Book 5: Chapter 22 — The Ravine
Noah stood at the edge of the world. Death Valley yawned before them, a massive canyon system that seemed to swallow light itself. The reddish stone of the plains had gradually faded until now he stood among colorless grey rock streaked with bands of darker grey, stretching out so far before him that it felt absurd to even imagine it having an opposite side.
The walls descended into an abyss so deep that even his Dragon's Eyes struggled to perceive the bottom, and when they did he almost wished they hadn’t. Tangible darkness pooled in the depths, patient and hungry, formlessly writhing into temporary shapes before dispersing back into innocent shadow.
Noah’s heart constricted, responding to something primal in the valley's depths with a mixture of challenge and caution. Instincts recognized this place as fundamentally dangerous while pride demanded he prove himself its superior.
Roars echoed from below, distorted by distance and the thick power in the air, along with animal screams abruptly cut off. And behind it all, a distant, ethereal laughter that made his soul want to crawl out of his body and run as far and as fast as it could.
The voice of the Reaper? Or some other awful death-siren?
Away to the north and east he could see plateaus and ledges, interspersed tiers that ranged from desolate to teeming with life. Those closest to the top and bottom were lifeless or nearly so, while the middle depths were the most lively.
"This is it?" Noah asked, though the question felt stupid the moment it left his mouth.
“This is it,” Zax confirmed.
Bun Bun smells death, the familiar reported, and for once there was no bravado in his tone. He’d been more subdued ever since the Thornback encounter took him out so effortlessly, but now even more so. His scales had flattened against his body, his ears stiffly upright and nose twitching as he looked this way and that. So much death. Bun Bun... respects this place.