“Only you can fight your monsters, but be beware not to turn into one yourself”

-Soldiers of the past that battled on the grounds of the Hollow Woods

  

The rainbow moonstone pendant that was given to him proved effective when it glowed and cast a protective barrier over him, to shield his mind and body from the effects of the Abyss.

But he deemed it useless since he himself wasn't in the right mind. He watched as black trees with their imposing height cover the night sky, only leaving an opening for the Bloody moon.

The earth beneath his feet was dry and crumbling into dust with each step he took. White mist covered his vision to forbid him to see further into the forest.

William’s feet ached from running for a long time earlier. But he knew the pain was much deeper than that. It was the pain from his journey that had started the second he had arrived in this realm. No amount of rest could take that phantom and slithering pain.

When he had enough of the pain in his legs he had stopped walking. He didn't know how much time had passed since he had entered the Abyss but he knew that he was already deep into the forest, past the point of no return.

He took a deep breath and waited. William knew that the Eldritch had been keeping an eye on him. The moment he had stepped into the Abyss he felt its eyes stare at him with overwhelming focus. He also had a nagging feeling behind his head that even when he still hadn't stepped into the Abyss, those eyes were still watching him.

He was right in his thoughts when only a moment after he had stopped he felt a presence appear behind his back.

The mist grew thinner and the air got colder. The darkness expanded and shadows intertwined with each other.

William turned around and faced the creature that had been haunting him. And at that moment the pendant that was placed by the Elder Seer shattered and dropped unto the ground.

The boy wasn’t shocked since he had expected something like this would happen. Zula had said that the Abyss was too strong that’s why only the things imbued with rainbow moonstone could possibly protect people from its effect, but even then the strength of the Abyss shows itself by destroying the rainbow moonstones after a whole moon cycle. Yet at the presence of the embodiment of the Abyss, or maybe the Abyss had been its embodiment, any rainbow moonstone would shatter in the spot.

The Eldritch still looked the same as he had last met it. Twelve meters tall, hidden under an ancient cloak and an aura of death. This was the creature that had killed his friend.

He felt a surge of anger course through him but before he could act on it, an indescribable inhuman voice spoke into his ear in a language that was now but a relic of the past. He shouldn't be able to understand it, but he does.

“Have you finally decided to stay? I’m very happy to finally talk to you”

The tone of its voice just sounded so happy and sincere that William was taken aback. He had expected a vicious and cruel voice that would taunt him of his sins, of his worthlessness. But instead, he was greeted by the joyful voice of the Eldritch. It made his skin crawl.

He took a step back instinctively and the air immediately got colder as the whole Abyss seems to have frozen over due to his reaction.

“What’s wrong? Why did you move away? Are you afraid? You can’t be afraid”

The Eldritch’s inhuman voice grew more static and disturbing as it towards him.  Alarms rang through his head as he backed away faster from the creature who appeared to grow taller and bigger. The arms that resembled dead branched again rose from the cloaks and with sharp claws took hold of his shoulders. William’s body froze when he felt the cold painful grip on his shoulder and he was forced to look straight into the Eldritch.

Under the cover of the cloak, he wasn’t able to discern any distinct features aside from its eyes, red glowing slitted eyes. The same blood red as the moon and the same slitted eyes as the cat.

It was then that it hit him that none of this was coincidental, he didn’t arrive on the Hollow Woods accidentally. The Eldritch has brought him here.

‘Why take me here? Why did you take her away? Why did you make me suffer like this? Why me!!?’

He asked in great despair and anger but all he could only really say was a weak cry of “Why”. 

The Eldritch ironically froze the same way he did and released the pressure he had applied on his shoulder.

“Why? Okay, I’ll show you. I’ll show you why you belong here, with me”

That was the only warning he got before his vision turned white and his mind burst with pain for years of knowledge, knowledge of the truth.

When he opened his eyes he found himself without anybody. William was now only a consciousness that watched as things unfold in front of him. He was like a person who was tied to a chair with a VR strapped into his head, forcing him to watch the events hidden and lost in time.

There he had seen the truth about the origin of the Hollow woods, the Eldritch’s true identity, and his own identity.

The Eldritch originally came from William’s own realm. A being worship akin to a deity by a civilization who was known erased from history due to millennia of war, famine, and tragedies. 

The creature that the Eldritch used to be wasn’t like this before. It had been forgiving and kind that’s why he left the mortal realm, they weren't fit to be with the humans. It was then that the Eldritch had decided to make a realm of its own, nothing big or grand, but was it's own.

It then created a simple realm, a mere crack in space where it stayed along with a wide spare of land. But the Eldritch grew lonely, so one day it had decided to create a being it would have a bond with. The Eldritch knew that a bond wouldn't form between it and the creatures it created, because they weren’t equal, they were just a creation and its master. So it took a great risk and split his soul into two.

That other soul was him, still without any consciousness of his own but still, he existed. 

 The Eldritch was delighted by his creation that it wanted to give him a gift when he finally regained consciousness. And that was how the Hollow Woods was created.

