NOVEL NEXT WORLD Chapter 11: Chapter 10: Scream
The path ahead stretched like an unreachable horizon, taunting us with the illusion of escape. My breath came in ragged gasps, every step heavier than the last. The air burned in my lungs, and the crimson mire clung to my legs like shackles. I bit my lip hard enough to draw blood, the metallic tang mingling with the damp, acrid air.
This was pointless. If we kept running, it would catch us. If we stopped, we'd be devoured. There was no way out, no salvation. Kill or be killed.
I halted abruptly, pivoting to face the crimson death worm bearing down on us. Its monstrous form surged forward, a tidal wave of gleaming flesh and metallic teeth.
"Agon!" Celia's voice cut through the chaos, sharp with panic. She stopped as well, her boots skidding in the thick muck.
I didn't turn back. My hands moved instinctively, the bow manifesting in my grip with a faint shimmer. The string thrummed as I drew it back, the rune arrow materializing, its ethereal glow cutting through the gloom.
The worm's mouth yawned open, revealing jagged, interlocking teeth like rusted scythes. Its maw churned with electric-blue currents, crackling as it prepared to unleash a devastating shockwave.
Its skin is too thick. Aim for the inside. I repeated the thought like a mantra, calming my trembling fingers. The problem wasn't the shot... it was threading the arrow through the narrow, shifting gap of those merciless teeth.
I exhaled slowly, narrowing my focus. The world around me dimmed to a blur as I concentrated solely on the shot.
The worm roared, its screech reverberating like a thunderclap. Sparks of electricity arced around its body, illuminating the crimson muck in violent flashes.
I released.
The arrow streaked through the air, a blinding comet of blue. It pierced straight into the worm's gaping mouth, bypassing its jagged maw and embedding itself deep inside.
The creature's roar turned to an agonized wail. The currents surrounding it flickered and died, its massive form convulsing violently.
Now! I shouted silently, my bow dissolving back into the ether of my inventory. Dual daggers appeared in my hands, their faint orange glow casting eerie shadows on the blood-soaked ground.
Without hesitation, I lunged forward, climbing the worm's undulating form. Its surface was slick and pulsating, a nauseating combination of fleshy ridges and oozing liquid.
"Agon, wait!" Celia's voice was distant, but I couldn't stop. I wouldn't stop. If it couldn't be killed from the outside, I'd destroy it from within.
The worm's maw loomed closer, its teeth grinding like steel gates. Timing each movement, I dodged the crushing blades and leaped inside.
The moment I landed, the putrid stench of decay and acid overwhelmed me. The walls of its stomach pulsed rhythmically, the fleshy surface slick with mucus and blood.
A faint thud sounded behind me. I whirled around, daggers raised, and froze.
"Celia?"
She stood there, chest heaving, her icy-blue blade glowing faintly in the darkness.
"What the hell are you doing here?" I barked, my voice sharp with anger. "Are you trying to get yourself killed?"
Before I could say more, she slapped me.
The sound echoed sharply, cutting through the squelching noises of the worm's insides.
I stared at her, stunned into silence.
"What's wrong with you?" she snapped, her voice trembling with both rage and fear. "Do you want to die? Do you think you're some kind of hero? We're not here to throw our lives away, Agon! We're here to survive!"
Her words hit harder than the slap, the raw emotion in her voice stripping away any defense I could muster.
She took a shuddering breath, her shoulders sagging. "You're all I have left. Don't you get that? You're the only one I have in this damned world."
Her words pierced through the haze of my recklessness, anchoring me back to reality. The weight of her grief and fear bore down on me, heavier than the worm's suffocating walls.
I stepped closer, dematerializing my weapons, and slowly wrapped my arms around her.
"I'm sorry," I whispered, the words catching in my throat.
She didn't hug me back at first, but her trembling eased slightly. Then I felt a faint, muffled sob against my chest.
"Don't ever do that again," she murmured, her voice barely audible. "If you're going to do something that reckless… at least let's do it together. I can't lose you too."
I nodded, releasing her as she wiped her eyes, her expression hardening once more.
"What's the plan?" she asked, her voice steadier now.
I glanced around the pulsing, blood-slicked walls. The rhythmic contractions of the stomach felt like they were drawing us deeper into the beast's core.
"We destroy it from the inside," I said, scanning the grotesque chamber.
Before she could respond, a low, guttural noise erupted from deep within the worm.
It wasn't just a sound, it was a scream, raw and visceral, a cacophony of agony that shook the walls around us.
The force of it rattled my bones, as if tearing the very fiber of my body,
I couldn't help but Scream..
A Pained Scream....