Chapter 30: Fairy tales

Staring at the two people in the chamber, Derek’s team looked at Moon and Selene with equally shocked expressions.

"You’re still alive?! We thought you guys were dead! Where have you been?" John asked, looking at his two former teammates with wide eyes.

Moon did not respond immediately, his gaze sweeping around the circular room, noting everyone present and searching for one figure specifically.

All members of their original team were here.

But Gareth was nowhere to be seen.

The absence made Moon’s instincts scream with warning.

Before Selene could respond, Moon spoke first. "We got lost in a snowstorm that overtook us, so we found shelter until we could continue. Why are you all here? And where is Gareth?"

Derek walked forward, taking charge of the conversation as he always did. He approached Selene with what seemed like genuine relief on his face. "I’m glad you’re safe. We were worried about you."

Moon’s expression darkened because his question had been completely ignored. Selene, sensing Moon’s tension, repeated the question more firmly. "Why are you guys here?"

Derek finally responded, his tone casual, almost dismissive. "We came here shortly after Gareth discovered this place by accident. Since then, we’ve been using this temple as our hideout. It’s safer than the cave, and warmer somehow, despite being made of stone."

Moon and Selene exchanged a look laden with uncertainty and suspicion.

Questions flooded their minds. Were they wrong about their assumptions regarding Gareth? Had they misread the situation entirely? But what about the bones? The graveyard of human remains outside his cave?

After a silent exchange of glances, Selene made a decision. With Gareth absent, this might be their only opportunity to warn the others and find out if anything was truly wrong.

She looked at Derek’s group with a grim expression and began explaining what had truly happened—how they’d never gotten lost in a storm, how they’d fled deliberately after discovering the human bones, the suspicions they’d developed about Gareth, the journal they’d found at the abandoned camp.

By the time she finished, the chamber had fallen into tense silence.

Then Derek burst out laughing.

The sound echoed off the stone walls, harsh and disbelieving. He clutched his stomach, wiping tears from his eyes as his laughter gradually subsided. When he finally composed himself enough to speak, he looked at the frowning Moon with undisguised mockery.

"Are you out of your mind? Seriously? A cannibal?" Derek shook his head, still chuckling. "That’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard. You even managed to fool Selene into believing this fairytale?"

Marcus snorted in agreement. "Human bones around the cave? They’re probably from awakeners who died before we even got here. This place has been trapping people for who knows how long."

"And the fact that Gareth’s been nothing but helpful to us means nothing to you?" Iris added, crossing her arms. "He’s fed us, taught us how to survive here, and showed us this temple. If he wanted to hurt us, he’s had a dozen chances."

Moon’s jaw tightened. "Where is he right now? Why isn’t he with you?"

"He went scouting," Derek said with exaggerated patience, as if explaining something to a child. "Checking the perimeter, making sure no beasts are nearby. He does it every few hours. He’ll be back soon."

"And you just believe him?" Selene pressed. "You never questioned why he was alone when he found us? Why were there no other survivors despite him claiming—"

"Enough," Derek cut her off, his amusement fading into irritation. "Look, I get it. You two ran off and have been struggling to survive on your own. You’re tired, scared, and probably half-starved. Your minds are playing tricks on you. But don’t come in here and try to turn us against the person who’s kept us alive."

John stepped forward, his expression apologetic but firm. "Selene, Moon... I know you’ve been through a lot. But Derek’s right. Gareth’s been good to us. Whatever you think you saw, there has to be another explanation."

Moon opened his mouth to argue, to press harder, but a sound from the corridor behind them.

Everyone in the chamber turned toward the entrance.

A figure emerged from the shadows of the corridor, tall and imposing in his haggard bear leather. The bloodstained spear rested casually across his shoulders. His weathered face showed no surprise at finding Moon and Selene there.

Gareth stepped into the chamber, his eyes settling on the two of them with an expression that was impossible to read.

"Well...Look who finally found their way home."

Derek immediately jumped in to explain. "Gareth, you won’t believe what they just told us. They think you’re some kind of cannibal! Said they found human bones near the cave and ran away because they thought you were going to eat us or something." He laughed again, shaking his head at the absurdity.

Moon’s muscles tensed, ready to fight or flee.

But Gareth’s expression didn’t change. He simply looked at Moon and Selene with what might have been pity or indifference, his face betraying nothing.

"I don’t blame them," Gareth said finally, his voice calm and measured. "People go crazy in this place. The cold, the isolation, the constant fear. It makes you see things that aren’t there, connect dots that don’t exist. I’ve seen it happen before."

