"Do you really think it was a good idea?"

  I suppose we didn’t have much of a choice. This place is enormous.

  Vale stood together with Pevir in one of the academy’s lifts. This one was headed downwards, towards the basement of the academy. As they had walked its hallways, they hadn’t encountered a single soul or Terror.

  They had agreed to split up, to cover more ground. Vale was squarely of the opinion that it was an idiotic decision, but Shiver had insisted tirelessly. Besides, she had a sneaking suspicion she knew why. Before they separated, Vale made her promise she wouldn’t put a dagger in Caledon.

  Vale let out a silent prayer for the lord, but quickly returned her attention to her own plight, as the lift shook and rattled on its descent. She only hoped to find them both intact when they reunited, and that she would be alive to reunite with them in the first place. Pevir, fortunately, had agreed to join her.

  They would regroup in front of the golden gates leading to the Floors of Trepidation after completing their search.

  A library, to give us clues about this Academy. Or anything really, to shed some light on why the Archcity and the academy were abandoned. Oh… and the living quarters, of course. I’d prefer not to sleep on the cold academy floor.

  "Did we really have to come down here… of all the places we could go…"

  "Ah young Vale, it is always good to be cautious. But you must muster your bravery to face your fears if you are to progress as a Fearshaper. Your Fear of death being the most important, but the bravery to face your others will only elevate your descent."

  Vale rolled her eyes at Quietus’ familiar refrain. Her guide, the little wishbone perched on her shoulder had initially repulsed her. He was a physical reminder of her Fear of death, and understandably, she had been taken aback.

  But… he was also fun to tease.

  "How did your other students ever last hmm? Did you keep them awake with the threat of lengthy lectures?"

  Vale giggle joined Pevir’s chuckle as Quietus grumbled.

  They felt silent once more, listening to the rhythmic shaking of the lift as it continued in its descent. Anticipation built, as the lift doors parted, revealing a long, dark corridor before them. Pevir’s eyes were alight with curiosity, and Vale questioned how the man wasn’t terrified of the prospect of confronting the unknown.

  The lift doors creaked to a close behind them, and she returned her attention to what lay before them.

  The light orbs that lined the upper corridors of the academy painted them in a gentle, golden light that put Vale at ease. The academy’s courtyard had practically been serene, she could have lounged there at ease for hours.

  The lights down here? They flickered, as if disrupted or faulty. Briefly introducing light into the corridor before them, before the darkness returned to reclaim its dominance.

  Vale continued forward, slowly, she came to an abrupt stop as she turned the corner. Her heart began to race, and she felt adrenaline spear through her veins in an instant.

  The dead.

  Countless skeletons lined the corridor. Garbed in pale, grey academy robes, their bodies bore only ivory, leaving behind their deathly visage.

  The hunched skull of one of the skeletons turned, staring at her. Vale scrambled backwards, stumbling and falling to the ground. As her gaze returned to it, she saw that the skeleton’s head had returned to its normal position.

  She had never encountered hallucinations like that before.

  "Vale! Are you alright?"

  "I-I… this is a hallucination, right Lord Quietus? It’s my Fear playing up? Right Pevir?"

  Her heartbeat continued to heighten. Quietus and Pevir’s words in her ear grew garbled, as the edges of her vision tinged red.

  No Vale, they’re dead, they can’t hurt you. Snap out of it.

  Vale clenched her fists, the pain of her nails digging into her palms dragging her out of her stupor. She let out a long breath that she had been unconsciously holding in, Pevir helping her to her feet.

  "I believe it is, Vale. What did you see? Is everything alright?"

  "I’m ok. My Fear just got to me for a second."

  Her voice fell, as she scanned the corridor before her. Filled with death, trying desperately to hold her burgeoning Fear at bay, as she stood in the midst of its object.

  "What in Insanity happened down here?"

  Pevir’s voice shook as he took in the scene around him.

  "I haven’t the slightest clue, but notice…. Where they were headed."

  At Pevir’s words, she felt a chill run down her spine.

  They were all headed in the direction of the lift, where she had emerged from. Running from… something. One of the skeletons had fallen, its arm outstretched in her very direction.

  "We should go. Whatever caused this… could it still be down here?"

  Silence filled the space around them. Pevir shook his head with confidence.

