The floor stopped trembling, but the sound didn't fade. It echoed deep below, like something clawing its way up from the heart of the tower.
Cracks spread across the stone. Red light pulsed from beneath them, veins glowing like molten blood.
Vael steadied his blade, breathing hard. "How far down does this thing go?"
Kaelen didn't answer immediately. His gaze was fixed on the red cracks, his knuckles white around his staff. "Far enough that what's below shouldn't be waking."
Nyra's bow was already drawn, her eyes darting between the shifting shadows. "So, we run or fight?"
Vael didn't hesitate. "Fight."
Elira shook her head. "We don't even know what it is!"
"Doesn't matter," he said, voice low. "It's coming either way."
The pulse under their feet quickened. Dust fell from the ceiling as the tower groaned again, stone grinding against stone.
Reylen spat to the side. "We don't have time for a plan."
"Then make one while you move," Vael said.
He turned to Kaelen. "You hold the backline. Keep the light up. Nyra, cover our flanks. Elira—stay close to me."
Her lips parted, ready to argue, but the sound that rose from below silenced everyone.
A low, guttural growl rolled through the walls, shaking the entire staircase.
Kaelen muttered under his breath, runes igniting around his feet. "It's not a creature. It's the tower's heart."
The floor beneath them cracked open again, wider this time. Black smoke poured out, thick and burning cold.
Nyra loosed an arrow into it—nothing. The shaft vanished like it had been swallowed by the dark.
"Vael," Kaelen said sharply, "you can still leave. That thing isn't bound to you yet. But if you face it here—"
"I know."
He lifted his blade. Shadows crawled up his arm, the mark spreading across his skin like ink.
"I'm done running from what I started."
A faint tremor of light flickered at the base of the stairs. Then a massive claw burst from the smoke, slamming into the floor. The stone shattered on impact, sending shards flying.
Nyra stumbled back, eyes wide. "That's—"
"Get ready!" Vael shouted.
The claw withdrew, but the air didn't calm. The red glow from below brightened, flooding the room in crimson light.
Kaelen's runes expanded, forming a thin barrier of flame. "It's trying to break through the seal!"
Reylen growled. "Then let it. I'll cut it back down."
Vael stepped forward. The crown's whisper was almost a hiss now."If you face it, you'll lose more of yourself. You know that."
He ignored it.
The smoke swirled, twisting upward until it formed a massive shape—half shadow, half flesh. Red eyes burned in the darkness, locking onto him.
Everyone froze.
Vael tightened his grip. The mark on his arm pulsed once.
"Positions," he said. "It's here."
And as the tower screamed around them, the ground split apart completely—revealing the monster that had been sleeping beneath their feet.