The path to Lilith's den was nothing like Nova or Scarlet had ever seen. The entrance was hidden between two jagged spires, each carved with demonic runes that pulsed with a sickly red glow. The ground itself seemed to bleed darkness, and the air was thick with the scent of burnt metal... and something far fouler.
Scarlet reached out, her fingers brushing one of the runes, and recoiled as if stung — the stone itself felt alive, hungry, as if it wanted to swallow her whole.
Above them, the sky was choked with swirling black clouds, and the only light came from the runes, which cast twisted shadows that writhed and danced across the rocks. The very earth trembled beneath their feet, and every step forward felt like a descent into a nightmare.
The runes were everywhere — spiraling across the walls and ground, forming patterns that seemed to move and shift when they weren't looking. Some looked like cracks in the world itself, leaking inky blackness that shimmered with an unnatural glow.
As Nova and Scarlet stepped deeper into the rune circle, the temperature dropped, and the world grew eerily silent. The only sound was the thudding of their hearts and the distant, echoing wails that seemed to come from beneath the ground.
The entrance to the den yawned before them — a jagged maw lined with more glowing symbols, each one more grotesque and corrupted than the last. The stone here was slick and black, as if it had been scorched by hellfire. The air was so thick with malevolence that it felt like breathing through a shroud.
When they crossed the threshold, the atmosphere changed instantly. The light behind them vanished, and the entrance slammed shut with a thunderous crash. Scarlet spun, panic in her eyes, but there was no way back — the runes sealed the stone, their light now a barrier as much as a warning.
They were trapped.
The den was theirs to survive... or to die in.
A low, guttural growl echoed through the darkness. From the shadows, a hulking figure rose — a monster twice the height of a man, with mottled green skin, tusks like daggers jutting from its jaw, and eyes that burned with a feral red light.
Its arms were thick as tree trunks, and its claws scraped the stone with a sound that made Scarlet's blood run cold. The orc-monster grinned, revealing rows of broken, yellow teeth, and hefted a rusted axe that looked as if it had been forged in the heart of a volcano.
Nova and Scarlet exchanged a glance — fear, resolve, and a spark of hope passing between them. They drew their weapons, and the first floor of Lilith's den began.
The orc charged with a roar, swinging its axe in a wide arc. Nova dodged left, feeling the wind of the blade brush his cheek. Scarlet darted right, channeling a surge of healing magic into her palm, ready to patch any wound.
Nova feinted, drawing the orc's attention, while Scarlet circled behind. As the monster lunged, Nova rolled beneath its swing and slashed at its hamstring. The orc howled, staggering. Scarlet seized the chance, launching a bolt of light at its eyes. Blinded, the beast thrashed, and Nova finished it with a thrust through the heart.
The orc fell, dissolving into black mist.
They barely had time to catch their breath before the floor shifted beneath them, revealing a pit filled with chittering, rat-sized demons. The creatures surged up the walls, dozens at a time, their eyes gleaming with hunger.
Nova and Scarlet fought back to back, slashing and kicking, but for every demon they cut down, two more took its place. Scarlet remembered the trader's advice: "Demons hate light." She gathered her magic, unleashing a blinding flash that sent the swarm scattering into the shadows. Nova stomped on the last few, and silence fell once more.
A new door opened, leading them into a chamber lined with mirrors. At first, the room seemed empty — until the mirrors rippled, and doppelgangers stepped out, perfect copies of Nova and Scarlet, each wielding their own weapons.
The fight was brutal and confusing, every move matched, every feint countered. Nova realized the doppelgangers mimicked not just their attacks, but their weaknesses. He whispered to Scarlet, "Switch targets!"
They crossed paths, each fighting the other's double. The doppelgangers faltered, unable to anticipate the change, and Nova and Scarlet struck them down together.
The next chamber was a maze of shifting walls, the floor slick with corrosive slime. From the ceiling, slug-like monsters dropped, their bodies oozing acid that hissed and ate through stone.
Nova led the way, leaping from dry patch to dry patch, while Scarlet used bursts of wind magic to clear the path. When a slug landed too close, Nova hurled a broken piece of stone, knocking it into a pool of its own acid, where it dissolved with a shriek. They reached the end of the maze, battered but alive.
A sudden roar announced the fifth challenge: a giant stone golem with runes carved deep into its body, glowing with demonic fire. The golem hurled boulders, the air trembling with every impact. Nova and Scarlet dodged, searching for a weakness.
Scarlet noticed the runes on its chest flickered when it moved.
Nova called out, "Aim for the runes!"
Together, they focused their attacks — Scarlet's magic weakening the runes while Nova battered them with his sword. With a final, desperate strike, the runes shattered, and the golem crumbled into dust.
The sixth floor brought a different kind of terror — a room filled with illusions. Shadows twisted into monstrous shapes, voices whispered lies and fears. Nova saw visions of Thalara burning, Scarlet saw herself alone and forgotten.
They clung to each other, refusing to believe the shadows. Scarlet sang a song of hope, her voice cutting through the illusions like sunlight. The darkness receded, and the path forward opened.
Next, they faced a pack of shape-shifting wolves, their bodies flickering between fur and shadow. The wolves circled, attacking from all sides. Nova and Scarlet moved in perfect sync, covering each other's blind spots.
Nova used the environment, kicking loose stones to trip the wolves, while Scarlet's magic bound their shadows, freezing them in place long enough for Nova to strike. The last wolf lunged for Scarlet's throat, but she caught it with a burst of light, turning it to ash.
The eighth challenge was the most insidious yet — a puzzle room where the walls closed in with every wrong answer. Runes glowed on the floor, each one a symbol of a monster they had faced.
Nova realized the solution: step only on the runes of monsters they had defeated together.
They moved carefully, recalling each victory, each tactic. With every correct step, the walls slowed; with every mistake, they sped up. Heart pounding, Nova and Scarlet reached the door just as the walls nearly touched.
They stumbled into the final chamber, bloodied and exhausted. The room was vast, the ceiling lost in shadow. At its center, a colossal heart pulsed, veins of black fire snaking across the floor. The air was thick with corruption, every breath a struggle.
Scarlet clung to Nova, her magic flickering weakly.
A single, massive eye opened in the heart of the darkness. The den shook, runes flaring with unholy light.
Lilith was awake.