Chapter 22: Echoes in the Dark
Branches clawed at Marissa's arms as she ran, the forest blurring around her in a whirl of green and shadow. Mason's hand gripped hers like a lifeline, pulling her forward, faster, deeper into the trees. Behind them, the sounds of pursuit grew louder crunching footsteps, voices muffled by distance, and something else… a low, unnatural hum that made her skin crawl.
They didn't speak. There was no time. Only the thunder of their footsteps, the ragged gasp of their breath, and the growing weight of dread pressing in on all sides.
A fallen log loomed ahead, slick with moss and rain. Mason vaulted over it effortlessly, and Marissa followed, landing hard on the other side. Her ankle twisted beneath her, and she stumbled, pain shooting up her leg. She hissed through clenched teeth but kept going, limping now, her heart hammering in her chest.
They crested a small hill, and Mason yanked her down behind a cluster of boulders. He crouched low, scanning the trees, his chest rising and falling with exertion.
"Are you okay?" he whispered.
"My ankle," she breathed. "Twisted. But I can keep going."
Mason looked at her, worry flickering in his eyes. Then he reached into his pack, pulling out a small black vial and a length of cloth.
"Drink this," he said, handing it to her. "It'll help with the pain."
"What is it?"
"Trust me."
Marissa hesitated, then drank. The liquid was bitter, tinged with something metallic, but within moments a soothing warmth spread through her body. Her breathing slowed. The sharp pain dulled to a throb.
Mason tied the cloth around her ankle, tightening it gently. "It won't heal it, but it'll keep you moving."
She nodded, gripping his shoulder for support as she stood. "Thanks."
A noise closer now. Footsteps again, crunching leaves. Voices. Mason's eyes darkened.
"They're splitting up," he said. "Trying to flush us out."
Marissa swallowed hard. "What do we do?"
He pointed toward a narrow ravine veiled by thick underbrush. "There's a cave just beyond that ridge. Hidden. I used it once before it might buy us time."
Without another word, they moved.
The terrain grew treacherous, rocks slick from morning dew, the path barely visible beneath the undergrowth. The hum returned, louder now. It wasn't mechanical it was… alive. A vibration in the bones. A presence.
Marissa shivered.
They reached the edge of the ravine. Mason lowered himself carefully, testing the rocks before helping Marissa down. Half-sliding, half-scrambling, they descended into the narrow cut in the earth, the shadows growing deeper with every step.
Then they saw it...the cave. Its mouth yawned open between two ancient trees, draped in vines like a forgotten secret. Mason darted inside first, his silhouette swallowed by darkness. Marissa followed, the ground uneven beneath her feet, the air cool and damp.
Inside, the cave widened into a shallow chamber. The walls glistened with moisture, and the ceiling arched overhead like the ribs of some ancient beast. Mason lit a small lantern from his pack, casting a golden glow that danced across the stone.
Marissa collapsed against the wall, breathing hard. "Do you think they saw us?"
Mason shook his head. "If we're lucky, they'll pass right over."
"But if we're not…"
He didn't answer.
They sat in silence for a moment, the quiet humming louder in their ears now. It wasn't coming from outside.
It was inside.
Marissa's eyes widened. "Do you hear that?"
Mason nodded slowly, rising to his feet, the lantern held high. He stepped deeper into the cave, toward the far wall. There, the stone was different etched with markings. Symbols. Ancient and glowing faintly, pulsing with the same rhythm as the hum.
"What is this?" Marissa asked, rising despite the ache in her ankle.
Mason didn't look at her. "I don't know. I've never seen this before."
As they stared, the symbols pulsed brighter. A low wind stirred through the cave though there was no entrance for it to come through. The air crackled.
Marissa stepped forward, hand outstretched. "Should we"
"Don't touch it!" Mason warned, too late.
Her fingers brushed the stone.
The world fractured.
A rush of images flooded Marissa's mind blinding light, screaming faces, sterile labs, tubes and wires, figures in white coats. She saw Mason as a boy, strapped to a table, eyes wide with terror. She saw Victor Rellin—older than she imagined, cold eyes full of obsession as he whispered, "You will become the future."
And then she saw herself.
Standing in fire. Reaching for Mason. Eyes glowing.
The vision shattered.
She staggered back, gasping. Mason caught her.
"What did you see?" he demanded, voice shaking.
"Everything," she whispered. "Your past. Him. Me."
His expression hardened. "What about you?"
"I was… different. I don't know what it means, but I think" She broke off, breathless. "I think I'm connected to this. To you."
Mason looked at the glowing wall, then at her. "I was altered. Changed. But maybe you… maybe you were meant for this."
A noise outside shouts. Footsteps. The pursuers were near.
"No more time," he said, extinguishing the lantern. "We stay quiet. We don't move."
Marissa pressed back against the wall, her heart pounding. She could still feel the symbols' energy thrumming beneath her skin.
Voices passed overhead, close too close.
And then, silence again.
They didn't speak. Didn't breathe.
Finally, Mason exhaled. "They missed us."
Marissa looked up at him, eyes fierce in the dark. "We can't keep running forever."
"No," he agreed. "But now we know more. We fight smart. We find out what this connection means."
She took his hand, her grip strong. "Together."
The cave seemed to pulse around them again, as if responding.
Outside, the sun climbed higher, but deep within the earth, a new path had opened and their fates, once tangled, now burned with purpose.