Ascension Chronicle: The Tower Of Calamity

 With a break of gold light, Liam and Clara stepped through the doorway; heaviness clouded their minds at the tension over the previous floor. The traumatic trial of the shadow realm still echoed within their thoughts, whispers of their very own fears lingering at the corners of their minds. Crossing over into the next floor, the sunlight dimmed around them, then replaced the heavy dread with a creepy stillness.
They were in an immense hollow cavern, with a ceiling that wouldn't even show them heights some dark distance far above. The ground was cracked and jagged with sharp angles, like something beyond comprehension had torn it apart. They had dark, quiet pools of water reflecting the minuscule amount of illumination present, and so the place took on an eerily dreamlike quality.
Liam felt indeed that they were not alone. Silence thickened, broken only by the sporadic drip of water from somewhere above. He looked at Clara, who was equally tense, her eyes ransacking all shadows and corners.
"Doesn't feel right," said Clara, voice low, her bow still in hand but without an arrow nocked. "Atmosphere is too quiet, too still.
"Yeah, I know what you mean," Liam said, gripping the hilt of his sword tiredly. "I just don't trust the place."
They moved cautiously forward, the softest sound of their footsteps echoing faintly in the depths of the cavern, almost like the whisper of an echo. Almost oppressive silence bridged between them, and while they walked, Liam felt the shadows shift oddly around them, even though there was no wind, no movement. It was as though the darkness itself was alive, watching them, waiting.
And then, without warning, there was a distant muffled sound. A soft, mournful cry of thunder in the air, so distant it almost felt as though it belonged above, yet something about it made it feel instantly next to them.
And there was Liam's heart beating: "What was that?"
Clara narrowed her eyes; her body was tense. "Be alert."

A wail echoed through the cavern, followed by the sound of soft footsteps-almost too soft to hear. Yet they were there and getting closer.
Expecting to find a different monster, another trial-they turned abruptly around. Instead, it showed them what they saw.
A figure appeared out of the darkness-a thin, fragile thing draped in tattered robes fluttering in some unseen breeze. And it walked very, very slowly; each step seemed to echo in its pain, in its sorrow. The figure is gaunt, an aspect hidden in a hood, but the faintest outline of its facial features: a face twisted in deep anguish, hollow, empty eyes.
Liam instinctively drew his sword, but Clara stopped his arm.
"Don't attack just yet," she whispered. "It's not... it's not a monster."
It stood almost before them now, its head tilting up, as if imagining this was the first time it ever realized they were present. The silence stretched thin for a moment, both without shape and sound.
Then it spoke with a voice that echoed like a hollow cave, as though long ago left behind by someone.
"Why do you fight?" it murmured, its voice shaking with a quaking sound that seemed far too great for such a fragile creation. "Why do you strive for victory when you know it will only cause more suffering?"
Liam frowned and walked carefully forward. "What are you talking about?"
The figure took a step closer, moving painfully slowly and deliberately. "You are not the first, nor will you be the last to come here. This is a prison, and those who come to conquer it... they lose themselves in the end."
Clara tightened her bowstring. "Are you trying to intimidate us? We are not afraid of you."
The figure's hollow eyes seemed to watch them from afar, and it let out a soft, almost sad laugh. "You misunderstand. I don't want to harm you. I'm just an echo of what once was. And you too will become an echo, just like the others."
Liam stepped back, the tension in his body crying out for distance. "What do you mean: echo? Who are you?"
The figure began to flicker, its body shifting in and out of focus. It looked as though it were now very slowly fading out of existence, its very life unraveling almost like a single thread from fabric.
"I am a reflection of all who have come before," it whispered, its voice receding. "Those who sought power. Those who sought answers. But at the end, they are all forgotten. Just like you will be."
It was a shadow from the figure starting to dissolve into a cloud of mist, its last wail full of sorrow echoing before completely fading.
Liam stood there still, his mind going berserk. "Was that real? Or was it just just another trick of the tower?"
Clara shook her head. "I don't know. But I think... I think we fight not for survival anymore. We fight to remain sane."
Before Liam could utter his word, the ground beneath his feet began to rumble, and the cave around began shaking. Dark pools of water were rippling violently, while the air within grew visibly thick, plummeting with the otherworldly sensation. The shadows appear to be gathering and swirling, shaping into phantom dark, indistinct, monstrous forms writhing and twisting inside the darkness.
"Prepare yourself," Clara shouted and drew an arrow.The creatures stepped forth from the shadows, their eyes glowing with malignancy within. Now they were no longer just shadows-they were formed from utter despair, being embodiments of all those fears and doubts that filled the minds of each human imprisoned in the tower.
Liam tightened his grip on his sword. "Time to fight."
The creatures moved forward jerkily, as if entirely created by pure malice. But Liam and Clara were not taken off guard. They stood side by side, weapons drawn, waiting for whatever horrors the tower might produce into their space.
While the battle began, it felt as if the cave was closing in on the surroundings; each jab at the enemy was accompanied by walls edging closer to him. They fought with everything they had in them against the hordes of creatures that sought to overpower them; yet for every number slain, there would be emerging more out of the shadows.
Now it was really not a fight for survival but for the souls of those who battled.
To Be Continued....