They walked in silence for a long while after Ava disappeared into the trees. The forest had grown still again, only the soft crunch of their boots and the distant cry of crows filled the quiet.

  Thane led the way, Miles between them. The boy’s fingers were still wrapped tight around Kyo’s hand, his wooden staff tucked beneath his arm like a prized treasure.

  Kyo’s thoughts, though, were still back in the clearing with her. The Red warrior who fought like fire and spoke like she’d forgotten how to believe in mercy, and yet somehow still had enough left to show it.

  Thane finally broke the silence. “She was a Red,” he muttered, still gripping his sword. “We’re lucky she didn’t kill him.”

  Before Kyo could respond, Miles’s small voice piped up immediately, indignant.

  “That’s not true!”

  Both men glanced down. Miles’s eyes were fierce and wide, his chin jutting forward with all the bravery his little frame could muster.

  “She wasn’t evil. She saved me! She fought those bad men all by herself! You didn’t see her, she looked like a pretty princess to me.”

  Thane blinked, startled, then frowned. “Miles… she’s not…”

  “Right, Uncle Kyo?” Miles turned to him hopefully, tugging at his sleeve. “She’s not bad, right? She had pink hair and everything! Princesses always have pink hair in stories.”

  Kyo opened his mouth, then closed it again. He glanced at Thane, then at Miles.

  There was no malice in the boy’s face, just pure conviction, the kind that made lies feel like sins.

  “She did look... different,” Kyo said carefully. “But princesses don’t usually carry axes.”

  Miles grinned. “Then she’s a warrior princess.” Thane groaned under his breath. “Maker help me.”

  Kyo smiled faintly despite himself. “You’re probably right, buddy. A warrior princess.”

  Miles puffed up proudly at that, clearly satisfied.

  They kept walking. The path wound downward, sunlight filtering through the trees in fading stripes. Thane shook his head, still muttering.

  “You shouldn’t fill his head with that nonsense, Kyo. Reds don’t save people. They look out for themselves. That’s how they survive.”

  Kyo didn’t argue this time. He just glanced down at Miles, who was humming softly, tapping his wooden staff against his boots in rhythm.

  “Maybe,” Kyo said quietly, more to himself than Thane, “or maybe that’s just what we’re told.” Thane didn’t catch it. He was already moving ahead, scanning for a place to set up camp.

  Kyo looked back once more at the forest already swallowing the clearing behind them and thought of a woman with pink hair, a sad smile, and a voice that called his nephew little mage.

  “She looked like a pretty princess to me,” Miles mumbled again, fighting sleep.

  Kyo smiled softly. “Yeah,” he whispered. “She kind of did.”

  The fire burned low, its glow painting the three of them in shades of copper and gold. The night had gone quiet except for the whisper of the river beyond the trees and the occasional crack of sap inside the wood.

  Miles sat cross-legged close to the flames, turning his wooden staff in his hands. His eyes were distant still in the clearing, still with her.

  “Uncle Kyo?” he asked softly.

  Kyo looked up from checking his spell runes. “Yeah, buddy?”

  “Can we go back tomorrow and find her?”

  Thane, seated across the fire cleaning his blade, let out a quiet sigh. “Miles…”

  “Just to make sure she’s okay,” the boy went on quickly. “She said she belonged there, but what if she gets hurt? She saved me. It’s not fair if no one saves her back.”

  Thane’s hand stilled. His voice came rougher than he meant. “She's Red, Miles. Reds don’t need saving. They chose that life.”

  Miles’s face scrunched, indignant. “That’s mean! She didn’t look bad. She looked like a pretty princess right, Uncle Kyo?”

  Kyo hesitated, the words catching in his throat. He thought of Ava’s pink hair gleaming in the firelight of that cursed clearing, the weight of her axe, the way she’d smiled at Miles like it hurt too. “Yeah,” he said finally. “She did look like one.”

  Miles brightened, triumphant. “See! And princesses are always good!”

  Thane shook his head, muttering under his breath, “The world’s not a storybook, kid.”

  “Then we should make it one,” Miles said stubbornly.

  Kyo’s chest tightened. Gods, he sounded so much like Thane when he was younger before the wars, before loss turned conviction into caution.

  “Get some sleep, little mage,” Kyo said gently. “We’ve got a long walk tomorrow.”

