Paralyzed Demon - Shadow Slave

Morpheus found himself trapped within a dream, suspended on the fine line between reality and illusion. He stood atop a towering mountain, gazing down upon the world—but something was wrong.

The world was not turning.

Instead, it moved forward in a straight line—like a river, flowing endlessly and relentlessly. At first, he couldn't comprehend what was happening. But as his eyes traced the ever-shifting landscape below, understanding slowly dawned upon him.

The seasons were not changing. The world itself was moving through them.

Winter, spring, summer, and autumn—each season remained fixed in place, eternally affecting the same regions. It was the world that traveled through them, subjected to their unyielding dominion.

Below him, a vast forest stretched out, its fate dictated by the merciless cycle of the seasons. As the world pressed forward, nature was caught in an endless battle. Summer scorched the land, igniting trees in raging infernos and painting the sky with crimson flames. Winter encased everything in ice, smothering the world in a suffocating silence. In autumn, storms raged violently, floods devouring the land while trees were ripped from their roots. And then came spring—an explosion of wild, unchecked growth, where monstrous creatures emerged from the earth itself, thriving in the chaos.

Morpheus felt his skin crawl.

Those creatures… He didn't even want to think about them.

The vision played out again and again, trapping him in its cruel loop. He stood on the mountaintop, bearing witness to the world's unrelenting march. And then—

A sudden, gut-wrenching sensation of falling.

Morpheus awoke with a jolt.

He was sitting next to a campfire.

The air was freezing, the cold biting at his skin despite the flickering flames barely holding back the night. Around him, a vast white expanse stretched endlessly into the darkness.

His instincts flared.

Slowly, carefully, he scanned his surroundings for any signs of danger. He didn't know what kind of threats lurked in this world, but something told him he couldn't afford to be careless.

Nothing.

After a few moments, he exhaled and shifted his focus. He needed to check his Aspect.

Name: MorpheusTrue Name: —Rank: AspirantSoul Core: DormantMemories: —Echoes: —

Attributes:[Fated][Mark of Divinity][Edge of the Blade]

Aspect: The Last Human

Aspect Description:[You are the last surviving human in this world. How you've managed to endure so far is unknown. How you will survive from now on is a matter of curiosity for #########.]

Morpheus let out a breath, his fingers tightening.

"Damn it."

He was alone.

A nightmare like this was not something one could survive alone. No matter how terrifying a world was, having someone—anyone—by your side made it easier to endure.

But there was no one.

He was the last.

And worse…

Something was watching him.

"Fantastic," he muttered sarcastically, but he didn't have time to dwell on it. That was the least of his concerns.

Because of all the seasons he could have woken up in, he had the misfortune of landing in one of the worst.

Monsters, he could fight.

He could cut them down, struggle, and win.

But winter and summer?

You couldn't fight the seasons. You couldn't kill them.

Nature was not an enemy—it was an inescapable force, an unstoppable catastrophe.

Taking a deep breath, he steadied himself.

"Alright. I need a plan."

And then, a memory surfaced—the image of the colossal mountain from his vision.

That thing… it was the largest thing he had ever seen. Compared to it, the mountains of his world were nothing but scattered pebbles.

If there was a key to this nightmare, it had to be there.

But there was a problem.

He had no idea which direction it was in.

His gaze drifted to the horizon. He remembered the world's motion, the way it drifted through the seasons.

If I move with it, I'll pass through winter faster.

That settled it. He would head north.

Grabbing his backpack, he took stock of what little he had. Some food, fabric, and a set of lighter clothing for warmer seasons. His current outfit was thick enough to protect him from the cold, but he knew it wouldn't be enough forever.

Gripping his torch, he stepped into the frozen wilderness.

The deeper he ventured into winter's grasp, the darker the sky became.

Night was falling.

And then—

A sound.

He froze, his instincts screaming at him. There was movement nearby.

Quickly, he pressed himself against the trunk of a tree, slowing his breathing. Carefully, he peered out from his hiding spot.

Through the swirling snow, he saw them.

Wolves.

But they were nothing like ordinary wolves. Their fur shimmered in a strange mix of white and blue, and their bodies were massive—easily larger than a human.

Awakened creatures.

And then—

A shadow loomed behind them.

A wolf three times their size stepped forward.

Its fur gleamed like polished steel, its fangs glistening like sharpened swords. A suffocating pressure radiated from its body.

A Demon.

Morpheus' grip tightened.

He was no novice. He knew he could handle the awakened wolves in a fair fight.

But there were too many.

And the demon?

He had no idea how strong it was.

This wasn't a fight worth taking.

So he held his breath and remained still.

The pack didn't notice him. They were focused on something else. After scanning the area, they suddenly bolted forward, running in the opposite direction—toward the depths of winter.

That's when it clicked.

They're moving backward.

Their territory was winter. But because the world was constantly moving forward, they were being pushed into seasons they didn't belong in.

So, to survive, they periodically traveled against the world's flow.

Morpheus slowly exhaled, his breath misting in the cold air.

That was important.

If he was going to survive, he needed to understand how the creatures of this world lived.

But for now, there was no time to think.

Stopping meant death.

He couldn't risk lighting a fire, not with predators lurking in the dark.

His only option was to keep moving.

At first, he thought traveling in the world's direction would make the journey to the mountain easy for him.

But he had no idea.

He had no idea how wrong he was.