---Page 13----
"What happened to you, Kael?"
The words were barely a whisper, lost in the crackle of the dying fire, but Arin and Rynveil both heard.
I sat on a rough-hewn log, my arms hanging heavy between my knees, my gaze fixed on the embers. The question hung in the air, unanswered, a weight that settled over us.
Rynveil, ever the one to break the silence, spoke, his voice low and thoughtful.
"This Kael guy, seems like he was fueled with vengeance more than a killing brute."
Arin rolled his eyes, his gaze sweeping the tree line.
"We have a lead. We get the kid some rest and we move at dawn."
Seville stirred, his eyes fluttering open. He pushed himself up, wincing slightly, but there was a new resolve in his gaze, a spark of his earlier strength returning.
"My father," he rasped, his voice still hoarse.
"The others. They're still down there. We have to go back. Now."
He tried to stand, swaying on his feet.
"Please.. We can't leave them. They risked everything for me. I can't just… I can't just let them be gone."
His hands trembled, clenching and unclenching.
"I have to know. I have to go back for them." His desperation was raw, palpable.
I placed a hand on his shoulder, steadying him. The boy's plea was a spear to my conscience. He was right. We couldn't abandon them.
I breathed into the cold, and then the voice entered my head like a hand on glass.
Master.
I flinched. I looked around, half expecting someone to have spoken. The voice was not in my ears but inside my head, familiar and calm. Nivarra.
Nivarra?
Yes, Master Kinon.
How...??
It is the skill of the Pageborn and their Chronicle Bearer, she answered. Once the bond is true, distance matters less.
My hand tightened on my sword.
What's happening out there, Master?
We encountered some of the assassin's from the Tyrant Hands.
Is thas so, ahmm.... By the way, Master! Actually, there's something else you should need to know…
Her tone shifted, a subtle tightening I couldn't miss.
Lysera already found Kael. The one you've looking for.
My face went pale. Lysera, alone, against Kael.
The thought was a cold knot in my gut. But then I looked at Seville, his eyes wide with a desperate hope, fixed on me.
His father. The other miners. I couldn't just leave them.
"Arin," I said, my voice low but firm.
"No rest. We need to check the Khel Mines. Now."
Arin frowned. "What about the kid?"
"He goes with us," I said, my voice firm.
"He deserves to know."
Rynveil stirred, his hand instinctively reaching for his hammer. "You think there's a chance?"
I shook my head.
"I don't know. But we have to look. We owe them that much."
My promise to Seraphine felt heavy, but the immediate, tangible duty to these people, to Seville, was heavier still.
Kael could wait. Lysera was capable, and Nivarra was with her, even if only in spirit. My immediate responsibility was here.
I closed my eyes, focusing on Nivarra's link. Stay with Lysera, I thought, pushing the message through the faint connection. Keep her safe. I'm going to the mines.
The link thrummed faintly, a ghost of a response. I hoped she understood. I had to trust her, trust them.
"Arin," I said, my voice hard.
"Let's move. Now."
The words were barely out of my mouth before Arin was already dousing the fire with dirt, snuffing out the last embers of our brief respite. Rynveil hoisted Seville onto his broad shoulders, the boy clinging to him with a grip born of desperation.
The urgency of the moment banished any lingering fatigue.
We moved quickly through the forest, the darkness our guide. The trees, which had whispered secrets only moments before, now seemed to watch us with silent anticipation.
The air grew colder as we descended towards the Khel Valley, the scent of pine giving way to the metallic tang of ore and the faint, acrid smell of smoke.
"How far?" I asked, my voice low.
Arin, who had been scouting ahead, paused, his eyes narrowed. "A few hours. If we push."
"Push," I said. Every step was a gamble, a race against time. I knew the odds were slim, but the image of Seville's face, the memory of the miners' sacrifice, spurred me onward.
As we neared the valley, the sounds of the forest faded, replaced by an unsettling silence.
The Khel Mines had always been a hive of activity, the constant clang of pickaxes and the rumble of carts a familiar soundtrack. Now, there was nothing.
Only the wind whistling through the skeletal remains of the mining structures.
