Clouded in a never-ending darkness —trust me— does no good to the human nervous system.
***
An oppressive silence surrounded Dean, stretching infinitely into the void beyond.
But just then—
He remembered. He remembered where he was.
"Shit!"
He cursed under his breath.
Right afterwards, he tried to move, tried to fight against the weight of the dark mist pressing down on him, but his body refused to respond.
Something held him in place.
Unseen hands clutched at his limbs, pulling him deeper and... deeper. And to make matters worse, the dark mist wasn't normal.
It carried a strange corrosive property. Yet, his body was somehow resisting it. If only barely.
'Damnation!'
Urging his body to move, bloodshot veins crept across his sclera as he forced his body to fight against the unseen forces holding onto him. Forces that sought to consume him.
"Ukh!"
As though irritated by Dean's struggles, Dean felt a terrifying force slam onto him with such powerful force, it sent a wave of shock and agony rippling through him.
"Kgha!"
Coughing out a mouthful of blood, he realized in that moment that his bones were being corroded by the dark mist. And that wasn't the end.
Next, it moved to his arm, peeling and corroding, specks of darkness crawling in through the open pores, eliciting a wave of pain through him.
Right about then, as though in anticipation, the specks of light floating in the air gathered into a cyclonic whirlwind before flooding towards him. His eyes instinctively shut close.
And then—
"...."
He heard it.
A soft melodic whisper.
"Open your eyes," it said.
The voice crept into Dean's mind, a strange rhythmic breath scraping against his neck.
He needn't be told. Whatever it was... was right behind him.
The voice slowly grew jagged and unsettling:
"Open! Open your eyes..!!"
It was nearer now, almost leaning in.
"OPEN THEM— NOW!!!"
Dean stood frozen. His breath hitched as his heart pounded in his ears.
He could feel it, he was slowly dissolving into nothingness. Yet,
Clink—!
He felt nothing. No pain. No agony. Absolutely nothing.
There and then, fear crept in as a chilling realization settled within him.
If he were to die in this state, he wouldn't even be aware. And... he'd a feeling that wasn't such a good thing.
And the worst part?
Something more terrifying was creeping in.
He could feel it. Its every step shook the foundation of the dark mist. Or... was it the dark mist...?
"Fuck it!"
He could give a fuck less.
Desperation clawed at the edges of his mind as he willed his body to move. However, no matter how hard he tried, he remained trapped— ensnared by the unseen shadows that sought to drag him into the abyss.
He gritted his teeth, panic mounting.
His mind raced for solutions, for a way out, but the entity... the dark mist... offered him no breathing space. It rapidly closed in on him.
And now, he could feel it— Clearly, horrifyingly clearly.
Right about then, dark slithering arms jutted out of the ground beneath him, twitching, grasping... reaching.
Ba- thump! Ba- thump!
Fear shot through him, and his body shuddered.
'Fucking move you piece of shit!'
Now, he was really on the verge of loosing it.
It was now nearly upon him.
However, just when despair and desperation began to creep in. Just when they ignited within him,
Flick—!
A spark of blue light erupted from within him. The surging flames revolved around his body, moving through his veins with overwhelming force.
His eyes widened. He needn't be told to know what this was.
The chaotic blue flame.
One of the very few things that had kept him alive till this very moment, and perhaps more chilling moments, provided he survived this first.
Though, he was perplexed and confused.
The flame had been unwilling to respond to his commands for a while now. So... why? Why was it now reacting?
He had a lot of questions— like always. But he knew now was not the time for them.
As the flame wrapped around every inch of his body, realization settled in. Almost immediately, he began to fight against the shadowy hands holding onto me.
Veins wriggled across his arms, muscles tensed as the chaotic blue flame was pushed to its limit, revolving around him at an astonishing pace.
It was also then that he saw it. Wherever the flame touched, the dark mist retreated, as though in fear.
The dark mist was afraid. But why?
Various thoughts raced through Dean's mind, but he shoved them down just as they came.
For now, he had more important tasks to focus on.
Such as escaping the eldritch horror still charging towards him.
Seizing the chance, his breath hitched as he pushed through the dark mist with everything he had.
His hands clawed against the invisible current as he propelled himself forward.
Step! Step!
Dean's heart pounded in his ears, the unknown entity creeping closer. Too close.
Right about then—
His eyes widened as he lunged forward with everything he'd.
He barely managed to roll out of the dark mist, into the Dune structure, just in time.
The moment he lunged forward, creaking close the door, he felt a supernatural force slam onto the door, hurling him back with enough force to snap his bones on impact with the wall.
