"Extrahant."
Zahir sighed, rubbing the space between his eyebrows. "No, it's 'extravagant.' Try again."
Katherine frowned, "Extrah...gant?"
"Close, but not quite." Zahir glanced at her, his tone softening. "I knew teaching you would be challenging, but you not knowing how to read... that's a bit more than I expected."
"I'm sorry," Katherine mumbled, her gaze dropping to the ground.
"It's alright," Zahir sympathized, "We'll get over this hurdle. It's nothing we can't work through."
As they continued, the first rays of sunlight crept into the cavern, casting soft shadows over the rough walls. The soft chorus of birdsong echoed from outside the cavern.
Zahir glanced over at Victor, who sat quietly in a corner, inspecting his weapon with practiced focus. He hadn't slept a second all night, Zahir realized. Maybe that was in fact due to him and the news he had shared.
"Victor," Zahir called as he approached, but before he could say more, Victor stood, brushing the dust from his clothes.
"Let's go," Victor said, and without waiting for a response, he strode toward the mouth of the cave, stepping into the morning light.
Zahir sighed as he watched Katherine approach, a backpack slung over her shoulder and his book cradled in her hands. He smiled softly, accepting the book from her. Their journey was nearing its end, and Vielat, once hailed as the shining cornerstone of the world, now loomed ahead—a city reduced to a filthy, crumbling shell of its former self.
The sound of pebbles falling down a steep slope could be heard as they tiptoed through the hills, what was left now was a small path that led into the Ura Valley, the valley that directly led into Vielat.
As they walked through the cliffside, stepping onto the valley, Katherine turned around, noticing that Victor wasn't close by. She glanced backward and Victor had been at the start of the path, looking at them, fear riddled in his eyes.
She called out to him but he didn't answer, she couldn't put a finger on why he didn't follow them. But she could see his eyes, he was frightened, but why?
Zahir turned back, calling Victor's name once more. This time, Victor seemed to snap out of his trance. He rubbed his face, took a deep breath, and began to walk toward them, his pace slow, burdened.
The cry of hawks pierced the sky, conjoining with the distant growls of monsters and the annoying clatter of hooves pounding the earth from all sides. Victor's eyes darted around, and a harrowing memory replayed.
The world darkened as memories surged forward, pulling him back to the Valley that unfortunate night. He saw carriages barreling down the cliffs, heard the shouts of monsters closing in, and then... Nathan. His son's terrified face was a harrowing sight and with everything he had Victor reached out but just like before, he wouldn't be fast enough.
Slowly he began to falter, and the path he inched on began to shake, the ground beneath his feet crumbled, and as it fell, so did Victor—back into the past, back into that moment where he had lost everything.
As Victor fell toward the jagged rocks below, he braced for impact. But instead of hitting the hard ground, his back met something soft. Dazed, he opened his eyes, quickly realizing he was no longer on the cliff. He turned, disoriented, to find himself standing in his living room.
Victor stood frozen, his mind struggling to grasp what he was seeing. His heart pounded as he took in the familiar sights and sounds of his home—the worn-out couch, the faint scent of Anissa's cooking in the air. Everything felt so real, so vivid, as if he had never left.
He peered through the window, staring at his wife and son in disbelief. Anissa knelt in the yard, gently placing a bandaid over Nathan's scraped knee. Nathan's face scrunched up as he winced, then quickly softened into a smile as Anissa ruffled his hair.
Victor's throat tightened. This couldn't be real, could it? His hand moved almost on its own, pushing open the door as if testing whether this world would dissolve with his touch. But nothing changed. Anissa looked up, her eyes lighting up as Nathan bolted toward him, throwing his small arms around Victor's waist.
"Dad!" Nathan's voice rang with the pure, innocent joy that Victor hadn't heard in what felt like an eternity. He knelt, hugging his son tightly.
