The night held its breath, the silence pressing in like a heavy weight on Ava’s chest. The fire, now
little more than a flicker, struggled to fend off the oppressive darkness that seeped into the edges
of their camp.
Ava couldn’t sleep.
Her mind churned with thoughts, fragmented yet relentless. The creature, the magic—every time
her fingers brushed against something ancient, a ripple of something strong surged through her.
It was like a call, or a pull from somewhere far away, and it made her pulse quicken. But more
than anything, it unsettled her. The way it felt like the world was on the cusp of changing forever.
And then there was Ugraum.
She glanced at him where he lay on the ground, his body bandaged but still stiff with pain. The
wounds weren’t fatal, but they weighed on him. His movements were slower, more deliberate,
and the way he stared into the fire spoke of something heavy in his soul. Something that hadn’t
healed even if his body had.
Ava couldn’t lose him—not like this. Not when they’d just started to understand each other.
She sat cross-legged on the ground, her fingers running over the scorched pages of her ruined
notebook. What was she even looking for? A sign? An answer? Something that could make sense
of the mess her life had become?
Her thoughts were interrupted by a soft rustle in the trees. Her head snapped up, alert.
Ugraum was already on his feet, staring out into the darkened woods, his expression taut.
“What is it?” she asked, her voice louder than she intended, a slight edge of panic creeping in.
“Something’s off,” Ugraum murmured, his tone low, rough as gravel. His eyes didn’t leave the
treeline. “The air’s too still.”
Ava’s heart skipped. The creature they’d slain was gone—why did it still feel like something was
lurking, waiting? She rose cautiously to her feet, a tight knot of unease forming in her stomach.
She stayed a few paces behind him, instinctively keeping close.
And then—there it was.
A fleeting movement in the trees. A shadow, swift and fluid, too fast for anything natural.
“Ugraum…” she said, her voice tight, the hairs on the back of her neck standing on end.
He raised a hand to silence her, his gaze still locked on the forest. “I see it.”
Before Ava could respond, the trees shifted.
The wind, which had been still for hours, whipped through the leaves with an unnatural force,
cold and biting. Ava’s breath turned to mist in the air, and she shivered involuntarily. Something
was wrong—too wrong.
And then it came.
At first, she thought it was a trick of the moonlight, some illusion. But no—there, in the clearing,
the shape loomed. Taller than any ogre, it glided forward, its massive form wrapped in a cloak of
shifting shadows. It was no beast of flesh and bone. It was something else. Something that
stretched the very limits of reality.
Ava froze, her breath caught in her throat.
“What… what is that?” she whispered, her voice barely audible.
Ugraum’s voice was low, laced with tension. “Not sure. Definitely not friendly.”
Without waiting for more, he moved toward the creature, his axe clenched in his hands, though
Ava couldn’t fathom how something so unnatural could be fought. It didn’t even look like it
could be touched. But Ugraum—stubborn, fearless Ugraum—wasn’t about to stand down.
The creature didn’t speak. It didn’t need to. It watched. Its glowing eyes locked onto Ava’s,
unblinking, piercing. It was as though it could see through her, into her very soul.
Without a word, Ugraum stepped in front of her, blocking the creature’s path. “Leave her alone.”
The creature didn’t react—except to raise a hand, long, spindly fingers reaching toward them
with eerie, deliberate slowness. Ava’s heart pounded in her chest, a frantic rhythm as she realized
it was coming for them.
Without thinking, she lunged forward, her hands grabbing Ugraum’s arm and yanking him
down. They hit the ground in a tangle, just as the creature’s fingers passed over them, inches
away.
For a breathless moment, there was only the sound of their panicked breaths, fast and shallow.
Ava’s mind was blank, adrenaline flooding her senses. And then—just as suddenly as it had
appeared—the creature vanished. The air hummed, a hollow pulse that vibrated in her bones,
fading into an unsettling quiet.
“What… what was that?” Ava whispered, her voice trembling.
Ugraum didn’t answer right away. He stood, motionless, staring into the dark. His expression was
unreadable, his eyes wide, though not with fear. No, not fear—but something deeper. Something
older.
He took a long, measured breath before speaking, his voice low and grim. “I think…” He
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swallowed. “I think we’ve crossed into something far worse than bandits and beasts.”
The next morning came too quickly. The sky was still dark, and the camp was quiet—too quiet.
Ava couldn’t shake the feeling that she was being watched. It wasn’t paranoia. She could feel it.
Every rustle in the bushes, every shift in the wind—something was out there, and it was aware of
them.
They moved quickly, no words passing between them as they packed up. The urgency was
palpable. Whatever that creature was, it couldn’t be the only danger lurking in these woods.
Ugraum moved stiffly, his wounds clearly slowing him down, though he said nothing about it.
Ava couldn’t help but glance at him, her chest tight.
She lingered behind for a moment, her eyes tracing his back. It wasn’t just that he was her
protector—she had come to realize that he was the only thing keeping her grounded in a world
that no longer made sense. The thought of him in danger—a danger so unknown, so unnatural—
was unbearable.
