P.I.C (Partner in Crime)

The Rover’s scream split the chamber.

Another one skittered down the wall, claws dragging sparks from the stone, its body twitching. Grinn kept them both at bay, swords crossing in fiery arcs, but he was being pressed hard.

The creatures didn’t bleed, not really. Every cut just cracked their armored shells and leaked a black fluid that steamed where it hit the ground.

Thomlin’s knuckles whitened around his staff. Two runes lit up along the carved wood — one blue, one red — their flows grinding against each other like tectonic plates. His whole body shuddered, sweat dripping and evaporating before it reached the floor.

“I’m going to attempt something a bit dangerous,” he said through clenched teeth, voice shaking. “And I need your help.”

“What are you doing?”

“A fusion,” he said, “of the Fire and Water runes.”

Fusion, the art of combining multiple runes together to form hybrid of both element natures. But Fire and Water were clashing elements, impossible to fuse.

“You shouldn’t do that Thomlin…”

“I am aware,” he cut me off, his voice straining. “Fire and water, while powerful elements on their own, together they clash. It’s because they have opposite flows, fire comes from the heart, exploding outward and water flows inward through the heart. Fusing them can result in backlash that may possibly kill me….”

He glanced over his shoulder, sweat stinging his eyes but smiling faintly anyway. “….but, there is a way to do it. There’s one point in the heart right before Fire leaves the heart, just as Water enters….where briefly they intersect naturally. If I time it just right….”

Just then, two of the creatures lunged at us but Grinn came in out of nowhere and cut off their torso, picked and threw them back, grunting.

I tried to ignore what just happened and swore under my breath. “Will this work?”

Thomlin chuckled and replied casually, "Yep. I’ve done it before but never outside Silver Ring where Magna is unlimited. Which is why I need you…to buy me some time. Can you give me that, Ash?”

The words dug under my skin worse than the collar ever did. I wanted to say no. To tell him I wasn’t the man he thought I was —but his eyes held me. They weren’t pleading. They were daring me, and I’ve never run from a challenge before.

“Yeah, I’ll do it. But if your heart explodes, don’t expect me to clean up the mess.”

Damn, it. Now I needed a plan and someone other than me to execute it. My fellow thralls probably won’t help, useless bastards. Grinn was all I had, but how to use him.

The sixth floor was huge —important for what I had in mind.

Observation 1: The walls were lined with these weird bioluminescent fungi, glowing turquoise but also sweating with moisture. The Rover had reacted to it earlier, which meant it had residual Magna.

Observation 2: The shrimp-like things didn’t bother attacking me or my fellow thralls and only went for our heavy hitters. Either they disliked us or were attracted to Magna.

Observation 3: …Arrgh. I couldn’t think of a third. My chest burned, collar biting deep. What could I do to win?

Then it hit me. I didn’t need to win, only stall.

“Grinn!” I hissed but he heard. “Drive them toward the wall fungus. Keep them off Thomlin.”

“You mean Fungi,” he growled crossing his blades into a fiery X cutting through three of the creatures. “And how exactly....”

“Your swords are bleeding with Fire-Magna right? Throw the serrated one. Make them chase it!”

For a moment he hesitated, then snarled and hurled the serrated blade into the far wall but it didn’t reach the fungi. The runes etched into it flared, fire trailing behind like a comet. The swarm skittered after it in an instant. Grinn then pulled his second sword into a guard stance.

Good. That was one problem handled for about five seconds.

Because more of the little bastards kept peeling out of the cracks, clicking and hissing.

Grinn’s curved blade cut a wide arc, scattering sparks but they were too many. They didn’t bleed, they didn’t tire. They just kept coming.

“How much of that fire can you use?”

Grinn’s exhale was ragged. “As long as Thomlin’s feeding Magna into me….I can burn until my arms give out.”

“Then make a line between us and them.”

He slammed his blade into the ground. Fire ripped outward, searing a barrier of fire across the floor. The creatures scrambled away from the heat and threw themselves against the fungi wall like addicts to a vein. One wounded, jammed its maw into the glowing fungi and to my horror, its torn shell stitched shut instantly.

Interesting….

Grinn’s chest heaved, sweat dripping down his temple. “That’ll only hold them for seconds. Should I throw my other blade.”

“Not yet.”

My eyes flicked to Thomlin behind us. His eyes were closed, legs crossed. Two runes — fire and water — spun opposite each other in a circular motion. His head moved around violently like he was exorcizing a demon and when his eyes finally snapped open, they glowed pure white.

It didn’t exactly fill me with confidence but I got another idea.

“Can you hit the FUNGI?”

“Maybe directly,” he spat, never looking away from the swarm. “Why?”

“Because I think that’s the source of Magna left in this dungeon. Destroy it …. and they can’t regenerate.”

Grinn’s blade whirled, sparks flying as he hacked through the horde. At my word, he shifted his stance, slashing sideways, flame spraying in arcs. The fire caught the fungi along the wall. Turquoise glow met crimson heat — and the fungus screamed.

The creatures shrieked louder, panicked, scattering. The ones that tried to heal flailed when the walls offered them nothing but ash. Some of them were cracked, their regeneration failing mid-process, leaking ichor on the floor. They were desperate, panicked and they turned their attention on their source of pain….us.

“Uh….Thomlin….?”

Behind me, Thomlin gasped. The air around him crackled like a thunderhead collapsing inward.

His staff burned brighter, both runes spinning so fast they blurred into a single sphere. His lips moved faster than I could follow, his body turned red hot and stem escaped from his nose and ears. Blood flowed from his now white glowing eyes.

Then his whole body arched, his head shaking violently and I could swear I saw invisible hands wringing his heart. Flames burst from one arm, steam from the other.

Then came the sound.

Bubbling….

Water rose into the air in small spheres, the air filled with sudden pressure.

Grinn didn’t need to be told — he backflipped to my side just as Thomlin’s head snapped back

He could have just ran but, Okay.

Thomlin’s voice cracked, echoing like it came from two throats at once:

“FUSION…AQUA INFERNA!”

Like a superheated steam, the bubbles swelled into a cloud then the rain fell over them. The creatures screamed as their shells melted, ichor boiling from their tendons, legs snapping off as they collapsed in heaps of streaming sludge.

The ground scorched and steamed at the same time, the walls wept with condensation and when it was done, silence fell.

Thomlin collapsed to one knee, his staff clattering beside him. Grinn caught him before he faceplanted and half-carried him toward me. His skin was flushed and pale at once, his heart beating like drums of war.

“You’re insane,” I muttered, grabbing his wrist to steady him.

He coughed blood but his grin still broke through. “Jury’s still out on that one.”

After that attack, it became foggy, and the air reeked of rotten shrimp shells and ichor. By the time we reached the ground floor, other groups were trickling in, dragging charred corpse-sacks. Some groups looked lighter, not a good sign. We all lined up in front of the gate.

Mazze arrived last. His arm was streaked with blood, his face carved into its usual stone-slab scowl. He carried a corpse-bag over one shoulder like laundry, didn’t even glance at the gaps in the line.

“Casualties: ten. Move out!”

No one else spoke.

Not much happened after that. We went back in the Silver Ring. I returned to my cage, waiting orders from the Guild. But it wasn’t so bad anymore, I even began to enjoy myself: sleeping, eating, repeat.

And then —

I had my first visitor.