  Miles yawned but kept his staff close as he curled beside his uncle’s pack. His voice was small and slurred with sleep when he murmured,

  “Maybe she’ll find us first.”

  Kyo smiled faintly, watching the firelight flicker in his nephew’s eyes until they finally closed.

  For a while, everything was still. Even Thane’s breathing had started to slow when a faint tremor rippled through the ground.

  Kyo’s hand moved to his staff instantly. The wards around the perimeter flickered a whisper of green light swallowed by darkness.

  “Thane,” Kyo murmured.

  Thane was already on his feet, sword half-drawn. “I feel it.”

  The next moment, the air split with the sound of something whistling an arrow tearing through the night.

  It hit the log by Miles’s head, the shaft quivering in the firelight.

  Thane swore and dove, dragging the boy to cover as another arrow hissed past. “Raiders!”

  Kyo rose, staff flaring with green runes. The fire blew sideways from the force of the magic that built inside him. Shadows moved at the edge of the camp fast, human, laughing. Their armor caught the firelight, flashes of steel and bone, faces hidden behind crude masks.

  Miles screamed as a raider lunged from the dark, blade gleaming.

  Kyo thrust his staff forward, the ground exploding in a wave of energy that sent the attacker flying.

  “Stay down!”

  Thane met another head-on, sword clanging against a cleaver. Sparks lit the night as they struggled, both grunting, both snarling.

  Another shape burst from the trees behind them, tackling Kyo to the ground. He rolled, mud and blood mixing beneath him, barely getting his staff between them in time. The raider’s knife scraped along the rune-etched wood, inches from his throat.

  “Uncle Kyo!” Miles cried, voice shrill.

  Kyo heard it like a bell through the chaos then something changed. Miles was standing now, trembling, his little wooden staff raised awkwardly like he thought he could fight too.

  “Miles, no!” Thane shouted, kicking his opponent away. “Stay back!”

  But the boy didn’t listen. He was crying and shaking, his voice breaking as he shouted toward the sky:

  “Ava! Ava, help us! Please!”

  The sound cut through the battle like thunder. It wasn’t magic. It wasn’t power. It was a plea, raw and desperate that made even the raiders pause for a heartbeat.

  And then the forest answered.

  A blur of motion slammed through the nearest attacker, sending him crashing into a tree. An axe followed heavy, brutal, perfect. It split the next raider clean across the chest, dropping him instantly.

  The others froze, eyes wide.

  Pink hair flashed in the firelight, loose and wild, and a voice low, cold, furious cut through the dark. “You picked the wrong camp.”

  Ava stormed into the circle of firelight like vengeance itself, her axe dripping red, the short sword at her belt gleaming in the glow. She kicked one raider off Kyo, then buried her axe into the chest of another pinning him down.

  Miles’s tear-streaked face lit up.

  “See! I told you she’d come!”

  Kyo could only stare, breath caught somewhere between awe and disbelief, as the hero with the red name came for blood.

  Steel clashed against steel. Sparks flew into the night. The raiders hesitated now, their hunger turning to fear.

  Kyo pushed himself to his feet, grabbing his staff and finding another target. He wasn’t used to fighting people; monsters obeyed rules; humans didn’t.

  Thane fought beside him like a storm, his blade singing through the dark. They had no rhythm, no formation, just instinct and fury.

  “You okay, Kyo?” Thane called, cutting down another attacker.

  Kyo nodded, breathless, forcing a quick grin.

  “Yeah… better now that she showed up.”

  Ava moved around them like fire made flesh every swing of her axe an explosion of strength, every strike precise. For all the chaos, there was an odd sense of unity: three strangers fighting like they’d trained together all their lives.

  Miles crouched behind the fire pit, clutching his little staff and shaking, eyes darting from his uncle to the woman who had once saved him.

  “Stay down, little mage!” Ava shouted, turning to block a blow meant for Kyo. Her axe caught the raider’s sword, sparks bursting between them. She shoved him back, spun, and drove the blade through his chest.

  The ground trembled as another arrow hissed through the smoke fast, silent, deadly.

  Ava turned in time to see it coming straight for the boy.

  She moved before she thought.

  Her body collided with Miles’s, wrapping around him as they hit the ground. Pain never came, only the heavy thunk of impact beside her ear.

  She blinked. The arrow hadn’t hit her.

  It was buried deep in Thane’s chest.For a moment, everything stopped.

