The stone statue suddenly lit up, scarlet red filaments running through its cracks, pulsing like flaming veins. Its eyes blazed with a threatening glow, and its head immediately turned toward Veil, who was still standing on the slab he had accidentally activated.
Alynia, alerted by the change, glanced toward the massive door behind the statue. She noticed the first symbol carved above it had just begun to glow faintly.
"It's working… He has to activate all the slabs to open that door," Alynia thought, urgently.
She wanted to warn Veil, but a deafening BOOM cut her off. The statue had taken a step, its massive feet shattering the ground beneath its weight.
Its spear struck the floor like a hammer, pulverizing the stone around it.
"Little Wolf! Move it and activate all the slabs! Look at the symbol, it's working!" Alynia shouted, alarmed.
She pointed at the glowing symbol above the door, but her attention was quickly pulled back to the statue. She began running toward it, determined to distract it.
Each of the statue's steps made the ground shake, cracks forming with every impact.
"Hurry up! If it destroys a slab, we're stuck here forever!" she screamed as she ran.
The statue raised its immense foot to move forward, and Alynia picked up speed. Reaching its level, she leapt toward its colossal foot, her claws flashing with a metallic gleam.
The contact between her claws and the stone produced a spray of sparks, but the statue was incredibly solid. Its surface, reinforced by a metal-like material, barely gave way. Only a fine scratch marked its foot.
"It's like scratching armor… I have to slow it down, no matter what," she growled, frustrated.
Veil, meanwhile, stood up again, eyes fixed on the wall. He quickly identified the next symbol, its complex lines carved next to the first. His heart raced as he realized the floor slabs no longer matched the path Alynia had taken earlier.
"They've changed… I need to find the matching one," Veil thought, focused.
He searched frantically around him, scanning the slabs for the matching engraving. To his left, he finally spotted the symbol, slightly recessed.
Veil rushed over and jumped onto the slab, which immediately lit up with a bright red glow, strengthening the symbol's shine above the door.
A nervous smile appeared on his face, but he didn't have time to enjoy the small success.
"Keep going, Little Wolf! No breaks!" Alynia shouted.
She leapt to dodge a movement from the statue, its massive foot crushing the ground where she had been just moments before.
"One broken slab, and it's over for us," Veil murmured, tense.
His gaze turned back to the wall, desperately searching for the next symbol among the complex engravings.
Alynia, for her part, was doing everything she could to keep the statue occupied and prevent it from getting any closer to the slabs. The massive creature raised its colossal weapon and brought it down with a deafening crash, pulverizing the ground where Alynia had stood just moments earlier.
Veil instinctively turned his eyes toward the scene, a cloud of dust rising into the air, obscuring his vision.
"Alynia! Are you okay?!" he shouted, worried.
Amidst the debris and swirling dust, he heard her voice—strong and vibrant despite the tension.
"Move it, Little Wolf! Or I'm gonna end up as pâté!" Alynia screamed.
He gritted his teeth and refocused on the symbols. He finally found the matching engraving and spotted the corresponding slab a bit further away. Without wasting a second, he dashed to activate it, while Alynia continued distracting the statue by dodging its attacks.
The statue raised its weapon again, this time slamming it down with even more force, shattering the ground with a tremendous crash. The impact created a shockwave that threw Veil off balance mid-leap.
His foot landed on the target slab, which lit up and activated another symbol above the door. But the jolt caused him to stumble, and he fell onto a neighboring slab.
CLACK.
A mechanical, ominous sound echoed through the room, followed by the sudden eruption of a black spike shooting across the corridor at lightning speed, slamming violently into the opposite wall.
Veil, breathless and shaken, realized he had just triggered a trap.
"What was that?!" Veil thought, panicked.
Alynia, still busy dodging the statue's relentless attacks, didn't immediately register what had just happened. She was surrounded by dust and debris, focused entirely on the massive threat trying to crush her.
"Alynia! Check the door! I can't see it from here!" he shouted, panicked.
