Chapter 19: The Rooted River

The locker room smelled of rust, sweat, and the faint, metallic tang of blood that had soaked into the concrete over decades. Leo sat on a wooden bench, the staff across his knees, his eyes fixed on the flickering fluorescent light above. The First Fracture pulsed against his chest, a cold, steady heartbeat that seemed to mock him. The quest shimmered in his vision, the words burning like brands:...