Luke could remember a time when he went to the water park and decided to go down those slides that had an almost vertical drop. He could still recall the exhilaration mixed in with the slight amount of fear as he raced down the tube.

But that had nothing on what he was feeling at the moment. When Levy used her magic to make a hole beneath them to escape… whatever that was, the last thing he expected was a water slide. Now here he was, racing to who knows where in the pitch black darkness.

"A little warning would have been nice!" he shouted to the girl in his arms. As they fell he managed to grab hold of her, twisting his body to protect her from the unknown landing. It turned out to be mostly unnecessary as the fall wasn't very far and the water broke some of the impact.

"Sorry! There wasn't time!" Levy shouted back, arms wrapped around Luke's shoulders. Normally she would have felt a bit embarrassed by this fact, but she was far too focused on their current predicament.

Luke tried to send out some balls of light, but they were too hard to focus on at the speed they were going; the magic just fizzled out. Seeing this, Levy came to the rescue, managing to use her own magic to write the word Light that stuck around them. He chalked it up to her having much better control over her magic then he had.

A splash of water slapped him in the face, some of it making its way into his mouth. "Oh god, why does it taste so bad!?" he yelled, trying to spit it out. But no matter what he did, the taste lingered, refusing to take the hint that it wasn't wanted.

"Um, we might be in the sewers, sorry," Levy apologized again, her face adopting a sheepish expression. She probably should have told him to keep his mouth closed.

"Great…" he said in deadpan.

They continued sliding down the sewer system, barely dodging a few rocks that had fallen into the tract. However, there was something rather worrying happening. "Are we picking up speed?" Levy asked, a face full of concern.

"Why yes, I do believe we are," Luke commented, almost offhandedly. It's not like they were going particularly slowly before, but there was a notable downturn, and with it, an uptick of speed.

"We must be getting to the end," Levy mentioned, subconsciously gripping him tighter. Not that he particularly minded, but it was hard to enjoy the embrace of a beautiful woman when they were speeding into the unknown.

"And what's exactly at the end?" Luke asked, twisting them to the left to avoid another boulder. It was almost like he was in a video game, only he doubted there would be a redo if he failed an action command for this quick time event.

"Um, I'm not sure. An underground lake, maybe? The water has to go somewhere," Levy commented, trying to think about what was in store for them. She wracked her brain, recounting every book she read about ancient sewer systems and where they ended up. Usually the sea, but seeing as they were in the mountains and very far from the ocean, she didn't envision that as a possibility.

"Well let's hope it goes somewhere nice then," Luke quipped. It didn't take much longer, a minute at most, before they could hear a new sound. Having seen many movies with people going down a river, Luke had a feeling he knew exactly what it was.

"Please don't tell me that's a waterfall I hear," he said, looking down at Levy, pleading with his eyes.

"I could, but I'm bad at lying," Levy said, feeling just as nervous as her companion. As they continued to approach, the roar of the falling water grew louder and louder, until it was the only thing they could hear.

Knowing what was about to happen, Luke began concentrating on his magic, getting ready to use Take Over when they fell. He had no idea how big the fall was, but it was better to be prepared just in case it was a long drop. Judging by the sound of it, he was banking on it being pretty steep.

In front of them, a large opening appeared in the distance, barely visible with Levy's spell. But considering the speed they were going, it didn't take long before they could see it clearly. It almost looked like a mouth, with sharp jagged stones pointing downward, acting as teeth.

"Watch your head!" Luke shouted over the din of the waterfall. He grabbed the petite woman and held her close to him as they neared, ensuring that they passed safely under the razor sharp rocks with only inches to spare.

Like they thought, that opening was the end of the ride, the two of them shooting out like a missile. Levy screamed in panic at the sudden feeling of weightlessness, even though she knew it was coming. Luke looked down, but he couldn't see the bottom in the darkness.

"Hang on!" he shouted, his gathered magic reaching a crescendo and wrapping around him like a cocoon. Levy did as he suggested, gripping him hard enough to cause bruises, her eyes shut tight.

"Take Over: Seraph Soul!"

With that shout, their free fall stopped. Levy still had her eyes closed, her heart beating a million miles a minute.

"Woo, that was close. Hey, you ok?" he asked, causing Levy to finally open her eyes. The first thing she saw was Luke, his silvery eyes filled with concern. She then tilted her head to look beneath them, seeing little more than darkness. But she could still hear the waterfall as it violently crashed into the water below.