Alerted by his tone, Alynia quickly turned her gaze toward the door. Her eyes locked onto the symbols above it, and she frowned.
"The symbols are still lit, but… there's a new line! A red one this time! What did you do?!" Alynia yelled, alarmed.
She narrowly dodged a kick from the statue, her claws scraping the floor as she regained her balance.
"I tripped! The shock made me activate a slab I wasn't supposed to touch!" Veil explained, rushed.
Alynia winced at the answer.
"Little Wolf, I can't do everything! Be more careful—mistakes come at a price here!" she shouted, irritated.
She spun around quickly, her mind racing.
"If this new red line means something else… we could be in serious danger. I have to keep that statue away from the slabs, no matter what," Alynia whispered, tense.
On his side, Veil took a deep breath, trying to steady his nerves.
"Focus. You don't get any more mistakes," Veil said, resolute.
He turned his gaze back to the wall, frantically scanning for the next symbol, determined to keep going despite the crushing pressure. Every second seemed to stretch infinitely, the weight of urgency pressing on his shoulders.
Veil identified the next symbol, his eyes sweeping across the slabs to find the match. Once he spotted it, he dashed forward without hesitation, slamming his foot down. The slab lit up, and another symbol appeared above the door.
Between each activation, his eyes kept drifting toward Alynia. She was doing everything she could to distract the statue, but her fatigue was beginning to show. Her dodges, once smooth and swift, were becoming more strained.
"She's reaching her limit. I have to hurry…" Veil murmured, worried.
The statue, massive though it was, moved forward relentlessly, its speed unchanging. Each step of the immense creature shook the ground, and Alynia, breathless, struggled to maintain her rhythm.
"I have to hold out… just a little longer," Alynia whispered, exhausted.
But the distance between them was closing fast. As she barely avoided a kick, the statue scraped its weapon along the ground, aiming it dangerously toward her. Alynia, drained, realized she no longer had the strength to dodge.
Seeing the shadow of the massive weapon looming closer, a fleeting phrase slipped from her lips.
"Sorry, Little Wolf… I couldn't hold on any longer," she whispered, resigned.
She closed her eyes, ready to accept the inevitable.
GONGG.
The metallic sound rang throughout the chamber. Alynia's eyes flew open. The statue had frozen, its weapon halted just inches from her body.
The red filaments running through its stone body gradually dimmed, fading until they went out completely. Cracks began spreading across its surface, and within moments, the towering stone creature had lost all life.
Alynia, still frozen in surprise, let out a sigh of relief.
"What just happened? Why did it stop?" she said, puzzled.
Hurried footsteps behind her made her flinch. Veil gently placed a hand on her shoulder.
"It's over, Alynia. I did it," Veil said with a faint, amused smile.
She looked at him, catching her breath. A smirk tugged at her lips.
"Took you long enough, Little Wolf. Any longer and I would've let myself get sliced in half just to deal with the slabs myself," Alynia replied, mocking but relieved.
Despite her exhaustion, she managed a smile, glad that the nightmare was finally over. Her breathing was still fast, but she slowly straightened, her gaze locking onto the door at the far end of the room.
Their moment of respite was cut short by a sharp, clear CLICK. The sound came from the door, which had just unlocked, confirming their success.
"Want to rest a bit before we move on?" Veil asked, curious but concerned.
"No. We have to keep going. We don't know how long it'll last, and staying here will only wear us down," Alynia answered, resolute but calm.
They headed toward the door, their steps echoing across the cracked floor. Once again, just like on the previous levels, they discovered a spiral staircase descending even deeper.
"If we end up dying down here, at least we're already underground. Saves someone the trouble of digging our graves," Veil muttered, tired.
Alynia rolled her eyes but couldn't suppress a smile.
"Stop talking nonsense and move, Little Wolf," Alynia said, dry but amused.
They began to descend the stairs, their minds already turning toward the unknown awaiting them on the next level.
"If each trial gets harder… what's waiting for us next?" she murmured, wary.
"We'll see it through to the end, no matter what," Veil said, determined.