The forest shivered with the excitement of life as Yumi and Ren emerged into its world from the First Hollow. Leaves stirred in waves, caressed by a timid wind. Shadows shifted from the state of death, now alive with curiosity.
The glyphs that burnt brightly along the walls of the tunnel faded only along the root. Pulsating dimly, the glyphs guided them deeper into the woods.
"The Memory's Vein," Yumi said. "Not only is it a path. An emotional thread lives in it."
Ren knelt and touched one of the glowing roots. The luminous root vibrated under his palm. "It seems to be leading somewhere. But what is there on the other side?"
Hours passed as they walked along the glowing trail. Half-sunken villages dotted this abandoned pathway, buildings long overgrown with moss and covered in shadows.
Occasionally, glimmering lights flickered, ghosts of the people reliving moments of their joy or sorrow.
One such echo carried a child chasing a kite, the laughter spilling all across the clearing: Now it was gone.
"Those are memories," Yumi murmured. "Still out there... but severed."
With the fall of the night, the trail, awash with the glow of dying light, led to a stone archway buried deep under a flowering vine. At the center was a circular sigil—the symbol of an open eye.
[QUEST OBJECTIVE: Unlock the Sigil Gate]
Yumi lay her palm upon the eye. Emotion flooded her chest: fear, love, shame, pride—all at once.
Ren seized her hand. "Share it. Don't carry it alone."
She inclined her head. Together with Ren, she poured their myriad thoughts, sadness, and elation into the sigil.
The gate opened.
It was almost as if the forest itself had exhaled low, almost inaudible; a breath of air. The air beyond the gate shimmered like heat upon stone. The stairway went down, spiraling till southward into the limbs of the earth.
Ren glanced at Yumi, uncertain but determined. "Are you ready for what's next?"
Yumi was the first to step down. "Hell, no! But we're going!"
That path was altogether unknown to them. But their hearts burned with life more so than fear.
And in the depth, something was waiting.
Not a warning.
A welcome.