Page 25 of Alien Hunter's Prize

I closed my eyes, breathing in his scent—pine, ozone, clean sweat, Iros—letting his certainty seep into me. He was right. We were a team. Different strengths, shared purpose.

"Okay," I whispered, opening my eyes, meeting his gaze. The fear hadn't vanished, but it no longer paralyzed me. It was overshadowed by trust, by our connection. "Okay. I trust you."

A faint smile touched his lips. He held my gaze for another moment, then stepped back, intensity replaced by focused readiness. "Good. Rest now. We depart before the first sun clears the eastern peaks."

Even as he pulled away, something stayed behind—tethered between us, warm and wordless. A vow written in pulse and proximity.

As I settled back into my furs, images of eyeless creatures and shifting darkness still lingered, but felt less overwhelming now, balanced by Iros's determination and steady presence. The Crystal Depths awaited, but we would descend prepared, as allies, ready.

IROS

The fissure exhaled a breath of cold, stale air as we assembled before it in the thin, gray light of pre-dawn. This was the entrance to the Crystal Depths, a place spoken of in hushed tones even by the stoic Aerie Kin.

Moss, slick with perpetual dampness, clung to the weathered rocks framing the opening, making the initial footing treacherous. The stone itself felt wrong beneath my boots, vibrating with a low, discordant energy that resonated unpleasantly through my lifelines, a constant hum of imbalance -- not the chaotic scream of the Echoing Caves' core, but a deeper, grinding ache.

Jen stood beside me, her pack lighter now but symbolically heavier, ready to receive the harmony stones Mateha insisted were crucial for her safety and success in thenext, greater challenge.

Her face was pale in the dim light, but her eyes held a focused determination that I was coming to rely on as much as my own senses. Through our connection, I felt the rapid beat of her heart, a nervous rhythm overlaid with fierce resolve. The silver markings at her temples seemed stark against her skin in the gloom.

Nirako and Pravoka, our Aerie guides for this necessary detour, completed their final gear checks, their movements economical, betraying none of the apprehension their grim expressions conveyed.

Nirako, tall and scarred, adjusted the coil of woven fiber rope across his chest. Pravoka, compact and radiating coiled strength, tested the edge of her bone knife, her dark eyes fixed on the fissure entrance with unwavering vigilance. They knew the dangers within better than we did, dangers we now had to face to properly equip Jen.

"The old tales speak of singing stones and whispering shadows," Nirako murmured, his voice unusually somber. "The paths change with every tremor. Trust only the stone beneath your feet at the moment you step."

"And trust nothing that whispers your name from the darkness," Pravoka added darkly, her hand resting on her knife hilt. "The Lurkers guard the harmony."

I nodded, acknowledging their warnings. The responsibility for this mission settled heavily. Retrieving these specific harmony stones was critical, not just for understanding the Echoing Caves, but for Jen's survival when she inevitably faced its core.

Her unique senses were our greatest asset, but Mateha was right -- they were also her greatest vulnerability without the proper tools to shield and focus them. Protecting her meant ensuring she had those tools.

"I will lead," I stated clearly, establishing the order before we entered the oppressive darkness. "Nirako behind me, then Jen. Pravoka, you guard our rear. Stay close. Watch your footing meticulously. Speak only when absolutely necessary -- sound carries strangely in these depths, and we do not wish to attract the attention of the Lurkers."

I met each of their eyes, ensuring the command was understood. Nirako and Pravoka gave curt nods, their faces settling into the impassive masks of warriors entering battle.

Jen met my gaze directly, her brown eyes wide but resolute. I felt her trust, a tangible connection that strengthened my own resolve.I will keep you safe. We will get what you need.The promise remained unspoken but absolute.

Taking a deep, centering breath, I activated my fungal light -- a small sphere emitting a cool, pale blue glow -- and stepped into the fissure. The darkness within was profound, swallowing the light almost immediately.

The passage descended steeply, twisting sharply downward, the air growing instantly colder, damper, thick with the scent of wet rock and metallic minerals. Water trickled down the rough-hewn walls, creating slick patches that demanded careful foot placement.

The silence pressed in, broken only by the rhythmic drip of water, the scuff of our boots on stone, and our own controlled breathing, which seemed unnaturally loud in the confined space.

My lifelines continued their low, uncomfortable hum, reacting to the discordant energy that permeated the stone itself. It felt fundamentally wrong, like the mountain was groaning in pain around us.

This was not the deep, resonant harmony of a healthy world; this was the vibration of sickness, of imbalance spiraling towards catastrophe.

"Careful here," I called back softly after several minutes of descent, my voice absorbed by the oppressive quiet. "The stone is compromised." I guided them around a section where the rock wall had fractured into a spiderweb of fine cracks, sensing through my boots and lifelines that it wouldn't hold our combined weight.

Nirako followed without comment, his experience evident in his surefooted movements. Jen came next, her own fungal light casting her face in shifting blue shadows.

Her markings were more visible now in the darkness, a faint silver tracery against her pale skin. She moved with a surprising grace, her smaller size an advantage in the narrowest sections, though I noted the tension in her shoulders.

"Energy signature... stronger to the left," she whispered suddenly, her voice hushed but urgent, barely disturbing the silence. "And... something else. A vibration... not natural. Too regular. Rhythmic. Like... machinery?"

Machinery? Here? Deep within the Crystal Depths? Mateha's lore hadn't mentioned this. It aligned disturbingly with the legends of failed ancestral technology, but I had thought that confined to the Echoing Caves.

Could the corruption be more widespread? I trusted her perception implicitly now. "Note its direction," I murmured back. "We proceed towards the crystals first, but remain aware."

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