  Kyo’s spell fizzled in his hands as his brother-in-law staggered, sword still raised. Blood spread across Thane’s tunic, dark and glistening in the firelight.

  A few drops splattered across Ava’s face. She froze, horrified, watching him stumble to one knee.

  “No…” she whispered.

  Thane’s breath hitched, a shallow, wet gasp. But when he looked at her, he smiled, a small, tired smile that broke her heart.

  “Thank you,” he rasped. “For protecting him.”

  Ava shook her head, voice trembling. “No, no, stay still let me-”

  He reached out, catching her wrist. “Please… make sure he gets out of this game. Take care of my little brother.”

  “THANE!” Kyo’s shout ripped through the battle. He cut down the last raider with a surge of magic, sprinting toward them. “No! God damnit, NO!”

  More raiders crashed in from the trees, and Kyo fought like a man possessed, green light flaring around him, rage drowning reason.

  Ava turned back to Thane. His breaths were shallow, his skin graying. She gathered Miles into her arms, pressing his face against her chest so he couldn’t see.

  “Don’t look, little mage,” she whispered. “Stay with me.”

  Miles trembled. “Papa?”

  Thane reached out with a shaking hand, brushing his son’s hair. “Miles…”

  He struggled for air. “You’re right. She’s your hero now… so be a good boy for your uncle, okay?”

  This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  His hand lingered on the boy’s head.

  “Don’t turn around, buddy. I don’t want you to see me like this… but I’ll always be with you. I love you more than anything in this world.”

  Miles’s small voice broke. “Don’t leave me, Papa. Please… I’ll be good for Uncle Kyo, I promise. But please don’t go be with Momma yet… I need you.”

  Thane’s eyes glistened as he forced a final, shaking breath. “You already make me proud, son.”

  His hand slipped away.

  Kyo reached them just as Thane’s body went still, falling to his knees beside them. “Thane, no, no, stay with me, please.”

  No answer. Only the crackle of fire and the sobs of a child muffled against Ava’s armor.

  Kyo’s heart broke open inside his chest. He gripped Thane’s shoulder, trembling, rage and grief spilling together.

  “You promised we’d make it home,” he whispered.

  Kyo knelt beside Thane’s body, his mind numb. The faint hiss of the fire was the only sound left in the world.

  Ava sat a few feet away, her back against a fallen tree. Miles was still curled in her lap, his small hand fisted in the strap of her armor. His cheeks were streaked with dirt and tears, his eyes red and heavy.

  Kyo hadn’t spoken since the last scream left his throat. He couldn’t. Words felt pointless in a world that had already taken too much.

  Then, a soft chime broke through the stillness.

  A block of glowing blue text appeared over Thane’s body, flickering against the smoke-hazed dark.

  “In-game resurrection attempt detected.”

  Do you accept the quest?

  Time limit: 48 hours.

  Retrieve the Resurrection Stone from The trial of the Hollow Vale.

  Defeat: The Dread Wyrm Azhreth (Level ?? - Corrupted Beast).

  Return the stone and the soul of ‘Thane’ to the Goddess of the Lost Statue near the Northwest Gate.

  Kyo froze. His breath hitched, grief momentarily breaking beneath disbelief.

  “No…” he whispered. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”

  His hand trembled as he reached out and pressed ACCEPT.

  A surge of light rippled through the air. Thane’s body began to dissolve first his hands, then his face, and finally the rest of him fragmenting into drifting motes of blue light that floated upward like ash in reverse.

  Kyo’s throat burned. He wanted to speak, to promise, to apologize but no words came. The only sound was the faint hum of the system processing his brother’s soul.

  Behind him, Miles stirred weakly in Ava’s arms. His small fists were still balled from the tantrum he’d thrown, his face blotchy and red from hours of crying. Exhaustion had finally won; he gave a soft, shuddering sigh and went limp against her.

  Ava adjusted her hold, turning his head into her shoulder, murmuring something low and soothing. Kyo couldn’t make out the words, but the tenderness in her voice cut straight through the numbness in his chest.

  When the last traces of Thane’s body vanished, a small sphere of glowing azure remained, pulsing faintly like a heartbeat.

  Item Acquired: “Thane’s Soul.”

  Weight: 0. Non-equippable. Handle with care.

  Kyo stared at it, his throat thick. He reached out carefully and caught it in his hands. It was warm, painfully warm and thrummed like something alive.

