Kaelron staggered back as the light of the shrine consumed the clearing. The spectral figure, its glowing golden eyes burning with ancient power, stood unmoved in the center of the storm. Runes swirled around it like a protective barrier, and the crown fragment hovered just above its outstretched hands.
"The Eternal Maw grows restless," the figure intoned, its voice resonating in Kaelron's chest. "Its shadow extends beyond this fragment, and it will not allow you to meddle in its designs without consequence."
Kaelron barely had time to process the warning when the air around them grew unnaturally cold. The light of the shrine dimmed as an oppressive darkness crept in from the edges of the clearing.
Nyx's sharp voice cut through the tension. "This isn't good."
Kaelron turned to see her shadow panther growling low, its violet eyes scanning the darkness. The Guild tamers shifted uneasily, their beasts growling and pawing the ground. Even Eryk, who usually exuded confidence, looked unsettled as Frostfang crouched low, his icy breath visible in the chill air.
A deep, guttural roar echoed through the clearing, sending shivers down Kaelron's spine. The darkness coalesced into a hulking form, its body writhing with tendrils of smoke. Glowing violet eyes burned in the center of its shapeless mass, and the air around it crackled with malevolent energy.
The spectral figure's gaze turned to the monstrous shadow beast. "The Maw sends its emissary to silence you." It turned its fiery eyes on Kaelron. "Prove your worth, tamer, or fall into the void."
---
The shadow beast roared, shaking the ground as it lunged forward. Kaelron barely had time to dive out of the way before one of its massive tendrils slammed into the ground, leaving a smoldering crater where he had stood.
"Form up!" Nyx barked, her voice sharp and commanding. The Guild tamers moved into position, their beasts charging at the creature from all sides.
Kaelron scrambled to his feet, his gryphon landing beside him. The creature let out a piercing screech, its talons glowing with golden light. Kaelron reached out through their bond, feeling its strength surge into him.
"Let's do this," he muttered, gripping his staff as flames flickered to life around him.
The gryphon dived at the shadow beast, its talons slashing across the creature's smoky form. The light from the attack burned away some of the darkness, and the beast let out a furious roar.
Eryk and Frostfang joined the fray, the wolf's icy breath freezing parts of the shadow beast's tendrils. Eryk's blade glowed with frost as he struck, carving through the frozen sections with precision.
Nyx and her panther attacked from the other side, the beast's claws glowing with dark energy as it tore at the shadow's base.
For a moment, it seemed like their combined efforts were working. The shadow beast staggered under the onslaught, its tendrils retracting as it recoiled.
But then the air grew colder, and the beast's violet eyes flared with renewed fury.
---
The shadow beast lashed out, its tendrils striking faster than before. One caught a Guild tamer off guard, sending them flying into a nearby tree. Their beast—a hawk with silvery wings—shrieked in pain as it was engulfed in the creature's darkness.
Kaelron felt the fragment's pulse quicken in his satchel, its energy resonating with the beast.
"It's feeding off the fragment!" he shouted, his flames flaring brighter as he swung his staff to block another tendril.
The spectral figure's voice echoed again, calm but stern. "The Maw's influence cannot be severed by force alone. You must reclaim the fragment's light."
Kaelron gritted his teeth, dodging another attack. "What does that even mean?"
The figure didn't answer, its golden eyes fixed on the battle.
The shadow beast let out another roar, and Kaelron felt a wave of despair wash over him. The creature wasn't just attacking them physically—it was pushing against their will, trying to sap their resolve.
Kaelron turned to Nyx, who was fending off one of the beast's tendrils with a blast of dark energy. "We can't keep this up! We need to cut it off from the fragment!"
Nyx glanced at him, her expression grim. "If you have a plan, now's the time!"
---
Kaelron reached out to the fragment through his bond with the gryphon, feeling its chaotic energy pulsing in his mind. It was like trying to hold onto fire—searing and unstable, but alive with potential.
"Keep it distracted!" he called to the others. "I'm going for the fragment!"
Nyx didn't argue, signaling her tamers to press the attack. Eryk and Frostfang moved to cover Kaelron, their icy strikes keeping the shadow beast's tendrils at bay.