His eyes met Anissa's as she rose, smiling that same disarming, gentle smile that had always melted his worries away. It was a smile that healed him, a smile that made him forget, if only for a moment, all the pain and suffering he had endured.
For just that fleeting moment, everything was perfect.
As he watched Anissa's smile, serene and disarming, a creature suddenly ripped through her, a monstrous hand tearing her apart. Blood sprayed in the air as another claw clamped down on Nathan, yanking him away. Victor's heart shattered as he stretched out his hand, tears streaming down his face.
"NATHAN!" His scream echoed, raw and desperate.
"VICTOR!"
His eyes snapped open. The dream vanished in an instant, replaced by the harsh reality of the cliffside. Zahir and Katherine clung to him, their hands bruised as they held him by his arms, their faces strained from the effort. They grunted as they hauled him up from the ledge, dragging him onto solid ground.
They collapsed, breathless, sitting at the edge of the valley's entrance. Victor's chest heaved as he stared down at his hand—the same one that had reached for Nathan in his dream. His fingers curled into a trembling fist.
"Are you alright?" Zahir asked, walking closer with a hand still pressed to his aching ribs.
Victor forced a smile, "Yeah... I just got lost in some memories, that's all. Sorry."
Knowing that there was way more Victor wasn't telling, or rather didn't want to tell. He just accepted that answer for the time being. "Oh, it's nothing..." Zahir said, "Just as long as you're alright."
Victor nodded and walked away, he wanted to turn back to that broken path, the very one where Nathan had been killed. He wanted to turn around, to face the memory head-on and prove to himself that he could finally move past it. But he couldn't. His body betrayed him. His legs trembled, and no matter how hard he tried, his head wouldn't turn.
"Are you okay?" Katherine's voice cut through his thoughts, her hand gently taking his. "You're freezing, even through your gloves. What happened?"
"I'm fine," He said quickly, brushing it off. "Really... let's keep moving."
Katherine didn't say anything, but she watched him closely. Though they hadn't been together for long, she had learned to read him. She knew when he was angry, sad, happy, when he was trying to hide his pain. Still, she said nothing more and followed him as he moved ahead.
With the valley behind them, they entered the Great Forest. Towering trees stood like sentinels outside the imperial gates of Vielat, the city looming ahead. This was their final stretch before reaching their destination. But as they pressed forward, the threatening growls of unseen creatures echoed through the forest.
Click.
Victor pulled down the chamber of his shotgun, his eyes scanning the weapon as he checked the ammunition. Quickly, he snapped the chamber shut with a swift motion. "Stay close," He warned.
Behind them, the sound of trees falling echoed in the distance, branches snapping underfoot. Yet, despite the noise, no monsters had approached. It seemed the creatures of the forest were well-attuned to these sounds, dismissing them as part of their familiar environment.
Morning light barely penetrated the dense canopy overhead, the towering trees had thick branches that conjoined with one another, blocking out the sun and shrouding the forest in a dark cloak. As Zahir took a cautious step forward, his gaze drifting to the towering trees, inspiration struck him like a bolt of lightning.
A poem, vivid and perfect, bloomed in his mind, demanding to be captured. He dropped his bag to the ground in a hurry, kneeling to retrieve his writing tools. But in his haste, he forgot about the fragile glass vial of ink inside.
It shattered the moment it hit the ground, the faint crack breaking the quiet tension of the forest. The sound, though subtle, was unfamiliar enough to send the lurking monsters into motion.
"Run!" Victor shouted, bringing his shotgun to his face, his eyes scanning the darkened area ahead. He needed them out of the forest. If they got caught up in the fight, they wouldn't stand a chance.
Katherine turned back, panic flooding her voice. "Come with us!"
"I need to hold them off," Victor replied. "Get to the city. I'll catch up."
"I'm not leaving without you!" She yelled as the creature's footsteps grew louder, heavier—closer.
"Don't worry," Victor said, casting a glance at Zahir. "I'll be right behind you."
