ONLINE: Blades of Eternity

Time blurred as Kaelen and Kelvin trekked through the uncharted expanse of Aetheris. Days—maybe weeks—slipped by in a blur of blood, breath, and steel. From the swamp-scaled brutes of the Virelan Marshes to the flying bone serpents of the Craghowl Cliffs, the two had battled beasts both grotesque and divine. It was as if the world itself was testing them, one creature after another throwing itself against their blades as though drawn by the presence of Pandora, the forbidden magic sealed within Kaelen.

But now, they stood before Deadroot Jungle—their first landmark in reaching the Human territory's outer rim.

A thick veil of ashen mist hung like an unnatural curtain, swallowing the twisted boughs and gnarled roots of the jungle in a ghostly embrace. The sun, which had been their guide through most of their journey, was completely blotted out, replaced by an eerie gray gloom.

Kelvin narrowed his eyes at the unnatural fog. "This place… I've read about it. No one goes in here unless they want to disappear."

Kaelen's voice was low, wary. "It's the fastest route back. If we go around, we'll lose a month—time we don't have."

Kelvin hesitated, but gave a single nod. "Then let's get this over with."

With blades sheathed but hands twitching close to their hilts, they stepped into the jungle.

The change was instant and brutal.

Kaelen stumbled forward, eyes wide. A hollow emptiness gnawed at his chest. He clutched his abdomen, where Pandora usually throbbed like a second heartbeat. Now—nothing.

"Do you feel that?" he asked, his voice strained.

Kelvin was already down on one knee, hand against the earth. His expression was thunderstruck. "The mana… it's gone. Not just in the air. It's not in me."

Kaelen extended his palm, trying to conjure even a flicker of flame. Nothing happened. Not even a spark. It was as if Aether itself had abandoned them.

"Is this what Endless did?" Kelvin asked, rising with gritted teeth. "Or is the jungle naturally cursed?"

Kaelen didn't answer. He couldn't. Even the connection to Pandora was quiet, disturbingly silent. And yet, retreat wasn't an option—not with the Human territory at risk. Not with the mana veins vanishing and Endless closing in.

They pushed forward, their steps cautious, every rustle of leaves a looming threat. The deeper they went, the heavier the mist grew. The trees—towering things with bark like cracked stone—began to twist, forming unnatural arches and tunnels. The jungle felt like it was watching.

Then, without warning, Kelvin raised a fist, signaling a stop.

Silence.

No birds. No rustling.

Only the sound of low, rhythmic growling.

From the left, a shape materialized—followed by another… and another.

Purple eyes. Six of them.

Lurking within the mist was a pack of wolf-like creatures, each as large as a full-grown horse. Their fur was midnight black, bristling with bone-like spikes. But it was their eyes that stole Kaelen's breath—piercing, glowing purple, not with malice, but with something deeper… corrupted intent.

The lead wolf stepped forward, its paws utterly silent. It bared its fangs—obsidian and dripping with a black mist of its own. Mana-less or not, they were still prey.

Kaelen slowly reached for his sword, the weapon heavier without the aid of mana.

Kelvin exhaled sharply. "Looks like we're doing this the old-fashioned way."

As the wolves crept closer, the mist thickened, and the jungle seemed to close in around them.

Kaelen's grip tightened.

"They're not just beasts…" he whispered. "They've been tainted."

And as the first wolf lunged—silent, deadly, eyes burning like amethysts in the fog—Kaelen and Kelvin braced themselves for battle.

No mana.

No backup.

Only steel… and will

And so, Kaelen's blade hissed from its sheath, cold steel glinting faintly through the haze. Beside him, Kelvin twirled his scythe in a wide arc, the curved edge whistling through the air. No mana surged through their weapons. No enchantments hummed. They were wielding cold iron—raw and unassisted.

The lead wolf lunged.

Kaelen sidestepped and slashed, the steel grazing its hide. Sparks flew.

The wolf landed, unfazed.

"What the hell—" Kaelen barely had time to mutter before two more wolves attacked from either side. He ducked beneath a lunging maw, spun on his heel, and drove his sword deep into the flank of another. But the blade met something unnaturally hard—like stabbing into stone wrapped in flesh. The creature yelped but didn't fall. It retaliated with a swipe of claws that tore open Kaelen's shoulder, sending him sprawling.

Kelvin intercepted a charging wolf with a brutal spin, his scythe cleaving downward. The edge hit the beast squarely between the eyes—but bounced off with a sharp clang.

"These bastards—" he growled, dancing back. "They're armored by some kind of magic!"

"No mana, no buffs—" Kaelen winced as he stood. "We're fighting them naked."

The wolves circled, their purple eyes pulsing brighter, synchronized like a heartbeat. One howled—a long, eerie wail—and the pack surged forward.

