The air was thick with ash and silence, broken only by the occasional groan of molten rock shifting beneath the scorched ground. Sylvia was the first to stir, her luminous wings dimmed, their usual brilliance reduced to a faint glow. She winced as she moved, her hands trembling as she channeled healing light over her scraped arms. The others lay scattered around her like broken pieces of a puzzle.
"Kael!" Sylvia’s voice cracked, the urgency pulling the beastman from unconsciousness. His amber eyes snapped open, wild and disoriented. He pushed himself to his feet, his claws digging into the ashen ground as he scanned the area.
"Still alive, mutt?" Thrain groaned, his stocky frame shifting as he sat up, clutching his ribs. His tone was gruff, but there was relief in his voice.
"Barely," Kael growled, rolling his shoulders. "What in the void was that?"
Sylvia knelt beside James, whose face was pale, his breaths shallow. "James," she whispered, placing a hand on his forehead. A soft light enveloped him, and his eyes fluttered open.
"Did… anyone catch the size of the mountain that hit us?" James mumbled, attempting a weak smile as he sat up. He clutched his satchel protectively, ensuring his gadgets were intact.
"Stop joking, lad," Thrain barked, though his tone lacked its usual bite. "You’ve got soot on your face and death in your eyes."
Kael, already pacing, snarled, "This wouldn’t have happened if someone hadn’t been so damn slow to react. If you’d just—"
"Don’t you dare start with me," Thrain interrupted, his hammer glowing faintly as molten cracks formed along the scorched ground around him. "Maybe if you hadn’t charged ahead like a brainless beast—"
"I kept us alive while you were busy cowering behind your hammer!"
"That’s enough!" Sylvia’s voice rang out, firm and commanding. She stood, her glowing form a stark contrast to the chaos around them. "We don’t have time for this."
Kael and Thrain glared at each other but said nothing, their frustration simmering just beneath the surface. Sylvia turned to James, who was dusting off his coat and checking his devices. "James, anything useful?"
James hesitated, feeling the weight of their expectations. He wasn’t a fighter like Kael or Thrain, nor did he have Sylvia’s celestial grace. He was just a tinkerer. Still, he nodded, pulling out a small crystal-powered scanner from his satchel. "Give me a minute. I’ll check for energy traces."
While James worked, Elyndor watched from the shadows of a nearby ridge, his breaths labored and shallow. His once-pristine robes were tattered, and a deep gash on his side bled sluggishly. He gritted his teeth, his hands trembling as he summoned faint, flickering spirits to his side.
"They’re weak now," Elyndor muttered, his voice cold and bitter. "Perfect."
The spirits, ethereal and barely visible in the heat haze, whispered around him, their voices a chorus of malice. Elyndor raised his staff, its glow faint but resolute. "Lead them into the traps. I’ll finish this."
The spirits dispersed into the air, invisible to the group as they weaved through the ashen wasteland.
+
Back at the makeshift camp, James’s scanner let out a soft ping. "Got something," he announced, holding up the device. "Residual energy—strong, destructive. Whatever caused that barrage came from this direction." He pointed toward a jagged path flanked by smoldering spires.
Kael crossed his arms, his tail flicking irritably. "You sure it’s not just more of Elyndor’s tricks?"
"I don’t think so," James replied. "This… this feels bigger. More raw. It’s like… like something tore the world apart and left the pieces burning."
Sylvia frowned. "That fits with the reports of the evolving monster. This could be our lead."
Thrain grunted, shouldering his hammer. "If it gets us closer to finishing this damned mission, I’m all for it. But I’m not trusting that elf if he shows his face again."
"Agreed," Kael growled. "Next time I see him, I’m ripping his throat out."
James hesitated, glancing between them. "Look, I get it. But if we keep turning on each other, Elyndor wins. Whatever’s ahead of us doesn’t care if we’re friends or enemies—it’ll kill us all the same."
The group fell silent, James’s words cutting through their tension. Sylvia nodded, placing a hand on James’s shoulder. "He’s right. We stick together, or we don’t make it out."
Kael huffed, his claws twitching. "Fine. But if he turns on us again, no one stops me."
Thrain rolled his eyes. "Noted, pup."
+
Unseen by the group, Elyndor smirked from his hiding place, the faint glow of his staff illuminating his sharp features. "Let them squabble," he murmured, his spirits swirling around him. "They’ll be walking into my web soon enough."
He leaned heavily against the ridge, his injuries sapping his strength. "I’ll end them before they ever reach the monster. Then… I’ll finish this mission alone."
+
As the group set off, James kept glancing at his scanner, its glow pulsing faintly. The tension between them remained thick, but they moved as one, their eyes scanning the horizon for threats. The path ahead grew narrower, the volcanic terrain forcing them into single file. The air grew hotter, the oppressive heat pressing down on them despite their Heat Resistant Runestones.
"Stay sharp," Sylvia warned, her light magic shimmering faintly in the dim haze. "Something feels… off."
James adjusted his goggles, his fingers brushing against the handle of a freezing bomb in his satchel. "Let’s hope it’s just paranoia."
But deep down, he knew better. The remnants of Arthur’s energy hung in the air like an invisible storm, and the faint whispers in the back of his mind told him they were walking into something far worse than they could imagine.
The faint hum of Elyndor’s spirits echoed through the heat, silent and deadly, as they waited for their prey to step into the first trap.
+
The oppressive heat of the Scorching Badlands was relentless, bearing down on the group with unyielding intensity. Each breath tasted of ash, and the air shimmered with waves of heat, blurring the jagged terrain ahead. Despite the Heat Resistant Runestones hanging around their necks, the champions were visibly strained, sweat mixing with soot on their weary faces.
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Kael was the first to notice something amiss. His ears twitched, his tail stiffening as he halted mid-step. "Do you hear that?" he growled, his amber eyes narrowing as he scanned the landscape.
Thrain paused, gripping his hammer. "Hear what? All I can hear is your whining."
Kael ignored him, his muscles coiling. "Something’s wrong. It’s too quiet."
James adjusted his goggles, his sharp eyes scanning the horizon. The scanner in his hand emitted a faint hum, the light on its surface flickering erratically. "I’m picking up... something. It’s faint, but it feels like a distortion."