The air in the pit turned cold the next morning.
Not from weather—there was no real weather underground—but from something deeper. Something crawling just under the stone, waiting.
Everyone felt it.
The guards were on edge.
The slaves whispered less.
Even the Warden stayed near the surface halls, rarely stepping below.
Auron stood alone near the forge ruins, unwrapping the white mask he had found.
It didn't speak.
It didn't move.
But it didn't feel dead, either.
Just… sleeping.
The system scanned it again.
\[Artifact: Whispering Mask]
\[Connection Level: 6%]
\[Passive Effect: +1 Awareness in Darkness]
\[Warning: Full Sync May Alter Mental State]
\[Would you like to accelerate connection?]
Auron closed the prompt.
Not yet.
He had other things to worry about.
---
A horn sounded across the mine.
Twice. Loud. Deep.
That wasn't a patrol alarm.
It was the signal for a breach.
A security failure.
A threat.
Auron dropped the cloth and ran toward the western tunnels. Dozens of others moved the same way—Jace among them, struggling to keep up.
When they arrived at the tunnel mouth, three guards lay on the ground.
Alive.
But unconscious.
Their armor was torn, and their eyes wide open, staring at nothing.
Something had passed them.
Slipped by without touching them.
Or touched them without being seen.
"Pull everyone back," one captain shouted. "Whatever it was, it came from the outer shaft!"
Auron stepped forward, ignoring him.
He closed his eyes.
And listened.
There—something breathing, slow and steady, too far for normal ears to hear.
He followed it.
Deep into the cracked tunnel called *The Spine*, where the rocks had twisted long ago after a quake, forming jagged turns and narrow paths. No one ever went down there.
Now something had.
The shadows grew thick.
Too thick for torches to pierce.
But Auron saw fine.
He activated **Void Edge**, holding the black blade low and silent.
Each step echoed.
Then the breathing stopped.
A whisper cut through the dark.
"You found me fast."
Auron spun, blade ready.
From the corner of the tunnel, a figure stepped out.
Slim. Wrapped in a cloak that shifted like mist.
Face covered by a metal mask with a crack down the middle.
Their voice was young. Calm.
"I've been watching you," they said. "Ever since the priest died."
"You were in the ash room," Auron said.
The figure tilted their head.
"Yes. That was a message."
"Why?"
"To see if the Abyss chose wisely."
Auron frowned. "You have the mark too."
The figure pulled up their sleeve.
Dark veins ran through their arm. Not like Auron's — these were wild, unbalanced, shaking faintly under the skin.
"I didn't bond with it," the figure said. "It forced its way in."
They stepped forward.
"I want to understand it. But I need help."
Auron kept his blade raised.
"You killed a man and left his body like a warning."
"I had to. He was feeding off slaves. Drinking what little life they had."
"You could've told someone."
"No one listens in the dark. Only blood speaks down here."
They stood silently now, facing each other.
"You're not like me," Auron said.
"No," the figure replied. "I'm worse."
Then they turned and vanished into the shadows.
Fast.
Too fast for a normal human.
But not faster than Auron.
He didn't chase them.
He stood there, breathing slow, eyes steady.
They weren't an enemy yet.
But they weren't an ally either.
And they would meet again.
---
\[New Figure Logged: Unknown Abyss-Touched – Alias Pending]
\[Warning: Stability Level – Unstable]
\[Current Threat Level: Medium – Rising]
\[Side Quest Unlocked: Shadows in the Spine]
As Auron returned to the pit, Jace ran up to him.
"What happened? Are we under attack?"
"Not yet."
"Then why does it feel like we are?"
Auron glanced back at the dark tunnel.
Because the pit wasn't just full of slaves anymore.
It was full of monsters.