For the first time since returning to the Abyss, Kael woke without pain.
There was no screaming.
No whispering from the darkness.
No notification waiting for him.
Only silence.
He opened his eyes.
The white flower was still there.
It had grown overnight.
Three more flowers surrounded it now.
Kael stared at them for a moment.
“That’s new.” Shade was sitting beside them.
It was holding one of the flowers between two fingers.
Kael raised an eyebrow.
“Don’t break it.” Shade immediately released it.
Kael laughed.
A small sound.
Almost unfamiliar.
Shade looked at him.
“You laugh.” Kael’s smile faded slightly.
“Apparently.” Shade tilted its head.
“Why?” “I don’t know.” He looked at the flowers.
“Maybe because nothing tried to kill me for twelve hours.” Shade considered this.
“Good reason.” Kael looked at it.
“You’ve gotten better at talking.” Shade shrugged.
The gesture was almost human.
Kael smiled again.
They stayed there a while.
No destination.
No immediate threat.
Just the strange quiet of a place that should never have been peaceful.
Eventually, Kael stood.
“We need food.” Shade looked at him.
“Food?” “Yes.” “Where?” Kael looked around.
“That’s the problem.” Shade pointed toward the trees.
Kael followed its hand.
He hadn’t noticed them before.
A small forest stretched beyond the flowers.
Dark trunks.
Pale leaves.
Thin silver fruits hanging from the branches.
Kael approached one.
He touched it.
Nothing happened.
He picked it.
Shade watched.
Kael took a cautious bite.
He waited.
Nothing.
He took another.
“It’s edible.” Shade immediately reached for one.
Kael stopped it.
“Wait.” Shade froze.
“Just because I survived doesn’t mean you will.” Shade stared at him.
Kael sighed.
“Fine.” He broke the fruit in half and handed part of it to Shade.
Shade tasted it.
Its eyes widened.
“Sweet.” Kael nodded.
“Yeah.” They ate in silence.
It was almost normal.
Almost.
Then Shade suddenly looked toward the trees.
Kael noticed.
“What?” Shade didn’t answer.
It stood.
Kael slowly put the fruit down.
“What did you hear?” Shade pointed.
Nothing moved.
Kael waited.
A bird flew between the branches.
Then another.
Shade remained still.
Kael relaxed.
“Probably nothing.” Shade looked at him.
“Maybe.” Kael smiled.
“You’re learning suspicion.” Shade sat back down.
“I learned from you.” “Fair.” They continued eating.
For another hour, nothing happened.
Then Kael noticed the ground.
There were footprints.
Not theirs.
He crouched.
The prints were old.
Very old.
But they were human.
Kael followed them with his eyes.
They disappeared between the trees.
He stood.
“Shade.” Shade joined him.
They followed the footprints.
The trail led deeper into the forest.
Eventually, they found a clearing.
There was an old camp.
Three collapsed tents.
A rusted metal container.
A fire pit filled with grey ash.
Kael approached slowly.
He crouched beside the fire.
The ash was cold.
But something about the camp bothered him.
There were no bodies.
No bones.
No signs of a struggle.
Just abandoned belongings.
Shade picked up a small metal badge.
Kael took it from its hand.
He wiped the dirt away.
His expression changed.
The emblem was familiar.
EXPEDITION 07.
Shade looked at him.
“These people…” Kael stared at the ruined camp.
“They were here.” He searched the tents.
Most of the equipment had decayed.
But one object remained intact.
A notebook.
Kael opened it.
Most of the pages were unreadable.
The final page wasn’t.
A single sentence had been written in black ink.
DAY 31 The Abyss is quiet today.
Kael turned the page.
Nothing.
He turned another.
Nothing.
Then he found another entry.
DAY 32 It hasn’t spoken since we arrived.
Another page.
DAY 33 Riven says we should leave.
Kael stopped.
Shade leaned closer.
Another page.
DAY 34 Cairos says the gate cannot be reopened from this side.
Kael’s fingers tightened around the notebook.
The next page was torn.
He turned it.
The following entry had been written differently.
The handwriting was frantic.
DAY 35 There are only twelve of us now.
Kael froze.
Shade looked at him.
“Continue.” Kael turned the page.
Nothing.
Another.
Nothing.
Then the final page.
Three words.
He came back.
Kael stared at them.
“Who?” No answer.
The notebook slipped from his hand.
Something moved behind them.
Kael turned.
Nothing.
The forest was still.
Too still.
Every bird had disappeared.
Every insect had stopped.
Shade slowly stepped closer to Kael.
Kael whispered: “Stay close.” Shade nodded.
They waited.
A minute passed.
Nothing.
Kael looked around.
Then he noticed something.
The flowers.
They had closed.
Every single one.
The peaceful forest suddenly felt different.
Not dangerous.
Protected.
Kael looked upward.
The pale trees formed a perfect circle around the clearing.
He understood.
“This place isn’t peaceful.” Shade looked at him.
Kael lowered his voice.
“It’s hiding us.” A deep sound came from beyond the trees.
Not a growl.
Not a voice.
Something heavier.
Something searching.
The branches trembled.
Shade moved in front of Kael.
Kael grabbed its shoulder.
“No.” Shade looked back.
“We stand together.” The sound came again.
Closer.
The forest remained completely still.
Whatever was outside couldn’t enter.
Kael looked at the flowers.
Then at the trees.
Then at the darkness beyond them.
Something had been searching for them.
And this place had been keeping them hidden.
Kael whispered: “How long?” Shade looked toward the darkness.
“Until it finds another way.” Kael’s eyes narrowed.
“Another way?” Shade nodded.
A crack appeared in one of the trees.
The sound stopped.
Kael stared at the crack.
Something had touched the other side.
The tree began to bleed black sap.
Kael slowly reached for his weapon.
The peaceful stretch was over.
But whatever waited outside…
wasn’t trying to get in anymore.
It had found a way to look inside.
Sometimes it’s a hiding place.
Kael and Shade finally had a moment where they could simply exist together—and maybe that was exactly what the Abyss wanted.
But the notebook has left us with another question: Who came back on Day 35?
And why did the expedition lose one person before Kael supposedly arrived?
We’re getting closer.