His response was so reasonable, so understanding, that for a brief moment Moon felt a flicker of doubt. Had they been wrong? Had the stress and paranoia of survival warped their judgment?

Derek laughed again, clearly relieved that Gareth wasn’t offended. "See? I told you, you were just being paranoid."

Gareth shifted the spear on his shoulders, and Moon’s hand twitched toward his mana reserves. But the man simply adjusted his grip, making himself more comfortable, before speaking again.

"I found the way to enter the sealed chamber. Let’s prepare for it tonight. Get yourselves mentally ready....we’re leaving this place."

Everyone from Derek’s group lit up with joy, their faces transforming from the haggard exhaustion of survival to hope.

"Really?" Elara breathed, her bow lowering completely as tears formed in her eyes. "We can finally get out?"

"Tonight?" Marcus asked, disbelief and excitement warring in his voice.

Gareth nodded once, firm and certain. "Tonight."

John turned to Moon and Selene. "There’s a door deeper in the temple that we think is our exit from this realm. We’ve been trying to open it for days, but there’s some sort of mechanism we couldn’t figure out. It wouldn’t budge no matter what we tried." He gestured toward the far end of the chamber, where Moon could now see another corridor leading deeper into darkness. "It seems like Gareth finally found a way to open it."

Selene glanced at Moon, her expression carefully neutral, but he could see the questions in her eyes.

Moon’s mind raced. A sealed door that led to their escape. A mechanism that required specific conditions to open. And Gareth, who’d been here longer than any of them, had finally figured it out.

Or had he been waiting for something specific? For enough people to gather? For enough lives to be accumulated?

The carvings outside flashed through Moon’s memory. Processions of figures carrying offerings to an altar. Sacrifices made to the being on the throne.

"What kind of mechanism?" Moon asked, his voice cutting through the others’ excitement.

Gareth turned his attention to Moon. "The old-fashioned kind requires multiple people to activate simultaneously. Pressure plates, seems like." He gestured to Derek’s group. "Now with you two here, we have ten. Should be more than enough."

"Ten people," Moon repeated slowly.

"Ten people," Gareth confirmed. "We’ll attempt it at nightfall. The timing matters, apparently. Something about the temple’s structure and how the mechanisms respond to temperature changes when the sun sets."

It sounded plausible. But Moon couldn’t shake the image of those carved figures, marching toward their doom with offerings held high.

"What happens if it doesn’t work?" Selene asked quietly.

Gareth’s smile finally appeared, but it was thin and didn’t reach his eyes.

"Then we’re all trapped here forever."

Derek’s group seemed too excited to care about the ominous tone. They were already discussing preparations, what supplies to bring, and how to coordinate their efforts.

But Moon caught Selene’s eye across the chamber, and in that shared glance, they communicated everything that words couldn’t say.

Tonight, they would learn the truth about Gareth.

Tonight, they would either escape this frozen hell...or discover exactly what kind of sacrifice the heart of winter demanded.

♢♢♢♢

"Are you ready?" Gareth spoke, standing at the front of the formation before a massive door.

"Yes!" The group shouted in unison, each person positioned exactly where Gareth had instructed them to stand along the chamber walls.

Moon and Selene had both stood at the back, not involved with what was happening. It gave them a view of everyone else, making it harder to be ambushed.

"Press it," Gareth commanded.

Eight hands touched the walls simultaneously. Moon felt the carved brick beneath his palm give way slightly, sinking deeper into the stone with a grinding sound that echoed through the ancient chamber.

The large door began to move.

Slowly, ponderously, the massive stone slab started to slide open. Revealing a passage beyond, one that descended into darkness deeper than anything they’d seen so far.

The group erupted in celebration. Derek raised his fist in triumph. Marcus laughed with relief. Iris and Elara embraced, tears streaming down their faces. John simply stood there, grinning like he couldn’t quite believe it was real.

Only two people didn’t join the celebration.

Moon and Selene stood at the back of the formation, their expressions carefully neutral, their bodies tense and ready. They watched Gareth’s back, watched how he observed the opening door with an expression that was neither surprised nor particularly joyful.

Despite all their warnings, despite the bones and the journal and every instinct screaming that something was wrong, they couldn’t prove anything to the others. Derek’s group had made their choice. They trusted Gareth more than they trusted two teammates who’d disappeared for a week.

So Moon and Selene had made their own decision. They would enter with the group, and if Gareth tried anything foolish, anything that confirmed their suspicions, they would kill him.

They had the strength to do so now.