image [https://imgur.com/ki5ltmz.png]

Luka drove his sword forward, neatly slicing the huge bat's wing off. The beast fell to the ground and was instantly hit with an arrow and then with the tip of a spear. He brought his sword down and finished the monster. Gregor would occasionally tremble or swear, but once they had found him the lightly enchanted extending spear he had become much calmer. He really had terrible form however. Maybe he would teach him some techniques. Or maybe not. Luka found himself existing entirely in the moment, his mind light and clear. It was strange that he felt so good considering the circumstances. Considering that his life was a lie. Well, not a complete lie. He had done all he remembered. Simply for much longer than he could have ever supposed.

He frowned slightly, a pulse of pain in his forehead. Did he even know if the memories were real? His family, he remembered that all clearly. Too clearly? No, that was ridiculous. Or maybe not so ridiculous. He glanced over at Samantha, her face bright and eager as she looked around. This was real at least. His headache subsided as he looked at her, and he smiled. They had fought well down here. The monsters had been tougher than he had hoped, but not so tough that they couldn’t beat them without injuries. Gregor’s ability had only been used the one time with that strange ceiling monster. Samantha had snarled at the thing, and it had snarled back, but she said she was just “testing a theory”. She was a funny Hero. A true Hero. He glanced at Gregor as the boy looked at the dead bat queasily. That boy was not his idea of a Hero, but he could be useful.

Samantha held up a small bag and Luka walked over to her. “Hey! This thing has coins in it!” He glanced inside, noting with mild interest the gold coins. Currency was not something that he had much use for, but he knew in the larger cities Heroes could use them to buy items that were too precious to give away freely. The coins had worn portraits on them, with language he couldn’t read. Samantha squinted at the coins. “Hey, these people look a bit like goblins, right?” They did, a little. He placed the bag into his knapsack.

As they rounded the corner the dungeon air felt different. A wall was shattered. Dirt spilled in from a huge hole, and the gentle breeze of outside air wafted from it. Luka nodded. “That bat likely came down from outside. I doubt it dug the hole, but this would be an easy exit.” Samantha smiled. “Huh. Didn’t see this exit on the map. Lucky us.” Luka frowned as he looked at her. He had expected a bit more enthusiasm. She suddenly grinned widely. “Oh I’m excited to see the clouds and sky again! Ah… maybe a gentle rain to wash away the grime…” Good, it made him happy to see her so happy. He started towards the exit, when Samantha let out a long yawn. “Do you think this area is safe, Luka?” He nodded. “Likely.” Gregor also slumped. Samantha smiled, rubbing at her eyes. “It’s been a while. Let’s get some sleep, okay? Just a bit, then we can head up?” Gregor nodded, immediately attempting to make his pack into a pillow.

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“That’s fine by me, I’ll keep watch.” Luka settled himself down. Unfortunately now that they had stopped he could find time to think. Well, he would let himself think about Samantha. An incredible person. And an incredible Hero. She could be the one to end this eternal war. No, he was increasingly sure of it, she WOULD be the one to end this eternal war.

He let out a long sigh of contentment, allowing himself to look at her. Already she was breathing gently, eyes closed. Had he ever been this happy before? It was as if he had finally woken up from an endless gray dream. Gregor was looking at him, and Luka caught his eye before the boy looked away hastily. Had he been judging him? He had been frowning. How dare he judge him? An acidic feeling of anger roiled in his belly, and he felt his fingers pop as he tightened them into fists. Neither he nor Samantha needed that boy. They could leave him in this Dungeon if he… Luka shut his eyes, stopping that thought. He had never had an impulse like that before. Where had that anger come from?

His head was throbbing, but he allowed himself to gently but slowly think through his feelings. Poking and prodding with his mind, seeing where the emotional reactions came from. They all surrounded Samantha. He felt himself sweating. She was so important to him. For a good reason. She was the most important Hero in this world. Well, she would be. Right now she wasn’t. Even that thought felt like a betrayal of her. It felt like he was probing into the darkness of his own mind. His migraine was getting stronger. He shook his head, and then felt a cool hand on his brow. His eyes flew open, and she was right there, looking into his eyes. “Luka, are you okay?” He let out a long shuddering breath. “Yes. I… I lost track of time. Let us…”

The hole leading out was gone. The spilled dirt on the ground was still there, but the wall was unbroken crystal. Stumbling to his feet he went and felt at it. He struck at it with his sword, and no mark appeared. “Did the Dungeon heal?” Samantha was feeling at the wall, her eyes wide. Gregor looked up at them sleepily from his pack. Luka felt sick. He hadn’t been watching. If he had, could he have? Was this? Samantha turned to him. “It wasn’t your fault Luka! And it’s okay, there should be another exit deeper down. Please, don’t look so distressed.” She took his armored hand and he let out another long sigh. “Of course. Of course.”

He caught Gregor’s frown again. What was he thinking? Why was he thinking it? Samantha glanced over at Gregor, and then back to Luka. “Hey, why don’t the both of you sleep a bit more. I can keep watch. I’ll alert you if I even hear something suspicious.”

Luka found himself lying down, his head on folded cloth. He felt exhausted. He could feel Samantha sitting near him. His eyes drifted shut. He was safe with her watching over him. He was awake, but dreaming. Drifting. He remembered drowsily resting with his mother as a child. His head on her lap. Totally safe.

Waves of happiness rolled over him. He would keep her safe. She would keep him safe. That was all that mattered.

Nothing else had ever mattered.