The chamber trembled, sending dust cascading from the unseen ceiling above. Aedric tightened his grip on the darkened sword, its unnatural coldness biting into his palm. He could still feel the remnants of that pulse—the surge of energy that had driven back the shadowy figures. But even as they vanished, something else had awakened.
A deep, guttural growl reverberated through the chamber, sending vibrations through the very stone beneath their feet. The sound was primal, ancient—filled with something that felt wrong, as though it belonged to something that had no place in the mortal world.
Seris moved to Aedric's side, her sword raised, her breathing controlled but tense. "We need to leave. Now."
Tessa, her twin daggers glinting under the dim lantern light, took a cautious step back. "I don't think we have that option anymore."
Aedric followed her gaze.
At the far end of the chamber, beyond the cracked altar, the shadows shifted once more. But this time, they did not take the form of whispering phantoms.
Instead, a shape emerged from the darkness.
It was massive.
The thing unfurled from the shadows, its form solidifying like liquid iron cooling into shape. A skeletal frame covered in twisted, darkened flesh. Arms that stretched far too long, ending in clawed fingers that scraped against the stone. And its head—a grotesque amalgamation of bone and void, with eyes that burned like smoldering embers in an eternal abyss.
The growl deepened into a rumbling snarl.
Then, it spoke.
A voice, layered and distorted, echoed through the chamber.
"You… have disturbed the slumber of the forsaken."
The words sent a shiver down Aedric's spine. They were not spoken in a language he recognized, yet he understood them perfectly.
Seris took a step forward, placing herself slightly ahead of Aedric. "We don't want trouble. We didn't come here to—"
"Yet you have claimed the blade."
The creature's voice seemed to seep into Aedric's mind, pressing against his thoughts like an oppressive weight. The sword in his hand pulsed again, responding to the entity's words.
Tessa muttered a curse under her breath. "I told you this was a bad idea."
The creature tilted its head, those ember-like eyes narrowing as it regarded Aedric. "Do you know what you hold, mortal?"
Aedric swallowed, but his throat was dry. He didn't know what to say. He had felt something when he grasped the blade—a surge of visions, memories that were not his own. But he didn't understand it.
The creature exhaled, a slow, rattling breath. "A blade drenched in the blood of kings. Forged in war. Sealed in darkness."
It took a step forward, its massive form moving with an unnatural grace.
"And you, mortal, have undone the seal."
Aedric felt something tighten in his chest. Undoing a seal? He hadn't meant to—he had simply taken the sword, drawn by an instinct he didn't fully grasp.
Seris tensed. "If this sword was sealed away, then why does it call to him?"
The entity's gaze flicked toward her. The flames in its eyes dimmed slightly, as though in consideration. "Because it does not serve him. Not yet."
Aedric's grip on the sword tightened. "Then what does it serve?"
The creature's form shuddered, as if amused. "Blood. Conflict. Power. The will of the abyss."
Tessa exhaled sharply. "Wonderful. That sounds completely safe."
Aedric ignored her, keeping his eyes on the entity. "Then why was it sealed here? Why now?"
The creature let out a hollow laugh, the sound scraping against Aedric's thoughts like rusted metal. "Because power unchecked breeds destruction. The blade was bound to silence the echoes of war. But you… you have chosen to awaken it."
Aedric could feel the weight of those words settle on him. He didn't choose this. But at the same time… hadn't he? Hadn't something deep inside of him reached for the sword, knowing that it belonged in his hands?
The creature's ember-like eyes burned brighter.
"The choice has been made. Now, the consequences must follow."
The air shifted.
Without warning, the entity lunged.
Aedric barely had time to react before Seris shoved him aside, raising her sword in defense. The creature's massive claw slammed against her blade, sending a shockwave through the chamber. Seris gritted her teeth, feet skidding backward, but she held.
Tessa was already moving. She ducked low, her daggers flashing as she aimed for the creature's exposed side. But the moment her blades made contact, the entity's form rippled, its flesh twisting like liquid.
The daggers passed through nothing.
Tessa's eyes widened. "What—"
A massive arm swung toward her. She barely managed to roll away before it crashed into the stone where she had been standing.
Aedric moved.
The sword in his hands pulsed, and without thinking, he swung.
The moment the blade cut through the air, something changed.
A wave of energy erupted from the strike, forcing the entity back. The moment the dark blade touched its form, the creature shuddered, its body flickering like a disrupted illusion.
It felt that.
Aedric's heart pounded. This weapon can hurt it.
Seris saw it too. "Whatever that sword is, it's the only thing that can wound this thing."
Tessa exhaled. "Great. Now let's figure out how to kill it."
The entity growled, its burning eyes narrowing. "You wield the abyss, yet you do not understand it."
It raised its clawed hand, and the shadows surged.
The chamber itself reacted. Darkness spiraled upward, twisting like living tendrils. The cold grew unbearable, and the air itself felt like it was suffocating.
Aedric knew they couldn't win in a battle of attrition. He had to end this now.
Gripping the sword with both hands, he stepped forward. The weapon pulsed again, as though responding to his intent.
Aedric swung.
The blade howled.
The energy that erupted from it this time was different—more refined, more controlled. It wasn't just a pulse; it was a wave, cutting through the darkness like a burning arc.
The entity shrieked.
The abyss recoiled.
The moment the energy struck its form, the creature's body fractured. Cracks spread along its shadowed flesh, golden light bleeding from within.
It staggered, those burning ember-eyes flickering.
"This is not the end."
Its form collapsed, dissolving into countless tendrils of darkness that slithered back into the corners of the chamber. The oppressive presence lifted, the temperature in the air returning to something close to normal.
Silence.
Aedric stood there, his breath coming in ragged gasps. The sword in his hands no longer pulsed—it was still, quiet.
Tessa let out a shaky breath. "Did we… win?"
Seris, still gripping her sword, scanned the chamber warily. "For now."
Aedric exhaled, glancing down at the weapon in his hands. The weight of it felt different now.
He didn't know what he had just awakened.
But he was certain of one thing.
This was just the beginning.