Round 127

The stone beneath their boots groaned again, a long, slow creak that seemed to vibrate through the very air between them. Merrin felt her grip on the book tighten reflexively, fingers digging into the leather binding until the edges bit into her palm. Varrika was already moving before she spoke, one powerful hand clamping around Merrin's wrist and yanking her forward onto the ledge with such force that the smaller woman nearly lost her footing entirely.

Dust and rock chips sprayed outward from the collapsing section behind them, a cascade of debris disappearing into the chasm below as the sound of the fall echoed through the air between the tower walls. The ground rumbled again, a long groan of stone straining against stone that made both women's stomachs drop.

Varrika quickly pulled Merrin closer, and they both stumbled back, their eyes fixed on the rapidly expanding gap between the ledge and the chasm. The book in Merrin's hands pulsed with an otherworldly energy, its pages glowing with a light that seemed to grow brighter with each passing second.

"Don't you dare let go of that book," Varrika growled, her voice low and urgent. "We're in this together, for better or worse." She nodded grimly at Merrin's words, her hand tightening on her arm as she pulled her closer. "Alright then," she said, her voice low and urgent. "But we can't afford to let this book slow us down. We need to keep moving."

As they continued to make their way across the ledge, Varrika could feel the ground shifting beneath her feet, the ominous groaning of the tower growing louder with each passing second. But still, some small part of her wondered if this was all a fool's errand anyway. The book in Merrin's hands pulsed again, its energy seeming to match the rhythm of the tower's dying breaths.