  "My bet is that it’s likely long gone. Look at the floor. This place has not been disturbed in a long time."

  He pointed towards the thick layer of dust that caked the floor of the tunnel, undisturbed. His eyes were alight with curiosity. A weak assumption, but the promise of mysteries to be unravelled drove him forwards, curiosity shining from his eyes. Ignoring the threats that lay behind his weak justification.

  Vale stumbled, as she forced her legs to follow suit.

  As they rounded the corner, Vale drew in a sharp breath at the scene that emerged.

  A gigantic ward, that covered vast doors wrought from darksteel. The doors were at least four times her height, and were built to ensure that whatever was kept inside them remained locked away.

  There was only one, small problem. The doors had been ripped through, and a ward flickered weakly, above the door’s exterior. Similar to the ward that covered the golden gates leading to the Floors of Trepidation.

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  What had done this?

  Then, her eyes glimpsed a sign, much like the one they had encountered in the academy above.

  Floors of Dread.

  Vale took a step back.

  "Whatever was in there… it looks to have gotten out."

  Vale’s eyes lingered on the darkness she could glimpse between the scars that covered the enormous darksteel doors. She turned to Pevir.

  "We should tell the others."

  ---

  Caledon’s footsteps echoed as he entered the strangest hall he had ever laid eyes on.

  He wouldn’t attest to being an expert or connoisseur in the types of halls that grand academies or castles were equipped with. After all, had grown up mostly exposed to Brimstone Manor.

  The Manor itself did not lack for charm, It was homely, a space where his family could congregate and relax in its warm embrace.

  His very best memories were when his father’s guide Sale, the Eternal Phoenix had still been with them. Filling the air with her gentle warmth. He suspected that a big reason why Viveria was so carefree and reckless, was due to the Phoenix’s abilities. In her adolescence the girl had been shielded from the consequences of her reckless feats, any injuries from her fights or antics fading away.

  Just being in Sale’s presence healed mundane wounds. Her song was even capable of dispelling the haunting thoughts that sometimes latched themselves into you, threatening to drag you down into the abyss with them.

  Then she had disappeared. Never to return again.

  Caledon shook his head, dispelling the uncomfortable memories.

  He walked out into the center of the hall and gazed up at a ceiling of stars impossibly high above him. The room was shaped like an inverted cone, with galleries at each level, expanding outwards from the floor beneath them.

  Above him, emerging from the very center of the ceiling above them was an immaculate statue depicting a beautiful elf, her hand extending downwards towards the floor. Wings of crystal extended outwards behind her, and a glowing orb of gold was clasped in her hand.

  The light that it emitted was gentle – but it illuminated the vast room before them, as well as each tier of floor.

  "Please, Shiver. I know my father. What you claim that he did… I can’t see the sense in it."

  Her cerulean eyes flashed, and she rounded on him in the center of the floor.

  "Blaze… Her only crime was stealing from a lord. A handful of coins and some bad chocolate. Marta and Pov’s only crime was having the naivety to care for a bunch of useless orphans. I’ll tell you what your father did. He set Marta and Pov’s home on fire. Their bodies and the very stone of their home was built from charred black by Brimstone flame. Pov’s limbs hacked off. Their faces free of all harm, as if to mock me. There was no doubt as to their identity. That father of yours stood over their bodies. Before a pair of wings emerged from his back, and he took off into the sky, like a Feardamned phoenix."

  Acid dripped from Shiver’s voice, and the girl that stood at least two heads shorter than him strode forwards fearlessly, grabbing him by the scruff of his shirt.

  "Tell me lordling, how many people are capable of setting stone itself alight. Think I was mistaken?"

  Caledon held up his hands in surrender, frowning in concentration.

  "Wait, wait. I’m not here to question what you saw. My father told me that Blaze had stolen a package that Semille was carrying. Could it be…"

  His eyes widened at the possibility as the disparate pieces of the puzzle floated together.

  "Shiver… you became a Fearshaper before we entered that temple… How?"

  She relinquished his shirt.

  "That Lord Semille sent some thugs after me. They shot me with a crossbow. While I was bleeding out, I ate…"

  Her eyes widened.

  "You can’t be saying… Surely it can’t be. That sorry excuse for a chocolate ball?"

