The Red Kingdom Ch 2: The Other Side!

I was third in line.

Two sets of footsteps in front of me, seven behind. Ten of us in total, the chosen lambs. No one said a word. No one had to. What the hell could you say, anyway?

The air inside the Wall was thicker than I expected. Dry, but heavy. Like it had been sitting still for centuries and didn't like being disturbed.

The stone beneath my boots was worn smooth, maybe from all the others who walked this same path before us. Maybe from the Wall itself, grinding its own bones into flatness. Either way, it felt wrong — not just unnatural, but unwelcome. Like we weren't supposed to be here.

The walls of Varkor towered above us on all sides. They weren't just tall — they curved slightly inward, like a ribcage. Like we'd stepped into the belly of something ancient, something that had withstood the test of time for ages. It was amazing all things considered, that this structure has existed for hundreds, no maybe thousands of years.

We kept walking. And walking. The darkness never let up. The torches placed along the walls were few and far between, and their flames were weak — as if even fire didn't want to burn too brightly in here. Each one barely lit more than a few feet, which meant we mostly moved in shadow.

Step. Step. Step.

I stared at the back of the guy in front of me — broad shoulders, messy hair, walked like he was trying not to think. Same here, buddy. Behind me, I heard the occasional scuff of a boot, the jingle of a belt buckle, nothing else.

No one spoke.

Hell, I think if someone did say something, the Wall itself might've swallowed them whole just for making noise.

About halfway in — time-wise, at least — I started counting my steps to distract myself.

One-hundred. Two-hundred. Three-fifty. Four-thirty...

Eventually I lost count somewhere around six hundred and gave up.

My legs started aching. My back wasn't happy either. But I didn't stop. None of us did. You don't pause in a place like this. You don't break formation. You just go.

And then...

Light.

It was faint at first. Just a distant glow ahead of us. I thought maybe my eyes were playing tricks on me, but it got stronger. Brighter. And then came the wind — soft, cold, and real. It touched my skin like a whisper from the outside world.

I didn't realize how long I'd been holding my breath until that wind hit. It felt... honest.

And for a moment, I forgot.

I forgot I was a sacrifice. I forgot this was the last walk of my life. I forgot the box and the stone and the gods and the king and Evermore burning in the night. I forgot it all.

I just wanted to get out of that cave.

My steps quickened a little. Not enough to break the line, but enough to feel like I was chasing the light. My fingers twitched at my sides, itching for something I couldn't name. Maybe freedom. Maybe fresh air. Maybe anything that wasn't this stone-walled coffin.

The man in front of me turned slightly, just enough to glance at the light too, then kept walking.

We all did.

One by one, pulled forward like moths, not to flame — but to something worse.

Something waiting on the other side of the light.

But I didn't care. Not in that moment.

I just wanted to see the sky again. Even if it was the last time.

We stepped out of the cave, one by one, blinking into the light like rats from a cellar. I half-expected a beast to be waiting — something with too many teeth and not enough patience — but instead, we were met with...

Trees.

And not just any trees. These weren't your average, friendly neighborhood oaks. These were towers of bark and leaves — giants in their own right — stretching so high they disappeared into the sky. I craned my neck until it ached and still couldn't see the tops.

They were everywhere.

A whole forest of them, thick and endless, wrapped in vines, roots so wide you could've curled up inside one and made a home. For a second, all ten of us just... stared.

"Holy shit," I muttered, more to myself than anything.

The guy in front of me — the broad-shouldered one — whistled under his breath.

"What are we supposed to do now?" someone behind me asked.

No one answered.

Not even me.

We weren't briefed. No scroll, no speech, no royal envoy with a checklist. Just a walk through the ancient gut of Varkor and boom — dropped into the middle of a jungle that looked like it belonged to the gods' first draft of the world.

I was still waiting for the claws and fangs. The ambush. The death-by-monster scenario I'd spent the last two days mentally prepping for. But this?

This was quiet.

Too quiet.

Some of the guys started talking, slowly at first — testing the waters like their voices might wake up the wrong thing.

"We should move as a group."

"Nah, we split up, we cover more ground."

"What if there's food deeper in?"

"Maybe there's a clearing... maybe help?"

One guy pulled a knife from his belt and started cutting at a branch, just to feel like he was doing something. Another was already stacking rocks in a pile for no reason I could see.

Meanwhile, I stood still. Because something felt... off.

The hairs on my arms rose before I even realized why.

"Wait a minute," I said, my voice cutting through their chatter.

They all looked at me. Even broad-shoulders.

"Don't you feel that?"

They paused. Some looked confused. Others annoyed. But one guy — short, scruffy beard, wide shoulders, scar across his chin — his eyes widened just a little.

"The ground..." he said. "It's shaking."

Bingo.

At first, it was subtle. Like standing too close to a heavy drumbeat. But then it grew. A low, deep thump-thump-thump that crawled up through my soles and rattled in my ribs.

"Shit," someone whispered.

Branches started snapping in the distance — not little twigs, but limbs. Thick, heavy ones. You could hear the splintering from here.

Birds shot up into the sky. All at once. A whole flock of them screaming and fleeing like they knew what was coming.

"Something's coming," I said, and I was already stepping back.

The others backed away too, eyes darting from tree to tree, blades drawn — not that any of us knew how to use them. At least I didn't. My weapon was mostly there for decoration and last words.

Then the forest shifted.

Something pushed through the trees.

Massive branches bent and snapped, bushes crumpled under the weight of something huge — but not too huge. Not giant enough to be a titan, but big enough to demand attention. A shape emerged through the brush, limbs moving with force and confidence, dirt flung up with each step.

And then I saw it.

Her.

Tall. Covered in moss and dust and leaves — but definitely shaped like a person. Slightly smaller than the Wall, but still large enough to make me feel like a bug.

I blinked.

"I–is that a woman?" I asked aloud, my voice caught somewhere between fear and... confusion?

No one answered.

Because we were all thinking the same thing.

What in the name of all nine gods did we just walk into?