The ocean was a dark, endless void, not unlike the portals between cities or the doorways between floors. Owin felt like he floated in the middle of nothing. The only familiarity was the noise. The muffled washing of water was the same as what he had just dealt with for days inside the Ocean Dungeon.

At least in the Ocean Dungeon, he could breathe and he had a sense for where the surface was at all times. Now, he couldn’t tell which way was up, and he only had a brief chance to suck in air before he fell under the surface.

Ever since the labyrinth, Owin felt as though he would die drowning. Water was everywhere, and somehow it was the most terrifying of his opponents.

A boss? Easy. A river? Impossible.

There was no technique or weapon that could defeat water, and without knowing how to swim, he had no way to traverse even the smaller bodies. The best he could do was jump or avoid water altogether, but this time, he hadn’t been able to help himself.

And that was the end. No revenge for Artivan. No showing Void Nexus what it means to be afraid. Just a cold, dark grave.

At least he had helped Ernie and Katalin complete their mission. They had a full batch of gilled mushrooms to bring to Althowin. Owin didn’t want to die over some mushrooms, but he had promised to help.

That was something, however small, he could be proud of.

Something grabbed a fistful of Owin’s hair and yanked. Pain shocked him into awareness as another hand clambered over Owin’s face, finally finding purchase on his shirt.

Owin turned his head up as the figure let go of his hair. Ernie was barely visible in the dark. The alchemist grabbed both of Owin’s arms, squeezing with all his strength. Owin felt pain in both arms as Ernie kicked his feet and dragged Owin through the water.

Owin felt like a bag of rocks as Ernie tried dragging him up. His arms moved without the rest of his body wanting to budge.

“Kick, dammit!” Ernie’s voice was muffled, distant in the rough water.

Owin watched Ernie’s feet flutter and tried to do the same with his own. He didn’t move quickly, but he was suddenly less of a hindrance as Ernie dragged Owin toward the surface.

Ernie gasped in air as soon as they broke the surface. Water splashed into Owin’s face, spraying into his mouth even as he took a deep breath in. They bobbed as the water sloshed. All Owin could spot as he fought to stay afloat was more water. It was everywhere, surrounding him in every direction.

“Keep kicking,” Ernie grunted as he dragged Owin.

“Where are we going?” Owin asked. Only about half his words made it out as his head dipped below the surface or a wave splashed into his mouth.

“To the sandbar.” Ernie didn’t waver, heading straight forward.

Owin wanted to protest. How did he know which way to go? But talking took effort and air, both of which Owin was running low on. His legs ached, but without truly getting tired, he knew he could keep kicking. If only he wasn’t weighing Ernie down too.

As they swam, Owin dropped like a rock more than once, sinking without any hope of getting back to the surface. Each time, Ernie dove down, hauled him up, and helped him stay afloat just enough to keep moving on. Owin never felt like he had a good lungful of air, but he was able to breathe enough to survive.

As they neared the sandbar, Owin first spotted the giant void nexus. Some heroes were still lined up, waiting for their turn to enter the Ocean Dungeon. They were small at first, Ernie waved and shouted, only managing to get one word out.

“Help!”

A whole clump of heroes moved at the same time. Hunters shed their bows and dove into the water. A mender swirled luminous energy, lighting up the whole area as a bright spotlight. A magus froze a line through the water, creating a path for the mender to tread out.

Hunters each grabbed Owin and Ernie, helping them stay at the surface. Ernie was nearly unconscious as the hero grabbed his arm.

The mender skidded to a stop above them, standing on the ice. The air rumbled as a shard appeared over the mender’s shoulder. Spells shone around him as he restored their health. Owin’s health, still low from his horror poisoning, climbed, filling up his whole bar.

Ernie was practically shocked awake as the spell hit. The hunter calmed him, and soon they were crawling onto the edge of the sandbar.

Other heroes waited, unable to dive in with their heavy armor. The whole area was filled with commotion.

“Time’s up,” someone said.

“Skip my turn,” the mender said. “I’ll go to the end.”

“More will be on the next ferry,” a knight said.

“I’ll figure it out. Go in if you’re ready.” The mender dropped to one knee beside Ernie.

The hunters sat heavily in the sand, panting with effort. They looked almost identical with only different hair and headbands.

The shard had vanished from the mender’s shoulder. He had dark brown skin and wore armor that reminded Owin of Artivan. It was a full matching metal suit, each piece cleaned and polished to perfection. He held a long staff and had a curved sword sheathed at his side.

“Are you in danger?” he asked.

Owin stared blankly.

Ernie groaned and sat upright. He punched Owin gently. “He’s asking if you’re losing health.”

Owin shook his head. “It’s full now.”

The mender nodded. “Brimras Mernhadra,” he said, extending his hand.

Ernie took it and shook once. “Ernie Eckelson, prime apprentice of Althowin Alegarra.”

