When he had said lead the way, he knew that he could trust Selene not to lead them into some trap, but what he had not expected was the speed in which she had taken off.
Not wasting another second, she took off running into the jungle, leaving Elijah, Logan, and the Storm Maw no choose but to continue running carefully behind trying to match pace.
It was not that Selene was faster than either of them, and definitely not Varash, but where they had to make sure not to trip over rocks and fall on the uneven terrain, she just gallop through unopposed.
The jungle seemed different now,but it was not like anything had truly changed about it. the insects still hummed in the background and the calls of unseen beasts somewhere deeper in the trees could still be heard, but to Elijah something was not the same.
Maybe it was not that something had changed, but he had. It had been something that had always been there and now he was just beginning to feel it.
The Veil.
It was so many things, but right now he felt like it could best be described as currents of energy running through everything. In his eyes, he no longer just saw the surface image of the world, but the veins underneath its skin. The effect seem to turn on and off until finally his vision turned back to normal, but nonetheless he was shaken by this strange ability. For now he kept silent as Selene kept moving forward.
She kept moving forward, not once looking back. Every now and then she would stop ahead of them and tilt her head, listening to something that neither he nor Logan could hear before proceeding forward again.
"You sure we should just let her keep on like this?" asked Logan, a few paces behind Elijah.
He was silent for a moment before answering him.
"Toi be honest no, but I don't see what other choice we have. My brain is telling me that this is reckless which is more your forte no?" he smirked at friend. "But my instincts are screaming at me to trust this process for some reason. So lets just wait a bit longer."
"I should have chosen him. He learnsfaster," joked Varash in Logan's head.
"Hey! You don't really mean that do you?"
The Storm Maw did not reply as they group continued forward. Before they knew it two hours had passed by and the sun was beginning to set.
As they continued to walk forward, Logan was the first to notice something was off. He stopped for a moment and scratch the side of his head.
"Is it it me or is it getting dark a little too fast?"
He was not wrong thought Elijah, his own head turning to look around at where they where going more closely. None of them had realized at first when thier surroundings had become to change, it had been to subtle.
At first, only the shadows had darken, but now it felt almost as if they were walking through darkness itself, Selene their sole guide in this maze.
"Elijah...' warned Logan.
"I know. Just keep following her."
They kept going despite the growing shadows taking over everything in site. The world around them seemed to be swallowed into it until finally they saw Selene stop ahead.
As they caught up to her they could barely make out the imprint of a cave.
Before they could observe any further, Selene rushed into the cavern leaving them no choice, but to follow. The moment they crossed the entrance, the noise of the jungle vanished from around them.
It was like they had entered another world entirely now. The deeper they got into the cave, the darker the surrounding darkness got. There was only silence accompanying them now.
Selene stopped suddenly.
"Oh, its about time you made it."
They all froze as a voice drifted in, sounding amused at their predicament.
"Who say that?" asked Logan, looking around already ready to fight.
"Told you that it was not necessary to confuse them. Now look at them," chimed in another voice. This one slightly softer, and clearly more kind.
"We can not just let anyone into the sanctuary."
"We must join in this time, we promised."
"We are more comfortable here."
"We are safe here."
The voices kept going back and forth, they seemed to be having a playful debate with each other.
"But we promised."
"We did promise."
"But is she worthy?"
"Let us see."
Then suddenly the darkness around them brighten slightly as two figures flickered into existence in front of them.
The first one was white, the one brightening up the darkness and allowing them to see a little bit. Its fur was impeccable and pure as snow. Its tail was curled neatly arounds its paws with its head tilted slightly and eyelids half closed as if its was just waking from a nap. It gave off a subtle white glow as it peered at Selene with silver eyes.
The second one though...did not appear in front of Selene as one would have expected.
Elijah blinked and then suddenly there it was right in front of him. Floating upside down in the air right in front of him.
This one had black fur, but not just fur. In the same one the other white fox gave off a white glow, this fox gave off a shadowy mist from its fur that was clearly more tangible. The shadows of the world seem to be drawn to its presence and Elijah could tell that it was the source of the darkness they had been enduring. It was peering at him with deep silver eyes like its counter parts, but this one's eyes were clearly wide open and scrutinizing every inch of him.
It was grinning at him showing a mouth full of sharp teeth. For a moment it seemed to be moving towards him about to bite off his face before it suddenly disappeared and appeared before Selene right alongside its partner.
As the black fox settled in, both of their silver eyes fixed on to Selene. The white one blinked slowly, its glow pulsing softly. At its side, the black one grinned wider, its tail flicking back and forth producing more of the shadowy mist as it swayed.
It had glint in its eyes as it glanced over at Elijah. He could for a second hear its voice in his head.
"Don't worry Walker. We will bring her back in one piece. Hopefully."
"Wait!"
He reached out on instinct, trying to grab her sleeve. His fingertips barely brushed against her skin before Selene disappeared before his eyes.
There was no fancy flashy lights, no loud sounds or movements. Just one second she was there and then she was gone.
Nothing, but empty air standing in her place. The twin foxes had disappeared as well.
Logan rushed to his side.
"Eli?" his voice came quieter than it ever had before. For once he was not sure how to lighten the mood. "What the hell just happened? Where did she go? What are we going to do?"
Elijah was still frozen with his hand out. Had really already lost a member of his team again? So soon? His mind ran through the scenario again, the scene of her disappearance flashing through his head on repeat as he tried to make sense of everything.
"Tell your brother that your sister has been given an opportunity. Those were Highborns."
"Varash says that all we need to do is wait. Highborns have given her an opportunity."
Highborn? The question was barely in his head before a surge of information answered him.
This world was extremely complex, but there was a very simple rank system when it came to beasts. Unlike Common Beasts who all held various potentials to evolve into Lord Beasts, reaching the level of Highborn was not guaranteed. It was not something that could not be reached by hard work and talent. No, it was something that could only be described as "gifted" to them by the world with luck. Some beasts were even born at the Highborn rank, though those species rarely bonded with humans forming their own civilizations within the continent of Suzox.
The fact that Selene had been taken by such creatures, creatures that were powerful enough to stand as equals to entire nations by themselves, did not bode well with Elijah. He was clearly worried, standing there and beginning to get lost in his thoughts trying to think about perhaps what he could do to help her when suddenly he jump up in pain.
"This human thinks too much."
Varash had come up behind him and gave him a small shock. Logan was by the Storm Maw's side laughing at his expense.
"Lets just wait dude. Knowing Selene she will probably be right back in no time."
Elijah would be nervously pacing back and forth in the dark cavern as they waited to see the outcome of this opportunity.