  “I’ve got you, brother,” he whispered. “I swear to you, I’ll bring you back.”

  He opened his inventory and placed it inside, handling it as if it might shatter. The faint hum of it vibrated against his fingertips before fading away.

  The moment it disappeared, something in him snapped. He slung his staff over his shoulder and hissed, “We’re leaving. Now.”

  Ava’s head snapped up, disbelief flashing across her face. “In the middle of the night? Are you insane?”

  Kyo turned, eyes hard. “We have forty-eight hours. I’m not wasting a single damn minute.”

  “Forty-eight hours won’t matter if we don’t make it through the first four,” she said sharply, standing as quietly as she could so she didn’t wake the boy. “The PVP zone’s full of night-stalkers and ambush groups. We move now, and we’re dead before sunrise.”

  “I’m not sitting here doing nothing while he-” He broke off, the words splintering under the weight in his throat.

  Ava’s voice softened, though it still carried that iron edge only soldiers had. “Doing nothing and being smart aren’t the same thing.”

  Kyo froze, his jaw flexing.

  She was right and he hated her for it.

  He exhaled through his teeth, pacing. Every step felt like an eternity stolen from his brother.

  Finally, he sat down hard beside the dying fire, staring into the embers. His hands wouldn’t stop shaking.

  “Fine,” he muttered. “At dawn.”

  Ava nodded once, settling back down. “I’ll take first watch.”

  Kyo didn’t answer. He couldn’t look at her. Not after everything that had happened.

  He stared into the flames until they died out, the night pressing close around them. The faint hum of the soul in his bag pulsed softly, rhythmic, like a heartbeat trying to remind him that hope still existed.

  Dawn bled slowly through the trees, gray light crawling across the forest floor. The world felt muted and colorless.

  Kyo hadn’t slept. He’d spent the entire night checking his gear, restocking spells, counting and recounting rations just to keep from losing his mind. His grief had settled into something colder now. It was heavy, dull, but still burning deep down.

  Ava stood nearby, silent, Miles still cradled against her. His small face was calm now, free from tears, and he slept through the soft sounds of Kyo’s preparations.

  Kyo should’ve thanked her for watching over him.

  He didn’t.

  He didn’t know how to talk to her and didn't know if he even wanted to.

  When their eyes met, neither spoke. The memory of last night still hung between them like smoke.

  Kyo fastened the last strap on his satchel, slung his staff across his back, and said hoarsely, “We move now. The longer we wait, the less time we have to reach the stone.”

  Ava adjusted her grip on Miles. “The Hollow Vale’s just beyond the ridge. If we’re lucky, we can reach the outer ruins before dark.”

  Kyo didn’t respond, just nodded and started walking.

  The forest thickened as they descended. The air grew colder, heavier, the light dimming even though the sun was rising. Strange shapes moved at the edge of sight, shadows that didn’t belong.

  Every few steps, Kyo’s hand drifted toward his bag, where Thane’s soul pulsed softly. He could almost feel his brother there, waiting.

  He wanted to believe that. Needed to. But as he walked, guilt gnawed at him. He knew it wasn’t her fault. Not really. She hadn’t shot the arrow. She hadn’t chosen who it struck.

  Still… every time he looked at her, his chest twisted tighter.

  She was alive. Thane wasn’t. And no amount of reason could make that feel fair.

  Kyo swallowed hard, whispering under his breath, “You’re a piece of shit.”

  Ava looked up faintly. “What?”

  “Nothing,” he said quickly, forcing his focus ahead. “Keep up.”

  She didn’t push. She just nodded once, shifting Miles gently in her arms.

  The air grew colder, heavier, filled with a strange static that made the hairs on the back of Kyo’s neck rise.

  Sunlight barely pierced through the trees here it filtered down in weak shafts that turned the fog a bruised gray..

  Ava carried Miles in silence, her steps steady despite the weight of the boy and her gear. Kyo kept a few paces ahead, scanning the mist, his staff glowing faintly in his hand.

  Neither had spoken much since dawn. The only sounds were the crunch of boots on wet leaves and the faint, rhythmic pulse from the glowing stone in Kyo’s pack, Thane’s soul.

  It pulsed every few minutes, soft and haunting, like a heartbeat that refused to die.

  After what felt like forever, Miles stirred. He blinked groggily, rubbing his eyes against Ava’s armor.

