To Forget and Be Forgotten

Cold air rose endlessly from beneath the earth.

Seren stood at the edge of the ruined entrance in silence while the dark staircase disappeared far below Norvale.

Beside her, Clara tightened her grip slightly around the herb basket resting against her side.

“…We shouldn’t stay here too long.”

Seren didn’t answer immediately.

Her eyes remained fixed downward.

Something about the tunnel felt wrong.

Not dangerous.

Familiar.

And that frightened her more than anything else had since leaving the kingdom.

The wind moving through the entrance carried a strange scent.

Old stone.

Cold water.

And something faintly metallic beneath it all.

Like blood long washed away.

Seren slowly stepped closer to the entrance.

Ancient carvings stretched along the surrounding walls.

Beautiful.

Elegant.

Nothing like the monstrous imagery she expected from stories about vampires.

“…This was built by them?” she asked quietly.

Clara nodded.

“So the church records say.”

Seren glanced toward her slightly.

“You trust the church?”

A faint pause.

“…Not completely.”

The answer surprised Seren more than she expected.

Clara looked toward the darkness below.

“The church teaches that the curses appeared after the vampire extinction.”

Her expression darkened slightly.

“But older people in Norvale say something different.”

Seren stayed silent.

“They say the curses were created to cause the extinction.”

The wind deep inside the tunnel suddenly felt colder.

Seren’s chest tightened slightly.

“The vampires knew they were dying,” Clara continued quietly. “So they created Underground before everything collapsed.”

“…Why?”

“To protect the cure.”

Silence settled again.

Then—

they descended.

The staircase seemed endless.

Stone steps spiraled deep beneath the earth while the world above slowly disappeared behind them.

The deeper they went—

the quieter everything became.

Soon there was nothing left except:

footsteps,

breathing,

and distant dripping water.

Ancient symbols covered parts of the walls.

Some looked scratched hurriedly into the stone.

Others looked deliberate.

Carefully crafted.

Seren’s gaze lingered on them too long.

A strange discomfort spread slowly through her chest.

Like seeing fragments of forgotten memories.

“…What exactly is this place?” she asked eventually.

Clara’s voice echoed softly through the tunnel.

“No one fully knows anymore.”

She ran her fingers lightly across one of the markings while passing it.

“The church sealed most vampire settlements after the extinction. But Underground remained untouched.”

“Why?”

“…Because nobody could reach the center.”

Seren frowned slightly.

“The checkpoints?”

Clara nodded.

“At first people thought monsters were hiding down here.”

A faint bitter smile crossed her face.

“That would’ve been easier.”

The staircase finally ended.

And Seren stopped immediately.

The chamber before them was enormous.

Warm golden lights glowed faintly across the ceiling like artificial stars.

Water flowed quietly beneath narrow channels carved into pale stone floors.

Massive pillars stretched upward into darkness.

The place was beautiful.

Peaceful.

Wrong.

Seren’s eyes slowly narrowed.

“…This is a checkpoint?”

“The first one.”

She stepped forward cautiously.

The moment her foot crossed into the chamber—

something changed.

A strange warmth spread slowly through her body.

Not physical warmth.

Relief.

A deep unbearable sense of relief.

The tension inside her chest softened slightly for the first time in what felt like forever.

Seren froze instantly.

That alone terrified her.

Nearby, several people sat motionless near the pillars.

One smiled faintly while staring upward.

Another quietly cried to herself.

None of them reacted to Seren or Clara entering.

“They’re alive,” Clara said softly behind her.

Seren looked toward the nearest figure.

A middle-aged man sat against a pillar with peaceful eyes.

Completely still.

“…Why aren’t they leaving?”

Clara remained silent briefly.

Then—

“Because this place gives people what they want.”

The chamber suddenly felt colder.

Seren looked back toward the motionless people.

“What do you mean?”

“The checkpoints feed on desire.”

Clara’s voice lowered slightly.

“The deeper someone goes… the more the tunnel shows them things they desperately want.”

Seren’s chest tightened again.

“At first it feels harmless,” Clara continued. “Relief. Accomplishment. Peace.”

A pause.

“But eventually…”

Her eyes drifted toward the smiling figures around them.

“…people stop wanting to leave.”

The silence inside the chamber became suffocating.

One of the motionless women nearby suddenly laughed softly to herself.

Not insanity.

Happiness.

Pure happiness.

Seren felt uneasy immediately.

“…And the cure is beyond this?”

“Yes.”

“Then why hasn’t the church retrieved it?”

Clara let out a faint breath.

“Because humans were never meant to cross Underground.”

Seren slowly looked toward the deeper passage ahead.

Darkness stretched endlessly beyond the glowing chamber.

Waiting.

Ancient.

Watching.

Then suddenly—

a sharp pain shot violently through her head.

Seren stumbled slightly.

Fragments.

Voices.

Screaming.

Blood.

A distant heartbeat.

And for the briefest moment—

she saw pale hands dragging something enormous through these tunnels.

Not humans.

Not entirely.

The vision vanished instantly.

Seren grabbed the nearest pillar to steady herself.

“…Seren?”

Clara stepped closer immediately.

“You okay?”

Her voice sounded distant now.

Muted.

Like it no longer fully reached Seren.

The warmth spreading through her chest had become unbearable.

Gentle.

Comforting.

Wrong.

Her vision blurred slightly.

The glowing chamber slowly faded around her.

Stone disappeared.

Cold vanished.

And suddenly—

warmth.

Soft blankets.

Faint candlelight.

A quiet heartbeat against her chest.

Seren’s eyes widened slightly.

She knew this warmth.

No—

she remembered it.

Long dark hair spilled softly across the pillow beside her.

Arms wrapped loosely around her waist.

Careful.

Familiar.

Safe.

“…You’re awake?”

The voice was quiet.

Sleepy.

Gentle.

Seren stopped breathing.

Liora looked up at her slowly from beneath the blankets, golden eyes soft in the dim light.

There was no blood.

No rain.

No running.

Nothing hurt.

For the first time in what felt like forever—

Seren’s body relaxed.

Liora smiled faintly before resting her forehead lightly against Seren’s chest again.

“…Go back to sleep.”

Seren’s trembling hands slowly pulled her closer instinctively.

And somewhere far away—

deep beneath the earth—

something ancient quietly waited for her to stop waking up.