Tepo was confused by the change around his wound, but he knew that fast treatment was important. Gathering all his strength he ripped off a sleeve from his coat. Normally he would be amazed by its great quality but right now this proved to be detrimental.

Needing three tries, Tepo finally had a piece of fabric in his hand. Not wasting more time, he tightly wrapped it around his leg. Gritting his teeth he pulled hard, forming a strong knot.

Immediately a numb feeling spread in his leg. Reducing the blood flow, Tepo hoped to delay the poison spreading to the rest of his body. Hastily washing his wound with some water, the freshly awakened once again focused on the projection of his body.

The area affected by the poison had clearly reduced and Tepo needed to find out why.

Inspecting his body closely, the source wasn’t difficult to find. A warm, white energy had spread around his wound, suppressing the poison. The malicious substance was fighting against the benevolent force, gradually wearing it out.

Tepo’s brows rose. Wasn’t this the same force which was used during the awakening? But where did it come from.

Naturally his attention fell on the Core of Time.

Has my core acted by itself? One of its symbols is missing. It seems obvious.

Tepo smiled from this sudden revelation. Did he just discover an ability of his core? He could store the white light in runes and use it to heal during emergencies? This was great news for him!

Such a great skill! Can every core do something like this? Isn’t this like a second life for warriors? Although it consumes the white light, it is better than dying.

Right now, the poison will be a continuous threat. I should eliminate it. I guess two more runes should be enough.

Excited, Tepo urged his core, prepared to get rid of the poison completely. But even after a few seconds there was no change.

Huh? It doesn’t work? Maybe it’s some sort of life-saving ability? Does it only react when I’m in serious danger?

Since gathering information about his core was of high importance, Tepo was prepared to invest a few seconds. Blending out the situation he was in, he turned his vision inward.

There, nestled in his chest the core was relaxing like a cat. Tepo wasn’t certain how to motivate it. He tried to force the core to move but his efforts were futile. Neither poking it with his will, nor affecting it physically worked.

After only a few moments Tepo was ready to give up, continuing his dungeon exploration. But just as the young man receded his vision, a feeling of annoyance radiated from his core.

Tepo had noticed this before, but now it became gradually more and more apparent that his core had its own will. But it was too lazy to communicate with him most of the time.

Fortunately, it deigned to make an exception this time.

As Tepo tried to push his core into action, a severe feeling of rejection hit against his mind. Tepo even felt some dizziness.

Bewildered, the young man wasn’t sure what to think. Could it be that he wasn’t the dominant one in their relationship?

Hey, you! Core! Listen up! Can you even life without me? We are in this together! When I die, you die too! So, help me out here!

…

No? Stop being stingy! It’s just one rune!

Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

Hey, you still there? Core? F*ck! I’m being ignored in my own brain!

Tepo felt incredibly stupid. Even when talking to himself the other party fell silent. At least if one considered the core a part of him.

Shaking his head the young man stood up. From the short conversation he at least understood that his core regarded the white force as incredibly precious. It seemed he shouldn’t count on it outside of a life and death crisis.

With time still breathing down his back, Tepo hoped to end the dungeon exploration soon.

After leaving the bathtub, the investigator studied the room he was in.

A simple toilet, a few shelves, a mirror. Apart from the exhausted face looking back at him he found nothing special. To his disappointment even the shelves were all empty, not containing any all-purpose antidote by coincidence.

Massaging his temples, Tepo focused his mind again. He slowly opened the only door leaving the room. His trusted handgun offered him some security. But when he laid eyes on the space beyond the bathroom, Tepo’s body stocked.

The door led to a weird staircase. Right next to Tepo, the walls of both rooms weren’t joined together, but separated by a gap of pure darkness. The staircase itself was also rather dim, only illuminated by a few sparsely placed torches.

Together with the steep, downwards leading stairs which were narrow on top and broad on the sides, an incredibly unsettling picture presented itself.

Contemplating for a second, Tepo turned the stairs around in his mind. Soon a logical conjecture formed.

Those stairs appeared as if they should be leading upwards, but someone forcibly rotated the space until the stairs led downwards instead. The fact that the torches were horizontal instead of vertical supported this thesis.

Turning around, Tepo carelessly ripped some lose tile form the bathroom’s wall. He threw it into the dark gap. And nothing happened…

No sound, no reflection, nothing.

Breathing in an out deeply, Tepo advanced. He took each step carefully, not wanting to trip on these odd stairs. A few moments later he grabbed the first torch from the wall before descending the rest of the stairs.

To Tepo’s relief nothing was lying in ambush at this place. He safely reached the bottom, stepping into a broad corridor. A mix of moldy air and the smell of boiling oil assaulted Tepo’s nose. The walls and ground were made from rough, natural stone. No light reached this place, only the scattered torches illuminated the surroundings.

The path only offered the choice to go left or right. Tepo tried to observe anything, but the winding corridor didn’t allow him to make any guesses.

Presented with this choice, Tepo could only decide spontaneously. He decided to head towards the left.

The young man carefully sneaked along the stone. At every corner he stood still, peeking unhurriedly. Multiple minutes passed but if it weren’t for his burning leg, the veteran soldier would’ve advanced even slower.

Finally, as Tepo was already contemplating turning around, something changed. At the end of the corridor a large hall opened up. Or rather a crossing.

The huge stone cave was completely empty, with three new paths leading in all directions. Frowning, Tepo carefully stepped forward. Everything looked identical. Where was he supposed to go?

His eyes roaming the three paths, trying to make out anything useful, a shimmer suddenly entered his gaze. Tepo was taken aback. The shimmer didn’t come from one of the paths, but from the center of the cave.

Surprised, the investigator took a closer look. What could appear here in this empty space?

Suddenly, color drained from Tepo’s face. A cold shudder ran down his back. He recognized the object halfway buried into the stone. It was a knife! This couldn’t be a coincidence, right?

Finding no body, Tepo was still hopeful that it wasn’t THE knife. The young man stiffly turned his head upwards. A cold breeze caressed his face. Or did he only imagine it? Tepo felt as if his mind was playing tricks because of his anxiousness as soon as he gazed at the ceiling.

There in the stone was another big opening leading into a narrow hallway. At its end only a small hole remained. The rest was covered by some big objects.

Tepo’s stomach churned. He didn’t confirm anything. Decisively, he turned around, dashing towards the path he already knew. At least nothing could surprise him there.

A few moments later Tepo felt all the fine hairs on his body stand on end. Goosebumps covered his skin. A faint buzzing sound echoed in the hallway. The torches seemed to flicker. Death was closing in.

Tepo’s body went into overdrive. His thoughts raced, quickly finding a way out. His leg burned but he ignored it. His heart beat faster than ever. Even his lazy core woke up, strengthening his body and clearing his mind.

A shadow chased after Tepo. The young man knew what awaited him. About halfway towards the stairs a large fly had managed to close the distance. Its big, unsettling eyes staired down Tepo’s back, swearing not to lose the prey again.

Suddenly a smell reached its sensitive sensors. It came from Tepo’s wounded leg. Stimulated by the tasty smell of blood the fly sped up again.

Noticing the buzzing behind his back becoming clearer, Tepo knew he had to act. He turned another corner, entering a long, straight path. Taking a few more steps the investigator suddenly turned around.

He held his breath. Eyes narrowed. Torch thrown to the side, he slowly rose his gun with both hands. Fully focused he stared at the corner.