  “Ava…?”

  She smiled faintly, shifting him higher in her arms.

  “Easy, little mage. You’re safe.”

  He yawned, looking around in confusion.

  “Where’s Papa?”

  The question cut through Kyo like a blade. He stopped walking, staring ahead without answering. Ava hesitated, glancing at his rigid back, then down at the boy in her arms.

  Her voice was gentle.

  “He’s… resting, Miles. We’re going to help your uncle bring him back, okay?”

  Miles frowned, still too young to understand but not too young to feel the sadness in her tone.

  “Bring him back? Like a quest?”

  Ava nodded softly.

  “Exactly like that.”

  He thought about it for a moment, then nodded, satisfied.

  “Then I’ll help too.”

  Ava smiled faintly and lowered him to the ground, grateful for the break. Miles ran straight to Kyo, grabbing his hand.

  Kyo let out a shaky breath, forcing a small smile.

  “You help by staying close to her. No running off this time.”

  Miles nodded.

  “Yes, sir.”

  For a while, silence settled again, not quite comfortable, but not hostile either.

  Ava’s eyes lingered on Kyo’s back. He walked with a stiffness that wasn’t just exhaustion, it was pain trying to disguise itself as anger. She’d seen that posture before, in soldiers who’d lost everything.

  Eventually, she broke the silence.

  “Which section were you guys in? To enter the game, I mean.”

  Kyo didn’t turn around.

  “We were volunteer beta testers… Most of my family didn’t make it. There were problems connecting them to the system. It killed them instantly. Right in front of us.”

  Ava’s voice softened.

  “I’m so sorry. That must’ve been hard to deal with… alone.”

  “I wasn’t alone,” Kyo said quietly. “I had Thane and Miles. It was rough at first, but we figured it out. Then when they worked out the kinks and started syncing sections of the world over…”

  “Ah, the sections,” Ava murmured. “Low-class civilians became the lowest priority. Some didn’t even make it to the pods in time.”

  Kyo’s jaw tightened.

  “What section were you in?”

  Ava was quiet for a long while, her gaze dropping to Miles’s small face.

  “One of the last,” she said finally. “I don’t know if I’d call it lucky. I was forced in. I didn't have a choice.”

  Kyo glanced back, expression unreadable.

  “How’d you get your red name?”

  Her body stiffened at the question. She hated answering it, no one ever believed her anyway.

  “My father,” she said at last. “He was one of the engineers who built the system. When he found out what the government was really doing, they labeled him, and me, as Reds to shut him up. They killed him in front of me… then dragged me to a pod.”

  Kyo’s eyes flickered with something complicated. Disbelief, maybe sadness, but he turned away before either could show.

  “I’m sorry that happened to you,” he said quietly.

  Miles looked between them, his voice small.

  “Your papa was killed in front of you too? But you were left all on your own?”

  Ava smiled softly, surprising Kyo with her warmth despite her story.

  “Yes. But don’t be too sad, little mage. I was a soldier before this. I know how to survive.”

  “You’re a soldier?” Miles blinked in awe. “Then you’re super brave!”

  Ava laughed softly, shaking her head.

  “I’m twenty-four now, so I guess I’m an adult. I can take care of myself.”

  Miles stopped walking, eyes watering, and hugged her suddenly, wrapping his arms around her waist.

  “You won’t be alone anymore. You have me, Papa, and Uncle Kyo now.”

  Kyo froze mid-step, caught off guard. He turned back, unsure whether to correct him or protect him. Ava’s eyes glistened. For a moment, her guard dropped, and Kyo saw something raw in her expression, grief, gratitude, maybe both.

  They locked eyes for half a second before she looked away, wiping her tears quickly.

  “Thank you, little mage. But I’ll be okay.”

  They walked in silence again. Kyo stayed a few steps ahead until Miles’s hand found his, tugging lightly. Ava held his other hand.

  Soon, they walked in sync, three silhouettes swallowed by fog.

  Then the forest shifted. The mist grew thicker, moving unnaturally, curling between the trees like it was alive. Kyo’s instincts screamed just before something burst from the fog.

  Beasts, low-level, but twisted by the corruption of the Vale. Five of them, maybe six. Their bodies flickered, jaws snapping.

  Miles yelped, darting behind Ava and letting go of both their hands.

  Kyo reacted instantly, his grief and rage finally given form. He slammed the butt of his staff into the ground, runes flaring green and blue.

