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Eraina
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Crap! What have you done Tharin? Adam will kill you for this! I hold my breath as I back away from Grix. He seems hesitant about what to do, but he's holding up his fist to show we should hold our positions! Are you insane? No, wait. He doesn't know the situation.
All he saw was Tharin turn into a red streak before that explosion sounded. But just as he returned, an orange streak moving faster than him dragged him away! It's obvious that was Adam, and Tharin must have royally pissed him off!
"Grix! It's over! We can't help him now. We need to get out of here before whatever that was returns!" I scream at him not caring for the glare I receive in return.
"We don't know what that thing is! I say we go! If you want to stay and die, that's up to you! Just leave me out of it!" I shout as I shove past the others.
"Wait, stop! Get back here!" Grix shouts as he glares at me.
However, I don't bother turning around as I rush back to the room where we rested. I can see the cleared rubble from when Grix and Aym came to save us. This nightmare is almost over! I just need to get beyond that point!
"Hey! I'm coming with you, Eraina!" Nana says as she grabs my arm.
I glance at her with tears in my eyes as I spot the rest of my group just behind her. Grix and Aym are following us too. Seems like they gained some sense and realized it's hopeless. My breath catches in my throat as I feel my heart pounding in my chest. My lungs feel like they're on fire with every footstep as I urge my body to move faster.
Adam's spider golems are chasing us. I can hear the clicking of their legs on the metal floor. Gods, please let this be part of the act! He's not really going to kill us, right? We made a deal!
"Hurry! If we don't get beyond the boundary line now, it's all over!" Nana whispers in my ear as we run along the hall. It's dark. No light shines from the end. A chill runs down my spine. Something about it is so ominous that I feel my pace slowing.
"Don't stop!" Nana screams.
That's when I realize something. The whole time we were inside Adam, we could see. Even though I never saw any sources of light. How did we miss that? That should have been a clue that something was wrong down here when we'd used torches up until we crossed a certain point.
"Come on, Eraina! It's just a bit more!" Nana says as she tugs my arm to urge me to run.
"Nana, are you sure we're going to make it?" I ask as I turn my head to look at her.
"I know it seems impossible. But, if we get past that boundary line now, Adam won't be able to do anything to us!"
"How can you be sure?"
"I can't, but if we don't get past there, we'll have to deal with him once he's done with Tharin."
I gulp down the lump in my throat as I focus on running. I can't keep doing this for much longer. My body is completely exhausted after everything. The only thing keeping me going right now is the fear that Adam will really kill us this time.
"Come on, Eraina! Just a bit more!" Nana says as she pulls my arm.
I nod my head as I push myself forward. It doesn't matter if we die here. I can't imagine a worse death than being trapped forever with Adam as my captor. I just need to get past that boundary line before my legs give out.
My ears suddenly ring with the sound of screeching metal. I glance back in confusion and notice the spider golems have stopped chasing us. They're standing in the middle of the hall as if they're waiting for something. I'm about to ask Nana what's going on when I feel a gust of wind from the front.
Oh, we made it. That's why the spiders stopped! My whole body trembles as I bask in the fresh air flowing into the ruins. That was another thing we had missed. In this part of the ruins, we could feel the cold air blowing into them from outside. Whereas when we were inside Adam, it was as if the whole space was isolated from external factors. Between the lack of cold air and the light, it's as if Adam's territory is its own little world.
However, that's not important right now. I'm just glad to be out of that place. I fall to my knees and roll onto my back as I try to catch my breath.
"Ha...huff...huff...huff..."
"I...I can't breathe." I gasp for air as I realize my lungs won't expand anymore.
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"What's wrong? You'll be fine, Eraina. We made it past his boundary line." Nana says with a weak laugh. "See? No matter how powerful he is, he can't do anything to us now. We're safe."
"Safe..." I mutter with a teary-eyed smile.
Yeah, right. Adam is a dungeon. He'll eventually expand his territory. What'll we do if he annexes the town? Give up on our homes and move somewhere else? I'd be willing to try that if I didn't know a few myths about him. He seemed lost during our talks. Like he didn't have all his memories. And that Avatar of his is a mess. He's clearly not anywhere near his full strength, especially if the legends are to be believed.
If the day comes when he recovers, there won't be anywhere safe for us. No. Our best option is to stick to the plan. It's really not a good idea to piss him off. There's too much uncertainty in betraying him. I just need to find a good time to convince the others to stay the course.
My ears twitch as I hear someone screaming. I frown as I glance around. Nana is staring at me with a shocked expression.
