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The echo of water droplets danced through the cavern—slow, rhythmic, steady. It was the only sound in this place. The silence wasn't peaceful. It was heavy, oppressive, as if the very walls pressed against the soul.
A dented rock jutted from the path as we move downward, the ground slick with a shallow layer of water that shimmered faintly under the eerie glow of the cave walls.
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Droplets fell again, their echoes skipping across stone, left to right, like whispers in the dark.
Creak...
Groan...
Beneath the surface, something shifted. The sound of movement broke the stillness.
A splash.
Aria surfaced from the water with a sharp breath, coughing as the cold liquid splashed across his face. He blinked rapidly, disoriented. He was alive—but barely.
His body ached from the fall, but the water had softened the impact. Pushing up on one elbow, he wobbled onto his feet, wet hair plastered to his face and neck, clothes clinging like a second skin. His cloak floated beside him, slowly sinking along with his sword.
"Damn it," he muttered, grabbing them both. With a practiced flick, he swung the sword to shake off the excess water, then slid it into the sheath at his waist. The cloak was less forgiving—he wrung it out roughly, twisted it again, and shoved it into his satchel.
Thank the gods the satchel had a sealing rune. At least something had stayed dry.
Tsk.
He scanned his surroundings with narrowed eyes. The cave glowed faintly—a gentle blue, pulsing softly like a heartbeat. Yet, there were no visible crystals, no light sources. Just stone that shimmered like it had swallowed starlight.
"How are you glowing?" Aria whispered, stepping carefully behind a nearby rock.
Movement.
A shadow passed in front of him.
He leaned forward slightly and peered from behind the stone.
A creature.
Massive, at least the size of an ogre, but wrong. It had the horns of a bull, curved backward and thick. Its tail was long and serrated, like a blade forged from bone. And its presence… was not mindless.
The beast turned suddenly.
Slice!
With terrifying ease, it flicked its tail and split a large boulder clean in two.
Aria's breath caught. He ducked back instantly.
Not good.
The monster hadn't seen him—yet.
A second creature approached the clearing. Smaller. A rabbit-like thing with green fur and glowing red eyes. It hopped nervously, sniffing the air for food.
A flash of sharp claws. It paused to groom its fur.
Smash!
Aria flinched.
The rabbit had been flattened instantly. Green blood splattered across the floor like paint on canvas.
The monster peeled the crushed body from the ground and, without hesitation, swallowed it whole.
Disgust curled in Aria's stomach. He gripped his sword, inching backward. Maybe he could take it out and climb back up to the surface...
He looked up.
The hole he'd fallen through was gone—sealed, or hidden beyond visibility.
"Great. Option one: useless," he muttered.
His only path was forward—deeper into the cave. Toward the unknown.
"Perfect," he grumbled. "Just my luck."
A loud bang turned his head. The creature was trying to lift one of the boulders it had cleaved in two. It strained, muscles rippling beneath thick hide. The stone wobbled before slipping from its grip and crashing down.
The Raie—Aria decided to call it that, since 'monster' was too vague—let out a frustrated snarl and slammed its tail on the ground. A shockwave burst outward. Aria barely managed to shield himself.
Why was he still here? Watching?
He should've run by now, found an exit. But his eyes remained fixed on the Raie.
It wasn't just brute force. It was... focused.
Most monsters didn't act like this. They killed and moved on. But this one licked the blood clean. Then it returned to the boulder and tried again to lift it.
"Why?" Aria whispered.
Another failure. The boulder fell again.
The Raie growled.
Then, it left.
Aria leaned forward.
It returned—with another. This one slightly smaller, the horns slimmer, curved downward—possibly female?
Together, the two Raie monsters positioned themselves on either side of the boulder. Grunting, they lifted in unison. It trembled in the air, and then—
Success.
The first monster let out a guttural roar, not of anger but of joy. Or gratitude.
Aria froze.
"...They're intelligent?"
It was a startling thought.
Then—
'Maybe.'
A voice. A whisper in his mind. Young. Playful.
Aria snapped to attention. "What?! Who's there?"
He spun around.
Nothing. Just water. Stone. Darkness.
'You can't find me.'
'So stop looking.'
The voice was quiet but clear, echoing inside his head.
He tightened his grip on the sword.
Bang!
The boulder slammed into the ground before him.
He turned to see the Raie monster standing nearby. It didn't attack. Instead, it moved aside, waiting.
Aria stared.
The boulder wasn't a threat—it was a bridge.
He looked down. Beneath the water was a deep trench. A fall would've meant death.
But now, with the boulder, a path had been made.
It... saved him?
'Heehee. You're funny.'
The voice again. It sounded like a child now.
"Hey, kid," Aria said aloud, heart pounding. "You're the one who asked for help… before I fell, right?"
Clap clap clap.
'Yay! Daddy is smart!'
Aria blinked. "...What?"
'Are you going to abandon me too?'
The voice suddenly turned quiet. Sad.
Abandon?
Aria's chest tightened. "I don't know what you're talking about."
'Figures...'
Before he could respond, the two Raie monsters turned and began to walk deeper into the cave.
"Wait, where are they going?"
'Follow.'
The voice was back—cheerful once more.
Aria frowned. "Why should I trust you?"
'Because I'm leading you to me.'
The answer was simple. Innocent.
Aria stared at the boulder path, then at the monsters.
He sighed. "Can't today just be normal?"
With a grunt, he stepped onto the boulder. As he landed, the stone beneath his feet glowed faintly. Aria barely noticed. He kept his eyes forward.
The Raie monsters didn't look back. They simply walked.
And Aria followed.
The walls pulsed with that same blue light as the cave deepened. The air grew colder, the silence heavier.
But Aria kept moving, sword at his side, cloak still damp, boots echoing on stone.
He was following monsters.
Chasing a child's voice.
In search of something—someone—that called him father.
The cave sighed.
The voice giggled again.
'You're getting closer.'
And Aria walked on.