The passage stretched on, the walls narrowing until Jonas had to turn sideways to squeeze through. His breath came in short gasps. The air here was thicker, older.
Behind him, Daric grunted. "We're going deeper, aren't we?"
Jonas didn't answer. They had no choice.
Veyne was still unsteady, though she waved off his concern when he glanced back. Whatever had happened when she touched the book had changed her. She wasn't talking about it. Not yet.
The ground sloped downward. The deeper they went, the stronger the sensation of being watched.
And then the smell hit them.
Jonas gagged. It was worse than rot. Wet decay. Something long dead, but never allowed to rest.
Veyne whispered, "Hear that?"
At first, Jonas only heard their footsteps, the quiet scrape of boots on stone. But then—
A wet, gurgling breath.
They stopped. Daric shifted uneasily, gripping his sword. "That's not one of those fast ones, is it?"
Jonas wasn't sure. The sound was different. It came from deeper in the tunnel, from something large.
And then it moved.
A shape slithered from the darkness, dragging itself forward. Jonas lifted his torch—and immediately wished he hadn't.
It was human, once.
Or many humans. Fused together, flesh twisted, bones rearranged into something unnatural. Its torso stretched in different directions, multiple ribcages interwoven. Faces—**dozens of them—**pressed through its skin, their mouths opening and closing in silent, anguished screams.
Daric swore violently. "What the hell is that?!"
The thing lurched forward.
Jonas shoved Veyne back just as a mass of limbs struck the ground where she had stood. The impact cracked the stone.
"It's fast!" Veyne hissed, drawing her daggers.
Jonas didn't hesitate. He swung his blade at what should have been its neck—
The sword barely bit into the flesh before it was ripped from his hands.
A hand—a dozen hands—reached for him.
Daric tackled him aside, and the thing's limbs smashed into the wall instead. The entire tunnel shook.
"RUN!" Jonas bellowed.
They turned and sprinted, the monstrous thing crawling after them, faster than anything that size should be.
The tunnel opened into a vast cavern, and Jonas skidded to a stop just before the edge of a deep, black pit.
Veyne spun, panting. "Dead end?"
Jonas turned. The creature was almost upon them.
Daric looked to the pit, then back at Jonas. "We jump."
Jonas hesitated. "We don't know how deep—"
"Better than dying here!"
No time to argue. The creature lunged.
Jonas grabbed Veyne's arm and leaped. Daric followed a second later.
The world spun. Cold air rushed past them.
Then—impact.
Jonas hit something—not rock. Water.
The shock stole his breath. He kicked hard, breaking the surface just in time to hear the shriek of the creature above them.
Then silence.
Veyne surfaced beside him, coughing. "Still alive?"
Jonas nodded. Daric's voice came from the darkness. "Barely."
Jonas treaded water, peering around. The cavern was massive. Strange, bioluminescent fungi clung to the walls, casting eerie green light across the water. The ceiling was far above, lost in shadow.
A shore wasn't far. They swam to it, collapsing onto wet stone.
For a moment, they just breathed.
Then Daric sat up, rubbing his face. "Where the hell are we now?"
Jonas scanned the cavern. Something about this place felt wrong. Not just because it was deep beneath the Hollow.
Veyne looked at him. "What is it?"
Jonas hesitated. Then, finally, he said it out loud.
"I think we're beneath the city."
Daric frowned. "We knew that."
Jonas shook his head. "No. I mean… beneath the ruins. Deeper than anyone's gone before."
Veyne's eyes darkened. "And why does that matter?"
Jonas turned toward the far wall, where something massive was carved into the stone. A door—ancient, untouched by time. Symbols writhed across its surface, shifting as he looked at them.
He exhaled sharply.
"Because someone built this place before the city above even existed."
Silence stretched between them.
Then Daric stood, shaking water from his arms. "We should leave."
Veyne didn't move. "What if we're meant to find this?"
Jonas looked at her. The way she said it—not if we should, but if we're meant to.
Something had changed in her since the book.
He looked back at the ancient door. The symbols pulsed.
The Hollow wasn't just ruins.
It was a prison.
And something had been left here long ago.
Waiting.