Maerlyn's legs burned with every step as he pulled the injured man along, the forest around them growing more oppressive with every passing moment. The shadowy creatures were still trailing them, their howls echoing through the trees like a chorus of death. His mind raced, the image of the monstrous creature looming large in his thoughts. The Veil's power was everywhere, seeping through the fabric of the world, warping it in ways Maerlyn could not begin to understand.
But amidst the chaos, there was the light. A faint glimmer, barely visible through the trees but growing brighter as they pushed on. It wasn't just a flicker in the distance—it was a beacon, a promise of something beyond the darkness. Maerlyn had no idea what lay at the source of that light, but he had to reach it. He had to believe that it held the key to everything—his lost memories, the pieces of himself scattered across this cursed land, and the path to defeating the creatures of the Veil.
The man beside him was slowing down, his breath coming in ragged gasps. Blood stained his clothes, and his eyes were glazed with pain, but there was no time to stop, no time for mercy. Maerlyn's focus never wavered from the light, his determination pushing him forward. The man was barely conscious now, but Maerlyn couldn't afford to let him fall. He wasn't sure why, but something about this man—about the way he had reacted to the creatures, about his words—made Maerlyn feel as though he were tied to him, in some way he didn't fully understand.
"Stay with me," Maerlyn gritted out, dragging the man further. "You can't die here. Not like this."
The man muttered something, his voice faint and barely intelligible. "The light… it's... it's a trap…"
Maerlyn didn't have time to answer. His pulse was a steady roar in his ears, drowning out everything except for the growing light ahead. The forest was thinning, the dense trees giving way to a small clearing. The air felt different here, cooler, fresher. It smelled of damp earth and something else—something ancient, like the first breath of a new world.
They reached the clearing, and Maerlyn stopped, his breath catching in his throat. Before him stood a structure unlike anything he had ever seen—a towering stone archway, covered in moss and vines, but somehow radiating with power. The light came from within the arch, a brilliant, pulsing glow that seemed to hum with energy. It was as though the very fabric of the world bent around it, shaping the light into something both beautiful and terrifying.
Maerlyn had seen something like it before—the strange, fleeting image of the woman who had appeared to him. The woman with the pale eyes. This was where she had meant him to go.
"Get to the arch," Maerlyn urged the man, now barely able to stand. "Stay close to me. We're almost there."
But the man, with the last of his strength, pulled away, his face twisted in desperation. "No… you don't understand…" he rasped. "It's not… a way out. It's—"
The sound of claws scraping against stone interrupted him.
The creatures were coming.
Maerlyn didn't wait. He grabbed the man by the arm, hauling him toward the arch with one final, determined effort. His feet pounded against the earth, the weight of his own exhaustion settling in his bones, but he forced himself forward. The arch loomed ahead, the light within it growing brighter, more urgent.
The creatures were almost upon them, their screeches sending a chill down Maerlyn's spine. He could hear the shifting of their forms, the scurrying of shadowed limbs in the underbrush. But just as they reached the arch, the first of the creatures emerged from the trees, its glowing eyes fixed on Maerlyn.
"No!" Maerlyn shouted, his heart pounding in his chest.
The light surged, flaring in a sudden, blinding explosion. For a split second, everything seemed to freeze—the world, the creatures, even time itself. And then, with a sound like the cracking of stone, the archway seemed to ripple, distorting the air around it, and a rush of energy surged out from within.
The creatures screeched, recoiling in pain as the light surged outward, swallowing them whole. They tried to flee, but the power of the arch had ensnared them, trapping them in a vortex of radiant energy. Their forms flickered and twisted in the light before they vanished entirely, leaving only a faint echo of their presence in the air.
Maerlyn stood in stunned silence, the man beside him gasping for air. He didn't know what had just happened, but he knew one thing: the light had saved them.
The arch pulsed, and the light began to fade, leaving the clearing in a surreal half-light, as if the world had been momentarily suspended between realms. The creatures were gone, but Maerlyn wasn't sure for how long. The power of the arch was not infinite.
"We're safe—for now," Maerlyn said, his voice hoarse. He turned to the man, who was still trembling, his eyes wide with a mixture of fear and awe.
The man managed a weak smile. "You... you really did it," he whispered. "I didn't think… I didn't think we'd make it."
Maerlyn didn't answer immediately. He was still processing what had just happened, the overwhelming power of the arch still rippling through him like an aftershock. But there was something more pressing now.
"What is this place?" Maerlyn asked, looking around the clearing. The stone archway was unlike anything he had ever seen before. Its surface was covered in strange, intricate carvings that seemed to shift and change when he wasn't looking directly at them. The air hummed with a deep, ancient power, and Maerlyn could feel it, seeping into his very bones.
The man, still weak, leaned against the arch, his voice barely a whisper. "This… this is the Threshold," he said. "A place between worlds. A place of transition."
Maerlyn's heart skipped a beat. "The Threshold? What does that mean?"
The man's eyes flickered with understanding, though his voice was tinged with fear. "It means you've crossed into something else, Maerlyn. You've crossed into a realm where the Veil doesn't hold sway, but it's not safe here. Not for long. You can't stay."
Maerlyn's mind raced. The Veil. The Threshold. He had crossed into a place where the rules were different, a place outside the world he had known. But that also meant the creatures—those monsters—couldn't follow him here. At least not immediately.
"But I don't understand," Maerlyn said, his voice growing more insistent. "What is this place really? What happens now? What is the next step?"
The man looked at him, his face drawn with fear. "You don't have much time," he said, a tremor in his voice. "The Veil still has a hold on you, Maerlyn. You're not free. Not yet."
Maerlyn's stomach tightened. "What do I have to do?"
The man's gaze turned distant, his eyes unfocused. "There's a path. A way forward. But it's not just about escaping. You need to find the others—the ones who can help you. The ones who understand the Threshold, who can guide you."
Maerlyn stared at him, the weight of his words sinking in. There was no time to waste. He had crossed the Threshold, but the journey was far from over. The Veil still lurked in the shadows, waiting for its chance to reclaim him.
He had to keep moving. The next step was out there, waiting for him.
Maerlyn turned away from the arch, his resolve hardening once more. Whatever lay ahead, he would face it. He had to. For himself. For the fragments of his soul still scattered across the world.
The journey was far from over.
And he wasn't alone anymore.