“Hopper, back into the pendant.”

The swordstoad half-walked half-hopped into the swirling white circle, vanishing. When Hopper was gone, Luc drew in a deep breath, glancing around. After the stone statue had returned to its pedestal, the doors had closed, leaving Luc, Ritha, and Tissa trapped in the tunnel leading downwards, with no way to go back the way they came. Not that Luc was complaining.

“Bones,” said Luc.

The pendant glowed with white light, misty circle swirling to life. Bones stepped out of the pendant, dropping to one knee in front of Luc. Her injured arm still hung at her side, limp and bloody. Luc glanced over his shoulder at Ritha, who was still lying on her back, catching her breath.

Would a monster really need a health potion?

As if to answer him, Ritha rolled over and began rummaging through her satchel. Coming up with a single vial in her hand, she hurried over to Luc’s side.

“T-this is the last one,” said Ritha, eyes flickering back and forth between the ground and Bones. “You can use half of it if you’d like. I-I want to save the other half for Tissa.”

Luc glanced over at Bones, who remained in her kneeling stance. After a moment, he reached over and took the vial from Ritha’s hands, uncorking it and holding it out in front of him.

“Bones, drink half of this potion.”

The spiritualist reached up and took the vial in her hands. Lifting up the bottom of her mask, Bones placed the vial against her lips and tilted it back. When half of the potion was gone, Bones took the vial away, replaced her mask, and held the potion out with both her hands, as if she were offering a gift to the gods. As she did so, her injured arm glowed with a green hue, illuminating the nearby vicinity. When the glow vanished, the blood on her straw armor remained, but judging by Bones’ movement, the arm appeared to have regained its functionality.

Luc took the potion from Bones’ hands, watching as the white text above her head flickered and changed.

/

Name: Bones

Species: Spiritualist

Evolution: 10% --> 16%

Loyalty: 42% --> 49%

As always, increasing Loyalty perplexes me. With nothing else left to do with the monster, Luc sent Bones back into the pendant. Turning, he saw Ritha watching him. As soon as she saw him looking, Ritha looked away, twiddling her fingers in her lap.

Knowing her, she wouldn’t tell anyone even if they asked. But I should still make sure of things.

“Listen here,” said Luc, double checking to make sure that Tissa was still unconscious. “Don’t tell anyone what you saw here, okay?”

Ritha nodded, bobbing her head up and down.

“Good,” said Luc. “If you tell someone, I’ll make sure that - ”

A sudden pain erupted in Luc’s chest. He dropped onto his hands and knees, coughing and gagging. Blood splattered the stone floor, dripping down his chin.

What in the world?

Again, the pain shot through him. Luc rolled onto his back and clawed at his chest, trying to ease the pain. But no matter what he did, the suffering would not relent.

“Mister Luc!” shouted Ritha, hurrying over to his side.

He didn’t respond. He couldn’t respond.

Ritha glanced over at the spot where Luc had been kneeling against the wall. Her eyes flickered down to the empty vials scattered over the ground. Upon seeing the Brio potions, Ritha’s face fell and she grabbed Luc’s hand in hers, squeezing it.

“It’ll be over soon,” said Ritha. “I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

Am I going to die?

The pain subsided, leaving Luc gasping for breath. His ears rang, as if someone had just clocked him in the head. Blinking to clear his teary vision, Luc sat up gingerly, massaging his torso.

“W-what happened?”

“Your use of Brio pushed your body past its limit,” said Ritha, head bowed. “All because I made you help. I’m sorry…I made a mistake.”

Luc couldn’t resist the question any longer. “Brio? What is this thing that everyone keeps talking about?”

“…you don’t know?” said Ritha. “With such an interesting Bloodline too.”

Luc scowled. “Don’t patronize me, peasant!”

“I’m sorry,” said Ritha, pulling at the hem of her tunic. She glanced over at Tissa, whose wounds weren’t getting any better just lying there. “It’ll take a while to explain, though…”

The Gauntlet!

“Summarize it in one sentence,” said Luc, feeling the pressure to get out of the tunnels but at the same time not wanting to feel this pain again.

“Brio is the lifeforce of a human,” said Ritha, closing her eyes. “Researchers say that it is the reason behind Bloodlines and skills. As Bloodlines and skills are leveled, they get more powerful. But that power comes at a cost – Brio. Each person can only hold so much Brio at once. If their body loses and takes in too much at a time, as you did, there can be significant side - ”

“Okay, okay,” said Luc, holding up a hand to stop her. “I didn’t ask for a tutor’s lecture on the subject.”

Ritha’s face reddened. She lowered her gaze and tugged at the hem of her shirt.

“…it’s good to know, though,” said Luc, reluctant with his words. “You’re quite knowledgeable, especially for a peasant.”

A small smile spread across Ritha’s face.

“You’re still stupid, though,” said Luc. “Why would you run back out there like a loon? Seems to me like you’re asking to be killed.”

The smile disappeared from Ritha’s face and she went back to tugging at the hem of her shirt.

