Chapter 13: Hidden Treasures Part 2

As I close my fingers around the artifact, I feel a rush go through me. The energy surging from the box is both invigorating and disorienting, making my vision blur momentarily. Elara watches me closely, concern etched on her face.

"Are you alright, Orin?" she asks, stepping closer.

"I'm fine," I reply, shaking off the strange sensation. "It's just... powerful."

Elara nods, her eyes fixed on the artifact. "Let's take it back to the inn. We need to understand what we're dealing with before we proceed further."

With the artifact secured in my pack, we make our way out of the ruins. The sun has long set, only the moon and stars casting their light upon the surface. The calm moonlight contrasts sharply with the flickering torchlight that had illuminated our battles in the ruins. With the powerful artifact in our bag, it seems dangerous to stay in the ruins, but a trip through the even darker forest filled with powerful foes presents an equally daunting challenge.

An unknown pressure, emanating from the artifact, drives me to head into the forest in a direction opposite the city, toward the mountains. Elara, seeing me walking in the wrong direction, stops me.

"Orin, this is the wrong way. We should not be heading to the mountains; only death awaits us there. Dragons inhabit the mountain range north of the city."

Laying her hand on my shoulder, she shakes me awake from my trance and I stop moving.

"I think we should head there. Whatever this artifact is, it is dangerous. But it also seems connected to my past, I think. It just feels very... nostalgic, like... we should head there."

"Okay, then let's go through the forest, but we won't step into the mountains. You get it? Keep your eyes open and stay alert!"

With our decision made, we start heading through the forest. The forest, only lit by the moonlight, seems like an abyss trying to swallow us whole. In the distance, I hear the flow of a river and water splashing, the flapping of wings hunting for critters, and the howling of wolves. In spite of the noise, the forest feels ominously silent, the leaves in a breathless hush, like a cathedral awaiting the rising sun.

We walk silently through the forest, keeping ourselves covered from what might lurk in the darkness, not knowing what might await us. I use my shadow magic for us to blend in with the darkness. The shadows slowly creep up our bodies until we are shadows moving from tree to tree, from root to root.

Our path unknown in the darkness of this silent forest, the way feels long, stretched beyond comprehension. Suddenly, we see a light in the distance. Cautious, I look at Elara, her hand outstretched, bringing me to a halt.

"The city is far away, so stay vigilant. Nobody should be here!"

A bit unnerved, we silently sneak towards the origin of the light. As we creep near the light, the sounds of laughter and chatting disturb the silence.

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We keep on walking to figure out the origin of the noise, breaking through the forest. The voices become louder and louder as we make our way nearer to their origin. Then, we see them: it's multiple men and women sitting around a campfire, its light illuminating their faces as they talk. Their faces, ones I don't recognize myself, but Elara lets out a small sound of surprise, quickly drowned in the sea of laughter. Elara indicates one of the people, an elderly man dressed in white priestly gowns, stands out from the rest. The priests, especially those of the Order of Lumos, are often revered for their protection by their deity, and despite this, this priest is chained to one of the trees. Seeing this, one thing becomes very clear: these are no normal travelers or adventurers; they are bandits.

There are about ten men and women, excluding the priest. Still engulfed in shadows, we make our way to the chained priest. Our footsteps silent and our presence well hidden. Approaching the priest, we see wounds all over his body. The poor man. Once we arrive, I slowly creep out of the shadow, Elara keeping watch for the bandits. I remove the gag on the priest, my index finger over my mouth to indicate silence.

"What happened to you? How come you are here, chained by those bandits?"

"You must save them; they're in danger!"

"Who is in danger? Those bandits or is there anyone else besides you?"

"I-I was... I was with the saint of the Order of Lumos and our escorts. We were on our way to town when we were attacked by a dragon. As the escorts were fending off this beast of a dragon, the bandits suddenly started attacking. I tried my best to buy time for the saint and cardinal to escape, but was captured and don't know if they managed to escape!"

"Now, now, please stay calm. I don't think they are here, so they must've escaped. So please wait a bit; we'll return soon!" Saying this, I put the gag back on the priest and return with Elara back into the shadows.

Back in the shadows, we leave the campsite to discuss our next moves on how to deal with the situation.

"Elara, we need to save this priest!"

"I know, but it's dangerous. They seem well-equipped and have a huge advantage in both numbers and experience."

"Yes, but we have the element of surprise, so at least we have one advantage."

"Let's go back to scout them once again. We need more information, like what their attack types are. Mages and archers would be the worst foes to face, especially in this dark forest. Should we come across any mages or archers, try to take them out directly from the shadows."

With our decisions made, we head back to the enemy camp. The ten bandits still converse like nothing has happened. The ten around the campfire all have variations of melee weapons, one even has an enormous axe. A bit from the campfire are tents erected for them to sleep in. Peeking into them, we discover a total of five more bandits, one even seems to be a mage.

Signing to Elara, we decide to deal with the ones inside first. I concentrate on the shadows in the forest, the shadows cast from the fire, and from the moon. Then, on the shadows in myself, feeling the connection to the shadows strengthen, I cast my magic. Silently, dark tendrils emerge from the shadows, pulling the sleeping bandits into the abyss.

Having dealt with the first group of bandits, I make the first attack. In the shadows of the bandits, cast by the campfire, vines start to emerge, binding the shadows themselves to the place. The bandits, struggling to comprehend what happened and trying to move, are swiftly knocked out cold by Elara.

With the bandits now posing no threat, we quickly disarm, gag, and tie them together. The worst part is over. I head back to the chained priest to free him from the chains that bind him.

"It's over now. Now we can look for your saint!"

"Thank you, thank you dearly for freeing me from the chains that have bound me for so long!"

With the priest freed and the bandits dealt with, all seems good. I return with the priest back to Elara. As we regroup with Elara, the artifact starts to glow, illuminating the whole forest in a blinding light. After the light fades, both the priest and the bandits have disappeared.

We stand in shock, the artifact now cold and still in my hands. The sudden disappearance leaves us confused and worried. Elara and I exchange glances, both unsure of what to do next.