The eldritch bestowed empty blackness above with the bright stars that lit up the ground, it also made two moons that would represent themselves. It made tall trees grow from the ground and clear bodies of water to nourish the land. The Eldritch also made many spectacular locations like the crystal caves and the Azure Lagoon. But then the great creature fell into contemplation, that maybe William would have liked to have friends and creatures to meet. So it recreated the animals from his previous realm, yet It knew that creatures like these wouldn't make good companions. So from the birds in the skies, he made the Sephiroths. From the fishes that dwelled in the water, it made the Cetos. From the rocks that settled underground, he made the Mundus. The Eldritch also create many more mystical creatures to bring life to the Hollow Woods.

And then after it had created the greatest gift, the Eldritch waited for him to recover from the splitting of the soul and awaken.  But peace didn’t last long.

With differences comes boundaries, with boundaries came misunderstandings, and misunderstandings led to conflicts. A war had erupted between the tribes and conflict eroded the land.

The Eldritch did his best to stop the war, but he had been too busy to notice that the war had entered his own safe place within the heart of the Hollow Woods.

A battle there had resulted in William’s soul being thrown out of the Hollow Woods and into the realm of the mortal realm. In the madness of losing half his soul, the Eldritch obliterated more than half of all the population of the Hollow Woods. It was only then was the war stopped and the citizens returned back to mourn. But no one mourned as much as the Eldritch.

At first, the Eldritch had been sane enough, he looked everywhere in the mortal realm but William’s soul had long been absorbed by the cycle of reincarnation, lost in the billions of souls.

To gain more understanding of where to find him, the Eldritch had created the Library. A place where new information about the mortal realm would be listed down.

Yet as the centuries passed by the Eldritch grew madder and drowned in his grief. It was the cost of splitting his soul and losing it. Now he paid the price for the risk he took.

The madness changed his form and the domain he lived in, turning it dark and vile. In a fit of hysteria, it had destroyed the library, which resulted in the place splitting into three and end up in the hands of the Sephiroths, Cetos, and Mundus.

The Eldritch reasoning soon faded and it turned him into the creature he was now. But the cursed being never stopped searching for him and it did succeed. 

After he was shown the truth the Eldritch began to whisper into his mind trying to persuade him to stay.

The being had promised him eternal happiness with no one to ever shun him again. It had promised a safe and happy home for his parents and him in the Hollow Woods, promised him with temptations of being loved by everyone, promised of giving him everything he ever wanted and promised him his friend back.

After all, it can bring back all its creations, the Eldritch had said.

William, whose young heart was full of longing and mourning was about to accept when a loud voice rang in his head, louder than the whispers of temptation.

“Don’t do it, William!! Listen to me!!!”

He was snapped from the hypnosis of the Eldritch that he didn’t know he was on. WIlliam heard the desperate shouts of his friend on his head and he felt hope swell up.

“Ignia! Is that you!? How are you alive!?”

He asked with great joy and even when he was still trapped in the white space he looked for the winged figure. But his hopes were poured by a cold bucket of water by her reply.

“Sorry kid but I’m dead. I’m only able to talk with you right now because your soul is open to the surroundings”

“What…?”

“Yeah, the bastard caught me off guard and killed me back at the shores”

“So what now…..It’s better if I-”

He was about to tell her that it would be better if he accepted the Eldritch offer to bring her back when she cut him off with a loud yell.

“Oh winds no!! I am not allowing you to do that!! Use your head, William! Think about it! The Eldritch isn’t sane. His glossing over the truth! Your parents wouldn’t want to be taken here, all creatures within the Hollow Woods will live in fear and danger because the Eldritch wouldn't change! You don’t make bonds through oppression William. The Eldritch is trying to turn you into a monster, trying to drown you into pretty lies to hide the dirty truth! William Woods, you need to stop the Eldritch, only you can do it, you’re it’s bloody half after all! You need to cut off your bonds with it and weaken it! You need to go home”

Those were the only words that Ignia was able to say because her voice was soon ripped away from his mind as the Eldritch managed to take the reins again.

“Don’t listen to her lies child. She’s merely trying to delude you. Don’t worry, when you stay here I'll bring her back better and quieter. She could be your friend again and everything will be perfect”

William took a deep breath and mustered up his courage. Ignia was right, he was the only one who could stop this. Whether he wanted to or not.

“No”

Time seemed to have stood still as he breathed out his answer.

“I’m going home. There’s nothing you could do about it”

The Eldritch didn’t take his answers and kindly as the Abyss seems to have roared in anger and misery as it grew and took hold of him. Vines with sharp thorns wrapped around his legs, keeping him stuck to the ground as their jagged sides drew blood from him. The skeletal hands on the creature gripped his throat and shoulder to keep him immobile.

He heard the shrill inhuman voice of the Eldritch shouting at him in that mysterious language. Even so, had enough and he was going home.

Elder Seer Zula had told him that the portal was in the heart of the Abyss. But she didn’t specifically say that it was located in the middle of the Abyss. Now knowing the truth, he knew the portal wasn’t there. It was with him all this time. He himself was the other half of the Eldritch, and the Hollow Woods was the gift given to him. William always has had the ability to return home, he wasn’t just able to because of his negative thoughts. The thought that he was useless and would never be able to return home on his own. It was those thoughts that kept him trapped in the Abyss. In the end, he learned a very important lesson. It was that a person’s greatest enemy was themselves.

With the manic pleas and cries of the eldritch resounding in his ears, he snapped the chains that binned him. And he knew he was going home.