25: The Ruined Fortress of Roha Vala, Part Ten

The Ruined Fortress of Roha Vala, Part Ten

Neve did not immediately walk into the boss fight, for a couple of reasons.

Firstly, she wanted to take stock of everything that had happened so far. Everything she'd seen. Just in case something she'd been through or witnessed earlier ended up being important for this fight.

[The arken are weak to fire. The boss might not be, but it's worth noting that. And, there was that one ability the arken who cut my waist used. I think it made it faster. Whatever I end up fighting in there might have the same ability or a powered-up version of it. I'll need to keep that in mind.]

The second reason was Erin.

Neve wasn't sure what to do about her.

[I didn't find any keys or whatever on the way here. I don't know what the one I have does either. If I win this boss fight, will I get the chance to look around afterward? Or, will I just be teleported out of here instantly?]

Hopefully, she could actually receive an answer to that last question.

[Tamira, are you there?]

"Indeed," the snake replied, appearing before Neve in a shrunken version of herself. "To answer your question... Maybe, maybe not," Tamira replied.

"What?"

"Good luck with the boss!"

"W-Wait!"

Tamira just left then, not bothering to provide her with an answer at all.

[What was that!?]

She hadn't thought that it was possible for the snake to simply decline to answer a question. She hadn't done so up until this point, after all. However, now that she thought about it, Neve couldn't recall her ever saying that she *had* to answer whatever she asked.

[What's the point of having an assistant if she gets to pick and choose what questions to answer?]

Regardless, all Neve could do was go back to thinking about the matter at hand.

Erin was still stuck there. The fact that she did not have a level over her head meant she wasn't being affected by the same System that ruled over everything else here, for some reason. To Neve, that meant a few things:

1. The reward for getting her out was... well, just the satisfaction of saving her.

Or:

2. The reward was the training she'd offered. If that were the case, any warrior who was sent to this dungeon would probably do everything in their power to try to get her out.

But, that was all. At least, as far as Neve could tell.

Which left her with a simple question. Why did she, Neve specifically, a healer, want to get this woman out? And, well...

[Because I just want to,] she thought. [That's it. That's the only reason I have. Because it would suck if she was burned to death. If everything she said earlier was the truth, anyway.]

However, depending on what kind of training she offered, there could be nothing she could gain from helping her. 

Sure, there was a chance that she could give her something that might help with this fight, but Neve hadn't cut her way through to this place. She'd run to it. 

All of those arken were still there, angrily waiting for her to appear before them again. Even if she found the key to Erin's cell right now, if it magically fell into her hands, how exactly could she get back to her? 

[... Then, I don't really have any other choice, do I?] She thought, sighing, as she glanced down from the railing at the opposite end from the boss room. From this vantage point, she could see Erin's cage. [I just have to take the boss on. That's all I'm here for.]

Neve turned away from Erin then, with her hands balled up into fists.

[Hopefully, if I win, I'll be able to go do something about Erin after.]

With that decision being made, she turned back toward the boss room.

Her fate was held behind its closed, black, metal doors.

Her hands trembled. It was slightly harder to breathe, all of a sudden. 

So far, the stars had aligned a few times and Neve had survived several fights she really had no business winning. She'd done so through a combination of luck and strategy, and it was that same combination she would rely on to come out on top against whatever lurked behind these doors.

That said, it was unlikely that there would be a trap she could use to win the fight instantly, the way she'd won before. 

[Fundamentals,] she thought, inhaling steadily, trying to calm her nerves. [Positioning, kiting, and timing. The fact that I'm decent at these three things is basically all I have going for me. Whatever I'm about to fight, be it a mage, a warrior, a spellblade, multiple enemies at once, or anything else, I've probably seen it before. Either in real life or in a game before the Unity Trials started. There's nothing in there that's going to surprise me. So, as long as I stay calm and keep all of that in mind, I can do this. I can win this fight.]

At that moment, Neve took stock of everything in her possession.

