----Page 3----
The air inside the cave grew colder with every step as the narrow tunnel twisted downward, the light of our torches bouncing off damp stone.
Somewhere far below, a faint hum echoed, a pulse like the heartbeat of something ancient.
After the dungeon's entrance collapsed behind us, there was only one way left: down.
Lysera walked ahead, her silver hair glowing faintly in the torchlight. Arin trailed behind, sketching markings on the walls as we descended.
I followed last, carrying the Codex Record at my hip, its black surface pulsing faintly with warmth.
Then the stone passage widened.
We stepped out onto a ledge, and the sight stole our breath.
Below us stretched a vast underground cavern, an impossible world hidden beneath the earth. Towering trees of pale crystal glimmered with soft green light, their roots weaving through pools of glowing water. Strange fungi pulsed like lanterns, casting swirls of color through the mist.
It was a forest inside a cave.
Arin whistled softly.
"You've gotta be kidding me."
Lysera's expression didn't change.
"An Undergrove Biome. I thought these were only legends."
"It's beautiful," I whispered, then felt a shiver crawl up my spine.
"But why does it feel like it's breathing?"
"The dungeon adapts," she replied quietly.
"Sometimes it grows life to protect itself."
°°°
The descent continued. From above, the faint light faded, replaced by the soft glow of moss and the low hum of energy that ran through every root and stone.
Lysera led the way with measured steps. The air grew heavy, rich with mana. Around them, the cavern pulsed in rhythm, alive like an ancient heart still beating beneath the surface of the world.
They climbed down through winding roots that served as bridges, water dripping steadily from unseen heights. The sound of it was slow and steady, almost meditative.
Kinon's Codex vibrated faintly at his side, reacting to the energy. Lysera stopped when their torchlight began to dim and turned toward him.
"You've felt it by now, the mana that moves through this place?"
I nodded.
"It's everywhere."
"Sit. You'll learn to draw from your own current before the dungeon's current drowns you."
I sat cross-legged on the moss. The air was cool and thick with the scent of earth. Lysera traced symbols into the dirt, runes pulsing with soft blue light.
"Focus on your breathing," she said.
"Find your center. Don't pull from the dungeon. Pull from yourself."
I closed my eyes. At first, only silence. Then a flicker of heat inside my chest, faint and steady.
"That's your mana," she said.
"It's part of your will. Shape it."
I tried. The warmth surged too fast, rushing into my arms until my fingertips burned. The light cracked and vanished.
Lysera's tone stayed calm.
"You're forcing it. Mana answers control, not command."
I gritted my teeth and tried again. This time, I let it flow. The warmth moved smoothly through my veins, spreading to my hands. A faint blue shimmer coated my fingers.
When I opened my eyes, the light faded, but the feeling stayed.
Arin, crouched nearby with a handful of glowing crystal shards, grinned.
"You look like you just wrestled smoke."
"Feels like it," I muttered, shaking my arms.
Lysera crossed her arms, her gaze softening slightly.
"Good. Your body is beginning to align with the Codex."
°°°
As they ventured deeper, the faint luminescence painted their faces in shades of green and blue. Arin scouted ahead, marking their path.
Lysera moved with quiet precision, her senses trained on the subtle shifts in mana. Kinon followed, feeling the hum of the world flow through his blood.
The dungeon stirred. From the shadow of the roots, movement flickered.
Lysera stopped.
"Stay alert."
From between the crystal trees, shapes began to emerge: thin, twisted figures with green fire in their eyes.
Arin whispered, "Five... no, wait, maybe six."
Lysera's hand rested lightly on her crystal-like rapier.
"Forest Wights. The dungeon's scavengers. They feed on mana leaks."
"Should we engage, Lysera?"
"Yes, we should," she said simply.
"You two handle them."
The first Wight lunged.
I barely had time to raise my hand.
"Mana Barrier!"
A translucent shield formed, catching its claw swipe. Cracks spidered through the barrier, but it held. My arms shook from the impact.
"Arin!"
He tossed a small sphere that burst midair into silver dust. The Wight slowed, its body stiffening.
"Yes! It worked!"
Arin shouted, pumping his fist.
"Take that, you overgrown creep!"
"Well done, Arin," Lysera said softly.
"Your turn, Master."
I swung, channeling mana through my blade. The glow cut through the mist, slashing across the Wight's chest. It shrieked and burst into ash.
Two more came from behind. Arin flung another dust bomb. One stumbled into a glowing pool and dissolved.
The last one charged. My stance faltered.
"Now, Master!" Lysera's voice cut through the chaos calm, commanding.
"Flow, don't force."
I inhaled. The warmth pulsed steady and alive. I let it move instead of pushing. My sword shimmered blue as I turned and struck in a clean arc.
