“Not really sure what I expected,” Jason sighed, pulling out his charcoal pencil. “Wait a sec. Looks like we’re going to have to start keeping track again.”

  The corridor stretched onward before opening into a hollow chamber, an unfinished section marked on the map, nothing beyond but stone and dust.

  Annabeth looked down, then frowned as she noticed his handwriting. The lines were neat, almost delicate. “Odd,” she murmured, remembering his usual chicken scratch she often had to transte. “So, this is as far as the map goes.”

  Jason tapped the parchment. “Yes. There are other passageways if we backtrack, but this is where the arrow stops. Whoever drew this knew how to get home from here.”

  “Not that it’s going to help us much.”

  Jason chuckled, adding the corridor to the map, then froze. Something y on the ground ahead.

  “Careful,” Annabeth warned, raising her hammer as they approached.

  The body of a young woman sprawled in a bloodied heap. Her jeans were shredded, blouse soaked and stiff with dried crimson. What stood out most was her hair, styled, unmistakably out of pce here. Everything else had been stripped away, leaving only her bloody clothes.

  Jason’s breath caught, his voice softening. “Modern clothes. Jeans, blouse. She must have been summoned, like us. Poor woman: she can’t be much older than us.”

  Annabeth, eyes scanning the shadows. “Doesn’t matter, Jason," she murmured softly. "She’s dead. What matters is what killed her and whether it’s still here.”

  Jason nodded and extended the magic-light, pushing away the shadows. With a small prayer on his lips, they continued.

  The corridor turned sharply, then split, but from the one they chose came the faint sound of wind. Jason quickly marked the other paths on the map before they continued, the air growing colder with each step.

  He shivered, arms pulled close to his chest. “Brr… hey, look at that.”

  Ahead, the wall was covered with ice, snow drifting across the floor, a strange sight in the necropolis. A section of the stone wall had colpsed, revealing a familiar glow beyond.

  “Oh, sun,” Jason breathed, closing his eyes. He smiled, stepping closer. “A way out. Maybe?”

  Annabeth walked past him, testing the frozen rubble with her hands. “There’s no way you’re fitting through there. Much less me.”

  Jason leaned back, frustration etched across his face. “So close, yet so far."

  The sound of something moving made them grab their weapons. Then, from the frozen shadows, a creature lunged forward, a skeletal figure wrapped in tattered shrouds, with eyes burning with cold fire.

  Jason moved with sudden grace, stepping back and thrusting out his hand. A bolt of pure magic smmed into the monster, sending it spinning.

  “Nice, your turn.”

  Annabeth cheerfully charged with a growl, but her strike harmlessly passed through the body.

  “Oh, shit! Jason!” she shouted, twisting aside as its cws raked the air.

  “On it.” His fingers crackled with lightning. In a blinding fsh, the shadow shrieked, and then another fsh of lightning colpsed into the snow, dissolving into ash.

  Annabeth kicked the spot where it had fallen. “God, that sucked.”

  Jason let out a loud breath, grimacing. “I agree. Had to be some sort of wraith. Alright, looks like we need to make sure you’ve got a magical backup.”

  “Maybe this dagger?” She pulled the bde they found earlier from her belt.

  Jason ran his fingers across the ft of the weapon. Flowery script shimmered into existence.

  “Sweet,” she grinned. “We should check the rest of our weapons.”

  Beyond the snow-covered corridor, they discovered a staircase leading down into a small chamber with another stone fountain.

  I still say we should have found some kind of treasure,” Annabeth called back, dropping her pack.

  “It’s not like wraiths have pockets. Lunch break?” Jason smiled, kneeling by the fountain. He brushed dust from the rim with a gentle touch before filling his fsk.

  Annabeth sat beside him, pulled out a strip of dried meat, and tore into it, chewing quickly while her eyes scanned the chamber. “Others have been here before.”

  Jason nodded, noticing the same signs as he sipped water. He wiped his mouth, then pulled out a cloth to clean his face.

  Annabeth frowned, watching him. His handwriting earlier, now this. He seemed different. Not in a bad way, but softer.

