Bjorn’s breath came in heavy, ragged gasps as he adjusted his grip on Ania. She was still unconscious, her body feverish against his own as he carried her through the dense underbrush. The rain had slackened into a fine mist, clinging to everything like a second skin. Allyce panted beside him, her eyes constantly scanning the darkness that pressed in from all sides.
‘What was that back there? It was a good hiding place! Damn it! We can’t keep moving her when she’s like this!’
“We need to find shelter soon,” Allyce murmured, her voice barely above a whisper. “She won’t last much longer like this.”
Bjorn grunted in response. ‘She’s right. But what are we supposed to do in this accursed place?’ Seeing Ania like this, so fragile and silent, sent a cold dread through him that no enemy ever had. ‘She’s the light of Skardia. Nothing can happen to her. She’ll be the one to lead the next generation.’
The trees here were ancient, their gnarled roots twisted across the ground like grasping fingers. The deeper they went, the quieter the world became. Even the ever-present chirp of birds had faded into an uneasy hush. Bjorn shifted Ania’s weight slightly, feeling the strain on his shoulders.
Allyce suddenly held up a hand, halting him mid-step. “Listen.”
He did. And then he realised what had been bothering him. ‘No birds, no rustling leaves. Everything’s gone now. There’s just silence.’
Then, a low growl rumbled from the darkness beyond the trees.
Bjorn instinctively reached for his blade, his muscles tensing in anticipation. At the same time, Allyce nocked an arrow, her sharp eyes scanning the thick forest around them.
A pair of glowing eyes blinked into existence between the trees. Then another. And another.
“Wolves?” Bjorn whispered.
“Not wolves,” Allyce replied grimly. “Look at their eyes.”
Bjorn did, and his stomach twisted. There was something wrong about the way they gleamed. Too intelligent, too aware. These were not mere beasts.
Ania stirred weakly in his arms, a faint mumble escaping her lips. Bjorn risked a glance down. Her fever had worsened, beads of sweat dotting her brow despite the cool air.
“We don’t have time for this,” he muttered.
A shape moved in the mist, stepping forward into the dim light filtering through the trees. It was tall, humanoid in shape but unnaturally lean. Its skin seemed to shift like shadows woven into flesh. The eyes burned with an eerie luminescence, locking onto Bjorn.
He tightened his grip on his sword. “Allyce…”
The creature lunged.
Bjorn barely had time to twist out of the way, his blade slicing through the air where it had been a moment before. Allyce loosed an arrow, the projectile striking the creature’s shoulder. But instead of sinking into flesh, it simply passed through, as though hitting fog.
“Damn it!” she cursed, already nocking another.
Bjorn swung his sword in a clumsy wide arc, forcing the creature back. But more shadows were shifting through the trees, closing in. They were surrounded.
Then the air changed. A faint hum, like the crackle of distant thunder, rolled through the forest. The mist recoiled slightly, as though disturbed by an unseen force.
Bjorn felt a presence, something vast and unseen pressing at the edges of his senses.
The shadows hesitated.
And then, as suddenly as they had appeared, they vanished into the darkness.
Bjorn stood frozen, his blade still raised despite the burden of Ania. His breath came in sharp gasps. “What just happened?”
Allyce lowered her bow cautiously, scanning the now-empty forest. “I don’t know. That was Exile’s power, but it wasn’t focused here. He’s intervening with something else nearby.”
Bjorn swallowed, shifting Ania’s weight in his arms. “We need to move. Now. Before those… things… come back.”
Neither of them spoke as they pressed forward, the weight of unseen eyes still lingering in the darkness behind them. ‘I feel like we’re being hunted. Those creatures are still out there, but they’re more wary than before. What nightmare have we stumbled into?’
The forest grew even thicker around them. ‘How is that even possible? Trees need space to grow or they smother the light from new saplings. This forest is impossible!’ Bjorn frowned as the trees and roots narrowed their path forward until he felt as if the woods themselves were leading them somewhere. The air grew heavier, charged with something powerful. Allyce kept her bow at the ready, her free hand hovering near the knife at her belt. Every step felt like they were treading deeper into something ancient, something that did not belong to the world of mortals.
Ahead, a faint glow flickered through the trees. A structure loomed in the gloom. A ruin, half-swallowed by the forest, its stones blackened with age. Vines wrapped around its broken columns like serpents, and at its centre, a single brazier burned with a cold, blue flame.
