At the heart of a scorching golden wasteland lay the oasis that refused to ripple despite the shifting sands around it. The barrier that surrounded it shimmered faintly. Inside that sanctuary, Thales and Verdamona sat by the water's edge, surrounded by scattered supplies.
The Faceless still loomed beyond the barrier. Tens of thousands of tall, ghostly forms with elongated limbs were glaring at them. They had no faces or voices. Each impact made the barrier incinerate them and despite it killing thousands, more kept respawning.
Verdamona sat with her knees tucked close, her long braid resting on her shoulder. Her whip refused to materialize. She tried again, summoning her Flux with a focused breath, but only a faint shimmer appeared at her wrist before dissolving.
Thales noticed. "Still nothing?"
She exhaled slowly, looking at her empty palm. "Still nothing."
"You okay?"
Verdamona have a small smile.
"Yeah. Just… tired. My body's fine, but my Flux feels like it's scared to come out."
They had been there for days yet somehow, the oasis had sustained them. Phaser's supplies had been enough to keep them alive, though monotony and fear gnawed at their spirits. The Faceless never left. They didn't eat or rest. They waited. Verdamona looked toward the barrier.
"Do you think we're going to die here?"
Thales didn't look up. He was cleaning a small blade, his reflection sharp against the steel. "No."
She gave a short, humorless laugh. "You sound confident."
"I have to. Because if I start thinking we're doomed, then we really are."
She stared at him for a long moment. "You really think the clue is here? In this place?"
"Has to be. We've searched every grain of sand and every corner of this oasis. The stars don't lie. If the next clue isn't above ground…"
She followed his gaze. The water was black, bottomless. Even by daylight it refused to show what hid beneath.
"So you think it's underwater."
"Not think. I know."
Verdamona turned her head slowly. "You sound awfully sure for someone who doesn't even know where it leads."
Thales hesitated and then sighed. "I've been diving."
"What?"
"Yeah, while you were sleeping for the last few days. I couldn't just sit here waiting. The oasis is deeper than it looks. I found a tunnel near the bottom. It's… big enough for two, but it keeps going. I didn't reach the end."
"And you didn't tell me?"
"I was going to. I wanted to make sure it wasn't a death trap first. I thought maybe the stars would send something clearer before we risked it."
The corners of her mouth lifted slightly. "So… when do we go?"
"Tonight. I've been waiting for their signal. If we go without their word, the Faceless might follow us in. Or worse."
Verdamona looked thoughtful, tracing her fingers over the sand. "Then we wait. And Thales… thanks."
"For what?"
"For putting up with me. I know I'm not easy to deal with."
"You mean the constant sarcasm or the panic attacks every time something taller than a tree looks at you?"
"Both, I guess. I've had megalophobia since I was five. Ever since… well, ever since the first time I saw a Fluvium up close. My father said I froze for hours. Couldn't even blink."
Thales listened, saying nothing.
"I've learned to fight but only on ones close to my size. The moment something towers over me, my mind shuts down. It's like the world grows too big to fit in my head."
"And yet you're still here."
"Barely."
"Everyone's got their monsters. Some wear them outside, some carry them inside. Yours just happens to have longer legs."
She chuckled, shaking her head. "You always have to make everything sound poetic, don't you?"
"It's my charm."
Thales lifted his gaze skyward.
"It's almost time."
The night sky came in less than six seconds. The stars began to shift. The desert darkened, and in a heartbeat, day turned to night. There was no sunset. They had already seen this countless times so they didn't see this as odd.
"The signal."
Above them, the constellations aligned themselves into a phrase, each star flaring bright white as though carved into the heavens themselves.
DIVE IN THE OASIS NOW!
The barrier shattered.
IA soundless wail of breaking energy rippled through the air. Cracks of light split across its surface before vanishing. The Faceless surged forward in unison, their long limbs cutting through the sand like knives. Thales was already moving.
"GO!"
Verdamona didn't hesitate. She grabbed her backpack, strapping it tight across her shoulders as Thales dove headfirst into the oasis. She followed, the water swallowing her whole.
The chill hit instantly. Her ears rang from the pressure, her eyes adjusting to the darkness. She could still see Thales ahead. Behind them, the surface erupted. The Faceless plunged into the water, their white bodies twisting unnaturally. Verdamona's lungs tightened. She remembered what the stars had said.
Don't look back.
She forced her gaze downward, following Thales into the abyss. The deeper they went, the quieter the world became. The sounds of pursuit dulled, replaced by a faint hum that made her teeth ache. Thales looked sideways at her. His eyes glowed faintly through the water, calm, reassuring. He gestured forward. She nodded and together they dove deeper.
The water around them grew darker, shifting from blue to violet to a void-like black. Strange lights began to shimmer along the edges of the tunnel Thales had spoken of. Verdamona felt something strange stir in her chest. Just before they vanished into the tunnel's mouth, she thought she heard the faint echo of a whisper, not from Thales, not from the stars but from the water itself.
