The tension in the chamber, already thick as lead, materialized in the cold flash of steel. Liam, with surprising speed, lunged at Sebastian, the dagger in his hand tracing a deadly arc. Sebastian wasn't prepared for such a direct and brutal attack. He barely had time to react, spinning on his heels in a desperate attempt to dodge the blow. The dagger grazed his arm, tearing the fabric of his tunic and leaving a thin red line on his skin. A sharp pain shot through his arm, like an electric shock, but Sebastian ignored it, quickly backing away to gain distance. He had no weapons, only his wits and his herbalist's pouch.
Liam, with a ruthless, cruel smile that didn't reach his eyes, advanced again, harassing Sebastian with a series of quick and precise attacks. His daggers moved like snakes, seeking any gap in the botanist's nonexistent defense. Sebastian, aware of his abysmal disadvantage in close combat, tried to maintain distance, moving with agility, using his body as his only shield. But Liam was too fast, too skilled.
A second attack, even faster than the first, forced Sebastian to roll on the ground to avoid being hit. As he got up, he felt a sharp pain in his knee, a stinging reminder of his clumsiness. Liam, taking advantage of his momentary vulnerability, lunged at him, the dagger aimed directly at his throat.
Sebastian, with his heart galloping in his chest like a war drum, reacted purely on instinct. He extended his empty hand, a desperate, almost suicidal gesture, to deflect the dagger's trajectory. The cold steel grazed his skin, millimeters from his jugular. The wood of his tool bag, which he wore slung over his shoulder, creaked slightly under the pressure of the struggle. With a desperate effort, he pushed Liam with his shoulder, with his whole body, gaining a few precious seconds to stand up.
Sebastian's breathing was ragged, shallow, and the pain in his knee and arm was becoming increasingly intense. He knew he couldn't hold out much longer. Liam was an experienced warrior, a ruthless assassin. He, on the other hand, was just an herbalist, a man of peace who had never wielded a weapon with the intent to kill. Never, until now.
Liam, with an expression of absolute contempt, watched Sebastian stagger. "I told you," he said, his voice cold and full of mockery. "You were always soft. You have no chance against me."
Sebastian gritted his teeth, ignoring the pain, ignoring the fear. He knew Liam was right. He wasn't a warrior. But he couldn't give up. He couldn't let him hurt the girl. He had to protect her. Even if it cost him his life.
He remembered his father's words, the teachings about plants, about their healing... and harmful properties. He remembered the sleepless nights, studying ancient texts, learning to extract the essence of each herb, each root, each flower. He remembered the warnings about the responsible use of that knowledge.
And, at that moment, he made a decision.
A desperate decision.
With a muffled cry of rage and frustration, he reached into his herbalist's pouch. Liam, believing he was going to draw a weapon, prepared for another attack. But what Sebastian took out was not a dagger, nor a sword, nor an arrow.
It was a handful of powder.
A fine powder, of a dark green, almost black color.
A powder he had prepared himself, with a mixture of Shadow Nettles, Belladonna, and Moon Fungus Spores.
A mixture that, inhaled in small quantities, caused confusion, disorientation, and temporary paralysis.
A mixture he had never used on a human being.
Until now.
Taking advantage of Liam's momentary confusion, Sebastian threw the powder directly at his face, with all the strength he could muster.
Liam, surprised by the unexpected attack, had no time to react.
He inhaled the powder, coughing and sneezing violently.
His eyes reddened, filled with tears, and his vision became blurry.
He felt an intense dizziness, a sudden nausea, and his legs buckled.
"Damn you...!" he shouted, his voice hoarse and distorted. "What... what have you done to me?!"
Sebastian didn't answer. He took a few steps back, keeping his distance, watching Liam with a mixture of relief and remorse. He knew the effect of the powder would be temporary. He knew that Liam, sooner or later, would recover.
But, at least, he had bought some time.
Time to think.
Time to act.
Time to... save the girl.
Liam, with blurred vision and unstable balance, staggered, trying to regain control. "So you're going to use dirty tricks, huh?" he said, his voice slurred. "A desperate move. Pathetic."
Sebastian didn't answer. His gaze was fixed on Liam, yes, but also on the girl, who was still huddled in the corner, watching the scene with her large green eyes.
At that moment, while Liam was preparing for a last, desperate attack, despite his weakened state, a faint glow began to emanate from the girl. A glow that, gradually, grew in intensity, flooding the chamber with a warm, golden light.
Just as Liam, partially recovering from the effects of Sebastian's powder, was about to deliver the final blow, the faint golden light emanating from the girl transformed abruptly. It was no longer a warm and welcoming glow, but a cold, bluish radiance that flooded the chamber, tinting the stone walls with a spectral, almost ghostly tone. The air, previously warm and heavy with a strange odor, suddenly turned icy, as if a blast of frigid air had surged from the very depths of the abyss. A sepulchral silence, even deeper than before, descended upon them, drowning out any other sound, even the humming of the orb.
And then, it began.
