NOVEL NEXT Chapter 7: 1.6 The Void
The void lay spread out in front of them, an infinite abyss of shifting shadows. The stone beneath their feet felt as cold as ice, and each step they took sent a gentle echo reverberating off unseen walls, a chilling reminder that they were no longer in the familiar world. Silence enveloped them like a thick shroud, oppressive and heavy, as if the atmosphere itself was pressing down on their shoulders. This silence felt unnatural, as if something loomed just beyond their awareness, poised to consume them entirely.
Vera's gaze darted over to the others—Raith, Liora, Soren, and Keal who were together with her in this desolate location. She didn't need to look for long to recognize that Soren was the most powerful among them. His presence was unmistakable, reminiscent of the calm before a storm, the kind of tranquility that only arrived before destruction. His eyes, dark and calculating, surveyed the group as though he was already assessing their value.
Her gaze rested on him for a brief moment, and she felt it again—the pull. It was faint, like a thread drawing her focus back to him, but Vera dismissed it. There were more pressing matters to concentrate on at that moment than the undeniable strength emanating from him. They were ensnared here, after all, in a game they had not chosen, and whatever entity governed this maze had made it abundantly clear that they could not leave without some form of reckoning.
Yet there was something else present, something far older and darker, that they could not yet perceive. A presence that made the shadows seem alive, throbbing like a heartbeat just beneath the surface. It wasn't solely the stillness—it was the sensation that something was observing them, analyzing them, biding its time for them to err.
The silence lingered longer than it ought to have, each second becoming increasingly burdensome. It felt as if the very air was thickening, wrapping around them. No one spoke. No one moved. It was as if the labyrinth itself was holding its breath, compelling them to remain motionless, to wait for something—some signal, some noise, some indication of what was forthcoming.
Raith was the first to shatter the silence, his voice rough yet steady. "So we've been pulled into this game together…" he said, his words trailing off as he surveyed the others around him. There was a hint of uncertainty in his tone, although he attempted to cover it with diplomacy. "Let's exhibit some peace. "
His bow felt more like a formality, a sign of respect that barely seemed to touch his heart. He was a prince, after all, from the Kingdom of Storms, thrust into a predicament where his royal status carried no weight. The notion of standing alongside commoners appeared to irritate him more than he would reveal, but Vera could sense the burden of his disquiet, the discomfort of being out of his element.
Liora, positioned right beside him, scoffed. Her lips formed a derisive smile, and the sarcasm in her voice was as sharp as a blade. "A prince bowing. . . for a commoner? Uncommon sight. "
Her comments, toxic and cutting, were not directed solely at Raith, although Vera could notice the flash of annoyance in his eyes. Liora's actual aim appeared to be anyone she deemed beneath her, and she perceived them all—every single one of them—as inferior. Yet, Vera understood better than to allow Liora's statements to wound her too deeply. There was something beneath her cutting words, something that Vera had yet to fully grasp. Maybe Liora was more frightened than she let on. Perhaps they all were.
The corner of Vera's lips turned into the faintest of smiles, though she kept it concealed. She remained silent, her focus drifting toward Soren. His eyes were icy, inscrutable, like an unending void, but when they connected with hers, there was a fleeting moment of mutual understanding. The smallest flicker of something unexpressed passed between them, and she speculated, not for the first time, if Soren possessed more knowledge than he revealed.
"When we're here, we're all equal," Soren remarked, his voice low, nearly apathetic as he stared directly at Liora. "Commoner or royal, it doesn't matter in this game. "
Liora opened her mouth to snap back, but before she could say anything, a sound pierced through the dense silence. A soft clack of heels on stone, faint initially, but intensifying with each moment. It was a noise that felt out of place, in this realm of shadows and infinite darkness. Vera's breath caught in her throat, and she sensed the hairs on the nape of her neck stand on end. The atmosphere seemed to chill suddenly, the very air thickening, becoming laden with the foreboding of something. . . amiss.
The others took notice as well. They all turned toward the origin of the sound, their eyes fixating on the shadows from which it emerged. The stone beneath their feet seemed to resonate, vibrating with an unnatural force. Vera's heart beat heavily in her chest, each pulse more pronounced than the last. This was it—the moment they had been anticipating, the moment the labyrinth chose to disclose whatever it had prepared for them.
From the depths of the shadows, something—someone—came forth.
At first, it was merely a blur, a dark silhouette scarcely distinguishable in the shifting shadows, but then, as if the darkness itself adapted to accommodate its form, the figure became distinct, taking shape in the subdued light. Vera's stomach twisted. It wasn't fear—not entirely—but something more profound, something instinctual, surged within her. It was a feeling of disquiet, a profound awareness that whatever this was, it transcended their ability to understand.
The figure was towering, much taller than any of them, and she appeared to traverse with a fluidity that challenged the principles of reality. It wasn't a walk—it was a glide, her feet hardly appearing to make contact with the stone below her. Every motion seemed to warp the space surrounding her, as if the very essence of the void rippled in her wake.