Chapter 1 Prologue
The cold cut deep into their bones as the moon, illuminating the darkness of the night, blended with the snow falling in blinding white.
The wind’s deep howl and the distant cries of wolves did nothing to comfort those who were alone in the forest.
“How much longer?” one of them asked.
“Not much,” the bearded man replied, shielding his eyes with his hand as he struggled forward through the snowstorm.
“We’ll reach Ruh Kale soon.”
Every step they took crunched against the snow. They had come a long way.
They were exhausted—hungry and thirsty—and the storm only made everything worse.
They wanted to reach soulfortess as soon as possible.
The same man spoke again. “We should rest for a bit.”
The snowstorm had eased slightly.
The old man’s hand went to his beard. His eyes followed what remained of the path ahead. After a moment of thought, he nodded.
“We still have a long way to go. A short rest would be wise.”
As the storm slowly calmed, the forest became clearer. They sat at the base of the first tree they saw, resting their heads against the trunk.
“Don’t you think it’s strange that we’re still alive after such a journey?” he asked, a hint of mockery in his voice.
The old man laughed softly.
“You mean the ones beneath the earth?”
“Yes. To me, they’re no different than the drunken ramblings of two fools. I’ve devoted my life to this cause, and yet… nothing.”
The younger one looked at him for a moment.
“Are you saying you don’t believe in the ones beneath the earth?”
“I used to,” the old man said quietly.
“When I was a child, my brother told me they were the dead we buried beneath the soil—returned to take revenge. Then I asked myself why the dead would ever want to rise again for such a foolish world… and I stopped believing.
But by then, it was too late. I was already an emissary of soulfortress.”
The young man only nodded.
In the silence of the night, the only sounds were their shallow breaths. The old man took the flask from his belt and handed it to the younger one.
“Drink sparingly. We’ll need it for the rest of the road.”
The young man grabbed the flask and took a few quick gulps.
As the silence lingered, the sound of footsteps approaching made them both lift their heads. The young man’s hand moved to the sword at his waist. The old man stopped him with a gesture and whispered,
“Stay behind me. And be as quiet as you can.”
Stepping forward, he drew his sword. His grip tightened as he advanced cautiously. As the fog parted, the source of the sound emerged—four-legged.
It was a deer.
Snow clung to its long antlers as it stared at the two figures before it, one with a sword drawn. Then it bolted and vanished into the forest.
The old man’s tense expression softened, while the young one let out a deep sigh of relief.
As the old man sheathed his sword, he muttered,
“Stupid deer.”
The young man stepped closer, smirking.
“What is it, honored emissary? Were you afraid it was one of the ones beneath the earth?”
The old emissary shot him a sharp glance.
“The ones beneath the earth aren’t the only things you should fear in a forest,” he said coldly.
“Now shut your mouth and keep moving.”
As they continued along the snowy path, the ground suddenly began to shake. Both of them grabbed onto a tree trunk, unsure of what was happening—clinging was the only thing they could do.
“What’s happening?” the young man shouted.
“They’ve come,” the emissary said, gripping the tree tightly.
The earth continued to tremble, the snow splitting and sliding apart beneath their feet.
As a deep rumble rose from below, the emissary shouted,
“RUN!”
“I won’t leave y—”
“RUN,” he cut him off. “Run… run to soulfortress!”
As the roar grew louder, the young man ran with everything he had. He stumbled as the ground shook, but forced himself back up, gasping for breath, his heart pounding in his chest.
He stopped abruptly as the ground split open before him.
The earth had been torn in two. Snow scattered into the air as he froze in place. His hand twitched toward his sword—but he didn’t draw it.
Black smoke began to rise from beneath the earth.
His body went rigid. His eyes widened in terror, fixed on a single point. As the smoke twisted into the shape of a human figure, he collapsed into the snow, as if his very soul were being pulled from him. His entire body turned ice-cold.
The black figure approached the terrified young man.
Its crimson eyes locked onto his own, watching him freeze in place. It drew closer still—
And from the forest, only a single scream was heard.
