The sky was still a bruised gray when they set out.
Lucian led, steps firm, eyes sweeping every shadow the rising light didn't touch. Behind him walked the girl, her staff clinking softly with each stride. Solas trailed with a slight limp, his ember-forged dagger strapped to his back now, not his side—hidden, but ready.
The forest north of the village wasn't ordinary. It loomed like a beast lying in wait, trees twisted together at the top as though keeping the sky out. Fog rolled from its belly like breath. The moment they stepped beneath its canopy, the world changed. Sound dulled. Light bent. And something deep in the dark whispered of watching eyes.
Lucian stopped. "We stay together. No matter what."
Solas made a mock salute. "I wasn't planning to wander off alone into death's armpit, but thanks for the reminder."
The girl gave a soft laugh. "You joke too easily."
"Painkillers help," Solas replied.
They moved through the underbrush, careful. Slow. The deeper they went, the more unnatural the place became. Birds didn't sing. Bugs didn't crawl. The trees looked almost… melted in places, bark twisted like muscle fibers.
Then the girl held up a hand. She crouched by a patch of earth torn open like something had clawed out of it from beneath.
Lucian knelt beside her. "Fresh?"
She nodded. "Whatever came out of here… it was big."
A low growl rippled through the trees.
They froze.
Then, from the left, a screech. High. Broken. Not animal. Not human.
Lucian's body moved before his mind caught up. Blade drawn, barrier raised. The creature crashed from the trees—a mess of limbs, stitched flesh, a wolf's snout sewn onto a humanoid form. Its eyes bled black. Its mouth screamed like a chorus of the damned.
Lucian slammed a wall of force into its path. It howled as it hit, claws sparking off the invisible wall. The girl raised her staff and let loose a blast of glowing energy that cracked across its shoulder. Solas dove forward, dagger flashing as he sliced at its legs, forcing it off balance.
They moved like they'd fought together before. Instinct. Survival.
But the creature didn't fall. It roared, then—unnaturally fast—its body shifted. Muscles bulged. It split into two.
Lucian's eyes widened. "It's adapting."
"No time for shock!" the girl shouted, already moving.
Lucian gritted his teeth and leapt into the fray.