The gryphon swooped low, its talons glowing as it raked across the beast's core. The creature roared in pain, giving Kaelron an opening.
He sprinted toward the shrine, his heart pounding as the fragment's glow intensified. The runes around the shrine were spinning faster now, their light pulsating in time with the fragment's energy.
As Kaelron reached the fragment, it shot into his hands, its warmth almost overwhelming. The moment he touched it, the world around him seemed to blur.
---
Kaelron was no longer in the clearing. He stood in an endless void, where all light seemed to collapse into nothingness. The fragment hovered before him, its faint glow offering a fragile defiance against the infinite darkness that stretched in every direction.
Then, it appeared.
A massive, shapeless entity emerged from the void, its form shifting and writhing like a storm of smoke and shadow. Its presence was overwhelming, a weight pressing down on Kaelron's chest, making it hard to breathe. Violet eyes burned within the swirling mass, cold and unfeeling, their gaze piercing through Kaelron as though stripping away his very essence.
The air—or whatever this place had in place of it—grew impossibly heavy, vibrating with a deep, rhythmic pulse. Kaelron's knees buckled, his fiery aura flickering as if the beast's presence alone could snuff him out. His thoughts frayed, unraveling as a vast, unknowable will brushed against his mind, each contact leaving behind sensations of cold despair, endless hunger, and suffocating emptiness.
There were no words, no explanations, only the sheer, incomprehensible reality of the Maw's existence.
Kaelron stumbled backward, his body trembling as the fragment pulsed wildly in his hand. The darkness around him seemed to close in, the faint light from the fragment struggling against the overwhelming tide of shadow. For a brief moment, he felt himself on the brink of being consumed, of becoming part of the void's vast nothingness.
But then, something within him stirred. A memory of Rynne's warmth, of Lilia's fierce determination, of the gryphon's unwavering bond. Those threads of light pushed back against the encroaching darkness, rekindling his flame.
The fragment's light flared, and Kaelron felt the crushing weight of the void begin to lift. The entity loomed over him, its form growing larger, its presence more suffocating—but Kaelron refused to falter. He clung to the fragment, forcing its light to burn brighter until the void itself recoiled.
With a final surge of flame, Kaelron was wrenched back to reality, gasping for air as the clearing snapped into focus around him. The fragment was still in his hand, glowing faintly, but the memory of the Maw lingered—a vast, incomprehensible force that defied understanding, leaving only terror in its wake.
---
Kaelron's vision snapped back to the clearing. The fragment's energy surged through him, merging with his bond to the gryphon. Flames and light erupted around him as his hybrid form reawakened, stronger than before.
The gryphon let out a triumphant screech as it charged the shadow beast, its talons glowing with golden fire. Kaelron followed, his flaming claws slashing through the beast's tendrils with precision.
The others rallied behind him. Eryk and Frostfang struck with renewed vigor, their icy attacks freezing the beast's core. Nyx's shadow panther leapt onto the beast's back, its claws sinking deep as Nyx unleashed a blast of dark energy that shattered one of its eyes.
The shadow beast roared, its form unraveling as Kaelron closed in.
"Now!" the spectral figure's voice boomed.
Kaelron plunged his flaming claws into the beast's core, channeling the fragment's energy into the attack. Light erupted from the wound, consuming the shadow beast in a blinding flash.
When the light faded, the beast was gone.
---
The clearing was silent. The shrine's light dimmed, and the fragment settled back into Kaelron's hands, its glow faint but steady.
Nyx approached, her expression unreadable. "You held back the Maw this time, but this fight isn't over."
Kaelron met her gaze. "I'll stop it. Whatever it takes."
Nyx studied him for a moment before nodding. "Then you'd better be ready for what's coming next."
Eryk stepped forward, resting a hand on Kaelron's shoulder. "You did good, but we're not out of the woods yet. The next shrine won't be any easier."
Kaelron looked at the fragment, its faint pulse a reminder of the battle ahead. "I'll be ready," he said softly, determination hardening in his chest.
As they prepared to leave the shrine, Kaelron couldn't shake the feeling that the Maw was watching, waiting for its next move.