The cave was dimly lit by a small fire, its flickering light casting eerie shadows on the rough walls. The night outside was a void of darkness, punctuated only by distant, unearthly sounds—inhuman shrieks and the guttural growls of things better left unseen. Asher sat near the entrance, his silver hair falling over his face as he stared at the abyss below. The mountain cliff offered them some safety, but he knew it was only temporary. The horrors that lurked in the sky were relentless, and sooner or later, they would come.
Nerrisa approached him, her dark cloak blending into the shadows as she knelt beside him.
"What's going on?" she asked, her voice softer than before.
Asher sighed, rubbing his temples. "I'm losing all hope, Nerrisa. I never thought I'd miss the real world, but I do. I don't want to die here." His voice wavered. "The thought of it… it makes me feel sick."
Nerrisa's face turned somber. She hesitated for a moment before speaking.
"Come. It's time for a proper introduction. If we're going to survive together, we need to know each other's strengths and weaknesses."
The fire crackled as the survivors gathered around. Asher and Jeremy glanced at the six figures seated before them, each one bearing the scars of long years in the cursed realm.
Nerrisa sat down first. "I'll start."
Nerrisa pulled down her hood, revealing striking high cheekbones and piercing green eyes. Her face was lined with weariness, but beneath it was the sharp beauty of a woman who had once lived a different life.
"I am Nerrisa. Once the wife of Malek, leader of the survivors." Her tone hardened at the mention of his name. "I was a healer in another life, but healing means little in a place where death is inevitable."
She looked into the fire, her expression distant. "Malek and I were trapped here together. At first, we clung to each other, believing we could escape. But over time, he changed. He became… something else." She clenched her fists. "Survival at any cost—that became his only goal. Even if it meant sacrificing those he swore to protect."
She looked up, her gaze sharp. "If you trust him, you will regret it."
Jeremy and Asher exchanged a glance.
A dark figure shifted on the other side of the fire. Malek. His hollow eyes gleamed in the dim light as he leaned forward.
"I won't waste time on pleasantries," he said, his voice like gravel. "I lead this group because I have survived the longest. If you want to live, you will follow my rules."
His gaze bore into them. "Hope is a weakness here. It gets you killed. Strength is the only currency that matters."
Nerrisa scoffed. "Tell them about the Blood Exchange."
Jeremy frowned. "The what?"
Malek smirked. "The reason I'm still alive." He held up his arms, revealing deep scars. "You see, the Dark Trench doesn't just take—it gives, too. But you have to be willing to bleed for it."
Asher swallowed. He had a feeling he didn't want to know more.
A frail woman sat beside Malek, her brown hair tangled, her skin sickly pale. She wore a tattered hospital gown, and her arms were covered in deep scratches, as if she had clawed at herself in agony.
"I am Celia," she whispered, her voice barely audible. "The voices tell me things. They say…" Her gaze shifted to Jeremy, and she tilted her head. "You don't belong here."
Jeremy tensed.
Asher instinctively moved closer to him. "What do you mean?"
Celia only smiled, her lips cracked and bleeding. "You'll see."
The burly man beside her huffed. He had a single eye and a body riddled with scars. His muscular frame, though wounded, exuded a presence of raw power.
"Gideon," he grunted. "I was a soldier once. Doesn't matter now." He pointed at Asher. "You need training if you want to survive. You're fast, but speed won't save you from the dead witches."
"The dead witches?" Jeremy echoed.
Gideon's eye darkened. "You'll find out soon enough."
A woman with ghostly pale skin and silver-white hair sat cross-legged, her violet eyes unblinking. She seemed both detached and hyper-aware of her surroundings, as if she existed in two realities at once.
"Lia," she said simply.
"Anything else?" Asher asked.
She smiled faintly. "Your soul is… different."
Asher stiffened.
"Different how?"
She didn't answer.
A wiry young man with sharp features and shifty gray eyes smirked.
"I'm Felix," he said, flashing a toothy grin. "You don't need to trust me. I wouldn't trust me either."
That didn't sit well with Asher also he was beginning to feel so creeped out.
Finally, the small girl with curly black hair and large brown eyes clutched her stuffed rabbit tightly. She didn't speak, only watching Asher and Jeremy with quiet curiosity.
"Her name is Rue," Gideon said gruffly. "She doesn't talk much, but she sees everything."
The introductions ended, but the weight of each survivor's past lingered.
Jeremy turned to Asher, voice low. "Asher, are we really stupid for hoping on leaving here ?"
Asher hesitated before whispering, "I don't know, Jimmy. I don't know they is no harm in hope at least it's what keeps us sane from these horrors."
Jeremy sighed, then leaned into Asher's warmth. "At least we will face them together."
Jimmy voice made Asher to let out a painful smile, the truth kept on making him mad because as it seems he was falling for a straight guy who will eventually crush his heart, what a moron he was.
"Together." Jimmy says he doubt Jeremy would ever be his, he shouldn't be greedy who was he kidding unrequited love was the worse.
NOTE: A VERY SHORT CHAPTER SO TOMORROW DAILY UPDATES RESUMES EITHER A CHAPTER OR DOUBLE UPDATES, SO CONTINUE WITH ME LOVELIES AND USE YOUR POWER STONES TO BOOST THE STORY AND COMMENTS AND ADD TO YOUR COLLECTION.