The dim glow of the cavern flickered as Ochieng and Lin Feng stepped out, the air behind them thick with a silence that felt too unnatural. The symbols that had pulsed on the walls inside now faded, but their eerie glow lingered in Ochieng's mind.
Cassandra was gone. And whatever had taken her wasn't something he could fight with just strength.
They moved through the ancient underground tunnels, their footsteps barely making a sound against the damp stone floor. Lin Feng's expression was tight with unease.
"This isn't like anything we've dealt with before," he murmured, his hand never leaving the hilt of his sword. "This place... feels wrong."
Ochieng said nothing.
He could feel it too. The weight of something watching. Stalking.
Testing.
But what unsettled him more was the whisper he had heard back in the cavern. A voice that had spoken not to his ears—but to his soul.
A voice that had called him by a name he had forgotten.
He clenched his fists. There was no time for hesitation.
"We keep moving," he said, his voice steady.
Lin Feng didn't argue.
They reached the mouth of the cave, stepping out into the night. The stars above were obscured by heavy clouds, and the air smelled of damp earth and something else—something metallic.
Blood.
Lin Feng tensed. "We're not alone."
Ochieng already knew.
From the shadows of the trees, figures emerged.
Silent. Motionless. Waiting.
There were at least ten of them, cloaked in dark robes.
Their faces were hidden. But their intent was clear.
A single figure stepped forward. Taller. Broader. The hooded figure raised a hand, and in that instant—
The night itself seemed to shift.
Ochieng felt it in his bones before he saw it.
The darkness around them moved. It wasn't natural. It wasn't shadow. It was something alive.
A force that twisted and coiled through the air like smoke, yet carried a presence that sent a chill straight through his spine.
Then, the figure spoke.
And the moment the voice reached his ears—
Ochieng froze.
Because he recognized it.
Even after all these years—he knew exactly who it belonged to.