Chapter 112: Unknown Territory [1] The two curious awakeners both entered the realm entrance alongside the white horse. Moon lost all feeling of his surroundings for a brief, disorienting moment as his body was transported through space to a completely different location altogether. The sensation was similar to portal travel but more abrupt, just like the time they were transported into that hidden realm. When his body finally regained control and his senses returned, Moon couldn’t see anything. Darkness was the only thing surrounding him. Absolute, consuming blackness as if light itself didn’t exist in the place he’d appeared. A notification appeared in his eyes, but he had no time to check it out just yet. Immediately, Moon channeled his mana, creating a small spark of fire in his palm to illuminate his immediate surroundings. "Selene? Mirage? Are you here?" "Yeah! I’m here," Selene’s voice entered his ears as her own flame sparked to life several meters away, casting flickering orange light. Moon heard Mirage’s anxious neigh beside him, the horse was reassured by his rider’s voice in the unsettling environment. Thankfully, both his companions had been transported with him rather than separated. He had worried for a brief moment that something had gone terribly wrong and they’d been scattered across different locations. "Where are we... what is this place?" Selene’s voice sounded softly in the dark space they’d all materialized in. In fact, it was slightly difficult to hear what she was saying clearly, as if the walls or atmosphere itself absorbed sound, dampening their voices unnaturally. [You have entered a True Death Zone.] "Not sure... but it’s definitely nothing we’ve encountered before...and it’s a true death zone, we cannot die, not even once," Moon said loudly, compensating for the sound-dampening effect. His fire spark grew considerably larger as he supplied more mana, expanding the illuminated area to gain better vision of their surroundings. The additional light revealed they were standing in what appeared to be some kind of enclosed space with walls that curved weirdly rather than following straight lines. "Stay alert," Moon warned, his eyes scanning the surrounding area constantly for any hints of danger or a way out. "We don’t know what kind of beasts or threats exist in this place yet." Selene nodded, her own flame growing brighter as she moved closer to Moon’s position. "Should we stay together or split up to explore?" "Together," Moon said immediately. "Splitting up in unknown territory is how people die...permanently." Mirage stayed close to Moon, the horse’s instincts clearly telling him this environment was dangerous and staying beside his rider was his best course of action to survive. As they began exploring their immediate vicinity cautiously, Moon and Selene discovered several disturbing facts about the area they’d been thrust into. The environment was by no means normal. Mirage’s hooves didn’t echo on the floor despite the enclosed space. Neither did their own footsteps produce the expected sounds that walking should generate in a cave or chamber. The silence was oppressive and certainly unnatural. Moon knelt down, running his hand across the floor’s surface. It was uneven and ridged, possessing a weird texture rather than the smooth stone or packed earth he’d expected. "This doesn’t feel like rock or anything of that matter," Moon said quietly. Selene examined the walls similarly, her expression growing more concerned. "The walls are the same. It’s not stone or earth... it’s something else entirely, I can’t put my finger on what it is." Moon expanded his fire further, creating a floating orb of flame that rose above their heads to illuminate a larger area. They appeared to be standing in some kind of tubular passage or chamber. The space curved in both directions, extending beyond the reach of their light. The walls, floor, and ceiling all possessed that same unsettling ridged texture. Moon checked for exits or alternative routes. He found only the curving passage extending in two directions—forward and backward relative to where they’d materialized. There was no trace of the portal or entry mechanism they’d used to arrive here. "The entrance we came through is gone," Moon observed. "We can’t retreat the way we came." "So we’re committed. We have to find another exit or whatever completion condition exists in this realm." "Seems that way," Moon agreed. He wasn’t surprised by this development, he had already expected this to happen. As they stood discussing options, Selene noticed something that made her blood run cold. The walls seemed to be moving. "Moon, tell me you see the walls moving too." Moon’s eyes widened as he focused on the wall nearest to him. "...Yes. The walls are moving." Moon’s mind raced through possibilities, each one more disturbing than the last. The movement lasted for a single brief moment, but the changes it caused were massive and terrifying. What had been a separation of their path into three distinct passages suddenly transformed. Two of those pathways compressed violently, their openings tightening and sealing shut with a force that would have crushed anything caught inside. The sound was sickening accompanied by pressure changes that Moon could feel in his chest. "This... if we’d entered that passage..." Selene couldn’t finish the sentence, fear creeping into her voice despite her experience. "We would’ve been dead." Moon understood immediately what she meant. This was not a normal zone, where they could respawn after death. This was an instant death zone, once they died, they were dead. In fact, even if it was a normal death zone with penalty to the number of lives, it wouldn’t matter. Because if they’d been inside one of those passages when the walls contracted, they would have been crushed to pulp. When they respawned, they’d materialize in the exact same location—still trapped between closing walls that would immediately crush them again. Death loop. Permanent erasure through repeated crushing until all lives were exhausted. The unknown was something most awakeners feared, and the place they were currently trapped in was something neither of them had ever encountered or heard about in any official records. 𝗳𝚛𝚎𝚎𝘄𝕖𝕓𝕟𝕠𝚟𝚎𝕝.𝗰𝕠𝐦 "The pathways that closed... they’re not opening back up, at least not yet" Selene observed. She pointed at the sealed passages, which showed no signs of reversing their compression. "There’s only one route left now. But what if it closes on us when the walls move again?" Her eyes darted around the chamber they were standing in, the full horror of their situation dawning. "What if... what if these walls close in on us while we’re still here?"