The Abyss had gone quiet, but the silence was anything but comforting.
Elric trudged forward, his breath ragged and shallow, his blade heavy in his hand. Blood still trickled from the gash on his arm, staining his tattered shirt, but he barely noticed the pain. His thoughts churned in the aftermath of the fight, circling around the shard that had embedded itself in his chest.
The power that surged through him in those brief moments had been intoxicating—a rush of strength and clarity unlike anything he'd ever known. But the memory of the whisper, dark and taunting, lingered like a weight in the pit of his stomach.
"Power… at a cost."
He clenched his fists, his nails biting into his palms. What cost? His humanity? His soul?
Elric's shadow slithered behind him, unnaturally long and twisting like it had a will of its own. He had no answers, only questions, and the Abyss offered no solace.
---
The terrain grew more treacherous the deeper he went. Jagged rocks jutted from the ground at sharp angles, slick with an oily substance that shimmered faintly in the dim light. Pools of inky black liquid dotted the landscape, their surfaces unnervingly still. Each step was a gamble, every sound a potential threat.
Elric's instincts were on edge, his senses straining for the slightest hint of danger. The Abyss felt alive, like it was watching him, waiting for him to falter.
He stopped when he reached a narrow ridge that overlooked a massive chasm. The drop below was dizzying, the faint glow of the terrain disappearing into infinite darkness. Across the gap, a massive archway carved from black stone loomed, its surface etched with glowing runes that pulsed faintly like a heartbeat.
"Of course," Elric muttered under his breath. His path forward was obvious, but it was anything but easy.
The only way across was a narrow, crumbling bridge of stone that barely looked stable enough to support his weight. The thought of plummeting into the abyss below made his stomach churn, but turning back wasn't an option.
He stepped onto the bridge, testing its stability. The stone groaned beneath his boots, but it held.
"One step at a time," he whispered, forcing himself to focus.
The void below seemed to pull at him, a sickening sensation of vertigo that made his head spin. Every step felt like a gamble, and the faint howls of distant creatures only added to the oppressive tension.
Halfway across, the air shifted.
Elric froze. The temperature dropped sharply, and a low, guttural growl echoed through the chasm.
"Not now," he hissed, his grip tightening on his blade.
The growl grew louder, closer. He scanned the shadows, his heart pounding. And then he saw it—a massive figure slinking through the darkness on the far side of the bridge.
The creature was unlike anything he'd faced before. It moved on all fours, its body covered in spiked, blackened carapace that glistened in the dim light. Its eyes glowed a sickly green, locking onto Elric with predatory intent.
The bridge trembled as the creature leaped onto it, its claws scraping against the stone.
Elric's breath caught in his throat. The creature's weight caused cracks to spiderweb across the narrow path, and he could feel the structure shifting beneath him.
"Great," he muttered. "As if this wasn't hard enough."
The creature lunged, closing the distance in an instant. Elric barely managed to dodge, the beast's claws raking the air where he had been standing. He stumbled, his boots skidding on the unstable stone, but he didn't fall.
The creature turned, its growl reverberating through the chasm. It charged again, and this time, Elric's shadow moved before he did.
The tendrils of darkness coiled outward, wrapping around the creature's legs and dragging it down. The beast roared, thrashing violently, but the shadows held firm.
Elric seized the opening. He rushed forward, his blade aimed for the creature's exposed neck. The strike landed true, the steel sinking deep. The beast let out a blood-curdling screech before collapsing, its body dissolving into black mist.
But the fight wasn't over.
The mist didn't dissipate—it swirled around Elric, coalescing into another shard of light. He braced himself as it slammed into his chest, the rush of energy washing over him like a tidal wave. His vision blurred, his mind flooded with images he couldn't comprehend: flashes of battles, glimpses of towering figures, and the ever-present void.
When it was over, he fell to his knees, gasping.
His shadow writhed around him, more animated than before. It seemed to stretch and curl, almost as if it were… alive.
"What's happening to me?" Elric whispered, his voice trembling.
The answer came in the form of another whisper, softer this time but no less chilling: "You are awakening, Boundling."
---
Elric pushed himself to his feet, his body trembling from exhaustion and adrenaline. The bridge behind him was crumbling, pieces falling away into the abyss below. He didn't have time to dwell on what had just happened.
He crossed the remaining distance and stepped through the archway, his legs threatening to give out beneath him. The runes on the stone pulsed brighter as he passed, and the air grew heavier, thick with a sense of foreboding.
Beyond the archway, the landscape shifted again. The jagged rocks and pools of liquid gave way to a sprawling ruin, its structures towering and ancient. Massive columns of black stone reached toward the void above, and the faint echoes of whispers seemed to emanate from every shadow.
At the center of the ruin stood a massive door, its surface covered in intricate carvings. The images depicted scenes of battle, of figures bound in chains, and of an endless chasm devouring everything.
Elric's gaze was drawn to a symbol etched into the door's center: a swirling pattern that resembled the shadows that now moved with him.
His fingers brushed against the scar on his neck, the mark that had always set him apart.
"I don't know what you want from me," he muttered, stepping closer to the door. "But I'm not going down without a fight."
The door shuddered at his touch, the carvings glowing with a cold, blue light. The whispers grew louder, overlapping until they became deafening.
And then, the door began to open.
End of Chapter 3
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