(Scars do not appear to be cause of death –shock ... - Bad Request

There in its talons, in the shreds of leather that once wrapped it, was the
Blade of the Immortal: entropy-forged and destined to slit my veins.
The shadow crushed the blade in its claws, and metal shards clattered
against the stones.
"No!" I cried, and ducked just as its claws raked my cheek.
My boots thudded against the floor, and with one burst of strength I pushed
waves of cold behind me. The walls of frost would slow them down, but that
was all I needed as I grabbed at the panel of the next machine. Too frantic to
think I couldn't be sure what was happening, but all I knew was that I was
getting closer. The 'X'-marked lever was easy to find this time, and I pulled it.
Again it gave way easily beneath my touch, then disintegrated into mist - I
took a deep breath, but unlike the other times... nothing happened.
In the distance a roaring sounded, as if something had just opened. A
howling wind rushed through the vaults, and as I tried to figure out where
the sound was coming from, I looked down. My hands were breaking down
into dust, my arms... my body was fading like mist and becoming part of the
wind...
"Now what's happening...?!" I howled, and my voice was carried away by
the storm.
~~~~~
Annah had always felt at home in the shadows. She was one of the slimmest
among the Collectors, and combined with her natural flexibility she had
been unmatched in her ability to squeeze through vents and crevices. The
art of searching was always a solitary venture, and she'd come to think of
darkness as a warm cloak and her only companion. It had reared her...
sheltered her. From this she'd earned the name Annah-of-the-Shadows
when she was twelve.
She never thought of what might be hiding in the dark beside her.
"Annah, my lovely daughter..." he whispered, "Why? Why couldn't you save
me? Why couldn't you free me? You stood so close but you couldn't pluck me
from the pillar?"
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