Within a Hollow Heart

Chapter 171: Volume 2, Chapter 115: "Silent Victories, Looming Shadows"

The silence that followed was heavy, the air still thick with the remnants of the battle. Cole's breath came in short gasps, his hands trembling from the strain of weaving the Knot. The threads of the Veil had held—for now—but the effort had left him drained, his mind foggy and his body aching.

Elara knelt beside him, her own face pale with exhaustion, but there was a flicker of relief in her eyes. "We did it," she whispered, her voice barely audible over the sound of the wind. "The Knot is secure."

Cole nodded, though the weight of their victory felt fragile. The Severed were powerful, their understanding of the void deeper than he had imagined. And while they had managed to stop this tear, he couldn't shake the feeling that this was only the beginning. The Severed weren't going to stop, not until they had torn the Veil apart completely.

Marcus pushed himself to his feet, wincing as he sheathed his sword. "Everyone still breathing?"

"Just barely," Selene replied, her voice tight as she stood up, brushing dirt from her cloak. "But they'll be back. We slowed them down, but we didn't stop them."

Elara nodded, her expression somber. "The Severed have been planning this for a long time. We've only disrupted one of their attempts. There will be more."

"How many more?" Cole asked, though he dreaded the answer.

Elara's gaze flickered toward the Knot, now pulsing faintly with the energy they had woven into it. "I don't know. But the Severed aren't just working at random. They've been targeting the weakest Knots, the ones that are most vulnerable to the void's influence."

"Then we need to find the others," Marcus said, his voice steady despite the tension in his shoulders. "We can't just wait for them to tear open the next one."

"Agreed," Elara replied. "But first, we need to regroup. The Severed will be looking for us now, and we can't risk another direct confrontation without a plan."

Cole's mind raced as they began to make their way out of the clearing, the cold wind biting at his skin. They had bought themselves time, but it wasn't enough. The Severed were too organized, too focused, and their goal was clear: they wanted to tear the Veil apart completely.

As they descended from the mountains, the sun began to set, casting the landscape in a deep orange glow. The distant storm—the void's influence—still churned on the horizon, a constant reminder of the danger they faced. But for now, the world around them was quiet, the calm after the storm.

Once they found a sheltered spot in the foothills, the group set up camp. The fire crackled softly in the cold night air, casting long shadows across the ground. They ate in silence, the weight of the day's events hanging heavily over them.

After some time, Marcus spoke up, breaking the stillness. "We need more information. We can't keep playing defense like this. If the Severed are targeting the Knots, we need to know where the others are—and how we can reinforce them before the Severed can reach them."

Elara nodded, her gaze fixed on the flames. "The Guardian archives hold some of that knowledge, but many of the Knots were hidden long ago, even from the Guardians themselves. The locations were scattered, buried in secret texts that were only passed down through the highest ranks."

"And those texts," Selene said, her tone skeptical, "are probably hidden away in some forgotten ruin."

"Most likely," Elara admitted. "But I know of one place where we might find what we need—a hidden archive, far to the south. It was said to hold the most comprehensive records of the Guardians' work, including the location of the most vulnerable Knots."

"How far south?" Marcus asked, his tone sharpening.

"Far," Elara replied, her face serious. "Across the Deadlands. It won't be an easy journey."

"The Deadlands," Selene muttered, shaking her head. "Of course it's in the Deadlands."

Cole had heard stories about the Deadlands—an inhospitable region where the void had long since broken through. The land itself was twisted and barren, and few who ventured there returned. But if that was where the answers were, they had no choice.

"We'll need to prepare," Marcus said. "The Deadlands aren't just dangerous because of the void. The land itself is... corrupted."

"We'll need supplies, more than what we have," Elara agreed. "And information. If the Severed are heading that way too, we can't afford to be caught off guard."

"We'll head south at first light," Marcus decided, his voice filled with the same unyielding resolve that Cole had come to rely on. "Gather everything we need on the way and move fast. If the Severed reach that archive before us, it's over."

The group fell into silence again, the fire's light flickering in their eyes as they contemplated the journey ahead. The Deadlands represented a new level of danger, one that went beyond the Severed or the void. But if the answers they needed were hidden there, they had to face it.

"Do you think the Severed are heading to the Deadlands?" Cole asked, breaking the quiet.

"It's possible," Elara said, her voice low. "The Severed have been following the path of the void, targeting the weakest Knots. If they know about the archive, they'll try to reach it before we do."

"And if they get there first?" Selene asked, though the question hung in the air like a heavy weight.

Elara's gaze hardened. "Then they'll have the knowledge they need to tear the Veil apart completely."

The fire crackled softly, its warmth a stark contrast to the cold that clung to the night. Cole stared into the flames, his mind racing with thoughts of the journey ahead. The Deadlands. The Severed. The fragile threads of the Veil.

The battle was far from over, and the path before them was treacherous. But if they could reach the archive before the Severed, if they could find the knowledge needed to protect the remaining Knots, they might still have a chance to stop the unraveling.

But that chance was growing smaller with each passing day.

As the others settled down for the night, Cole remained by the fire, staring out into the darkness. The weight of their task pressed heavily on him, but there was no room for hesitation anymore. The Severed were relentless, and the void was always waiting, pressing against the edges of reality, eager to break through.

"We'll stop them," Cole whispered to himself, though he wasn't sure if it was a promise or a prayer.

The wind howled softly through the mountains, and in the distance, the faint hum of the Veil trembled at the edge of his awareness.

Tomorrow, the journey to the Deadlands would begin.

And with it, the next Chapter of their battle against the void.