Descending from Floor 7 felt off. Floor 8 was eerily vacant. There were no goblins, no slimes, not even the small creatures that usually roamed the floor. Their torches flickered against the cold stone walls while the sound of their boots echoed too loud in the absence of monsters.
Vex frowned as he scanned the ground. "There's nothing here. Not a single trace."
Lyra brushed her fingers over the damp moss on the wall. "The mana flow feels all twisted, like it's been drawn deeper."
Aldric scoffed, though his voice was tighter than before. "So they moved. Creatures migrate. That's hardly unusual."
Kael let out a low whistle. "Then where the hell are they hiding? This silence is creeping me out."
Marcus said nothing, but his sword stayed unsheathed.
Eron lagged behind with the other two porters, feeling the heavy weight of his pack digging into his shoulders as sweat soaked through his collar. He kept quiet.
The skinny porter smirked at him. "Even the dungeon doesn't want you, mountain folk."
The bald one grunted. "Don't worry. Something'll eat him soon enough."
Eron's grip on the straps tightened. If even the adventurers look nervous, this isn't normal.
By Floor 9, the unease had worsened, with bones scattered through the hallways. Some fresh, some old. And deep scratches gouged the stone. They weren't the marks of wolves or goblins, but longer, heavier cuts like something had dragged claws as thick as swords along the walls.
The skinny porter, who had been talkative earlier, was now quiet, his eyes darting nervously at every sound. The bald one couldn't stay still, shifting his weight from foot to foot and gripping the strap of his pack as if ready to bolt at any moment.
Vex crouched over a cracked ribcage. "Not from this floor. I've never seen breaks this clean."
Lyra's lips pressed tight. "This is wrong. This floor's supposed to be manageable for Silver Ranks."
Aldric muttered, "Enough. We adapt and keep going," but even he avoided looking at the carcass.
The GrayWolf party moved slower, with torches hissing faintly as they flared in the damp air, and the silence pressed closer the deeper they went.
The stairwell to Floor 10 opened into a cavern far larger than any they'd passed, with the ceiling stretching beyond their torchlight and disappearing into shadow. The floor was cracked and pitted while pools of dark water reflected their faint firelight. The smell of copper, musk, and wet fur hung heavy in the air.
Vex stiffened. "Something's here."
Suddenly, two bright eyes appeared in the dark, quickly followed by two more, making a total of four glowing eyes.
Eron stood frozen, shaking as a chill ran down his spine, his back slick with cold sweat. "What… what is that?" he gasped.
The creature slowly advanced, its powerful body moving low to the ground, with huge arms scraping against the stone as it walked. Each step showed off the muscles beneath its tough, scaly skin. A sharp horn poked out from its head, and its mouth was filled with daunting fangs that could slice through steel. Its long tail swished through the air with a loud crack, sending sparks flying across the cave floor, while its claws left deep scratches in the stone with every move.
Lyra's breath caught in her throat. "This isn't noted anywhere. I've checked the records for floors one to thirty-eight, and there's nothing like this mentioned."
Aldric's complexion had lost all its color. "So, it originated from even deeper levels."
Marcus's expression was firm and unyielding. "Vex, up front! Make sure it doesn't break through!"
The creature let out a deafening roar, causing the whole cave to tremble. Before Vex could get ready, it charged at him, its enormous arm swinging and smashing into him. He was slammed against the wall, screaming as the impact shattered his armor.
Kael loosed an arrow and it snapped against the creature's hide. Another arrow buried shallow in its shoulder, only making it snarl louder.
Aldric shouted a spell and a wave of bright orange fire shot out from his staff, hitting the monster right in the chest. For a brief moment, the whole cavern was illuminated by the flames. But then, to Aldric's shock, the creature moved right through the fire, completely unharmed.
The bald porter yelled, his voice breaking. "We're finished… we're all going to die!" He gripped his head tightly, his fingers digging into his scalp like he was trying to hold himself together. His eyes were wide and unfocused, and he looked like he was about to lose it.
The skinny porter's voice cracked as he stared, eyes wide in shock. "It's over. We're done for!"
