The Spire (POV)

Log 10

> You say "Hmm... so I guess I should do the opposite of what I just said, so that I don't die, huh Uzu?". You begin to enter the town, glancing around if there are any Shadow Guards around... None so far.

Uzume nods, clutching your hand tighter.

Despite this, you don't really know what to do, despite your expertise. On your own, this might have been easier, but you feel that Uzu is important, and therefore, you must protect her at all costs. You have no idea how you know that, but it's just one of the many things that make you care for this girl so much.

"Should we split up to cover more ground?"

> You say "No, I think we should stick together until the town square is in sight"

"You think? Hah, okay then.", Uzume says. You can feel the nervousness in her voice. It was understandable. After all, you nearly died last time.

Uzu follows behind you as you walk through the streets, keeping a safe distance. Every now and then, you look back to make sure she's still following. You couldn't afford to lose her, after all.

> You stop, and try to see if Shadow Guards have seen you.

You spin around, spotting a single Shadow Guard, sprinting towards you with a long, sharp shadowy blade. You raise your fists, but he's faster, and almost slashes you across the stomach.

> You say "Damn!"

Your body twists, his appendage missing you by millimeters, and you fall back in surprise.

> You say "Uzu! Whatever you did last time, I reaally think you should do it again!"

Uzu doesn't move.

"Come on! What harm could it do?"

Still, she doesn't do anything, so you continue forward.

The Shadow Guard is readying its next attack.

You grit your teeth. You try to formulate a plan, but the sight of his blade being sharp enough to cut through metal draws your attention to it.

Is there any way you can take him out before he strikes?

> You slash at the Shadow Guard's appendage.

You raise your arm, slashing through the air. Your blade connects with its appendage. He howls out in pain, its arm falling to the ground, the creature grabbing at it.

The appendage falls to the ground, but does not dissipate. The monster is attempting to reattach it elsewhere on his body.

Fortunately, you have another option.

You sprint towards him, punching him straight on what appeared to be its jaw. It's teeth revealed for a moment, showing rows upon rows of jagged, eerily white teeth.

> You break out into a flurry of punches.

The shadow guard falls back, grabbing at its face and howling in pain. You rush forward with a flurry of punches, but he falls back and raises his arm.

> You dodge to the left.

You dodge to the left, but he grabs your leg. He begins to phase his arm through your leg. You want scream in pain as it yanks you into the air, but you cannot find enough time to do so before it slams you into the ground. The creature shrieks, as if celebrating a kill. You are in a daze, but luckily your agent training prepared you for this.

> You quickly recover and grab Uzu, and try to rush out of Vusmith's border.

You are now running through the town, the creature in hot pursuit. The border of Vusmith is still a few hundred meters away, and you must reach it quickly. The Sun is setting now, and you can see the moon on the edge of the horizon... but so is the beast. You jump over cobwebbed barrels, and dusty tables, the remains of what used to be a civilization.

If you reach the border of Vusmith, you will be safe. You only need to make it across that line, if your theory is true, the Shadow Guard won't be able to follow you beyond it. Hopefully.

> You say "Hey Uzu, is that thing still chasing us?"

Uncertainty flashes in her eyes as she looks back for a moment, and then she nods. "It is."

> You say "Well crap. That's good and bad"

You continue to hurl insults at the creature as you run, hoping to keep its attention on you. It seems to be working, as it continues to sprint towards you with foul intentions.

The shadowy tendrils are back again, trying to grab your feet. Despite this, you continue to charge forward, screaming invectives at the beast.

You are now less than a few feet away from the border.

> You say "We're almost there Uzu!"

The creature reaches its arm out once again, grabbing at you. You feel a paralyzing chill go through your body as you are lifted into the air for just a moment.

"Get back!", Uzu finally speaks, and fires a bolt of light towards the creature from her staff. You then feel her go limp for a second, before tightening her grip on your hand once more.

You reach the border just as the creature grabs your feet.

You have escaped Vusmith! And you have also lured out a Shadow Guard!

The Shadow Guard pursuing you pauses, and realizes that it has left the Border of Vusmith. It starts to panic, and screams at the top of its lungs.

You do your best to speed as you run as quickly as you can, away from the creature, before it recovers and tries to give chase once again.

The Moon is now fully revealed on the Horizon, its light shining on the High Desert, where you see your enemy.

You only have a few seconds to act, but then the Shadow Guard realizes its mistake and shrieks.

> You shoot the shadow guard with your rifle.

You shoot the Shadow Guard between where its eyes should be, a clean shot, and it screams once again, a dark wind gusting out its nonexistent lungs.

But this is strange... The bullet appears to have passed through the creature, without harming it. Why was it shrieking then?

You don't have time to ponder this, as the Shadow Guard is now reaching its tormented hands towards you!

It screams yet again, but this time it sounds different, lower, more guttural.

The moonlight washes over the creature's body, and it is suddenly covered in a dark, ominous cloak of tenebris. The Shadow Guard stops screaming, and instead howls, the darkness around you beginning to emulate the darkness that fills its form.

But then the creature falls to the sand, a loud thump accompanying its fall. Its skin starts to flake away, revealing nothingness inside... You notice with horror that the Shadow Guard has now transformed into a trembling, sobbing, pitch-black entity, its tears staining the sand black...

> You approach the entity.

The creature begins to howl and shudder, and the darkness around you writhes and shifts. You don't want to know what could come out of this darkness.

But this was all for naught, for as the darkness molded around you, the gaseous entity has started to fade into the darkness as well. As the entity disappears, the sand around you seems to have caught on fire, turning into a raging inferno that consumes the Shadow Guard, leaving nothing behind.

The Shadow Guard was dead, and you were alive. 

Was the Moon their weakness? There was no time to think on this now; the moon, which had been at a sliver, was now rising, fully visible in the night sky.