Ugraum paused, glancing back over his shoulder. His face was hard to read, but the brief flicker
of something—concern, maybe—was enough to make her stomach flutter. “Stay close,” he
murmured, his voice rough.
Ava nodded, her throat tight. She wasn’t sure who needed to stay close more—her, or him.
They moved through the forest in silence, the only sounds the occasional snap of a twig beneath
their boots, the rustle of leaves in the wind. But Ava’s mind was far from the path ahead. What
was that thing? Where had it come from? And, most pressing—was it still hunting them?
The uneasy feeling that something watched them never quite left. And as the trees closed in
around them, she couldn’t shake the thought that they were no longer just in a dangerous
world—they were in a world where the rules didn’t apply at all.
* * *
Later that afternoon, they reached the outskirts of a desolate ruin, a place long abandoned and
overtaken by nature. Broken stone, crumbled pillars, and half-destroyed walls scattered across
the landscape. This was their next stop, according to the scout’s map—a place that was supposed
to hold some answers.
Ava felt a chill run down her spine as she stepped closer to the ruins. The pulsing feeling hadn’t
left her. It lingered, tugging at her from the ground beneath her feet. Something wasn’t right.
Ugraum didn’t move forward. Instead, he turned to her, his brow furrowed. “You feel that?”
Ava hesitated, then nodded. “Yeah. It’s the same... wrongness from the mushrooms. That thing.”
His jaw tightened. “Yes. I don’t like it.”
He didn’t wait for her response. With one last glance at the ominous landscape before them, he
moved forward, leading the way into the heart of the ruin. Ava followed closely, unsure of what
lay ahead. But one thing was certain—this wasn’t going to be the end of their journey. Not yet.
They weren’t alone.
The ruins loomed like a forgotten memory, the stone structures crumbling into the earth as
though they had always belonged to it. Ava stepped carefully, her boots crunching over moss-
covered rock, her gaze scanning every darkened corner of the place. Something was off. The air
felt heavy, like it was weighing down on her. And beneath that, a strange pull—a hum that
vibrated through her skin and into her bones. It was different from the creature. This was
ancient, powerful, and unsettling.
Ugraum had already moved ahead, his pace slow and deliberate. He didn’t speak, but his posture
was tense, every muscle in his body coiled in readiness. Ava could see it in the way he carried his
axe now—less like a warrior and more like a sentinel, waiting for an unseen threat to make itself
known.
“This place…” Ava whispered to herself, more out of habit than expectation. “It feels like it
shouldn’t be here.”
Ugraum glanced back, his eyes dark in the shadows. “This is no ordinary ruin. Cursed. Old
magic.”
Ava nodded, pressing her hand to her chest as the pulsing sensation grew stronger, more
insistent. She had no idea what this magic was, but she felt it inside her, deep in her core. She
couldn’t explain it, but it was the same feeling she had gotten when the portal had first yanked
her into this world. Something that called her. Something that wanted her.
And now, she was standing in the heart of it.
They moved further into the ruins, stepping over fallen columns and broken walls. The structure
opened up into a wide, cavernous space—a massive chamber that seemed to stretch endlessly
beneath the earth. Faint carvings covered the walls, strange symbols that twisted and curved in
ways Ava couldn’t even begin to understand.
Her fingers itched to study them, but something in the air made her hesitate. The magic here was
palpable, oppressive, like a storm on the edge of breaking.
Ugraum turned to her, his voice low but steady. “Whatever’s here, we need to be careful. No
one—no one, not even the bandits—survives here if they don’t know what they’re doing.”
Ava gave him a small nod, her heart thumping in her chest. She wasn’t here for treasure. She
wasn’t even sure what she was searching for anymore. But the pull was undeniable.
“I’m starting to think nothing survives here,” she muttered under her breath.
He smirked, the corner of his mouth quirking. “Not true. We will.”
Ava smiled, but it didn’t quite reach her eyes. Her thoughts were too tangled, too filled with the
growing unease that was pressing in on her from every direction.
The deeper they went, the stronger the pull became. Ava could feel it in her feet, in her heart, a
tightness around her lungs as if the very air was suffocating her. And then, just as she thought
she couldn’t stand it anymore, they reached the center of the chamber.
At first, Ava didn’t see it. It was hidden in the shadows, a massive stone platform covered in thick
vines and debris. But as they stepped closer, she realized that it wasn’t just a platform—it was a
doorway.
Carved into the stone was a massive symbol, glowing faintly with a sickly green light. It seemed
to hum, sending ripples of energy through the air.
Ava’s breath caught in her throat. “That’s… that’s the same symbol from the ruins. The stone
console had it.”
Ugraum’s gaze darkened. “I know. I think it brought us here.”
He was right. The symbol, the magic—it was all connected. But how? And why? What did it want
with her?
Before Ava could ask another question, something shifted in the air.
A low rumble, like the earth itself was groaning.
Ugraum’s hand shot out, grabbing her wrist. “Get back!”
But it was too late.
The ground trembled beneath their feet, and Ava’s stomach lurched as the symbol on the stone
platform began to glow brighter, pulsing in time with her heartbeat. The stone shuddered, and
with a loud crack, it split open, revealing an abyss that stretched down into the darkness.
