As the wheels creaked softly beneath them and the trees thinned into open hills, the group rode east toward the border. The morning was quiet except for the rhythmic clatter of hooves—six of them, to be exact—belonging to their curious new beast of burden.
Dave leaned back, arms behind his head, eyes drifting up to the pale clouds. "So... are we just gonna keep calling you 'the witch' forever, or...?"
The woman sitting calmly at the edge of the wagon gave a sly smile. Her black hair shimmering from the sunlight, and the scent of the pie she'd handed off earlier still lingered faintly in the air. "You may call me Serenya," she said, voice smooth."
Nia, perched on Matt's shoulder, perked up and pointed ahead. "And that friendly fellow is known as Grollek!"
Grollek snorted, a wet sort of grunt, as if acknowledging the mention. Its six legs moved with unnatural grace for something its size, and its ridged back swayed gently with each step. Matt gave a slow nod. "We saw one of those pulling a farmer's cart when we first got here. Guess they're pretty common."
Dave stared at the creature for a moment. "Still weird animal."
He went quiet, his gaze drifting to the trees as they passed. "I keep thinking about that thing from the woods, you know... the black one. Headless. That gaping mouth where its chest should be..."
Serenya's eyes narrowed, but she didn't interrupt.
"Teeth like knives," Dave continued. "Even the trees showed no restraint towards the creature."
Matt glanced at him. "And you killed it with chocolate."
Dave pointed a dramatic finger skyward. "That's right. One half-melted bar of justice slayed the mighty beast."
Nia clapped her tiny hands. "What would we do without Dave!"
Matt rolled his eyes, but couldn't help smiling. "Maybe we should stock up on candy. Just in case the next monster's got a sweet tooth too."
Serenya's expression grew curious as the wagon creaked along. She shifted slightly, her eyes narrowing on Dave. "Wait... the creature you described—was it long, thick, and segmented? Its skin black, shiny like oil? With a split down the middle where its head should've been?"
Dave sat up so fast he nearly hit his head on the wagon frame. "Yes! That's exactly what it looked like!"
Serenya's face paled. "Impossible."
She looked ahead, silent for a moment as the wind stirred her cloak. "You mean to tell me... you killed an Immortal Horror with candy?"
Dave frowned. "I mean, I wouldn't call it immortal. It sure looked dead when we rolled it off me. But yeah, it was horrifying."
Serenya stared at him like he'd just claimed he had punched the moon out of the sky. "In thousands of years, no one has ever slain an Immortal Horror. Not one. They aren't creatures—they're forces. Calamities given form. The last recorded sighting caused an entire kingdom to fall into ruin within weeks. People don't fight them... they flee. Entire cities evacuate when one appears."
Matt leaned back, arms crossed. "Well, that calamity's been avoided. I was there. The thing was very much dead. It choked on a chocolate bar."
Serenya blinked, still clearly trying to reconcile ancient, world-ending terror being killed with a melted snack treat.
Dave crossed his arms smugly. "Guess that makes me some sort of legendary monster slayer."
Grollek snorted.
Serenya muttered under her breath, "I'm getting more curious about you two..."
Dave suddenly pointed ahead, squinting into the haze. "Hey! There's something huge on the horizon! Look at that!"
Matt leaned forward, eyes narrowing. As they crested the hill, the full shape came into view—a colossal statue of a bird, its wings spread wide in a silent cry, carved from weathered stone. It stood in the middle of the plains, tall enough to dwarf the trees that had grown around its base, its shadow stretching far behind it.
"What the hell..." Matt muttered. "Why is something that big just... standing in the middle of nowhere?"
Serenya's expression softened. "That's a memorial. A statue left behind by a kingdom that once ruled this region."
Matt turned to her. "Which kingdom?"
She shook her head slowly. "No one remembers. Its name, its people, even its language—lost to time. All that's left is the statue of their guardian, the Skywarden."
Dave raised an eyebrow. "Skywarden? That's a pretty epic name."
Serenya nodded. "Legend says the kingdom believed a divine bird protected their skies, watching for threats from beyond the mountains. When the kingdom fell, the statue was all that remained."
Matt glanced back at the looming figure. "Then I guess that bird's still on watch."
Nia, resting on Matt's shoulder, looked up with quiet awe. "Even forgotten things leave behind a mark of their existence."
Dave stretched and leaned against the wagon rail. "Well, as long as it doesn't come to life and attack us, I say it's the nicest giant bird I've ever seen."
As the wagon creaked past the base of the massive bird statue, Nia suddenly let out a shrill scream that made everyone jolt.
"Nia? What is it?" Matt twisted his head to look at her, concern sharp in his voice.
She trembled, clutching the edge of Matt's collar. "The cursed knight... he's spotted us."
Dave leaned out the side of the wagon, scanning the open plains. "What cursed knight? I don't see anything!"
Nia lifted a shaky hand and pointed straight up. "There. On top of the statue."
They all followed her gaze—and then saw it.
At the peak of the stone bird's head stood a figure cloaked in black armor, its form wrapped in a swirling red, miasmic aura. The air around it seemed to shimmer with heat and malice. It didn't move. It only stared, unmoving, like a silent judge.
