He could feel them, the shard, it was somewhere nearby.

The portal he just passed through, was shining behind him.

He came from a world full of plants, nature, and life, but this new environment was dead and cold. There were no plants here and the typical chirping of the birds could not be heard.

Still, he could feel them. The Shard was very close to him.

Still, something was wrong. A chill ran down his spine as if someone was watching his every move from behind.

Turning around, all he could perceive was the all-encompassing darkness of the night.

He walked over great fields consisting only of burnt grass and ashes, over forests full of dead and withered trees.

Eventually, he came to a town, or at least what was left of it. Everything lay in ruins and nothing stirred.

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

Walking around, he suddenly felt an urge to leave this place as quickly as possible.

His subconscious demanded every fiber of his muscles to start running.

Still, he had sacrificed too much to get here and couldn't just turn around.

Suddenly, something broke the silence and his thoughts came to a stop.

It sounded like a branch snapping, but he knew better.

Someone had stepped on a burned piece of wood and it was right behind him!

He turned around, but it was too late. Something sharp pierced his heart from behind.

While his vision blurred, he heard a rasping voice asking something in an unknown language.

He fell down and felt life leaving him.

He tried to turn around, but he couldn't do it anymore.

As the voice told him something in a gloating tone, darkness fell over him.