Echoes of Hollow

“Huh? It’s just you?” Hye asked, standing with one hand on the egg’s shell, which occasionally seemed to be moving. He turned to look at the four who had arrived first, but then, moments later, the other werewolves approached as well.

The tension in the air was more than evident, but this time, the stares were almost equally divided between him and those who had arrived earlier.

“Alright, then... I have something to ask all of you.” Feeling the movement beneath the shell, he scanned the area, observing each of those present. “Which of you wants to cancel the contract?”

“What...?”

Perplexed, the wolves exchanged glances. Arche barely noticed her jaw dropping slightly, and her eyebrows rising considerably, while Lykos looked around, observing, just like Hye, everyone’s reaction. Some showed interest and obvious satisfaction, but others, the majority, seemed lost in doubt, unsure what to say or even whether such an offer was real.

‘This is interesting, but...’ Samael questioned, ‘what about freeing all of them?’

Taking the first step, smiling, a man with part of his face marked in red was the first to raise his hand. “Honestly, I thought about it and, now, I think I’d rather go through with it,” he said, sparking a series of confessions. One by one, all those who were dissatisfied and suspicious enough to even consider taking this slim chance at freedom raised their hands.

For a moment, after a slight tremor, the thought crossed Lykos’s mind. The potential problems stemming from Hye’s earlier phone conversation made him consider it... at least until Hye continued, saying: “I assume this includes your children as well?”

Eyes widening, Lykos tightened his grip on Arche’s hand. Living in an unknown, possibly hostile world would already be a huge problem for the two of them. But for Eudora... that would be simply impossible.

Everyone, even those who hadn’t responded, looked at Hye in silence.

“Alright, that’s all.”

“N-No...!”

Dissolving like a mound of sand in the wind before their eyes, the same intangible and terrifying interface that had provided them with a chance to escape certain death disappeared without them being able to stop it or even cling to it.

Many, with images of their children flashing in their minds, realized they might have acted hastily. Just following the flow of events and letting doubt take root in their minds, they had agreed. But... what should they do now? Where should they go?

“Those of you with children,” Hye continued, not even acknowledging their pleas for reconsideration or looking into the desperate eyes of those who regretted their decision, “take your kids and leave. You don’t need to stay here... Or better yet, do it tomorrow. Take some time to think about what you’ll do from now on.”

“W-Wait...!”

Hearing the echo of that voice, Lykos trembled, just like the others. With the contract broken, the lack of support obviously wasn’t going to be their only problem. That tone... those words... He knew them well, very well. After all, he grew up learning them and had spent years using them. In that moment, everyone understood that freedom wouldn’t take them anywhere, because in a world where they didn’t even speak one of the existing languages, what could distinguish them from the other monsters—especially when, under the full moon, they became practically the same?

Kneeling down, a woman sees her vision blur as tears continue to gather in her light brown eyes.

“N-No...! Please, I-I didn’t mean to break the contract! Just one more chance, please... just give me one more chance!”

Many followed her example, while others, still mentally lost, unable to focus their thoughts clearly or coherently, remained standing, paralyzed, merely watching what would happen next. Should they also beg, or try to think of some other way, but... what way?

As if struck with force, shaking their heads so violently that they seemed to lose their footing, the answer hit them hard, echoing through their confused minds.

“A second chance... that doesn’t exist,” Hye declared, his voice cold and his expression so calm and emotionless that, upon seeing it, Lykos could affirm that, without a doubt, something about him had changed since just moments ago. Hye moved his hand over the shell, following the direction of the crack that had started at its center. From the fissures, strange dust continued to escape with increasing intensity, and amidst the darkness, Hye could have sworn he saw a flicker of blue light.

“You heard when we were about to leave the forest, didn’t you? About the second rule. If you aren’t someone capable of controlling time, then accepting the consequences of your choices, no matter what they are, is the only thing you can do. And you’ve already made your decisions.”

“Control time...?” A sneer formed on the man’s face, and then, looking in Hye’s direction, he spat. “Cut the crap and redo the contract, or do you really think you can handle all of us here?”

‘Oh...’ Samael, watching the relatively positive reactions from those about to be expelled, smiled. ‘Really..., this is definitely a good way to separate the trash.’

Some stood, glancing around as if seeking help, only to end up reluctantly joining what, until then, had seemed like a one-man mutiny. Yet, there were also those who, too weak even to stand, remained on the ground, stunned, lost in their whirlpool of thoughts.

“Wasn’t I clear enough...? Leave, or you won’t even get until tomorrow.”

“Ha! You sure...? Without the contract, we have no reason to obey you anymore, and... that girl still—”

With a strange shift in the environment around them, even the breeze seemed to cease. Their hair stopped moving, the leaves froze, and, intensely and primitively, their instincts kept screaming at them to move away as far as possible, as fast as they could. Because something ahead was watching them, something cold and... strong... stronger than anything they had ever seen before.

“Go on..., I dare you.”

“N-No, I...”

As a small piece of the shell fell away, the shining eye was freed, finally staring directly at them all. The trembling intensified, and their instincts screamed, for before such a creature, even walking was no longer an option.

The bluish glow in its eyes intensified, erasing their thoughts altogether. After a roar, the beast opened itself up, shattering the shell that surrounded it and revealing the darkness that even enveloped the farthest tips of its wings.

“That’s what I thought. Leave now.”

With a strange body, appearing as fragile as it was seemingly intangible, the creature approached Hye, circling him, and then, after a moment, lowered its head toward him. Hesitant, he raised his hand but failed to touch it at first, for with a body seemingly made of the same dust that had appeared during Samantha’s attacks, touching something like this... was that even possible? As the beast drew closer of its own will, he received an answer to his question.

Not only tangible, but also cold. Not a freezing cold that would make his hand go numb, but one that, in a way, felt eerily familiar. It was the same cold he had felt years ago when he received the news about his parents... It was the cold of death.