Staying within the shadows, patiently waiting for the demon to finish eating and make its way back into the river, Liam kept his eyes fixed toward the direction from which the river flowed.

The massive aquatic demon was still near the bank, its jaws tearing through clusters of the pale, partially glowing plants with slow, heavy bites. Every movement it made sent faint tremors through the mud and loose stones around it, and each time its teeth crushed through the vegetation, glowing sap spilled down its maw and dripped onto the ground like diluted moonlight.

Liam remained crouched low, most of his weight balanced carefully on his left leg to avoid putting unnecessary pressure on his injured thigh. Smoke stayed beside him, silent and still, his dark body nearly disappearing among the shadows beneath the trees.

’With how long that thing is taking to eat, heading in that direction would be a terrible idea,’ Liam thought, his gaze still fixed upstream.

If the demon remained where it was, then moving was pointless. It would only increase the chance of being noticed. But staying here was just as useless. The more time he wasted, the more likely something else would be drawn into the area.

After a long moment, Liam slowly rose from his crouched position, careful not to disturb the brush around him. His injured leg protested with a faint pulse of pain, but he kept his expression unchanged.

"Smoke," he whispered.

The shadow wolf’s ears twitched toward him.

"We’re moving upstream," Liam said quietly. "Stay low. Stay in the shades. And don’t make a sound unless you sense something."

Smoke gave the faintest grunt in response, barely audible.

Then they moved.

Liam and Smoke slipped through the woods with controlled silence, following the river upstream while keeping a safe distance from the bank.

Liam moved beside the shadow beast at first, one hand occasionally brushing against tree trunks or hanging vines to steady himself whenever the terrain shifted unevenly beneath his feet. His wound had been treated properly, but it was still there. Every step carried a faint reminder of that puncture, a tight ache buried deep within the muscle.

But he ignored it and stayed focused on the river.

As they moved, Liam continuously scanned the water, the opposite rocky side, and the rising cliff beyond it. He looked for anything useful. A fallen tree wide enough to cross. A narrow bend where the river became thinner.

A natural bridge, a cluster of stones, or even a place where the current broke strangely enough to reveal shallow ground beneath.

There was nothing at first.

Only the slow, brownish river, the rocky cliff on the other side, and the occasional patch of glowing plants growing along the bank like warning signs.

Still, Liam kept searching.

The river remained suspiciously calm in places, though he knew better than to trust that. Calm water could hide depth. Slow current could hide force. And with that aquatic demon somewhere behind them, Liam had no interest in stepping anywhere near the river without a clear reason.

Behind them, the demon continued feeding for a while.

Liam heard it faintly at intervals, the wet crunch of plants, the shift of its heavy body, the scrape of claws against mud and stone. But as he and Smoke continued upstream, those sounds gradually faded, swallowed by distance and the layered noise of the forest.

Even then, Liam did not relax.

He kept his senses open, sniffing the air for any sign of movement, Myst distortion, or demonic presence.

Nothing.

That should have been good.

But like before, the absence of life only made the forest feel more unnatural.

Minutes eventually passed.

The trees became slightly thinner as the ground angled upward in small, uneven rises. Roots broke through the soil in thicker patterns, and patches of stone began appearing beneath the leaves. The river remained on their right, visible through gaps in the trees whenever Liam leaned slightly closer to look.

The opposite cliffside also changed as they progressed. It became rougher, more jagged, with larger sections of exposed stone rising steeply from the water. The rocky wall looked difficult to climb, but not impossible. That alone kept Liam’s attention.

If he could find a safe crossing point, reaching the other side might provide better ground, better visibility, and possibly a safer shelter somewhere among the higher trees.

Then Smoke reacted.

It was subtle.

The shadow wolf didn’t stop completely, but his ears lifted sharply, and his head angled toward the direction ahead. His body lowered slightly, instincts sharpening as he picked up something Liam had not yet noticed.

Liam stopped immediately.

"What is it?" he whispered.

Smoke remained still, ears locked forward.

Liam’s eyes narrowed.

Then he linked with Smoke’s senses.

At once, the sounds of the forest shifted.

The soft rustling of leaves became clearer. The flow of the river grew louder. And beneath it all, further ahead, Liam heard something else.

Water striking stone, hard and repeatedly.

Not the gentle running of a stream or the slow movement of the river.

This was heavier. A forceful crash, steady and continuous, like water falling from height and breaking against rock.

Liam’s gaze sharpened.

"A waterfall," he muttered quietly.

Smoke’s head tilted slightly, as if confirming.

Liam looked ahead through the trees, then back toward the river.

"Move," he said. "A little faster, but stay covered."

Smoke grunted softly.

Then both of them advanced.