3 Minor Healing Potions, 4 Seeds of Flame Affinity, and her spells. These were the tricks she had up her sleeves.

And this was her status heading into the fight:

Level 28

MP: 390/390 (+50)

EXP: 130/280

Activity Points: 150

WS Tokens: 4380

---

Endurance: 20

Speed: 10

Precision: 15

Strength: 5

Arcane: 39

As she stood in front of the door, Neve inhaled sharply.

[Let's do this.]

Before going in, she cast {Hard Target} on herself. Sure, it meant she would start the fight with quite a bit less mana, but if there was some ranged enemy in there then the spell could save her life.

MP: 365/440

Taking note of that, Neve pushed the doors open.

She wasn't too sure what she'd been expecting, but this certainly wasn't it.

She'd arrived at a bedroom of some sort. A massive one, that stretched back farther than any of the halls that brought her up to this point.

The metal walls and lava had been replaced by fluffy pink furniture and broken-down mannequins thrown around, just like the ones she'd seen when she first came in. The ceiling was simply a giant mirror. A few paintings on the walls depicted strange scenes, most of them featuring an outrageously buff arken man killing someone. Half the time the arken was killing lamias in these artworks, the other half of the time he was killing other arken, standing above them victoriously.

As she saw them, Neve heard a pair of voices coming from the massive bed at the back, giggling together.

It was as she glanced at them that she found that not everything was as pink and cute as the fluffy furniture. Surrounding the bed, spread evenly in a circle, were various heads on pikes, along with an ax resting against the wall to the side.

On top of the bed, Neve saw two individuals. An arken man and a woman that looked a lot like Erin in the middle of some passionate love-making.

"Hahahaha!" They laughed together as Neve grimaced before them.

[... Gross.]

Their laughter echoed throughout the room, along with the creaking of their massive bed. It was a robotic, strange laughter, however. A forced sound that never ended or lessened in intensity. 

Two things caught her eye.

One, that the man had this floating over his head:

Eilyn, the Conqueror

Level 60

MP: 200/200

And second, the woman, who didn't have a level, looked a lot like Erin, though she was different in some obvious ways. Like Erin, she was a lamia, but her skin and snake-like lower body were a pearly, crystalline white, as was her hair. As the two of them noticed Neve, they stopped, glancing her way. The healer saw that the woman's irises were white as well.

Holding her staff tightly, Neve watched as the arken male shoved the snake lady back harshly. She didn't seem to mind much, as she slithered away a little, holding one of the pink pillows to her naked chest. Her laughter continued, even as he left her presence. 

"Ah, so you're the bug all my soldiers have been barking at me about?" He asked with a rough voice. "How long has it been? Feels like we've been fuckin' for years now! I was half-convinced you lot would stop sending people to try to re-take this shithole."

Neve exhaled slowly.

[Attacking him by surprise won't do me any good. I don't have the kind of damage that would secure me some big advantage. Even worse, it might make the guy angry. That's an actual mechanic in some games. No, I need to take this slow. Let him come to me.]

"Terralyn," Eilyn said, turning toward the snake girl, "keep the bed warm for me. I'll give you this bitch's head as another trophy in just a moment."

Eilyn grabbed his ax and walked up, resting it on his shoulder. He didn't even bother putting any armor on. Naked as he was, he walked up to Neve looking rather cocky.

The arken man stood about 6 or 7 feet tall, with bulky arms, a strong frame, and many, many scars decorating his body. His right ear was cut off, as was one of the fingers on his left hand.

"Ergh..." He tilted his head at her. "What in the fourth hell are you supposed to be? You are ugly as shit! And, so small. Did you come to fight or to suck my dick too? Meh, if it's the latter, I don't mind if you do it after you die. I haven't spilled blood in too long!"

[Positioning, timing, kiting,] Neve reminded herself. [Just do your best. That's all you can do.] 

It was then that Neve made her first move.

The healer began the fight by strafing to the right and casting {Iceball}. She knew how important it could be to get that initial slow off, so, she wanted to do so as soon as possible.

Eilyn did not move to avoid the attacks at all. As Neve got to the right-hand back corner of the room, he took the projectiles to the chest and frowned.

