----Chapter 40----
"You're one of them, aren't you!?" Faetalis shouted, her voice chasing through the trees as she darted after Tharen.
He froze for half a heartbeat, shoulders tensing, but did not answer. Then, like smoke, he slipped deeper into the forest, vanishing between tangled branches.
Leaves whipped against his face as he ran. His eyes flicked from trunk to trunk, tracing broken trails, yet the familiar paths betrayed him.
The cave, where Anon was waiting, felt farther with every step.
He halted, chest heaving, struggling to steady his thoughts. Which way was it? North ridge? Or past the riverbend?
Then—
"Gotcha!"
A rough hand hooked his hood, yanking him backward. Tharen's feet left the ground as he dangled like a child caught stealing fruit.
"And what in the abyss are you doing here, huh?"
The voice rumbled with mocking laughter. Gorak. One of the dreaded Trinity of the Abyss.
Tharen kicked helplessly, his breath ragged. "P-put me down! I was only—"
"Only what?" Gorak snarled, lifting him higher.
"Did Anon tell you to wander around? Or… don't tell me…" His grin split wider.
"You're trying to run."
"No!" Tharen's words cracked, his throat tight with fear.
"I just went to drink at the river. That's all!"
Gorak lowered his head and inhaled deeply. The beastlike bridge of his nose twitched. His crimson eyes gleamed with certainty.
"You can fool me with words, boy… but not with scent. You reek of blood. Rivers don't."
Tharen's pulse hammered. "N-no! I swear, I—"
Before he could finish, a shadow stirred from the brush.
"That's enough, Gorak. This is not the time to fool around."
Anon stepped out from the shadows as if he had been there all along, his calm, measured presence radiating authority.
The forest itself seemed to part for him, as though he had known precisely where Tharen would be.
His eyes, cold and unreadable, fixed directly on the boy.
"Who says I'm fooling around?" Gorak growled, shaking Tharen like a rag.
"If I want to, I can command my insects to feast on this weakling." With a flick, he hurled Tharen onto the mossy ground.
"Ouch!!" Tharen cried as his back struck the earth. The thick carpet of moss spared him broken bones, but humiliation stung worse than pain.
"Tharen. Stand up."
Anon's tone was calm, but each word carried iron.
"It is almost time for you to do your part."
Tharen pushed himself upright on shaking arms, his gaze flicking toward Anon's emotionless face.
"M-my part? Wasn't guiding you both here my job?"
"Tschh…" Gorak muttered, brushing past him.
"You are one lucky bastard. Be proud, at least you will become a stepping stone to Lord Daath's revival."
Then, Tharen brushed off the leaves and grass caught in his clothes as he stood up.
"So," Gorak rumbled.
"What's the plan, Anon?"
"We proceed as we planned," Anon replied coldly.
"We grab the key and open Lord Daath's altar."
"So the one inside the cave managed to possess the God of Void's power…" Gorak confirmed.
"Indeed. Everything is going according to plan. They are heading toward the village now, along with the Sea Lord Astares."
Gorak's lips peeled back in a snarl.
"Damn that brat… nearly took my shoulder last time. I will make sure she pays. And Brooke…"
His jaw tightened until his teeth ground audibly.
Tharen's chest knotted tighter. Keys… altars… Gods? Sea Lord? What in the abyss are they planning?
"Gorak. Grab the boy. We must make haste," Anon ordered.
"Tch. I hate this job," Gorak spat. "Babysitting weaklings like this…"
He snapped his fingers. A faint buzz stirred the air, then searing pain flared at Tharen's nape. His eyes widened, body jerking.
The fire spread through his veins, leaving his limbs heavy and unresponsive.
"Aaah—!" His cry strangled into silence as his body crumpled, twitching.
Gorak crouched beside him, pressing a clawed hand against his chest.
"Still breathing. Good. I would not want you dying too soon."
Tharen fought to hold on. His tongue felt like lead, but words scraped past his lips.
"Wh… what… did you… do… to me…?"
Gorak lifted a finger. Perched there was a tiny creature, gleaming crimson like a droplet of living blood.