She sighed in relief, seeing that they weren't splattered onto some jagged rocks or drowning. Sure she could swim just fine, but doing so in pitch black water was not her definition of fun. Kind of the exact opposite really.

"Yeah I'm good. Thanks for that," she mentioned, giving him a grateful look.

"My pleasure," he said with a slightly cocky tone, making her giggle a bit. Of course that's when she noticed his transformation.

"Woah…" she said, taking in his pure white wings behind him. They seemed to glow with an almost holy light, making her feel safe and protected. They didn't seem to be flapping, so she assumed it wasn't the wings themselves that were keeping them afloat, but rather the magic tied to them, like Happy's Aera Magic.

Luke's face also seemed a bit different, as it was now completely smooth, removing some of his bad boy aesthetic. Personally, she thought he looked better with his five o'clock shadow, but this wasn't bad either. He cleaned up rather nice.

Above his head was a floating, golden halo. Levy had to fight the urge to reach out and touch it, her natural curiosity wanting to know what a halo felt like. Would it be warm? Cold? Would it cause her pain? Heal her? The questions were endless, but now was not the time to indulge in her idle curiosities.

Later, for sure, but not now.

But that wasn't the only change, as she soon realized he was completely shirtless, showing off his rather impressive muscles. They weren't as big as Elfman's or Laxus's, but they weren't far off.

It was at this realization that another one entered her mind. They were close. Like… extremely close. His arms were wrapped tightly, but not uncomfortably, around her waist, holding her close, while hers were wrapped around his neck.

Her face went about as red as it could, and she fought against her instinct to push him away, knowing where they were. If someone saw them right now, they would surely mistake them for lovers caught in a passionate, intimate embrace.

Levy shoved her face into his shoulder, it being about the only way for her to hide her embarrassment.

"Hey, what's wrong?" he asked worriedly, wondering if he did something to upset her. He didn't think so, but you could never be certain with girls. He was also trying not to get distracted by the smell of her hair, or should he say her shampoo. It was a floral, fruity scent, and it took all his willpower not to put his nose against her and take a big whiff.

He did not want her to think he was some sort of creep.

"Good! Everything's good. I just need a minute, don't mind me," she said, and rather quickly too. Luke almost missed what she was saying. He was about to ask another question when his wings flickered in and out of existence, making them drop about a foot. The sudden, jerky motion caused Levy to remove her head and look around in concern.

"Luke?" she asked, worry clear in her tone.

"Sorry, but I don't think I have a minute. I'm almost on empty," he said, gritting his teeth as he struggled to maintain this form. The struggle against that weird, shadowy magic and his earlier practice really took it out of him. If they didn't do something quick, they would be taking a plunge, whether they liked it or not.

"Oh my gosh, I should have realized. Alright, can you get us lower to the water. I have an idea," Levy said, her embarrassment all but gone. She was now in problem solving mode, and problem solver Levy did not get distracted by hunky, shirtless men.

Usually.

"Roger that," he muttered, slowly lowering them towards the inky black water below. Just seeing it gave them the heebie-jeebies. It was the kind of water that screamed lake monster. As cool as the loch ness monster was, Luke did not fancy a meeting at the moment.

As they neared the water, small ripples spread out as Luke's toes lightly tapped the surface. The light from his transformation showed just how muddy and filthy the lake was. Looking down, Levy couldn't even see an inch past the surface.

"Alright, one sec," Levy said, before using her magic once more, this time writing out the word, Raft. As she did so, the letters seemed to grow larger while turning wooden, a translucent barrier forming between them. Once it was big enough to hold both of them with a little extra room to spare, it plopped down into the water, making a small splash.

"That should do it. Lower us down," Levy said, and Luke was only too happy to comply. His feet touched down, making the magical raft bob up and down on the water. Once he was firmly standing on it, he let go of Levy before releasing his transformation.

He immediately dropped onto his backside, breathing heavily, using his arms to keep him steady as he leaned back. That was way more exhausting than he thought it would be. Using magic in the afterlife was way easier.

"You ok?" Levy asked, kneeling down beside him, her hand gently gripping his arm.