"Ugh. You're one of *those*, with your shitty little tricks," he grumbled. "Your types are no fun, just insects. Soon as I get on top of you, you break too easily."

He took a few steps toward her.

That was all he needed to close the gap.

[Shit!]

Neve jumped to the left, just narrowly avoiding a single-handed swing from that massive ax that, if it had hit, certainly would have split her in half.

[He's fast!]

"Ugh... Nah, get back here," he muttered, extending his free hand toward her.

A purple-black orb appeared in his palm.

"What!?" Neve couldn't help but ask as she was suddenly pulled toward him.

The effect did not pull her all the way, but she ended up halfway back where she'd just been.

Level 60

MP: 160/200

[What did he just use!?] 

"I've conquered so many different kinds of people. Your kind is always the most annoying," he stated in a low, threatening voice. "I'm not letting you dance around. You're staying right in front of me!" 

Again, he raised up his ax and moved to bring it down on her.

Without standing just yet, Neve rolled to the side. The ax embedded itself in the pink floor. From her bed, Terralyn laughed and that sound continued to echo throughout the room, almost drowning out Neve's own thoughts as she got back up to her feet.

Perhaps because she didn't try moving away again, the man did not use that spell a second time. Instead, he simply swung his ax at her more.

Neve stepped back. The man did not let up. Once, twice, three times, he swung.

If Neve was a warrior, trying to remain in front of him, she probably would have been caught by now. However, as all she did was back off, she was able to keep her distance.

"What did I tell you!?" He asked. "You're not staying away from me!"

The man raised that hand again and used the same spell a second time. Neve was pulled toward him again.

Level 60

MP: 120/200

[Seriously, what is that!? Is that spell unavoidable!?]

She was too close, this time.

Eilyn held his ax up horizontally, putting his hands on its back as he positioned it like he was going to bring it down guillotine-style.

Neve moved forward.

With the back of her staff, she did the only thing she could think of doing from this position.

She pushed the back of it into the guy's balls.

"AGH!?" He cried out, pulling back. Even with a low Strength and a subpar staff, hitting a weak point like that had to hurt at least a little. "Hahahaha, you fucking bitch!" 

It didn't do real damage, but the man putting space between them allowed Neve to take a few steps back herself.

And she began peppering him with {Iceballs} again.

[I just need him to be slower. Just a little bit slower!] 

Barely flinching, Eilyn hissed as Neve tossed out her abilities. The blue mist surrounding him became denser with each spell.

"You are annoying... Even for an insect."

[How many of these spells is it going to take? No, there's no point in thinking about that. Just keep performing well. That's all.]

He went to raise his hand and use that spell a third time.

Neve ducked, wondering if, perhaps, there was some invisible projectile being thrown her way the instant that orb appeared. That wasn't the answer to the question.

She saw the answer when she looked down, dropping her head.

[It's a rune spell!?]

She was pulled, of course, but now, she knew what that spell was. The purple orb in his palm signaled the appearance of a rune under Neve's body which, upon activation, would pull her to him.

It disappeared the instant the pull was achieved, hence why Neve didn't see it before.

[Crap!]

Neve leaned to the right to avoid an attack, but the man stopped his hands halfway through the swing.

"Heh, dance you fucking bug. Dance!"

The arken leader wasn't giving her enough time to get to her feet so, she did as he asked. Moving from side to side, rolling on the ground, she avoided one half-hearted attack after another.

Until she couldn't anymore.

There was only so much a healer could do in this situation. 

It happened so quickly, Neve didn't register it at first. All she knew was that her left arm had been stretched just a little too far and that the man had swung down on it.

And, suddenly, she couldn't feel it anymore.

[Huh?]

There was no pain for approximately two seconds. No pain until Neve looked over at her arm and saw that it had been severed from her body.

Then, the pain was unreal.

"AAAAAAAAGGGGH!" She screamed. Terralyn's laughter grew louder, as did Eilyn's.

"Told ya!" He said, pulling his ax up and resting it on his shoulder. "As soon as I get on top of you, you break like twigs!"

The next five seconds felt like five years.

