There existed not a location that was ever truly quiet, but as the group of Dunters neared the cave, an unnatural silence could be felt by them all.
Garrick, the team leader, raised a fist, signaling the group to halt. The eight Dunters fanned out, eyes scanning the jagged terrain for any signs of movement.
The cave entrance yawned before them like the mouth of a great beast, its darkness impenetrable even to their trained eyes.
“Looks just like I had expected,” Lisette murmured. She tightened her grip on her staff, the faint glow of protective enchantments swirling around her fingers.
Garrick activated the tracking crystal, letting it pulse in his palm. The signal it gave off led them directly inside. He tapped the communication crystal attached to his wrist, ensuring the link to the base was stable.
“Relay center, we’re at the cave,” he reported. “Moving in now.”
A voice crackled through the crystal—Serah, the commander back at the base. “Copy that, Garrick. Maintain constant communication. We don’t want another lost team.”
“Understood,” he said, then glanced at his squad. “Stay sharp. We don’t know what’s in there.”
With that, they entered the cave.
The moment they stepped inside, the temperature dropped.
Cold. Heavy. Suffocating.
The deeper they moved, the more the silence thickened around them, pressing against their ears.
Their torches flickered, struggling against an unseen force, the light barely able to reach the cave walls.
“This place is wrong,” muttered Varian, one of the Dunters. His hand rested uneasily on the hilt of his sword.
Garrick agreed. Every instinct screamed at him to turn back. But they had a mission to complete.
They followed the beacon’s last location deeper inside. The path twisted unnaturally, sloping downward, as if the cave itself was swallowing them whole.
Then they reached the cavern.
And they saw the blood.
The massive chamber stretched out before them, its walls coated in dark, dried blood. It was everywhere—smeared across the stone, pooled in cracks, splattered in arcs that painted a grim picture of violence.
But there were no bodies.
No discarded weapons.
No torn clothing.
Just blood.
Lisette inhaled sharply. “This doesn’t make sense. If there was a fight, where are the remains?”
Serah’s voice crackled through the crystal. “Describe the scene.”
Garrick responded, his voice steady despite the unease creeping up his spine. “Blood everywhere. But no bodies. Not even scraps of clothing. Whatever killed them… it didn’t just tear them apart. It erased them.”
Silence from the other end. Then—
“Get out of there,” Serah ordered. “Now.”
But it was too late.
Grrrrrrr…
A low growl rumbled through the cavern.
Then another.
And another.
From every tunnel and pathway, they emerged.
Demons.
They surged from the shadows—scuttling horrors with elongated limbs, twisting forms barely resembling anything humanoid.
Their eyes burned with an unnatural hunger, their mouths splitting open in vertical snarls filled with rows of jagged teeth.
Garrick didn’t hesitate.
“Formation! HOLD THE LINE!” he barked.
The Dunters moved instantly, their years of training taking over. Swords unsheathed, spells ignited—magic surged through the air as they prepared for battle.
Lisette raised her staff, slamming it into the ground. A shimmering barrier erupted around them just as the demons lunged, claws scraping against the protective shield.
Varian moved fast, his blade flashing as he cleaved through the first demon that broke through. But another took its place immediately.
They were everywhere.
“Relay center, we’re under attack!” Garrick shouted into the crystal, his voice barely audible over the snarls and screams.
Serah’s voice came through, tense. “How many?”
“Too many!”
They fought like demons themselves, cutting through the creatures with ruthless efficiency. Blood splattered the ground—some of it demon, some of it their own.
Then the first Dunter fell.
A demon leapt from the shadows, faster than the rest. Its claws pierced through armor, slicing straight into flesh. A strangled cry rang out as one of their own was ripped apart, dragged into the darkness.
No time to mourn.
“Leader Garrick!!” Another scream.
A second Dunter collapsed, throat torn open.
Lisette’s barrier shattered under the overwhelming pressure, the magical force dispersing into nothingness.
“We need to fall back!” Varian yelled, slicing through another attacker.
But their exit was cut off.
Until—
Boooooom!!
A blast of energy erupted from the entrance tunnel.
The two Dunters they had stationed there—their last lifeline—were still holding their ground.
“RETREAT!” Garrick ordered.
The survivors moved as one, cutting down anything that got in their way. They fought through the swarm, every step a battle against death itself.
The two Dunters at the entrance unleashed everything they had—explosive runes detonated, waves of energy pulsed outward, forcing the demons back just enough for the others to escape.
The light of the outside world was just ahead.
And then—one of the guards fell.
A demon tore through his chest, dragging him backward before anyone could react. “Arrrrgghh!!” His scream echoed through the cavern.
The last remaining Dunter looked back, hesitating for half a second.
Then he turned and ran.
The survivors burst out of the cave, gasping for breath, their bodies battered and bloodied.
Lisette raised a shaking hand, chanting the incantation to collapse the entrance. A second later, the cave mouth caved in, sealing the horrors inside.
They had escaped.
But at a cost.
Back at the relay center, Serah and the rest of the command team had heard everything.
The screams.
The battle.
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The dying voices of their fallen comrades.
The room was deathly silent.
Then, finally, Garrick’s voice came through—ragged, exhausted.
“We lost two,” he reported. “The rest made it out. But… it was the same demons. The same ones that took the first team.”
Serah exhaled, gripping the edge of the control panel. “Understood.”
They had their answer now.
The first team hadn’t simply disappeared.
They had been wiped out, devoured by creatures that left no remains.
And now, they had barely managed to avoid the same fate.
Serah turned to her officers. “No one else goes near that cave. Not until we know what we’re dealing with.”
The relay center returned to its usual hum of activity, but an unshakable tension lingered.
Because now they knew.
Something in that cave was beyond the normal horrors of this world.
Something that didn’t just kill. It erased.
And it was still waiting.
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A/N: Dear readers!! I apologise for the lack of recent updates. I promise to upload two more chapters today to make up for the previous missed days.
I am still recovering but you all matter to me too!! Thank you guys!! I love you all!!!