Chapter Twenty-Six: The Crypt of Shattered Oaths

The staircase from the Valley of Whispers' altar descended into a crypt where shadows clung like damp rot, the air thick with the stench of ancient blood and stone. Ethan led the way, the Severed Fang pulsing against his back, its silver light and green diamond at the pommel carving through the suffocating dark. carving through the suffocating dark. The steps, etched with runes mirroring Veydranos's blade, spiraled into a cavernous chamber where jagged pillars loomed like the bones of a buried beast. The severing star's faint light seeped through ceiling cracks, casting writhing shadows that echoed the valley's whispers, now a guttural chant of sacrifice, betrayer. Helena limped beside him, her shoulder and leg wrapped in blood-stiffened cloth, her satchel clutched tightly, its sigils flickering weakly. Rufik, the pack's alpha, bore fresh cuts across his arm from the valley's battles, his axe gleaming with scars, his eyes burning with authority. The Nightbound followed, their spears glinting, Kael's arm bandaged, his ember-red eyes darting nervously, sweat beading on his brow. The Nightbound leader, blue eyes cold, scanned the gloom, while Voren, their sapphire eyes steady, trailed behind, their cloak brushing a stair's rune, unnoticed by most.

Ethan's silvered gaze swept the chamber, his wolf blood snarling, his vampire blood surging with hunger that clawed his mind. The Blade of Command thrummed, urging him toward the Rite's next stage, but Velhara's warning from the altar echoed: "The traitor watches, and the Rite will test all." The memory of his mother, offered to the altar above, left a hollow ache, his humanity fraying. The general's deafening howl from the valley lingered, a guttural promise of Strahen's rising power, now closer. Helena's voice, hoarse with pain, broke the silence. "This crypt holds the Rite's core. Strahen's will thrives here. We need a plan to survive." Rufik grunted, his voice rough as stone. "Our plans keep failing. Someone's selling us out." His gaze locked on Kael, whose spear trembled slightly, his face taut with worry.

Ethan, gripping Veydranos, turned to Rufik, honoring his role as alpha. "I propose we secure the chamber, Helena's sigils guarding the entrances, the pack holding the perimeter, the Nightbound striking from the center. I'll face the threat with the Blade of Command. How do you see it, alpha?" Rufik nodded, his eyes narrowing. "It's solid, but watch Kael. His nerves are trouble." Kael stiffened, his voice sharp with strain. "I'm watching for the traitor, Rufik, not causing it!" The Nightbound leader's silence deepened the tension, while Voren adjusted their cloak, a rune flickering faintly, unnoticed. A manifestation of Strahen's will, a skeletal warrior in bone armor, its crimson eyes glowing, erupted from the shadows, wielding a jagged blade that drank the light. It anticipated their formation, shattering Helena's sigils and slashing a pack member's thigh, blood pooling on the stone. Kael hesitated, his spear grazing the warrior, and it nearly pinned Rufik, its blade nicking his chest. Ethan's strike with the Blade of Command flared silver, forcing it back, but it vanished, hissing: "Your steps are known." The group staggered, the pack member's thigh bleeding heavily, their growls pained.

Rufik's frustration surged, his axe slamming into the stone. "It knew our every move! Kael, your miss nearly killed us!" Kael's face paled, his voice tight with panic. "I'm trying to find the traitor! Someone's betraying us!" His eyes darted among the Nightbound, his spear unsteady. The leader's voice was ice. "Your fear weakens us, Kael." Helena, her leg slowing her, urged calm, but her gaze flicked to Kael's trembling hand, then briefly to Voren, who stood calmly.

The pack growled, their wounded member limping, and the whispers chanted betrayer. Ethan proposed another plan, turning to Rufik. "We bait it to a choke point, Helena's sigils trapping it, Nightbound flanking, me ambushing with Veydranos. Your call, alpha." Rufik approved, growling, "Kael, don't falter again." Kael, sweating, nodded, muttering about the traitor's shadow. Voren suggested a specific path, their voice even, but a misplaced rune on the choke point's wall pulsed faintly, unnoticed. The warrior returned, its bone armor glinting, predicting the trap. It dodged the sigils, wounding a Nightbound's shoulder and nearly crushing Rufik, its blade grazing his side. Helena's sigils held just enough, and Ethan's improvised strike, fueled by his wolf's ferocity, forced a retreat, but the group teetered, Helena's arm bleeding anew, Kael's leg grazed.

The group retreated to a rune-carved dais in the chamber's heart, its glow mirroring the altar above. Helena, barely conscious, whispered that the crypt amplified Strahen's generals, and the Rite's second stage awaited. Rufik, bandaging his side, pressed Ethan. "Kael's slipping. He's too scared, hiding something." Kael, tending the wounded Nightbound, snapped, "I'm hunting the traitor, Rufik! I see their shadow in every plan!" His desperation rang true, but his sharp recall of the choke point's runes raised Ethan's suspicion. Voren, silent, adjusted their cloak, a rune flickering faintly, unnoticed by the pack. A pack member, clutching their thigh, muttered about abandoning the Nightbound, straining the alliance. Helena pulled a scroll fragment, her hands trembling. "The Rite's second stage demands a memory or bond, Ethan. Past wielders broke here." Rufik's anger flared, his axe trembling. "More secrets? We're bleeding for your scrolls!" Ethan silenced them, his silvered eyes catching Kael's nervous glance at the dais, but Voren's quiet presence lingered in his mind.

A towering figure emerged, its bone crown gleaming, crimson eyes burning with Strahen's will. Ethan proposed a plan, turning to Rufik. "Helena's sigils shield the dais, we encircle it, I strike with the Severed Fang. Your word, alpha." Rufik nodded, glaring at Kael. "Do your part, or answer to me." Kael, near panic, agreed, muttering, "The traitor's here, I'll find them." Voren suggested an angle for the Nightbound, but Ethan altered it, wary. The figure predicted the original plan, slashing a pack member's side, but faltered against Ethan's change, his vampire precision cutting through. The Blade of Command's light banished it, but not before it wounded Helena's chest, her breath shallow, and grazed Kael's arm again. The costly victory left Rufik's side bleeding, the pack battered. Kael, trembling, vowed to unmask the traitor, his eyes darting wildly.

Ethan placed Veydranos on the dais, initiating the Rite's second stage. The severing star's light flooded the Blade of Command, demanding a memory. Ethan's mind burned, his mother's face fading, his humanity fraying. Pain seared his soul, Veydranos binding deeper. The whispers warned of a final bond sacrifice. Helena, her chest bandaged, whispered, "It's your life or your pack, Ethan." Rufik, his voice breaking, vowed to stand by him, his wounds hinting at sacrifice.

A deafening howl signaled a general's approach. The dais's runes opened a deeper chamber, pulsing with Strahen's power. Velhara's voice cut through: "The traitor's shadow grows." Ethan led the descent, the Severed Fang pulsing, his silvered eyes catching Kael's nervous muttering and Voren's faint rune flicker, both unnoticed in the dark. The pack, bleeding, followed, the Nightbound's oaths fragile, the crypt's whispers promising ruin.