  Caledon nodded. It was the only logical explanation, unless there was some other factor in play. Some other cargo, that had evaded Shiver, Blaze and Lord Semille’s notice - a negligible possibility.

  "That “chocolate” that you ate. Somehow it made you a Fearshaper, just the same as that temple we entered. You didn’t think to put it together?"

  He flinched as the girl’s gaze sharpend into a glare.

  "I was bleeding out on a frozen lake, you’ll forgive me if I wasn’t able to indulge in idle curiosity, my lord. I thought it had to do with being on the brink of death, I didn’t link it to the chocolate."

  In that case, the package from House Flora being sent to my father was… something that was capable of awakening elves to Fearshaping.

  But why? The trail went cold, as soon as one mystery was answered. Caledon was sure the hints lay around him, but he struggled to put them together.

  Shiver stalked further into the hall. She began to ascend the stairs to the first gallery above them. She looked down at him, her eyes were devoid of warmth.

  "Unless he proves otherwise, your father is a dead man. Careful that you don’t join him."

  Caledon just nodded. Shiver reluctantly dispelled her Phobia, the twin daggers of ice.

  "You know, I had half a mind to kill you too. Your father so easily betrayed his people. What’s to stop you from doing the same to us? You helped us, yes. But I’ve known plenty of “friends” that would stab me in the gut if it meant they would get a shot of Tranquility."

  She fixed him with another gare. He had the uncanny feeling that a lot of them would be directed at him in the immediate future.

  "Take so much as a step out of line, and I’ll send you to the dream ahead of daddy dearest."

  Caledon let Shiver’s words wash over him, as he watched her stride away. They were filled with hate, but hatred was not born in a vacuum.

  I wonder, if anyone killed someone I love… would I be able to have as much restraint as her? For all that she acts like she might slit my throat at any moment… she doesn’t.

  Shiver’s steps echoed into the distance.

  Caledon’s idle thoughts were punctuated by a painting that dominated the first floor, one he had overlooked while drawn into their exchange. It depicted an elf, gazing into a mirror. His surroundings were cloaked in darkness, and a single orb of light illuminated the scene.

  It was an ordinary, mundane painting but for one simple detail.

  His reflection returned a smile that was absent on his own face.

  Caledon struggled to decipher the meaning underpinning the work and glimpsed its title.

  Anhedonia.

  ---

  Sometime later, they reunited in front of the golden gates. Shiver walked up to Vale, who was huddled on the steps before them.

  Pevir had informed them of what they had found in the academy’s basement. The dead students and the flickering ward over the Floors of Dread that had been torn open by something that it contained. The archaeologist was convinced that whatever had escaped was long gone, seeing as the dust in the basement had been undisturbed. It was of scant comfort, but they quickly accepted that whatever it was, none of them would pose a threat to it.

  It did not change their goal.

  The soft golden light of the orbs above made Vale’s wavy blonde hair shine, which only served to draw his attention to her pallid expression. Her skin was pale and clammy from her sweat. She chewed on her lip with barely concealed anxiety. In her obsessiveness, her skin threatened to part, but Vale was uncaring.

  Shiver sat beside her and took her hand in her own firmly. Vale jumped, as if only just noticing their approach.

  Shiver knew, better than anyone, how Fears could be a source of insidious torment, gradually wearing away at an elf’s sanity. She was all too familiar with it, and she recognised it when she saw it. Moreover, this was before elves became Fearshapers, like they had. She spoke to Vale softly.

  "Are you alright?"

  Vale gave her a shaky smile with wide eyes and nodded her head.

  "I’m fine, it’s just… There’s just a lot of death down there. It hit me pretty hard."

  Shiver nodded, lightly helping her to her feet. Ordinarily, Vale would have been embarrassed at the sudden attention she attracted, but she was too tired to care.

  Pevir cleared his throat as he walked forward.

  "It seems like the basement houses the academy’s library. Perhaps we should monitor the area before exploring further."

  Vale nodded her head lightly in agreement, her gaze downcast. Shiver poked at Vale’s nose, causing her to recoil and sneeze.

  "Shiver!"

  "On the bright side princess, we’ve found the dormitories on another floor while you were off exploring."

  Her eyes sparkled.

  "You’re going to love them."

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