Neve stared at the arm that was no longer attached to her body. She looked up between it and her opponent, tears rolling down her cheeks.

Eilyn raised his ax up high in the air.

"Alright, how about we end this?" 

Watching it come down, Neve did not see her life flash before her eyes. Only part of it.

The rage she felt when her parents died, her mother's death caused by her own hands, resurfaced.

As the ax slammed down, Neve moved away.

Everything she did next came out automatically.

Neve did not think, she simply did.

It was as though her body, knowing it was in peril, had been taken over by someone else. Someone with an intense desire to live. One that burned brightly in her heart. 

A message appeared above her head. 

{Trait Discovered!}

The Undying Coward

{Focus increases with low HP}

Not that Neve noticed it. 

She was too busy staring down her enemy with wide, panicked eyes. 

First, she cast {Healing Ground} under herself, without her staff.

She hadn't had it happen to her, but she'd seen others have their limbs cut off in the past. She knew that doing this would only heal the open wound, not restore her entire limb, but that was all she wanted.

For the latter to happen, she'd need to cast her healing spell later, holding her arm up where it used to be, for that to happen.

She needed to recover right now, though. So, once {Healing Ground} was cast, she tossed her staff to the side and, as quickly as she could, took a Minor Healing Potion from her inventory.

Taking the cap off with her teeth, she swallowed its contents greedily while Eilyn watched from up ahead, amused. Immediately, she tossed the empty flask aside and used another.

"Alright... Well, I wanna get back to fuckin'. Come on, let me take off that ugly head of yours next."

Neve did not respond. Not verbally, not in her thoughts either. 

Instead, once she was fully healed, she tossed aside her finished potion and picked up her staff before running off to the left and casting more {Iceballs}.

"This again?" Eilyn asked, annoyed. "We've been through this already. You're not-"

As he raised his hand to cast his spell, however, Neve rolled to the right the instant she saw the orb in his hand.

And she was not pulled.

Eilyn tilted his head as more spheres of weak ice collided with his chest.

"Eh... Fine. I'll get you the old-fashioned way."

Neve remained silent. Her eyes wide and wild, like a stray cat staring down a growling dog, she kept her gaze fixed on Eilyn's form as he dashed toward her.

Neve pulled back, moving away from the enemy while still casting her spells, only now, she swapped to {Waterball}.

Eilyn was, of course, faster. His swings came out confidently and practiced. That "Conqueror" title of his was probably no exaggeration. However, Neve managed to keep him at bay, using the simple strategy of sidestepping him whenever he got close and running past him.

His swings had become easier to dodge. The blue mist around him was so thick that Neve felt a cold air pass when he walked by.

Neve herself, however, felt like she was burning.

The only sound in her ears was that of her own breathing, even as Eilyn started speaking up ahead, pointing his ax at her. Even as Terralyn's laughter persisted. 

Neve cut him off with more {Waterballs} and the chase continued.

After a while, Eilyn reached up and touched his own chest.

Wounds had accumulated all over his body. Small, minor ones, but wounds nonetheless.

"Well... You might be the most annoying bug I've met. Fine," he said, his eyes beginning to glow red, "if you want me to go all out, I'll go all out."

Neve's only response was another {Waterball} that splashed against Eilyn's chest.

"AAAAAAGH!"

Level 60

MP: 0/200

Using up what little mana he had left, Eilyn seemed to empower himself.

If one judged the moment purely by Neve's reaction, they'd think nothing had happened. Her posture, her eyes, the way her hand slightly trembled, none of it changed after seeing that.

He had one more surprise to offer, however. Suddenly, his ax was engulfed in flames.

Neve pulled out a {Seed of Flame Affinity} above her from her inventory and caught it in her mouth before Eilyn made his first move, swallowing it. 

The arken dashed forward, leaving scorch marks where he'd been standing. Neve strafed to the left.

To put it simply, if it hadn't been for the work Neve had put in with her {Iceballs} for the purposes of slowing the man down, she'd simply be dead at this point.

He was outrageously fast, even with that slow. Neve couldn't hope to match it.

