The group moved swiftly at dawn, the cursed knight leading the way. His steps were unnervingly silent despite the jagged rocks and loose gravel underfoot. Kael clutched his staff tightly, the weight of the relic in his satchel feeling heavier with each passing hour. The Ashen Wastes stretched endlessly before them, the landscape barren and broken, the horizon dominated by the Glass Mountains—sharp, translucent peaks glinting faintly under the pale sun.
"We need to reach the Shattered Plains before nightfall," the knight said, his voice carrying over the silence.
"What's so dangerous about them?" Kael asked, quickening his pace to keep up.
"Everything," the knight replied. "They're remnants of a war between the gods. The land there is fractured, unstable. And it's not just the terrain you need to worry about."
Tharion grunted. "Let me guess—more divine monstrosities?"
The knight smirked. "Something like that."
Kael felt a chill despite the oppressive heat. He'd seen enough of the gods' wrath in the Ashen Wastes to know their influence was as deadly as it was unpredictable.
---
By midday, they reached the edge of the Shattered Plains. The landscape changed abruptly, the cracked earth giving way to a labyrinth of jagged, obsidian-like shards protruding from the ground at odd angles. The air shimmered with a faint, unnatural haze, and the ground beneath their feet felt brittle, as if it could crumble at any moment.
"We'll need to tread carefully," the knight warned, stepping onto the first shard-covered slope.
Kael followed hesitantly, his boots crunching against the sharp fragments. Tharion's heavy footfalls sounded like thunder in the eerie silence.
As they ventured deeper, the haze grew thicker, distorting their surroundings. Shadows flickered at the edges of Kael's vision, and he couldn't shake the feeling that they were being watched.
"Something's wrong," he said, his voice low.
The knight didn't stop. "The plains are alive, in a way. They remember the gods' war. Their anger lingers here, twisting the land and everything in it."
Kael frowned. "What does that mean for us?"
"Stay close, and don't trust what you see," the knight replied.
---
The first sign of danger came as a low rumble beneath their feet. Kael froze, his staff at the ready, as the ground shifted and groaned. A fissure split the earth ahead of them, and from its depths emerged a creature unlike anything Kael had ever seen.
It was massive, its body composed of black, crystalline shards that glimmered in the hazy light. Its limbs were spindly yet unnervingly strong, and its eyes burned with an intense, golden light.
"What in the gods' names is that?" Kael whispered.
"A shardbeast," the knight said, drawing his rusted blade. "A remnant of the gods' war, just like the plains themselves. Don't let it touch you—those shards will tear through flesh and armor alike."
The shardbeast let out a deafening screech and charged. Tharion met it head-on, his sword colliding with the creature's crystalline arm. The impact sent a shockwave rippling through the air, and Kael stumbled backward, struggling to maintain his footing.
Tharion growled as the shardbeast pushed him back, its strength overwhelming. "A little help here!"
Kael raised his staff, channeling his magic into a bolt of energy. The blast struck the shardbeast's torso, shattering part of its crystalline armor, but it barely slowed the creature down.
"It's too strong," Kael said, panic creeping into his voice.
The knight darted forward, his movements impossibly fast. His blade struck true, slicing through one of the shardbeast's legs. The creature let out a shriek and stumbled, giving Tharion an opening to drive his sword into its chest.
The shardbeast let out one final, ear-piercing cry before collapsing, its body disintegrating into a pile of black shards.
Kael leaned against his staff, his heart pounding. "Please tell me there aren't more of those."
The knight's expression was grim. "There are. And the deeper we go, the worse they'll get."
---
They pressed on, the tension growing with each step. The haze thickened, and the shadows at the edges of their vision grew bolder, moving with an unnatural fluidity.
Kael began to hear whispers, faint and indistinct, like voices carried on the wind. He shook his head, trying to focus, but the whispers only grew louder.
"Do you hear that?" he asked.
Tharion glanced at him, his brow furrowed. "Hear what?"
Kael hesitated. "The whispers. They're... everywhere."
The knight's voice was sharp. "Ignore them. The plains are trying to get inside your head."
Kael nodded, but the whispers persisted, gnawing at the edges of his mind.
---
As the day waned, they reached the heart of the Shattered Plains—a vast, open expanse dominated by a massive crater. The ground here was smoother, almost glass-like, and the air hummed with energy.
At the center of the crater stood a towering obelisk, its surface covered in glowing runes. Kael felt the relic in his satchel react, its pulse quickening.
"That's our way out," the knight said, gesturing toward the obelisk.
Kael frowned. "What do you mean, 'our way out'?"
"The obelisk is a gateway," the knight explained. "It'll take us beyond the plains, closer to the Glass Mountains. But it's guarded."
Tharion's grip on his sword tightened. "By what?"
The ground beneath the obelisk began to quake, and a figure emerged from its shadow. It was humanoid in shape, but its body was composed entirely of shifting shards, its movements fluid yet unnaturally sharp.
"A shardwraith," the knight said. "Stronger and faster than the beast you faced earlier. This one won't go down easily."
Kael swallowed hard. "Any advice?"
"Don't die," the knight said with a smirk.
The shardwraith moved with terrifying speed, closing the distance between them in an instant. Tharion barely managed to raise his sword in time to block its first attack, the force of the impact sending him skidding backward.
Kael raised his staff and unleashed a wave of energy, but the shardwraith dodged effortlessly, its form flickering like a mirage.
"We can't hit it," Kael said, frustration mounting.
"It's not invincible," the knight said, stepping forward. "It just thinks it is. Watch and learn."
The knight moved with precision, his blade striking at the wraith's core. The creature shrieked as the blade connected, its form destabilizing momentarily.
"It's weakest at the center," the knight said, glancing at Kael and Tharion. "Focus your attacks there."
Kael nodded, his magic surging as he aimed a concentrated blast at the wraith's core. The light struck true, and the creature let out a deafening scream, its body fracturing.
Tharion seized the opportunity, his blade driving into the wraith's chest. With a final, echoing wail, the shardwraith shattered, its shards scattering like ash.
The obelisk flared to life, its runes glowing brighter as the gateway opened.
The knight turned to Kael and Tharion, a rare glint of approval in his eyes. "Not bad. Let's move before the plains decide they're not done with us."
Kael took a shaky breath and stepped toward the obelisk. The whispers were gone, but the weight of the journey ahead remained.
They stepped through the gateway, leaving the Shattered Plains behind.
But Kael couldn't shake the feeling that the worst was yet to come.