Chapter 305
Dain stood in the middle of the clearing, his fingers still tingling from the contact with the shard. The dark energy that had flooded him earlier now simmered beneath his skin, a constant reminder of how dangerously close he had come to losing control. He could feel it—the power—whispering in the back of his mind, urging him to reach for more.
Fenrir remained silent, his gaze locked onto Dain, the fear still clear in his eyes. Dain had seen the look before. It was the same one Fenrir had worn when they had faced their most dangerous enemies. But this time, it was directed at him.
“What was that?” Fenrir asked quietly, his voice strained.
Dain shook his head, trying to push aside the unsettling sensation that still clung to him. “I don’t know. It felt like… something inside me awakened. Something I can’t control. But I’m fine now.” He hoped that was true. The last thing he wanted was to admit that the darkness had a stronger hold on him than he was willing to admit.
As he turned back to the shard, something shifted in the air. A faint glow enveloped the stone, and the whispers from before grew louder, more insistent. Dain’s pulse quickened, and he leaned closer, intrigued by the sudden change in the shard’s energy.
“Look,” he said, his voice barely a whisper. The shard, once pulsing in an erratic rhythm, now seemed to hum with a steady beat. The surface of the stone rippled like water, and Dain felt an odd pull, as though the shard was showing him something—something hidden deep within it.
Fenrir stepped closer, his expression tense but curious. “What is it?”
Dain reached out, his fingers grazing the surface of the shard once more. This time, the stone was warmer than before, as though it recognized his touch. The glowing surface shifted, revealing an intricate pattern that hadn’t been visible before. Slowly, the pattern began to change, lines and shapes forming a map—a map he had never seen before.
His breath caught in his throat. The map depicted a mountain range, jagged and unwelcoming, but at the center of the map was a symbol that Dain recognized—the Temple of the Moon Ascendant. His heart raced as he realized what this meant. This was the path, the one he had been searching for, the one that could lead him to the answers he so desperately needed.
“The Temple of the Moon Ascendant,” Dain murmured, his voice filled with awe. “It’s real. This is the key.”
Fenrir’s brow furrowed, his eyes scanning the map with unease. “That’s not good, Dain. You don’t know what’s out there. We don’t even know if that temple still exists. And even if it does, it won’t be unprotected.”
Dain glanced at Fenrir, his gaze intense. “I know what I’m doing. The temple holds the answers to everything—the shard, the darkness, everything. I can feel it.” He looked back at the map, the urge to follow its path growing stronger with every passing second. “We have to go there.”
Fenrir’s hand shot out, grabbing Dain’s arm before he could move. “We’re not going anywhere until we know what we’re dealing with,” he insisted, his voice urgent. “If this temple is real, there’s bound to be danger. There’s a reason the shard showed you this map, but you’re not ready for what’s waiting for us there.”
Dain shook off Fenrir’s grip, his resolve hardening. “I’m not backing down. We need to go. Now.”
The intensity of the shard’s glow intensified, and for a moment, Dain felt the ground beneath him tremble, as though the earth itself was reacting to the power that surged from the stone. The map shifted once more, revealing more details—darker details.
At the edges of the map, where the mountains met the vast wilderness, the landscape was twisted and corrupted. Blackened trees, barren and twisted, marked the boundaries of the path to the temple. And scattered throughout the land, growing more numerous as they neared the temple’s location, were figures—shadowy, ominous creatures that made Dain’s blood run cold. Wolves, their eyes glowing a sickly yellow, prowled the edges of the map.
Shadow wolves.
Dain’s stomach twisted at the sight. He had heard of these creatures—cursed beasts that roamed the corrupted lands, their very presence poisoning the earth beneath them. These were no ordinary wolves. They were born from the darkest magic, twisted by the forces that guarded the temple.
“We can’t go through there,” Fenrir said, his voice low, almost fearful. “Shadow wolves. They’re not like regular creatures. They’ll tear us apart before we even get close.”
Dain’s heart raced as the full weight of the map’s warning sank in. The path to the Temple of the Moon Ascendant was not only treacherous—it was filled with monsters that would stop at nothing to protect it. The closer they got to the temple, the more dangerous it would become.
But even as the fear gnawed at him, Dain couldn’t bring himself to turn back. The answers were within his reach, and nothing—nothing—would stop him from reaching them.
“We have no choice,” Dain said, his voice cold and determined. “I’m going to the temple, no matter what stands in our way.”
Fenrir stared at him, his eyes filled with a mixture of disbelief and concern. “This isn’t just about you anymore, Dain. There’s a whole world at risk.”
Dain’s gaze softened for a moment, but his resolve never wavered. “Then we’ll save it.”
The map flickered, its image burning into Dain’s mind as he turned away, already calculating the path ahead. The shadow wolves may have stood in his way, but the temple was calling to him—and he would answer.
-: The temple’s location was surrounded by corrupted lands inhabited by shadow wolves, their glowing yellow eyes watching from the darkness.
