AI Cold, ancient air, sharp and smelling of damp stone, hit Aurora first. Not the usual London chill , but something deeper, carrying a hint of distant, forgotten magic. The shift was instant, like stepping through an invisible curtain, from the bustling street into a place time forgot.
"Well then. This is... unexpected." Nyx’s voice, a mere rustle of dry leaves, came from beside her, barely audible over the sudden quiet.
They stood on a rough, moss-covered stone path, wide enough for two people side-by-side, which snaked into a forest where trees defied earthly botanies. Their bark resembled polished obsidian, smooth and impossibly black, contrasting with leaves that shimmered with an inner, soft violet light. The light wasn't a reflection of the absent sun, but seemed to emanate directly from the foliage itself, casting long, ethereal shadows that danced with their every movement. Instead of a canopy, the branches interlaced to form a vast, domed ceiling of living, luminous dark-purple stained glass.
"No footprints," Aurora murmured, glancing down . The moss under her boots remained undisturbed, as if she weighed nothing at all. Isolde, a whisper of silver hair and pale lavender eyes, floated silently ahead, leaving no impression.
"As expected." The seer turned, her voice like the chime of distant bells. "This path remembers no mortal tread."
The Fae Grove. The gateway Isolde had promised, hidden within Richmond Park's unassuming borders. Aurora touched the silver chain around her neck, the Heartstone Pendant warm against her skin, a steady pulse in the strange quiet. It felt almost like a beacon now, guiding her. What exactly it was guiding her *to *, she still didn't entirely know.
As they walked deeper, the path began to ascend gently . Strange, phosphorescent fungi pulsed with soft blues and greens from the roots of the obsidian trees. The air grew thicker, sweeter, like honey and dew, prickling the back of Aurora's throat. She squinted, trying to make sense of the organic architecture surrounding them. The trees weren’t merely trees; some seemed to twist into natural arches, others spiralled upwards like vast, living spires.
"The Veil is thin here," Nyx observed, their shadowy form rippling slightly , as if attempting to coalesce further in the strange light . "Thinner than I have seen in centuries. A whisper separates us from the realm of the Fae Courts."
"It always has been thin in this place," Isolde replied. "Especially now, with the world's unraveling . The boundaries bleed."
Aurora felt a shiver, not of cold, but of profound otherness. The sounds of London had vanished completely , replaced by the soft hum of the glowing leaves and a faint, musical tinkling, like crystal wind chimes played by an unseen breeze. Overhead, the violet light intensified, revealing intricate patterns etched into the underside of the leaf-ceiling – swirling glyphs and symbols that seemed to shift and reform the longer she looked at them .
A sudden, sharp movement caught her eye. A creature, small and winged, darted between two trees. It resembled a dragonfly, but its translucent wings shimmered with all the colours of a rainbow, leaving trails of sparkling dust in its wake. It landed on a glowing fungal cluster, its compound eyes regarding them with an unsettling intelligence before it vanished into the undergrowth.
"Faerie firefly," Isolde said, noticing Aurora's gaze. "Harmless. Mostly."
The path widened, opening into a small clearing cradled by gnarled, ancient oak standing stones. They weren't just stones; they pulsed with the same inner light as the trees, an even deeper, more resonant indigo. In the centre of the clearing sat a large, flat slab of grey rock, inscribed with the same shifting glyphs Aurora had seen overhead. It radiated a subtle, cold energy that made the small hairs on her arms stand on end.
"Here, we seek the nexus." Isolde gestured to the slab. "A place where the threads of worlds intertwine, where the echoes of ancient Dymas linger strongest."
Aurora approached the slab cautiously . The warmth of her Heartstone Pendant intensified, almost burning against her chest. She knelt, tracing a finger over a particularly elaborate spiral glyph. It felt smooth, yet vibrated faintly under her touch.
"What exactly are we looking for?" Aurora asked, glancing back at Nyx, whose shadowy form seemed to stretch and ripple, reflecting the strange light in unsettling ways.
"Truth. A path. A key." Isolde knelt opposite her, her silver hair spilling over the cold stone like liquid moonlight. "The Heartstone guides you to what your blood seeks. The answers to your… heritage."
Nyx stepped closer to the slab, their form flickering. "The energy here... it is powerful. Untamed. Be careful, human. These ley lines are not meant for mortal hands."
"My hands are mortal enough." Aurora pressed her palm flat against the slab. The glyphs underneath her skin pulsed , then flared with a sudden, intense crimson light, mirroring the colour of her pendant. A low thrum filled the clearing, deep and resonant, vibrating through the very soles of her boots. The standing stones around them glowed brighter, their indigo fading into a deep, vibrant violet.
The air around the slab began to distort, shimmering like heat haze over a summer road, but this was a vision of chilling frost. The musical tinkling sounds intensified into a disharmonious chorus, echoing from every direction.
"Something's happening," Aurora breathed, feeling a strange pull, a sensation of being stretched and thinned, as if her very being was no longer entirely anchored to this world. Her vision blurred at the edges, the luminous trees seeming to whirl then right themselves with a dizzying snap.
The crimson light radiating from the slab pulsed once, violently. A faint, acrid smell, like burnt sugar and metal, stung Aurora's nostrils. The shimmering distortion above the slab coalesced, deepening into a swirling vortex of shadow and faint, ruddy light. Through it, Aurora saw fleeting glimpses of another world: sprawling vineyards under an amber sky, grand feasts, and figures draped in opulent silks.
"Dymas," Nyx whispered, their voice strained, a raw rasp now. "The domain of Gluttony."
Isolde stood, her lavender eyes wide, fixed on the unfolding portal. "It opens. But not fully. A fragment of the path, a glimpse."
The vortex in the air intensified, a low roar like distant thunder now accompanying the tinkling chorus. The ground beneath Aurora's feet began to tremble. The energy pouring from the portal felt ancient, corrupt, and utterly alien. She felt a growing unease, a sense of dread that clawed at her insides.
Suddenly, a tendril of shadow, thick as rope and black as pitch, darted out of the vortex, snaking towards her, moving with unnerving speed. It was not Nyx's living shadow, but something far more malevolent, carrying an oppressive cold that made the world go grey.
"Look out!" Nyx cried, their own shadow responding, lashing out to intercept the encroaching darkness. A struggle of ephemeral forms ensued, light and shadow clashing above the glowing slab.
The tendril, however, shifted, bypassing Nyx's defence, and lunged directly for Aurora's chest. She felt a searing cold as it wrapped around the Heartstone Pendant, attempting to rip it from her neck. A guttural snarl, not quite human, echoed from within the nascent portal .
Aurora grabbed the silver chain, fighting against the unseen force, the cold biting into her skin. The Heartstone flared, burning hot against the encroaching shadow. She knew, instinctively, that whatever this was, it wanted the pendant, and would tear her apart to get it.