The Wolves’ Den

The scream cut through the stillness of the forest like a blade through flesh.

Aric spun, his heart pounding.

"Where is he?!" Lira's voice was sharp, her bow raised.

The answer came in the form of gurgling, wet gasps from the shadows.

Aric's eyes darted toward the trees—a dark figure was being dragged backward, clawed hands wrapped around his throat.

"Help—!" The voice was cut off by a sickening crunch.

Then, silence.

The remaining hunters froze in horror.

Garrick's grip tightened around his spear. "We need to move. Now."

Lira grabbed Aric's arm. "They're playing with us."

She was right.

The golden eyes of the wolves blinked between the trees, darting in and out of sight. They weren't attacking. Not yet.

They were herding them.

Aric steadied his breathing. "Stay close. No one breaks formation."

They moved deeper into the forest, stepping carefully over tangled roots and damp earth. The air was thick with the scent of rot and something faintly metallic.

Ahead, the trees thinned—the crater was near.

----

Branches snapped behind them.

The hunters turned sharply, weapons raised.

Nothing.

Then—a whispering sound, almost like breath exhaling over stone.

Aric glanced at Kael, who had been unnervingly silent.

Kael's face was unreadable. "We're close."

Garrick muttered, "Close to what?"

Kael didn't answer.

A low growl rumbled from the left. A shadow shifted.

Then—they attacked.

The first wolf came from the side, tearing into one of the hunters before he could react. Blood splattered across the tree bark.

Lira loosed an arrow—a clean shot straight through its skull.

Another wolf lunged at Aric. He barely dodged, its hot breath brushing against his neck. He twisted, driving his blade into its side, feeling the sickening resistance of muscle and bone.

The wolf snarled but did not fall.

Aric's eyes widened. It should have died from that wound.

Something was wrong.

The wolves weren't just stronger. They were enduring wounds no natural creature should.

One of the hunters panicked. "We need to run!"

"Stay together!" Aric ordered, but the man had already bolted into the trees.

A blur of motion—then his scream was cut off.

A wet thud followed.

The hunters stayed silent after that.

----

When they finally reached the clearing, the ground beneath them felt wrong.

The massive crater yawned before them, its depths shrouded in a thin, curling mist that moved like living tendrils.

At the edges of the pit, stone pillars jutted out at odd angles, ancient symbols carved into their surfaces. Even at a distance, Aric could see them glowing faintly—not with light, but with something darker.

"That's not natural," Lira muttered.

Kael stepped forward. His usual amusement was completely gone.

"No," he agreed. "It isn't."

The wolves had stopped chasing them.

Aric turned to look—the creatures lingered at the edge of the clearing, just beyond the trees.

They didn't step forward.

It was the first time the wolves had hesitated.

"They're afraid," Garrick murmured.

The realization sent a shiver down Aric's spine. If the monsters they had been fighting feared this place… what the hell was waiting inside?

The Ground Trembles

Aric stepped closer to the pit, his boots crunching over bones half-buried in the soil. Human bones.

The mist within the crater stirred.

A deep vibration rumbled beneath their feet.

Kael inhaled sharply. "We need to leave."

Aric looked at him. "What is it?"

Kael's jaw tightened. "This place is waking up."

As if in response, a sound echoed from within the pit.

Not a growl.

Not a howl.

A whisper.

Faint. Indistinct. But it spoke his name.

Aric's blood turned to ice.

The Choice

"We have to go," Garrick said urgently.

Lira grabbed Aric's arm. "Now."

But Aric couldn't move.

His feet felt rooted to the earth. The whispers in the crater grew louder, curling around his mind like fingers.

Visions flashed before his eyes—

A throne of obsidian.

A crown, cracked and shattered.

A voice, laughing in the darkness.

His head snapped back.

Pain.

Burning.

A hand gripped his shoulder. Kael.

"Aric!"

The spell broke.

He gasped, stumbling backward.

"We're leaving," Kael ordered.

The group turned and ran.

As they fled, the whispers faded.

But deep in the pit, something stirred.