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Everything happened so fast.
The silence fell over the large garden. Everyone just stared at where Julian disappeared, swallowed by a weird tidal wave of shadows. The remnants of that shadow still actually lingered, drifting like smoke—but Juliet and the party did not care about the ominous dancing darkness at all.
They just stood there, completely frozen and dumbfounded.
But soon, Juliet’s voice cracked the silence.
“Julian!?” She screamed, frantic. She stumbled forward, reaching out to the empty space where Julian had been just moments ago, but all she could really feel was the drifting smoke as it disappeared in her flailing hands.
“Boss!?” She called out again, but no one answered.
“Shit…” Cyrus, who had been calm the entire time and even enjoying what was happening, was trying to come up with an explanation for all of this for the Chat—but he couldn’t really control them at all as they swarmed and spammed his eyes with questions he couldn’t answer.
*
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“Is… the Newbie dead!?” Talia ran toward Cyrus and grabbed his arm, “Is he dead!?”
“I… don’t think so. He—”
The party’s panic was shortlived, however, as the entire estate suddenly began to rumble. And before any of them could wonder what was happening, roots violently twisted up from the ground, almost like snakes gasping for air.
The roots continued to expand wildly, rising, twisting, and merging into a massive, grotesque wall. The very earth itself shifted, towering above them and swallowing the entire estate.
“Oh, shit… we’re in the middle of a dungeon spawn! Artemia’s growing a new pimple!” Talia screamed, her voice filled with alarm as she retreated. “Everyone, get out! Now!”
Titus and the others did not really hesitate to follow Talia’s orders at all. They ran and pushed through the dust and debris as the ground beneath them trembled and cracked. Talia took the lead, cutting a path through the forming rubble with her longsword.
But there was, however, one of them who refused to retreat.
“No! I’m not leaving Julian!” It was Juliet, whose eyes were still staring to where Julian disappeared to even though it was now completely covered by dark roots and vines.
“Dude, stop!” Dyrroth almost growled at her as he tried to pull her away, but Juliet fought, her voice strained as she continued to cry out.
“Julian! We can’t abandon Julian!”
“We’re not abandoning him, alright!?” Dyrroth gritted his teeth, “We just need to—”
And before he could finish his words, Cyrus suddenly stepped in and punched Juliet on the chin without any hesitation at all, instantly knocking her out.
“Let’s go.” He caught her, lifting her gently over his shoulder as a small sigh escaped his lips.
The estate behind them continued to twist and shift—and very soon, the ground started to collapse, swallowing the bodies of the old naked people, devouring them completely before once again closing in.
“S… shit.” The party barely made it out the gates, and as they looked back—the dungeon’s entrance had fully taken shape.
It was dark, jagged. An archway covered in twisted, and almost sickly roots. But still, like all of Artemia’s dungeons, it was alive—breathing… and the group breathed along with it.
And as soon as they were sure that everything was calm, Talia stepped forward. Although they could describe it as an entrance, as it looked like an entrance… there wasn’t actually a way to enter the dungeon at all.
It was blocked by a door of thick roots. And as Talia tried to pry or slash it open with her sword, it did not even scratch or budge at all.
“It’s… no use.” Talia groaned in frustration as she looked back to the group, “But at least we know that he’s alive… this is a Solo Dungeon.”
“S… shit. That’s what’s up.” Dyrroth stammered as he fell to his butt, “The dude’s… alone in there.”
“He’ll be fine.” Titus huffed as he also sat on the ground, rubbing his bald head while he looked at the ominous dungeon,
“If anyone’s going to clear that dungeon alone… it’s him.”
***
And while everyone worried for Julian, he was drifting in a sea of darkness. His senses were dulled and his body completely unresponsive.
But he wasn’t unconscious, no. It just felt like he was trapped within his own mind. He was aware of everything that was happening to him, even though nothing was.
But soon, a soft voice echoed through the darkness, piercing through the still silence.
"That’s right… come to mommy. Walk this way.”
And he recognized the voice instantly.
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It was his mother’s voice. He remembers it because it was warm, incredibly comforting. Julian wanted to move, but he was completely bound by the darkness around him.
Another voice joined in. It was faint at first, but it gradually became louder—and it wasn’t someone he recognized.
"He’s improving. With proper treatment and therapy, Mrs. Winters, he could live a full life… He’ll be just like… you and me. But if you want, we could offer… enhancements to his brain.”
“Enhancements? Then it wouldn’t be him! He wouldn’t be my baby boy!” His mother’s voice was raw with emotion, cracking with desperation.
“Honey, they’re just offering options—” Another voice joined in, and he once again recognized it instantly. The voice belonged to his father, calm and direct. “Options we won’t take. I’m sorry, Doctor.”
“Of course. We’ll continue with therapy. It works, Mr. Winters. We don’t have to change anything. If you follow the schedule, stick to the therapy through the end… other people won’t even notice that he’s different.”
“What about his… behaviors? His… stimming is becoming more aggressive. He’s four now and barely speaks. I just… I just want him to be ready for the world.”
“That’s… perfectly normal for someone with his condition, Mom. But if I could suggest something, maybe do an activity that you could do as a family together? And also something that he could do when he is alone. It’s common with children of Julian’s condition to hyper-fixate on something, and that doesn’t have to be negative. If you could redirect…”
The words and voices soon began to fade—and Julian realized what they were, memories. Memories that even he himself does not remember at all. But how?
How was he hearing them right now?
“We have to hide him, Jayce! We need to protect him!” The voices once again returned, his mother again—but this time, loud and frantic.
“Charlotte… Charlotte calm down, okay? Look, he’s here. He’s… he’s healthy. Okay? Look at our son, he’s so healthy.”