  Jason caught her look and raised an eyebrow. “What?”

  “Nothing,” Annabeth muttered, shaking her head.

  “Alright.” Jason pulled out some ftbread to make a sandwich. “We’re lucky to have all this food. It’s at least two, maybe three weeks’ worth if we’re careful.”

  "Maybe we'll find one of those boar monsters."

  "I'd prefer we found an exit."

  Afterward, as he packed away supplies, he noticed bits of trash scattered across the floor and the unmistakable signs of dried human waste smeared in the corners.

  Jason wrinkled his nose. “Lovely.”

  “When you gotta go, you gotta go,” Annabeth ughed, popping the st piece of meat into her mouth.

  Considering the two had been doing much the same since entering the dungeon, her boyfriend's attitude was amusing.

  “Not something you ever thought of when running your characters through dungeons,” Jason grumbled, stowing the rest of their gear. He stood, brushing off his hands. “Whenever you’re ready.”

  The fountain chamber led to another corridor, narrower and darker, but as they continued, Annabeth paused.

  “Footprints,” she said, her hands tightening on her hammer.

  Jason stepped forward, the mage light revealing two corridors, one with the footprints. Part of the ceiling had come down from here, covering the floor with dust.

  “Looks like they came from that direction.”

  Annabeth frowned, looking to the right and left. “Want to follow them?”

  “Might as well, hopefully they will lead us to an exit.”

  Not too long after, the corridor turned sharply, revealing a small alcove. There, against the wall, were the remains of a campfire.

  “This was pretty recent.” Jason frowned, pushing the ashes with his foot.

  Annabeth nudged the half-burned stick. “Still, we need to be careful. We both want to find a way out, but these people could be dangerous.”

  Jason nodded. “Right.”

  With one look back, the two continued down the hallway.

  -Break-

  Marian let out a soft groan as he spshed cold water on her face, shivering as it trickled down her neck. Fortunately, these old fountains still worked. With a sigh, she gnced back at the two men.

  The eldest brother, Sharruma, walked with an air of arrogance, as if the world owed him something. His features were sharp, and his hair was styled in their traditional manner. The younger brother, Kurunta, a child of their father’s second wife, was broader and rougher. He might have been considered handsome except that his mouth was always set in a frown.

  Marian was not a historian, but she knew from listening to others that the two descended from the Hantiliya line, a family whose roots traced back to an ancient nd in her world. As their empire fell apart, some magic transported thousands of survivors to this world.

  Even thousands of years ter, their names and gods remained the same. Some of the families had endured, gaining power in a new world by using the same magic that ancient people of this world had used to summon them.

  Unfortunately for her and Hina, the two fools argued with their family and were likely exiled. After a quick look at the box they carried, she suspected they were now involved in the smuggling business.

  If the priests found out about it, there would be hell to pay, at least as sves; they wouldn’t be punished alongside their masters. Not that it mattered. The two girls had little choice but to follow them into the crypt.

  Marian returned to the campfire, shaking water off her hands. Hina had already prepared breakfast: ftbread, dried fruit, and hard cheese. With hollow eyes, she handed the ptes to Marian as the brothers stirred.

  Kurunta sat up first, grunting. Sharruma followed, stretching, then wandered off to relieve himself against the wall.

  “Food,” Kurunta ordered, voice low and commanding.

  Marian handed him a pte, forcing herself not to flinch at the way he snatched it. Sharruma returned soon after and took the pte with a smile, which didn’t reach his eyes.

  “We must move quickly,” Kurunta said, tearing bread with deliberate care. He then said to his brother. “It would look poorly on our future to be te.”

  Sharruma nodded, then turned toward the girls. “Pack up, be ready to leave as soon as we finish our meal.”

  Marian exchanged a gnce with Hina, but neither spoke. They had no choice but to follow.

  Afterward, the brothers waited as Marion took the lead, with Hina behind them guarding their rear.

  Kurunta pointed at the map. “We will follow the eastern corridor.”

  “Yes, master,” Marian nodded, then began the long walk.