Rayza ran after her husband, but as always, he was just too darn quick. She reached the cave long before she caught sight of Ionyr again. The entrance protruded from the ground like the head of a huge worm, its mouth wide open for incautious surface dwellers to walk right into. The rock was smooth, shining like one would expect the slimy insides of such a beast to be. All too ready to swallow whatever wandered into its trap.

As she made her first step inside, something tiny and wet hit her neck. She spun around, but there was nothing there. Rayza’s mind instinctively conjured up images of the cave salivating over its unwitting meal.

No, no, she thought, shuddering as she violently shook her head. It had to be droplets of last night's rain, she assured herself. Yet the sense of imminent danger never left, even as she entered to search for her husband. It felt like she was being watched – closely.

"Ionyr!" She shouted, the echoes running down the black tunnel. No response. Growing ever more worried, she hurried into the cave – away from the light of day and further down the jaws of the abyss. Rayza's only company was the haunting echo of her steps and the stench of damp dirt. Though the latter was slowly but surely fading as well.

It was unsettling. Just how deep did this damn cave go? Usually, even the largest tunnels had a light air draft blowing through. In or out, she’d experienced both on her travels. But in this cave, there was no wind - the air was unnaturally still. Something was off. She’d felt it in the town, but here that ominous sense of foreboding had doubled, nearly tripled in its intensity. Her hands were trembling.

“Get a grip.” She mumbled to herself, continuing deeper into the abyss. ”This is no time for that.”

Catching a small blip of red light ahead of her, she let out a sigh of relief. Thank goodness, he hadn’t gone too deep, Rayza thought as she hurried toward it. As she got closer, she could eventually make out Ionyr’s silhouette crouching near the wall. He was holding Raev’s lantern, the red gem glowing softly from within.

"Ionyr." She said as she stopped beside him. Leaning on his shoulder, she panted heavily, trying to catch her breath after her two long sprints. "I thought we agreed that you would stop running off like this."

"Sorry. Couldn't help myself." He said absent-mindedly. "Look at this." He pointed at the wall. "We're in the right place."

As Rayza inspected the wall, the frustration she felt toward his recklessness and the tension of the situation quickly gave way to a different emotion. She hadn't felt like this for a long time - the last time might’ve been their very first adventure together, when they were still children.

There were engravings in the stone. Illuminated by the red glow of the lantern, they had an ancient, yet otherworldly look to them, completely beyond anything a human would create. Reaching out to trace the engravings, she felt like all their struggles, all this time, were in chase of this exact feeling. Running her hand over it gave her goosebumps – it was real. This mural was truly real. Maybe this was her mind playing tricks on her, but it felt warm to the touch.

The weathered engravings depicted a map of the current world – the four lands, just as they knew them. Upon the Dead South was the massive crater from the legend of the Calamity, coloured entirely in black. But that same shape was also placed on the carving of the Western Isles and Idyllis.

These craters, unlike the one to the south, were coloured red and blue, respectively. Not only that, but there was an odd symbol written upon these craters as well, which wasn’t a part of any language spoken today…or ever, for that matter. She would know, she knew them all - thanks to her father’s extensive library.

"Wow..." Rayza grabbed the lantern, holding it higher to catch a glimpse of what else was engraved upon the stone. Unfortunately, the carving of the North was just out of her sight, even with her on her tiptoes.

It didn’t look like much more of this chunk had survived, anyhow - there was a crack right where the northern landmass of the Ashen Order began. The other walls around were smooth, illegible rock that had long since lost the history inscribed upon it.

“Dark blue. Permanent.“ Ionyr said, followed by the sounds of scribbling. While he copied the image in the stone, she held the lantern in place for him.

"Told you. My nose is never wrong." He said as he finished his copy.

“Fine, you were right about the cave.” She begrudgingly admitted. “But there’s something off here, I can feel it.”

“It’s not just you.” Ionyr packed the notebook into his satchel and slung it over his shoulder. "I can feel it too."

If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

“But you’re not backing down, are you?” He grinned.

“Nope. I’m getting goosebumps.” Ionyr said giddily. “Now that we are this close, why stop?”

“Idiot.” Rayza sighed, but couldn’t hold back a smile. He was her idiot, after all, chasing that dream of his at all cost. What else did she expect? It’s why she fell in love with him to begin with. “Whatever will I do with you?”

“After yesterday night, you’ve done more than enough.” That cheeky prick.

