Round 144

The void swallowed them whole, magic searing through their veins like liquid fire. The ground vanished beneath their feet, replaced by endless shadow and the distant promise of escape—a pinprick of light far below. Merrin’s grip on Varrika’s hand tightened instinctively as they plummeted, her eyes wide with terror. She could feel every inch of the dwarf woman pressed against her, their shared heartbeat pounding in sync.

Varrika pointed ahead, voice barely audible over the rushing wind. “There! Something’s glowing up there!” Merrin squinted, following her friend’s outstretched finger. A pinprick of light indeed, impossibly distant yet somehow growing larger with each passing second. She nodded grimly, adjusting her stance to stabilize their freefall despite the lack of solid ground beneath them. The Book’s power pulsed erratically around them, its magic seeping into every pore and muscle fiber.

Merrin gritted her teeth against the sensation, focusing on maintaining a protective barrier between them and the void. She could feel Varrika’s fingers trembling in hers, but the dwarf woman didn’t pull away or panic—just kept her eyes fixed on that distant point of light. The darkness pressed in from all sides, thick and suffocating, yet somehow the air around them remained breathable.

As they fell, Merrin felt something else—a presence behind them, watching. She tried to ignore it, knowing that fear could break their concentration and send them plummeting into the abyss below. Instead, she focused on Varrika’s face, the familiar lines of her features barely visible in the dim light from the Book’s magic.

“Stay with me,” Merrin murmured, more a prayer than a command. “We’ll make it through this together.”

Varrika managed a small smile, though her eyes remained wide with fear. “Always,” she replied, and squeezed Merrin’s hand tighter.