"Yeah, I'm good. Just a bit tired," he said, making her sigh in relief. Standing up, she decided to let him rest a minute while she tried to take in the massive cavern they found themselves in. She knew it was big by the echoes made by the waterfall, but she didn't know how big. Not without the ability to see the walls.

"So, any idea where we are?" Luke asked, giving the girl a curious look. She seemed to know they were in a sewer system earlier, so maybe she had an idea about where they were in relation to that. He wasn't hopeful, but it didn't hurt to ask.

This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

Levy bit her lip as she thought over his question. She regretted doing so almost immediately when the foul water hit her taste buds. She shivered, not from the cold, as it was remarkably warmer in here than in the ruins, but from the sheer disgust she suddenly felt.

"Not sure. I know they run pretty far into the mountain, but not much else. We're at least a mile away from the ruins though, judging by how fast we were going," she said, placing a wet strand of hair behind her ear as she thought it over.

"Great. I'd suggest going back the way we came but with my magic so low, that's not an option," Luke mentioned as he caught his breath. Levy nodded her head at that, before releasing another sigh.

"Guess we just have to find another way out then. My magic will likely run out before yours recovers enough to get us out of here," she said, which Luke agreed with. There was just one problem with that.

"Easier said than done. I can't see a thing in this place," he mentioned. That was a good point, one Levy couldn't really argue against. But just because everything around them was an unknown, didn't mean they could sit there and do nothing.

"We just need to find the wall. After that, it's just a matter of time until we find an escape path," Levy said.

Luke didn't have any better ideas so he decided to trust the girl with much more experience in these things. "Works for me. So how do we do that?"

Levy gave him a smug look, holding up her index finger which glowed slightly. "You leave that to me."

Using her magic, she created a rudder that connected to the raft, along with a lever used to control it. Once the steering system was in place to her satisfaction, she then wrote the word, Propeller, which turned the letters into metal blades. The last thing she implemented was some light so they could see in front of them.

"That should just about do it," she said before the propeller began to spin. Once it picked up enough speed, they started to move, the sudden jerk almost sending Luke sprawling. It started off slowly, but it wasn't long before they were moving at a quick pace.

It felt like they were on one of those swamp boats Luke had seen on T.V. Now as long as there weren't any crocodiles in this lake, they'd be fine.

"You know, your magic is really something else," Luke mentioned, a bit of awe in his voice. Levy preened under his praise, not used to people being overly impressed by what she could do. Most people preferred excessively flashy magic like Natsu's or Gray's.

"Thanks. Now sit back and relax," she said, holding onto the lever.

It didn't take them too long before they found a wall. As big as the cavern they were in was, Levy really put some oomph into it, likely wanting to get out of this place as fast as she could. Not that Luke could blame her. He didn't particularly enjoy the chill in the air or the putrid stench of the lake below.

Luke used his own magic to send out a ball of light towards the wall, hoping to find a pathway leading out somewhere. It didn't take much magic so he didn't mind doing it, and Levy was doing more than enough. Keeping five constructs up had to be taking its toll.

The duo followed along the wall, hoping to find some way forward. It took them a while, but they were eventually able to find an opening in the cave wall.

"There, I think I see something," Luke said, sending a ball of light towards it. It wasn't very big, and Luke figured he would just be able to squeeze through, but it was something worth investigating.

"Looks good… Let's go," Levy said, panting. Luke gave her a concerned look. It was just as he thought, keeping up all those spells wasn't easy. He knew Levy had a good amount of magic as she was selected for the S Class Exam, but this was still a lot.

Their makeshift magic raft came to a stop beside an elevated rocky embankment. If nothing else, the spot should provide them with a resting spot. The Take Over mage jumped onto the platform before turning around and offering his hand to Levy, like a proper gentleman.

Levy gave a small smile, her forehead coated in a thin layer of sweat. "Thanks," she said, gripping his hand and letting him pull her up. She let out a weary sigh as she released her hold on her magic, the raft and all its components fading away into nothingness.

The blue haired girl wiped her forehead, but she had a satisfied look on her face. "Haven't had to hold so much magic for that long in a while," she said.

"Might be a good thing to practice, just in case," Luke suggested, holding up a ball of light.

"You might be right. But I can think about that later, right now we need to find a way out of here," she said, a look of determination on her face, her fists raised up near her chin and clenched tight.

It was adorable.

