The howling storm drew near the earth, and torrential rain crashed down.
The heavy raindrops fell into the forest, far sparser than it had been decades ago, accompanied by a gale that shrieked like a vengeful ghost.
Leaves were beaten from the trees, branches snapped, and each raindrop struck the face with enough force to feel like a punch.
The knights in the camp scrambled to put on their helmets. Rain fell upon their armor and helmets, producing a chaotic, frenzied symphony like a madman pounding on drums.
And just then.
The "Flesh Moon," resembling a blood-soaked eyeball—or perhaps a still-beating heart—suddenly fell from the sky.
—Like a comet, it struck the earth! The Blood Moon, which had originally seemed fairly small, grew larger and larger at a speed visible to the naked eye.
"What's that?"
A knight cried out, "The moon... the moon is falling!"
"That isn't the moon!"
Merlin spoke on reflex. "That's the 'Tyrant,' Caligula!"
In the blink of an eye, it filled the entire night sky.
It was a Blood Moon more than two kilometers in diameter—
As it fell, it scattered the dark clouds along with it. Lightning crackled down onto the "giant heart," leaving behind vast patches of frost and lightning scars. The torrential rain grew even more violent as it approached. By the end, it could hardly be called rain at all—it was more like massive waves of water being dumped from the sky.
Then the earth began to tremble.
Under the pressure of the approaching "meteorite," the ground, already covered in a layer of rainwater from the storm, rippled more and more violently.
The restless roar of the rainwater somehow formed waves within the forest, surging outward in rings. The wind grew stronger and stronger, and the trees began to sway violently