"What the…" Ragnar's voice trailed off as he took in the statues.
The team were already back to back, their weapons in their hands, in case the statues attacked. And yet, they knew that if the statues truly attacked, they would most likely not survive it.
"These aren't monsters." Ulf said, his voice holding a note of unease.
The twelve statues stood still, their green eyes watching. It was eerie.
Nothing they'd ever heard about the Chains had spoken of this. Granted, it had been centuries since a Forsaken ever stepped foot in the Chains, but the stories only made mention of monsters, not moving status.
After a few seconds of the statues not moving, they frowned, their guards dropping a little. Then, the twelve statues spoke as one.
The chamber trembled with their voices, the sound of stone grinding over stone filling the air. The sound was almost impossibly deep, like something old finally speaking after millenia of silence.
"TO PROGRESS, ONE MUST REMAIN." They said. "A SACRIFICE. WILLING. ALIVE."
Their words rang through the dome like thunder locked in a tomb, and the silence that followed was somehow louder than the voice itself.
No one moved.
Then came a sound that was quiet in comparison to their voices. A low whine of stone against stone.
Each statue's arm bent slowly at the elbow, and from beneath their cloaks also made of carved rock, they retrieved bows that seemed to be sculpted from the same dark stone as the statues themselves.
And with the bows, they had arrows notched into drawn strings. Twelve of them, pointed straight at the six intruders.
The green glow in their eyes seemed to shine brighter.
One statue released its arrow.
Boom!
The arrow didn't just hit the ground. It buried itself into the stone floor with a crack like lightning, sending fractures spidering across the floor.
Ragnar flinched, his heart climbing up into his throat. The others had all taken defensive stances again at the sight, their eyes wide open in shock.
But even through their shock, they showed why they were the best of the best.
Ulf had his axe half raised. Astrid stood frozen, but her body language tilted towards her brother, ready to fight with him if need be.
Bjorn had stepped forward on instinct, and Ola was right behind him.
None of them moved from where they stood.
They didn't need to.
The message was clear.
If the statues attacked, none of them would survive.
Then, the statues repeated in perfect synchrony.
"TO PROGRESS, ONE MUST REMAIN."
"A SACRIFICE. WILLING. ALIVE."
The words sank into their hearts like the chill of a blizzard.
Someone had to stay behind.
Alive.
Alone.
In this room.
Forever.
"No." Ragnar whispered.
"There has to be another way." Astrid said, her voice higher than her usual cold drawl. She was panicking.
"We could attack them all at once." Ulf muttered.
"No." Bjorn shook his head, already studying the fracture where the arrow had hit. "We'll just be throwing away our lives for nothing. That is not our purpose here."
Erik said nothing.
Ragnar stepped forward. "Maybe the system… Maybe I can extract something…"
"From what?" Ola said. "There's nothing to extract here."
They all turned to her.
She stood still as she slung her axe back across her back. Her expression was calm, but her eyes held the sadness of someone who already knew the answer.
"I'll do it."
The words fell like stones into a pond.
"No." Ragnar said quickly. "Ola, wait—"
"You don't need me." Her voice was firm, not angry. Not desperate. She'd already accepted what was about to happen.
"Bjorn will lead. He always has."
Bjorn looked down, his mouth a hard line.
"Erik's ability to dampen his presence will save you more times than you can count."
Still, Erik said nothing.
"Ulf and Astrid?" Ola smiled faintly. "They fight as one. Taking one out will do you no good on your journey."
"But you—"
"I'm just a fighter." She stepped forward and placed a hand on Ragnar's shoulder. "I raised you. I saw the fire in your eyes before you even knew what divinity was."
He opened his mouth, but the words refused to come.
"Let me do this for our people."
A long silence followed.
No one could argue. Not without lying to themselves.
Ragnar's throat tightened. His vision blurred.
He grabbed her hand.
"You don't have to…"
"I do." She said gently. "So you don't have to."
Then the ground shook.
Grrrk!
Grrrk!
Grrrk!
From the center of the chamber, stone tore itself apart as a throne rose from beneath the floor, the surface rough and cracked as if it had been sitting in ruins.
The throne was shaped like the seated outline of a woman with arms outstretched.
The statues all turned their heads toward it in unison.
"THE SACRIFICE SHALL BE SEATED."
Ola let go of Ragnar and stepped forward, her steps slow but certain.
She reached the throne and turned back one last time, looking towards the rest of the warriors.
"If any of you ever return home… tell the children…" Her voice wavered. "Tell them I was proud."
Ragnar couldn't speak.
His hand reached toward her.
Ola smiled through the tears that now streamed freely down her face.
And then, she sat.
The moment she did, the throne began to descend.
Grrrrk!
The grinding resumed. Slowly, stone swallowed her lower half. Then her chest. Then her neck.
Ragnar took a step forward.
"Ola!"
She smiled at him, mouthing her final words.
"Keep going."
And then, she was gone.
Sealed beneath the stone.
The throne vanished, the floor smoothing over as if it had never risen.
The statues lowered their bows.
Their eyes dimmed, one by one.
And they returned to their slumped, silent forms.
The chamber went quiet.
A second later, a sound filled the air.
Crrrkk!
Thud!
The door at the far end of the room groaned open, revealing the path forward, but no one moved.
They stood there for a long moment.
In silence.
In mourning.
In fear.
Because they'd just learned something more terrifying than monsters.
The Chains did not just test your strength.
It didn't just throw monsters at you.
Instead, it takes from you.
And it did not care how much.
Author's Notes: Are you enjoying the story so far? If so, don't forget to leave a review or drop a power stone. It not only helps with visibility but leaves a warm fuzzy feeling in my chest. Thanks in advance!