She did not need to, however. All she needed were three things:

Positioning, kiting, and timing. As long as she had them, the difference in speed could be made up for.

As the man swung his ax at her, Neve hopped backward.

Remaining on the tips of her toes, Neve moved across the bedroom arena like a martial artist moving across a fighting ring. Every time Eilyn's ax got close to her, Neve's blood would run cold, prompting her, begging her, to move faster.

Because if she didn't, she would die.

It was that simple.

She either did it or died. There was no other option. 

After so many spells, she had this amount of mana left:

MP: 120/440

Taking stock of her mana, Neve realized she only had 12 more spells to cast before she'd need to regenerate.

So, after casting two more {Waterballs}, Neve switched spells one more time.

She launched a {Fireball} at her opponent.

As soon as it caught Eilyn, the arken screeched.

"AAAGH!?"

It was effective for two reasons. One, it seemed the arken as a whole were weak to fire, as Neve had noticed over the course of the handful of fights she had leading up to this.

The second reason was that she'd just shot him in the dick.

Eilyn fell to the ground, pulling and patting at his genitalia in hopes of taking the fire off. He even dropped his ax as well.

Neve knew she wouldn't get a better shot than this.

MP: 90/440

MP: 80/440

MP: 70/440

One {Fireball} after another, Neve spammed her beginner-level spells at the fallen enemy, walking straight at him.

But, she knew it wouldn't be enough.

Her spells weren't strong enough. She'd run out of mana long before this man died. But, as long as she kept him weakened, she could work with that.

As Neve's mana finally ran out and she lost the ability to cast any spells at all, she began using her staff in a different way.

Wordlessly, she picked her staff up and slammed the back of it down on Eilyn's head.

"Agh," Eilyn recoiled. It was as though the smack of wood against his skull knocked some sense into him and he reached for his ax.

Neve slammed the back of her staff into his skull again.

She was not a very strong person, of course. Not physically, not emotionally. In many ways, Neve could be called a weakling.

That meant that it would take many, many bashes of her staff before this man would die.

But she was willing to do that.

"Aergh!?"

Neve kicked his ax away. It landed close to the bed, where Terralyn watched from. 

Four, six, ten, fourteen times, and so on, Neve slammed her staff into his head while remnants of the flames she'd poured on top of him continued to sear his skin.

And then, Eilyn finally settled for slamming his knee into Neve's right thigh. 

She cried out breathlessly, falling to the side, and dropping her staff. The pain was electric. 

With her hand shaking, however, she was reaching for the last potion in her inventory before she even hit the ground.

"You..." Eylin said, sounding tired as he tried to stand. Neve drank the potion and tossed the empty flask at his face. Anything to get some more damage in, after all. "Are... annoying." 

Neve got to her feet first.

MP: 20/440

She picked up her staff and, with two more {Fireballs} at her disposal from having regenerated some mana, she cast the spell twice. Eylin hit the ground again.

"AAAAAGH!?" 

With her mana depleted again, Neve went right back to slamming the back of her staff into the man's head. Albeit with a limp this time. She wasn't fully healed. 

Eventually, dark green blood began to pool beneath him. She could feel his skull cracking with every hit.

Her arm was dead. She could barely move it due to exhaustion, but she picked up her staff all the same and kept slamming it into his skull. 

"... Tell me," Eylin said, weakly, as she hit him again. "Were you actually a warrior? Have I been deceived?"

Neve paused.

She shook her head, raising her staff.

Her hand continued to tremble, even as she landed the final blow. 

"No," she muttered, her voice strained and quiet. "I'm just a healer."

She slammed it into his forehead one last time.

And his skull caved in.

A message popped up above Neve, but she ignored it. All she saw was that it said "Boss EXP Bonus!" But she couldn't be bothered to look at the rest, right now.

Falling onto her back, she felt like she was in a dream. Like this was the end of one and she was about to wake up, back home, eager to drink some of her mom's coffee in the morning.

Instead, as time passed, she remained exactly where she was, blinking for a while until she realized:

[I won.]

Was she happy? 

She couldn't say. The moment didn't feel real. 

