Betrayal in the Dark

The air in the warren was thick with the cloying scent of damp earth and stale fear. Kael moved with a practiced stealth honed by countless nights spent patrolling the ragged perimeter of Haven. Beside him, Lyra’s armor, usually a gleam of polished steel, was dulled by grime, her regal bearing momentarily subdued by the close confines. Elara’s soft boots made barely a whisper against the packed dirt floor, her eyes, accustomed to the vastness of libraries, scanning the shadows with an unnerving intensity. Kit, a hulking presence even when stooped, brought up the rear, her massive stone axe a silent promise of devastation.

They had been tracking the creature for days, a grotesque aberration that had been snatching livestock and, more disturbingly, people, from the outskirts of Haven. The trail had led them deep into a network of ancient tunnels, rumored to have been carved by forgotten peoples before the world fractured.

"It's close," Lyra murmured, her hand resting on the hilt of her sword. "I can feel the residual energy. It's tainted, like the creatures we fought before, but…different. More deliberate."