The air in the dungeon grew colder.
Kael felt it immediately, the faint shift in temperature that made his breath mist against the cavern's gloom. He clenched his clawed fingers unconsciously, narrowing his eyes. The silence that followed their skirmish with the creatures wasn't natural—it was too heavy, like the dungeon itself was holding its breath.
Moro sniffed the air, low growls rumbling in its throat. Its slime-wolf body quivered uneasily, claws clicking faintly against the stone floor. Lyra stood, leaning on her staff, her gray eyes sweeping the tunnel ahead.
"This is wrong," she whispered. "The dungeon doesn't usually… stop like this. It's like it's waiting."
Kael tilted his head, ears twitching faintly. A sound reached him—not footsteps, not a roar, but something worse.
Clink… clink… clink…
Chains.
The sound echoed down the tunnel, slow and deliberate, dragging metal scraping against stone. Kael's blood pulsed faster. His instincts screamed danger, but at the same time, there was an odd familiarity in that rhythm, as if some part of him recognized it.
Lyra gripped her staff tighter. "Do you hear it too?"
"Yeah," Kael muttered, voice low, feral edge creeping in. "Chains. Something's coming."
Moro barked once, sharp and alert, then moved to stand between Kael and the darkness ahead. Its eyes glowed faintly, golden slime pulsing across its wolf-like frame.
The clinking grew louder. Kael crouched instinctively, muscles coiled. His crimson aura flickered to life, wrapping around him like living fire.
But before anything emerged, a voice drifted through the dark. Calm, cold, and heavy.
"Another beast scratching at the walls. Another prisoner who doesn't know his place."
The voice reverberated unnaturally, as though the walls themselves carried it.
Lyra stiffened. "That… wasn't a monster."
Kael's eyes narrowed. "No. That was worse."
A figure appeared at the end of the tunnel, stepping into the faint glow of Lyra's staff. Shackles dangled from its wrists and ankles, dragging against the ground with every step. A massive iron collar circled its neck, glowing faintly with runes that pulsed like veins of fire.
The man—if he could still be called that—was tall, broad-shouldered, his skin pale like stone carved too long underground. His eyes were hidden beneath a curtain of black hair, but his smile was cruel.
"I am the Warden," he said, voice like grinding iron. "And you… are trespassers."
Lyra's grip on her staff trembled, not out of fear but recognition. "The Warden… I've heard of him in whispers. A guardian bound by the dungeon itself. Not a beast. Not human. Something in between."
Kael's claws flexed. "Then he bleeds, like everything else."
The Warden tilted his head, as though amused. The chains around his wrists rattled, then moved of their own accord, slithering across the ground like serpents.
Kael lunged before the chains reached them, his body a blur of crimson light. His claws slashed toward the Warden's chest.
The chains lashed upward, intercepting. Steel met claw, sparks spraying in the darkness. The impact reverberated through the cavern, sending a shockwave that cracked the stone beneath them.
Kael gritted his teeth, pushing harder. "You're in my way."
The Warden's smile widened. "No, boy. I am the way. And I'll show you the meaning of chains."
The chains coiled around Kael's arm like snakes, tightening with impossible strength. Kael snarled, aura flaring as he ripped himself free, shredding the links with raw force. The sound of snapping metal echoed, but the broken fragments slithered back together, reforming.
Lyra raised her staff, light erupting from the crystal as she shouted, "Kael, he's not just wielding the chains—he is the chains! They're part of him!"
The Warden laughed, low and harsh, before snapping his wrist. Chains burst from the walls, ceiling, and floor, dozens of them converging.
Kael leapt backward, claws flashing as he shredded through three, but five more lashed across his body, binding his torso and limbs. He roared, muscles bulging as he fought against them, his crimson aura burning hot enough to scorch the metal.
Moro lunged forward, slime tendrils lashing, dissolving two chains before they wrapped around it. The wolf-beast snarled, body shifting into liquid to slip free, reforming on the other side. It bit into a chain, acidic fangs corroding the iron, sparks sizzling.
Lyra thrust her staff forward, releasing a wave of light that shattered the runes glowing on the Warden's collar. For the first time, his expression shifted—brief annoyance.
"You're stronger than the usual prey," he admitted. "Good. I enjoy breaking the strong."
Kael's laugh was feral, eyes blazing crimson. "Break me? Try it. You'll see who really wears the chains."
His aura erupted, exploding outward in a crimson storm that shattered the chains restraining him. Fragments melted in the aura's heat. Kael launched forward, claws arcing toward the Warden's throat.
The Warden caught his strike with one hand. The ground cracked beneath them as force met force.
The clash didn't last long. The Warden twisted his wrist, and the chains coiled tighter around Kael's legs, yanking him down. Kael hit the ground hard, stone shattering beneath him.
Lyra shouted his name. Moro snarled.
But Kael only grinned from the dirt, blood dripping down his chin. "You think I'll bow to you? No. You're just another cage… and I'll tear every cage apart."
The Warden's grin widened. "Then let us see how long before your chains crush you."
The dungeon trembled around them, chains clattering in the dark, as the true battle began