Early Morning, Packing Up Camp
The air was cold and damp, the fire was now nothing more than a few smouldering embers. The first hints of sunlight broke through the treetops, casting pale gold streaks across the forest floor.
Delwyn pulled her cloak tighter around her shoulders, still shaking off the lingering exhaustion from yesterday. The dull ache in her head from the dwarven drinking contest had finally faded, replaced by the usual tension that came with being hunted.
Mira finished tying off her pack and swung it over her shoulder. "So, what's the plan?"
Vaelor tightened the straps on his saddle. "We move at first light."
Joren grunted as he adjusted his armour. "About time. I don't like staying in one place too long."
Delwyn scanned the terrain ahead. "We're still too close to Brimholt. If Galborn's men have our trail, they'll be expecting us to take the main road south. We need to go through the hills instead."
Elias sighed. "So a longer route with more things that can kill us?"
Delwyn smirked. "Wouldn't want you getting comfortable."
Talia finished securing her own gear, her quiet voice breaking through. "We'll need supplies before we reach the Ember Peaks. There's a village a day's ride from here. Might be worth stopping there."
Mira raised an eyebrow. "And what if it's crawling with Hounds?"
Vaelor exhaled. "Then we deal with it."
There was no argument to that.
****
They rode in silence for the first few hours, the terrain growing rockier as they moved into the foothills.
Delwyn used the time to watch Vaelor.
He had been more reserved than usual, his expression unreadable as his horse moved ahead of the group.
She urged her horse forward, matching his pace. "You're quiet."
Vaelor didn't look at her. "You say that like it's new."
Delwyn sighed. "You know what I mean."
Vaelor exhaled slowly. "You want more answers."
Delwyn's brow furrowed. "You keep acting like I don't deserve them."
Vaelor finally glanced at her. "And if you hear something you don't want to know?"
Delwyn's jaw tightened. "I already know too much. One more horror won't change that."
Vaelor studied her for a moment, then looked forward again. "The Rift isn't just a gate," he said finally. "It's a summoning wound. An unnatural tear between this world and the Vehrak Plain."
Delwyn swallowed. "I know that much."
Vaelor's voice remained calm, measured. "But what you don't know—what Galborn does—is that it doesn't just bring things through. It pulls things in."
Delwyn frowned. "Pulls in what?"
Vaelor's jaw clenched. "People. Entire cities, if it grows strong enough."
The words hit her like a hammer.
Mira, riding just behind them, finally spoke. "Wait. Are you saying the Rift can consume this world?"
Vaelor didn't answer right away.
When he did, it was a quiet, grim "Yes."
The weight of the answer settled heavily over them all.
Elias let out a low curse. "That's… worse than I thought."
Talia's knuckles whitened around her reins. "And you've known this for how long?"
Vaelor's face remained unreadable. "Long enough."
Delwyn, however, wasn't done. Not even close.
"Back at camp, you said Galborn took something from you," she pressed. "What was it?"
Vaelor exhaled slowly, but before he could answer—
A scream cut through the trees.
****
The scent of smoke thickened.
Then, as they cleared the last hill, they saw it.
A small village, wooden houses huddled close, the fields beyond trampled, scorched.
And at the centre—
A Vehrak Gate.
It hovered above the cracked earth, its jagged edges pulsing with dark energy. The Rift swayed unnaturally, tendrils of shadow crawling along the ground, latching onto whatever they could find.
And the creatures…
They were pouring through.
Twisted figures of blackened bone and shifting smoke, their eyes hollow but burning with unnatural hunger.
One of them grabbed a villager—a woman screaming, clawing at the dirt—before it dragged her into the Rift.
Then, she was gone.
Delwyn drew her sword. "No. Not again."
She didn't hesitate.
She charged.