Rowan sagged against the wall. His guts ached. His hand burned. A throbbing pain emanated from his feet. This is awful. Maybe I shouldn’t have challenged the Tower.

Immediately, Rowan shook his head at himself. He sat up firmly, lips pressed together. No. I won’t regret it. Even if I die, I didn’t make the wrong decision.

One impact after another echoed in the closed chamber. Dust spritzed over the ground.

“Kaidu, stop, you’ll hurt yourself,” Rowan warned.

Panting, Kaidu stopped. In the darkness, only his faint outline remained visible. He whirled on Rowan. “Are we supposed to give up?”

“Not give up. Rest. Think.”

“What’s that going to do?” Kaidu snarled.

“More than you throwing yourself at the wall is doing.”

Kaidu stomped over to him. He grabbed Rowan by the collar and yanked him off the ground.

Rowan stared up at him, hanging loose in his grasp. “Yeah?”

Kaidu dropped him. “Fuck.”

"What about that bag of yours? We get anything useful?"

A heavy impact. "Studio Lighting."

Brilliant white light spilled over the bag. Kaidu yanked it open.

Food wrappers glistened in the light, mingling with holey socks, empty bottles, and picked-clean bones. Rowan's lips twisted. Trash. A decoy.

Frustrated, Kaidu kicked the bag. Trash spilled across the room.

"Ugh, Kaidu, gross," Rowan complained.

Kaidu rounded on him. Rowan put his hands up and backed down. Huffing, Kaidu kicked a can and turned toward the corner, lips pressed together in disgust.

"Speaking of our heist, what was with those gem names? Did they all have hippie parents or something?" Rowan asked.

"Many people register nicknames in the Tower to protect themselves out of it," Kaidu said flatly.

Rowan whipped around. And you were going to tell me... when? I guess you're famous, so it doesn't matter, they'd recognize you anyways, but jeez, man!

He sighed. "At least I'm named after a tree. Maybe they'll figure I'm using a nickname. You know, a Gardener named after a tree? Sounds like a nickname to me."

Kaidu scoffed. "Sure."

Rowan grimaced. Yeah, who am I fooling? Dammit. Guess I'll have to keep my eyes open.

A low brushing sound caught the edge of Rowan’s hearing. Rowan frowned and tipped his head to hear it better. Is that…?

“Have you—” Kaidu started.

“Wait, shh,” Rowan whispered.

A fierce glare shot his direction. Rowan ignored Kaidu.

Something dragged along the ground outside their cell. Rowan ran up and pressed his ear against the wall. Dammit, I wish I could see. Well, the wall's only dirt, right? Strong dirt, but...

He scratched at the wall with the sharp tip of the trowel. Dust piled up on his hands, and a shallow hole opened up. Slipping the edge under a pebble, he pushed, using the trowel as a lever. The pebble plopped to the ground, and a ray of light poured in. Rowan leaned in and raised his eye to the hole.

A set of smaller ants dragged an unconscious man down the hallway. Beaten and torn, the man’s face was horribly swollen, eyes black, nose twisted to the side. Blood dripped from open wounds on his body and limbs. Bruises discolored his skin.

Rowan squinted. He looks familiar. Do I know that guy? His eyes widened. Wait… that’s Terry!

Kaidu shoved him out of the way and took a glimpse. His brows furrowed. “They captured someone else?”

“Yeah, a piece of shit,” Rowan muttered, arms crossed. Impatient, he waited for Kaidu to clear the peekhole.

Kaidu glanced through the hole, then back at Rowan. “You know him?”

“He’s an old classmate. A Hero.”

Kaidu raised his brows. “Hero? The legendary class handed out to only a few each generation? The one almost all Hero-Kings started with?”

Rowan twisted his lips in disgust. “That’s the one.”

Kaidu swept a look over Terry, from head to toes. A look of utter disdain crossed his face. “Piece of shit.”

Rowan shook his head in agreement. “Can’t even beat a bunch of ants with the Hero class, what does he think he’s doing?”

“A Hero should not struggle as much as a couple of support classes,” Kaidu said.

Rowan pointed at him. “Exactly.”

Standing at an angle, Rowan managed to get a glimpse of Terry past Kaidu. The builder ants crawled out from the walls and hovered, following the larger ant. With a toss of its head, the larger ant hefted Terry into a cavity. Builder ants closed off the cell, blocking it off with earth, the same as Kaidu and Rowan’s cell.

“Will that hold a Hero?” Rowan muttered.

Kaidu shrugged. “Depending on his level.” He drew out a piece of mushroom and lifted it to his mouth.

“Hey! What if that’s poisonous?” Rowan interjected.

Mushroom halfway to his mouth, Kaidu paused. “Is it, Gardener?”

“…I couldn’t say. Maybe if I took a bite, and Poison Resist activated…”

Snorting, Kaidu bit into the mushroom.

“Hey! At least a bite. Please, a bite? Kaidu…”

“You’re the idiot who got us trapped here. Those who don’t work, don’t eat.”

“I did the most work!”

“You got us arrested. By ants.”

Rowan paused at that. He sighed and sagged against the wall, then lunged, leaping for Kaidu’s slice of mushroom.

Kaidu spun on his toe, twisting the mushroom out of reach. Rowan’s grab glanced off his back. “Try again in a hundred years.”

Rowan jumped at his back and reached over Kaidu’s shoulders with both arms.

Unhesitating, Kaidu bent at the hips, grabbed his arms, and tossed him over his head. Rowan flew head-over-heels and plopped onto his ass. “Ow…”

Kaidu stuffed the last of the mushroom into his mouth and licked his fingers clean. He looked down at Rowan, sprawled over the floor, and smirked.

Rubbing his head, Rowan sat up. He scowled at the corner. “Mushrooms have almost no calories, anyways, you selfish dickhead.”

Scissors flashed in the low light. Kaidu narrowed his eyes. “What was that?”

“Self-ish dick-head,” Rowan pronounced slowly. “Got a problem with it?”

Kaidu slammed him against the wall. He grabbed Rowan by the bangs and forced his head back. Rowan’s chin tipped up, revealing his neck. Sharp edges pressed into his jugular. “One more time.”

Rowan bared his teeth. Just try it. I won’t be intimidated by you. “Self—”

“Uh… where… where am I?” a familiar voice mumbled from across the hallway.

Rowan jumped. Terry?