They moved quicker now, though still with caution. Liam allowed Smoke to lead while he followed close behind, using the wolf’s path and senses to reduce his own strain. The sound grew steadily louder with each passing moment, cutting through the silence of the woods until it became impossible to ignore.

After a few hundred meters, the trees opened just enough for Liam to see it. 𝚏𝕣𝐞𝗲𝐰𝕖𝐛𝐧𝕠𝕧𝚎𝚕.𝐜𝚘𝗺

Across the river, spilling down from the rocky cliffside, was a waterfall.

It wasn’t enormous, but it was powerful. Water poured from a break in the higher rocks and crashed into the river below, throwing mist into the air and sending ripples spreading outward across the brownish surface. The stone around it was dark and slick from constant moisture, with pale moss and small patches of vegetation clinging stubbornly to the cracks.

Liam stopped beneath the shade of a tree, studying the scene carefully.

The waterfall came from the opposite side of the river, feeding into it from above. That meant the rocky terrain beyond wasn’t just a cliff—it held streams or channels further inland. Possibly better water sources and shelter.

That alone made crossing more valuable.

Liam moved slightly closer to the bank, just enough to gain a better angle while still staying partially concealed beneath the shadows of the trees.

His gaze traveled upstream, past the waterfall’s impact point.

Then he saw them.

Rocks.

Several large stones protruded from the river a short distance away from where the waterfall fed into it. They broke the surface in uneven intervals, some wide and flat, others narrow and slick. The current around them was disturbed, splitting and curling, which told Liam something important.

The river was shallower there.

Liam’s eyes narrowed as he studied each rock carefully.

Some were too small to support weight for long. Others looked stable enough. The distance between them varied, but with Smoke’s speed and balance, crossing was possible.

He didn’t waste much time debating.

The longer he lingered, the greater the chance of being noticed, and if the aquatic demon finished feeding and returned to the river, the crossing point would become useless.

Liam turned toward Smoke.

"We’re crossing there," he said quietly.

Smoke followed his gaze toward the protruding rocks, then lowered himself slightly.

Liam climbed onto the shadow wolf’s back, settling carefully to avoid aggravating his thigh. His fingers curled into Smoke’s spiked fur, finding a secure grip.

"Test the rocks first," Liam instructed. "If any of them shift, pull back immediately."

Smoke gave a low grunt.

Then he moved.

The shadow beast darted from the cover of the trees toward the riverbank, fast but controlled. The moment his paws touched the first rock, he stopped for half a heartbeat, applying pressure. The stone held firm. He shifted to the next one, testing it the same way. It dipped slightly beneath the water, but did not move.

That was all they needed.

Smoke continued.

One rock.

Then another.

Then another.

Each landing was precise, his body low and balanced, paws touching just long enough to judge stability before pushing forward. Liam kept his body close to Smoke’s back, reducing drag and keeping his weight centered. The river moved around them, brown water curling and slapping against the stones, but Smoke adjusted with ease.

Halfway across, one of the rocks shifted slightly.

Smoke reacted instantly.

Instead of committing his full weight, he pushed off before it could roll beneath him, clearing the next gap in a single leap. Liam tightened his grip as the shadow wolf landed hard on a larger stone, the impact sending water splashing up around them.

The rock held.

Smoke did not stop again.

He crossed the remaining distance in a flash, leaping from stone to stone until he reached the rocky shore on the opposite side of the river.

The moment they reached land, Liam slid off Smoke’s back and turned immediately to assess the cliffside.

The slope was steep.

Far steeper than it had appeared from across the river.

The rock rose sharply upward, slick in places from mist drifting from the waterfall. The terrain was uneven, with narrow ledges, cracks, and jagged points protruding at awkward angles. There was no clear or easy path up.

And riding Smoke up it was impossible.

Even with the shadow wolf’s agility, the slope was too sharp, too unstable, and too exposed. One misstep would send them both crashing down toward the river.

Liam exhaled quietly.

"Not ideal," he muttered.

Smoke looked up the cliff, then back at him.

Liam placed a hand briefly on the wolf’s side.

"You did well."

Then he dismissed him.

Smoke dissolved into shadow, slipping back into Liam’s darkness without a sound.

Liam lifted his right hand, and one of his daggers formed from shadow.

Then the second appeared in his left.

He looked up the slope again, already mapping a climbing route in his head.

He would use the daggers like anchors; drive them into cracks, pull himself up, find footing, repeat.

It would be slow, painful, and risky with his injured thigh.

But doable.

Liam stepped closer to the rock and raised one dagger toward the first usable crack.

Then he felt it, a familiar presence which made his body still.

The unpleasant demonic pressure from earlier, wet and rotten, pressed faintly against his senses from the river.

Liam turned his head and saw it. The aquatic demon had finished eating.

And it was coming.

Fast.