Chapter 12: Cantrus: A night of dark trials

The jagged peaks of the mountains stretched high up into the night sky and it was easy to understand why these peaks have been shrouded in a variety of mysterious old legends. The Alliance Heroes continued on the quest for the sixth fragment using the route mapped out on the tattered old map. As agreed, they made it seem as if they were taking a direct route but they altered the route every once in a while and Thorne continued to scout ahead for ambushes.

The heroes prepared for another night in the mountains with a high degree of vigilance. Thorne had the second watch and he was quite vigilant. It was getting on for midnight and the cold night air would have made a less accomplished ranger uncomfortable. But Thorne was indifferent to the crisp night air and the occasional howl of a distant wolf. 

He continuously scanned the darkness with his eyes without making it obvious. His senses were heightened by his years of experience and he knew to look out for movement on his peripheral vision as well as to trust his honed instinct for danger. A flicker of light and movement suddenly drew his attention.

Thorne squinted and peered into the shadows to see a faint, eerie glow coming from the trees. His experience with dark magic and his instincts told him something was amiss.

He silently came down from his high perch and crept closer to investigate without disturbing the ground. On getting close, he saw strange symbols that were magically etched into the ground. They glowed with dark magic. On further study, he recognized the symbols. They were characteristic of the marks that brought forth dark trials. He had experienced one before and it was not an easy experience. He shuddered at the unpleasant memory. 

From what he could see. This dark trial was a more elaborate and deadly one. With heart pounding, Thorn silently and quickly made his way back to camp.

"Wake up everyone!" Thorne whispered urgently. His voice broke the stillness of the night. "There is a big problem."

The Heroes got up from their sleep, reached for their weapons and prepared for battle. Immediately, they mentally connected to their legacy tokens which glowed faintly in the moonlight. Kael, Elara, Zephyr, and Lyra walked towards Thorne with tense expressions.

"What happened?" Kael enquired, tightly gripping his sword.

"There are a series of etched symbols not far west of here," Thorne replied, as he pointed towards the trees. "Based on my experience, the insidious markings represent a series of dark trials. No doubt, the markings have been etched by Seline."

The heroes began to surreptitiously approach the specified area. They saw the ominous glow in the distance and the ground started to shift and writhe as they got close. Kael noticed dark tendrils of magic that started reaching out in a bid to ensnare them.

The others also noticed them and activated their legacy tokens. With the defensive aspect of the tokens activated, the combined light helped to push back the encroaching dark tendrils. 

Dark shadows suddenly sprang upon them and Lyra shouted "Keep together!" She immediately used her healing staff to send a blazing, radiant light to repel the shadows.

The ensuing attack by shadowy forms was relentless. Shadows in the form of grotesque creatures continued to attack the Alliance Heroes from all sides. Zephyr began to play a restraining tune on his lute to try and curtail the speed of the creatures. Thorne mentally added light spells to the tips of his arrows as he sent them to fly true and pierce through the dark forms. Elara's daggers moved in a deadly dance as she wielded them in close encounters, darting here and there with speed and precision. Her enspelled cloak made it difficult to trace her movements. Meanwhile Kael used the Luptarus blade to cut through the darkness with a fierce scowl on his face.

"The shadows do not seem to finish. We need to end this quickly!" Elara gasped.

"It is best that we push forward!" Thorne advised. "We have to penetrate the boundary and break the trial's hold on us."

With their legacy tokens helping them, Kael and his companions fought through the etched markings. While it was a tasking and gruelling battle, they were able to fight through with unyielding resolve. Their combined effort finally paid off as they shattered the last shadowy spell and dispelled the trial's hold on them.

They panted in short breaths as they rested their bruised and exhausted bodies. But they knew not to savour this victory too much. They prepared their minds to face more dangers in these mountains. 

"Let's forge on," Kael said. "We must not allow anything to delay us further."

Of stones and wolves

They trudged deeper into the mountains and the path became more treacherous. There were jagged rocks across the narrow pathway that posed a potential hazard in the dark night. The night air was cold and it bit at their exposed skin. Although they were exhausted, the Alliance Heroes had to press forward with alert senses. 

As usual, Thorne took the lead and Kael followed a little while back. Their eyes continued to scan around for signs of an ambush. The eerie shadows cast by the moonlight on the path kept the memory of the recent dark trial fresh in their minds. This helped to keep them alert to possible dangers even though it had a fraying effect on their nerves.

Zephyr suddenly paused and raised up his hand in a signal for them to stop. "Did you hear that?" he said in a low whisper.

They all listened and after a short while, they heard a distant low rumble. It sounded like some form of giant beast growling. On the opposite side, they also heard a series of howls. Both sounds seemed to come from the darkness further down.

"Those are not friendly sounds." Elara said softly. "We need to proceed carefully."

Kael agreed with a nod. "Be prepared everyone. Stay close and focused." They tightened their grips on their weapons and tokens and continued on slowly.

With eyes and ears alert to any slight movement or sound, the heroes moved forward. The ground started to reverberate as the growling sounds grew louder. They got to a bend in the path and peered forward cautiously. Then they saw the source of the fearful growls.

A giant stone golem blocked the path. It had an unnatural glow in its eyes and it occasionally let out a rumbling growl. The body of the golem was covered in glowing runes. Thorne saw that the runes were similar to the etched markings from earlier and that they radiated an aura of dark magic. This was obviously the work of Seline and her dark forces. 

With a deafening roar and earth-shaking footsteps, the golem lumbered towards them. 

"We have to work together to take it down!" Kael shouted as he raised his sword.

He had hardly finished speaking when the howls of three large wolves pierced the night. The human-sized wolves bounded over from the left and paused to bare their large fangs at the companions. 

"Thorne and Lyra, leave the wolves to us." Kael instructed. "Try to find out the weaknesses of the Golem as you deal with it." 

Thorne notched his arrows and sequentially took strategic shots at the golem trying to find damaging spots as they began to retreat backwards to create space between them. Lyra also sent the occasional burst of ice spells to hamper the movement of the golem. Nonetheless, the golem was still quite fast and they had to move quickly.

Kael stepped forward with the blade of Luptarus firmly gripped in his hands and used a combination of speed, strength, and reflexes to fight with the wolves. Meanwhile, the wolves also had to deal with Elara's deadly daggers as she appeared behind them with dexterous speed and agility. 

After several shots, Thorne discovered that the golem was quite sensitive about its eyes. Kael also looked over and called to Lyra. "Try to destroy the runes on its body. It's likely to be a source of its power much like the etched markings of the previous trial!" 

Armed with the suggestion, Lyra increased the frequency of her attacks. She coordinated well with Thorne to target the runes on the golem's body. On the other hand, Thorne tried to shoot at the glowing eyes of the golem. Lyra's spells did have a great impact. The golem became reasonably slower as her ice spells chipped away at the magical symbols. 

On the other side, Zephyr used his loot to distract the three wolves and Kael used the defensive barrier set up by his ring to great effect. Under its cover, he was able to make lethal strikes at the flanks of the wolves. 

The pained roars of the golem mixed with the whimpers of the wolves as the strategic efforts of the companions began to yield results. "Keep hitting the runes, Lyra, it's working" Elara encouraged as she darted around a wolf. Her daggers flashing as she struck at its hind legs.