The Ancient Below
1039 Words
Chapter 10
The gigantic eye stared upward from the darkness beneath the shattered chamber.
Unblinking.
Ancient.
Its golden iris glowed deep below the broken earth while black mist curled upward from the abyss surrounding it.
Nobody moved.
Not even Fenrir.
For the first time since meeting the ancient guardian, fear appeared in his silver eyes.
“That cannot be possible…”
The ground trembled violently again.
More cracks spread across the chamber floor as corrupted roots twisted wildly around the collapsing stone.
Aretha couldn’t look away from the eye below.
Something about it felt familiar.
Not comforting.
But connected.
The whispers inside her head became deafening.
“She has awakened the seal…”
“The forgotten one rises…”
“The balance returns…”
“ENOUGH!”
Orion slammed his blade into the ground.
Golden wolf energy exploded across the chamber, temporarily pushing the corruption backward.
“We leave now!”
Another monstrous roar erupted from below the abyss.
The sound shook the underground roots themselves.
Shadow hunters backed away nervously while several Lumierre soldiers arriving from above froze in terror.
One whispered:
“What is that thing?”
Fenrir’s massive body moved protectively in front of the group.
“A god from before the First Age.”
Silence.
Nyra blinked slowly.
“…I’m sorry, a WHAT?”
The ancient guardian kept his eyes locked on the abyss.
“Before Lumierre… before the magical bloodlines… ancient beings existed beneath the roots of the world.”
The gigantic eye below shifted slightly.
Watching them.
Watching Aretha.
Fenrir growled deeply.
“The first guardians sealed them away after the balance between light and darkness shattered.”
Allan’s expression remained calm.
Too calm.
“You never told us the corruption could break the ancient prison.”
Fenrir’s silver eyes narrowed.
“Because it never should have happened.”
Another crack split across the chamber floor.
Dark claws emerged briefly from the abyss below before disappearing again.
Aretha stepped backward instinctively.
Liam immediately pulled her closer behind him.
“You stay near me.”
She nodded weakly.
Her heart hammered violently inside her chest.
The creature below wasn’t just awake.
It knew she was there.
She could feel it.
Like invisible eyes inside her mind.
Then suddenly—
The gigantic eye blinked.
And every root in the chamber reacted instantly.
Black corruption exploded through the underground tunnels.
The roots screamed.
Actually screamed.
A horrifying sound echoed throughout the cavern as the Tree of Life itself reacted in pain.
Far above them, Lumierre City shook violently.
---
Outside the academy, panic spread through Greenfield Lumierre.
The Tree of Life glowed between gold and black as corruption spread through several massive roots beneath the city.
Citizens ran through the streets while Fairy soldiers evacuated homes near the sacred grounds.
Large sections of the river had already turned dark.
Animals fled the forests in terror.
And standing beneath the giant tree—
Evelyne watched the corruption spread with horror in her ancient eyes.
“It’s happening too soon…”
Beside her stood General Seraphina Fairwing.
Armored fairy soldiers filled the skies above them.
“We’re losing control of the city,” Seraphina said grimly.
Evelyne looked toward the academy towers in the distance.
“No,” she whispered.
“We’re losing the Tree itself.”
---
Back underground, chaos erupted.
Corrupted creatures flooded the chamber from every direction now.
Dozens.
Maybe hundreds.
Liam transformed further, silver markings glowing across his skin as he tore through attacking beasts beside Orion.
Nyra’s metallic wings sliced through shadows with deadly precision while Caspian summoned massive torrents of water through broken underground rivers.
Shadow hunters fought beside Lumierre soldiers despite centuries of hatred between them.
Nobody had time to care anymore.
Because if the underground seal fully broke—
Everything would die together.
Allan cut through another corrupted beast before turning sharply toward Fenrir.
“How do we close the abyss?”
The guardian remained focused on the giant eye below.
“We cannot close it.”
Those words hit harder than any attack.
Orion growled.
“There has to be a way.”
“There is only one.”
Fenrir slowly turned toward Aretha.
The chamber seemed to still around them.
The whispers in her head suddenly stopped.
Everyone followed Fenrir’s gaze.
And realized the answer before he even spoke.
“No,” Selene whispered immediately.
Fenrir’s voice rumbled softly.
“The child of balance must restore the seal.”
Aretha felt cold all over.
“What does that mean?”
Fenrir stepped closer carefully.
“Your power was born from both light and shadow.” His silver eyes softened slightly. “Only you can reconnect the broken roots.”
“No,” Selene repeated, stronger this time. “She’s not doing this.”
The ground shook violently again.
A massive claw slammed against the edge of the abyss below.
Stone exploded everywhere.
Students screamed from the upper tunnels.
The creature beneath the world was climbing upward.
Allan looked toward Aretha seriously.
“If that thing reaches the surface, both realms fall.”
Liam stepped beside her immediately.
“There has to be another way.”
“There isn’t,” Elias whispered.
Everyone looked toward him.
The Visionary’s eyes glowed silver again.
Another vision.
Tears rolled slowly down his face.
“I saw it…”
His voice trembled.
“The Tree dies if she refuses.”
Silence followed.
Heavy.
Crushing.
Aretha looked around the chamber.
At the corruption spreading everywhere.
At the fear in everyone’s eyes.
At her mother desperately trying to protect her.
Then finally—
She looked toward the abyss.
Toward the ancient eye watching her from below.
And for the first time…
The creature spoke directly into her mind.
Not with rage.
Not with hatred.
But with loneliness.
“You are the last bridge between worlds.”
Aretha’s breathing shook.
“Why me?”
The answer came softly.
“Because your existence was never a mistake.”
Then suddenly—
The gigantic claw emerged fully from the abyss.
A monstrous hand covered in ancient black scales gripped the edge of the chamber.
The entire underground cavern began collapsing.
Fenrir roared thunderously.
“IT RISES!”
And the true horror beneath the world finally began to emerge.
- Writer