“We… we shouldn’t have done this. We shouldn’t have… we shouldn’t have brought him out into this world, we…oh… hello there. Oh, my baby…he’s… he’s so beautiful, Jayce. Jayce, look at him.”
“I know… I know.”
“We shouldn’t have done this, Jayce. I’m scared…”
“It’s okay. I know a place, we can hide there for now. I know some people there…”
Julian wanted to hear more, but their voices faded once again, replaced by nothing but silence and darkness.
Well, silence. As the darkness around him began to wither away, replaced by faint, colorful lights.
He blinked, taking in his surroundings. He found himself lying on the ground, staring at a ceiling littered with dark roots, and vines. The flowers and leaves, casting a faint light—creating a surreal beautiful glow amid the dark roots.
“Hm…” Julian rubbed his nose, the scent of earth and faint decay lingering in the air. He sat up, and he didn’t even need to guess where he was as soon as he looked around—he was in a dungeon.
[4. Clear the [Special] Dungeon, Orpuk’s Dreams.]
The [Guidance of Artemis] once again appeared before him, reminding him of why he was there. He really only stared at it for a few seconds before waving it off.
Fortunately for him, he wasn’t as helpless the last time he was thrown in an unexpected situation. He looked down, and Searadyn’s Veil was right in his hand.
“Let’s just get this over with, then.” He whispered as he tightened his grip on his weapon.
And once again, fortunately for him, he didn’t need to choose a path at all. There was nothing but a wall of roots and vines behind him, and the only way forward was, well… forward.
He began to walk, his steps whispering and cracking on the earthen floor. There were no monsters at all, no threats, nothing—but it made it feel even more dangerous, ominous.
This silence, however, was suddenly interrupted as something appeared in front of him, causing him to almost swing his weapon.
It was MEGAN, her message popping out in front of his eyes.
“I think… I’m in a dungeon, MEGAN.” Julian lowered his weapon and sighed in relief, “Wait… is my stream on?”
“Do you want to… Oh.” Julian whispered to himself as he tried to read MEGAN’s message. And after what seemed like an entire minute, he hummed, “Okay, they already know about the quest. But only show me your messages.”
Julian hummed again, and although he was sure that she knew—her presence truly gave Julian all the confidence he needed to move forward.
He continued down the dark, dried corridor, where the faint light from glowing flowers seemed to almost dance in his wake. Each blossom brightened when he was at a distance, but as he neared, they would close up shyly, retreating into themselves.
The corridor was empty, but at the same time, the dungeon felt so alive to Julian. He could hear it, the way it breathed… the way Artemia breathed.
The pat seemed endless in front of him, stretching on and on with no turns at all or any diverging paths. It truly was just one long corridor. But still, Julian was careful, extremely so.
His caution was fruitless, however, as he soon arrived in front of a large… metal door.
“This is… old.” Julian placed his hand across the metal door without any hesitation at all, letting his fingers trace across the strange, intricate carvings on it. At the center of the large door was the depiction of some sort of creature—though its head was scratched away, making it impossible to discern what sort of monster it was.
Parts of the door were already covered in roots, almost as if it had been there for centuries, perhaps even longer.
“Huh…” The metal was cool under his touch, and before he could even wonder how to open it—the door roared.
Well, not really, but it sounded like it did as the entire corridor began to tremble from its presence.
Julian hasn’t even done anything, and yet it began to slide open on its own; the roots, the ground, and everything else between quaked.
He barely even noticed MEGAN’s words as he was too focused on what lay beyond the door. But he didn’t hesitate at all to step forward into the darkness welcoming him inside.
The door quickly closed behind him, humming and clanging as it sealed him inside. But it didn’t matter to Julian—after all, he was trapped either way.
For a moment, he stood in the familiar pitch darkness. But then, as if fully welcoming him, small lights flickered to life above him. Flowers and leaves, similar to those in the previous corridor, began to glow.
Thousands and thousands of them. MEGAN had described to him the Milky Way and the galaxies before, and even though he was sure the aurora above him wasn’t it, it was probably close.
The hall he now found himself in was vast, stretching into the shadows beyond the reach of the flowers’ light. And as he gazed around and stepped forward, he noticed that the blossoms on the floor, unlike the ones above, started to bloom a subtle path forward.
And they did. Their gentle luminescence guided him forward, drawing him to the center of the room, where something glinted under the faint light—a silver box.
Well, whatever it was, it was metal… and something was inside it. He could feel it.
And as he drew closer, he noticed that it was decorated with runic engravings similar to those on the door.
“Hm…” Taking a steady breath, Julian reached out and placed a hand on the coffin’s surface.
For a moment, nothing happened.
But then, the silence was shattered by a sudden, violent movement from within the box.
“Oh.” Julian quickly pulled back as the coffin’s lid burst open. It was a shadow, leaping out from the coffin with terrifying speed. Julian barely managed to lift up Searadyn’s Veil into a shield, blocking one of the creature’s clawed limbs as it slashed toward his neck when it shot out.
The impact sent him skidding back, but his eyes remained completely focus on the dark creature. How could he not, when he recognized it?
“MEGAN…” He whispered, sparks forming from his weapon as it shifted into a shield and rapier, “...That’s the monster I told you about, the one I fought in the void.”
It was the shadow crawler, its limbs long and twisted like a spider’s, body cloaked in shadows that seemed alive.
But something about it seemed… different.
It stared back at Julian. And soon, the creature began to shift and morph, its body expanding and contorting into a figure familiar to Julian and everyone watching his stream—it took the form of man. A small man.
A shadow of an Eldazen.
Its gaze remained fixed on Julian. A haunting smile… slowly stretching across its face.
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