The entrance to the mines loomed before us, a gaping maw in the earth. The air that poured from it was thick with dust and the unmistakable scent of death.
Seville slid off Rynveil's shoulders, his face pale but resolute.
"This way," he said, his voice barely a whisper.
"I know the tunnels."
I placed a hand on his shoulder. "Stay close. Let us lead."
We entered the mines, the darkness swallowing us whole. The only light came from the lanterns we carried, casting long, dancing shadows that played tricks on the eye.
The silence was oppressive, broken only by the drip, drip, drip of water and the echo of our own footsteps.
The tunnels were narrow and winding, the air growing thick and stale. The support beams groaned under the weight of the earth, a constant reminder of the precariousness of our situation.
"This way," Seville said, pointing down a narrow passage.
"To the main shaft."
We followed him, our senses on high alert. Something felt wrong. The air was too still, the silence too complete. It was as if the very earth was holding its breath, waiting.
As we rounded a bend, we saw it. A cave-in. The tunnel was blocked by a massive pile of rock and debris, the entrance to the main shaft sealed off.
Seville cried out, his voice echoing through the tunnels.
"No! Father!"
I rushed forward, examining the debris. The cave-in looked recent. There was still dust in the air, the scent of freshly broken stone.
"They could still be alive," I said, trying to keep the hope in my voice.
"Trapped, but alive."
Rynveil stepped forward, his eyes scanning the cave-in, but there was something else in his gaze – a flicker of recognition, a sense of familiarity.
He ran a hand over the rough stone wall, his fingers tracing the contours of the rock.
"Wait," he said, his voice thoughtful.
"This is Khel stone. I know this mine."
Arin raised an eyebrow. "You've been here before?"
Rynveil shook his head.
"Not exactly. But… Mog told me stories. About this place. About the way it was built. The secrets it holds."
He turned back to the wall, his fingers moving with a newfound confidence. "We don't have to dig like dogs. There's another way."
He pressed on a series of seemingly random indentations in the rock, his movements precise and deliberate. A low rumble echoed through the tunnel, and a section of the wall slid inward, revealing a narrow passage beyond.
Seville stared, his eyes wide with disbelief.
"What… how did you know?"
Rynveil shrugged, a rare smile gracing his lips.
"Let's just say I had a friend who knew this place better than anyone. Mog and I were friends, basically that happens for more than a century after the chronicles was been used by the previous barer. khel mines was no puzzle to him it's a playground for a smith like him sorrounded by stones and ore. Come on. This way."
He led us through the secret passage, the air growing noticeably warmer. The passage sloped downward, winding through the earth like a hidden vein.
The walls shimmered, lined with minerals and ores unlike anything I had seen before, a stark contrast to the dull stone of the upper tunnels.
Arin stopped, his fingers tracing the veins of ore.
"These are incredible. The energy… it's almost overwhelming. These are nothing like what I gathered in the Orrynth dungeon. By the way, old man, can you make me a bow using materials from the Orrynth?"
Rynveil stared at him, his expression a mix of surprise and disbelief.
"Huh!? What are you talking about? You mean the Orrynth living in the cavern dungeon?"
Arin nodded, confused.
"Yes. How did you know about that?"
Rynveil sighed, running a hand through his beard.
"So Lysera didn't mention it to either of you. I'm the one who brought that 'monster' to that dungeon cave."
"But why?" I asked, my confusion growing.
Rynveil gestured to the shimmering ore in the walls.
"Remember the poop-like crystal shards?"
Arin's eyes widened, his fingers tightening on a piece of ore.
"The ones that seemed to pulse with energy?"
"Exactly," Rynveil said.
"The Orrynth wasn't a monster of destruction. He helps provide balance. He's a vital part of the ecosystem. Those crystals fertilize the land with mana, healing it.
I remember Mog telling me stories about how the Orrynth's leavings would revitalize entire forests. It heals the land, in short."
Seville, who had been listening in silence, finally spoke, his voice tight with barely suppressed emotion.
"Is this really the time to be talking about crystal… leavings? My father…"
Rynveil placed a reassuring hand on the boy's shoulder.
