A path lit itself before them. Tiny bioluminescent materials shone in the dirt, bathing the leftward trail in pale light.
"You were right!" Ariel cried out, his voice shaking with relief.
"I was right," Lexi said, blinking as relief flooded her chest.
"We should keep moving," Valen said immediately. "The faster we get there, the sooner we can build a fire."
"I've never craved a damp bedroll more in my whole life," Ariel said through shivering teeth.
The boys moved ahead but Lexi remained grounded, staring at the paths.
It was exactly what should have happened, and not at all what she expected. The hike from hereon should be relatively easy.
So why did she feel this…dread?
As she stared at the illuminated path, a cold chill ran down her spine. She wanted to ignore it. She wanted to abandon this feeling and keep moving like nothing was wrong.
Her body jerked, slightly, but her instincts refused to let her exhaustion force herself to move.
This is the easy choice, a voice whispered. But you know it's not the answer.
She shuddered slightly.
Sometimes she couldn't tell if this was her own intuition...or the monster inside her. And even then, how different were they, truly?
Lexi had done as the riddle directed and snuffed out the light, and when the bioluminescent shards in the dirt showed them the obvious path, she was relieved.
It was so obvious that they'd done the right thing.
But that was just it.
The riddle didn't ask them to turn off the light.
It asked them to step into their darkness.
But what did it mean by their darkness?
"Lexi?" Ariel asked, looking back at her.
Lexi met his eyes, then flicked her gaze toward the darker path to the right.
She couldn't ignore this feeling.
"This is a trap," she said, gazing down the darker path that beckoned her.
"How?" Valen asked, his tone irritated. "We followed the riddle. We stepped into the dark."
"I know," Lexi replied sternly, meeting his gaze. "But it isn't truly dark, is it?"
Valen blinked, her words reaching him. He looked down at the ground, then moved his gaze down the illuminated path. Tongue in cheek, he sighed.
"Can we at least try to rationalize this feeling of yours... before we walk blindly into darkness?" He asked, turning to face her.
"Well for one, the riddle calls for us to step into darkness. We aren't doing that if we walk down a bright path," she began. "But there really is no way for me to prove it's the right path. You're going to have to trust me."
Valen stared at her, his face lightly illuminated from below.
"I hate to say it, but I think Lexi might be right," Ariel interjected. "I won't lie…I really wanted this path to be the answer, but it does feel too easy."
Valen closed his eyes and let out a huge sigh.
"Alright," he said, defeated. "If that's how you both feel, then I'm with you."
The group continued on. As they embarked down the path, away from the brightness of the other road, the world grew darker with every step until it was nearly pitch black. The canopy had grown thick above them, blocking out any bit of light that remained in the sky. Even lightning did little to brighten their path.
Soon, they were forced to walk hand in hand.
Lexi, who headed their group, held Ariel tightly, and he gripped Valen. Their fingers threaded with one another, not wanting to risk losing their small team in the dark. Lexi could hardly see a foot ahead.
They had walked in the shadows for some time, tripping over small rocks and roots, but never letting go of one another. The storm had calmed for the moment, allowing them some reprieve from the elements.
"What time do you think it is?" Ariel whispered.
"Based on how tired I am, midnight most likely," Valen answered with a smirk in his voice. "But it's difficult to tell without a pocket watch."
"Oh, you've got jokes now," Lexi replied with her own verbal smirk. "And here I thought you were all valiant, serious chivalry."
"A man's got to have layers," Valen replied. "How else am I going to compete with a woman?"
Lexi rolled her eyes with a smirk. She hated to admit it, but Valen was growing on her. When they first met, she wanted little to do with him. Out of all the Prince candidates in the trial, he was the only one she knew would be a near perfect emperor.
Valen was handsome, chivalrous, courageous, strong — and above all — genuinely kind. He would be good to both princesses and to the people of the empire. She knew that, and that's why she wanted to keep him at arm's length.
But perhaps we can be friends… once I win of course, she thought.
"Well said, I suppose."
Then, something crunched under her foot. It was soft and spongy yet made an odd crunch-like sound.
"What was that?" She gasped.
Ariel audibly sniffed the air.
"Eugh," he groaned, covering his nose. "What's that…smell? It's like bile and spoiled fruit."
Lexi covered her nose the moment the scent hit her, and then quickly realized what they'd done.
They'd let go.
"Ariel!?" She cried into the dark.
No response came.
"Valen!?" She yelled.
But there was no response.
Lexi's breathing quickened and she drew her bow.
Something had released that foul stench and forced them apart. Something silent that took them out one-by-one, and faster than she thought possible.
She closed her eyes, searching for the presence of a Darkspirit.
But there was none — not even an infected.
She listened quietly for breathing or any sign of movement, but she didn't pick up on anything. It was like she'd been sucked into a void.
Alone.
She turned, moving aimlessly in the dark — back and forth. She wanted to speak, and call out for her team mates again, but her throat seized with panic. Lexi was terrified, and that made her feel vulnerable. On some level, she almost wished there was a creature to fight back against, because at least then, she could do something.
At least then, there was a solution.
But here, in this vast space of nothing, she couldn't do anything.
She was vulnerable and at the mercy of something else's control.
And in that space of nothing, the pressure weighed heavy on her.
She had to find her friends.
She had to save them all.
But she was trapped.
Then, something gripped her shoulder.
"AHHH!"
Lexi let out a scream, and jumped back several steps, tripping over herself.
She turned fast, her eyes widening when she spotted her.
Maren stood there, faintly glowing in the darkness, her eyes wide with kindness and concern.
Lexi blinked, staring at her.
She couldn't believe Maren was here. Had she come to find her? Had she realized they were lost?
No, she thought. This isn't possible. I was…I was somewhere else…I was…
She wracked her mind for the location.
…where was I?