The shard's final warning pulsed in Lina's mind like a heartbeat.
RUN.
There was no time to question it.No time to breathe.
The walls shook violently, dust raining like ash as deep rumbling echoed through the underground.
Kai grabbed Lina's hand."Move. Now."
Reyon pulled Seren behind him as another tremor cracked the false classroom floor.
Seren gasped, clutching her head. "They're coming. So many voices—so many—"
Kai didn't slow. "The council's hunters. They've activated the lower wards."
Reyon swore under his breath, stumbling as the ground tilted. "Fantastic. We're loved, hunted, and absolutely doomed."
Lina's flame flickered chaotically—too bright one moment, too dim the next. Her fingertips stung. Her vision blurred for a second again.
Kai noticed instantly.
"Lina. Stay with me."
"I—I'm trying…"
She wasn't lying.But the Seventh Flame's cost was tightening its grip.
Her memories felt like shelves someone kept shaking.Names. Voices. Faces.
She held Kai's hand tighter.
"Don't let go."
His jaw clenched, and he didn't.
The tunnels twisted ahead.
Left.Right.Dead end.
Then—
A roar.
Not like the mimic.Deeper.Hungrier.
Reyon's eyes widened. "Oh no. Oh no, no, no—"
"What now?" Lina gasped.
Reyon pointed at the cracks forming in the ceiling.Shadows seeped like smoke.
Seren's voice trembled. "Nightfall… creatures…"
The air froze.
Kai's grip on his weapon tightened. "We shouldn't be underground during a resonance collapse."
But the collapse was happening.
Now.
A tendril of shadow slid down the wall.
Lina stepped back. "What is that—?"
A whisper slithered behind her ear.
"I remember you."
Lina's breath stopped.
Kai moved instantly, pulling her behind him. "Don't listen. They feed on your fear."
The shadow tendril snapped forward—Kai sliced through it, but it reformed instantly.
Reyon summoned an illusion barrier.The shadows bent around it like hungry wolves circling a cage.
Seren whimpered. "They're fast… too fast…"
Then the main body of the creature dropped from the ceiling.
A twisted amalgamation of smoke and jagged bone-shapes—shifting, flickering, whispering with stolen voices.
One voice made Lina's chest seize.
Her own voice.
"Kai… help me…"
Lina stumbled away."That's—! That's my—!"
"They copy resonance memories," Reyon said shakily. "They take your fears. Your regrets. Your voices."
The creature lunged.
Kai reacted before anyone else—Shadowsteel exploded around him in a burst of black metal aura.
He met the monster head-on.
For a moment—the entire tunnel lit with clashing gold and shadow.
Then Kai's Shadowsteel thickened, darkening, twisting—
Reyon cursed. "Kai! You're slipping! Pull it back!"
Kai didn't answer.
His eyes flickered—not sharp gray, but pitch black.
Lina's heart dropped.
"Kai?" she whispered.
He didn't hear her.
He struck the creature with brutal force—too brutal, too wild—missing its core entirely.
The Shadowsteel aura surged outward, tearing cracks into the tunnel walls.
Seren screamed. "The ceiling!"
Huge pieces began to fall.
"Kai, STOP!" Lina cried.
Her voice finally broke through.
Kai's head jerked toward her—his eyes cleared just enough.
The Shadowsteel collapsed in on itself.The monster retreated with a screech, dissolving back into shadow and fleeing through the cracks.
The tunnel stabilized.
Barely.
Kai leaned against the wall, breathing hard, gripping his arm.
Lina rushed to him. "Kai—your eyes—your aura—what was that?"
He didn't answer immediately.
Reyon stepped in. "He almost went full Oathbreaker mode."
Kai shot Reyon a warning look.But it was too late.
Lina stared at Kai, throat tight. "What does that mean?"
Kai looked away, ashamed."It means… I lose myself if I push too far."
Her hand shook as she touched his arm gently."You came back."
"I heard you," he said softly. "You brought me back."
Her breath hitched.
Reyon groaned behind them. "Look, this is adorable, but we are being hunted by shadow-ghost-nightmare-things and corrupt council agents. Can we flirt later?"
Kai glared. "No one is flirting."
Lina blushed. "Absolutely not."
Seren whispered faintly, "You both kind of were—"
"Moving on," Kai said quickly.
A new passage opened to their right.
A staircase—old, stone, sealed by a shimmering rune barrier.
Lina stepped forward, flame glowing. "It's reacting to me."
Reyon nodded. "Your flame can break it."
Seren grabbed Lina's sleeve suddenly."Wait."
Her voice sounded wrong—echoing.
Lina turned. "Seren?"
Seren's eyes were unfocused."I… hear her again."
"Who?" Lina whispered.
"The last flameborn," Seren said. "She's whispering your name."
Lina's heart chilled."What is she saying?"
Seren swallowed.
"She's saying…'Don't go up alone.'"
The barrier flickered.
Kai pulled Lina back immediately. "Someone is waiting on the other side."
Reyon tightened his grip on his blade. "Anyone want to bet it's friendly?"
No one answered.
The rune barrier flared.
Heavy footsteps echoed beyond the stone door.
Then a voice:
Cold. Calm.Unmistakable.
"Open the door, Seventh Flame."
Lina's blood froze.
Kai's grip tightened.
Reyon's eyes widened.
Seren trembled.
Because they all knew that voice.
Advisor Lyrin.
And he wasn't alone.
More footsteps.Armored boots.Council hunters.
"Lina Veris," Lyrin said."You cannot run anymore."
Kai whispered, low and dangerous:
"Over my dead body."
To be Continued© Kishtika., 2025All rights reserved.