It was Horizon's first time entering the Great Mausoleum, and the moment he crossed the threshold, the air turned colder, heavier. The ancient structure loomed like a cave, swallowing them in darkness.
A jagged rift split the terrain before them, a bottomless chasm stretching north to south, its width shifting between five and thirty feet. From its depths, an eerie fog seeped out, creeping across the Mausoleum's barren grounds and spilling into the Catacomb Reaches.
Horizon realized this was the source of the suffocating fog that blanketed the entire region.
The Mausoleum itself was a wasteland — a desolate expanse of dead earth under a perpetually gloomy sky.
The ground was littered with the bones of long-dead creatures: humans, dragons, and reptilian beasts, victims of an endless cycle of death and decay.
Among the skeletal remains, twisted nests of rotting, blackened eggs dotted the landscape, grotesque parodies of life. The bones themselves seemed to shudder, as if disturbed by some unseen force.
Suddenly, the earth trembled beneath their feet. From the endless sea of bones, a monstrous dragon skeleton began to stir, its enormous frame rattling as it rose from the dead earth.
A voice, deep and familiar, slithered into their minds like poison.
"Welkkommme, trrresspasssserssss . . ."
Von stood frozen, trembling where he was. Fear gripped him so tightly that he couldn't even muster the strength to move. Before him, Nixis took shape, the air around the dragon crackling with raw power.
Horizon, on the other hand, couldn't tear his gaze away, his eyes wide with awe and terror as the dragon's massive form loomed over them, casting a shadow that seemed to swallow the entire mausoleum.
Nix was gargantuan in size, a monstrous skeletal figure that dwarfed anything Horizon had ever encountered.
Its colossal frame seemed to stretch endlessly, towering over the desolate landscape like a god of death.
"You coming here was all part of my plan," Nixis grinned, her sharp, bony teeth rattling together with an eerie sound.
Horizon narrowed his eyes. "What do you mean by that?"
Nixis lowered her massive head to Horizon's level, her glowing eyes locking onto him. The acrid scent of decay hung in the air, yet oddly, she didn't smell foul, just . . . empty, like death itself.
"You must be confused, so let me explain from the beginning," Nixis began, her voice rumbling through the air like distant thunder. "When you arrived here, I sensed you were different. That's why I sent one of my Dracolichs to push you into my domain."
"That . . . gust of wind was your doing?" Horizon asked, realization dawning on him.
Nixis nodded, a chilling grin spreading wider. "Exactly."
Von, still shaken but finding his voice, cut in, "Wait. What do you want with Horizon, specifically?"
"Silence, Elf!" Nixis snapped, her growl resonating with dark energy that paralyzed Von in place. "I tolerate your kind, but don't confuse that with liking you, Valernian and Eternian scum. The only reason you're still breathing is because of him," she nodded towards Horizon, "but make no mistake — I don't like you. Got that?"
Von couldn't even muster a reply, his body frozen in fear. Cappy immediately hid behind Von's hair, shivering.
Sensing how volatile Nixis was, Horizon stepped in, trying to draw her focus back to him. The last thing he needed was for the dragon to snap and turn on Von. He could feel there might be a way out, but only if he treaded carefully.
"So, why do you want me here? What is it you need from me?" Horizon asked, keeping his voice steady, though his pulse quickened.
Nixis's hollowed eyes glowed with spectral light as she spoke. "You are human . . . yet your blood carries an ancient draconic lineage, one that even I do not fully understand. You're the first human with such a bloodline to ever enter Drakha.
If anyone can handle my power and survive . . . it's you."