Chapter 2, Discovery: Part 7

Nina's voice, barely a whisper, cuts through the heavy silence of the chamber. "Rex, find anything?" She asks, her eyes fixed on the pile of debris, the light from the crystal and the light ball dancing across the scattered remnants. Rex, who had been tensely watching the rubble, lets out a low whine, his tail slowly beginning to thump against the ground again, a sight that his heightened alertness is easing slightly. He nudges a particularly large piece of debris with his nose, a low growl rumbling in his chest before he whines again, this time a little higher pitched, almost a bark.

He seems to be trying to communicate something, but Nina isn't entirely sure what. He circles the pile of debris once more, then turns and looks at Nina, his eyes bright with some form of understanding, as if urging her to investigate further. The rubble, upon closer inspection with the combined lights, appear to contain several human-sized skeletal remains, intertwined with fragments of equipment and what looks like parts of a large, monstrous creature - bones far too large to belong to any known beast of Aethelred. The light from the crystal seems to flicker, almost dancing over the bones, as if drawn to some unusual energy signature.

Nina cautiously approaches the pile, carefully moving aside the loose stones and broken pieces of wood, revealing more of the intertwined remains. It's clear that a fierce struggle occurred here, but the nature of the combatants remains a chilling mystery. The crystal pulses erratically, and a faint hum seems to emanate from within the pile itself, a low thrumming that resonates with the energy of the crystal. Rex remains vigilant, his attention fixed on the chamber's entrance, as if sensing a potential new threat, as Nina begins to carefully uncover the story hidden within the bones and debris, a grim testament to a past confrontation in the heart of the Whisper Wood.

The air itself seems to crackle with unspoken power, and Nina knows this is only the beginning of understanding what happened here.