Alpha Instinct-Chapter 70: "Cragheart"
The journey had been smooth so far. After a few days of riding, the group was getting close to Gothia.
Gothia wasn’t the best place for them to be at the moment, and they rode along the road. The initial excitement, especially Evelyn’s, gave way to a cautious silence.
The group followed a map that Mikaela always kept at hand. To reach the Skull Volcanoes, the destination of Leonard’s first mission, they would have to pass through a crucial point: the Vulture Forest, an unavoidable path.
"This forest… I don’t like it," Kaleb grumbled, breaking the silence. "It’s damp, dark, and full of... things."
Mikaela sighed. "We need to go through it, Kaleb. It’s the fastest way. Any detour will add five days to our journey."
Leonard, lost in thought, barely heard the conversation. His mind drifted back to the training, to the words and the weight of responsibility he carried. He remembered Roland, Vulture’s Forest, and the feeling of impending danger. A pang of longing hit him.
"Conviction…" Leonard murmured. He needed to stay strong, focused on the mission. But the memory of Roland, of his absence, was like a constant shadow.
Evelyn, observant, noticed Leonard’s silence. "Something wrong, Leo?" she asked, with a tone of genuine concern.
"Just… thinking," he replied evasively.
Silence settled in again, broken only by the sound of the horses’ hooves on the dirt road. Kaleb, unable to contain his curiosity, decided to change the subject.
"So, Evelyn," he began casually, "have you and Leonard known each other for long?"
Evelyn laughed. "Long enough for him to get a nickname, apparently."
"And you? Do you have a nickname for him?" Kaleb persisted, ignoring the jab.
"That’s none of your business, mage," Evelyn replied, with an enigmatic smile.
"Come on, don’t be so mysterious!" Kaleb complained. "We’re on a mission, you know? We need to get to know each other better."
"And why do you want to know so much?" Mikaela intervened, with an amused look at Evelyn.
"Curiosity, duh! Besides, you never know when a piece of information might be useful," Kaleb replied, with an air of importance.
"I think you’re more interested in gossip than useful information," Leonard commented with a slight smile, finally joining the conversation.
"Maybe a little bit of both," Kaleb admitted shamelessly. "So, Evelyn… Where are you from? What’s your story?"
Evelyn shrugged. "I’m just a traveler. An Equalizer. Nothing special."
"Oh, come on! Everyone has a story," Kaleb insisted. "You didn’t just appear out of nowhere, dressed in that fancy armor."
"Maybe I did," Evelyn replied, with a mischievous glint in her eyes. "Maybe I’m a magical creature, sent to test the patience of a certain grumpy mage."
Kaleb looked at her, incredulous. "You’re kidding, right?"
Evelyn just smiled, a mysterious smile that revealed nothing. "Maybe."
Mikaela laughed. "Leave her alone, Kaleb. Evelyn has the right to keep her secrets."
"But—"
"No ’buts’," Mikaela cut him off. "Focus on the road. We’re almost there."
The forest loomed ahead, a dense wall of twisted trees, their branches intertwining like a great natural canopy, blocking out the sunlight. A sign, almost hidden by vegetation, warned: "Danger! Vulture’s Forest."
"And here we go..." said Leonard, feeling a knot in his stomach. That place... it brought back bitter memories. He wished, for a moment, that Roland was there, stepping out from behind a tree, scolding him for his lack of attention, like that time...
They entered the forest. The change was immediate. The air grew heavy, damp, and cold. The rustling of leaves, the croaking of frogs, and the sound of insects created an eerie symphony. Kaleb, more nervous than ever, started to complain under his breath.
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"Damn hellish forest, I, the great mag—"
"Quiet, Kaleb," Leonard ordered in a tense whisper. "We don’t know what might be here."
"Easy for you to say, hard to do," Kaleb retorted, but he obeyed, swallowing hard.
They advanced slowly, riding in formation. Leonard and Evelyn in front, Mikaela in the middle, and Kaleb, grumbling, in the rear. The sound of the horses’ hooves was muffled by the soft earth and dry leaves.
Suddenly, Kaleb, who was further behind, stopped his horse. His eyes fixed on something distant, a purple glow shimmering among the trees.
"Hey! What’s that?" he asked, pointing towards the glow.
"Kaleb, stay in formation!" Leonard ordered in a tense whisper. "We don’t know what might be in this forest."
But Kaleb, ignoring the warning, had already moved away, guiding his horse off the trail, towards the glow. He was a Mage of the Tower, accustomed to comfort and safety, and his curiosity often outweighed his common sense.
"Kaleb, get back here!" Mikaela hissed, but it was too late.
He approached what appeared to be a huge cluster of amethyst crystals, embedded in a mound of earth and roots. The glow was mesmerizing.
"Amazing…", Kaleb murmured, reaching out to touch one of the crystals.
And then the earth trembled vigorously.
"Kaleb, NO!" Evelyn shouted, but her warning came too late.
A deafening roar echoed through the forest. Rocks tumbled, trees fell, roots snapped with a sound of splitting wood. The ground began to crack, and, from within the earth, something emerged, yanking Kaleb from his mount.
Slowly, the creature revealed itself. A colossal monster, made of rough stone, thick moss, and twisted branches. A gorilla-like body, but seventy-five feet tall. And, embedded in its head, a gigantic amethyst crystal, emitting an ominous glow—the same glow that had attracted Kaleb.
Leonard felt his blood run cold. He knew what it was. A Rock Fractus, the same one he’d seen. But this one… was different. Bigger. Older. His instincts screamed at him.
"Wait!" Evelyn exclaimed, her voice filled with urgency and unexpected knowledge. "That’s not an ordinary Fractus… It’s Cragheart! A NAMED ONE!!"
She barely finished speaking, and Cragheart, with a roar that made the forest tremble, began its frenetic attack, throwing everything near Kaleb into the air as if it were mere dust to be cleared.