Kaelen and Kelvin moved as one, back to back, blades singing through the mist. Kaelen parried a snapping jaw, then riposted with a thrust straight into a wolf's eye—but even the vulnerable spot was shielded by a glimmering layer that cracked his blade's edge.

Kelvin was faring no better. He hooked a beast by the neck with his scythe, yanked it down, and drove his foot into its spine. The creature barely flinched.

"We can't keep this up," Kaelen grunted, panting hard. "They're too fast—and too strong."

"We need to fall back—regroup!"

But there was nowhere to retreat. The mist was too thick, the roots twisted, and the wolves closed in again—closer this time. One leapt. Another flanked from the rear.

Then—

Silence.

The world blinked.

In an instant, a shadow passed through the wolves.

No sound. No warning.

One moment they were mid-leap, fangs bared, purple eyes blazing—and the next, their bodies hit the ground, lifeless. Heads rolled. Blood sprayed into the fog like black ink in water.

Kaelen froze.

Kelvin's scythe clattered against a root as he turned.

Twelve wolves. All down.

Dead.

They hadn't even seen the strike.

Standing at the center of the slaughter was a silhouette—tall, slim, unmoving. A slight breeze caught the edge of her cloak, revealing boots muddied with jungle grime and fingers still curled around a thin, oddly curved blade. She had moved so fast, it was as if time itself had hesitated to catch up.

Kaelen's eyes widened. "What… just happened?"

The mist around her parted slightly.

She stepped forward.

A girl, no older than they were—perhaps younger. She wore a simple black coat trimmed with gray, its collar turned up, partially masking her face. Her hair was silver-white, cascading to her waist in a braid that shimmered faintly even in the mana-starved jungle. Her eyes—sharp, golden, calculating—glanced once at the bodies, then back to them.

"If you want to keep breathing," she said calmly, voice flat as stone, "you should not be here."

Kelvin raised a brow, dumbfounded. "We just fought through weeks of monsters to get here—"

"Then you should've taken the long way," she snapped, her tone suddenly sharp. "Deadroot is a mana grave. Whatever is sealed here... it doesn't just consume magic. It unravels it. And it's waking up."

Kaelen's heartbeat was still racing, not from fear—but from awe. This girl had killed an entire pack of magically reinforced beasts without breaking a sweat. But something about the way she stood, how she hadn't even glanced at them again after speaking, made him realize something deeper.

She wasn't saving them out of kindness.

She was warning them before something worse arrived.

"You have three minutes," she added, turning her back to them. "Get out. Before it notices you."

Absolutely—here's a chilling, tension-filled follow-up scene with a cliffhanger ending:

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Scene: The Mist Takes Form

Kaelen and Kelvin exchanged glances, their legs aching, breaths still uneven from the fight. The girl had already begun walking ahead, her blade dripping with dark blood, fading quickly into the swirling mist. Her warning echoed in Kaelen's head like a drumbeat.

"Three minutes…"

Kelvin muttered, "She's serious. Let's move."

Kaelen gave one last glance at the fallen wolves, then nodded. They turned and started toward the path she came from, sticking close to the small trail of fading footprints she left behind. The air around them felt heavier now—as if something ancient was exhaling into the jungle.

Then—

A whisper.

No wind. No rustle.

Just a voice—deep, smooth, and cold as death.

"Where do you think you're going?"

The mist thickened instantly, coalescing ahead of them in the path they intended to take. It rolled and twisted like smoke—and then solidified. From the fog, a figure emerged.

It was tall, unnaturally so. A humanoid silhouette, draped in a flowing cloak that rippled as though it were made of mist itself. Its face was obscured by a smooth, white porcelain mask—featureless save for a single horizontal slit where faint, violet light glowed.

Its presence was crushing.

Kaelen froze. Kelvin instinctively raised his scythe, even knowing it would likely do nothing.

But it was the girl who reacted first.

She stepped in front of them, her body tense, her blade raised diagonally in a defensive stance. Her expression had changed completely—no longer composed or indifferent.

She was deadly serious.

"Damn it," she muttered, eyes locked on the figure. "Already here…"

Kaelen's voice was a whisper. "What is that thing?"

The mist-being tilted its head ever so slightly. "You carry the scent of Pandora," it said softly. "The harbinger of endings. You should not exist here."

The girl's grip tightened on her weapon. "You two—stay behind me."

Kelvin blinked. "Wait, what's happening?"

She didn't answer him directly. Instead, her voice rang out sharp and commanding:

"It's too late. You're already seen. Back me up. Now."

Kaelen instinctively stepped forward, sword in hand, despite the chill in his spine.

Kelvin followed, swinging his scythe into position. "Guess we're fighting mist now?"

The fog thickened. The trees began to bend unnaturally. The very air pulsed with dread.

And the being in front of them… smiled.