No one moved, no one dared.Garret was gone, several students had fallen trying to flee.
The snow, untouched by wind, seemed to swallow every sound.
At the center of that terrible stillness floated the Seven-Finned Being.
Its towering, skeletal human disguise remained before everyone's eyes. Only Garret, before his death, had ever witnessed the horror that lay beneath the illusion.
For students, it never revealed its true form. Or perhaps, they couldn't see through as they lacked blessings.
Seven unseen fins crowned its true form. A being equal to a Seven-Lined Blessed.
Perhaps greater, its seven eyes never left Thane.
"I have offered mercy," The creature whispered, though its voice carried the weight of a thousand ancient echoes.
"Come… Delay serveth no purpose."
Thane's fingers loosened around his axe.
His breathing refused to steady, his entire body wanted to fight, his mind knew it would accomplish nothing.
He forced himself to look directly at the creature.