A cold wind shot out of the gap, freezing Ava to the bone, and a voice—deep and resonant—
spoke from the void.
“You have come. Why?”
Ava’s heart stopped. It wasn’t a voice in the traditional sense. It was a sound that went straight
into her mind, curling around her thoughts like a snake.
“Why? What do you mea— Who are you?” Ava breathed, her voice trembling.
“You understand our language? Elunari?” Ugraum asked, surprised.
“What do you mean? It’s English—”
The voice responded, but it wasn’t the answer she expected.
“I am what you seek. And I need you gone.”
Ugraum’s grip tightened on her wrist. “We need to go. Now.”
But Ava couldn’t move. She couldn’t look away from the dark, gaping hole. Something inside her
was pulling her closer, urging her to step forward, to walk into the blackness. Her fingers tingled,
her vision blurred at the edges.
“Who are you?!” she asked again, whispering, her voice breaking.
The voice didn’t answer. Instead, the air grew heavier, and the ground beneath her feet seemed to
vibrate with an unnatural pulse. She felt a sharp, electric pain shoot through her chest.
“Don’t listen to it!” Ugraum barked, his voice filled with desperation.
But Ava could barely hear him. Her world was shrinking to the dark, swirling depths of the abyss
in front of her. The air felt thick—sticky with power she couldn’t understand.
“I can hear it, Ugraum. It’s all around me, shrieking. My ears hurt. My head hurts,” she managed
to say out loud.
“Come with me. Turn away.” Ugraum’s voice was closer now, low and firm. “Think of something
else. Think of me.”
The simple request snapped her back into herself. For a moment, she was just Ava, standing on
solid ground, feeling the weight of his hand around her wrist.
And with that, the pull weakened.
The light faded, and her head silenced. The room was dark again.
Ava gasped, her breath coming fast, her body shaking.
“I’m here,” Ugraum said quietly, his voice softer now, even as his grip tightened. “I’m right here.”
She looked at him, her eyes wide with the remnants of terror. “What was that?”
“I don’t know. But it was trying to take you.” He shifted his weight, his stance widening
protectively in front of her. “This place is dangerous. I can feel it, too.”
Ava nodded, shaking her head in disbelief. “It wants me. But why?”
Ugraum didn’t have an answer. All he knew was that whatever this was, it wasn’t something they
could face alone. Ava stood frozen, her mind a whirlwind of confusion. She could still feel the
pulse of the magic, as if it were beating in her chest. The hollow sound of the voice lingered in
her thoughts, reverberating like a warning that refused to fade.
Beside her, Ugraum’s towering form was tense. His grip on her wrist was firm, but his gaze was
fixed ahead, scanning the dark, ominous chasm.
“I don’t understand,” Ava whispered, the words thick in her throat. “Why me? Why is this
happening?”
Ugraum didn’t respond immediately. His expression darkened, and for a long moment, he said
nothing, his eyes not leaving the split stone platform that had opened up before them.
Finally, he spoke, his voice grim. “This place—this ruin—is not just old. It’s ancient. Old magic,
older than most people can comprehend. And I’ve heard stories… stories of things that shouldn’t
exist, things that slip through cracks between worlds.”
Ava looked up at him, her brows furrowing. “Cracks between worlds?”
He nodded. “Portals, could be. Not sure. Like the thing that brought you here. They’re rare. But
in places like this—places where the veil between realms is thin—it’s possible for something to
slip through.”
Ava blinked. She’d always considered herself a practical person, rooted in the science of her
world. But the longer she stayed here, the less science seemed to matter. The magic, the ancient
energies of Vaeltharyn, they were real. And they were dangerous.
“I thought it was just a simple portal, Ugraum,” Ava said, taking a small step closer to him. “But
now… this?” She gestured to the open abyss. “It’s bigger than that, isn’t it?”
Ugraum sighed. His eyes were narrowed in thought, his jaw clenched in a hard line.
Finally, he said, “Whatever this is, it’s calling to you, Ava. You’re part of this—part of whatever
it is.”
And that was the most chilling thing of all.
Ava wasn’t sure she was ready to face it. But there was no going back now. The pull of the magic
was too strong.
Suddenly, the stone beneath their feet trembled again. Ava’s breath caught as the ground cracked,
splitting open in front of them. The floor shattered like glass, revealing a dark pit beneath. In the
heart of the pit, a single glowing light pulsed, slowly—steadily—like a heartbeat.
The pulse. She had been feeling it this whole time.
Ava felt her heart race as she realized what it was. She had it before—the pulse, the glow. It was
the same as the symbol she had found earlier.
“This is it,” she whispered.
Ugraum stepped forward, his eyes narrowing. “Stay behind me.”
Without waiting for her response, Ugraum took a step closer to the pit. His hand clenched tightly
around his axe.
The light in the pit flared.
And then—nothing.
The silence was deafening.
Ava’s heart pounded as she stepped closer, her hand gripping Ugraum’s arm. She didn’t know
what was coming next, but whatever it was, they were about to face it together.