Bjorn hesitated. “A temple?”
Allyce nodded warily. “Looks like it. It’s Old. Too old.”
Bjorn swallowed his unease and stepped forward. He had studied the ancient stories more than anyone else in Skardia, well, he’d never heard or met anyone who knew more about the subject. But this temple. He couldn’t recall a single story about it, the fact it resided in this forest, or which God it belonged to.
“Nothing,” Bjorn’s expression showed a look of disgust as he studied the architecture. “That can only mean one thing if I don’t know about this place.”
“What?” Allyce asked as she felt her muscles tensing up.
“This isn’t a Skardian temple,” Bjorn stated grimly. “This place belongs to another power.”
“What’s it doing on Skardian lands then?”
“I have no idea. I’d like to find out, though. But we have another issue. Have you noticed?”
“Yeah, the path we followed is gone.”
Exactly as Allyce stated, the trees had somehow moved without a sound to cover the route away from this place. Needless to say, it made the pair extremely anxious as they debated whether to wait where they were or take a risk with the unknown temple. “Too much doesn’t add up,” Bjorn growled. “Those creatures from before, then the forest had its own agenda. Do you feel like we’ve been led here on purpose?”
“I feel like an insect caught in an intricate web. A dark one at that. We don’t know what’s waiting for us in there.”
“It’s from the old era. That much is clear. Its God is long gone. We only have to worry about what may have taken up residence.”
“We could argue about this for days and never reach a decision. Indecision is worse than making a wrong choice.” Allyce scoffed.
“You’re right,” Bjorn sighed. Ania stirred again, a pained whimper escaping her lips. Bjorn clenched his jaw. “We don’t have a choice. We need shelter.”
Allyce exhaled sharply but nodded. “Fine. But keep your blade close.”
They crossed the threshold into the ruins, the air inside was thick with the scent of damp stone and something else… something faintly metallic. The fire in the brazier did not waver, nor did it cast warmth. It simply burned, its cold light stretching shadows across the crumbling walls.
Bjorn laid Ania down against a smooth patch of stone, brushing damp strands of hair from her forehead. ‘Her breathing is getting faint.’ Allyce hovered nearby, her back to him as she kept watch on the entrance.
“I’m going to take a look around,” Bjorn grunted. “Keep an eye on her.”
“Of course. Don’t take too long. I don’t feel safe here.”
“I know what you mean,” Bjorn sighed. “That’s why I must try to find any clues about this temple.”
A silent nod passed between them before Bjorn set off to explore the darkness. His eyes peered into the darkness as he moved closer to the nearest wall. ‘If there’s other passages leading to this room I’ll find them if I stick to the wall.’
The old, gruff Skardian ran his fingers over the decaying murals etched into the wall as he followed it. ‘It’s too dark to make them out. I can’t make sense of the things I can anyway.’ He silently groaned to himself as his footsteps echoed off the floor. ‘Is that supposed to be… a spider?’ Bjorn mused as he spotted a particularly large image. ‘Ha, seems like Allyce has some great intuition. But I can’t think of any spider Gods from the races that used to be near here.’
He traced the lines of the image as he tried to gain more clues. ‘Are these cocoons of spider silk?’ His frown deepened as he reached the next connected image. ‘What’s this? Are these… No, I better not even think that in a place like this. I should return to Allyce.’
It didn’t take him long as he had already gone full circle around the room.
“There are no other passages unless hidden. It’s strange.” He sighed even as Allyce relaxed a bit.
“We should rest, but not for long,” she muttered. “I don’t trust this place.”
Bjorn nodded, but exhaustion was already clawing at his limbs and mind. The moment his body stilled, the weight of their journey pressed down on him. He blinked, trying to push away the pull of sleep, but the fire’s eerie glow seemed to flicker hypnotically, drawing him deeper into its light.
A whisper brushed by his ears.
Bjorn snapped upright, his sword in his hands before he even realised he had moved. Allyce spun as well, her arrow nocked, her breath sharp.
“Did you hear that?” Bjorn whispered.
Allyce nodded, her knuckles white from grasping her bow. “Yes.”
But the ruins were empty. Only the cold fire remained, its flame flickering as if something unseen had passed too close.
Then, from the darkness beyond the temple walls, came a single, deliberate footstep.
Bjorn gritted his teeth and raised his blade.
Something was coming. Coming for them…