The woman's voice cut through the thin air of the stairwell, clear and filled with sharp distrust: "Who are you? And how did you find this place?" Her eyes, dark and sharp, fixed on me, the first to be directly in front of the door.
Behind her, the darkness of the open room felt inhabited. I could make out shadows moving faintly, the silhouettes of at least two or three other people. The atmosphere was one of extreme caution, of being ready for combat at any moment.
I took a deep breath, feeling the tension radiate from my companions behind me. Gustave stood motionless, his hand still near the hilt of his sword, watching the woman intently. Maelle, Sciel, and Lune were also on guard, their postures reflecting a mixture of apprehension and determination. I remembered our decision: to try to talk first.
"We are travelers," I replied, keeping my voice as calm and non-threatening as I could. "Lumière's. We follow an ancient path... and the footprints we find on it. We seek the Source. And a way to stop the Painter's curse." I measured my words carefully, revealing just enough to explain our presence without exposing all our vulnerabilities.
The woman didn't let her guard down. Her eyes narrowed slightly. "De Lumière... Few come this far. And fewer still know of the way. Or of the Source." Her gaze moved between us, assessing us quickly. "The curse... it doesn't stop. It only waits."
"We don't accept that," Gustave chimed in, taking a soft step beside me. His commanding presence added weight to my words. "We believe there is a way. That the Source has answers."
A brief silence hung in the air, broken only by the distant hum of the Veil crystals outside and our own heartbeats. I could sense the woman's hesitation, a minuscule crack in her defensive exterior. My intuition, my 'sense of rhythm,' picked up a fluctuation in the tension of the air around her. It wasn't the sign of an impending attack, but a kind of... suppressed surprise.
"The Source..." the woman repeated, as if the word held special meaning for her. Finally, she stepped back, opening the door a little wider. "Come in. But don't try anything. We're... alert."
It was a cautious invitation, full of warning. Gustave and I exchanged glances. It was a risk, entering his territory, but staying on the stairs wouldn't get us anywhere. We nodded.
We entered the main room on the upper floor. It was what appeared to be a large meeting room, with a long wooden table in the center, covered in dust and debris. Broken windows overlooked the desolate city streets. The place was dimly lit by a couple of lanterns placed on crates.
Besides the woman, there were three other figures in the room. A sturdy man with a heavy crossbow leaning against the wall, his eyes fixed on us suspiciously. A younger woman, slim and agile, holding a pair of daggers, ready to move at a moment's notice. And an older figure, sitting in a rickety chair, with a penetrating gaze that seemed to weigh our every move.
"I'm Anya," said the woman who had opened the door for us. "And this is Kael, Lyra, and Elder Elias." She pointed to each of us as she named them. Kael gave us a low growl. Lyra remained tense, her eyes darting between us. Elder Elias just nodded slowly.
"We're Expedition 33," Gustave said. "I'm Gustave. This is [Your Character Name], Maelle, Sciel, and Lune."
Anya looked at us again, lingering a moment longer on Sciel and his tome, and then on me. "Expedition 33..." Elias murmured, his voice a dry whisper, but filled with a strange authority. "The number is dwindling. Your time is approaching."
"That's why we're seeking to stop him," Sciel replied firmly. "You... who are you really? The Echo of the Nexus called you 'Those Who Wait.'"
Anya hesitated. Kael tightened his grip on his crossbow. The tension rose again. I could feel it in the air, an uneven pulse that reminded me of the dissonance of the Veil.
"We are... those who remained," Anya said finally, her voice softer now, with a tinge of weariness. "Survivors of previous expeditions. Those who managed to reach this place... the city of Veridia. And the Veil didn't quite claim us."
Survivors. The word brought with it a wave of relief and a new layer of questions. How had they survived? Why had they stayed here?
"Veridia..." Sciel murmured, amazed. "One of the lost capitals."
"This place... the town hall," Anya continued, her gaze scanning the dusty room. "It's an anchor point in the Fade. It protects us... from the worst of its influence. But it also traps us. We can't leave."
"Trapped?" Maelle asked. "But we got here. Following the path..."
"The path brought you to the Nexus," Elias explained in his whispery voice. "And the Echo showed you how to sense the veins of the Veil. You are... rare. Few can do it. That sense... is your key. Ours... was lost long ago."
He meant my ability. The Echo had seen it. And now Elias and the Echoes understood. My ability to sense rhythm wasn't just useful in combat or finding invisible paths; it was the key to navigating the very structure of the Veil. It was a gift, but also an immense burden.
"We wait," Anya said, echoing the Echo's refrain. "We wait... for a sign. A shift in the Veil. Or the arrival of someone who can go beyond where we stopped." Her gaze fixed on me again. "Someone who can sense the Veil enough to reach the Source the legends speak of."
The revelation hit me hard. They weren't just survivors; they were a kind of guardian or sentinel, waiting at this anchor point for someone who could continue their failed quest. And they believed that person... was me. My ability, which had previously seemed like just a useful quirk, now felt like destiny.
"You... have come further than anyone in many ages," Elias continued. "The fact that you can sense the Veil... is significant. The Source... if it exists, is the heart of the Veil. There, perhaps, lie answers about the Painter. Or... the end of everything."
The air in the room felt heavy with history and anticipation. We had found the Echoes of the Nexus and now these survivors, the Guardians of Veridia, anchored in their ghost city. And they all seemed to point in the same direction: the Source, a mythical place that could only be reached by navigating the Veiled Roads, a task for which my skill was apparently crucial.
The encounter hadn't ended in combat, but in a revelation that redefined our mission. We were no longer just a group fleeing death, groping in the dark. We had a purpose, a direction indicated by those who had come before us.
Anya was watching us with a calm intensity now. "What you find in the Fountain... will affect everyone. Those of us here. Those still in Lumière. Even the Echoes."
.
Hello everyone, what did you think of the chapter? Please let me know in the comments. If you want to download the full book, it's available on my KO-FI page. The link is here. 👉
🤩ko-fi.com/winterstar01/shop🤩