The Awakening Beasts

Seated around the makeshift table, the knights and scouts stood in tense silence as Commander Valerie finally spoke.

"The Zhardal should have still been hibernating," her voice was steady, but the crease in her brow showed concern. "And yet, their tracks were fresh. They've awakened early."

Zhardal.

Luke rolled the name around in his mind, unfamiliar with it. But the explanation quickly followed as Larissa laid out the rough sketches of the footprints found along their path.

The Zhardal were towering creatures, with elongated necks that slithered and curled unnaturally rather than standing upright. Their thin, branch-like legs gave them a deceptively fragile appearance, but they moved with eerie precision—able to cross vast distances in mere hours. Their hide, mottled with earthen tones, helped them blend into the trees and rocky landscapes, making them easy to overlook until it was too late.

Most disturbing of all were their mouths.