As they moved deeper into the dungeon, the faint hum of dripping water was suddenly drowned out by a thunderous rumble.
The ground quaked violently beneath their feet. Dust and stones rained from above. The once-silent walls began to crack — long, jagged lines spreading across the stone like veins of destruction.
"Earthquake!?" Rita shouted, clutching her staff.
"No… it's something else!" Lux yelled back, eyes darting around the chamber.
The tremor intensified — the ceiling began to cave in. Massive boulders fell, shattering the stone floor. The torches along the walls flickered and went out, plunging the passage into choking darkness.
"Everyone! Run!" Silver bellowed.
The team scattered in panic, the chaos splitting them apart. Ron dove down a narrow corridor to avoid a falling rock and Rita followed behind. Lux tried to follow her but the massive slab crashed between them, sealing the path.
"Altleno!" someone screamed — but the voice was swallowed by the echoing thunder of the cave-in.
Altleno leapt aside just as part of the ceiling gave way. The rumble finally stopped, leaving behind a heavy silence. Dust floated through the air like ash, covering Altleno's hair and shoulders. He coughed lightly, brushing it off, his eyes scanning the dark corridor. Panting, dust clouding his vision. His heart pounded as he looked around — but there was no one in sight.
"Rita! Lux! Silver! Ron!" he shouted, but only silence answered. The air was thick with falling debris and the distant groans of shifting stone and the faint dripping of water from somewhere deep within.
He steadied his breathing.
Altleno froze.
"That wasn't an earthquake," he muttered, eyes narrowing. "Something strange is happening "
He took a careful step forward. The torches that once lined the walls had gone out, shattered or buried. Now, faint veins of blue light pulsed along the cracks in the stone — veins that weren't there before. They looked like they were alive.
Altleno bent down and touched one of them, and it flickered violently. A sudden rush of cold air swept through the hall, almost like the dungeon itself was breathing. He stepped back immediately, his instincts flaring.
> "No… I can't just stand here."
He started walking , slower this time. Each step crunched against fragments of stone. The air grew thicker, and the mana around him began to shift — wild and unstable, reacting to something unseen.
He waited for a few seconds, heart pounding, and then kept walking — deeper into the maze of twisting halls.