Episode 3 The Abyssal Forest

The corridor of crystal narrowed, walls glowing faintly as they stretched onward. With each step Kael took, the light dimmed. The shimmering blues and violets of the labyrinth gave way to shadows, until the glow vanished entirely.

He stepped forward into darkness.

The air grew thick, damp, heavy with the smell of earth. A sound—soft, steady—echoed all around him: the slow drip of water. When his eyes adjusted, he realized he was no longer surrounded by crystal.

He stood at the edge of a forest.

Enormous trees towered above, their trunks twisted, bark black as charcoal. Roots sprawled across the ground like the veins of some great beast, slick with moss that glowed faintly green. The canopy above was so dense that no light broke through; instead, the forest seemed to glow from within, lit by clusters of ghostly fungi clinging to branches.

The air whispered. Leaves rustled, though there was no wind.

Kael hesitated, then stepped between the trees. The moment he crossed the threshold, the forest shifted. The sound of dripping water ceased. A new sound took its place—faint whispers, curling around his ears, too soft to understand.

His body tensed. This place was not dead like the Plains. It was alive. Watching.

He pressed forward. Every step sank into soil damp as flesh. Roots tangled across the path, forcing him to climb and weave. The forest smelled of rot and damp stone, but beneath it lingered something sweeter, tempting.

It reminded him of home.

Kael froze. Home. The word struck him like lightning. He hadn’t thought of it since arriving here. What did home look like? The memories blurred, slipping through his grasp like smoke. Faces, places—gone. Only fragments remained.

“Kael…”

The whisper was clearer now. A voice he almost knew. Feminine, gentle. His chest ached with recognition.

“Kael… this way.”

He turned. Between the trees, a figure stood. A woman, glowing faintly in the dark. Her face was soft, familiar, though he could not place her name. She stretched out a hand.

“Come back to me.”

His breath caught. His legs moved without thought, stepping toward her. The air grew sweeter, warmer, the oppressive shadows thinning.

But then—he saw it.

Her feet were wrong. They ended not in flesh, but in twisted roots burrowing into the soil. Her hand, outstretched, was bark beneath the skin. Her smile flickered, revealing teeth sharp as splinters.

Kael jerked back, heart racing. The woman hissed, her form twisting, unraveling into a snarl of vines and claws.

The forest laughed. The trees shook with soundless mirth, leaves rustling in waves.

Kael stumbled back, fists clenched. Illusions. Again. This place feeds on memory, on longing.

But the forest wasn’t finished.

Shapes emerged from the shadows. Dozens of figures, glowing faintly, each with half-formed faces. Some smiled, some wept, some reached for him with pleading hands. Their voices rose in a chorus:

“Stay.”

“Rest.”

“Join us.”

“Give yourself to the roots.”

The ground shifted. Roots writhed like serpents, rising, curling around his ankles. He tore himself free, stumbling, running deeper into the forest. The whispers grew louder, furious, chasing him.

He didn’t stop until the ground fell away beneath him.

Kael slid down a slope of damp earth, crashing into a hollow. The air here was colder, heavier. A pool of black water stretched before him, its surface perfectly still.

The whispers ceased.

Silence.

Then—movement.

From the pool rose a shape. A body, long and skeletal, its flesh made of bark and bone. Antlers stretched from its skull, tangled with vines that dripped with glowing fungi. Its eyes burned green, fixed on Kael with hunger.

The guardian of the forest.

It stepped from the water, roots dragging behind it like tails. Its limbs were too long, bending at unnatural angles. The ground trembled with each step.

Kael’s breath caught. He had nothing to fight with, no weapon but his will. Yet he refused to run. Not again.

The creature roared—a sound like trees splitting, thunder cracking. Roots surged from the ground, whipping toward him. Kael dove aside, rolling across the soil. A root smashed into the spot he had stood, splintering earth.

Kael scrambled to his feet, dodging strike after strike. Each root lashed like a whip, tearing bark and stone alike. He ducked behind a fallen trunk, heart pounding, searching desperately for anything he could use.

His hand closed around a jagged stone. Not much—but better than nothing.

The guardian’s eyes blazed brighter. It lunged, antlers lowering like spears. Kael leapt forward, slamming the stone into one of its glowing eyes. The shard cracked. The beast howled, rearing back, thrashing.

Roots whipped wildly, tearing the ground apart. One slammed into Kael’s chest, throwing him across the hollow. He hit the soil hard, pain lancing through him. For a moment, he lay still, vision blurring.

The guardian loomed over him, dripping black water from its body. Its remaining eye glowed brighter, blinding.

Kael forced himself up, every muscle screaming. He clenched the stone tighter, raised it high, and with a roar of defiance, drove it into the creature’s chest where the roots converged.

The forest shrieked.

The guardian convulsed, its body splitting with cracks of green light. Vines withered, antlers shattered. With a final roar, it collapsed into dust and roots that melted into the soil.

Silence returned.

Kael fell to his knees, gasping. His body shook, his hands bloodied, though no blood flowed. His chest ached with exhaustion—but his spirit held strong.

The forest seemed to sigh, as if acknowledging his victory. The whispers faded. The path ahead opened, roots pulling aside to reveal a narrow trail glowing faintly with moss.

Kael rose. Every step hurt, but he moved forward.

He had passed the forest’s trial.

But he knew now—this journey was not just about survival. It was about endurance. About resisting temptation, fighting fear, and holding onto himself even as the Veil tried to strip him away.

He stepped onto the glowing path, vanishing deeper into the Abyssal Forest.

The shadows closed behind him.

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