Its wings shimmered translucent, its head crowned with a long, needle-like horn.
"Hornstinger bee," Gorak explained with pride.
"Looks like a wasp, doesn't it? But nastier. Doesn't just sting with its tail, see this horn?" He tapped the sharp crimson needle.
"Drives it straight into flesh. Its color, same as blood, makes it vanish on skin. Smaller than any bee you have seen, but twice as cruel."
The insect's wings twitched, buzzing faintly.
"Its venom is not meant to kill," Gorak went on, his grin feral. "No… it paralyzes. Weakens.
Makes you drowsy until your body gives up. That is why I like it. You will stay alive, boy. Alive and helpless."
Tharen's vision blurred. His mouth opened, but only air escaped.
"Well, I guess you do not need to know all of that," Gorak whispered, his grin close enough to feel.
"By the time you wake up, it will already be too late."
"Enough," Anon barked. "Carry him. We move."
With a grunt, Gorak hefted the limp boy over his shoulder like a sack. His laughter rumbled low as the two vanished into the trees.
✦ ✦ ✦
Elsewhere, in the deep forest, massive trees toppled one after another as the battle raged.
Roc lunged with savage speed, flames streaking from his tail as he clashed with the massive basilisk Nortron had summoned.
His claws ripped through scale and stone alike, his flaming forehead leaving streaks of fire as he struck again and again.
Meanwhile, Enix struggled to keep up against the flying darkfire griffin. His blade could not reach its wings and its speed was overwhelming.
A blazing tail lashed from the sky and Enix barely caught it on his sword. The impact drove him into the earth and sent him skidding across the dirt.
Blood filled his mouth as he spat out a cracked molar.
"Damn it!! How can I even beat this monster if I cannot hit it!"
Nortron's voice slithered across the clearing.
"My, my. Looks like you are having a hard time keeping up with my pets." He shook his head in mock disappointment.
"This is not exactly what I expected from the keeper of the legendary sword Incenerator."
Enix's ears rang at the name. His chest tightened as memories of his master's gift surged back.
"Oy!! What do you know about Incenerator?" Enix shouted, his voice breaking with rage.
"Oops," Nortron replied, smirking.
"Looks like I said something I should not have."
His words were like poison themselves, meant to unravel Enix's focus.
Enix's grip faltered, his chest burning with fury. He did not see the basilisk shifting toward him until it was too late.
Its mouth opened wide, miasma gathering into a massive ball of corruptive fluid.
Enix tilted his head up. His eyes widened to the size of moons.
Time seemed to freeze.
Roc leapt in front of him, body colliding with the poisonous sphere. The acid burned through fur and flesh, smoke rising as his howl cut through the forest.
"No…" Enix whispered, disbelief flooding his voice.
Roc collapsed, flames dimming as the poison ate at his skin. His growls trembled with pain.
Nortron's laughter filled the air. "Hahaha! Look how fragile you are. One little word and you lost your cool.
And that foolish dreadfang sacrifices itself to save you!! How pathetic. How utterly foolish."
Enix fell to his knees, his sword slipping from his grasp. Incenerator struck the ground beside him, its glow fading as his hands trembled uselessly.
Roc's pained howl carried into the night.
✦ ✦ ✦
Meanwhile, Astares faltered mid-stride, her fin-shaped ears twitching sharply. Blue scales along her neck shimmered faintly as she stopped, eyes widening in shock.
"Roc…" Her voice shook. "He might be in danger."
Rubal glanced at her, frowning. "Roc? Who's Roc?"
Brooke's brow furrowed. "Wait, wasn't he with Enix?"
Astares clenched her fists, her half-dragon blood stirring as if answering Roc's pain.
She whispered to herself, a vow threading her breath.
"Hold on, little one… I am coming."
The three pressed on, the forest closing behind them.
✦ ✦ ✦
And elsewhere, Tharen lay unconscious in Gorak's grip, carried deeper into the woods by Anon's cold command.
Each path running toward the same storm.
Will their fates intertwine like this, or will the abyss claim them first?