patch of blackened grass.
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