Zahir quickly understood the glance and in a swift motion he grabbed Katherine's arm, pulling her along and reluctantly, she followed, their footsteps pounding the forest floor as they sprinted toward safety. The sound of their retreat, however, was quickly drowned out by the heavier, monstrous steps pursuing them.
Click.
Victor fired his shotgun, the blast echoing through the woods as it tore through the skull of the nearest beast, dropping it instantly. But the noise only summoned more, their growls growing louder, closing in from all directions.
"Tch!" Victor hissed, yanking up his sleeve and reaching for his elbow but just as his fingers brushed the belt to rip it off, a beast's claw sliced through the air, missing his face by mere inches.
He leaped back, his instincts sharp, and fired another round straight into the belly of the creature, the blast sending it staggering back. But more were closing in, faster than he anticipated, their dark bodies blending into the shadows of the forest.
Victor cursed under his breath. He couldn't see them—not properly—and that made them deadlier. They lurked just outside his line of sight, hidden by the oppressive gloom, and each step they took seemed to tighten the noose around him.
He broke into a run, making for the city as he fished in his pocket for more ammunition. With quick hands, he reloaded the shotgun, but it wasn't enough.
The creatures were relentless, and though he could take them down in a fight, the suffocating density of the woods gave them the upper hand. In this dark, enclosed space, their strength felt overwhelming.
There was no point trying to stand his ground here. Not yet. He needed to reach open ground—then he could turn the tide.
Victor's heart pounded as he spotted a sliver of light at the forest's edge. Zahir and Katherine had already made it—at least, he hoped they had reached the city by now. He just needed to break through this final stretch of darkness.
The plan was simple: get out, drag them into the city, and pick them off one by one.
He sprinted toward the light, but as his foot caught on a twisted root, he stumbled, crashing hard onto the ground near the imperial gates.
The impact left him winded and there was no time to recover. From the corner of his eye, he saw several beasts hurtling toward him, their sharp claws ready to tear into him.
Without hesitation, Victor rolled over, firing two shots in rapid succession. Two beasts fell back, screeching in agony as the bullets tore through them. But when he aimed again, pulling the trigger—click. Nothing.
Desperation kicked in as he fumbled through his pocket, knowing he wouldn't be fast enough. Heart racing, he dropped into a brace position, covering his head with his arms, preparing for the worst.
But nothing came.
Slowly, he peeked through his arms and saw the monsters torn apart, their bodies split and mangled on the ground. He heard a grunt and turned his head toward the sound. A man clad in shining white armor stood tall, towering over one of the creatures.
With a swift movement, the armored man grabbed a monster by the shoulder, effortlessly slicing through its body with a massive greatsword, splitting the beast in two. The fight was over before Victor could even blink.
The armored man turned toward Victor, his entire body encased in thick, imposing armor. As he approached, Victor instinctively reloaded his shotgun, the familiar click of the chamber locking into place as he pointed it directly at the man.
"Oh," The armored figure halted, raising both hands in a gesture of peace, his enormous sword hanging harmlessly across his back. "I'm human. I'm not here to hurt you, I just want to help."
Victor frowned, tilting his head slightly. The man's voice was unexpectedly light, almost friendly—a contrast to his imposing appearance. "I'm fine," Victor replied, "You can leave me alone now."
The man hesitated, lowering his hands slightly. "You came from the Great Forest, right? A visitor. It's only right that I show you into the city—"
A low growl rumbled from the depths of the forest, and in an instant, a massive beast burst from the shadows, its claws aimed toward the man's neck.
With lightning reflexes, he spun, his hand already reaching for the hilt of his sword. In a single, fluid motion, he hurled the blade with such force that it skewered the creature, pinning it to a nearby tree.
"Well," He muttered, scratching his head, "That might've been overkill."
Turning back to resume his conversation with Victor, he realized the visitor had vanished. Confused, the man scanned the area, calling out before shaking his head and heading back into the forest to retrieve his sword.