A Hero's Dilemma

Chapter 10

Too bad this chapter has to start with bad news...

So some plans have changed, and I'll elaborate more in the bottom AN: but it'll become apparent as you read the chapter. Also, stay tuned for special bonus content at the end of the chapter as well! Speaking of...

Enjoy the chapter.

Cover art by: Notgustiarp

Chapter 10

The darkness never left his dreams.

Even after all this time, they merely sequestered themselves in the corners of his mind. Waiting for the days, he was weak to strike and sap away his energy to crush him. Today didn't seem like one of those days, thankfully.

The darkness was for once replaced with a serene light and a comforting warmth from blankets he'd been tightly wrapped in. It made him want to just close his eyes and drift away....

"Jaune!"

The voice was warbled and disjointed like it couldn't decide how it wanted to sound to his ears. Nevertheless, he understood it well enough.

"Wake up sweetie, breakfast's ready!"

Throwing off the blankets exposed him to the open air, yet he didn't feel any colder. He couldn't feel much of anything, actually.

"Coming, mom!" That was definitely his voice though the pitch was totally off.

Looking around only confused him more.

Darkness—An endless number of shadows covered the walls and floor like a cancerous tumor. Each broke the assumed reality of the world, spreading and consuming everything, yet he didn't question it. Even as he stared at pictures hung on the walls with the faces inked out or the entire closet filled with clothes caked in inky blackness, he didn't question it.

It even seemed that the spread was coming from something buried deep inside the closet itself, speeding up the erasure of this world. Still, he couldn't bring himself to care.

Making his way out, he was immediately transported to what he could only assume was the dining room. Assume, being the right word as entire sections of the room were being consumed by the shadows creeping ever closer.

Am I alone...?

Looking around showed otherwise. Instead, he was surrounded by faceless people crowded around him as the center of attention. The mob of creepy figures didn't fill him with dread though, only an unexplainable but familiar calm—like he was at home.

They began chanting in unison, their voices distorted and broken so heavily it came to sound like static. Even then, he could only feel one thing at that moment.

Indiscriminate love.

It was only when the inky nothingness that had been growing in the background began consuming the figures—erasing them from the world did he panic. But by then, he was too late to save them.

Just like before.

/-/

Swords clashed as a struggle ensued over who would give in first. The grip dug into his calluses, rubbing the skin raw as the blades struggled. Sweat trailed down his muscles as he flexed—pushing with all his might while digging his heels into the floor.

Speaking of the floor, it actually seemed to be coming closer—His face struck the ground before his mind could fully process what even happened.

"Come on Jaune, we've been over this. You've made this mistake before, remember?"