SHATTER!!
UUNNNNH!!
The sound of breaking glass echoed through the passageway, immediately plunging it into an abyss of darkness, followed by a groan of pain. Only a faint, distant light flickered at the far end, a beacon in the enveloping blackness.
"What happened?" Velgrim's voice cut through the confusion, tinged with surprise.
SWOOSH!!
Xerves felt a rush of air near his neck. Instinct took over, and he dodged at the last minute, but did he really dodge, no, he thought he had dodged but his reflex was slower, as he dodged he felt a hand touch and shove him, losing his balance, he tumbled to the ground with a heavy thud.
"Ouch! What the hell?" Xerves shouted, his voice reverberating off the stone walls. That was a sword slash! Is that Vespera that pushed me?
"Hey! What's happening? Eric, why did you groan? Xerves watch ou—"
GROWL!!
A menacing growl echoed through the passageway, cutting off Velgrim's words. Before he could react, a powerful blow struck his chest, sending him flying toward the distant light. He crashed to the ground, his body limp as blood gushed from his mouth, staining his robe.
Xerves struggled to see, his vision blurred by the darkness. He felt a figure fly past him and land near the entrance of the chamber at which the faint light beaconed. Panic set in; he had to reach the light source. Dodging another sword swing, he realized his luck might not hold out.
Desperation fueled his movements. He had to survive, even if it meant abandoning the others. Survival was all that mattered now.
Another sword swing came, slashing his back multiple times. The cuts weren't deep enough to sever his spine, but the pain was excruciating. Blood poured from his wounds, and his consciousness began to waver.
UUHHHHNNN!!
He moaned in agony, forcing himself to stand. He had to reach the light source. He couldn't counter-attack in the darkness, not with his weapon. To use his silver pendant, he needed to be close to his enemy. The pendant's lethal blade was only a few inches long, but it could be deadly if used correctly.
With every ounce of strength left in him, Xerves staggered toward the light, each step a battle against the encroaching darkness and the pain threatening to consume him.
Reaching the entrance where the light shone, Xerves was startled by the figure sprawled on the ground.
"Velgrim! Hey! Pull yourself together!" he shouted, his voice raw with desperation. He grabbed Velgrim's limp form and dragged him into the chamber, the heavy thud of footsteps and the growl of an unknown creature filling the air, echoing ominously through the passageway.
Once inside the chamber, Xerves quickly checked Velgrim. "He's still breathing! But there's not much time," he muttered to himself, panic rising. "I need a healing potion."
His mind raced. The healing potion was in the adventure kit, which Eric had. Returning to the darkened passageway to face that creature was a risk he wasn't eager to take. But without the potion, Velgrim might not survive.
Xerves glanced back at the dark corridor, the growls growing louder and more menacing. Weighing his options, he couldn't leave Velgrim to die, but the thought of facing an unknown opponent in the dark sent chills down his spine.
As Xerves caught his breath, a chilling thought pierced his mind—Eric. The memory of Eric's pained groan echoed in his ears, casting a shadow of doubt over whether he was still alive. Eric had been the first to fall, his agonized cry haunting the darkness.
"I've got to save Velgrim first," Xerves resolved, his mind snapping back to the urgent task at hand.
Drifting out of his thoughts, he surveyed the chamber they had managed to escape into. The walls, built from ancient stone, were draped in thick moss and trailing ivy. In certain places, the moss gave way to smooth patches of stone etched with strange, inscrutable inscriptions. Xerves stared at the mysterious characters with a mix of wonder and frustration, unable to decipher their meaning.
Strange writings, I wonder which language it's written in.
His eyes drifted to the source of light in the stone chamber. An altar came into view. Hovering above it, a ragged book floated in midair, suspended about two feet above the surface. The pages emitted a mysterious glow that captured Xerves's attention. Approaching cautiously, he peered over the top of the book. Illuminated across the pages in large, ominous letters was the word 'DOOM,' pulsating with an eerie light.
"What the heck!" he muttered, his voice echoing softly in the cavernous room.
So the light that reflected from this chamber entrance is just some old ragged floating book with glowing words?
Beneath the book, embedded in the altar, was a rectangular-shaped gem. It shimmered faintly, casting ethereal beams of light that held the book aloft.
"It seems this gem is a flight-type," he mused aloud, "keeping this eerie book suspended in the air."
In the dim light of the chamber, a giant door loomed at the far corner, its surface intricately engraved with dragons. Beyond it lay a dense forest, shrouded in mystery and promise.
"That's the way out," Xerves thought, his eyes flicking back to the wounded Velgrim. "If I make it through, my survival is certain. But I can't abandon these people—especially Velgrim. He's still clinging to life."
The weight of his decision pressed on him, but he knew what he had to do.
ARRKKH!!
Velgrim gasped.
"Hey! Pull yourself together! Hey!" Xerves urged, desperation creeping into his voice. "I need to get the healing potion somehow."
The growl of some rampaging creature echoed from the dark passageway. Xerves racked his brain, trying to devise a plan to retrieve the adventure kit. After a few seconds, a grin spread across his face as though he had thought of a plan.
He dashed to the altar and grabbed the ragged book with glowing words, not pausing to consider the potential consequences—whether an earthquake or some other natural disaster might be triggered by his bold action.
"I don't know your purpose floating here, but at least you can be useful in a fight," he muttered as he grabbed at it.