The night’s cold air washes away the hot fatigue of crossing the blazing desert.

We’re finally back, to where we were found, by Mike.

We’ve already set up the tents and the campfire.

I’m going to ask Mike the truth tonight.

Sara and Atlas are already resting, and Lance and I are still awake.

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

"Yes. It's about time, right?"

I nod. Lance nods as well as he gets close to me.

"Why don't you just say it to me?"

He gently puts his hand, holding my chin up.

"What?" I ask. What the hell is he doing?

"Don't be so coy. We're both thinking the same thing."

He moves his face close to mine, his eyes closed and lips puckered.

Is he... into me? Hell no!

*Smack!*

I slapped his face, then he steps back. He puts his hand on his cheek.

"Now that I think about it, I don't think I'm thinking what you're thinking." He awkwardly laughs.

"Yeah, sorry about that."

"I... I thought you liked me, the same as I like you."

"I've never thought that you like me."

"Huh? It wasn't obvious?"

"No, it's not."

"Oh." He looks down, literally and metaphorically. He scratches his head a bit before looking back at me. "Well, what were you thinking about?"

“About how Mike is probably Michael from the stories.”

“But Michael died? I know it’s suspicious. And I plan to ask him about it, but I don’t think Mike and Michael are the same people.”

“Why don’t we ask him now? Then after that, we go ask Aleph about the truth next month, yeah?.”

“That’s exactly what was in my mind. I thought you were planning to ask him tonight.”

“I was actually thinking of asking the night before we meet Aleph again. Since you want to ask now, I might as well come along.”

“In that case, let’s go.”

“Okay... I’m sorry for trying to ki–“

“Please don’t prove to me that “Two can keep a secret if one of them is dead” is a viable option.”

“You got it. I’ll shut up about it.”

----------------------------------------

“I’m gonna go to where Sis is. I have just something to ask. Mind if I leave?”

“Sure, Lucy. We’ll call you if we need your help or if we wanna hang.”

Lucerna bursts into scintillating light, disappearing to nothing, as she moves in light speed, to where Nameless is.

“Nameless… I need to talk to you.”

“Yes, Lucy?”

“Tell me the truth… You have no plans to contact Angela and Santana.”

“That is wrong, Lucy. Why would you think that?”

“I’ve been silent for so long, ever since Dad disappeared. You taught him, or at the very least, showed him how you open pocket dimensions.”

Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

“That’s farthest from the truth. I taught Father how I create portals. How’d you know that I taught Father something? You weren’t even there… How did you know Father opened a pocket dimension?”

“I… I… Is that what actually happened? Sorry, I thought...”

“No, don’t answer. I know. I may not have sensed you, but you’re able to see as far as light can travel, yes?”

Lucerna nods.

“I see. This is just a misunderstanding. Would you like me to bring you along, to Overworld, and Underworld?”

“Sorry, where?”

“Heaven, and Hell, as we all know. But they call it Overworld and Underworld.”

“Cool! I wonder how they are doing?”

“Who? Did you mean the Angel God and Demon God?”

“Yes! Angela and Santana. They are a dreamy couple.”

“Why so?”

“Santana is very timid and introverted. He barely speaks, but he’s very smart. Angela is very fierce, like Pira, very extroverted, and very, very rough. They are lovey-dovey to each other and will do anything to protect each other.”

“Seems like you know a lot about them.”

“Yeah! When they were created, they secretly met with Dad from time to time, having fun.”

“I see.”

“Too bad that they stopped visiting when Dad disappeared. Wait a sec, how did you meet them anyway?”

“I met Santana during one of his escapes.”

“Sorry? Escapes?”

“Yes. Santana escapes to one of three worlds whenever he fights with Angela. When I met him, he said had a fight with angela, and he hid in Paradisus, then I noticed him opening a portal to Terre because Angela found him, and I intercepted it. Angela gave me something she calls “Hell’s Key” after I gave Santana to her. It’s that seems to bend space, opening a portal to Hell.”

“For you to sell a sibling out... For shame… Where is it?”

“It’s been inside me all this time.”

“Ew.”

“Keep your mind out of the gutter, Lucy.” Nameless digs deep inside their body, before slowly pulling out, a small key, with black and red engravings.

“Ooh…”

“Shall we go then?” They push the key into the air, and the space around the key starts to bend, slowly turning into a portal to another dimension, to the Underworld.

“Okay!” Lucerna jumps into the portal, then Nameless follows them.

­

----------------------------------------

In the creation of The Tower of the Abyss (Name still pending, ffs. Why can’t a single one of us make a good name?), All of us has roles, responsibility, and storytelling-wise.

As the tower's creator, I oversee the tower's creation and its residents, I also am in charge of who is allowed to go where, and if they can go outside the tower. This doesn’t apply to King and the others.

As the Queen of all monsters, Vaciva creates the monsters appropriate to each floor.

Making sure that the monsters are balanced, as well as mana and aura, spells, and martial arts, King spends his time testing and fine-tuning everything as the King of Mana and Aura.

Dryad spends her time creating the environment of each floor, she is also in charge of creating new floors. That is only fitting for The First Spirit.

Michael is known as The First and Last Human by the people of the tower. His “absence” motivates the people of the tower to attempt to destroy the tower.

Aquarius and Tamer? Leo? I might ask him which he prefers the most, maybe he’ll want to throw away the Tamer name. They spend their time roaming the floor, recording the cultural aspect of the lives of the Tower’s residents. They can do so by connecting to all races and monsters as they are known to the Tower as The Lovers. Tamer is known as the Father of all Beasts, while Aquarius is known as the Mother of Water and Sea.

All of them, except me, have a race under them, a race that they lead and develop, each hidden from all beings, even me, except monsters, I doubt Vaciva can hide the monsters on every single floor.

King and Tamer were… very confusing. Since Tauruskin and Beastkin are simply the same things, Tamer had the Beastkin race, while King happily took a form of a Dragonkin and had the Dragonkin race. He was supposed to have the Giant race.

Michael has the humans, Dryad has the spirits, Aquarius has the Fishkin, and Arthur has the elves and the dwarves.

Right, I forgot about Arthur.

Arthur is known as a war profiteer during the fabricated history, and the people of the tower know that. They think that buying or selling from him might lead to a war inside the tower, and so all races, except his own, the elves, and dwarves trade with him. He spends his time tinkering, and inventing, while isolated from the people of the tower.

I’m currently searching for the hidden society of either elves or dwarves within floors 601 to 800, as they lead to Arthur’s workshop.

I might get to meet his disciples that are famous in the tower, The Profiteer and The Hustler, an elf and a dwarf, respectively.

I don’t know anything about them, except that Arthur took these two in due to their coincidental disability, that they only both have one eye.

I’m bound to find them.

I could use my powers to instantly find them, but where’s the fun in that? I’ve got all the time in the tower.