"Calm down, kid. Your pops and the miners are safe, I assure you that."
Arin raised an eyebrow, skepticism etched on his face.
"Huh!? Oy, old man, are you sure about that?"
I turned to Rynveil, my own doubts surfacing.
"How can you be so sure they're safe?"
Rynveil pointed towards the center of the chamber.
"Look at those magic circles on the ground."
I approached the circles, my eyes scanning the intricate patterns etched into the stone. There were faint trails of blood leading towards the circles.
"These circles… what are they?"
"Possible things that happened," Rynveil said.
"You're pops and the other miners accidentally opened this passage while running away from those who attacked you before.
Just like Mog always said, that this mine was full of surprises."
"You mean they're alive?" Seville asked, his voice filled with a fragile hope.
"They used this circle without a doubt there's trace of mana means it was activated a while ago"
He walked towards, the center of the magical circle and lay down his magical hammer at the middle.
"Not sure if they were all alive," Rynveil cautioned.
"But this magical circle is indeed a teleportation portal. And if luck provides them, with a mage or mana manipulator, it's possible. Of that's what really happens.
Then, they could've activated it and teleports to the other side of this portal. It's a one-way trip, though.
Mog told me they were originally designed for emergency escapes, but they're unpredictable."
"The craziest thing about this is we don't know where it's actually heading," Arin added, his voice grim.
I turned to Rynveil.
"You said you knew this mine…"
"Yes, I did," Rynveil replied.
"But this teleportation circle can have its destination altered by anyone.
I bet they didn't do that because of the situation and forgot about it.
Those circles are ancient, though. Older than even Mog, I think."
We rounded a bend and found ourselves in a small, closed chamber. There were no other exits, no hidden passages – only a single teleportation circle in the center of the room, glowing with a faint blue light.
Rynveil stepped forward, his brow furrowed.
"Teleportation circles... powerful tools, but unpredictable.
They can transport you across vast distances, but they're also susceptible to corruption and misdirection. The runes must be precise, the energy flow stable..."
He circled the platform, his fingers tracing the glowing symbols.
"They were used long ago to transport ore and workers, but they were abandoned after several accidents occurred."
Arin stared at the circle with hope.
"So, it can take us out of here?"
Rynveil paused, his gaze fixed on a particular rune.
"In theory, yes. But something's odd here."
I frowned.
What did he mean?
Rynveil shook his head, his gaze fixed on the runes etched into the circle's surface.
"The runes... they're subtly wrong. Twisted. I can't quite put my finger on it, but something feels... off."
Ignoring our questions, Rynveil stepped towards the circle, his hands glowing with arcane energy. He began to chant, his voice resonating with power, and a faint blue light emanated from his fingertips.
"These runes... they speak of teleportation, but the underlying structure... it's something else entirely," he muttered.
"A dark perversion of the original intent."
He focused his mana, channeling it into the runes, carefully altering their inscription.
"I'm changing the script... revealing its true nature."
As he worked, the runes began to shift and writhe, their blue glow turning a sickly green.
A wave of nausea washed over me, and the air crackled with dark energy. My stomach churned, and a cold sweat broke out on my brow.
'What are you doing?' Arin cried, his voice filled with panic.
"Revealing the truth," Rynveil replied, his voice strained.
"This isn't a teleportation circle... it's a ritual site."
With a final surge of power, Rynveil dispelled the altered runes, replacing them with a new inscription. The circle pulsed with a blinding light, and the chamber began to tremble.
'Brace yourselves!' Rynveil shouted. 'This illusion is about to shatter!'
With a deafening roar, the chamber collapsed. The walls dissolved, the ceiling vanished, and the floor beneath our feet crumbled away.
We were no longer in a closed chamber.
Before us lay a vast cavern, its ceiling lost in shadow. In the center, a massive crystal pulsed with an eerie green light, casting grotesque shadows on the walls.
And then I saw them.
Chained to the crystal, their bodies twisted and contorted, were figures that seemed vaguely familiar. Miners?
But as I strained to see their faces, a chilling realization dawned on me.
Those eyes... that unnatural glow...
What had happened to the miners of Khel?"