"Geez... this place is totally pitch-black. Gives me the creeps..."
"No kidding, Skylar... aside from our landing spot, the bricks look so thick that they aren't even letting any sunlight into this place. Shit."
The dark-haired swordsman turned towards the armor-clad woman, watching as she rolled her shoulders and hoisted her tower shield into the air, keeping her guard up even as they stood at the base of the Procne, prompting the man to nervously fiddle with the pommel of his sword as well. Skylar looked upward at the sound of a slight creaking, and he reached out towards the cream-furred canine making her way down the skyship's rope ladder, leaning his head to the side to avoid her wagging tail. The bushi smiled demurely at her teammate as he helped her to the floor, brushing her long, blonde sidelocks back behind her shoulders as she stared into the depths of the strange, unknown labyrinth.
"What... what is this place?" She asked softly, her fur bristling as she spoke, growing just as nervous as the other two explorers. Her ears flattened against her skull, and her coin pouch, hanging from her katana's scabbard, jingled slightly, the noise cutting eerily through the silence of the enormous ruin. The corners of her muzzle twitched downwards, her grateful smile quickly vanishing as she looked at the fortress, then the swordsman. "Naomi? Skylar...?"
"Hey, guys, we're ready! Are you still down there?" The three of them jumped in surprise as a cheerful voice called out from above their heads. They spun around to stare at the deck of the Procne, spotting a white-coated man hanging onto the top rung of the ladder with one arm and waving at them with the other. Naomi snorted, stomping over to the bottom of the ropes and pulling them taut, and the medic let out a yelp and started to scramble his way down the side of the skyship.
"Will you shut up, Damien? We don't know a thing about what's in this damn place and you're already yelling!" The woman growled angrily as the doctor's shoes hit the floor, gesturing towards the depths of the dungeon with her shield. Her retort drowned out the softening echoes of Damien's yell, and Skylar stepped forward, reaching between his teammates with his free hand.
"Hey, come on, you two," He said with a mild frown. The fortress glared at him, but relented, noticing her own echoing words as she shook her head, and the medic grinned sheepishly, scratching at his forehead as he gave a brief 'mmhm!' as an apology. The swordsman let his arm fall back to his side, an odd prickle running down his spine as he scanned across the room. "We should keep quiet in here... something about this place feels off."
The skyship made another slight creak, and Skylar glanced at a young, pale-haired girl, a bow slung over her shoulder and a quiver hanging from her hips. The sniper effortlessly slid down the ropes, her tiptoes touching the tiled floor without even a sound, and she wiped her gloves on her clothes, the scant amounts of sunlight glinting off of her goggles and reflecting into the shadowy ruin.
"Hm." The sniper's eyes narrowed as she opened one of her belt pouches and pulled out a scroll, opening the blank piece of parchment without an ounce of hesitation, her expression as solemn as ever. "I don't need to ask about making torches so I can see what I'm mapping. We'll need the light just to see where we're walking. Skylar?"
"Huh? Oh, alright, Sahra." The swordsman blinked once, then nodded in understanding, crouching down and letting his backpack slip to the floor, reaching inside and fumbling around for the tinderbox. He felt a hand firmly grab his elbow moments later, and he looked up from his search, following Sahra's finger as she pointed at his sword. "Oh! Yeah, that's a better idea. Hang on a sec..."
The explorer stood up and drew his blade, holding it towards the empty space in front of him as he placed his other hand against it, loosening his grip on his silver shield as he let his eyelids droop, starting to concentrate. A surge of energy rushed from his head to his fingers, the sensation so familiar to him now that it had become second nature, and soon enough his weapon was wreathed in flames, prompting him to open his eyes and hold the sword aloft in satisfaction.
The warm, flickering light cast a bright glow through the labyrinth, illuminating the floor and walls of the atrium that the group had landed in. Countless dust motes floated through the air – probably having been kicked up by their arrival, Skylar thought to himself – and a pair of pillars, as inky black as the rest of the stonework, rose up in the middle of the room. Arched openings, with shelves built into them, had been carved into the walls, just like the Empire's libraries.
Something quietly scraped against the rock, and Skylar sucked in a breath, raising his sword-turned-torch higher as he whipped his head around and looked at Damien, who was arms-deep into one of the nearby bookshelves. The medic's curious rummaging was in vain, however, as every single gap was barren, only rewarding the studious effort with more dust. The extra light helped Damien notice the emptiness of the shelves, and he took a deep breath of disappointment. Then he sneezed once, twice, three times in a row, catching everyone's attention.
"Haah- hooo! Whew, that's too bad," The man said, sniffling somewhat before wiping his face off on the sleeve of his coat, the various bottles of medicine in his pockets and satchel rustling as he hurried back over to his teammates. "The Count said that this place had a check on Yggdrasil's power or something like that, didn't he? But I don't think anyone's been here for a long time, even longer than the Forgotten Capital, maybe!"
"Anyone could figure that out, you dumbass," Naomi shot back, the joints of her plate armor clanking as she brandished her hammer, taking a few practice swings with it before resting the head against her hip. Skylar sighed to himself and turned towards Hanae, who was standing a few paces away, ears pointed and posture ramrod. He furrowed his brow, walking up to the bushi's side.
