The Gateways of Light and Shadow

Chapter 98: Shadows of the Rift

After the battle, the Abyssal Rift that had been so volatile and chaotic was now silent, uneasy. Dark silhouettes were repelled, their ritual foiled, but in the aftermath lay gloom. The instability of the Rift made new challenges, and after what they encountered, the team needed regrouping and reassessment of strategy.

As the dust settled, Ariadne, Seraphina, and Captain Leander gathered at their temporary base camp. All around, the landscape bore marks from the battle, and the turbulent energy of the Rift continued to pulse with an unsettling light. Right now, though, the team was more concerned with regrouping and assessing the situation.

"We've managed to stop the immediate threat," Ariadne said, her voice carrying much of what they all had just gone through. "But we can't turn our backs on the implications of what's gone on here."

Still drained from the magical expenditure, Seraphina bent down to closely inspect the fragments of the shattered altar. "The dark figures were trying t