It didn't matter, though. She was beaten, cut, and broken, but she was victorious. 

A snake lady came into her vision, looking down on her from above. 

Terralyn had moved from the bed all the way over here.

"So... the tyrants finally won?" She asked, leaning over Neve. Neve blinked back at her. "Was it that wretched Erin you fought for? For this?" She asked, holding a key over Neve's body. She tried to reach for it, but she literally had no energy in her body anymore. "Heh, take it. Fate is an unfair thing, after all. It seems it favors her. However, I suppose I already got my revenge. All the years of being an outcast, all the years I was mocked and insulted for being born different from the rest. I got back at everyone. Even if you came here now and ruined it all, I got my vengeance." 

Before Neve could tell her that she didn't give a fuck, the woman simply disappeared.

Literally.

She vanished, slowly becoming dust swept away by a passing wind, as though she'd never been there, to begin with.

Neve closed her eyes.

Breathing heavily, she thought back to her own performance just now. The focus she felt, the quality of her movements.

[What did I just do?] She wondered, before realizing the answer quickly. [I... I was so scared.] 

Then, she took a nap.

In that fluffy, pink room, where green blood was currently staining the room, Neve allowed herself to fall asleep.

She'd earned it, no?

---

"Agh..." Neve moved her left arm after having attached it. "I've never actually had a limb cut off myself. It fucking sucks."

Once her mana had fully regenerated, putting her arm back on was as simple as holding it up, casting {Healing Ground}, and waiting for it to work.

Although this method existed, other players were often not quite as lucky as Neve. If one's arms or, worse yet, their legs were severed in the middle of a dungeon, usually that meant you were probably running away from whatever had managed to do that. And, if you did, the chances of picking up one's leftover limb were fairly low. However, if you were able to recover your lost limb, you could do what Neve did now.

The message that had popped up before was an EXP message. Just below it, however, was one that Neve hadn't noticed until after she assigned all of the points she got from leveling up.

{Do you wish to leave the dungeon?}

{Yes} {No}

And, yes, she'd leveled up quite a bit.

After assigning all of her points, this was what her status amounted to:

Level 40

MP: 600/600 (+300)

EXP: 290/400

Activity Points: 150

WS Tokens: 5450

---

Endurance: 20

Speed: 25

Precision: 15

Strength: 5

Arcane: 60

Although she'd won, this fight had illustrated a very important point to Neve. Endurance wasn't the only Attribute she needed to work on. Speed would be vital throughout this journey. She would need to make sure to increase it in the future. 

The biggest benefit of winning, aside from it meaning that she didn't die, could arguably be that now, she could finally use Father Uriel's staff, the Staff of the Righteous.

Staff of the Righteous

{Rare}

{REQ: Level 30}

{Boosts mana by 300}

{Increases effectiveness of Buff-type spells}

VALUE: 500

The wonderful thing about this, aside from the incredible mana increase, was that {Sacred Ground} and {Hard Target} both counted as Buff-type spells. Defensive buffs, specifically. And so, both were improved by the staff.

It couldn't be compared to the one she'd been using before. Not even from an appearance perspective. A pristine white wood with a mystical golden crystal at the top, it looked as impressive as its stats were.

[Well... Let's hope this makes getting to Erin easier.]

Of course, Neve decided to go back for Erin in the end. She was a healer, after all. Helping others was her job.

However, as she went down the elevator, prepared to engage enemies, she found that the halls were completely empty.

[Huh?]

Neve peeked around the corners, wanting to make sure she wouldn't get jumped.

No. The halls were actually empty.

[What happened?]

As Neve made her way to Erin's cage, this question remained in her mind.

"You fought him, didn't you?" She suddenly asked. "The Conqueror."

"Uh... Yeah. How did you know?"

There was something different about the way Erin was looking at Neve now. Neve could scarcely believe it, but it seemed like she'd gained some respect.

"Part of the reason Eilyn the Conqueror was such an effective leader was his ability to communicate telepathically with his soldiers."