Dave's mouth fell open. "That wasn't there before."
"Sweet skies," Serenya muttered, her face pale. "That's not just a cursed knight... there's a lich nearby. That aura—it means the knight's been bound. Controlled."
Matt's eyes widened. "You mean there's a lich controlling that thing?"
"Yes," Serenya said sharply. "And if the knight's seen us, then the lich has too."
Without another word, she slammed her staff against the wagon floor and cast a shimmering wave of energy at Grollek. The creature let out a deep, rumbling grunt—then burst into motion, moving five times faster than before, the world around them blurring into streaks of green and brown.
"Hold on!" Serenya shouted over the wind. "We need distance, now! We do not fight a lich unless we have to!"
Dave clung to the side of the wagon, wind blasting through his hair. "I knew statues were bad luck!" he shouted.
Matt didn't reply—he just kept staring back at the towering figure, growing smaller with distance... but not nearly fast enough.
"Everyone hold onto something! " Matt shouted over the roar of the wind. "Now! "
A flash of red lit the sky—the knight atop the statue had raised its sword, and from the tip shot a concentrated beam of red energy, screaming through the air. It slammed into the ground just to the right of their wagon, erupting in a blinding explosion that sent a wave of dirt and fire crashing over them.
The wagon rocked violently, nearly tipping. Grollek hissed and powered through, his six legs pounding the earth in a blur of motion.
Dave had gone pale. He pulled open his jacket, yanking out every charm necklace he'd collected since arriving. "Do something!" he begged the trinkets, holding them up one by one. "Ward of Flames, Necklace of Calming, Lucky Rabbit Stone—I don't even care which one! "
Two more beams screamed down from the knight's sword.
Boom! Boom!
Each strike landed closer, the explosions deafening. Wood splintered along the wagon's frame as shockwaves battered them. Nia threw her hands up and cast an ice barrier around the wagon—but the next beam sliced through it like thin paper, leaving nothing but melting shards behind.
"It's cutting through everything! " Nia cried, struggling to keep her balance on Matt's shoulder.
Only Grollek's wild, magically-boosted speed was keeping them out of a direct hit.
Then—a voice. Faint but clear. Desperate.
"Escape faster, you fools! It's coming! "
Dave's eyes went wide. "What was that!? Who said that!?"
Matt reached for his satchel and yanked it open, digging through it until he pulled out a cloth-wrapped object. He ripped the cloth off.
The mirror.
A smoky black mist swirled within the glass, and from it came the voice again—raspy and tense. "That knight is bound to the one who commands me. You must get away—run until the ground burns behind you! "
Dave stared in disbelief. "You kept that thing in your bag?!"
"Didn't have anywhere else to put it!" Matt snapped, clutching the mirror tight as another explosion rocked the earth behind them. "And right now, it's trying to keep us alive—so I'm listening!"
Serenya didn't look back. Her hands glowed with magic as she reinforced Grollek's legs. "We just need to hold out a little longer—there's a pass ahead! If we reach the canyon, they can't follow!"
Grollek let out a guttural snarl and sprinted harder, faster—toward the narrowing land ahead, where safety might just wait.
Then came the next beam—straight for them.
Matt barely had time to react when his arm, the one holding the mirror, jerked upward as if yanked by invisible strings. The mirror's surface shimmered with violent light, and then—boom—a pulse of red energy erupted from it, colliding with the incoming beam. The force of the impact shook the very air, the blast deflecting skyward in a crackling explosion.
Grollek roared and lunged forward, surging into the narrow pass just ahead. Jagged stone walls closed in on either side, hiding them from the cursed knight's line of sight. No more beams came.
They were safe. For now.
Serenya stumbled, then collapsed to one knee, panting. The glow faded from her hands as she released the speed enchantment on Grollek. "Cover that mirror," she gasped, glaring at Matt. "Now. Before it tries something else."
Matt quickly wrapped the mirror back in cloth, the glass still warm to the touch.
"Miserable wretches!" came the muffled, furious voice from within. "Is this how you treat someone who just saved your lives?"
"You're welcome to write us a thank-you letter next time," Matt muttered, tying the cloth tight. He stared at the bundle in his hands. "Why was the cursed knight here? It's supposed to haunt the Stone-Backed Range. That's why we avoided that path."
The mirror's voice hissed like steam. "The lich… is searching for me. He knows I'm no longer bound to Emberhold. That knight is his eyes—and blade. If it found us, then the lich is near."
Everyone went silent. The wind in the canyon howled low.
"What was your plan?" Matt asked tightly. "You said something about Emberhold—about using the people?"
"Oh, the plan was beautiful," the mirror cooed, still muffled. "One year of preparation. A soul forged from the pain and essence of Emberhold's citizens—Varyan soul, the perfect vessel. A gift for the Lich, the final piece in his work."
Serenya's eyes widened. "No…" Her voice was breathless. "Is he… Is he trying to resurrect a dragon? "
The mirror chuckled.
"Not just any dragon," it said. "The first one. "
Everyone stared at each other in stunned silence, the weight of that statement settling around them like a shroud.