Nightmare Shuttle

Outside the rain fell heavily, the howls and groans of the cold wind shuttled between the gaps in the creaking woods. "Let me see your wedding dress." Ning Ning took the red dress embroidered with golden feathers from Tang Shun's hand. The wedding dress with Xu-style elements was different from the traditional dress in his mind. He didn't know if it was his illusion but Ning Ning seemed to look at him with traces of pity and camaraderie, like two pitiful brides being forced into an arranged marriage by their wicked stepmothers.

"....."

Tang Shun's eyes twitched and if it wasn't for the restrictions of the game, he would have wanted to tear up this dress and feed it to the dogs. Ning Ning reached out to measure the waist and looked pointedly at him, her limpid green eyes wandering around his body for a second before she shook her head, "You can only force it."

He pursed his lips and took back the dress, cursing the evil taste of Samuel in his heart. He looked back at the timid elf and remembered the conversation he had with her when the middle-aged woman had come to give them the dress. This was the edge of the elven forest and they weren't all actually from the same tribe. Every year the elders from each tribe would gather all the women in the clan and send them off to the Ren Clan to participate in the annual mating ceremony. No one knows what happens there because none of the women who have ever participated in the ceremony came back. 

Ning Ning pulled the old quilt off the bed and wrapped it around her body, sneakily glancing at the closed door she bent down and cracked open a slab of wood in the floor. In the corner of his eyes, Tang Shun saw her pull what seemed to be a short knife. She locked eyes with him but he only raised an eyebrow and looked away unconcernedly. Was something else that she knew but refused to speak up.

"You–"

A knock on the door cause all other thoughts to be immediately pushed away and without waiting for Ning Ning's words, he instantly stepped away from the door.

Clack-clack-clack––

The knocks were accompanied by the joyous laughter of the children, the children outside the door sang with childish humor, "The brides should board the sedan, eh! hi! !"

"Open the doors and board the sedan!"

Without waiting for them to reply, cracking in the door was abruptly smashed open! The cold wind rushed in and when Tang Shun looked out, he saw five or six little blue and whiteheads, vying for attention, holding up a red symbol, bright red like freshly spilled blood sticking to the child's palm carrying the symbol "Fu" for happiness.

The experienced Tang Shun suddenly felt a chill rise from his spine. He didn't have time to think about the reason, and immediately dodged to the side, just in time to miss the red symbol that had come flying towards him! The children screamed in dissatisfaction when the red symbol ended up pasted onto the wall behind him, although he didn't know the consequences of being pasted by the symbol, it was estimated to be nothing good, "What an auspicious day for marriage, let the bride enter the sedan!"

Tang Shun shook his head, "Children should learn to speak less."

Following Tang Shun's words, the bearer children lying on the window began to be dissatisfied with simply waving the symbol with their small hands, and they slammed their heads into the door fiercely in unison!

"Crack!"

A cobweb-like crack appeared on the thin wooden door with, blood flowing out from the bearer children's forehead, spreading along the cracked lines, along with shrill peal of laughter of the children. They desperately slammed into the door as if they could feel no pain, the small green eyes were fixed onto Tang Shun, the innocent and cruel pupil was like a child facing candy.

Before they could fully break-in, there was a low ebb of a flute being played in the distance, and a voice that they could not disobey echoed in their ears.

No matter how dissatisfied they were, the children could not change anything so with resentful glares, the white heads moved away from the door.

A flash of lightning tore open the black sky.

The world became illuminated at this moment, and all things revealed their true colors under the cold whiteness.

Tang Shun saw the sedan.

Under the hills, the withered grass was blown to press down on the ground by the wind. Across the forest, a long winding red carriage was lit up by the lightning.

He heard the voice of the Ning Ning trembling slightly behind him: "The...It's here!"

The rainstorm poured down like an overwhelming curtain as if to perform a tune that was appropriately thrilling and hair-raising for this first battle of the night.

With the low and muffled thunder sounds and the pattering of rain that washed the world as their backdrop, the connected carriage merged into a straight line. The heavy rain washed over the red exterior, splashing and running through the red lanterns hung on the wooden eaves. 

In the pale light of the lightning, the infinite carriage appeared like the underworld's shuttle. Beside the carriage, stood a group of elven warriors. They had on the most exquisite armor on both sides of the forest straits. They were the most terrifying force. On their backs were bows and arrows and in their hands were chilling stone spears.

Their breastplates glowed brightly.

Doors opened one by one and hundreds of women slowly walked out of their cabin. Numb, scared, tired, and each carrying a bright crimson red dress. An indescribable sense of depression echoed from the women as if what he was seeing was just a pile of corpses.

A familiar old woman suddenly stood before them, in the cold rain and clapped her hands loudly. The sinister beady eyes stared down at the women and pointed to the carriage behind her. "You all know that it's time to fulfill your duties as women of the elves. "

"You will participate in the mating ceremony and worship the guardian tree as its bride."

"There is no escape, there is no turning back as a bride, you must," The woman's lips upturned sinisterly, "satisfy the gods." 

Flashes of white overtook the sky.

A bolt of lightning slammed into the canopy of dark trees, the long red dragon slowly moved through the forest, accompanied by a solemn drumbeat as it carried the brides to their final destination. Rain pelted against the top of the carriage, blowing through the barbed window, as the black mud splashed against the wooden wheels of the carriage.

In the fierce rain, destination unknown, a group of women huddled together amidst the storm. Mixed with the low sound of sobs, the women mourned for their fate. Tang Shun was situated in the back – one of the more shabby, uncleaned sections, though the carriage was in no better shape regardless. There were litters of garbage, weeks-old rot, damp smell of mold and insects occasionally skittered past his legs. Only the red "Fu" symbol pasted above his head made it evident that they weren't being sent to their deaths but being married off. Which in any case wasn't any better.

The stench was foul, and especially so when mixed with the smell of blood, rot, and unwashed bodies. It was suffocating. The noise was worse – the tears and mournful sobs occasionally accompanied by an earsplitting scream.

The front of the carriage is colored in amber lights, the mid is brightened in sepia, and the back – cloaked dark. There were eerie red glows mixed in the backdrop, but none of the passengers had the mind to pay attention to any of this.

A subtle highlight catches onto the cold glass of Tang Shun's glasses, the depressing mood could not hide the coldness of his eyes. With both hands in his pockets, he reclines against the carriage and stared emotionlessly out the window. Feeling the shaking and rumbling as the carriage carted through the storm.

A cold breeze filled the sedan, like an ice cellar stained with blood.

It was really cold as if there was an invisible icy being hugging him, Ning Ning felt the breath of ice and snow, his whole body seemed to be wrapped in layers of snowflakes, so cold that she curled up and wanted to hide back, but found that in the small space there was nowhere to hide.

She glanced at Tang Shun and wanted to open her mouth and speak but at this moment, the lightning flashed once again and in the cold silver glow, her pupils dilated into horrified slits.

Behind Tang Shun, a woman leaned over his body as if she wanted to merge into his flesh and bones. The bloody wedding dress she wore followed the way of the sedan as it swayed. 

In her terrified vision, the woman slowly turned towards her, a bloody grin appearing on her cracked face!

The storm raged on.