"Are they going to be alright?" Leonardo asked, his voice barely above a whisper as he and his companion, Anna, ducked behind a jutting rock formation. The sound of heavy footfalls and ragged breathing faded as Kaelan and Astraea disappeared down another passage.

  Anna's eyes darted nervously towards the third floor before settling back on Leonardo. "Yeah, mom will forget about them soon enough," she replied, though her tone betrayed her uncertainty. "Hit it," she added, gesturing towards a practice dummy they had set up earlier.

  Leonardo nodded, taking a deep breath to steady his nerves. The air was cool and damp, carrying the musty scent of earth and stone.

  Red streaks of light occasionally illuminated the upper reaches of the cavern, casting ominous shadows that danced across the walls. [mom]

  Meanwhile, back at the place they once sat at, Elara sat rigidly on the couch, her posture tense as she avoided the lingering scent left behind by Kaelan. She rose, her movements stilted, and made her way to the kitchen. "I really need this," she muttered, pulling a bottle of cold water from the fridge and drinking slowly, trying to wash away the taste of fear that coated her tongue.

  In the training ground, Anna's voice cut through the oppressive silence.

  "Before you attack, it attacks back. It basically counters your move, the best possible counter or whatever," she explained, watching as Leonardo positioned himself in front of the dummy.

  Leonardo nodded, a small smile playing at the corners of his mouth. "Alright," he responded, his confidence growing as he recalled the eight years of daily cave ventures.

  He tightened his grip on the sword's hilt, the leather wrapping creaking softly under the pressure of his fingers.

  With a swift motion, he struck at the dummy, aiming for its head. His mind flashed back to encounters with the dreaded Donrolf "lets see if 8 years of constant mining does anything"

  a multi-eyed creature that lurked in the lower sections of the cave system. Those were the areas where agnite was most plentiful, but no fire stones could be found. The only light came from the explorers themselves, and the glowing eyes of the beasts that hunted them.

  [one of the multiple cave systems in Volnia]

  The air here was heavy with moisture and the acrid stench of fear. The cavern stretched out before them, a vast expanse of shadow and stone, broken only by the occasional glimmer of mineral deposits and the terrifying glow of predatory eyes.

  "Hit anywhere, just shoot! The guards are coming!" a prospector shouted, his voice cracking with panic.

  The group, numbering about two dozen, huddled together in the center of the chamber, their eyes wide with terror as they scanned the darkness for threats.

  "With what?!" another voice chimed in, frustration and fear evident in equal measure.

  Before anyone could respond, a massive tail whipped through the air, decapitating one of the prospectors mid-sentence.

  Blood sprayed across the rocky ground, eliciting screams of horror from the group.

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  The Donrolf, now fully grown, emerged from the shadows. Its batlike features were twisted into a grotesque snarl, revealing rows of glistening teeth that shimmered in the dim light.

  The beast's multiple eyes swiveled independently, each pair of eyes scanning for prey. It let out a piercing shriek that reverberated through the cavern, causing loose stones to clatter to the ground.

  Leonardo instinctively hunched down, his heart pounding in his chest as he moved only when absolutely necessary.

  He could hear the labored breathing and whimpers of his fellow prospectors as they scrambled for cover.

  "I'm going to die..." a man nearby moaned, curling into himself behind a pile of rocky debris that had fallen from the ceiling during the Donrolf's dramatic entrance.

  Leonardo pressed himself against the same pile of debris, his breath coming in short, sharp gasps.

  "No, no, no," he muttered, his voice trembling. "I can't die here." He turned to the man beside him, recognizing him as one of the older prospectors. "Old man, get up!" he hissed urgently.

  The old prospector merely shook his head, his eyes vacant. "We're going to die..." he repeated, having already accepted his fate.

  Leonardo's mind raced. He had come here chasing rumors of a massive chamber filled with agnite, but now that seemed like a fool's errand. His dark clothing, designed for stealth, now felt like a meager defense against the horror that stalked them.

  "If only Ronald was here," Leonardo thought, before shaking his head violently. "No, what am I thinking? Rald told me not to go!" He berated himself silently, his breathing becoming more erratic as panic set in.

  The will to continue ebbed from his eyes, replaced by a growing despair.

  Suddenly, a hand gripped his shoulder, causing Leonardo to nearly cry out in surprise. He whirled around to find a figure crouched beside him, wearing similar stealth gear but without a helmet.

  The man's dark blue hair fell over his eyes, partially obscuring his face.

  "Not yet, boy," the stranger whispered, his voice calm despite the chaos around them. He gestured towards the Donrolf. "See that? Its eyes. That's definitely its weakness."

  Leonardo stared at him in confusion. "What do you mean, eyes? It's the ears, isn't it?"

  The man shook his head, scratching his beard thoughtfully. "No creature like the Donrolf would have that many eyes if it relied on hearing.

  It would have killed us all earlier if it had enhanced hearing in this echoing cavern."

  As if to punctuate his point, a bloodcurdling scream split the air. Leonardo watched in horror as another prospector, making a desperate dash for the exit ladder, was cut in half by the Donrolf's razor-sharp tail.

  The stranger gripped Leonardo's arm tightly. "Don't be like that guy, alright?" he said, a grim smile on his face. "We need to be distractions. You're small and blend nicely with the environment. I'll go west, you go east."

  Leonardo's eyes widened in terror. "What? No, I can't-"

  "See that waterfall over there?" the man interrupted, pointing to a cascade of water that poured from a hole in the cavern wall, forming a small pool on the floor.

  The area around it glowed faintly, likely due to bioluminescent organisms in the water.

  Leonardo shook his head vehemently. "It's clearly glowing! No matter how dark my outfit is, it's still going to-"

  Before he could finish his protest, the stranger pushed him forcefully. "Good grief, just do it, will you? just go there and run back, were mainly distractions"

  As the man began moving to the left as planned, Leonardo found himself paralyzed with indecision.

  He watched in awe as the stranger navigated the treacherous terrain with seemingly effortless grace, contorting his body and finding cover where Leonardo saw none.

  "Is he really a prospector?" Leonardo wondered, his admiration momentarily overriding his fear.

  The full-grown Donrolf towered over them, its massive form easily dwarfing fifty men of Leonardo's size.

  Its multiple eyes swayed and bobbed, searching for prey, while its powerful tail lashed back and forth, smashing rock formations and sending debris flying.

  Leonardo swallowed hard, his throat dry with fear. He knew he had to move, to be the distraction the stranger had asked him to be.

  But as he looked at the glowing pool and the massive, murderous creature that stood between him and potential safety, he couldn't help but wonder if this would be his final adventure.

  With trembling limbs and a racing heart, Leonardo began to crawl towards the waterfall, praying to whatever gods might be listening that he would somehow survive this nightmare and live to see another day.