It wasn't an audible sound, in the traditional sense of the word. It was a deep vibration, a resonance that was felt in the bones, in the chest, in the very essence of their being. It was the sound of a heartbeat, a slow, powerful, colossal heartbeat, as if the heart of a giant were beating at the very center of the earth. Thump… Thump… Thump… Each beat resonated with an oppressive, crushing force, as if the weight of the entire universe were concentrated in that single instant.
Liam froze, his face, previously contorted with anger and determination, now a mask of panic. A primordial, visceral, irrational fear seized him. He felt, knew, with an absolute and inescapable certainty, that something ancient and terrible was watching him, was judging him. The dagger, forgotten, trembled in his hand, and a cold sweat covered his forehead.
Sebastian, affected by the powder he himself had thrown, felt the change in the atmosphere intensify his symptoms. The pain in his knee and arm became unbearable, as if the cold were freezing his bones. But the fear he felt was even greater. A fear that was not rational, that did not come from a physical threat, but from the depths of his instinct. A fear of something that transcended his understanding, of something that defied all logic, all reason.
The heartbeat continued, Thump… Thump… Thump…, growing in intensity, becoming more oppressive with each pulsation. The bluish light intensified even more, casting grotesque, distorted shadows that danced and writhed on the walls of the chamber, as if they had come to life. The air stank of ozone and ice, an unnatural smell that burned his lungs.
The girl, oblivious to everything that was happening around her, remained huddled in the corner, her eyes closed and her face expressionless, as if she were in a trance. Her body trembled slightly, but it was not a tremor of fear, but a vibration that seemed to emanate from her core. It was as if she were a conduit, a vessel, a channel for a force that far surpassed her, an incomprehensible, immeasurable force.
Suddenly, a blast of energy shook the chamber. It was not a sonic explosion, but an invisible shockwave that spread through the air, making every atom, every molecule, every particle of the room vibrate. Objects trembled, the walls creaked, and the adventurers felt as if their own bodies were about to disintegrate.
The heartbeat reached its culmination, a monumental, deafening THUMP that resonated throughout the entire known universe – or, at least, that's how they felt it. And then, silence. A silence even deeper than before, an absolute, total silence that spoke of an immense and implacable power that had just manifested. The bluish light faded slowly, leaving behind a cold, heavy air and a persistent smell of ozone and ice, like the breath of a creature from another world.
In the corridors of the dungeon, miles away, the monsters, from the smallest rats to the largest ogres, felt the heartbeat. A primitive, inexplicable fear overwhelmed them, causing them to flee in disarray, seeking refuge in the darkest and most remote depths of the earth.
The silence after the monumental THUMP was deafening, a void that resonated with the magnitude of what had just occurred. The bluish light faded slowly, revealing the chamber under the original faint reddish glow. But nothing was the same. The air felt heavy, charged with a residual energy, a cold energy that chilled them to the bone, and a persistent smell of ozone and ice, as if they had opened a door to an eternal winter.
Liam was the first to react, stumbling backwards, his gaze lost, unfocused. His face was pale, almost cadaverous, and his lips trembled uncontrollably. The dagger he had been wielding, forgotten, fell to the floor with a metallic clang that resonated in the silence like thunder. What… what was that? he thought, his mind clouded by terror, his heart pounding wildly in his chest. A fear he had never experienced, a fear that did not come from a physical danger, but from something much deeper, something that resonated with the cosmic horror he had just witnessed, took hold of him.
Markus, his breath ragged, leaned on his shield to avoid falling. His body trembled uncontrollably, and a cold sweat soaked his forehead. It was… as if the whole world had held its breath, he thought, his mind unable to process the magnitude of what he had felt. As if we had been on the edge of the abyss… and had seen what lies on the other side. The memory of the heartbeat, that deep and oppressive THUMP, resonated in his head, making him feel small, insignificant, irrelevant before the immensity of what he had just witnessed.
Roland, however, experienced something different. Fear also gripped him, a fear that chilled his blood and paralyzed his muscles. But, above all, he felt an overwhelming urgency, a visceral need to act. Eldoria, he thought, his heart beating like a crazed drum. I have to get to Eldoria. I have to warn them. This… this is not natural. It's… something else. The memory of the heartbeat, that THUMP that had shaken the very foundations of the dungeon, resonated in his mind, burning itself into his memory. I have to warn the king. I have to warn everyone.
He looked at his companions, at Liam, trembling like a leaf, and at Markus, his gaze lost in the void. He saw the same fear reflected in their eyes, a fear he shared. But Roland knew he couldn't stay there, paralyzed by terror. The fate of Eldoria, perhaps even that of the world, might depend on it.
With renewed determination, despite the pain in his arm and the fear that gripped his heart, Roland stood up. "We have to go," he said, his voice firm, although trembling slightly. "We have to warn Eldoria."
But, as he turned to look at Sebastian and the girl, he realized that something even more terrible had happened. Sebastian lay on the floor, his gaze fixed on the woman, his face pale as wax. And the girl… the girl remained huddled in the corner, her eyes closed and her face expressionless, as if nothing had happened. But she was no longer trembling. She was completely still, like a stone statue, or like a porcelain doll forgotten in a dark corner. Only, unlike a doll, she was breathing. A slow, deep, regular breath that seemed not to belong to a living creature, but to a machine.