The world twisted, the fabric of space folding as Kaelen Maglor and Alira Mor stepped out of the swirling gold-rimmed portal. The instant their boots hit the ground, the scent of ash and blood greeted them.
This was not a cave.
It was a wasteland.
A shattered valley stretched before them, ringed by obsidian cliffs, dotted with half-buried bones of monsters long turned to dust. Red mist rolled over the terrain, giving everything a bleeding hue.
Craters sizzled with elemental residue. In the far distance, a fortress of jagged basalt rose like the ribcage of some long-dead god.
And from that twisted landscape, monsters emerged.
Kaelen's hand was already raised, index finger glowing with subtle gold. "You want left or right?"
"Left," Alira said and disappeared the next moment.
Her cloak fluttered like a shadow as she vanished, the white of her hair was the last thing visible before silence reigned in her path.
Kaelen smiled faintly and stepped forward.
