a garden deep, a garden dark

Illusion's ears flickered in the gloom, catching the quiet movement of the beast coming closer to her domain. The soft glow from the mushrooms cast eerie, unnatural shadows across her workspace, highlighting the pale, dissected forms she had so carefully arranged. She had sensed the disturbance long before his cautious steps disturbed the mossy floor of the tunnel next to her’s.

Her lips curled into a faint, amused smile. "How curious..." she muttered to herself, her voice barely a whisper, as her claws traced the cold, lifeless form before her. This place, deep and forgotten, was not for the likes of ordinary souls. And certainly not for those who wandered so blindly into its maw.

Without moving from her place among the cadavers, she watched, hidden by the strange play of light and shadow. Her experiments lay splayed out around her like offerings, bodies in various stages of decomposition, each one a story she had unraveled. The cavern’s strange glow painted her fur in hues of sickly greens and blues, making her blend into the macabre scene.

She waited, her tail flicking lazily behind her. Would he notice the stench of death? Or the way the air itself seemed to thicken, as though breathing was a privilege not yet earned?

Come closer, she thought, the faintest of smiles playing at her lips. She would not be the one to break the silence, to reveal herself so easily. No, let him come. Let him feel the eyes on him, the weight of the unknown pressing down as if the very walls of the cavern were watching, waiting for him to falter. It delighted her.


"Illusion Nightwing"