"Keep diving, seekers. The trial awaits."
Then the darkness closed around them completely.
-----
The water's surface broke around them when they surfaced, gasping and coughing under the glow of a vast, subterranean world.
Thales dragged himself up first, his palms scraping against rough stone as he heaved onto the rocky shore. The water clung to him, dripping from his hair and sleeves. He turned immediately to see if Verdamona had made it through the tunnel. She burst out of the water a few seconds later with a sharp inhale, her braid clinging to her back. She blinked twice, saw the cavern ceiling glittering above her and screamed.
"We did it!"
Her voice echoed off the cave walls. Thales barely had time to react before Verdamona threw her arms into the air and laughed. It was the first time in days he had heard her sound anything like herself.
"We actually made it! Thales, we escaped those things!"
He blinked, catching his breath. "You're way too loud for someone who nearly drowned thirty seconds ago."
"I don't care. I'm alive, you're alive, and we're not surrounded by faceless nightmares anymore!"
The cavern stretched endlessly around them. All across its surface grew tall, massive mushrooms the height of trees, their caps glowing in hues of turquoise, emerald, and faint lilac. The light they emitted pulsed gently. Water dripped from the stalactites above, each droplet sparkling before it hit the underground lake and sent ripples across the glowing reflections. Verdamona was already sitting up, her eyes wide with fascination.
"Look at this place. It's beautiful."
Thales nodded, still stunned by the sight. "Yeah, can't argue with that."
She got to her feet, wringing water from her braid.
"We should make camp here. We don't know what's beyond, and I don't think I can handle another swim right now."
"Fair. You're taking this pretty well, considering you were hyperventilating two hours ago."
Verdamona shrugged with a small grin. "No tall monsters here. My brain's fine again."
"That's really all it takes?"
"That's all it takes," she said cheerfully and without warning, she pulled off her soaked T-shirt and wrung it out. Thales nearly choked on his own breath.
"Whoa, Verdamona! What are you doing?!"
She looked at him like he had just asked her why water was wet. "Drying my clothes?"
"You—You're—" He gestured wildly. "You're half naked!"
She scoffed, glancing down at herself.
"I have a bra on. It's not like it's indecent. You've seen women before, haven't you?"
"That's not the point!"
She dropped her soaked T-shirt onto a flat rock and began removing her pants next, revealing short white under-shorts that clung to her skin.
"It's exactly the point. You can stay wet if you want, but the cavern is colder than the desert night. I'm not getting hypothermia because you're embarrassed."
Thales turned away quickly, his face burning red even under the pale glow of the mushrooms.
"You could at least warn me before you start undressing!"
"Why? It's not like I'm going to bite you," she teased, wringing out her pants. "Unless you want me to."
"Please stop talking."
Verdamona only laughed, shaking her head as she spread her wet clothes over one of the mushroom stalks to dry. The light from the cap reflected over her damp skin, painting her in soft shades of blue and violet. Thales tried not to look. He really did. However, his eyes betrayed him for a second and he caught himself staring.
Her body was lean but sculpted. Her muscles were defined without being harsh. The smirk she wore didn't help either.
"Why does she hide that under baggy outfits?"
Verdamona glanced back at him. "What?"
"Nothing. Absolutely nothing."
"Sure. S long as you're not cursing at me out loud."
Thales exhaled through his nose. He pulled his soaked shirt off, throwing it beside hers.
"Fine, you're right. We need to dry off."
Verdamona looked him up and down without shame. Thales really had a good build.
"Not bad, Thales. You've been working out."
He shot her a glare. "You're really enjoying this, aren't you?"
"Immensely."
Shaking his head, Thales focused on their next problem. The air was cold, almost damp with an underground chill. They needed warmth.
He raised a hand and summoned his Xana. This time it appeared as a short, crystalline dagger instead of his usual sword. He stabbed it into the base of one of the larger mushrooms. The air shimmered and the mushroom's luminous cap burst into flame. Verdamona sat cross-legged beside the makeshift campfire.
"Now that's nice."
Thales joined her, rubbing his hands near the warmth.
"You know, for someone who panics at big creatures, you're surprisingly calm down here."
She leaned back on her hands, looking up at the glowing cavern roof.
"This place doesn't feel wrong. Up there, the Faceless felt empty, like walking nightmares. Here, it feels alive. Like something ancient's still breathing."
He nodded slowly, listening to the distant echo of water dripping. "Yeah… I get that."
For a while, neither of them spoke. The fire crackled softly. The mushrooms hummed faintly. Verdamona tilted her head to the side, smiling faintly.
"You know Thales, you're not that bad."
"That's your way of saying thank you?"
"It's my way of saying you didn't die on me, which is close enough."
"I'll take it. I do not know why I hated you too."
Their laughter echoed through the glowing cave. For the first time in days, there were no Faceless shadows or warnings from the stars.