The night was unnervingly quiet after the battle.
Leon crouched beside one of the fallen Ferals, his fingers brushing the matted fur. There was an unnatural chill to it, as if the body had only half belonged to this world.
He had seen many things in Devia. Monsters, dungeons, corrupted lands. But this... this was different.
This wasn't just primal instinct taking over. Something else was at work here.
Kaelen's sharp gaze studied the corpses. "This is beyond mere madness."
Rhun exhaled through his nose, his jaw tight. "We have had cases of our people succumbing to their instincts, but not like this. They should not have wandered this far north."
Leon looked up. "Then what brought them here?"
Silence.
Jarek, still catching his breath, muttered, "I don't know, but can we not sleep next to whatever's attracting these things?"
Leon agreed. They had to move.
The Stone Maw was still two days away, and now... there was another mystery to solve.
---
The Mark of the Unknown
By dawn, they resumed their journey.
The further they traveled, the more wrong the land felt.
It wasn't obvious at first. But Leon noticed it.
The way the grass wilted in certain places. The strange, almost acidic scent that clung to the wind. The absence of smaller wildlife.
And, most importantly—
The feeling of being watched.
It wasn't the beastmen this time.
It was something else.
Something hidden.
Rhun noticed it too. His shoulders were tense, his ears twitching at the slightest sound.
"This land is sick," he finally muttered.
Kaelen nodded. "A sickness of the soul, not the body."
Leon clenched his jaw. This wasn't natural.
And he had the sinking feeling that the Stone Maw held the answers.
---
The First Signs of Ruin
By the time they made camp, the signs were undeniable.
The trees twisted at odd angles. The soil was dark, unnaturally damp.
Jarek kicked a rock, then yelped as it crumbled into dust.
"Okay, no. No, no, no. This is giving me 'cursed land' vibes," he said, backing away. "And cursed land means cursed things, which means we're about to have a very bad time."
Rhun was unusually quiet. His expression was unreadable.
Leon glanced at him. "You've seen something like this before."
Rhun hesitated, then exhaled. "Long ago. In a place we were forbidden to approach."
Kaelen's eyes flickered. "The Black Hollow?"
Rhun nodded.
Jarek groaned. "Oh great. That sounds safe."
Leon frowned. The Black Hollow.
A place from Devia that few players had ever explored. A land consumed by darkness, avoided even by the beastmen.
A place that, according to legends, had once been a thriving city.
And now, the same corruption was appearing here.
Leon tightened his grip on his sword.
Something was coming.
And soon, they would have no choice but to face it.
---
A Shadow on the Horizon
That night, Leon dreamt.
Of a city swallowed by darkness.
Of voices whispering from beyond the veil.
And of a pair of glowing red eyes staring back at him.
He awoke with a sharp breath.
The others were still asleep.
But beyond the campfire's glow, in the distance—
A figure watched.
And then, just as quickly as it had appeared—
It was gone.
---