The worst part about falling into hell is that you can still hear the laughter of the people who pushed you.Lincoln felt the rough grip of the guard gauntlet digging into his shoulder, tearing the fabric of his once fine tunic. They were dragging him across the stone courtyard of the Vane estate, the very place where he had spent eighteen years believing he was a prince. Now, he was just trash being taken out."Do you hear that, brother?" Angus asked, his voice dripping with a sickening kind of joy.Lincoln spat on the ground, his face swollen from a dozen punches he had taken in the foyer. "Just kill me and get it over with, Angus. You have always been a coward."Angus laughed, a high, sharp sound that grated against the damp morning air. "Kill you? No. That would be too merciful. Mother wants you to suffer. She wants you to rot in the dark until you forget what the sun even looks like."Lincoln looked up, catching sight of Cressida standing on the balcony above them. She looked lik

Death does not smell like rot, it smells like wet fur and the end of everything you ever loved.The creature slammed into Lincoln, its weight pinning him to the cold, unforgiving stone. He felt the hot, rancid breath on his neck as the beast reared back, ready to strike. He swung his new blade, the serrated metal catching the dim light, but his hands were shaking so hard he barely grazed the beast’s flank. The creature snarled, a sound that vibrated in Lincoln’s very marrow."Lincoln, move!" Santiago screamed from the corner, his voice cracking with pure terror."I cannot!" Lincoln shouted back, his voice straining under the immense pressure of the beast’s claws against his chest."Get off him!" Santiago yelled, grabbing a rock and throwing it with a frail, desperate motion.The rock bounced harmlessly off the monster’s hide. The beast did not even blink. It just shifted its attention, its massive, unblinking eyes locking onto the old man."No, look at me!" Lincoln shrieked, scramblin

The earth shook like a dying giant, and we were just fleas trying to outrun its final breath.Lincoln grabbed Santiago by the back of his tunic, hauling the old man forward as a massive crash echoed behind them. The mother scavenger was tearing through the stone walls like they were made of paper."Faster, Santiago! Please, just a little faster!" Lincoln yelled, his boots slipping on the slick, uneven ground."I am trying, Lincoln! My legs are burning!" Santiago gasped, stumbling over a jagged outcropping. He fell hard, his breath leaving him in a ragged wheeze.Lincoln spun around, pulling his makeshift dagger. He scanned the darkness behind them, his heart hammering against his ribs. The sound of shifting rock was growing louder, more aggressive."Get up!" Lincoln ordered, reaching out a hand. "She is right behind us. If you stay there, she will take you."Santiago grabbed Lincoln hand, his skin cold and clammy. "Just leave me. You can make it. You have the speed, you have the weapo

The deepest places of the world do not just want your blood, they want your sanity.Lincoln crept along the edge of the Crystalline Tunnels, his boots barely making a sound on the jagged floor. The walls around him were beautiful and lethal, covered in sharp, glowing growths that hummed with a low, dangerous frequency."System," Lincoln whispered, his voice trembling slightly. "Scan the area. Tell me there is nothing behind me."The blue interface flared to life in his vision. System: Scanning. Multiple entities detected. Threat level: High."High," Lincoln breathed out, rolling his eyes. "That is not helpful. Give me a distance. How far?"System: Proximity warning. One Rock Carapace Crawler within fifty meters. Trajectory: Intersecting."Fifty meters," Lincoln muttered, ducking behind a massive shard of quartz. "I am going to need to move, and I am going to need to move now."He felt the vibration in the floor before he heard the creature. It was a rhythmic thudding, like a war drum