ASH ROOK

When the dust cleared, Arisu was still standing, well, flying but the floor beneath him was scorched.

He wasn’t smiling anymore.

“You—” he hissed, blood dripping down his cheek where the shovel had struck. “You insolent gravedigger. You will die first.”

The air pressure and my ears rang,

“Move!” Keiji pushed me out as Arisu's hand choked his neck but he didn't finish the job. Instead, he threw him down like garbage and came right at me.

He spewed fire again — Sid’s shield slammed into place a heartbeat before it landed, but this time Arisu didn't engage.

I ran. My legs burned but I didn’t stop, zigzagging, dodging flame.

Arisu reappeared in front of me, his eyes glowing like molten gold.

“You can’t run from a god.”

Keiji was suddenly there, grabbing Arisu’s arm while I made my escape. He didn’t let go even when Arisu slammed his fist into his ribs. Instead, Keiji swung himself up, hooking his legs over Arisu’s shoulders, forcing them both down.

“Burn!” Keiji roared, his fists igniting as he pummeled Arisu’s ribs.

They crashed down with a thunderous crack. Thomlin’s ice spears followed, shattering against Arisu’s face. He shrieked — not in pain, but in fury.

“You dare...!”

His wings flew him upward, blood dropping to the ground.

“I underestimated you all,” he said, his voice eerily calm now. “Making you submit is not enough.”

Then his expression twisted.

“So instead… You will all die.”

The runes across his coat blazed dark purple, hot and the entire dungeon lurched, gravity suddenly flipping sideways.

“Mugen Rin….Cycle of Infinity!”

At first it was just a wind, pulling towards him, sucking the air from our lungs. Then it became something worse, a black spiral of nothing blooming above his palm. The ground itself tore upward, chunks of stone stretching into the void before vanishing.

“HA HA HA HA HA HA!!!” Arisu's laughter echoed. "I am god. I am Absolute!!!"

He was collapsing the dungeon upon us.

We ran like animals on wet feet, slipping, stumbling as the dungeon convulsed violently. Keiji gripped my arm so hard it left bruises, shoving me forward. Velma and Rhennmar staggered, bleeding but didn’t stop. Lira and Ariyanna had Verra between them, half-dragging her, half supporting themselves with strain. Thomlin carried Kryxx on his back, grabbing both their staffs with his right hand.

And in all that time, the void was still pulling us in.

But we managed to get to one of the archways when Thomlin skidded to a stop, looking back.

“Sid! Let’s go!” he shouted.

Sid was still there. He turned his head, smiling.

“It’s not enough time,” he said flatly.

“It will be fine, Sid! Let’s go!” Thomlin’s voice cracked.

Sid just shook his head, grounding his feet. The ground rumbled violently, spiderwebs forming on the ground. He planted his shield into the ground, holding the cracks together.

Sid’s veins cracked on his neck turning purple. “I summon the Heart of Terra. The ground moves to my will. It…shall…not come…undone!!!”

"GO!!" he yelled, closing the archway with a huge boulder. Thomlin tried to burn it open but it wouldn't budge.

Time was of the essence as if we rushed past the fourth floor. But it was still not enough as the cracks became larger until they broke and we fell down. 

WHOOSH

Velma and Lira together managed to slow our descent until we landed, semi-softly. 

We pressed on, when a huge explosion rippled through the dungeon, shaking the grounds, slamming us off our feet. We were swallowed whole again. 

Falling

Darkness swallowed us whole.

****

Drip

Drip

I knew that sound.

When my eyes opened, the first thing I saw was green.

I was lying in the restoration gardens, the air so fresh it almost hurt my lungs.

“Ash."

I turned.  Lira sat on a cot next to mine, smiling.

“Did we…” My voice cracked, the word barely making it out. “Did we make it?”

“By the skin of our teeth.”

“Oh no, how long have I been asleep?”

“Three years,” she said deadpan.

“What?” I shot upright, my ribs searing in pain. "OW!.."

And laughter exploded from the other side. Ariyanna was doubled over next to Verra, both of them, grinning widely.

“I thought we agreed not to play that trick on him,” Ariyanna managed between giggles.

“I couldn’t resist,” Lira said, grinning. “Look at his face. Priceless.”

Before I could protest, another voice cut in.

“Well, well. Sleeping Beauty’s finally awake.”

Keiji leaned against the doorframe, hair chopped short, the sides shaved clean. Thank god, that ridiculous bun was gone.

"Guess I missed a lot," I muttered.

"You have no idea."

Later, after the laughter faded, they told me what had happened.

The dungeon basically exploded. Keiji and Thomlin spent a few hours digging us out after which Lucien sent mages to stabilize what was left of the dungeon. 

Velma had been unconscious for one hour before waking up. Apparently, she went straight to training, refusing medical aid. Kryxx spent two days in the Guild before he was discharged. And while Rhennmar was injured, she also refused medical aid.

Thomlin spent a few weeks clearing the rubble of the dungeon, searching for Sid's body. He only managed to find his shield but nothing else. And though no one said it, I could tell they all feared Sid was no longer with us.

Along with Sid, Arisu's body was also not found, unless you count one of his wing. Thomlin believed that he was alive somewhere, hiding, waiting to strike. And from what I could tell, so did Keiji. 

It had been three weeks since Thomlin was last seen anywhere. Either he was still continuing his search for Arisu or he had reverted to his drinking days. Truthfully, i hoped to find in one of the taverns someday.

I was discharged after a week and of course went back to Bronze. Keiji did offer me a place in the Palace but I refused. Though I was looking forward to eating those sweet apples during his coronation in a months time.

I would see the old ganag from time to time but for the most part I was mostly by myself.

TRRCHK

TRRCHK

Oh, I forgot to mention. I was back to my old job.

I mean, come, on, you didn't think I would stop. But there were some few changes of course like the newly expanded graveyard I got from Eliorynna as an apology.

Thank you, Princess, though she still scared me.

TRCHKK

TRCHKKK