"I look up."
"I look up, beyond the dark hills, into the light of night."
"Within the stellar sea of delightful perjury, we witness the ends of madness. The tailcoat of chaos."
"It whispers to me, her sweet delights. Long luscious fingers tenderly stroke the chest, seeking the gouged heart."
"I am one. And I am no more. A fleeting Abomination."
"Defiance and corrupt is our blood. There is putrid blackness in our veins."
"We are powerful. She is powerful."
"She is... Death."
***
Nero stood in silence.
The Thralls around him were completely silent too, their bodies frozen in poses of worship or supplication, their heads tilted back at impossible angles, their mouths gaping wide toward the sky above.
He could feel his heart violently beating in his chest, each pulse thundering so loudly it seemed to echo through the empty streets. His fear spiraled out of control, threatening to consume his ability to think and to reason.
He forced himself to keep his head down.
