This is a Beta Test?! - A Literally Broken System

I was never a fan of horror. Sure, I dabbled in t every once in a while, but I never really wanted to watch or play any kind of horror game in my time. I've played eldritch and existential horror-themed games though, and they were really spooky and fun. I never liked jumpscares. I for one think they're pretty cheap and prey on the human consciousness of being put on guard by an unsettling force. Instead, I find the more existential dread and all the cosmic horror more exciting. None of those cheap jumpscares and loud noises. No... The very premise of the subject matter itself was horrifying enough to make me think about how small humanity was in the grand scheme of things.

Thinking about it now, I guess that was why I had a streak of nihilism in me.

"We're close, I think," Guidance called out. "There's a path starting to form in front of us."

With that, I was thrust back into the very serious matter of following Shizu's trail. Not that there was any to follow in the first place, but making our way to Withermoon manor had been an endeavor in a half. I suppose that we should be thankful that none of us seemed to be hindered by our biological urges at the moment, seeing as us stopping in the middle of the pitch black forest was just a recipe for disaster.

"Thankfully," Shade let out a disarming chuckle. "We've been walking through this forest for what feels like hours now, and we still haven't seen the Princess's trail. For all of our sakes, I wish that she's here."

"I'm sure she is," I let out a chuckle of my own. "If anything, this is the only place that could even get a reaction out of any of us. The source of all our current problems at the very least."

"So assuming that we solve this, we finally get to leave this gods-forsaken island?"

"That's the plan," I replied.

Ignoring Shade's obvious impatience, I quickly took a glance at our current party. With Shizu missing, we only had five people among us; Shen and Guidance as our healers, Shade and I as our damage dealers, and Maruki with us as our sole tank. If this was a dungeon, we'd have to leave someone behind, but I think that wasn't the case, seeing as we were still here.

Or, well... I could only hope that was the case.

"We're here..."

As if on cue, the forest seemingly disappeared, making way for what looked like a cliff rising above the sea behind it. Up in its perch, a manor stood in all of its solitary splendor, a massive and opulent structure that clearly jutted out into the dark sky despite its clearly dilapidated state. There was nothing but glass and a stone path in front of us now, leading all the way up the cliff towards what looked to be the manor gates.

[OBJECTIVE: wuaubf v24fweeu3Withermoon Manor: COMPLETE]

Well, there was one objective done, supposedly.

"It's... That's ominous as all hell, isn't it," I called out.

"That's right," Guidance sighed, a hint of pride seeping into her tone as she nervously smiled. "I designed it myself. Did all the texture work for an entire day just to make it look right."

"I'm glad you did so then, Lady Guidance. It certainly looks the part of an old and abandoned noble manse," Shade let out a small appreciative chuckle despite the fear. "Withermoon doesn't sound like a Kattleynan name, however. They sound more Marquean."

"That's because they are," Guidance explained. "If I recall, they're the family of a disgraced Intellect that wished to redeem their stature in the City-State."

"An Intellect?" I asked. "Some kind of position of power then?"

"Intellects are part of the ruling class of Marquee," Shade explained. "They act more like a council that anything, with their Head Intellect acting as a chairman of sorts to enact the Intellects' decrees."

"I see..." Huh. Some kind of city council then. Then again, we didn't really need the information right now. "Right. Shall we then?"

With that, I gave Maruki the signal to move forward. His shield glowed with energy as we traversed our way up the cliff, the manor becoming increasingly more imposing the closer we got to the gates. Slowly, bits and pieces of Shizu's journey finally showed themselves, remnants of a battle having taken place littering the path up the manor.

"A fight's clearly happened here," I pointed out. "Shizu's work, perhaps?"

"It is," Shade agreed. "Look up."

I did, and the most peculiar thing showed itself in the form of the gates themselves. They were made of metal, but the clear dents in them indicated that Shizu probably kicked them in of her own volition to gain access.

"And the door's open as well," Guidance breathed out, her [Manifest] at the ready as she spoke. "She went inside without even waiting for us."

"Which means that we must go inside and find the princess!" Maruki declared, the light from his shield already partly illuminating the dark manor.

"But not without some kind of plan," I quickly pointed out, barely managing to stop our tank from charging in like an idiot. "Our current positions might work, but I have a feeling it could be better."

"I agree," Guidance quickly followed up. "Now that we're here, I guess I have no choice but to explain what the system I had in place for this thing did, or else we might all be caught off guard."

I nodded, as did the rest as we all gathered right outside of the manor's open doors. The wind coming from inside felt eerily cold and unnatural, only adding to the growing tension brewing around us as Guidance began her spiel.

"Right, so for the Island Sanctuary, I had the bright idea of making a separate system for it to work," Guidance began. "I didn't think it would work, but-"

[*AIUGSFYGWYRG@*@T^@R542r76eiGYFALF*]

Another roar came out from within the manor... But this time, the world itself shook.

⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