"Right, then we need to inspect that crack in the wall, right?" he said, shifting his body and sending the ball of light almost lazily towards it, the mass of energy bobbing up and down like it was riding on waves.

"Mm-hm, let's go. The sooner we can get out of here, the better," she said, making her way towards it, with Luke following behind. He couldn't agree more with her desire to get the hell out of this place. Not only was the surroundings pitch black, but the only noise was the waterfall crashing into the disturbingly dark lake.

There was also the feeling of being watched, and he didn't like it. It was just like being in front of the tapestry.

The two were about halfway there when Luke saw something from the corner of his eye. It looked like a tentacle of some kind, slowly slithering across the rocks towards them. The thing was thick, over a foot in diameter, and had a greenish black color to it from what he could tell.

He gave it a curious and suspicious look. Tentacles and pretty girls did not do together, and Luke had no intention of getting Ntr'd by a tentacle monster. Just as he was about to call out to the petite girl in front of him, who hadn't seemed to notice, the slimy looking thing shot towards her.

"Shit, Levy!" he yelled, rushing towards her and pushing her out of the way. Levy yelped as she was sent forward, falling onto the cold hard round. She turned back, ready to enact her feminine fury on him, but the sight she saw stopped her in her tracks.

"Luke!" she shouted, seeing him struggle against a massive tentacle. He tried to pull it off, but the suction cups on its underside held firm. "Hang on, I'm coming!" she shouted.

"No, don't!" he yelled, making her stop.

"But why!?" she yelled back. Was this a machismo thing? If he was stopping her because he didn't want to be saved by a girl, she was going to kick his ass. He didn't seem like the type, but you never know.

"If you get too close it might get you too! Try cutting it from a distance or something!" he yelled.

"Oh, right!" She called back, feeling somewhat silly. Her panic may have made things worse for them. Using her magic, she wrote the word Sever in the air. It was one of the best ways for her to cut something that was living.

While something like cut or slice would probably work, her imagination, the thing used to fuel her magic, didn't necessarily connect those words to cutting off what was essentially a limb. There were other swords she could have used, sure, but this is one she was more familiar and practiced with, meaning it took less magic to cast. With her magic running low, it seemed like the best option.

The word appeared in the air and raced towards the tentacle, taking on a crescent shape. It cut deep into the thing holding her friend, but it wasn't quite strong enough to cut all the way through it.

It wriggled in agony, shaking poor Luke something fierce. It was like the worst amusement park ride ever, and for once he wished he wasn't tall enough for the ride. It slammed him into the floor, knocking the wind out of him.

"Luke! Dang it, one more try!" Levy shouted, preparing to use her magic once again. But the creature from the black lagoon had something else in mind. Another one of its appendaged shot out from the water, its fleshy tip aiming to skewer the Solid Script user.

She jumped out of the way, doing what was essentially a somersault, barely avoiding the attack. The force behind the strike was strong enough to crack the rock. When she came out of her tumble, she looked back, only to see empty space.

"Luke!" she called out, fear and panic setting in. She had a sneaking suspicion about what that creature was and if she was right, Luke was in a whole lot of trouble.

"I'm in a whole lot of trouble," Luke thought as he was dragged through the inky black waters towards whatever the hell attacked them. This would be bad under normal circumstances, but with his low magic power at the moment and having the wind just knocked out of him coupled with how hard the thing was squeezing him, things were looking particularly poorly.

"At least Levy's safe, so that's something," he thought. Safe may not have been the best word to use, at least not until she escaped this place, but she was in a better spot than he was right now.

He tried using what magic he could to create some light, so he could at the very least see what horrible beasty wanted to have him over for dinner. He didn't create a ball of light this time, choosing instead to release the magic form his own body and project it outward. Takes less mana that way.

But what he saw when he reached his destination made him regret wanting to get a look at it. "Big," that was the first thought that came to his mind. His second was, "Ugly."

Going by the tentacles of the creature that was currently trying to squeeze the life out of him, Luke had a pretty decent guess as to what it was, but seeing it only confirmed his belief. It was a Kraken, or something that looked remarkably similar, like the Watcher in the Water from Lord of the Rings.

It had two enormous eyes that looked like they were made from obsidian. It blinked as it stared at him in a combination of hunger and curiosity. Must not get many humans down here.

