Ethan lay on his back, stunned but unharmed, in the midst of a cavernous expanse. The air here was thick with the scent of ancient stone, and the dim light flickered from glowing crystals embedded in the walls. The ground was uneven, covered in sharp rocks and dust, but something about the place felt familiar, as if he had stepped into a memory from a past long forgotten.
Above him, the hole he had fallen through had already sealed, the ground solid once more. The only light now came from the soft glow of the crystals, which pulsed like the beat of a heart. Ethan stood, brushing himself off, and took a cautious step forward. The temperature in the cavern was cold, but not unbearable. A sense of purpose drove him forward, a calling that seemed to come from the very core of the place.
"The trial has begun," a voice echoed in the darkness.
Ethan froze, his senses on high alert. The voice was the same as the Guardian's, though it now seemed to come from every direction, as though the cavern itself was speaking to him.
"What is this place?" Ethan asked, his voice carrying through the silence.
"This is the Depths," the voice replied. "The heart of the temple. The place where those who seek the Relics must prove their worth."
Ethan's pulse quickened. The Depths. It sounded like a place of finality—a place where only the strongest could survive.
"I'm ready," he said, more to himself than to the voice.
The cavern before him began to shift, the walls and floors rearranging themselves. The glowing crystals flickered, their light shifting from blue to red, casting a bloodlike hue across the stone. The ground trembled beneath Ethan's feet, and the air grew thick with an unnatural energy. In the distance, a shadow stirred.
Something was coming.
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