Chapter 473: City Ruins
A soft chill swept through the air, an astral breeze in the skies of Haven. It carried with it the scent of must and decay, causing me to wrinkle my nose in disgust. Having sensitive senses had its downsides, after all.
The gate had placed me somewhere far from any of the islands I recognized, likely out on the far edge of the realm. There were a few forgotten islands beyond me, but everything past them was a dark haze, with only a few distorted twinkling stars shining through. Haven continued to call out to me in the distance, a constant tug on my ears and soul, a quiet plea for help in the darkness.
I cautiously lowered my foot onto the first cobblestone of the makeshift bridge, my heart pounding in my chest. Squeezing my eyes shut, I shifted my weight onto it. My heart lurched as the stone dipped precariously, threatening to send me tumbling into the abyss below, but it gradually stabilized. After a few tentative tests, I took a shallow breath and moved forward a step, then another. Each rock felt loose and shaky, as if it might crumble at any moment, but they held.
Fable padded along behind me, seemingly unconcerned with our precarious footing. I gradually gained some confidence as well, but still breathed a sigh of relief upon reaching the other island, where a disheveled cottage stood amidst a few scraggly bushes. I started past it, heading for the next island, when a movement in my peripheral vision caught my eye. It was a small, almost imperceptible flicker of darkness in the cracked window, but by the time I turned my head, it was gone.
A chill crept down my spine. Someone, or perhaps something, had been there, right? Or was it just my imagination playing tricks on me? Fate knew this place was eerie enough already. Or was it some sign of the ’Remnants’ Haven had mentioned before? If only I had asked about them sooner...
Pushing the unsettling thought aside, I hurried onto the next island, my steps quickening. A broken tower and a section of a crumbled wall obstructed the far side, the rubble making it difficult to navigate. After picking my way around several oversized chunks of masonry, I gave up and allowed Fable to carry me.
With Fable’s speed, we made much better time, but it also afforded me the opportunity to observe my surroundings and investigate the prickles of unease that kept rising on the back of my neck. Occasionally, I caught more fleeting movements in the corner of my eyes, but never in the same place twice. These occurrences seemed to become more frequent the deeper we ventured into Haven’s depths.
I couldn’t help but question whether there was truly anything there at all. If Haven hadn’t mentioned these "remnants," would I even be searching for them? I’d felt their presence so often that I’d almost become numb to it, and I wondered if I was simply imagining the whole thing. Yet, each time I sensed something, I couldn’t help but look, convinced I’d just missed catching a glimpse of them.
After what felt like an eternity, my knuckles white from clinging to Fable’s fur, my eyes finally found a somewhat familiar landmark. It was a massive island, easily a mile long and just as wide, dominated by a sprawling fortress that seemed to grow out of the very earth. I’d never seen it from this angle before, but I recognized it as one of the islands visible from the Heart of Haven.
As we drew closer to the island, the ruins’ walls loomed over us, dwarfing any castle or fortress I’d seen in Enusia. The towers had crumbled, and no defenders patrolled the parapets, yet the sensation of being watched intensified as we stepped onto the island itself. A weed-choked road, paved with oddly uniform cobblestones, stretched before us, leading directly to the gaping entrance. The heavy iron gate, rusted a deep red, hung askew on its one remaining hinge, creaking faintly in the ethereal breeze.
Fable paused a hundred feet from the gates, his ears pricked. Wariness oozed from our soul bond, setting my already frayed nerves on edge. He hadn’t once hesitated until now, confidently stalking through the shadows as though he owned them, so why now, when we were so close to getting to the Heart?
"What is it?" I whispered, leaning over to speak into Fable’s ear, his fur warm against my cheek. "Should we go around?"