Chapter 5: Crazy woman.

Leo’s attention was fixed onto the tight strings as Yusciel’s air chamber emitted a relentless whine, shattering the oppressive silence. Without warning, Yusciel slid down the wall, sending Leo’s heart to plummet. He clung tightly to his companion until they jerked to an abrupt halt.

Plunging deeper into the unchanging abyss, enveloped by impenetrable darkness, Leo audibly swallowed. The sound echoing through his mask. Struggling to keep his voice steady, he asked, “Um, Miss… are you sure there’s something down here?”

Leo felt Yusciel’s leg freeze mid-descent before bracing against the wall. With bated breath, she replied, “Boy, what’s the status of our canisters?”

Leo’s gaze shifted downward as he examined the canisters attached to Yusciel’s shoulder strap. Just below the seal of her mask’s rubber tube, a thin line of dim blue encircled the rim. He reached for one, partially pulling it from the strap and rotating it to find where the glow was absent. ‘These are high-class, expensive things. Is she a noble? Or someone who became rich from treasures?’ he wondered.

“Boy?” Yusciel’s voice snapped him back to reality.

“Oh, sorry. It’s still about a third full.”

“Let me see,” She replied, her words are curt as usual.

Following her instructions, Leo carefully detached the canister from the strap. He held it tightly, positioning it in front of Yusciel. Unlike him, she wore no goggles. The question of why flashed through his mind, but remained silent. To Leo’s eyes, every move she made screamed ‘veteran’, and the fact that she persisted through this choice despite the missing gear, only reinforced his belief. His fist clenched tightly as he thought, ‘It’s not that big of a problem, right?’

Moments later, she responded, “Good. Now put it back. We’ll need to place a pylon here.”

“Pylon?” Leo repeated, tilting his head slightly as he snuck a glance at her.

“Move a bit faster, boy,” Yusciel said monotonously, causing Leo to jolt into action.

Though he’d expected such a response from Yusciel, Leo couldn’t help but wish she’d say more than just that. Hurriedly, he returned the canister, ensuring the metallic clip was securely fastened to the strap. Once done, he gripped Yusciel tightly and announced, “Done!”

“Your hands,” she began, surprising him. “I need you to reach for something else. Just outside my bag, there should be a metal-like stick—grab the pylons.”

Pylon? Leo peeked under Yusciel’s arm, searching her bag for the metal stick she called Pylons. Suddenly, something in the darkness caught his eye. A massive, glowing creature loomed in the distance, its body long and worm-like, shimmering with eerie white and blue light. Strange, thin wings sprouted from its sides, and countless legs protruded from its length. The creature’s front was ghostly and fuzzy, with three bright spots that reminded Leo of a spider’s eyes.

The sight froze Leo, a chill running down his spine. As he trembled, his head suddenly struck something above him. “Hik!” he yelped in surprise, his body instinctively recoiling in disgust.

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“Boy!” Yusciel shouted as he felt her hand pulling him close.

“Monster! Miss Yusci—” Leo’s words caught in his throat as everything began moving at breakneck speed. Yusciel leapt into action, and Leo felt as if they were flying through the air. He caught a glimpse of her fingers moving in a weird way, just before they began swinging wildly and his body felt pulled upward.

Leo’s grip tightened for survival as he felt the abrupt halt of their momentum through Yusciel’s body. He gritted his teeth, heart pounding.

“A Saillight!” Yusciel’s voice rang out above Leo’s head, causing him to look up in alarm.

He couldn’t see her face—it was obscured by a thick black mask, her eyes hidden behind large air chambers. Confused, he stammered, “Saily—what?”

Yusciel tilted her head down slightly. “This is great!”

“What? Why?” Leo’s panicked words tumbled out.

“Grab on tight!” Yusciel commanded, ignoring his question—a response he’d half-expected.

He obeyed, suddenly feeling Yusciel’s hand leave his back. Something shuffled beneath his thigh, and he glanced down curiously. To his surprise, Yusciel was unclipping a light bulb from her belt.

Leo watched as Yusciel adjusted the light bulb in one hand, making it blink on and off repeatedly. A piercing screech deafened his ears, sounding like hundreds of muffled bird screams as if pierced by spears. Leo turned around—only to see several more glowing worms appearing behind the largest one.

Its hundreds of bony legs and skinny wings moved erratically as if crawling through the abyss. The sight sent shivers down Leo’s spine, a relentless tremor attacking every part of his body. The closest one, largest among them, had a wider front to its glowing head. As Leo observed, it split into two like a mouth—revealing thousands of blue hairs, wriggling like small worms and snakes. It screamed again.

“Miss!” Leo exclaimed, turning his head in horror.

“Hold on tighter, boy! We’re going to jump on Saillight’s back!”

The words that entered his ears were otherworldly—who would ever think of such a thing? He couldn’t help but look up at Yusciel’s face, screaming, “What? Are you crazy?”

Yusciel didn’t reply. Her large air chamber pointed ahead, seemingly focused. Leo gritted his teeth, pushing his fears aside—or rather, was dreading when the monsters would reach them. That motivation made him turn his head to look at the glowing creatures.

The worm-like creatures became monstrously large, different from before—no, they were approaching at an unimaginable speed.

‘We’re going to jump on that?!’ Leo shivered internally.

Suddenly, Leo felt Yusciel’s arm move, followed by an impact behind his head. A glowing white object soared through the abyss—blinking repeatedly in motion. The light bulb! Leo’s eyes widened as he noticed the monsters turning their front heads towards it, as if attracted by its light.

However, even though Yusciel had thrown it away, the monsters still seemed to be approaching them. Abruptly, Leo heard a loud thump behind him. He felt Yusciel’s leg pass between his as she began running back upwards. Leo’s teeth and fingers clenched, his head shaking with every leaping step Yusciel made. The strings of her grappling hook rang out clicks that sent unease through his ears, and Leo sneaked a look at the situation.

For a moment, everything seemed to crawl in slow motion as he caught sight of the monster’s perked glowing eyes passing by just behind Yusciel’s back. But Yusciel quickly pulled upwards, barely missing them by a hair’s breadth. Suddenly, a violent gust rushed past, seemingly pushing them off the wall. Leo’s eyes unconsciously shut tight, still feeling the leaping tremors from Yusciel—she was still running on the wall, supported by the strings.

The wind ceased without warning, making him finally open his eyes to the sight of numerous glowing worms flooding the darkness below. He couldn’t count them instantly, but they were so numerous that they overlapped each other’s forms, creating what looked like infectious clouds.

The shaking of Yusciel’s body finally came to a sudden halt. “BOY!” Yusciel’s loud voice called. “GRAB TIGHTLY! We’re jumping!”

Although he had been warned earlier, Leo wished for a world where they didn’t have to do this. Where was the cautious veteran he had first impressioned? Was it all a lie? He clenched his teeth, following Yusciel’s words as he heard a loud echoing thump beneath their feet. He felt his body’s gravity shift in the air before feeling they were falling—falling into the hundreds of worms.