Emily stood in the tall underground chamber listening to the destruction above. The winds howled so fiercely that even down here they could hear them tearing against the structure of the butte.

Luckily, they couldn't breach the sanctuary, but it wasn't hard imagining them doing so.

The layout was similar to the last one they'd been in, with one exception.

Because they were buried so deeply underground, the shape was more rectangular than round. To Emily's surprise, there was a small tree here as well. Similar to the one in the city, but nowhere near as grand. Falling more in line with what Emily had seen in the forests up north. There was, however, not a single leaf in sight, though.

As they all began to settle down, Emily moved over to her pack to extract a drink.

Tao arrived by this time, with Alex in tow; he looked rather sheepish. Alex had an annoyed expression on his face, but it was clear he wouldn't move to stop the man.

"Emily, we will need to move quickly if you are to be ready in time. These storms are turbulent and destructive, but they do not last long, not when we're this far from the source."

Emily hummed as she squinted at the man.

"Sure, but from the way you're speaking, it sounds like you're not joining me," she said tartly.

Tao glanced back at Mo and Ra, and back to her.

"Piercing the region any further will only put us in more danger. We can only take you this far, from here, your trial starts. "

Emily swallowed as she realized this was it.

She had expected to separate from them when the time was right, but not this soon. They weren't even at their destination yet.

Alex glanced at Tao and spoke up.

"We'll remain here while you head out there, and when you succeed, you'll have a place to return to," he said reassuringly.

If the storm out there now was anything to go off, they could not risk proceeding without the protection of a matrix.

Emily knew she wouldn't have allowed Alex to advance without one.

Looking at it objectively, she would much rather prefer him to remain here, where he was safe. Plus, she didn't have to worry about some horde of beasts ambushing them if they remained.

From the full storage of food they found in this place, the four of them would be able to survive months without needing to surface.

That only left her.

The storm was still swelling outside, but the moment there was a gap, she would have to leave.

"Okay, let's say I find this 'magical storm-creating metal', how in the world am I going to locate this place again? I'm more than likely going to lose my bearings in a storm."

Tao pulled a map from his chest pocket and pressed it into her hands.

"I've marked our location on the map, but if you can't find us, head back to the city. The Hearthspeaker will be watching you, and he will send someone to inform us."

Emily knew for a fact she didn't like the idea of the Hearthspeaker watching her every move, but it was probably the only reassurance she was going to get from him.

"Alright, then when things died down, I guess I'll be on my way," she said slowly. Tao nodded as Emily found a place to take a seat near Cupacke so that she could sink her hand into the wolf's fur. It wasn't like she needed to do anything to prepare. Her bags were still packed, and she needed only to pick them up and leave. If she wanted, she could have headed out this minute, but seeing as she would be battling the storm for the foreseeable future, a short moment to herself didn't seem like much to ask.

The quiet of the room was filled with a deep suspense as they watched Emily. Tao looked especially nervous.

Alex came over to sit next to Emily, and he rummaged through his pockets.

"Give me your Cardinex," he said quietly.

Emily turned her head just a fraction to look at him out of the corner of her eye.

Normally, she would have asked why.

It was her possession, of course, but Alex's expression was serious as he held out his hand.

She quietly unclasped the bracelet from her wrist and handed it over to him as he began to speak.

"After we got separated, I truly didn't know whether you were lost, dead, or worse. And honestly, as annoying as you can be, I don't want that fate for you," As he said this, he took out a dagger and began scratching something into the back of the metal with the tip.

If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

When he was done, he returned the Cardinex. Emily flipped it over to see a complex rune scrawled into the back. He then took out another bracelet. This one was far simpler with a gleaming blue gem set in the front. Emily was certain it was a Cardinex from the looks of things, and Alex had already carved a rune on the underside.

"I got this one the day we arrived in the city, I just didn't expect to need it so soon. Send some source into the rune as though you were trying to use it," he said.

Emily looked down at the bracelet and sent some source into it. There was a brief glow from the rune as well as from Alex's bracelet.

The indicator that had been pointing towards the city just seconds ago suddenly shifted to point towards Alex.

"There, they're paired. Now you will always have a way to get back to us. If you want to reset it to the city, just exclude that rune when you channel source into it."

Emily's eyes remained fixed on the bracelet for a while before looking up at Alex.

"Thanks…" she said quietly.

Alex nodded but didn't rub it in; instead, he just remained sitting next to her as they waited for the storm to pass.

It was neither an awkward nor an unpleasant silence, just peaceful as they listened to the drumming echo of liquid glass above.

Half an hour later, the storm died down, and a cloistering silence followed into the room.

Emily looked around and saw Tao get up and lead them towards the door.

"The area will still be warm, so make sure to have your matrix up until you are certain it is safe."

