[Chr24] Ancient Ruins and Lost Children

The castle loomed before them, a jagged silhouette against the darkening sky. Its crumbling towers leaned at off angles, the shattered windows glinting in what was left of the sunlight. Moss and creeping vines clung to every surface, their branches weaving through stone fissures like veins. The air smelled of damp earth and rusted metal, thick with a sense of things long dead.

'Great. It looks worse than I imagined,' Haden muttered, her footsteps crunching on the gravel path. She adjusted the sleeves of her coat with a sour scowl. 'This is a death trap waiting to happen. Whose brilliant idea was this again?'

Damon kept his distance, lingering near the edge of the group. His lips pressed into a thin line, his reluctance practically radiating off him. Yet, his sharp eyes scanned every darkened corner of the ruins as if he couldn’t stop himself.

'Keep your voice down', Slate strode ahead. He carried himself with the calm, purposeful air of someone who could handle whatever nightmare might spring from the shadows. 'If the child’s here, we don’t want to scare them deeper into hiding. Or worse—alert something else.'

'Noted',  Pride said lazily from the rear, brushing dust off his sleeve. 'I’ll be sure to whisper sweet nothings to whatever monster comes slithering out to eat us!'

The group stepped towards the giant doors of the castle. The wood groaned open, the sound echoing through the cavernous entry hall. Inside, the castle’s grandeur had rotted into ruin. The castle felt even larger inside, as if its walls expanded. Cobwebs hung in thick, silken drapes from every corner, glinting faintly in the dim light that seeped through shattered stained glass high above.

Moth-eaten banners drooped from high beams, their sigils faded. The floors were a mosaic of ruined tile and splintered wood, and every step stirred a cloud of dust. Shattered chandeliers dangled from rusted chains on the old cielings, their crystals coated in grime and dust but still catching stray beams of light that turned into rainbows arouns the room. What furniture remained was overturned or smashed, the remnants of chairs and tables strewn like bones in a predator’s lair.

Haden wrinkled her nose at the sharp scent of mildew. 'This place is more like a tomb than a castle. Why would a kid run here?'

'Doesn’t matter why. We just find them and get out' Slate’s voice was steady, but there was a tightness in his jaw. Haden rolled her eyes.

The sound of splintering wood cracked beneath Damon’s feet as he stepped further inside. He cursed softly, shaking his foot free of rotting debris as he looked around. 'This is pointless. The kid’s probably—'

A soft whimper cut through the air, stopping everyone in their tracks. It came again—a frail, trembling sound, barely audible above the distant creak of shifting stone.
Slate motioned for silence and moved toward the sound. Damon followed, his earlier hesitation swallowed by a flash of urgency.

Behind an overturned table, nestled amidst a tangle of torn fabric and dirt, was the child. Their face was streaked with grime, wide eyes filled with panic as they stared at the group. When they spotted Damon, something in their expression cracked, and they scrambled forward.

Before anyone could react, the child hurled themselves into Damon’s arms. The sudden weight knocked him off balance, and he hit the floor with a startled grunt.

'You're alright, you're sa—' Damon started, but his words trailed off.

From outside, a wet, heavy sloshing sound rippled through the air. It was slow, deliberate, and unrelenting.

Haden froze, her hand darting to each individual shattered window, 'What the hell is that?'

Pride sighed, already heading for the nearest broken window. 'Oh good, something’s here to eat us. I was worried this trip wouldn’t be exciting enough.'

The child whimpered again, clutching Damon’s shirt. 'It’s back,'  they whispered, their voice raw with terror. Damon's arms tightened instinctively around the child as he rose to his knees, his gaze darting toward Slate, who was now peering cautiously out the jagged remnants of the window. The  sound drew closer, each step accompanied by a faint squelching that set Damon’s teeth on edge.

'What do you see?' Haden demanded, her voice taut as a drawn wire.