Crack—!
Blood trailed down Dean's lips as he slid down the wall, leaving a trail of blood behind.
Drip...! Drip...!
The wet liquid trickled down his forehead as he rested against the wall, heart hammering.
'He wasn't dead. At least not yet.'
With a grim look, he braced himself for the dark mist. F-for the eldritch horror.
Seconds stretched into minutes, and yet, nothing happened. Yet he could feel it.
Supernatural detector.
An ability he'd somehow developed after spending most of his lifetimes running from eldritch horrors said so.
It was still there. Waiting. Watching.
A frown tugged at Dean's lips. Even at such a close distance, it wasn't attacking him. Why?
Because somehow, he had this ominous feeling that the dark mist could easily break open the dune structure. Yet... why wasn't it doing so?
...In that moment, however, his eyes widened, breath caught in his throat.
"...!!"
From the depths of the dark mist, they emerged. Dark, writhing tentacles erupted from the void, moving with terrifying precision.
'Damn it!'
Dean's expression paled.
The tentacles whipped through the mist, stopping for a second, and then—
'Shit!'
They struck.
One.
Two.
Three.
Four.
In an instant, the dark abysmal tentacles coiled around a colossal creature, dragging it into the mist's depths.
The Néikth creature barely had time to struggle before the void swallowed it whole. And then—
Silence. It lingered.
"...."
The mist itself stilled, as if nothing had ever happened.
If not for his trembling limbs and the lingering dread coiling around his chest, he might have been fooled. However, as pain rippled through him, blood dripping onto the ground beneath him,
Drip. Drip.
He sat there, staring blankly into the endless dark mist.
For a second there, he found it hard to believe that something so still, so quiet, could hide horrors beyond imagination.
Just how much worse can this cursed land get?
Dean shuddered.
"Huh."
Letting out a slow breath, he staggered to his feet. His limbs trembled as he crept towards the window.
There, he froze mid-stare.
"...."
Somewhere in the depths of that abyss, something stared right back at him. An unseen presence.
He shuddered again, but at least now he knew one thing:
So long as he remained here, he was safe.
But how long could he stay here?
He would need food, he would need to move. And more importantly, staying here meant never escaping this cursed and wretched land.
'And that was a luxury he couldn't afford.'
***
Staring into the dark mist, he knew he wouldn't have made it out alive if not for the flame.
'Talking about the flame.'
He frowned. Reaching inward to sense it, he soon realized a fact that didn't really sit well with him.
Compared to before, the chaotic blue flame was pulsing weakly. Which meant that the flame had been weakened.
But how?
He knew just how powerful the flame was on its own. But now... it seems that bonding with him had somehow drained the flame of its energy.
He nodded grimly.
That was after all, the only explanation that made sense. Slowly, an even more chilling realization settled within him.
Without the flame, he had no chance against the dark mist. And to make matters worse, there was still the dark hands hidden in the depths of the dark mist, and even worse, the supernatural horrors inhabiting it.
Despair and desperation settled within him, crashing against his mind like relentless waves, but he forced them down.
For now, as powerful and dangerous as the dark mist was, he needn't be scared of it. At least, not until he decided to leave the dune structure.
After all, he couldn't possibly stay stranded in some God-damned forsaken corner of the cursed land forever, right?
'Fuck! Who even knows where this is?'
Hell—even he had no idea. However, there was one thing he was very much certain of:
And that was the fact that he was somewhere he absolutely shouldn't be in.
Exhaling shakily, Dean glanced around him.
"What to do?" He wondered.
Normally, he would assess his surroundings, gather information, and make a plan. But right now?
He had no strength left to spare.
Exhaustion weighed down on him, heavier than the sea itself.
And as if to make matters worse, with his damned luck, he knew things would only get much more uglier further on.
"Ugh—!"
Groaning in fustration, a deep scowl crept up on his features.
An unsightly expression marred his face as he tried his best to shake off the various thoughts trying to cling onto the walls of his mind.
He'd had enough of them already.
And all this was only happening because of the damn flame! Yet without it, he knew he'd be dead.
"Aargh."
Anger. Frustration.
They burned within him—rippling through every fiber of his being. But as he laid there, staring at the dark, lifeless void above, all those frantic thoughts slowly dissolved into nothingness.
Heck, he was too tired to care. He knew after today, his nightmare would begin anew. So he might as well allow himself some moments of respite before then.
A shaky exhalation escaped his lips as exhaustion pulled him into unconsciousness.
And then, before he knew it— His vision was drowned in endless darkness.