The Wight disintegrated, ash sinking into the moss.
°°°
After the last one fell, silence returned. The faint drip of water echoed through the chamber.
Arin began collecting what the creatures left behind: crystals, bones, and faint traces of mana stone.
"Master, how are we supposed to carry all this?" he groaned.
"If the next chamber is like this, we'll drown in loot."
I looked at the heap and frowned. Wasn't there something in the Codex an inventory function?
The book at my side pulsed. Words shimmered faintly.
"Inventory Box?"
I whispered the phrase, and a ripple of energy opened before me. A glowing portal appeared, hovering above the moss.
Arin's eyes widened.
"Whoa. That's new."
The Codex pulsed again. The loot lifted gently and vanished into the portal, one piece at a time.
"Master, that's incredible," Arin said.
"No more dragging stuff around?"
I nodded.
"Seems like it. The Codex gives what's needed when it's needed."
When the last shard disappeared, the Codex glowed softly. A faint message appeared:
"Inventory Box acquired. Objects within range can be stored and retrieved at will."
I touched the light briefly and smiled.
Arin picked up a glowing shard.
"Can we test it again? Maybe with something bigger?"
Lysera's voice broke the quiet.
"Careful, Arin. Curiosity is good, but recklessness kills."
I laughed softly.
"Don't worry. I'll handle it."
°°°
The group rested. Arin scavenged glowing mushrooms from the roots.
"Wait, is that edible?" I asked.
"Glowcaps. Expensive on the surface," Arin said, chewing one and grimacing.
I shook my head.
"You survived on that?"
"Better than starving. Monsters hate the smell."
I chuckled.
"Guess that's a benefit."
They packed up, checked weapons, and continued forward. The glow of the undergrove faded behind them as violet streaks began to thread the walls. Mana pulsed through the stone like veins under skin.
Each step echoed softly. Kinon's Codex pulsed in rhythm with his heartbeat.
They walked on.
°°°
The tunnel opened into a cathedral-sized chamber. Pillars of purple crystal jutted upward, humming faintly. Some reached the ceiling like fangs of glass.
Arin stepped forward.
"These things are massive."
Lysera knelt beside one, running her fingers along the surface.
"Don't touch these with bare skin."
"Why? They look harmless."
"They're Orrynth residue, condensed by mana."
She paused.
"That's Orrynth waste."
There was silence.
"Wait, what?" I blinked.
Arin slowly withdrew his hand.
"You're joking."
"I'm not," Lysera said dryly.
"Great. I touched it," he groaned.
"Love this dungeon already."
Lysera almost smiled.
"You'll live. Probably."
I frowned.
"How do you even know that?"
Her gaze shifted downward.
"I don't know. The knowledge just came, as if I've seen it before."
"Like a memory?" I asked.
Lysera shook her head.
"No. I have none. I only exist because the pages say I do."
The silence stretched until I spoke softly.
"Then maybe we'll write you a new memory."
She blinked and smiled faintly.
"Perhaps."
The ground rumbled. Dust fell from the ceiling. The crystals vibrated and chimed like bells, the sound growing louder, more insistent.
Lysera's expression hardened.
"It's awake."
From the far end of the cavern, a wall of crystal split open with a deafening crack. A massive creature stepped through, its form eclipsing the light.
The Orrynth.
Its body was plated in jagged stone and violet crystal veins that pulsed with raw mana.
Wings of fractured glass, vast and terrible, unfurled from its back, casting grotesque shadows that danced across the chamber. Its eyes burned with molten orange fury, fixed on us with predatory hunger.
The ground shook beneath its ponderous steps, each footfall sending tremors through our bones. Dust and debris rained down from the ceiling. The air crackled with energy, raising the hairs on my arms.
Arin crouched low, his face pale but determined.
"That's way bigger than I imagined."
Lysera drew her rapier, the crystal-like blade humming with power.
"Don't let it charge its breath. If it releases here, we die."
I gripped my sword, my heart pounding in my chest.
"Got it."
The Orrynth roared, a sound that resonated deep within my soul, a primal challenge that stirred both fear and defiance. It beat its wings, sending a blast of wind that nearly knocked us off our feet. The force of it was like standing before a raging storm.
"Scatter!" Lysera commanded, shoving Arin behind a crystal pillar.
The ground split, fissures snaking across the cavern floor. Purple light bled from the cracks, illuminating the Orrynth's massive form in an eerie glow. Arin's traps flashed silver, ensnaring one of its legs in a web of shimmering energy.
"Now, Master!" he yelled, his voice strained with effort.
"Distract it!"
I dashed forward, mana flaring blue around my blade. I struck at its shoulder, aiming for a chink in its armor, but the blade sparked uselessly off the crystal plating.
