The Blighted Plains were silent, save for the occasional gust of wind that sent the mist swirling in unnatural patterns. The sun, a dim smear of light through the haze, barely broke through the thick air. The sisters had been traveling for hours, the ground beneath them uneven and cracked, as if the very earth had been twisted by unseen hands.

  “Every step we take feels wrong,” Eira muttered, kicking a loose stone as they moved. “It’s like the land’s alive.”

  “Alive and angry,” Nyssa agreed. She crouched, her sharp green eyes scanning the ground for any signs of danger. “Something’s changing here. The creatures we’ve been seeing, they’re not just drawn to the shard—they’re becoming more aggressive. More organized.”

  “We’ve dealt with worse,” Vira said, though her voice lacked its usual conviction. “But this place… it’s different.”

  “I agree,” Zarya said quietly, her amber eyes flickering toward the distant green glow that seemed to pulse faintly from the heart of the Plains. “The shard’s resonance is growing stronger, but there’s something else. A deep, ancient power beneath it.”

  Rhea glanced at Zarya, concern flickering in her gaze, but she didn’t speak. They all felt it—the pull of the shard, the connection between the land and the dark magic they were pursuing. But Rhea was determined to keep the focus on the mission.

  “We need to keep moving,” Rhea said, her tone firm. “We’re getting closer.”

  Nyssa stood, brushing the dirt from her hands. She looked ahead, her sharp eyes narrowing at the path before them. The land ahead twisted in ways that shouldn’t have been possible, as if the very geography had been warped by the corruption.

  “I’m not sure about this,” Nyssa said, her voice tense. “The paths we’re walking are twisting, but they’re unnatural. Almost like they’re being shaped by something.”

  Eira frowned. “You think there’s someone else out here?”

  “I don’t think it’s a someone,” Nyssa said. “I think it’s the land itself, changing as we move through it.”

  Rhea nodded. “Stay alert. If the land’s changing, we might not be alone.”

  The further they went, the more the mist closed in, thick and heavy like a wall. The twisted trees loomed like dark sentinels, their bare branches reaching toward them as though beckoning them deeper into the Plains. The ground shifted underfoot, and with every step, the sisters felt the oppressive weight of the land pressing down on them.

  Suddenly, Nyssa stopped, her eyes narrowing as she crouched again, her fingers brushing the ground.

  “Tracks,” she said softly. “Not fresh, but they’re heading in the same direction we are.”

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  “Do they look like the same ones from before?” Rhea asked.

  Nyssa nodded. “Larger. The creatures we saw earlier. But these… they’re different.”

  “Different how?” Zarya asked, stepping closer, her quarterstaff in hand.

  “These ones seem… organized. Like a pack. And they’ve been here longer. These tracks are deeper,” Nyssa said, her voice filled with a mixture of wariness and curiosity. “Something’s leading them.”

  “Let’s follow them,” Rhea said, her voice resolute. “We’ll learn more about what’s out here.”

  They followed the tracks deeper into the heart of the Plains. As they moved, the air grew thicker, more oppressive. The land seemed to bend and twist around them, the mist curling and shifting in ways that made it feel as though they were being watched.

  After what felt like hours, they reached a small rise in the land. From there, they could see a large formation of twisted stone in the distance, rising like a dark monument from the earth. The tracks led directly toward it.

  “It looks like an ancient structure,” Eira said, her voice filled with awe and trepidation. “A ruin, maybe.”

  “Let’s approach cautiously,” Rhea said, signaling for the group to spread out as they moved closer. The twisted stone structure loomed ahead, dark and foreboding against the mist. Something about it felt wrong—its jagged edges and angular shape unlike anything they’d seen before.

  As they drew nearer, a low rumble echoed from within the structure, a deep, resonant sound that vibrated in the air. It felt like the earth itself was responding to their presence.

  “Something’s in there,” Zarya whispered, her eyes narrowing. “And it’s waiting for us.”

  The air inside the obelisk was colder than they expected, a damp chill that seemed to seep into their bones. The sisters stepped cautiously, their boots echoing against the smooth stone floor. The faint hum of magic they had felt outside grew louder, reverberating in Zarya’s chest like a second heartbeat.

  The runes along the walls flared brighter with each step, their light shifting in strange, angular patterns. The chamber felt alive, the shadows cast by the glowing symbols appearing to move on their own.

  “It’s like it’s breathing,” Eira muttered, her voice barely above a whisper. She gripped her spear tightly, her sharp blue eyes darting to every corner of the space. “I don’t like this.”

  “Neither do I,” Nyssa added, crouching low as her fingers brushed the stone floor. “The ground’s too smooth. It’s not natural.”

  “Nothing about this place is,” Zarya said. Her amber eyes flickered to the shard at her side, its faint glow growing in intensity. She clutched it tightly, her pulse quickening. “The shard… it’s resonating with something here.”

  The sisters moved as one, their steps echoing in the vast chamber. The walls stretched high above them, disappearing into darkness, and the floor was etched with the same runic patterns that adorned the obelisk’s exterior. At the chamber’s center stood a circular dais, its surface engraved with intricate designs that pulsed faintly with green light.

  Zarya gasped as a vision overtook her: glowing obelisks, light fracturing into darkness, and a whispered warning. When she recovered, the runes flared and a barrier of light forced them to retreat.

  The light coalesced into a shimmering barrier around the dais, pulsing with raw power. The sisters staggered as the tremors intensified, forcing them to retreat toward the archway. As they crossed the threshold, the rumbling ceased, and the glowing barrier dimmed, leaving the chamber silent once more.

  Rhea turned back, her jaw set. “We’ll come back,” she said, her voice steady. “But first, we need answers.”

  The sisters exchanged a glance, their resolve unspoken but mutual. They left the obelisk behind, its mysteries and warnings lingering in their minds as they ventured back into the Blighted Plains.