Hunter of the Evernight
Chapter 522: Tide of madness

Chapter 522: Tide of madness

She found herself in a dark room, her mind muddled as she struggled to figure out how she had gotten here.

Massaging her temples, she got out of bed before proceeding to open the window after which she looked outside.

The cobblestone streets were empty, devoid of life and light.

The eerie darkness caused her great discomfort, and so she immediately went in search of light.

She opened the door and stepped outside only to be met with a pale light that barely illuminated the hallway.

It was then she recognized her location.

It was her home back at BoneHaven!

The same apartment she once stayed in with Douglas and Alex.

A place that was once filled with warmth and love now stood empty, with a faint chill that caused Emily to tremble ever so slightly.

Instinctively, she called out. "Douglas, Alex!... Are you guys there?"

But there was no response.

She called out yet again and still, nothing.

Taking steady steps, she quickly arrived in the living room to find the door ajar.

As she moved to close it, she heard a faint voice from outside causing her to pause.

It sounded both familiar and unfamiliar, resulting in a conundrum that left her quite confused.

She arrived before the door and opened it fully to take a look outside.

Then, she heard the voice clearly.

"Mama."

Her gaze slowly drifted towards the stairwell and then she saw it.

First, it was its ridiculously large head covered in pustules that seemed to have been inflated, followed by its tiny body covered in traditional baby attire.

Its hollow eyeholes focused on Emily and its comically large lips curled into a strange smile while parting to reveal rows of serrated yellow teeth.

Then, it spoke. "Mama."

The scream that followed awoke Emily from her nightmare, her eyes fluttering open as she found herself back in the cathedral covered in eerie shadows.

Her breathing heavy, she heard a voice from above.

"Do you still think he will come?"

Silence followed as Emily took some time to sift through her heart.

Moments passed before finally, she replied. "Yes."

"... Then I will wait."

Emily managed a weak smile before proceeding to look down.

Seeing her inflated stomach, she muttered weakly. "Only a matter of time."

***

"What about the Monarchs?" Godric inquired as his gaze zeroed in on the dark passage created by Obadiah, out of which droves of Classless monstrosities rushed out, making a mad dash toward BlackWatch.

As the alarm bells rang out in quick succession, Valkyries, Enforcers, and even Vampires moved to confront the creatures.

"What about us?" Maxius calmly inquired.

Henry glanced at them. "You claim to be here to assist us, how can you do so?"

"The Otherworldly in the sky, we can take care of her." Lucas intoned, causing quite a few Saints to look in his direction.

If even they did not dare make such a bold statement, what gave him the audacity?... That was the question on their minds.

Vorigan had to step up to explain. "The ritual we carried out to initiate the Blood Feast. We believe it is what is keeping the creature anchored to our world. If we can destroy it, then naturally, the Otherworldly would be sent back."

"The Will of the World is no longer as active as before, there’s a chance destroying the anchor won’t change anything." Oswald calmly pointed out to which Maxius replied.

"We won’t know if we don’t try."

"If there is a chance to deal with the Otherworldly above, then let them. It’s clear that whatever it’s doing up there is important, why else would the Daemon reveal himself now?" Lionel remarked.

Just then, Aiden stepped forward. "In that case, all is settled. We shall handle the Daemon while the Monarchs shall take care of their mistakes."

Though offended, none of the Monarchs said anything as Aiden was hardly wrong in his statement.

In any case, he didn’t give them a chance to bicker as he took another step forward before vanishing.

The Saints followed closely behind.

With them gone, Beatrice let out a relieved sigh before remarking. "Are we going to head to the valley?... Such a place would be quite dangerous given the current circumstances."

"We don’t have a choice. If even the Dark Lord is willing to put in much effort, are we to do nothing?... Remember, if Ra’as falls, we fall along with it." Vorigan replied, leaving no room for argument.

"Then we should be on our way." Maxius calmly intoned. "Time waits for no one."

Taking the lead, Maxius vanished, with the other Monarchs following closely behind.

***

Alejandro stared above, awed by the sight of a night sky covered in sparkling white jewels.

"Is this your doing?" He inquired as Alex came to stand by him.

"Indeed."

"I had no idea you had such power," Alejandro admitted.

"I don’t."

Alejandro raised a brow but decided not to question further since Alex wasn’t about to explain the situation.

"This means the deciding battle has begun."

"I believe so too. I doubt our opponents would stay still given the circumstances."

"Is there a means to hasten our journey to BlackWatch?... I would rather not want to get there when the battle is over."

Alex sighed. "Unfortunately not. If I’d been there before or at the very least a part of me was..."

"What is it?" Alejandro inquired.

Alex gave no response as he closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

Moments later he opened his eyes and remarked. "It would seem there is a way to hasten our journey."

"How?"

"A piece of me is currently preparing for battle." Alex intoned, rather perplexed as to how that had happened.

But it was just as he had sensed and so, he made to snap just as Alejandro and his elite guard moved to stand in proximity.

A moment later, black and white light covered their eyes and when it receded, the first thing they saw was a tide of madness.