The sound grew louder.
Steel grinding stone. Chains dragging. A slow, deliberate thud with every step.
Kael pressed his back to the wall, eyes fixed on the dark corridor.
Beside him, Lyra stirred. Still pale, still bleeding—but awake now. Her silver eyes flicked to his sword, then to the dark.
"That sound…" she whispered. "It's coming."
"You don't say," Kael muttered almost jokingly.
She pulled herself up with a wince, blood seeping through the bandage Kael had wrapped around her ribs. "We need to leave. Now."
"I'd love that," Kael said, drawing his blade. "But whatever's coming, it's already here."
[Warning: Dungeon Elite – Tomb Warden Detected]
A crimson alert blinked faintly over the doorframe.
And then the shadows shifted.
Out of the dark came a figure—ten feet tall, its body forged of rusted armor and bone. In place of a face was a sealed iron mask, glowing with red script. Chains wrapped around its arms, dragging massive twin blades that screeched as they carved the marble.
The Tomb Warden.
Kael swallowed hard. "I'm guessing we don't talk our way out of this?"
Lyra pulled out one of her short swords. "Not unless you speak 'ancient death machine.'"
The Warden stopped—its mask tilted toward them—and charged.
Kael shoved Lyra out of the way just as the twin blades slammed into the wall where she'd been. Stone exploded. Dust filled the air.
Kael rolled to the side and slashed upward. Sparks flew as his blade bounced off the Warden's metal armor.
"Great," he hissed. "It's a walking fortress."
Lyra was already moving—darting behind the Warden, blade flashing. She sliced at the back of its knee, and this time, the armor gave slightly. The beast staggered, then swung its chains.
Kael ducked as a chain tore past his head and slammed into a pillar, snapping it like chalk.
"Eyes!" Lyra shouted. "Go for the runes on the mask!"
Kael didn't question her. He sprinted forward, leapt, and drove his blade toward the glowing red symbols. The Warden roared—a deafening, metallic scream—and grabbed him mid-air.
Kael gasped as the Warden's grip tightened around his chest. Ribs cracked.
Lyra leapt off a broken column and landed on the Warden's back, plunging her blade into a seam in its neck. The creature shrieked again, flailing—dropping Kael in the process.
Kael hit the ground hard, vision swimming. But the Mark on his arm pulsed—warmth spreading through his veins—and he rose.
The Warden turned on Lyra now, chains whirling.
Kael dashed behind it, flipped his blade, and slammed it through the back of the mask.
The rune flared—then shattered.
The Warden went still.
Then collapsed with a thunderous crash, sending a wave of dust and debris in all directions.
Silence.
Kael leaned on his sword, breathing hard. "That… was new."
Lyra dropped beside him, blood dripping from her arm. "We make a good team."
Kael looked at her.
She didn't smile. But her eyes—those silver eyes—held something softer now. Trust, maybe. Or at least, less suspicion.
He offered a hand. She took it.
And for the first time, Kael didn't feel alone in the tomb.
[Dungeon Clear: Mini-Boss Defeated]
+1 Skill Point Gained
Kael blinked. "Did you get that notification?"
Lyra frowned. "What notification?"
Kael hesitated. "Never mind."
They moved forward in silence, deeper into the tomb. Kael's mind swirled with questions.
What was this place?
Why did the Mark respond to him alone?
.....
.....
The dust hadn't even settled from the Warden's fall when a loud click echoed across the chamber.
Kael and Lyra froze.
The wall behind the Warden's throne rumbled, then slid open, revealing a staircase spiraling downward into flickering blue light.
Kael stared. "Did we just… unlock something?"
Lyra wiped blood from her lip. "Tombs don't usually come with secret basements."
Kael peered into the dark. "Guess we're not 'usual' either."
They descended slowly, torches lining the stone walls like cold, ghostly eyes. The air grew colder.
The room at the bottom was a circular vault. In its center stood a floating pedestal of stone, surrounded by strange glyphs glowing softly. Upon the pedestal rested a black crystal etched with runes that seemed to shift when Kael blinked.
[Item Detected: Core Fragment – Type: Unknown]
"Is that what this whole trial was guarding?" Kael murmured.
Lyra stepped closer but didn't touch it. "I've seen relics before. This one… it's dangerous. I can feel it."
Kael reached out. The Mark on his arm burned suddenly—reacting to the crystal like it recognized it.
The moment his fingers brushed the surface, images flashed across his mind—a great tree burning, a sky filled with broken moons, a figure in armor made of stars.
He staggered back.
Lyra caught him, her grip firm despite her injuries. "Kael?"
He shook his head. "I saw something. I don't know what it means yet."
She studied him in silence, then finally asked, "That Mark on your arm… it's not normal, is it?"
He hesitated. No one had ever asked him that directly. Not even his own parents.
"I don't know what it is," he said truthfully. "It appeared when I turned twelve. Since then, I've seen things. Felt things. This tomb… it's reacting to it."
Lyra looked at the crystal, then back at him. "Then you're not just a wanderer. You're connected to all this."
Kael lowered his gaze. "And you? You're not just a fighter. are you?"
She went still.
Then, in a voice quieter than before, she said, "I was raised in the Skyreach Temple. A weapon, they called me. Trained to kill from the age of six. But I escaped."
"Why?"
She looked up at him, her silver eyes steady. "Because I want to choose who I fight for."
Kael met her gaze—and in that moment, something shifted between them. Not romance. Not yet.
But understanding.
As they turned to leave, the vault trembled. The pedestal sank, sealing the crystal within the floor. Glyphs faded. The secret chamber had given them what it was meant to.
Kael glanced at Lyra.
She nodded. "Let's keep moving. Whatever this place is… we're not done."
And as they ascended, the Mark on Kael's arm flared—just once—as if the tomb itself was awakening.