Chapter 14: Blood of the First Healer
Elric stood frozen, hand inches from the vial, as the growl deepened into a rumble that shook the stones beneath his feet.
Lira, lantern raised high, gasped as a shape emerged from the gloom—a hulking creature of bone and bark, like a tree carved into the form of a beast. Its eyes glowed faintly red, but not with rage—with pain. With centuries of guarding something it no longer remembered.
"Elric," Lira whispered, "it's not attacking."
He lowered his hand slowly and stepped back. The creature growled again but did not lunge. Instead, it circled the altar, settling beside it like a loyal dog returning to its post.
"This isn't a beast," Elric murmured. "It's a sentinel."
He turned his gaze to the vial again.
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The liquid inside pulsed faintly, like it had a heartbeat of its own.
Etched onto the altar were words in an old dialect—part Latin, part something more primal. Elric squinted, translating slowly: