All Oriana saw was fire. An undying, unrelenting fire.

The thick orange flames hungrily ate at the former Underwood Estate. The second floor of the once great and grand estate had collapsed into the middle of the building, becoming nothing more than burning tender for the thirsty fire. Orange flames licked the leaves of the nearby trees, but were just far enough away to prevent the flames from eating even more of the forest. Nothing but a pile of charred planks of wood and scattered pieces of silverware sat onto the estate grounds. It seemed it was only a matter of time before the flames would burn through the Underwood estate entirely, and end its long loved legacy as nothing more than a pile of ashes. 

Oriana swallowed thickly, unable to comprehend the horror that was unfolding right before her eyes. It seemed like a good portion of her life was burned to the ground, in front of her very eyes. 

‘The…Mr. Underwood was having a birthday party…for his son…“ Oriana’s voice trembled more and more as she explained “H-he invited the family over…I…I was supposed to be serving but..T-the housekeeper demanded I wear something more…formal…”

Although she did die…she knew that she was so close to being one of the many piles of ashes that blended in with the former Underwood Estate. She didn’t feel lucky, nor did she feel fortunate.

She just felt nothing but guilt. 

But if anything, Mazel seemed even more horrified by the burning estate after her explanation. Perhaps even more horrified than her. Thick tears welled up within her large eyes. Her lip trembled, twitching violently as another horrific thought seemed to enter her head. And without so much as a word…

She stuck her hand out towards the flames. At least until Altan stopped her.

Altan quickly whipped his hand out, wrapping his blanketed fingernails gingerly around Mazel’s balled hand. He carefully pressed her fist into her chest, and gave a knowing shake of his head.

“There’s nothing, Mazel…” his voice was nearly a whisper. All Mazel could do was respond with a shaky, weak nod at this point.

With his other hand, Altan briefly whipped the lantern in his hand around to the forest line. A million white eyes seemed to stare eagerly back at him, like a thick black cloud that invaded the tree line. Seeing so many shadows in one area, made him frown. Quite deeply, in fact. 

“Mazel, I want you to go back into the train,” Altan commanded, quickly shoving the lantern into her shaking hands 

“B-but the shadows-“

“Oriana and I will be ok,” Altan gently cut her off “It’s too dangerous out here for you. And besides….”

His sharp eyes barely drifted to the train, but he could tell well enough someone was starting back at him, rather intently. Although the young man was surrounded in darkness Lucian’s vivid pink eye were as clear as the morning sky. His thick scar however, was hidden well beneath the shadows inside the train.

“I believe Lucian can use your company…” he carefully commented. 

Mazel seemed…conflicted to say the least. Her wide eyes did eventually drift to the window of the train, but her mouth seemed ready to poise, ready to fight back against the man in the red coat. But moments later, her lips pursed tightly, and she rushed off to the safety of the train

With his lantern gone, Altan simply picked up a random, sturdy stick from the ground. With a small snap of his fingers, a burst of flames exploded out from his hand and onto the stick. By the time he shook his hand to dissipate the remaining fire he created, a small flame sat upon the top of the stick. 

“We should stay away from the tree lines for the time being,” Altan warned, as he carefully began to move into the forest “These shadows are like roaches, waiting for the estate to finish burning. They’re eager for souls right now, especially given the circumstances of your village,”

Oriana didn’t have the capacity to fight back. All she could do was nod “O-Ok…I…I’ll lead the way then…”

She  ruled up her busy ever so carefully as she began to creep through the dark and endless forest. The flickering fire that ate at the stick did little to illuminate the surrounding forest, but seemed to keep the lingering Shadows at bay. Their white, scribbled eyes followed Altan and Oriana intently, shifting from the safety of the tree line to the forest pathway. They followed the two like a long, dark parade, eagerly waiting for their moving meals to slip up and make a mistake. Altan however, kept his hand firmly upon his makeshift torch, and kept his sharp eyes firmly in front of him. 

Something Oriana wished desperately she could do.

Anxiety, fear, any negative emotion that popped in her mind stuck her like a parasite. The thought of the estate being on fire, the very place that gave her a home to raise her daughter, was….unsettling. The people who gladfully gave her a job were now nothing more than a pile of ashes, which meant…

The homes of her various coworkers were probably burnt down to the ground as well. Which meant…her small cottage was probably just a pile of unwanted rubble. It was then her fear skyrocketed. Anxiety and fear consumed her mind entirely.

If everything was on fire then…what happened to her daughter? She imagined her home burning straight to the ground. She imagined the flames consuming every little memory within her small cottage.

Including her daughter

“SELENE!”

Oriana ran. She ran fast, as though her very own life depended on it. Her feet pounded against the muddy thick grass, her hands sliced through the frigid forest air. And the further she ran away from Altan…

The more shadows began to wildly congregate in back of her.

Altan’s sharp eyes suddenly snapped open as the woman frantically dashed past him. Before he could even say a single word, Shadows began to window flood past him. They simply raced past him as though he was a roadblock, and chased the woman bathed in darkness.

“W-WAIT!” He yelled at the top of his lungs, soon running after Oriana.

As more and more ravenous Shadows raced behind her, Oriana continued to frantically race through the thick, dark forest. She paid little mind to the impending threat behind her, only letting her fearful mind be occupied by the thought of her daughter. Soon, she burst through the tree line of the thick first floor, and saw an entirely new scene unfold in front of her very eyes. 

Bodies. All she saw were bodies.

They lined the commune almost like crisp, brown leaves from a tree deep within the fall season. Some were tossed in front of their burning homes, others were scattered across the garden, and some lined the edge of the forests. She saw so many of her coworkers, her friends, desperately trying to escape the clutches of whoever swept past her home, only to succumb to their own deaths.  

She prayed to Magdalia her daughter didn’t meet a similar fate, but even then…her hope was dwindling, and fast. 

“SELENE?” She yelled at the top of her lungs “SELENE?!”

Oriana continued to frantically race through the remains of her home. She ran past the charred remains of houses, she ran past the cold, stiff bodies of her coworkers, she ran past countless memories of her former home, all in an effort to find her cottage. But, she then made an unfortunate mistake. 

She gripped.

As she stomped through the remains of the garden, her foot violently collided with the edge of the wooden framing. Her body smashed into the mud and dirt like a pile of bricks, nearly smashing her head into the rusted shovel that was ever so carefully tossed into the garden planter box. Before she could even scramble back to her feet…

Her vision was drenched in darkness. 

She gasped. She quickly flipped her body around, only to be met with what felt like a million, little white yes hungrily staring down at her. The countless Shadows white eyes seem to grow wider upon seeing their prey crash to the ground. They stretched high towards the sky in impending excitement, surrounding every single inch of Oriana’s vision. With only one soul up for picking, it seemed a bloodbath was bound to occur in regards to her lone soul. The next scene to unfold only shocked her to her core. 

The Shadows…had mouths. Oriana assumed that they were nothing more than foggy figures with small, white dots for eyes. But as they grew closer and closer to her, their hungry, ravenous mouths began to stretch across their bodies, almost like a zipper. Oriana swore she could see sharp teeth, dripping ever so eagerly for her soul. 

Ready to tear her entire body apart.

And so, they pounced on her.