Its skin was the same nasty looking color as the tentacles, though there appeared to be more gray around its eyes. Luke couldn't be sure exactly, as getting clear details while submerged in such murky water with barely any light was damn near impossible.

But the worst part was its massive mouth. Luke expected to see a beak, like a regular squid, and he was not disappointed. Three massive appendages moved independent of one another, and he was sure that if he were on dry land it would be drooling.

Those things were nightmare fuel on a normal sized squid, but when they're the same size as you, that fuel could get a rocket to mars. Somebody should call Elon Musk and let him know.

Luke kept trying to struggle but he was nowhere near strong enough to break free. The Kraken gripped him a bit tighter as its curiosity could no longer keep its hunger at bay, bringing him towards its mouth. Luke's eyes widened at the sight, his fear making the light projecting out from him shine even brighter.

The Kraken flinched back, shaking its massive head from the pain. It squeezed its prey even tighter, making Luke let out a silent scream, precious bubbles of air leaving him and heading for the surface.

"Shit, that's not good. I need that air! But at least I have a pretty good idea of how to get out of this," he thought to himself. If the thing didn't like light, then he would just have to show him the sun.

Luckily, Luke's arms were still free, meaning he could pull this off. Maybe. He did practice making his light brighter in the ruins, but he didn't have the opportunity to actually try the Solar Flare.

"Well, no time like the present," he thought, bringing his hands to his face as the massive beast brought him near again. He would only have one shot at this, better make it count. He spread his fingers wide around his eyes while shutting them. He didn't remember if that was necessary, but he couldn't risk blinding himself either.

Well, he could, considering how dark it was down there, but he'd still rather not.

Gathering his magic right between his eyes, he focused on nothing else but making it as bright as possible. He pictured how the technique was supposed to work, imagining how it blinded even the strongest of foes. Once the image was cemented in his mind, he was ready.

"Take this you bug eyed bastard! Solar Flare!"

The Kraken halted its movements as it was assaulted by unimaginable pain. It screamed in pure agony, releasing Luke from its grip as it tried desperately to numb the pain. But nothing the creature did worked.

Luke felt satisfaction as he watched the massive creature writhing in pain. "That's what you get for trying to eat me-woah!" he thought, barely getting out of the way of a floundering tentacle.

"Note to self, gloat later, escape now."

He started swimming upwards, his lungs burning as they've never burned before. He had no idea how far he had to go, but he had the feeling that this wasn't going to cut it. His first thought was to transform again and fly up, up and away, but he didn't have enough magic left to transform.

But he didn't need to. While thinking of a way to possibly escape his almost certain doom, he remembered Goku, using a Kamehameha to propel himself through the air. Maybe he could do the same. His magic was pretty low, but he still had to try. He wasn't ready to die just yet, not on his second day here. No way in hell.

Pulling his arms back and cupping them at his side, magical energy began to gather between them, shining a bright, luminous blue. As he focused more and more of his limited power into it, the light it emitted also grew. Because of that he could barely make out the recovering form of the monstrosity below.

"Ka…"

"Me…"

The beast shook the last remnants of pain from its body, looking around for its prey and saw that accursed power that hurt it so. Letting out a roar, it sped towards Luke, anger and hatred clear in its pearly, black eyes.

"Ha…"

"Me…"

The Kraken was almost on him now, its gargantuan beak opened wide, ready to devour him. It took everything Luke had no to flinch at the sight. Afterall, it was only a couple of days ago that he was a completely normal person. Hell, even after being isekai'd, he didn't think he'd be facing anything like this. Not so soon at least.

Images flashed through his mind. Of his brother, Angelo, being so damn good at everything while he struggled to stay even in his shadow. His parents and everyone around him, showering his brother with praises while complaining that he should be more like him. Hundreds and hundreds of scenes went by in a single instant, causing his anger to rise and with it, his magic.

To them he always came in second to his brother. But right here, right now, he would do something that his brother could only dream of. As much as he loved him and hoped he had a long, fulfilling life, it was time for Luke to truly come out of his shadow, and be the man he always dreamed of.

As the Kraken's jaws, or whatever the hell the beak was attached to, started to cover him, ready for its next meal, Luke thrust his hands forward, releasing all the pent up energy he was storing between his hands. But more than that, he was also releasing years and years of anger and resentment, letting it all out in one blast.

Best therapy one could ask for.

"Ha!"