The battle in the ruins was a blur of flashing steel, roaring flames, and shrieking wraiths. Kaelen's Crimson Power surged with every strike, his energy lashing out like a living force of destruction. But the wraiths were relentless, their hollow eyes filled with malice as they clawed at him and his companions.
Seraphina's magic burned bright, her blue flames forcing back the horde, while Dorian moved like a shadow, his silver-coated daggers slicing through the spectral forms. But for every wraith they felled, more emerged from the darkness, drawn by the cursed energy in the Hollow.
"We can't hold them off forever!" Dorian shouted, knocking back a wraith with a well-placed strike. "Where the hell is this scholar?"
Kaelen gritted his teeth. The journal's directions had led them here, deep into the Hollow's ruins, but if Varian Locke was still alive, he was well hidden.
Then he felt it.
A pulse.
Not from his Crimson Power, but from somewhere beneath them.
"Cover me," Kaelen ordered, his eyes flashing.
Ignoring the wraiths closing in, he slammed his hand onto the ground. Crimson energy pulsed outward, seeping into the ruins. The stones trembled. Dust and debris fell from the decayed structures. And then, with a deep, echoing groan, the earth split open, revealing a staircase descending into the abyss.
A hidden chamber.
"Move!" Kaelen barked.
Dorian and Seraphina didn't hesitate. With a final burst of flame and steel, they leapt down into the passage. Kaelen followed, sealing the entrance behind them with a wave of his hand. The wraiths howled in fury as darkness swallowed them.
The chamber below was dimly lit by flickering arcane symbols, etched into the walls with ancient magic. A musty scent of parchment and decay filled the air. And in the center of the room, hunched over a massive desk covered in scrolls and tomes, was a man.
Varian Locke.
The scholar was gaunt, his once-fine robes tattered and stained. His sunken eyes darted toward them, wide with terror.
"You… you're not them," he whispered, his voice cracked from disuse.
Kaelen stepped forward. "No. But we need answers."
Varian shuddered. "You don't understand… I've seen the truth. The Crimson Power… it's not a gift." His voice dropped to a trembling whisper. "It's a warning."
Kaelen's pulse quickened. "Tell me everything."
The scholar took a deep breath. And then, in a voice filled with dread, he began.
To Be Continued…