The ever-present trembling in the cavern, there even before the abominations arrived, rapidly intensified.
Zareth's ears twitched. "That sound…"
Before he could finish the thought, the tunnel in front of them—once their intended path forward—exploded inward with a sickening crunch. A monstrous limb, gnarled and grotesquely swollen, took down the entire tunnel entrance and much of the cavern ceiling, tearing apart ancient stone and metal supports like parchment.
It was so large, its full body couldn't even fit inside the cavern. Just its arrival caused the ceiling to collapse, sending a thunderous cascade of rubble crashing down behind it.
Dust and debris exploded outward and the ground shook beneath their feet like a magnitude 9.0 earthquake.
Everyone staggered.
The roaring from earlier returned, this time close enough to rattle their bones. It wasn't just a sound—it was a pressure.