"What?" Neve asked, shocked.2

"Yes," Eilyn nodded. "That is one of his abilities. Part of why we never stood a chance against his forces. It seems that you must have done something up there that made him tell his soldiers to flee. I saw them," she stated, "running past me and moving down the halls. I suspect they've either fled the fortress entirely or, they're amassing somewhere else, waiting for this incredible threat that eliminated their leader to come out."

Neve scoffed.

"They'll be waiting for a while. I'm getting the fuck out of here."

As she said that, she opened Erin's cage.

The woman slithered out, falling onto the ground, beside Neve.

"Sorry," she said, picking her upper half up. "It has been a while since I moved."

"Right..." Neve nodded. "What now? For you, I mean. Like I said, I'm getting the hell out."

"Now, I... I thank you," she replied. "In the best way that I know how."

"Oh, are you going to train me now? Or-"

She kissed her.

Before Neve could finish speaking, Erin pressed her lips against hers.

Neve's eyes widened.

Her first kiss was given to her by a sickly, but strong, snake lady. It was soft, it was quick, but as indicated by the lingering warmth on Neve's lips, it certainly happened.

And, another message appeared over her head.

{Spell Learned}

{Call of the Warrior Princess}

{Summons forth Erin Leynall for 1 minute. The duration timer begins to count down once combat is entered.}

{MP: 300}

Neve nearly fell as her legs almost gave out.

"Well, a kiss from me was certainly more valuable before I looked like this, but... I hope I still have some appeal. Thank you, hero," Erin said. "I appreciate what you have done for me. And... the justice you delivered. Even if my kin could not be here to celebrate with me."

And then, just like Terralyn, she disappeared.

Neve was stunned.

She needed answers.

[Tamira?]

"Yessss?" She asked.

"What... What just happened?"

"Ah, come on, Neve. You're a smart human. Surely, you could be more specific in your line of questioning?"

Neve paused. Figuring out something better to ask, she looked at Tamira, who floated to her left.

"Was... Was Erin fake or something?" Neve asked. "Was all of this fake? Does this place exist?"

"Ah, well," Tamira said, spinning around her. "That depends on your definition of 'fake'. Erin and Terralyn, as you briefly knew them, were in fact two individuals born and raised in a fortress just like this one." As she explained this matter, she floated in front of Neve. "One was a treasured piece of her family, the pride of the fortress, the other... an abomination. Terralyn had endured years and years of social agony until, one day, she left. She went down the nearby mountains, looking to live life on her own, when she met Eylin. The man captured her, and she fell in love with him in captivity. Then, she had a plan..."

Tamira flew close to Neve's ear.

"... She decided that she could not allow her people to live so comfortably after all the emotional pain they'd caused her. So, she told Eylin about them. She had him bring his band of murderers and rapists to them and... well, the fortress fell. Erin was captured after failing to defend her home and she ended up in a cage just like this one," Tamira said, gesturing at the place where Neve had found her. "And, she died, dipped in a pool of lava, just like this one."

Neve had no clue what to make of all of this. Thankfully, Tamira continued.

"But, the Erin you met was someone you could speak to, feel and see. And, that spell she gave you will allow you to summon her and your opponents will certainly feel her claws, teeth, and spells as they fight her. She will speak, respond, share her thoughts, and let you know about her tastes, passions, and hobbies. Oh, and you will be able to feel those plump lips of hers again if you ask for them. If you ask me, I'd say all of that makes this version of Erin quite real, no? Ah, well, I suppose that's for you to judge~"

On that note, Tamira left.

Neve was on her own, then, with nothing but that information to take in and the message over her head.

She briefly glanced at the staircase to her left, where the floating blocks waited for her, but, no. She was done.

[I'm not searching through anything else. Fuck the bunker, fuck the key, fuck that locked door, I'm done. I am tired. Get me the hell out of here.]

And, with a bittersweet taste in her mouth, Neve tapped the {Yes} button, below the question that asked if she wanted to leave.

In the blink of an eye, appeared elsewhere.

Suddenly, she was standing back outside the Main Dungeon.

It was over. 

She had won. 

It was one victory, only the first of many if she planned to beat Thomas and his group, but it was a victory nonetheless. 

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