  “Get behind me!”

  Ava pushed Miles behind a fallen log, raising her axe but her voice was tense.

  “They’re not normal beasts… they’re part of the quest. I can’t fight them, they're untargetable!”

  Kyo’s head snapped toward her.

  “Why the hell not?!”

  The beasts lunged.

  Kyo met them head-on.The first was obliterated by a blast of green flame that tore through its body. The next rushed from his blind side he pivoted, slammed his staff into its skull, and shattered it in a burst of light.

  Every blow was an outlet for everything he’d been holding in, grief, guilt, anger, despair. Each strike was a scream he couldn’t release.

  When the last creature lunged for Ava and Miles, Kyo shouted ``an incantation, the runes on his staff flaring brighter than ever. A storm of blue fire erupted from his hands, swallowing the beast midair.

  The clearing fell silent. Then a chime went off.

  [ENEMY DEFEATED: +325 EXP]

  [Loot Acquired: Damaged Wolf Claw ×3, Torn Hide Pelt ×2]

  [Chain Bonus: +10% EXP for Consecutive Kills (6/6)]

  Miles peeked over the log, eyes wide.

  “Whoa…”

  Ava stared at Kyo, chest rising and falling, soot streaked across her cheek.

  “I’m not in your party,” she said, breathless. “Which means I can’t help in the event.”

  Kyo said nothing. He wiped the blood from his hand, the runes still glowing faintly, and extended his hand toward her.She hesitated, then took it.

  A soft chime echoed:

  [You have accepted Kyo’s party invite.]

  Miles ran up beside her, grinning.

  “Look at your level! I didn’t even know you could be that high! You’re higher than Uncle Kyo! He's level 62 and he’s the strongest player I know!”

  Ava blinked, checking her display.

  “Level 90…”

  Kyo looked away.

  “That’s the difference between a regular player and a PVP one.”

  Ava frowned but said nothing.

  “You actually don’t get anything for killing people,” she murmured. “No EXP, no class points. Just items and they only slow you down. You can’t slow down here.”

  Kyo didn’t reply. He just turned and started walking again. Miles tugged on Ava’s hand.

  “Why’s Uncle Kyo mad at you?”

  Ava froze, unsure what to say. Her eyes flicked toward Kyo, his shoulders tight, his jaw clenched.

  “I am not mad,” Kyo said quietly. “I am just… a little tired.”

  Ava’s voice softened. “We all are.”

  Kyo exhaled, the fight draining out of him. “Let’s keep moving. The Hollow Vale’s close. I want to reach it before evening.”

  As they walked, Miles slipped his small hand into Kyo’s again, smiling faintly.

  “Uncle Kyo… you’re really strong.”

  Kyo looked down at him, managing a tired smile. “Not strong enough, buddy. But I’m trying.”

  Ava glanced sideways at him. For the first time since Thane’s death, she didn’t see anger in his eyes, only fear. Fear of losing what little he had left.

  By the time they reached the edge of the Hollow Vale ruins, dusk had already begun to settle. The light bled out of the sky in streaks of red and violet, casting the crumbled stone arches and vine-covered pillars in long, eerie shadows.

  The air here felt different, not corrupted, not yet, but old. Heavy with the kind of stillness that came from being forgotten.

  Kyo stopped near a cracked obelisk marked with faint runes, turning to face Ava and Miles. “This is it,” he said quietly. “The entrance point.”

  He swiped his hand through the air, pulling up the quest interface. A glowing seal appeared in front of the ruins, flickering like a heartbeat.

  “Let’s enter the instance,” he said, adjusting his grip on his staff. “From my understanding, it’ll only be the three of us inside. It’s a quest phase no other players can join once we go in.”

  Ava nodded, shifting her axe onto her shoulder while keeping a protective hand on Miles’s shoulder.

  “Good. I’d rather fight beasts than people.”

  Kyo gave a brief, humorless smile. “There will be beasts. The map shows activity inside. But at least we won’t have to worry about ambushes tonight. If we can clear out one section, we should be safe to rest.”

  Ava nodded again, then looked down at Miles.

  “Stay close, little mage. Don’t wander off, no matter what you see.”

  Miles gulped and nodded, gripping his small wooden staff tightly.

  Kyo reached forward and touched the runic seal. It pulsed once then expanded in a ripple of light, pulling them in.