Chapter Forty-One: The Fading Strength

The air felt heavier. Thick. Unnatural.

Elena's breaths came fast and shallow as she pushed herself up, her hands scraping against the rough stone floor. Above them, the shadow loomed at the edge of the broken ground, its fingers curling against the jagged stone.

Leon staggered.

Elena turned, alarmed. "Leon?"

He exhaled sharply, swaying on his feet. His usual sharp, calculated movements were gone. He looked… weaker.

His hands trembled slightly, his breath uneven. The shadows overhead pulsed, and his knees nearly buckled.

"What's wrong?" Elena reached for him instinctively.

Leon clenched his jaw, forcing himself upright. "It's this place," he muttered. "That thing… It's different. Stronger than it should be."

Another whisper slid through the air, more distinct this time. It wasn't just a sound—it was a presence.

Leon's breath hitched.

Elena frowned. His face looked paler than usual. Even for him. His strength was fading.

She grabbed his arm. "We need to keep moving."

Leon hesitated for a second—something he never did—before nodding.

The walls around them pulsed, breathing like something alive.

They moved quickly, deeper into the passage. The light from above dimmed as the tunnel twisted, descending further underground. The stone was cold beneath Elena's fingertips as she ran her hands along the walls for balance.

Then—a sharp jolt.

Elena gasped as a sudden shock of memory surged through her, raw and violent.

Not her own.

A woman. Running. Desperate. Blood streaked the stone. Heavy footsteps behind her.

A name. Elena.

No—not her.

Someone else with her name.

The vision cracked apart, leaving her gasping. The air in the tunnel felt different now. Colder. Heavier with something unspoken.

"Elena?" Leon's voice pulled her back.

She turned, shaken. "I—I saw something."

Leon studied her closely, his exhaustion momentarily forgotten. "What did you see?"

Elena hesitated. How could she explain something she didn't even understand?

"Someone… running. Here. A woman with my name."

Leon's expression darkened.

The whispering returned, curling around them like a living thing. Above them, the entity stirred, shifting closer.

Leon's breathing was becoming more labored. He was running out of time.

Elena grabbed his wrist. "We have to move. Now."

Leon nodded, but as they turned to run—

A voice.

From behind them.

"You were never meant to return."

The shadows surged.

And the passage collapsed.