This sanctuary had two doors: one at the front leading outside, and another deeper within, meant to keep heat and smoke from creeping in. So, as Emily stepped through into the front room, she turned and found them all waiting there.

"Good luck, Miss Emily. We're all counting on you," Tao said. Ra gave a wave goodbye, while Mo saluted.

Emily's eyes found Alex last. He didn't speak—just nodded. But even in his silence, there was plenty said. 'Don't die.'

For Emily, that was enough. She nodded back, then turned toward the outer door as the sound of stone sliding echoed behind her.

She closed her eyes and summoned her matrix, checking it carefully to ensure not a single gap remained in her armor. Reaching forward, her blood slotted into the door, lifting it aside.

She felt like an astronaut stepping into a new world as a wave of smoldering heat slammed into her. The matrix held steady as she gazed out.

The once-sandy dunes had transformed into a land of black mirrors. All around her, the terrain glittered with rapidly crumbling obsidian. In most places, the impact of molten glass had shattered it into countless dark beads scattered across the landscape. But in others, hauntingly beautiful stalactites and stalagmites clung to the earth and stone, gleaming like eerie sculptures.

Cracks were already spreading through their delicate forms, as though they couldn't bear their own weight, and were beginning to splinter.

Taking a testing breath, she didn't sear her lungs, so with that in mind, she took her first step out into the world. The heat swelled around her, and without the matrix, she would have been cooking alive.

Moving away from the overhanging arch, Emily cleared the spikes of falling glass. The world looked completely different from when they had gone in, but that was not important right now.

She needed to head toward the center of this place, and to do so, she would need to get her bearings. Pulling out the map she had been given, Emily turned to the east and headed towards where the storm clouds were building in the distance. There was no guarantee that the storm would come this way once it was formed, but she never knew, so she kept herself on guard.

Watching for any signs that the plumes of clouds were heading in her direction.

Traveling on foot was not the most efficient way forward, but Emily wasn't about to bring Cupcake on this mission. So the half-day's travel time turned more into a day. Once Emily had cleared to the area where the sanctuary was, she noticed the path where the storm had passed was cooler and had time to steel back down. So she lowered her matrix tin and effort to conserve mental energy.

This meant that while she traveled, she had to remain vigilant for the entire time. She managed five hours of travel before the first roadblock arrived.

A storm was heading in her direction. However, there was still time to adjust the course before it arrived.

Speeding up, Emily headed to the sides of the building. Fortunately, she was rewarded two hours later when the storm went right past her.

The smell of ozone as she watched the storm build and strafe past her.

The sigh of relief was not even out of her lungs yet when the next one arrived on the horizon. This one was far closer, and Emily realized a little too late, but she still needed to make an effort.

She pushed her body physically, using her vitality to keep herself moving along the dunes. Only

narrowly escaping the turbulent winds. While it wasn't able to catch her, it hid the storm that did.

Almost as soon as Emily had navigated around the second one, a third arrived right in front of her. There was nowhere near enough time to run around, so she secured her matrix in place once more and waited for it to hit.

In front of her, the black cloud swelled until it consumed the entire horizon, bringing with it a heat that baked the dunes. The stormfront's winds carried a punishing sandstorm, but it was what followed that posed the true danger.

For a moment, the world cleared. Then it was as if Emily were plunged into a grey world of biting fire. She moved forward, unfazed, until a sudden weight slammed into her chest. Molten glass wrapped around her, halting all momentum as viscous gobs rained down.

Thankfully, the heat couldn't reach her—but that was only the beginning.

Rushing winds roared past her ears, drowning out every sound, while superheated spittle buffeted her relentlessly. Black smoke veiled her vision, and each fresh wave of obsidian forced her progress to stutter. She had to move slowly or risk losing her already fraying concentration. If the matrix were to go down now, the storm would flay the flesh from her bones.

Every step demanded effort. The only silver lining was this: the storm had a source. It radiated outward from a central point, so if she walked into the wind, she would reach its heart.

That was the theory, at least. In practice, it was far from easy.

Still, Emily pressed on. She refused to be turned back by a mere storm, even if it was a rather nasty one.

When the first storm passed, she sighed in relief, only for another to rise in its place. And then another. Their frequency increased the closer she got, until she found herself trapped in a perpetual inferno. The gale battered Emily from all sides, and nearly six hours passed in that fire-blasted darkness, broken only by the occasional flicker of light.

At last, Emily emerged into a pocket of relative calm, an island in the storm. The winds still churned, but they no longer screamed.

Through the smog, she glimpsed the storm's eye. And in that murky stillness, she saw something unexpected:

A derelict city, cloaked in ash and shadow.

And at its heart, a grand, ancient structure—its stepped silhouette reminded her of an Aztec temple.

The storm had been born from this place.

Blood points: 640

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.