That caused a wave of murmurs through the small crowd of heroes gathered.

“And you?” Brimras asked.

“Owin.”

Brimras smiled and nodded. “I’m certain we’ve all heard of you. Did you fall off the ferry? We all saw you board.”

“A Void Nexus hero tossed Owin overboard. He can’t swim.” Ernie groaned again and lifted his shirt. The knife wound from the third floor was still festering.

Brimras touched his gauntleted hand to Ernie’s stomach. His fingers glowed yellow, immediately causing the wound to stitch closed.

Ernie sighed and fell back onto the sand. “Thank you.”

“Void Nexus did that? Ailred, any idea why?”

A heavily armored man stood nearby. He had a red bushy beard with streaks of gray. “There were some young ladies on the ferry. Don’t know them well.”

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“Siora and Nikoletta,” Owin said.

Ailred nodded. “Aye. It was them?”

“They killed my friend in the Great Forest. They won’t stop chasing me.”

Ailred sighed and squatted. “Veph mentioned the goblin. A target, she said. Killed some Void Nexus with the help of a Nimble Hog.”

“I was defending myself.”

Ailred and Brimras exchanged a glance. “Aye. I believe you. Brim, can you get them ready for the next ferry?”

“Of course.”

“He’s Void Nexus?” Owin asked quietly.

Brimras nodded slowly. “He won’t do you harm. He’s no hero killer.”

“I’m starting to think there’s more of them than I thought,” Ernie said. “We got attacked in the Ocean too.”

Brimras held a finger to his mouth. “Let’s keep things private. Strictly things I need to know.”

Ernie nodded. His index flashed as he looked over many of the heroes. Owin couldn’t be bothered. There were too many people, and knowing one had a shard already meant he was outclassed. He laid back and stared at the cloudless blue sky. He wouldn’t get sick of seeing that. Even the fake sky in the Great Forest hadn’t looked as good as the endless one above him.

“Are you in a party with hero companies?” Ernie asked.

“No. Simply traveling adjacent to one another.” The shard hummed as it reappeared over Brimras’s shoulder. “I wouldn’t doom shardless heroes to fight alongside me. After some time crawling, you learn names. I’ve seen many of these people before, and now I know to watch for the Donotola brothers in the future.”

One of the hunters lying beside Ernie sighed. “See, Vova?”

The other hunter sat up. “Yeah, Yuri, I see.”

“I will inform Isaak of your heroism,” Brimras said. “Now, goblin.”

Owin continued staring at the sky. “What?”

“Where are these Nimble Hogs located?”

“Atrevaar,” Ernie said. “Right outside the portals. Chorsay Eoghet is the leader.”

Brimras’s index covered his eyes. He scanned through, nodding slowly. “A 2 Shard Hero? I don’t recall hearing of these Nimble Hogs before.”

“It’s a small company.” Ernie gestured to Owin. “A Nimble Hog was the first human he met.”

Owin sat up. Artivan was far from the first human he had met. Artivan was maybe the only human he had met in the Great Forest that wasn’t trying to kill him. Ernie kept Owin quiet with a touch to his arm.

“Ah. Void Nexus perhaps has its quarrels, but you would do better with Magna Regum or the Three Heads.”

“I’m okay with the Hogs,” Owin said. He heard Siora in his mind, mocking the name. She had said the words with such disdain.

“See you on the other side, Brim.” Ailred stood just outside the doorway and waved to Brimras. A few ordinary looking people stood beside him, almost hiding from the other heroes. Owin quickly used Examine, seeing that both were still marked as citizens.

“Safe travels,” Brimras said. “Enjoy the Ocean.”

Ailred gestured for the citizens to step through first, then followed them into the doorway. They vanished quickly, leaving the sandbar a little more empty.

“The ferry won’t be here for quite some time. Do you two need anything? Food? Water?”

“A small snack and a drink of water would be incredible,” Ernie said. “Thank you.”

“What about you, goblin?”

“I’m fine.”

Brimras found a small jar and handed it to Ernie. “I assume your alchemist spells can make this stew palatable.”

“Yes. I appreciate it.”

Yuri Donotola pulled a small metal flask from his pant leg. He held it out and raised an eyebrow.

Ernie grinned, unscrewed the top, and took a swig. He coughed and nodded, then took another swig. “What is that?”

“Vova special.” Yuri took his own drink, screwed on the top, and tossed it over Ernie and Owin.

Vova caught the flask and took a long drink. “Delicious.”

Brimras sighed. “You would do better with water.”

“I would do better with a lot of things. I appreciate your help, and I am grateful for the food. I owe you one,” Ernie said.

“When I have earned your master’s attention, perhaps I will ask for a favor.” Brimras stood and brushed sand from his armor. “I will leave you to your rest.”

“Thank you,” Owin said.