Slate didn’t answer immediately, his body stiff and still as if he were holding his breath. Slowly, he turned his head toward them, his normally sardonic face pale. 'I'm not sure, but whatever it is, it’s...big', he said finally, his voice uncharacteristically flat. 'And it’s definitely not friendly'

A low growl rumbled from outside, reverberating through the walls. Damon felt the child flinch in his arms and leaned down to murmur softly, 'Hey, I’ve got you. We’ll keep you safe, okay?'. The child shook their head violently, their little hands gripping his shirt with desperate strength. 'No,' they choked out, tears streaming down their face. 'You can’t stop it. It wants me.'

Haden cursed under her breath, her eyes scanning the room. 'We need a plan. And by ‘plan,’ I mean something better than standing around waiting to die.'

'I’m open to suggestions,' Damon said, carefully shifting the child to his hip as he stood. 'Slate? Pride?'

Slate stood silent, still peering out the window. Pride grimaced, his eyes flicking back and forth. 'If the kid is right, we’re screwed. If it’s not, we’re probably still screwed. Either way, running might be a good idea?'

'No.' The child’s voice was firmer this time, cutting through the rising panic in the room. They stared up at Damon with wide, tear-streaked eyes, their voice trembling but resolute. 'If you run, it will chase. It likes it when you run'

A deafening crash interrupted them as something massive collided with the side of the house. The walls shuddered, and debris rained down from the ceiling. Damon stumbled but kept his footing, pulling the child closer to shield them.

'Well, that narrows down our options,' Pride said, backing away from the window. 'Any brilliant ideas our precious leader?', he glanced at Slate.

Slate turned back to the group, taking his focus off the window for the first time, “we’re not fighting this thing. Not with a kid in the middle of it. We need to get out of here.”

Pride raised an eyebrow, glancing toward the window where shadows twisted unnaturally in the pale moonlight. 'And how exactly do you propose we do that? In case you haven’t noticed, the big ugly out there is blocking the only exit!'

Slates eyes darted around the room, taking in the shattered windows, the jagged wood, and the faint glimmers of moonlight beyond. 'Basement,' he said, his voice low but steady. 'It's a castle, it must have a cellar or something? A way out that isn’t obvious?'

They immediately began looking. The room was chaos—a tangle of broken furniture, shattered glass, and debris strewn across the floor. Dust hung thick in the air, catching in Slate's throat as he shoved aside a collapsed shelf, his hands scraping against splintered wood. Pride dropped to his knees at the other side of the room, clawing at the floorboards with frantic determination. Haden stood watch, trying not to flinch everytime she heard a sound from outside, while Damon continued to try to console the child.

It was Pride who found it—the rusted edge of a hidden hatch, buried beneath a rug with layers of grime which had been forgotten by time. "Here!" he shouted, his voice raw, as the walls groaned ominously behind them. He hesitated, 'there’s a hatch under this rug. It might connect to the woods if we’re lucky'

'Might?' Haden asked, her voice tinged with disbelief.

'It’s better than standing here waiting to get eaten!' Damon snapped. He glanced down at the child, their wide, tearful eyes fixed on his.

'Then let’s go. Now.' Slate demanded as another crash rattled the house, making the walls groan under the force. Damon glanced at Slate, who was already at his side, gripping his arm. 'We’ll cover you. Get the kid to that hatch, and fast.'

'No arguments here' Damon said, adjusting his hold on the child. He bolted toward the shelves, weaving around debris and broken furniture. Behind him, the creature’s guttural growls grew louder, the wet sloshing sound punctuated by the occasional scrape of claws on wood.

'Any day now, Damon!' Haden shouted.

'I’m working on it!' Damon snapped, shoving aside a splintered shelf. 'Help me get this open!' Pride yanked the rug aside, crouching next to him. 'One, two, three' he said, prying at the edges of the hatch in unison with Damon. The hinges groaned in protest, but with one final heave, it gave way, revealing a dark, narrow tunnel that disappeared into the earth. The group glanced down into what seemed like an endless pit. 'Go!'