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At last, I noticed a small, barely visible inscription etched into a large boulder beside us. Something about it told me that it held the key to our escape. I rushed towards it, but my steps were slow. With every stride, it felt like my foot was stuck in a thick casing of mud, and the boulder seemed farther away. I cried out, squeezing the sword so hard that the emeralds cut into my palm. With my other hand, I wrapped my fingers around the necklace, and the world short-circuited in front of my eyes, glitching as though a record had skipped as the illusion fell away.
In a flash, I raced forward and used the side of my blade to scratch it out. The path straightened and returned to normal. With a heavy sigh of relief, I slumped my shoulders forward while I caught my breath.
I wished Roken was here to hold me.
The distance between us was greater than it had ever been, and his absence was painful. Every muscle fiber in my body ached with a loneliness far deeper than I thought possible.
“Come on. It shouldn’t be much farther,” Mais implored.
“Let me go in front. I think I might be able to sense the traps before we walk into them,” I said quickly.
“How?”
“Something about this pendant is special. I think it’s spelled somehow,” I replied. With a curt nod, she stepped aside, and I walked forward.
For the rest of the day, we navigated the path. Fortunately, I was able to use the pendant to avoid any more traps. The path started to widen, the surrounding trees becoming sparser until it opened up into a grassy plane. I looked up with a sharp gasp at the first sight of the wizard’s keep.
Sorrenthiel rose majestically from the mountain, its towering walls and battlements crafted from pristine white marble. Carved with meticulous precision into the rugged mountainside, the keep stood as a beacon of strength and resilience against the backdrop of the jagged peaks.
Elaborate archways adorned with delicate carvings framed the grand entrance, welcoming both friend and foe alike. Towering spires reached towards the heavens, their pointed tips piercing the sky. From the highest ramparts, guards could stand watch, able to spot an enemy from miles away.
The sheer scale of the fortress was both formidable and mesmerizing. Its stone walls, weathered by time, exuded an air of ancient wisdom and magic.
“Wow,” I breathed.
“It’s quite a sight,” Mais whispered beside me.
We approached the looming walls and climbed up a narrow winding staircase as high as we could go. There was a thick stone door that had been left slightly ajar, and we pushed it open, entering the abandoned keep in silence. Mais seemed to know the way, so I followed quietly as we descended down the silent streets until the two of us stood in front of a grand building which must have been the wizard’s central keep.
As Mais and I cautiously pushed open the creaking doors, a rush of dusty air tickled my nose. The dim light of the setting sun filtering through the cracked windows revealed a scene frozen in time. Dust-covered bookshelves lined the walls, their ancient tomes standing as silent sentinels. Pieces of shattered glass and fallen debris scattered the floor, evidence of the fortress’s long neglect.
It didn’t look like anyone was here.
With each step we took, the echoes of our footfalls resonated through the empty halls, amplifying the eerie silence that hung in the air. The remnants of forgotten spells and magical artifacts lay strewn about, their once-potent power now faded and dormant. Time had taken its toll on the once-great bastion of knowledge and mysticism, and I feared much of it had been lost.
As we ventured deeper into the abandoned keep, a sense of both trepidation and fascination washed over me. The weight of history and forgotten secrets seemed to press against my skin. I couldn’t help but think of wizards who had once walked these very halls, their whispers of missing knowledge echoing in the recesses of my mind.
Eventually, we moved far enough inside that everything lay untouched, each book and magical object perfectly in place. I passed through a hallway, and a gentle hum surrounded me. The rushing tingle of magic raced through me, and I stopped short.
Mais stopped behind me. With a frustrated look, she slapped her hands against an invisible wall.
“It’s a magical barrier. It won’t let me pass,” she said as she scowled.
I looked back and forth between her and the way down and made a quick decision.
I needed to go on and find the book of prophecy so that I could find the key to Roken’s curse. I could wait to figure out how to get Mais through. The realm needed me, and I couldn’t waste any time.
“Wait for me here. I won’t be long.”
“I’ll find a safe place to cook us some dinner.”
“That sounds great. I can’t wait!”
I turned around and continued down the hallway without her. As I strode along, my thoughts were fraught with visions of Roken.
Did he miss me as much as I missed him?
My footsteps rang off the stone floor as I descended down winding staircases and long hallways until I eventually approached a door covered in mystical green glyphs. I pressed my hand against the wall, and the inscriptions glowed even more brightly before a lock clicked and the door swung open.
