Our footsteps echoed through the dark alley as we carefully made our way along the city’s outer wall.

  This route was chosen because few people came out this far. Since the city’s industry was located further in, there was little reason for normal people to be here.

  That, combined with the late hour, meant we had the unwatched streets to ourselves.

  No words were spoken as we slowly approached our destination. A locked maintenance shaft that led to the sewer system. Our way in.

  “Alright.” Myra huffed, swinging her pack off her shoulder. “This is the place. There will be a short stretch where the power still works, after we pass under the district’s border, the only light will be from the occasional glow-stone.”

  She reached into her backpack and tossed me a flashlight. “Keep it off until we need it.”

  I nodded and clipped it to a slot on my belt. I knew that any light we used would instantly give away our positions if there was anyone even remotely paying attention.

  Her gaze turned to the other members as she started giving out orders.

  “Cobra, get the hatch open. Ellen, once it’s open, you’ll slip inside as a forward scout. I’ll take point with Nyxia behind me. Gordon, you’ll come in last and cover our six with Cobra.”

  The team moved with practiced precision, acting instantly after Myra gave her instructions.

  Cobra stepped to the metal hatch and pulled out some kind of torch with a mana stone attached to the base. With a practiced click, the torch ignited into a pale blue flame and he went to work cutting through the lock.

  “We don’t normally use this way to get in.” Myra explained while we waited. “But not all of us can follow Ellen’s paths when she’s scouting solo. This will also serve as our escape route during our retreat.”

  “How does Ellen usually get in? Something to do with her Shadow Magic?” I was genuinely curious. Seeing her magic in person could give me ideas for my own spells if nothing else.

  “Rooftops, usually.” Myra answered with a shrug. “And there are other ways in, but with a group like this, it’s better to be prepared.”

  “Hatch is open,” Cobra called out quietly, lifting the now-free hatch to the side.

  I felt a deep sense of foreboding as stale, chilled air drifted past me. The hole seemed to devour any light that reached its edges. The fact that we weren’t using our lights yet only enhanced that feeling.

  “Well that’s not good.” Gordon spoke up as he cautiously approached the opening. “Thought you said this place had power.”

  “It should.” Myra furrowed her brow. “Even Talo’s energy readings show power being directed underneath us.”

  “Then where’s the lights?”

  …

  I focused my senses, but nothing stood out. For a place that supposedly had power, it was awfully quiet.

  “Ellen, check it out, but pull back if you encounter anything dangerous.”

  “Understood.” She nodded, stepping over the opening and flicking on her light before climbing inside.

  We waited a few tense moments as silence surrounded us.

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  “Looks clear.” Ellen’s voice crackled over the radio, finally letting the tension simmer down. “But there’s no sign of power… not even emergency glow-stones.”

  “Copy that. We’ll be down in a sec.” Myra responded, re-shouldering her pack and stepping toward the shaft.

  “Could be a Rift Anomaly.” Cobra spoke up, holding out a hand. “Shouldn’t we call it off until we know more?”

  “We can’t let this opportunity slip away.” Myra shook her head, whispering as she slipped past him, “We’ve already wasted enough time trying to find someone to open the door.”

  I kept my face blank, careful not to let anything show. This confirmed my suspicion, but didn’t help me understand their intent any better than before. What reason could they have to keep it a secret?

  Cobra hesitated before nodding, “Very well.”

  I was next in the marching order assigned by Myra. Stepping past Cobra, I climbed down into the pit.

  Soon, my boots tapped solid ground as I reached the bottom. Myra and Ellen’s lights cast long shadows over a tunnel that stretched into the distance.

  Just as Ellen had said, there were no signs of power.

  Gordon and Cobra soon followed, their equipment clacking as they touched the ground.

  “Creepy.” Gordon muttered, glancing down both ends of the artificial shaft. “Hope no one’s scared of the dark.”

  “Indeed.” Cobra nodded, looking to the goblin. “However, I am more concerned as to what the darkness hides.”

  “No shit, smart-ass.”

  “Ellen,” Myra spoke up, ignoring their banter, “change of plans. You’ll be on point with me. No sense in splitting the team under these circumstances.”

  “Agreed.” She responded, moving down the tunnel. “Let’s get going.”

  Myra nodded and followed.

  After a moment of hesitation, I steeled my nerves, pulling out my pistol just in case as I fell in behind Ellen and Myra. The only sounds were from our constant footsteps as we moved deeper.

  The silence was eerie, made worse by my enhanced senses. But I didn’t dare tone them down.

  Old cables and tubes hung from busted panels in the ceiling and walls. Their shadows seemed to stretch and bend under our lights, moving around like inky snakes, slithering around in the dark.

  Then I heard something just ahead. Maybe less than one hundred feet.

  *Click-click. Click.*

  “Wait.” I whispered, tapping urgently at Myra’s sleeve. “There’s something ahead of us.”

  “Hold up a sec.” Myra gave a quiet call to Ellen, before turning her attention to me. “How do you know?”

  “I heard a clicking sound.” I shuddered as I recalled a similar sound I’d heard not long ago. “Like claws on pavement.”

  She paused for a moment before making a motion to continue. “Could be nothing, but we aren’t taking that chance. Keep your eyes peeled.”

  “Been doing that the whole time, boss.” Gordon quipped, but did as she said, his gaze flicking around with caution.

  The sound suddenly ceased, bathing the room in silence once more… before suddenly increasing.

  “It’s getting closer!” My voice rose in panic as I leveled my pistol in the direction of the sound.

  The rest of the team did the same, halting in their tracks, flashlights snapping forward, bathing the tunnel in white light.

  That’s when I saw it.

  A single shadow outlining a humanoid form.

  But it was strange. Stretched…

  I glanced at our lights. To make that shadow, it would have to be… right in front of us?

  “There!” I didn’t think. I just started shooting.

  The ‘thing’ let out an inhuman screech as my rounds impacted center mass. The others followed suit, splattering the floor with grayish blood.

  Its shadow spasmed as it was riddled with holes before falling backwards. Its body impacted the ground with a hard thump.

  “Was that the only one?” Myra called out to me, her rifle still pointing downrange.

  I went quiet and strained my ears… but there was nothing. Only our quiet breathing echoed through the tunnel.

  “I think so. I don’t hear any more.”

  We all let out a collective breath and looked towards the fallen creature.

  Killing it hadn’t revealed its true form, but its shadow was much clearer now that it wasn’t stretched along the wall and floor.

  It was tall and vaguely humanoid with long, dangerous talons on its hands and feet. Its limbs were slightly too long, giving it an uncanny look that was only exacerbated by its shadow.

  “Fucking hell.” Gordon swore, looking over the corpse. “What the hell even is that thing?”

  “Darkstalker’s.” Ellen answered while poking its chest area with the tip of her knife and pulling a mana stone seemingly out of thin air. “Never seen one in person though.”

  “I wonder what one was doing down here.” Cobra said, his distorted voice surprisingly calm. “They don’t usually stray too far from the corrupted rifts.”

  “It does explain why there’s no light though.” Ellen added, “No one's really sure how they do it, but they somehow absorb light from the environment. Haven’t had much time to study them, considering their first appearance was during the rift break incident.”

  “Are they usually alone?” Myra asked.

  “Yes. They’ve never been seen working with others of their kind.”

  “Good, that means the rest of the way should be relatively safe, but stay frosty. This could have ended badly if Nyxia hadn’t noticed it in time.”

  Everyone nodded and we continued through the tunnels.