Brimras nodded and joined the line of heroes still waiting outside the door, leaving only the twins.

“Drink?” Vova tried handing the flask to Owin.

“What is it?”

Vova squinted and glanced at his brother. “Vodka.”

“That is not,” Ernie said. “Let me taste it again.”

That earned a grin from Vova, who tossed the flask back over.

Ernie took a drink and swished it in his mouth before coughing again. “That is flavorless.”

“It is for relaxation,” Vova said, taking the flask.

“If by relax you mean pass out, then yeah, it’s great.”

Yuri clapped and laughed. “This one gets it.”

“Thank you, by the way,” Ernie said.

“Nothing special,” Vova said. “Best swimmers in Stobrukha.”

“Did you give up your turn to save us?” Ernie asked.

“No, no.” Yuri shrugged. “Yes, but we will wait for the Shard Hero to pass. Not interested in fighting stronger fish.”

“How do hunters fight underwater?” Owin asked. “Can you use your bow?”

“No, no,” Yuri said. “Arrows go nowhere. We use these.” In unison, Yuri and Vova drew kukri from sheaths on their thighs.

“Cut the fish,” Vova said.

“You have more of that?” Ernie asked.

Vova took a drink and passed it back. “We have two. Keep for your travels home.”

Ernie had one more sip before screwing the top back on. “Appreciate it.”

“Yes, yes.” Yuri patted Ernie on the shoulder. “We will wait in line. Glad you’re breathing.”

Ernie nodded.

“Thanks,” Owin said as the twins left, joining the line outside the door.

Ernie scooted over until his shoulder brushed against Owin’s. “Are you okay?”

Owin stared at him, unsure of how to answer. He had seen the people who had killed Artivan, and he did nothing. He had accepted his fate, assuming he was going to die, only for Ernie to risk his life. None of it really made any sense to him. “I don’t know.”

Ernie put his arm over Owin’s shoulder. “It’s okay. You don’t need to know. Not everyone is bad, right?”

Owin nodded slowly. “But what if we saw any of them in a dungeon?”

Ernie grunted. “Maybe you’re right, Owin. People will always act a little differently when they’re in front of others. They perform like they’re on stage, like they’re an actor. That doesn’t mean they’re evil though. Am I the same as when you first met me?”

Ernie had been intense when he first arrived at the Nimble Hogs. He had spoken arrogantly and confidently when they went to rescue Chorsay. Since entering the dungeon, Owin had seen a different side. He was scared, vulnerable, sad. He had been embarrassed about his choices, about trying to abandon Owin.

“No,” Owin said. Ernie had become one of the few humans who Owin truly trusted. “Why did you save me?”

“What do you mean?”

“You could’ve died too. I was going to drown and—”

“Owin, stop. I didn’t even consider not diving in after you. I’m a strong swimmer. Maybe it’s been awhile, but trust me when I say that Kat and I used to spend entire days in the lake. But even if I wasn’t a good swimmer, I would’ve been in there right after you.”

“What if Katalin is in danger?”

“I know you don’t actually think the Void Nexus heroes would touch Kat. She probably made them terrified for their own lives the second you went overboard. If they were aggressive, the whole hero company would pay the price. You have nothing to worry about. I get it, Owin. You know I would put myself in danger to save Kat. She comes first to me, and I will never regret risking myself for her.”

“Artivan insisted the heroes would leave him alone when I escaped.”

Ernie ran his hands through his wet hair, plastering it back, and sighed. “In the dungeons, it’s a little different. No laws are held within. How would anyone know what’s true and what’s not? Outside, people are held more accountable. Kat is fine. If I believe it, you should too. Nothing is going to happen to her. When that ferry arrives, she’ll be standing right at the front with the world’s worst scowl. You know why?”

Owin shook his head.

“Because she’ll be so pissed that we aren’t already dry by a fire with a strong drink. That includes you, you know. Did you want to get your clothes soaked again?”

“No.”

“She’s angry for you. Trust me. If she had more pipe bombs . . .” Ernie shook his head. “Not actually. She’s not murderous.” He ran his hands over his wet hair again. “Usually.”

Owin let himself fall back into the sand. The sun was warm, making his drying skin feel tight as he moved his eyebrows and attempted to wiggle his ears. Scars from the lich magic and his various other battles mottled his face.

“I know I didn’t do as well as Artivan,” Owin said. “Was I a good escort?”

“There’s no reason to compare yourself, Owin.” Ernie took another drink from the twins’ flask. He coughed at the strong liquor. “Wow, that is rough. Here’s the thing. You are a level one deficient hero. Do you think anyone else in the same position can fight a fourth floor boss? You’re strong and smart, even if goblin brains are a little smaller than the average toddler’s.”

“Is that true?”

Ernie laughed. “I don’t know. Maybe I need to find a good wisdom buff recipe to test on you.”