Sighing, Luc stood, gingerly pushing himself off the ground. The sharp pain in his chest had vanished, but there was still a faint ache. It wasn’t something he couldn’t bear. Turning, Luc began heading down the stone steps at the end of the tunnel. When he didn’t hear any footsteps behind him, he glanced over his shoulder. Ritha stood by Tissa’s body, shuffling her feet.

“What are you doing?” asked Luc. “Let’s go!”

Ritha stared down at the body, not saying a word.

Luc headed down the stairs once more, only to pause and look back again. Ritha was still standing by Tissa’s unconscious body. It didn’t look like she was going to move without saying whatever was on her mind.

Shaking his head, Luc headed back up the stairs.

“Well?” said Luc, putting his hands on his hips. “What’s the hold up?”

Ritha glanced down at the half-empty health potion in her hands. “T-this might not be enough to fully heal him. We might…we might need to carry him.”

Carry him? Like a menial laborer?

Ritha knelt down and tipped the remaining health potion into Tissa’s mouth. After a few seconds, Tissa’s body pulsed with light. Unlike before, not all of the wounds healed. Only the most serious of injuries stitched themselves together, erasing from Tissa’s body. The green light faded, leaving the tunnel as it had been before. For a moment, nothing happened. Then Tissa’s eyes shot open, breathing in sharply. His eyes flickered from left to right – from Ritha’s face to Luc’s and then back again.

“Is this the Underworld?” asked Tissa, voice faint and hoarse.

Luc glanced up at Ritha. “Did your potion make him lose his mind?”

“You…” said Tissa, grabbing Luc’s arm. “There were…monsters of some kind. You commanded them?”

“No,” said Luc, plastering a look of confusion on his face. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. They were illusions, created by Ritha’s potions.”

“Is that so?” asked Tissa, looking over to Ritha.

“…y-y-y-y-yes,” said Ritha, looking like she was about to vomit.

“Hm,” said Tissa. “I don’t know why you’re lying to me, but I’m not one to pry. Not after the two of you saved my life. For that alone, I am eternally grateful.”

Tissa lowered his head. “I spoke poorly about your abilities earlier. After seeing what you two did, you proved me wrong a hundred times over. I acknowledge my wrongs, and I hope you can forgive me.”

Luc opened his mouth, ready to brush off the apology as another string of words but seeing the way Ritha’s face lit up made him stop.

“Enough with this sappy nonsense,” said Tissa, voice returning back to its gruff normality. “Help me up, boy. No way I’m walking to Floor 1’s Metropolis like this.”

“What - ”

It was too late. Tissa hooked his arm around Luc’s shoulders, using him as a pillar of support. Luc’s legs nearly gave in, back bending with the weight of the older man.

“Stand up straight, boy!” said Tissa. “You can’t be this weak, can you?”

Luc chose to save the effort he could use for words. When we get out of here, I’m going to kill him.

“Where’s my lance?” said Tissa, glancing around behind them.

“We were too busy saving you to grab that stick of wood,” Luc spat.

For a moment, Tissa stared at the large stone doors. Then he gave a single nod and patted Luc on the shoulder. “You chose well.”

Luc didn’t respond, as he wasn’t exactly sure how to take the words.

“Lead the way, girl!” said Tissa. “The Metropolis is just ahead!”

Luc scowled. “How do you know?”

Tissa only smiled. “You’ll find out soon enough.”

The walk down the stairs was long and uneventful. Luc didn’t notice much, as all of his energy was expended on supporting Tissa. Throughout the journey, Tissa seemed excited and boisterous, quite unlike the sarcastic, grouchy individual Luc had come to know him as. He kept rambling on and on about his homeland, whose location Luc did not care to catch. By the time they reached the bottom of the stone carved stairs, Luc’s entire body was screaming with exertion, and sweat poured down his face.

“Do you see it, boy?” asked Tissa, pounding Luc on the chest. “Do you see it?”

Luc winced, too tired to tear into Tissa. Raising his sweat-slicked face, he squinted forward. As he did so, his eyes widened and his jaw dropped. In front of them was what only could be described as a massive underground city. Inside a cavern larger than Luc could imagine, there sat a subterranean lake. Around the lake were man-made buildings, foundation carved in stone and roofed with wood. But the most amazing thing about the city was the lights. Light of every color, from the darkest of reds to the brightest of greens, basked the city in brightness. The light came not from glowing mushrooms, but rather from crystals mounted on tall stone pillars lining the streets of the city.

“A beauty, isn’t it?” said Tissa, watching Luc’s expression of wonder.

“…not as nice as my home,” said Luc, refusing to give Tissa what he wanted.

But Tissa just laughed. “You’re a hard one to crack, I’ll give you that.”

Forwards they walked, emerging from the opening of the tunnel. As soon as they exited, they were surrounded by men and women in black tunics, movement faster than Luc could comprehend. Glancing around, Luc couldn’t read their expressions.

Are these people here to help us, or is this still part of the Gauntlet?

“You’re late, Tissa,” said a voice from behind them.

A very familiar voice.

Luc spun around, dumping Tissa on the ground in an unceremonious heap. Standing behind them, black tunic spotless and definitely not dead, was Faro.