A few hours earlier...

Princess Helena and Inara arrived at the camp after sending Uri away.

The monster was in the midst of a fight with the only two low-level warriors that were present there. The teenagers were hiding behind the camp's protective barrier, screaming in terror. The barrier was made of large tree roots jetting out of the ground that encompassed the entire caravan.

The princesses did not attack immediately after arriving at the scene. They remained in hiding some distance away, observing the battle carefully.

Princess Inara's gaze was transfixed on the monster. It was a big ugly thing. A hunched bi-pedal monster covered in grey elephant-like hide and squirming muscles underneath it. Both its hands ended in three long nails that were there instead of fingers. Each nail was half a meter in length.

It had thick, slightly curved legs that also ended in the same sharp nails instead of toes.

A good forty percent of its body was just its face that had a single orifice, a gaping maw lined with sixteen rows of razor-sharp teeth on each side. Powerful muscles could be seen connected to each tooth, twisting and wriggling like fat worms under the skin.

Four extremely small holes were located around its mouth that were probably used for smelling. (Image in authors notes and in discord)

It was one of the most appalling creatures one could ever come across. The murderous deathly aura that it was giving off was enough to leave any ordinary person shivering in their boots, unable to even move a muscle.

The only reason just two ordinary warriors could even put up some resistance against it was because of their experience and its lack of any auditory or visual organs. I.e, it was completely deaf and blind.

"Is that...?" Princess Inara mumbled doubtfully.

Princess Helena nodded, "A greyhound," confirming her suspicion.

Princess Inara let out a breath of cold air. She leaned back against the tree branch they were sitting on, "But what is it doing here? It lives in the caverns underneath the 'Great Lord'. That's even further than the inner zone." (CH 631 for "Foresight" for details).

Princess Helena smiled, still staring at the greyhound, "Stranger things have happened, no?"

"Yeah but...how? It makes no sense...Is...is the prophecy really coming to pass?"

Princess Helena nudged Princess Inara with her elbow, winking at her mischievously, "But isn't it fun? The prophecy that was foretold thousands of generations ago is finally coming to pass in our lifetimes."

But it did not raise Princess Inara's spirits as she was hoping. Princess Inara shook her head somberly, "How is it fun? The prophecy says the world as we know it will end once and for all. There will be bloodshed, everything we know will be tested and there is nothing we can do to stop it."

Princess Helena let out a little laugh seeing her worried expression. She leaned in and hugged her, placing her head on Princess Inara's shoulder.

"Don't worry little sister. As long as we are together, we will be fine no matter what happens. Plus, for all we know it could still be years away. The last sign was the appearance of an 'other world-er' that will arrive through the invisible storm. Only after he comes will the prophecy be completed."

Princess Inara nodded dejectedly, "You're right, I'm sorry for overreacting. Let's lure the greyhound away first and then-" before she could finish the sentence an earth-shatteringly loud boom resounded in the entire space.

*BOOOOOOOM*

Princess Inara and Helena both fell from the treetop, astonished and aghast. They turned around and saw several flashes of lightning coming from somewhere nearby.

This initial sound was heard by every single being all at once no matter where they were on the isle. It transcended the laws of physics and reverberated throughout this entire hidden world simultaneously.

An interconnected formation made of over a thousand golden glyphs that dwelled at the very pinnacle of this space suddenly shattered and exploded without a warning. More than a quarter of these glyphs were simply turned to ash, while the rest of them quickly came together and formed another similar formation that was much smaller in size.

But in the few seconds the formation was broken, the volcano in the middle of the island that had been dormant for eons was forced awake. It rumbled for just an instant, deeply and slowly before the formation suppressed it again.

Yet even that one brief moment was far too long.

On the planet's surface an earthquake the likes of which were never seen before was set in motion, not by the lighting strikes, but by the destruction of the glyphs.

Every single power turned its gaze towards the source of this unnatural disturbance.

***

Authors Notes:

Official Discord link: https://discord.gg/AHdSBFQ

Original image link: https://i.pinimg.com/564x/a7/36/e1/a736e1e7af950be9b239b467829f9378.jpg

Shortened image link (case sensitive): https://urlzs.com/YFLc3

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