ACT VI : SANCTUARY
In a few mere hours, the battlefield was nearly devoid of life. Those soldiers who had not yet been killed had retreated.
Nightmare approached the castle of Ostreinsburg. The rain was falling heavier now, rapping loudly against the surface of his helmet. Its quieting as he stepped inside the shelter of the castle had an almost eerie effect.
"Halt! You dare enter the castle of Ostreinsburg, fortress of Lord Stefan himself?"
Humans and their annoying self-righteous declarations... The guard who had spoken the words spoke them with no confidence, however. He knew what he was facing. Yet he chose to stand his ground anyway? What a fool.
Nightmare simply decapitated him in a single sweep and continued to trudge onward.
There were naught but weak souls within this castle's confines. So why, then, had the blade led him here?
Ostreinsburg... Lord Stefan... This is where my journey to find the sword began...
He stopped dead in his tracks. It hadn't been Soul Edge leading him here at all... It was that human's memories, again!
Soon...soon... The human will be gone... I understand you find sharing your body repulsive. The human... will be gone soon. For now, do as I have told you, and let his memories lead you to more prey...
Of course... But these humans were of little use. Time to move on.
Kill them anyway. Then, you may take this castle as your own...
Yes, a place to set up a base of operations. A sanctuary to return to, where ever the hunt brought him... A place to call home. Something about the idea appealed to him.
Though these humans' souls were weak, he would find and kill them all. They were, after all, trespassers in his new home...
It did not take long before he had found the last of them. The "lord" of the castle. Hardly a title befitting the man anymore.
He was babbling incoherently, staring ahead, unblinking. Matted brown hair hung in filthy strands around a scarred, gaunt face. He was delirious, dying a slow death of madness.
Lord Stefan...
And this human host pitied the man?
"How pathetic..."
Nightmare impaled the man on the end of his massive blade and tossed aside his body, disgusted. This human's sickened, starved soul was hardly even worth the effort to kill the man.
"...I took care of the stragglers."
He turned to see the golem entering the room, his grim and gory battle axe slung over his shoulder. The massive man stopped and stood, waiting for either praise or further instruction, but Nightmare had neither to give.
You will return to this place in due time, child. For now, there is nothing else to be gained from it... More travel is necessary... The human surely knows of more human settlements... Allow him to lead you there.
The human's presence grew more prominent, strengthened by opposition to the sword's plan. No! I won't let you use my memories for your purposes! I won't let you sacrifice everyone I care about! I won't!
As I recall, human, you offered up your body to me and agreed to assist in my harvest of human souls. Do you not remember? The blade hissed.
I said I would in exchange for my father's life back! Not in order to see every other one I care about brought down by the thing you made and housed in my body! You lied to me!
Because you fool humans are so easily led astray! How stupid and naive can you possibly be, to expect truth from a being such as myself?! I am darkness itself! I am the endless night! I will consume all! I will use you humans for my own purposes as I see fit, and I bear no obligation to answer to you in any way whatsoever!
The human's frantic thoughts, weakened now by despair, faded to faint murmurs.
Nightmare, feeling a faintly smug satisfaction at the fool's utter helplessness, laughed quietly before turning back to Astaroth.
"We must move again. There is nothing more to be gained here in the way of human souls. We will return later."
The golem stood motionless, with ambivalent acceptance of the order. "Alright."
Nightmare strode past him, down the halls of the castle, and back into the heavy rainfall on the bloodied field ahead. It was as though the heavens were trying to purge the earth of this monstrosity, but all for naught, as the rain could not even fully mask the scent of freshly spilled blood.
There was another village close to here. The human knew of it, he had been raised there.
"Try all you wish to stop me, human... All will fall to me in due time..."
For days, Nightmare walked, followed closely by Astaroth. The golem did not tire as quickly a human might, and thus had no trouble in keeping up with the knight's incessant pace. They encountered small groups of humans along the way, slaughtering them without question.
Your servant has collected a great many souls, my puppet. It is best you take them in case he possesses the ability to derive any sort of use from them. Take his weapon... Let their souls join those that I have consumed.
"Astaroth."
The golem stopped, looking down at his master. "Hmm?"
"Give me your weapon. I must channel the souls you have collected into Soul Edge."
The golem did not seem happy to comply, but held out the massive axe to Nightmare anyway. He took hold of the handle, slightly surprised by its weight, and allowed the power to channel from it to his own blade. There were a great many indeed, and the enormous surge of power, so many at once, was almost overwhelming.
This method must be regularly used with any servants you take to add to my power and ensure that they do not have too much of their own. Take note, child.
Nightmare inwardly accepted the order before handing the axe back to Astaroth and continuing towards the village he had seen in his host's memories.
Six days passed and they encountered no more humans. Though Astaroth was only annoyed with this fact, as he killed humans for the fun of it, Nightmare needed the souls to survive. He was suffering his version of a slow starvation and steadily increasing fatigue, much as he had in his first few days of life. Even though he had gained power from Astaroth's reapings, they had been swallowed by Soul Edge, and he needed more to stay alive.
He stopped when he could go no further, as he was greatly exhausted, only a few miles from the settlement. Astaroth stopped with him, boredly examining his surroundings before going off to search around for humans of his own accord.
Nightmare was falling asleep. For the first time, the sword was outraged with him.
No! You fool, if you allow yourself to be left vulnerable like that, the human will take over this body again!
He tried to stand again, to keep going, but he could not muster the energy even for that. And, despite the sword's protests, he had succumbed to his exhaustion, and sleep dragged him under.
Siegfried Schtauffen had at last regained control of his body.
Gasping, he tore the filth-covered blue armor off piece by piece until he was left with only the chainmail and tunic. Where the right sleeve was torn away, leaving tattered shreds of threadbare fabric, he could see that his arm was no longer the monstrous clawed one that Nightmare's had been.
He scrambled to his feet. He recognized where he was, his father had taken him hunting here many times before.
Father...
No, he couldn't think about that now. He had to get to the village, he had to warn them, because he didn't know how much longer the demon that used his body as a host would stay dormant.
He looked back at the sword that commanded the puppet. Its single eye was watching him carefully. What should he do with it? He was afraid to make contact with it, after all, that was how it had used his body to house its puppet. But he had to show it to someone, reveal the so-called Sword of Legend for what it really was, and find a way to destroy it.
Cautiously, he stepped forward, gingerly gripping the gnarled hilt. Nightmare's mind was out of reach for the time being, and the sword controlled him, not Siegfried, thus the sword could do nothing at this moment.
Enjoy freedom while you can... My puppet will be awake again soon...
Siegfried had the grim realization that the sword was probably right. Carrying it with him, he started towards the village where he had spent most of his life. He ran as fast as his legs would carry him, slowing to a stop when he heard voices. Voices he recognized.
Relief flooded his mind. "Burke! Cadel!"
The two men stopped, taking in the sight of their friend, gaunt and grimy, leaning against the tree. They rushed forward.
"Siegfried! You're alive! We thought- Well, everyone in the village - thought you were dead. Your father..." Cadel trailed off, biting his lip.
Siegfried shook his head. "I know."
"What happened? Where have you been?" Burke asked. He caught sight of the sword gripped in Siegfried's shaking hand. "And... What is...?"
Siegfried looked down at it. It returned his gaze, fury blazing in its eye.
He had to warn them. He had to warn them now. Before they too fell victim to its insatiable thirst for human lives...
Fool... Do you really think you can save them?
Can you save anyone?
There is no defying my power... Everlasting and boundless is the dominion of the night!