Aegon shook his head.
'Why couldn't I just reincarnate as a God?'
With a weary sigh, he slid his hands into his pockets and retrieved his phone.
He turned off the flashlight and cautiously moved closer to the shaft.
Darkness.
For as long as his eyes could see, but after tugging on the rope he knew it was at least reliable.
He looked around in the empty room — trying to find any excuse or reason he wouldn't have to do this.
It was truly going to be unpleasant. And worse, he had no idea how far down this thing would go.
The vault was said to be underground but he was on the top floor of the 7 floor library, which means he'd pull down those seven floors by hand and have to keep going down.
He walked over to his desk and grabbed his pen— back to the shaft and tossed it down.
Bent his knees and listened in— it was more than a pen drop. It was basically how long he'd be crawling down a shaft for.
And he knew authors were known for being sadistic. Like entrail who made his MC pull down a shaft for three days just to have him drop.
Just the thought made a cold sweat cling to his back.
~THUD.~
The pen finally dropped down and echoed back at him.
Aegon shrugged. It was at least possible now.
Grabbing onto the rope— he moved into the shaft.
Luckily, it was still just a beam sized shaft— he leaned back at one end and rested his feet on the edge of the opening.
Then enclosed it. Yes, it was his only source of light and known escape, however, he couldn't risk someone stumbling across an open shaft beam.
A book's rules were a book's rules for a reason.
~SCRRRRCH!~
He managed to pull the shaft closer.
Sweat already forming on his forehead.
Slow and steady— that was his tactic for this. There was no rush.
He began pulling down.
The rope felt old yet made to endure years — but not without several fibres jagging the edges and making every pull come with a sting.
After a minute, he leaned back against the shaft, giving his hands a chance to recover from the torturous grip.
He stared at his hands— blistered, strained and dusty.
His plan to not look down had failed woefully— darkness stretched unendingly.
"This is what I get for staring at an ass."
He muttered as he wiped the pooling sweat from his brows. Most of it had already dropped down off his chin.
He continued down, like gravity had increased tenfold, every pull down came from trembling hands that begged for mercy.
The lower he got, the more the thought of just letting go became tempting.
With his eyes getting heavier, arms going numb and all sensory details being blurred by pain— he let go.
His body bounced off each side off the shaft before—his eyes shot back wide open.
Aegon stretched for the rope with shuffling and desperate hands.
"Grrrrgh!"
A scream of pain escaped through his gritted teeth when he finally grabbed onto the rope.
He grabbed on but not before gravity made fool of him— scraping his bare hands against the bittersweet rope.
He held the once hated rope like a lifeline.
Looking up the rope to see the jagged edges had used his hands as a condiment— tearing his hands and smearing the blood across.
He rested back on the shaft— it was hopeless.
He contemplated going back up. This was a monumentally dumb idea. But lesson learned.
He looked up— then down. Darkness surrounded him like a canopy.
He tightly shut his eyes, his sweaty clung to every part of him and his chest heaved relentlessly.
He hated breathing right now. Every breath came with a pain in his chest, and the breath of stale musty dirt-ridden air.
'What time is it?'
He thought to himself, anything to get his mind off the rope in front of him.
His phone was still in his pocket, probably no signal, but he could still reach for it— no.
The thought of holding anything felt like another pain on its own, his hands twitched ever so slightly by his side.
"ARGH."
He shifted to take off his shirt, avoiding any sensation to his hands.
'I really hope this works.'
He hoped inwardly— wrapping his shirt round the rope.
"Haaa... Haaa."
He steadied himself.
Managing to grab back onto the rope and—
~SCRRRRCH.~
He slid down.
For about five seconds, the rope was too jagged for swift motion.
His shirt only lasted long enough for the rope to rip it to pieces.
"I'm done! I can't do it anymore."
His echo replied him, almost mockingly.
'Think, man, Fucking Think.'
He spat on his two hands,rubbed them together to create some kind of ointment.
But dry spit isn't exactly soothing.
His plan was simple. To drop.
"..."
Yes, absurd at first thought but if he timed it just right, moved his hands fast enough to grab back onto the rope when needed.
It would work.
It had to work. Right?
He let go—
"..."
Grabbed back on. As long as fingers wouldn't lock up, it was full proof.
Let go—
"..."
Grabbed on.
Let go—
"...."
Ironically, his fingers weren't want failed him—
The rope did.
Decades old rope wasn't exactly made for the wear down, of a bungee cord, it was currently undergoing.
He grabbed onto the rope like it owed him money just as he felt it snap under his weight.
His eyes shot wide as he reached for something— anything at all.
He was angled too weirdly to hook onto the shaft.
His weightlessness almost felt majestic just before—
~BAM!~
His body finally slammed against the floor of... Wherever the hell he was.
His shoulder broke his fall and probably broke itself, too tired to even scream— he rolled in pain and turned to the sky.
A cave— jagged edges of black glistening stone hung high above, dust under his feet and blood on his lips.
The stone glistened from light, somewhere light entered— which means somehow light left.
"Mmrgh."
He groaned back to his feet, holding his shoulder in place.
Using the back of his palm to wipe the sweat and dirt from his eyes.
He blinked— somehow in this cave— stood a shop, miniature, it looked handmade, of rooting wood and rusted nails yet standing.
With a sign on the top, that said 'Echo Vault.'
"Of course the Echo Vault's a little shop."