Beasts of the Eternal City

Previously

…They began to move, skirting the edges of the cavern, their steps as silent as possible, their eyes never leaving the slumbering serpent. The air grew heavy with its presence, a primal aura that seemed to hum with power. Archius could feel its ancient awareness, a slow, ponderous consciousness that seemed to perceive everything, yet react to nothing. He focused on Lyra, on her quiet determination, and on the narrow slits of darkness ahead, his only hope of escape. The Serpent of the Depths, a creature of myth and immense power, lay between him and freedom, a final, terrifying obstacle in the heart of the Eternal City. The game of escape had just entered its most perilous phase.