Work Text:
“The Faceless Ones. An ancient race of horrifying gods who have terrorised our world and others since the beginning of time. For many, the sheer idea of their existence and the magnitude of their power is enough to keep them up at night. But perhaps the most terrifying aspect of these all powerful beings is their blank faces.”
“Let me guess, The Faceless Ones are faceless?”
“Indeed they are. I’m glad you managed to make that connection Valkyrie.”
“Why thank you, it's almost like you've explained this to me before.”
He turned to face her and Valkyrie could feel his stare. “You're killin the vibe Valkyrie.” was all he said before turning back around and started walking again.
She followed him.
By now they had been walking the barren landscape of this other dimension for hours, after being sent in mid fight by who must have been an incredibly spiteful and stupid shunter, who they left unconscious in the field they had arrived in. It unnerved her how similar it was to the dimension she had saved Skulduggery from all those years ago, and she knew he noticed it too, it would be hard to forget an experience like that. It’d probably explain the mini lecture about the faceless ones.
She shivered in her jacket just thinking about it, though it was also concerningly cold in this dimension, though there were many suns she could see providing light, there was an unmistakable lack of warmth. The sky was a dull orange that matched the dusty worn out roads and dead grasses along the sides of it.
The best way to put it was, well, this was a dead dimension.
And it was giving Valkyrie the creeps.
Hoping for something to break the silence, she called out to Skulduggery.
“Skul?”
“Yes Valkyrie?”
“Where are we?”
“I haven’t the faintest Valkyrie.”
And that was that.
Well. That was certainly helpful.
Ahead in the distance was what looked to be the remains of a town, or a city perhaps.
As they got closer the road became more solid and less dusty, though further ahead she could see big chunks in the road missing or cracked to rubble.
Skulduggery slowed his pace in front of her and eventually they were walking side by side into the walls of the ruined city.
What must have once been gorgeous architecture was now destroyed, there were impossibly tall towers with the tops reduced to ash, broken glass blown out from windows in impressive looking buildings. There was a cracked glass dome sitting atop a large building to her right, backed up against the walls of the city. Everything was covered in dust and broken, a sad remnant of the city's former glory.
And God was it depressing.
Valkyrie turned to Skulduggery to ask where exactly they would go from here, but before she could open her mouth he signed for her to stay silent. She nodded and looked around again.
Down on her left was a wide road lined with buildings, heading downhill to what looked like a maze of partially demolished houses. She did not fancy heading that way at all.
There was a creak of wood far behind her, and then there was a hand gripping her jacket and pulling her through a shattered shop window.
“What was that for?” She whispered yelled at Skulduggery, who was now crouching beside her. He aggressively motioned for her to be silent and she aggressively motioned for him to tell her what the hell was going on. Skulduggery gave her what she envisioned as a “really?” stare and then gestured out the window and into the street they had come from. She took a peek outside.
There, hovering over where they had been standing mere moments ago was a tall and pale figure, dressed in tattered and ruined scraps of clothing. It was using its long, stub ended arms to move around the dust, like it was looking for something. Val watched as it swirled the dust and dirt around and assessed it. With its back facing the shop window it seemed quite harmless, it didn’t have hands or feet, its limbs simply stopped where the hands and feet should have been. The hovering could be a problem though, as she had no idea how fast it could go.
The thing suddenly lifted its head, and she was pulled back to the ground by a frustrated Skulduggery, who must have also seen it stop the dust search too.
It was significantly scarier hiding from a thing you can’t see so she whispered to Skulduggery, “what's it doing now?” He once again hushed her and gestured for her to shut up, she gestured that she hated him. He tilted his head at her, probably in disappointment, but rose from the ground anyway to look outside. His head was only a small bit above the windowsill but before he managed to fully stand up he froze. She stared at him from the ground, confused.
What could he be seeing that could possibly make him freeze like that?
No better way to find out than look.
So she looked.
And saw the thing standing there.
And then it turned.
Fuck.