"Don't worry, Eraina. It's probably just the echoes from the caverns," Nana says with a weak smile.
I nod my head as I look at the ceiling of the hall. I blink a few times as I feel something warm running down my cheek. I don't know how long I lay here like this before I suddenly start sobbing. I'm so tired, so very tired. I want to rest. But I can't. Not here. Not in this place.
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Grix
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I frown as I stare at Eraina's trembling figure beneath her blanket. She finally fell asleep once we left the ruins and entered the caverns. Something's been bothering me for a while now. Eraina's group is acting like trauma victims, not dungeoneers who've seen plenty of death. Something about these ruins scares them. Really scares them. Their terror is thick in the air. I can smell it.
Tharin. What did you do? If I assume the red streak was Tharin returning, then what was the orange streak? That damned thing moved so fast I couldn't even make out a shape within it. Tharin really poked the hornet's nest. I growl at my own frustration. For all my strength, I couldn't do anything. This job was supposed to be simple. Get in and get out. Instead, I lost Tharin and a dwarven mercenary team to the ruins.
"Grix, we're going to need to put together another team," Aym says as he joins me outside.
"You want to go back in?" I ask in disbelief.
Aym sighs before he sits down. "What choice do we have? We didn't find anything of value in that place. But its defenses suggest there should be something valuable in there. Lord Stillwater definitely won't let it be."
I shake my head. "I'm sorry, but it's too risky. We can't know what else might be lurking in there. We'd need a small army to be certain of anything."
"No, that's not good enough," Aym says with a frown. "This ruin is completely unknown. There's no telling how long it's been here or what else could be inside. If we leave it for Lord Stillwater to investigate, he could hire some powerful adventurers or contract the top dungeoneers from the capital to get through the defenses."
"Is it worth going to the Guild with this?"
"Do you really they'll care? Tharin's dead. Our group is in shambles. We're dungeoneers, Grix. Not adventurers who explore the wilds and ruins of lost civilizations. It's best to leave this place to the professionals."
"That always bugged me." I hum. "Why does Lord Stillwater send dungeoneers into the ruins he finds first? Shouldn't it be the other way around? Have adventurers check it out, and if confirmed to be a dungeon then bring us in. So why does the master accept these jobs?"
"Because Lord Stillwater has been paying us for finding the ruins," Aym replies with a shrug.
I nod as I consider this. "That's true, but it still doesn't make much sense."
Aym frowns at me. "It's because we're the experts on dungeons. I don't get what his deal is. But he seems convinced we should be able to find a dungeon connected to the ancient civilization. He's practically fanatical about it. Besides, his family name is being threatened."
"Threatened? How?"
"He's related to a family that is considered one of the main lines for the next Archduke of Litharia. The only family that has any kind of power left at this point. They want results from their branch families to strengthen their position to gain the title." Aym shrugs. "They'll reward those who succeed and remove those who don't. Damned politics. I'd wager they're after the crown. If the queen passes without producing an heir, the next Archduke of Litharia will take the throne."
"So, if they fail to gain the title, it's likely a civil war will break out. How long do we have until then?"
"There are several families vying for it, but the biggest is the one Lord Stillwater is a part of. They've been around for longer than the rest. If the crown doesn't go to one of the big four families, then we can assume the kingdom will split into two. Either way, it will cause chaos in the region."
"That's not good," I nod. "I assume Lord Stillwater doesn't want to see that happen."
"Precisely. That's why he's always seeking out dungeons with potential. He wants to find something to give the family that will make them unchallenged, and maybe even create a new one if the current line is found wanting."
All this talk of nobles and their ambitions is giving me a headache. Sure, finding new dungeons helps the economy, and can be used to train soldiers. But, they shouldn't be something that can change the fate of the kingdom. Personally, I think he's grasping at straws.
I mean, what are the odds of him being right? What would a dungeon connected to ancient ruins even look like? It's not like anything lives within them to create monsters! The only thing these ruins sometimes have are those damned golems.
I'm about to laugh, but I pause. I almost choke as several thoughts start putting themselves together like a jigsaw puzzle. That orange streak... Its mana... That's right. It felt familiar. But, it can't be. The thought alone makes me feel sick. My gaze wanders to Eraina's group, tossing and turning in their slumber. I swallow back the thick lump in my throat.
No. I can't assume anything right now. It's best if I have another chat with each of them. Maybe pretend like I know the ruins are a dungeon to see if they crack and change their story. I could be wrong. Hell, I hope I'm wrong! But, if I'm right, I need to get this information to Lord Stillwater as soon as possible. He needs to know.