SFX: Low rumble, distant cracking obsidian, wind howling with teeth.)
Shade climbed the glowing spiral, each step burning his legs and his mind. The shadows at his heels twisted unnaturally, morphing into shapes more sinister with every pulse of cursed energy. The Astral Tower loomed above, lightning carving the sky in jagged silver arcs.
Then, the ground shook.
(SFX: Obsidian cracking, a deep growl vibrating through the air.)
From the Shattered Expanse below, a beast emerged. Massive, hulking, its skin like fractured glass reflecting the warped moonlight. Eyes burned like molten gold, and rows of jagged teeth clicked with unnatural rhythm. Its roar split the silence, shaking the obsidian beneath Shade's feet.
The nightmare… it's real.
Shade's hands trembled, but the silver-blue light surged around his fingers. He could feel the spire's resonance feeding him—if he used it right, he might survive.
(SFX: Energy crackling, heartbeat pounding like a war drum.)
The beast lunged. Its claws gouged deep trenches in the plain. Shade rolled aside, barely avoiding the strike, leaving a spray of black sparks where the claws hit. The air smelled of burning iron and fear.
He leapt, swinging his blade. Light cut through the beast's shadowy form, scattering fragments like shattered mirrors. It howled, staggering back—but not defeated.
(SFX: Screeching metal, shards falling into silence.)
The Nightmare Realm shifted around them. Glasswood spires bent toward the battle, wind tearing at Shade's cloak, voices whispering: "Fail… fall… lose yourself…"
Shade's breath came in ragged gasps. He clenched his teeth and forced his mind to still, drawing energy from the spire beneath him. With a violent motion, he channeled it into a single strike, sharper, faster, cleaner.
(SFX: High-pitched hum building, then a sharp crack! as blade meets beast.)
The light struck true, cutting through the beast's core. For a heartbeat, time seemed suspended—the Nightmare froze, the obsidian plain held its breath. Then the creature shattered into shards of shadow and glass, dissipating into the void.
Shade collapsed to his knees, chest heaving, sweat and blood mixing on his palms. His eyes rose toward the Astral Tower. Above, a storm swirled, yet faint moonlight revealed a door carved from bone and starlight—his path forward.
(SFX: Distant chime, resonating from the tower.)
But the map inside him pulsed violently. A new name appeared: The Sentinel of the Gate. Shade didn't recognize it, but instinct told him it was coming—something worse than the beast he had just faced.
I can't run. I won't run.
With renewed resolve, Shade rose, adjusting his grip on the blade of cursed light. The Nightmare Realm stretched before him, alive, watching, waiting.
(SFX: Wind screaming through spires, pulse of cursed energy echoing.)
Every step forward would be a battle, every shadow a test. And somewhere, at the tower's peak, Lady Maria—or whatever judged this world—watched.
Shade sprinted. The trial had only just begun.