AJ felt the air currents flowing from the deeper passage. "The scent keeps getting stronger, and there's something else. Energy of some kind, an unpleasant feeling one at that."
The final passage was wider than the other, the walls here were smoother, almost polished, while the floor was also worn from heavy traffic.
"Whatever's down there," Victor said, "it's important to them."
"Important enough to keep wolves at each stage," Ethan agreed. "Let's see what they're protecting."
They descended the final passage, the mysterious energy AJ had detected grew stronger with each step. The wolf scent was now overwhelming, suggesting a concentration of creatures ahead that dwarfed what they'd already encountered.
The passage ended at an opening that revealed a massive circular chamber, easily 30 metres across and carved from solid rock. The ceiling arched high overhead, disappearing into shadows that their eyes couldn't penetrate.
But it wasn't the chamber's size that stopped them short.
A large number of wolves lay scattered across the chamber floor, their scaled hides glinting in a faint light that came from one side of the chamber. Some slept in groups, others moved restlessly through the space.
At the far end of the chamber, suspended in mid-air, was a crystalline sphere roughly the size of a basketball. The artifact released a small amount of light as it pulsed with dark energy, sending small waves of power through the chamber that made the air itself feel thick and oppressive.
Wolf-like shadows moved within the crystal's depths, constantly forming and dissolving continuously. The overwhelming scent that had drawn them here emanated from the sphere itself, as if every wolf they'd encountered had originated from this single source.
"Bloody hell," Ethan breathed, taking in the scope of what they faced.
"That's definitely not natural," Victor said, stating the obvious as his mind struggled to understand what he was looking at.
The energy that the artifact radiated made their senses recoil. This clearly wasn't just a gathering place or den—it was something far more significant and dangerous.
The nearest wolves began to stir, recognizing the intruders as threats. Low growls echoed through the chamber as more creatures were roused from their rest, amber eyes focusing on the three humans who had invaded their sanctuary.
They moved to protect the crystal artifact, it was as if it represented something vital to their existence.
AJ's form rippled with tension as he prepared himself. "There's more than 20 of them."
"And that thing," Ethan said, as he looked at the floating crystal, "whatever it is, they're protecting it."
Victor wielded his dagger, studying the chamber's layout. "This feels more like a stronghold than a den."
The wolves' snarls grew louder as more of the pack awakened to the threat. The chamber filled with the sound of claws scraping against stone.
"AJ, can you block the passage?" Victor asked urgently.
"I can," AJ replied, his form already beginning to flow. "But I can't maintain a barrier that big and fight effectively at the same time."
"Block it," Ethan spoke. "We can handle what's already here, but we can't afford reinforcements arriving mid-battle."
AJ's mass spread across the opening and hardened becoming an impenetrable barrier to the wolves. The effort clearly strained him, he wouldn't be able to take on human form and he would have to remain attached to the barrier, limiting his movement.
"That's the best I can do," he said as his small form reappeared.
The wolves had used this time to organise themselves into a coordinated attack formation. The largest ones took point positions while smaller, faster wolves moved to flank the intruders.
"Here they come," Victor warned as the first wave of wolves charged.
The battle erupted with sudden violence as 6 wolves launched themselves forward simultaneously. Ethan met their charge head-on, his axe and shield working in constant motion to block attacks while seeking opportunities to counter.
Victor's approach was more mobile, using his speed to stay ahead of the wolves' attempts to corner him while his dagger found vital points.
AJ was assaulted by multiple opponents at once, he focused on maintaining the barrier as his form flowed between attacks and hardened appendages struck out. His ability to reshape himself made him nearly impossible for the wolves to pin down or overwhelm.
The initial assault left 4 wolves dead and the remainder more cautious about direct attacks. But even as they fought, the total number of wolves didn't seem to change.
"They just keep coming," Ethan called out, blocking a strike that would have taken his head off.
"The crystal," Victor replied, dodging another attack. "It has to be producing them somehow."
AJ was able to confirm his suspicion. Each time a wolf fell, energy flickered around the floating artifact. The crystal's pulsing rhythm had increased, and new shadows were forming within its depths.
"It's spawning replacements," AJ announced between strikes. "We need to destroy that thing."
"Easier said than done," Ethan replied, as he watched the 2 dozen wolves still standing between them and their target.
Victor eliminated 2 more wolves with quick strikes. "We're going to be overwhelmed if this keeps up."
They were already pushing themselves to keep up with the onslaught, their mana reserves wouldn't last forever.
"New plan," Ethan decided, cutting down another wolf. "I go for the crystal. You two keep them off me."
"You reckon we can reach it?" AJ asked.
"We won't know until we try," Ethan grinned. "Just give me a clear path."
AJ gave up maintaining the barrier, no outside reinforcements had arrived and he would need his full strength for this new plan. He took on his human form as an axe appeared in his hand, he had practiced making this axe so many times he could recreate it at a moments notice.
Victor and AJ coordinated their efforts, drawing the wolves towards the chamber's centre while Ethan charged towards the crystal.
He ran across the open ground, the wolves that reacted in time to intercept were brushed aside thanks to his shield. Victor and AJ were already repositioning themselves to be in between the wolves and Ethan.
