Apocalypse Baby

Freya's eyes locked onto Xeno as he walked toward her.

But this wasn't the Xeno she once knew.

His body was pale and lifeless, his eyes hollow, his movements unnatural.

Undead.

The Nightmare was playing tricks, twisting his form—trying to make her hesitate.

Trying to make her feel guilty for killing him.

Xeno raised his bow, fingers moving with eerie precision as he notched an arrow.

Freya's grip on her blade tightened.

She wasn't falling for this.

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The first arrow flew.

She twisted her body, barely dodging it as a second one whizzed past her ear.

Then a third.

Tch.

Without wasting another second, she charged forward.

Her body vanished into the shadows—stealth mode.

Xeno's undead eyes darted around, searching.

He couldn't see her.

Good.

She closed in from behind, blade aimed at his back, ready to end this.

But—

CLANG!

In a blur, undead Xeno whipped around, his bow raised just in time to deflect her strike.

Freya's blade bounced off the wood, sparks flying.

Her eyes widened.

Fast.

She barely whispered the word before Xeno lunged again.

Xeno wasn't this fast when he was alive.

Before Freya could process it, the undead lashed out with a brutal kick.

THUD!

She stumbled backward, barely regaining her balance before Xeno drew a blade and charged.

CLANG!

CLANG!

Their weapons clashed in a flurry of steel, sparks flying with each brutal strike.

Freya's grip tightened as she blocked and parried, but Xeno was relentless.

His swings were faster.

Stronger.

The force behind each strike sent painful shocks up her arms.

Her hands throbbed, but she refused to back down.

She could keep up.

Until...

CLANG!

Xeno's blade slammed into hers, locking them in a deadlock.

Freya braced, forming a cross with her swords to absorb the impact.

And then—

"YOU..."

A hollow, eerie voice.

Freya's breath hitched.

Xeno was speaking.

The voice felt wrong, like it wasn't coming from just his throat— it echoed from everywhere.

"You... you killed me..."

Freya's grip faltered.

Her chest tightened.

"MONSTER."

The word slammed into her like a hammer, freezing her in place.

Her mind screamed at her to move—to do anything.

But for just a moment...

She couldn't.

Freya's heart pounded as the undead spoke—its voice eerily close to how Xeno had sounded when he was alive.

Her mind spun.

Was the nightmare playing tricks on her?

Was this really Xeno's voice or just another cruel illusion?

Maybe both.

The hesitation cost her.

Undead Xeno lunged forward.

His bony fingers lashed out, smacking her sword hand down and throwing her off balance.

Before she could react—

THUD!

A brutal kick slammed into her chest.

Freya shot backward, her body slamming into the ground as she tumbled across the dirt.

Pain flared through her back, and she let out a groan, forcing herself up.

Her breath was heavy.

Her expression, somber.

Was this... guilt?

Undead Xeno resummoned his bow in a flash, raising it without hesitation.

Then...

whoosh! whoosh! whoosh!

Arrows cut through the air, aimed straight at Freya.

Her eyes sharpened.

She raised her daggers, her blades flashing as she deflected each shot, stepping backward with each impact.

Clang!

Clang!

Clang!C

The force behind the arrows rattled her arms, but she held her ground.

Then, the undead charged forward.

Its bow vanished, replaced by a gleaming blade.

It swung hard.

Freya blocked—but the sheer power of the strike swatted her arms wide open.

Her grip tightened. She clicked her teeth in frustration.

The undead pressed on, launching another heavy slash.

She twisted her wrist and parried, forcing its blade to the side.

There! An opening.

Without thinking, she lunged forward, her dagger aimed right at its face.

But then, she hesitated.

Just for a split second.

And that was all it needed.

Undead Xeno's bony fingers snatched her wrist mid-strike.

With unnatural strength, it twisted, pulled, and—

FLIP!

Freya's body whipped through the air, and before she could react—

THUD!

She slammed into the ground, breath knocked from her lungs.

Undead Xeno's blade then plunged downward, aiming to end it.

But Freya spun on the ground, twisting her body at the last second.

Using the momentum, she hooked her leg behind the undead's knee and yanked hard.

THUD!

Undead Xeno collapsed to one knee.

Before it could react, Freya snapped her foot up, kicking it square in the chest.

The force sent it skidding back, buying her a moment.

She pushed off the ground, rising to her feet.

But as soon as she did, a blade came screaming toward her face.

Her instincts kicked in.

She jerked her head to the side, barely weaving past the attack—

The blade grazed her ear, a sharp sting following in its wake.

No time to recover.

The undead lunged again, pressing the assault.

Freya met its attack head-on, her daggers flashing as they clashed.

Steel against steel.

Clang!

Clang!

Clang!

Each strike rattled her arms, the sheer weight behind Xeno's attacks making her hands throb in pain.

This wasn't like before.

The real Xeno had relied on his bow, keeping his distance.

But this one?

This Xeno was relentless in close combat.

Freya blocked a strike, her arms straining under the force.

But before she could counter, the undead lunged forward.

Its bony fingers clamped around her wrists, yanking her straight into its path.

Then...

CRACK!

A skull-shattering headbutt smashed into her face.

"Ugh!"

Freya cried out, pain exploding through her skull as blood sprayed from her nose.

She stumbled backward, her vision blurring.

Then, she lost her footing.

Her back slammed against the ground, the cold surface jolting her senses.

Undead Xeno let out an evil grin, its blade raising high, then it stabbed downward, aiming to finish her.

Freya's instincts kicked in.

She rolled hard to the side.

SHNK!

The blade pierced the ground just inches from where she lay.

Without hesitation, she pushed off the ground and bolted.

"Coward."

The undead sneered, its voice dripping with mockery as it sprinted after her.

It could tell.

Freya had hesitated before.

And if it kept taunting her, whispering doubts into her mind—

She would hesitate again.

The undead pressed on, its hollow voice dripping with accusation.

"Admit it. You killed me because you needed Nightmare points. Nothing else."

Freya froze mid-step.

For a brief second, one of her arms disappeared.

Undead Xeno's empty eyes narrowed.

Then, she slowly turned to face it, a grin spreading across her lips.

"Did I?"

A chill ran through the undead.

Something felt wrong.

It instinctively halted, sensing an unseen threat...

CLANG!