Marcus let out a growl as he swung his sword at the creature's leg, but it hardly made a dent. The beast's tail lashed through the air, just grazing past him, its gaze locked onto Marcus. Frightened, the scrawny porter took off, his feet scrambling over the rocky cavern floor. But in his rush, he caught the monster's attention. The tail struck out again, and suddenly the porter's scream was silenced as he slammed against the cavern wall with a sickening thud. He crumpled to the ground and lay there, motionless.
Eron felt a twist in his stomach, and a chill went down his spine. Just like that, the porter was gone. One moment he was there, and the next, he was lifeless.
The creature let out another terrifying roar as it charged toward the group that was spread out in panic. The bald porter completely lost it, tossed aside his pack, and turned to flee. "I refuse to die here!"
"Stay in formation!" Marcus shouted. "Use the porters if you have to!"
The words hit Eron like ice water. That's why they wanted three of us. We're bait. Nothing more.
The bald porter grabbed him by the pack and shoved him in the direction of the creature. "Just take him instead!" he yelled before completely losing it, breaking into uncontrollable laughter and running across the cavern floor like he'd lost his mind.
Eron stumbled forward, nearly falling to his knees. "You—are you insane?!" he yelled, his voice shaking with panic. His heart raced so loudly that it drowned out the growl of the monster, and for a split second, he couldn't figure out whether he was more afraid of the creature or the people he had come with.
Eron lost his footing as he was shoved toward the creature. It felt like the ground was collapsing underneath him, and he barely dodged the huge tail that swung by, which jolted pain through his ribs. Pebbles crunched under him, and before he knew it, he was falling into the void, with nothing to grab onto.
He fell into complete darkness. The air howled around him as his backpack jostled against his back, and the rough rocks grazed his arms while he spiraled out of control through the abyss. It felt like the drop would never end, going deeper than any ravine and further than anyone could imagine.
He tried to scream, but the sound of the rushing air swallowed it whole. As he fell, the walls sparkled with a soft blue light from crystals stuck in them, and he caught glimpses of caverns that appeared and disappeared around him as he continued to drop deeper. Each time he passed through another layer, the fall seemed to slow, as if the air itself thickened around him. Faint runes glowed on the walls of every passing floor, pulsing like heartbeats, bending gravity in strange rhythms. The deeper he went, the slower he fell, until it almost felt like the dungeon was choosing how fast he should descend.
"Damn… this is really deep," Eron said, his voice shaky. "Is this how it all ends for me?" For just a moment, amidst all the chaos and the rushing wind, he remembered Sarah's smile, warm, tender, and painfully far away.
He hit the icy water hard, and all the breath was knocked out of him. The cold engulfed him completely, and the pressure of the water felt like it was squeezing him from every direction. Even though his chest felt like it was on fire, his instincts kicked in, and he started flailing his arms like crazy. He kicked and reached for the surface, desperate to break free.
At last, he broke the surface, gasping for air while coughing and sputtering. The distinct taste of mineral-rich water still tingled on his tongue. Between heavy breaths, he managed to whisper, "I survived... I thought I was going to die." He let out a shaky laugh between coughs. "I'm really fortunate that there's a lake right where I landed." Each deep breath echoed in the quiet space around him.
As he turned his head, a rush of fear hit him. The cave seemed endless, far bigger than anything he had seen on the upper levels. Patches of dark water covered the floor, forming thin streams that vanished into the shadows. The air was thick and moist, and every small sound bounced around the massive space.
Out of nowhere, he noticed movement on the opposite side of the underground lake. A dark shape shifted in the shadows, far too large to be anything ordinary, before slipping back into the water. Then, two dim eyes glimmered across the lake, staring straight at him.
"Dammit," he muttered under his breath. "I survive the fall just to die to a monster instead."
Eron's breath caught in his throat as he froze, eyes wide with shock. A deep growl rumbled through the cave, the sound vibrating in his chest.
He didn't know where he was, but the terror etched on the adventurers' faces wouldn't leave his mind. The memory alone filled him with dread. He had fallen into a place no one had ever returned from.
Now, surrounded by suffocating darkness, he braced himself to face whatever waited below.