"Too hard!" I shouted, feeling a surge of frustration.
"It's too hard!"
The Orrynth's tail swung around with blinding speed, a massive club of stone and crystal. I barely had time to react, raising a mana barrier in a desperate attempt to defend myself.
The impact shattered the barrier like glass, sending me crashing into the ground. Pain flared in my ribs, stealing my breath. I gasped for air, my vision swimming.
"Flow through the strike, not against it!" Lysera called, her voice sharp and urgent.
"Use its momentum against it!"
I forced myself up, ignoring the pain. The Orrynth reared back, its chest glowing with an ominous violet light. The air crackled with energy, and I knew what was coming.
"Breath incoming!" Arin shouted, scrambling for cover.
Lysera slammed her rapier into the ground, her eyes blazing with power.
"Aegis Seal!"
A translucent dome of shimmering energy enveloped us, a fragile shield against the impending onslaught.
The Orrynth unleashed its breath a torrent of pure energy that scorched the chamber, melting the crystal pillars and turning the air into a searing inferno.
The Aegis Seal shuddered and cracked, the energy of the blast threatening to overwhelm it. Lysera strained, her face contorted with effort, but the barrier held, barely.
The blast subsided, leaving a pall of smoke and the stench of ozone. Lysera was breathing hard, her face pale.
"We can't defend again," she said, her voice strained.
"Attack while it recovers!"
Arin scrambled to prepare another trap, his hands moving with frantic speed.
"Give me five seconds!" he pleaded.
"Just five seconds!"
The Orrynth turned toward me again, its molten eyes burning with hate. It raised a clawed hand, ready to strike.
I steadied my breath, focusing on the warmth that pulsed within me. I closed my eyes, letting the mana flow, not forcing it, feeling the rhythm of the world around me.
"Flow, not force," I whispered, remembering Lysera's words.
My blade shone with an ethereal blue light, and time seemed to slow. I could feel everything: the rhythm of mana, the pulse of the beast, the hum of the crystals. I saw a network of glowing veins beneath its crystal armor, a pathway for its life force.
I struck, aiming for one of the exposed veins. The blade pierced the crystal plating and plunged into the flesh beneath, drawing a roar of pain from the Orrynth.
Arin hurled his device, a sphere of shimmering energy that detonated midair, cracking its armor open, revealing a raw, pulsating core of violet light.
"Now, Master!" Lysera shouted, her voice strained but filled with hope.
"The core! Strike the core!"
I raised my sword high, but my arms trembled with exhaustion. The Codex flared white-hot at my side, draining my strength, leaving me weak and vulnerable. I could barely stand.
"Resonant Strike!"
I yelled, pouring the last of my mana into the blade, focusing all my will on a single, desperate blow.
But as I struck, I felt a wave of dizziness wash over me. The Codex was draining me dry.
The blade came down in a flash of blue light, striking the exposed core. The impact split the chamber with a deafening roar that swallowed everything.
The Orrynth dissolved into shards that dissolved into violet dust, its reign of terror finally at an end.
Arin stared in disbelief.
"We actually did it."
I dropped to one knee, exhausted, my body trembling with fatigue. My vision swam, and I gasped for breath, trying to pull air into my burning lungs.
The Codex had taken its toll, leaving me drained and weak.
Lysera lowered her rapier, her expression unreadable.
"The Orrynth has fallen. The Codex will record this victory."
The Codex pulsed, its pages glowing with a soft light. But this time, the surge of energy didn't revitalize me. It only seemed to amplify my exhaustion.
A crystal fragment rolled to my feet. Lysera nodded toward it.
"Keep it. You may need it later."
Arin laughed, a nervous, shaky sound.
"I call dibs on never fighting anything with wings again."
I managed a weak smile, but my body protested with every movement.
"Agreed," I croaked, my voice hoarse.
Lysera turned to the dark beyond the chamber.
"Don't relax yet. The Chronicle never ends with one page."
The Codex pulsed again, faint but steady. A heartbeat answering another.
I knew she was right. This was just the beginning. There were more challenges to face, more dangers to overcome. But as I looked at the dark tunnel ahead, I wondered if I had the strength to continue.
Lysera stepped forward, her gaze steady.
"Can you walk, Master?"
I tried to stand, but my legs buckled beneath me. I stumbled, and Lysera reached out to steady me.
"Easy," she said, her voice gentle.
"We'll get you through this."
Arin slung my arm over his shoulder, helping me to my feet.
"Come on, Master," he said, his voice filled with concern.
"Lean on us. We've got you."
And so, with their help, I stumbled forward, venturing deeper into the dungeon. My body was weak, but my spirit remained unbroken.
I knew that as long as I had my friends by my side, I could face whatever challenges lay ahead.