Eliakim drew the Yggdrasil leaf from his pack. In the gloom of the overgrown stairway, its veins glowed faintly, pulsing like a heartbeat.
He pressed it against the flower-shaped carving above the arch.The stone shifted with a grinding sigh, petals of the relief folding inward until a hollow circle was left. The air changed immediately — cooler, but heavy, as if the dungeon had exhaled.
The leaf dimmed, and from somewhere deep within, the Codex of Imreth whispered:The path opens — and so does its hunger.
One by one, they descended the slick, mossy stairs. With each step, the light behind them faded, until only their torches and Ezra's faint arcane glow lit the way.
At the base, the passage opened into a vast cavern. Its walls were slick with moisture, roots dangling like skeletal fingers. The Codex's voice hummed in Eliakim's skull, low and constant:Mapping… mapping… mapping complete.
In his mind's eye, he saw the layout — winding corridors, loops of stone, and two points of significance: the stair behind them, and another deep ahead where the rock fell away into darker depths.
Skyling shifted on his shoulder, head tilting. Something moves here. Slow. Heavy.
The first sound came before the first sight — a slow scrape, like stone dragged across stone. Then the shadows shifted, revealing a shape that looked as if the earth itself had decided to walk.
A squat, reptilian body trundled forward on short, powerful legs. Its shell wasn't just bone — it was a small, cylindrical stone tower, complete with brickwork and tiny crenellations along the rim. Moss clung to its base like an unkempt crown.
Two more followed, their beady eyes blinking under the torchlight.
"Fortressbacks," Eliakim murmured, naming them instantly."Cute," Gideon said — then grinned. "Let's break them."
The first shell slammed into Gideon's chest like a battering ram, forcing him back a step. He responded with a crushing backhand that staggered the beast but didn't topple it.
Eliakim darted in at the flank, dagger sliding between joint plates, aiming for the softer muscle. Caleb's arrows thunked into weak spots under the shell rim, and Ezra's blasts of frost slowed their advance.
Skyling swooped low, scattering sparks from her talons to distract their beady eyes, giving Eliakim just enough opening to roll under one and drive his blade upward into its throat. The creature shuddered and went still.
They pushed deeper through the winding paths, the air becoming thicker, almost cloying. Thorned roots grew across the walls like veins, some twitching faintly when brushed. At times, they swore they heard the echo of a heartbeat in the stone.
Then they saw it.
In the center of a wide cavern, a massive turtle-like shape stood motionless, as if waiting. Its shell wasn't a tower, but a jagged crown of gray crystal, every spike catching the faint light. When it shifted, the sound was like grinding boulders.
The Codex's tone sharpened:Designation: Cragspike Colossus. Caution — physical defenses extreme.
Its eyes opened — pale, reflective, unblinking — and it began to move toward them with deliberate, earth-shaking steps.