The scream tore through the heavy veil of fog like a dagger through silk.
Aurea's voice, shrill with terror, echoed against the jagged cliffs of the Sunken Isle. The moonlight above shimmered eerily, fractured by the twisted branches of obsidian-black trees. The earth beneath her boots cracked and shifted—breathing, alive. From the shadows, something snarled.
A moment before, they had thought themselves safe. A brief lull after crossing the broken bridge of bones, after deciphering the glyphs carved into the ancient stone that spoke of a "Beast Below." Eryan had kept close to her, his silver eyes scanning the dense underbrush. Kael had vanished for reconnaissance. Riven had stayed silent, blade always at his side.
Then came the attack.
Aurea stumbled back as a creature leapt from the dark. It was massive—twice the height of a man, with slick obsidian fur matted with seaweed and salt, fangs long and jagged like shards of shipwrecks. Its eyes burned a sickly green, its breath a fetid stench of decay and brine. The creature let out a guttural screech and lunged.
"AUREA!" Eryan was there in an instant, throwing her to the ground as the beast's claws raked the air just above her head.
The impact knocked the wind from her lungs. Eryan rolled with her, positioning himself between her and the monster. "Don't move," he whispered, voice trembling but sure. He drew his twin daggers, the moonlight kissing their gleaming silver edges. "Stay behind me."
The creature snarled again, pawing the ground with long, misshapen limbs. Its skin split in places, glowing a faint blue-green like bioluminescent coral.
Then the shadows moved again.
Kael burst through the brush, his black coat flaring behind him, sword already aflame with ancient runes. He didn't speak—just launched himself at the beast with a roar, slamming the blade across its flank. Sparks flew. The creature screeched, recoiling, and swung one massive paw that sent Kael flying into a nearby tree.
"KAEL!" Aurea cried, scrambling forward, only to be stopped by Eryan's grip.
"He's fine," Eryan said through clenched teeth. But she could see the panic flicker in his eyes.
Riven came next—quiet as death, his movement a blur of moonlight and steel. He leapt from the tree above and drove his sword deep into the beast's shoulder. It shrieked and thrashed, slamming against the trees, nearly unseating him—but he held firm, eyes like a storm barelycontained. His blade twisted, dragging a line of glowing ichor down the creature's side.
But it wasn't enough.
The beast, though wounded, surged again. Its roar sent tremors through the ground, and it bucked wildly, slamming Riven into a boulder. His body crumpled, and Aurea felt her heart drop into her stomach.
"No…" she whispered, scrambling to her feet. "No, please—"
Before the creature could lunge again, Eryan stepped forward, both daggers crossing in front of him. "You want her?" he snarled. "Then come through me."
The monster answered with a bellow, and charged.
A blur of shadows and fire. Kael, back on his feet, launched himself at the creature's exposed flank, his sword bursting into runes once more. They carved burning sigils across the beast's hide. Eryan danced between the strikes like wind through reeds, his blades slicing cleanly, striking deep.
Aurea stood frozen, heart pounding, torn between awe and terror. These weren't just warriors. They were storms in human form—fury, precision, sacrifice.
The final blow came from Riven. Blood dripping from a gash at his temple, he rose behind the beast unnoticed, his blade reversing in his hand. With a brutal cry, he drove it into the creature's spine. The beast froze. A shudder. A final roar that cracked the air.
Then silence.
The monster collapsed with a ground-shaking thud.
Aurea ran.
Straight to Riven, who fell to one knee.
"Don't—don't push yourself," she murmured, brushing his damp hair from his face.
"I'm fine," he whispered, though his breath came ragged. "Are you… alright?"
She nodded, tears in her eyes. "Because of you. Because of all of you."
Kael joined them, limping, a cut across his brow. "That thing wasn't natural. Its bones were… wrong. Like it was twisted by something."
Eryan said nothing at first, just dropped to a crouch beside the beast's corpse. He placed There was something unspoken between them now. The kind of bond no battle could fake. Eryan was watching her closely, his expression unreadable. Kael's grip on her hand tightened slightly. Riven looked away first, the corner of his mouth lifting in something close to a smile.
Then, the wind shifted.
A low hum rose from beneath the ground, like the echo of a great drumbeat.
Kael stiffened. "Do you hear that?"
They all did. The very stones seemed to vibrate.
Aurea turned slowly toward the dark trees, her breath catching.
From the shadows, dozens of eyes blinked open. Dozens.
Then hundreds.
The beast they had slain?
Only the first.