chase in the dark

Chase in the Dark

The Heart's Call

The air was charged with an unnatural energy, as if something ancient had awakened from its deep slumber. Darius felt it first—a strange pulse from the Shadow Heart within his chest, as if something unseen was responding to a hidden call. It wasn't a normal sensation… it was a forceful pull, like the heart itself was summoning something from the depths of the darkness.

Adam, still tense from what had happened at the altar, suddenly stopped, his eyes scanning the surroundings with caution.

"Darius… do you feel that?"

There was no time to answer.

The Nightmare Arrives

At first, there was only silence.

Then, a neigh echoed through the forest—but it wasn't the sound of any ordinary horse. It was hollow, deep, like a muffled scream rising from a bottomless pit. Then came the trembling of the earth beneath their feet—something massive was approaching.

Darius turned quickly, his eyes widening. From between the trees, under the pale moonlight, emerged the Shadow Knight.

He rode a skeletal horse, its flesh torn and ribs exposed, as if time had ravaged it but failed to completely destroy it. A faint blue glow flickered within its hollow eye sockets, like embers refusing to die. As for the knight, he was a towering figure, surrounded by a living aura of darkness. His ancient armor was cracked and worn, yet his long spear gleamed—razor-sharp, unwavering, as if it had never stopped claiming lives.

Adam, frozen in place, whispered in a trembling voice:

"Dear god… what brought this monster to us?"

Darius, though shocked, was quicker to piece things together. He tightened his grip on his sword and replied grimly:

"I think… the Heart summoned it."

The Pursuit

The knight did not wait.

The moment his glowing eyes locked onto them, he pressed his skeletal steed forward, launching into a silent yet terrifying charge. There was no sound of hooves hitting the ground, no dirt kicked up—only the unnatural, gliding motion of a predator that had found its prey.

"Run!" Darius shouted, but he didn't need to. Adam had already bolted, ignoring everything but survival.

The shadows around them shifted, the air grew heavier, as if the forest itself was reacting to the knight's presence. The trees loomed closer, the ground trembled slightly, and every breath they took felt deafening in the deadly silence.

But no matter how fast they ran, it wasn't enough.

The knight was faster.

Darius glanced back for a split second—just in time to see the spear rise into the air, ready to strike.

There was no time, no choice.

The Impossible Escape

Ahead of them, a steep cliff stretched downward into a dark ravine, its depths obscured by shadows. Behind them, the knight closed in, his spear gleaming like death itself.

Adam stopped for just a second, staring at the abyss before them.

"Darius… we're trapped!"

Darius didn't hesitate. He looked down, then back, then grabbed Adam's wrist with force.

"We have no choice. We jump!"

Adam's eyes widened in shock.

"Are you insane?!"

The knight lifted his spear, now only moments away from striking.

With unwavering determination, Darius spoke firmly:

"If we don't jump now… we die."

Adam, despite his fear, saw the truth in his words. There was no time for hesitation.

In the final second, just as the spear came hurtling toward them—

They leaped.

Falling Into the Unknown

Cold air rushed past their faces, the wind roared in their ears, and gravity pulled their bodies into the abyss. For a brief moment, Darius felt weightless—time slowed, and the sound of his own heartbeat was all he could hear.

Then, just before they hit the ground—

Darkness.

The last thing they saw before vanishing into the fall was the knight standing at the cliff's edge. He did not move, did not pursue. He simply watched.

His glowing eyes remained locked onto them, as if silently saying—

"This isn't over." Than everything was dark