Chapter 17: Echoes in the Dark

Elliot and Seris moved cautiously through the crumbling corridors of the ancient ruin, their footsteps muffled by the thick layer of dust covering the floor. The oppressive air was heavy with a lingering energy—something unseen, something waiting.

Elliot's grip tightened around the newly acquired shard, its warmth pressing into his palm like a heartbeat. Each fragment he collected seemed to whisper more secrets into his mind, yet the answers remained just out of reach. The visions had shown him a world before the fracture, but they also hinted at something far more sinister lurking beneath the surface.

Seris kept her dagger drawn, her golden eyes scanning the shifting shadows. "I don't like this," she muttered. "It's too quiet."

Elliot nodded. He had learned to trust Seris's instincts. She had an uncanny ability to sense danger before it struck—a talent that had already saved his life more than once.

The corridor opened into a vast, circular chamber, the ceiling lost in darkness. Pillars of broken stone jutted out at odd angles, giving the space an eerie, unnatural feel. At the center stood a raised platform, and upon it, another altar, though this one was unlike any they had seen before. Instead of glowing with the soft light of the shards, it pulsed with an ominous crimson hue.

Seris took a step closer, then halted abruptly. "Wait."

Elliot turned to her, sensing the tension in her stance. "What is it?"

She pointed at the altar. "That energy… it's not like the others. It's corrupted."

A chill ran down Elliot's spine. The moment she said it, he could feel it too—a raw, unsettling force radiating from the altar. It was as if the very air around it was sick, tainted by something unnatural.

Then, the whispering began.

Not the familiar hum of the shards, but something else. Darker. Harsher. It clawed at the edges of Elliot's mind, pulling him toward the altar with an almost irresistible force. His vision blurred, the walls of the chamber shifting and twisting as the voices grew louder.

Seris grabbed his arm. "Elliot! Snap out of it!"

He gasped, staggering backward as the connection was severed. His heartbeat thundered in his ears. "That… that was different."

Seris's expression was grim. "We need to destroy it."

Before Elliot could respond, the air around them shuddered.

A deep, resonant growl filled the chamber, and from the darkness beyond the altar, something stirred.

A monstrous figure emerged, its form shifting between solid and shadow. It had the vague outline of a humanoid, but its limbs stretched unnaturally, its hands ending in elongated claws that dripped with inky darkness. Its face was obscured by a hood of pure void, and from within, two piercing crimson eyes burned like embers.

Elliot felt a wave of suffocating pressure weigh down on him. This thing wasn't just a guardian—it was something else entirely.

The entity's voice slithered into their minds, carrying an unnatural resonance. "You seek the shards… but do you understand what you truly carry?"

Seris raised her dagger, her stance unwavering. "We understand enough to know that you don't belong here."

A sound like distant laughter echoed through the chamber. "Neither do you, Outcast."

The moment the words left its mouth, the creature lunged.

Elliot barely had time to react before Seris shoved him aside, rolling out of the way as the entity's claws slashed through the air where they had stood moments before. The impact sent a shockwave through the room, shattering what remained of the broken pillars.

Seris was already moving, flipping over the rubble with an agility that defied logic. Her dagger flashed, striking at the creature's exposed flank. But the moment her blade made contact, it passed through empty shadow.

Elliot pushed himself up, mind racing. The shards had given him abilities before—maybe they could help him now. He clenched his fist around the fragment, focusing on the energy within.

A pulse of golden light erupted from his palm, forming into a jagged arc that he hurled toward the creature. The attack collided with its chest, and for the first time, the entity staggered.

Seris took the opening, twisting mid-air and striking again. This time, her blade found purchase, sinking into the creature's shifting form. A guttural screech filled the chamber as black mist seeped from the wound, writhing like living tendrils before evaporating.

The creature recoiled, its form flickering like a dying flame. "You meddle with forces beyond your comprehension."

Elliot stepped forward, the shard in his hand burning brighter. "Then explain it to me."

The entity laughed again, its body distorting. "You already know, Keybearer. The past speaks to you."

With that, the creature's form began to unravel, dispersing into a swirling mass of dark energy that was quickly sucked into the corrupted altar. The crimson glow flickered violently, then shattered, sending cracks rippling through the stone beneath it.

The silence that followed was suffocating.

Seris lowered her dagger but didn't relax. "It retreated."

Elliot swallowed, his pulse still hammering in his ears. "Or it was never really here to begin with."

They exchanged a look—one filled with unspoken understanding. This wasn't over. Whatever this entity was, it was watching them. Testing them.

Seris exhaled sharply, turning to the now-dark altar. "We need to move. We have the shard, but I doubt that was the last of them."

Elliot nodded, slipping the shard into his satchel. "Yeah… and I have a feeling things are only going to get worse from here."

As they turned to leave, Elliot couldn't shake the feeling that the creature's words had been more than just taunts.

The past speaks to you.

What was it trying to tell him?

And more importantly—was he ready to hear it?