The path back to their camp was laden with an uneasy silence. The once-familiar terrain felt foreign now, as though the land itself had shifted under the weight of the awakening Echoes. Canila led the way, his sword still in hand, ever alert. Freya walked beside him, her brows furrowed, her mind clearly working to piece together the puzzle of what they had just encountered. Braxus, however, was as loud as ever, his booming voice cutting through the silence as he recounted the battle.
"I tell ya, that shadow thing didn't stand a chance!" Braxus laughed, swinging his massive axe playfully as though it had been nothing more than a sparring session. "You two should've seen the look on its face when I took that swing!"
Freya rolled her eyes. "Braxus, it didn't have a face."
"Details, details," Braxus waved off her comment. "Point is, we showed it who's boss."
Canila didn't share Braxus's confidence. Though the shadow creature had been vanquished, something about the voice that had echoed through the ruins chilled him. The warning it had given—The Echoes cannot be destroyed. They are eternal.—echoed in his mind. He glanced at Freya, who seemed just as troubled. She hadn't spoken much since the battle, her attention divided between the ruins and the obsidian tablet she still held tightly in her hands.
Finally, Canila broke the silence. "Freya, what do you make of that voice? The one that spoke after we destroyed the altar?"
Freya hesitated before answering, her voice quieter than usual. "I don't know. But if what it said is true—that the Echoes are eternal—then we might be facing something far worse than we thought."
Braxus, overhearing their conversation, frowned. "Worse than that shadow beast? What could be worse?"
"The Echoes," Freya said softly, her eyes narrowing. "I've been thinking about it. They're not just mindless entities, Braxus. They have a purpose. Something is guiding them."
"Something… or someone," Canila added, his tone grim.
Braxus scratched his head. "So, what? Some big evil force is controlling these Echoes? Why didn't it just come out and fight us instead of sending its minions?"
"Because it's not ready yet," Freya replied. "The Echoes have been growing stronger, but they're still scattered. Whoever—or whatever—is behind them is biding their time, gathering strength."
The three of them fell silent again as they continued their trek. Canila could feel the weight of their mission pressing down on him. The stakes had grown immeasurably higher. If the Echoes weren't just monsters to be slain, but part of a much larger, more sinister plan, then their fight was only beginning.
By the time they reached their camp, night had fallen, and the air was thick with an unnatural chill. The campfires were burning low, casting flickering shadows across the tents. As they approached, Kael, their strategist, was the first to greet them. His sharp eyes took in their disheveled state and the grim expressions on their faces.
"Didn't go as planned, I take it?" Kael said, his tone even, though there was a note of concern in his voice.
"We found the source of the Echoes in the ruins," Canila replied. "But it's worse than we thought. There's something… more behind it all."
Kael's eyes darkened, his mind clearly racing through the implications. "We need more information. We can't fight what we don't understand."
"I've already started decoding the runes we found on the altar," Freya said, holding up the obsidian tablet. "It's slow going, but I'm making progress. There's ancient magic at work here—something from long before Elysium's time."
Kael nodded, his brow furrowed in thought. "We'll need to adjust our strategy. If the Echoes are being controlled, we need to find the one pulling the strings."
As they spoke, Fynn, the healer of their group, approached, his usual calm demeanor replaced by a look of quiet urgency. "We've been getting reports from nearby villages," he said. "Strange things have been happening—people disappearing, shadowy figures seen in the night. It sounds like the Echoes are spreading."
Canila's heart sank. It was exactly as he had feared. The Echoes were no longer confined to the ruins—they were expanding their reach, growing stronger with every passing day.
"We need to move fast," Canila said, his voice resolute. "If the Echoes are already spreading, it won't be long before they engulf everything."
Braxus slammed his fist into his palm. "Then let's hit them where it hurts! We go back to those ruins, tear down every altar, destroy every last Echo we find!"
"It's not that simple," Kael interjected. "We can't just charge in blindly. We don't know the full scope of what we're dealing with. We need to gather more intel, find out where the Echoes are coming from and how to stop them at the source."
"There may be other ruins like Aetheros," Freya added. "If the Echoes are part of a larger network, we'll need to find and destroy each node before we can stop them for good."
"And time isn't on our side," Fynn pointed out. "We can't fight a war on all fronts. If the villages are already being attacked, we'll need to protect the people as well."
Canila clenched his fists, feeling the weight of responsibility settling on his shoulders. It wasn't just about their mission anymore—it was about saving lives. The people of Elysium were in danger, and the Echoes were only growing stronger.
"We split up," Canila decided. "Kael, Fynn, and Braxus will head to the villages, protect the people, and gather whatever intel you can. Freya and I will continue decoding the runes and searching for more ruins."
Kael nodded, though there was a trace of hesitation in his eyes. "It's a risky move, Canila. If we split our forces, we'll be vulnerable."
"We don't have a choice," Canila replied firmly. "The Echoes are spreading too fast. If we don't act now, there won't be anything left to save."
Braxus grinned, his eyes gleaming with excitement. "Finally! Some action! Don't worry, Canila—we'll take care of those villages and be back before you know it."
Freya, standing beside Canila, gave him a reassuring nod. "We'll figure this out," she said quietly. "The Echoes can be stopped. We just need to find the key."
Canila met her gaze, grateful for her confidence. But in the back of his mind, the words of the shadowy voice from the ruins still echoed. The Echoes cannot be destroyed. They are eternal. He couldn't shake the feeling that they were missing something, that the real battle was still yet to come.
As the group began to prepare for their separate missions, Canila found himself staring out at the horizon, where dark clouds loomed in the distance. A storm was brewing—one that threatened to engulf all of Elysium.
And Canila knew that the true test of their strength, their resolve, was only just beginning.