Silence had returned to the depths of the ruins. After their battle against the three goblins, Aiden, Myra, and Bone had left the chamber. Aiden walked in the middle of the group. Myra led the way, as always. Her eyes swept across the corridors, searching for the slightest movement.
Bone, meanwhile, brought up the rear.
Myra kept glancing back over her shoulder. She watched Bone. His reactions. The way he moved. The way he kept an eye on the corridors. More than once, Aiden caught her frowning ever so slightly.
At last, the young man broke the silence.
"You're still thinking about what happened earlier?"
"Yeah."
"About Bone?"
"The more I watch him... the more he reminds me of someone."
"Not physically."
"In the way he reacts."
"He observes."
She raised one finger.
"He learns."
A second.
"He chooses where to position himself during a fight."
A third.
"And most importantly..."
She turned toward Bone. The skeleton stopped immediately.
"He actually listens when people talk to him.That worries me."
"Why?"
"Because it shouldn't be possible."
The group continued deeper into the ruins. The corridors grew narrower. Roots had broken through the stone walls. In places, the ceiling had collapsed. They had to make their way around massive chunks of rock.
"Look."
Myra crouched down. She pointed to several footprints in the dust.
"More goblins. They're close."
She gently ran a finger across the ground.
"This one was alone."
She pointed to a line of tracks.
"They're all heading in the same direction."
Aiden could indeed make out a single set of footprints.
"Impressive."
Myra stood up.
"Goblins aren't very disciplined. When they travel in groups, their tracks end up scattered everywhere."
She pointed toward the corridor ahead.
"That one's probably a scout."
"Do we keep going?"
"Yeah."
They moved forward more slowly. This time, no one spoke. Even Bone seemed to understand that something was approaching. A few dozen meters later, a sound echoed through the corridor.
Scrape...
Like stone being dragged across stone. Myra raised her fist, and the group came to an immediate halt. She pointed toward the corner of the corridor. Then she raised two fingers to her eyes.
Finally… She pointed into the darkness. She motioned for Aiden to stay behind. The young man nodded. Bone stepped in front of him.
Myra slipped silently against the wall. Her footsteps were so light that Aiden almost stopped hearing them altogether. She rounded the corner.
Then disappeared. A few seconds passed. A sharp cry suddenly rang out.
"Krii...!"
The sound was cut off immediately. A dull thud followed.
Thud.
Silence returned.
"You can come now."
Aiden joined Myra.
A goblin lay motionless on the ground. One of her daggers was buried straight through its heart. The monster hadn't even had time to draw its weapon.
"You killed it..."
"It never saw us."
She pulled her blade free.
"Might as well take advantage of that."
Its blood spread between the stones. Aiden was still staring at the corpse when something caught his attention. A faint glow. So subtle that, at first, he thought it was just a reflection from a torch.
Then the light appeared again. It was coming directly from the goblin's chest.
A small silver sphere was rising from the corpse. It was barely larger than a firefly. It floated gently through the air.
"What the..."
The tiny light continued to drift upward. Very slowly. Like a feather carried by an invisible breeze. Thousands of tiny particles revolved around it.
"Myra..." he murmured.
The young rogue was calmly wiping her dagger clean.
"Yeah?"
"Can you see it?"
He pointed toward the light, and she looked up.
"See what?"
Aiden blinked several times. The sphere was still there. Right in front of them. It continued to rise.
"The light..."
Myra looked in the direction he was pointing. Then she shook her head.
"What light?"
"Right there... above the goblin..."
"Aiden. There's nothing there."
The young man's breath caught in his throat. He turned toward Bone. The skeleton was staring at the silver sphere as well. His silver eye sockets followed its ascent exactly.
Aiden was certain now. Bone could see it too. The tiny light drifted several more feet into the air. Then... it slowly began to fade away.
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Soul Detected.
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