“Good point, you should do more.” She thrust the lantern into his hand and motioned for him to lead the way. “Go on, then.”

Ionyr laughed and took her outstretched hand. As they went deeper, the tunnel began curving to the right. Slowly at first, then more and more. Were they going in a big circle around the crater? It certainly didn’t help Rayza with those mental images of a snake coiling around its victim. The longer they walked, the more the darkness weighed upon them. A heavy blanket that muted all sounds, blinded their vision and stifled any lingering scent.

Only the echo of their steps and the protective sphere of the lantern's light shielded them from the pitch blackness. The floor was very uneven, with many small, almost bubble-like protrusions lining its dark grey surface. There were a few cracks here and there, likely from debris that had fallen from the ceiling. The ceiling, which itself looked like dripping...salivating...rock.

"Say." Rayza said, sweating heavily. "Mind if I borrow your flask? Forgot to fill up mine."

"Here you go." Ionyr handed her his flask.

She thanked him and drank a hearty mouthful of water. "Is it just me, or has it gotten really warm in here?" She asked, panting heavily.

Ionyr stopped in his tracks. Wiping his brow, he found his forehead full of sweat. "You're right. Let me have some too."

She handed him the flask. So it wasn’t just Rayza’s mind playing tricks on her - it was getting hotter the deeper they went. Much to her dismay, the sweat was starting to make them stink. As he sipped from it, Rayza leaned against the wall. She was surprised to find it noticeably warm. So that mural earlier really was warm. Confused, she kneeled down to check the floor. The instant she pressed her hand to the rock, she yelped and pulled it away.

"Son of a - the floor’s hot!" She said, taking off her glove, which gave off the smell of charred leather. Her hand was red from the heat.

Ionyr grabbed her wrist and placed his flask in her palm. Thankfully, it was still relatively cool, which helped abate the pain of the burn. "Should we bail?" He asked.

Rayza was grateful for the suggestion, but annoyed at his disappointed tone. "Yes. We aren’t ready to go deeper. Let’s grab some water before we come back."

"But…” He sighed, seeing her stern expression. "Fine.”

As they turned around, they could hear a quiet rumbling. It was barely noticeable at first.

“I don’t like that.” She said, feeling the floor start to shake. Alarm bells were going off in her mind.

“Me neither.” Ionyr agreed, visibly tense as the brittle rocks beneath their feet made cracking sounds. He grabbed her hand, realising the danger they were in. “Now’s the time. We run.”

Ionyr began making a run for the exit, dragging Rayza after him. The rumbling quickly became loud and all-encompassing. Taken over by instinct and fuelled by panic, their steps became faster and faster as their bodies attempted to outrun nature’s wrath.

It was incredibly hard for them to keep their balance with the already uneven terrain shaking beneath their feet. As they ran around the bend, Rayza tripped over a crack in the rock. She scraped her knee on the rock, letting out a hiss. Thankfully it wasn’t as hot as it was further down.

Without missing a beat, Ionyr pulled her up onto her feet, then picked her up in a princess carry. As he continued his mad dash, his face was contorted into an unhinged grimace. Exhaustion and desperation marred his handsome features. Rayza bit her lip, knowing full well that all she could do was hold the lantern for him. Yet right as he ran around the last of the curve…

It stopped. As quickly as it came.

“Thank the Spirits.” Rayza said, dropping from his arms and walking at Ionyr’s side at a brisk pace. Both of them were panting heavily.

"You jinxed it." Ionyr said, looking far too fresh, considering the feat he’d just performed. He always was the fittest of the three of them - Ielus and Rayza could never compare to his speed, strength or stamina. Hardened by their travels, sure, but this went beyond that. Freak of nature, he was. All Rayza could do in her exhausted, flushed and very sweaty state was glare at him.

“Idiot.” She mumbled angrily, swiping the lantern from his hand. She needed a bath. Her clothes were getting sticky, and the stench of her own sweat didn’t help either. “Let’s go…”

As she turned to begin trudging for the exit, she bumped into a rocky wall with her shoulder. She grumpily rubbed her sore spot and held up the lantern to find the way. Right, there was the wall of grey rock she walked into. On her right was another…and so there was on the left.

Her body shook as the grim reality of their situation set in - but this couldn’t be happening. No. Please, no. Not like this. But sure enough, the only remaining way for them to go was behind them - back into the dark. They were…

"Trapped." She said, her voice trembling too. “We’re trapped.” Running her hands along the rocks in their path only confirmed it. A nightmare. This was a nightmare.