Ethan reached the floating crystal and raised his axe.
"Focus on the crystal!" AJ called out. "We'll handle them!"
His strike connected, sending shockwaves of energy through the chamber. The crystal cracked slightly, its dark energy flaring brighter in response to the damage.
"Tougher than it looks," Ethan muttered.
The wolves' reaction was immediate and intense. Their snarls became howls of rage as they threw themselves at Victor and AJ with increased ferocity, desperate to reach the human threatening their source.
2 wolves managed to slip through the defensive line, forcing Ethan to abandon his second attempt. Despite his best efforts to defend himself the wolves claws caught his shoulder before he could eliminate the threats.
Victor grunted, his dagger finding one wolf's throat as another's claws opened a small gash along his ribs. "There are too many of them."
Ethan lined up his next strike, concentrating through the pain and distraction. His axe impacted the crystal, hard, opening a larger crack in the artifact's surface.
The crystal's response was swift—energy surged through its structure, and new wolf-like shadows began forming at an accelerated rate.
"It's doing something weird," Ethan observed nervously.
4 wolves materialized around the crystal itself, but these weren't like the others—they were much larger, roughly the size of a bear, their scales were thicker and darker, their movements powered by huge muscles and wisps of mana.
"These ones are much stronger!" Victor warned, his dagger barely penetrating the enhanced scales.
One of the enhanced wolves charged directly at Ethan while he was lining up for his third strike. He was forced to turn and fight, his axe clashing against claws that created sparks. The creature's weight drove him backwards, away from the crystal.
AJ moved to intercept, his hardened form taking the brunt of a massive wolf's attack. Its claws leaving deep gouges across his chest, the enhanced creature's strength proving formidable even against his defences.
"I need more time!" Ethan called out, bleeding from multiple wounds as he worked his way back towards the crystal.
"We don't have much of that right now!" Victor replied, accepting a painful bite to his left arm in exchange for a killing thrust to a wolf's heart.
Ethan's third attempt was his most desperate yet. Exhaustion was already starting to set in, making it difficult to maintain concentration. He forced himself to focus as he lined up his strike and brought the axe downwards with everything he had left.
The crystal shattered like glass, its dark energy exploding outward in a shockwave that briefly increased the ambient mana density before dispersing as it moved up towards the surface.
It wasn't over however as 15 wolves remained—10 of the original pack and 5 of the enhanced creatures that had emerged during the battle.
However, these surviving wolves were changed. The crystal's destruction had caused something to change. Their movements became erratic, their intelligence was replaced by blind rage and desperate hunger.
"Watch out it's not over!" Victor shouted.
The remaining wolves attacked without coordination or restraint. The enhanced creatures led the charge, their massive forms bulldozing through the chamber while the smaller wolves followed.
They no longer worked together, no longer planned their attacks, but their desperate fury made them dangerous in entirely different ways.
Ethan met the first enhanced wolf head-on, his shield blocking its claws. The creature's weight had driven him backwards, but he managed to open its throat with a swift counter-strike. Blood sprayed across his chest as the massive wolf slowly collapsed.
Victor found himself surrounded by 3 of the normal wolves, their attacks coming in thick and fast. His superior speed let him stay ahead of their snapping jaws, but claws raked across his back as he eliminated the one in front of him.
AJ engaged 2 enhanced wolves simultaneously, his form flowing between their attacks while hacking at them with his axe. One creature's claws found his shoulder, tearing through his slimy flesh, while the second's jaws clamped down on his arm.
Each wolf they killed came at the cost of an injury, but slowly their numbers dwindled. Ethan's axe work was becoming sloppy due to his accumulating wounds—a gash across his thigh, claw marks on his left arm, bite marks on his shoulder.
Victor's precision remained deadly even as exhaustion set in. His dagger continuing to find his enemies vitals, though he too paid a price for each kill. Blood ran down his arms from multiple lacerations, and his breathing was becoming laboured.
AJ's advantage lay in his ability to adapt his form to each threat, but even he couldn't avoid all damage. His chest bore deep gouges from the enhanced wolves' claws, and one side of his torso showed tooth marks where powerful jaws had nearly severed a portion of his body.
"How many left?" Ethan called out, blocking a desperate lunge from one of the smaller wolves.
"4!" AJ replied, his form stretching to catch a wolf mid-leap. "One enhanced, 3 normal!"
The remaining wolves seemed to sense their approaching doom, their attacks becoming even more frenzied. The enhanced wolf charged at Victor with reckless abandon, accepting his dagger thrust to its chest in exchange for claws that slashed across his face, leaving bloody furrows from temple to jaw.
Ethan's axe cleaved through another wolf's skull. He stumbled, he wouldn't be able to hold on for much longer.
AJ eliminated the last enhanced wolf by hardening his entire body into spikes as the creature tried to tackle him. The wolf impaled itself on his defences, but its weight drove him to the ground where he lay pinned beneath its corpse.
The final 2 wolves attacked blindly in a last ditch effort to save their own lives. Victor's dagger found one's heart, while Ethan's axe split the last wolf's skull with a strike that sent him to his knees from the effort.
Silence fell over the chamber, broken only by the sound of their ragged breathing and the occasional drip of blood hitting stone.