"Hanae?" He said gently, hoping he wouldn't accidentally startle his friend, and his heart skipped a beat when the beastwoman perked up, her hair shifting as she glanced over at him. He cocked his head worriedly when he saw the anticipation that had filled her eyes, feeling his muscles tensing up again. The swordsman reached over to the bushi, taking another step forward to place a comforting hand on her shoulder. "What's wrong-"
He splashed into something on the ground; the noise prompted Hanae to recoil, grimacing in disgust as she bowed her head and stared. Now it was Skylar who stood as still as he could, slowly lowering his gaze, digging his chin into his chest as his burning sword revealed the pool of red liquid that the sole of his boot was currently submerged in. The swordsman's mind went blank at the sight, but he was quickly shaken out of his daze when someone grabbed his shirt and yanked him backwards. He was unable to tear himself away as he traced the path of blood, going from the floor to one of the pillars, biting back a retch at the red spatter that was caked onto the stone.
"I'm sorry, Skylar, I should have said something," Hanae apologized. Her gentle voice helped to soothe his nerves, and he looked into the bushi's eyes again, taking a few deep breaths to calm himself down further. "But stepping in... in that, in a place like this."
"No, it's alright, Hanae. I froze up too," He replied, taking one of her hands into his as he caught a brief glimpse at the floor, wincing at the red pawprints that his teammate had left behind. Fresh blood... he raised his head, frowning as he rolled the thought around. "Wait, hold on. But if this place was sealed off, then there shouldn't be anything like this here unless..."
"Unless this is monster blood, or someone decided to scout ahead before us." Skylar and Hanae both jolted in place as Sahra sidled between them, having put the barely-started map away, and the sniper drew an arrow from her quiver, dipping the sharpened metal tip into the puddle. The swordsman scooted behind the young girl's back, tightly squeezing Hanae's hand when he felt her start to shiver.
"Right," He said after a moment, grimacing even as he spoke, the words a hissed whisper. The man peeked over his shoulder and waved his sword back and forth in the air, beckoning Naomi and Damien to catch up with them. "Damien. Damien! You might want to take a look at this."
The medic jogged over at the call of his name, slowing to a stop when he saw the pool of blood, his eyes widening as Sahra wiped her arrow on her coat, leaving a visible smearing stain on the fabric, and his cheerful demeanor changed into one of abrupt surprise. He swung his satchel around until it rested on his midriff, hastily yanking out his notebook and pencil as he walked around to the other side of the puddle, standing across from Sahra as the firelight glinted against the stone floor. Dust continued to settle around them, so much so that within seconds there was a dry, gray layer covering the liquid.
"Woah, what happened here?" The wild-haired doctor remarked lamely, squatting down to investigate further, holding his bangs out of his face as he leaned in close.
Skylar watched the explorer look at the trail of blood, and he stretched his arm out to get a better look at the rest of the atrium, a pit forming in his stomach as more and more bloodstains came into view on the bricks. Some were small. Others were horrifyingly large. All of them were as dry and ancient as the building itself seemed to be.
"Goddamn! What the hell died down here to make this place so messy?" Naomi bluntly thought aloud, stomping over to the pillar and scraping the pointed end of her hammer against the rock, the noise cutting through the dead, foreboding silence like a knife through butter. She pulled the weapon back and stared at it, wrinkling her nose at the bits of stone, blood and dust that now covered its tip, before wiping it off in the palm of her gauntlet.
The fortress' question was answered by the sudden sound of chittering mandibles, and the five explorers tensed up, taking a step back towards the Procne. Skylar brought his sword around to light up the area behind them, and Hanae gasped, drawing her katana as the flames reflected off of a silvery beetle's shell. The monster covered its beady eyes with its pincers, unaccustomed to the bright light, and Naomi stomped forward, raising her tower shield up in front of her and slamming it into the insect, sending it careening into the wall. Damien let an incoherent bark of surprise escape his mouth as he shoved his journal into his coat pockets, and Sahra notched the bloodied arrow to her bow.
Skylar stepped sideways, circling around the monster as it quickly came back to its senses, and its wings buzzed furiously as it spotted the flaming blade that had blinded it, making a series of screeching cries before scuttling towards the swordsman. The explorer barely had any time to react, shifting his weight into a defensive stance as the beetle gnashed at him with all four of its pincers. He crouched, blocking the lower pincers with his shield, but the upper ones tore into his shoulders, and Skylar cried out in pain, his eyes going wide.
"Agh...! Get... off!" The swordsman grunted, biting back tears as his reflexes took over, swinging his sword and hearing a satisfying thunk as the edge of the blade sank into the beetle's armored carapace.
The flames that swirled around the metal seemed to flare up even stronger, heating up the shell until it glowed red-hot, and Skylar slumped against the wall, feeling his own blood leaking down his arms. There was a loud twang, and an arrow slammed hard into the beetle, piercing the weakened spot on its armor, and the wooden stick burst into linked flames, searing the monster's wound even further. Skylar gulped down mouthfuls of air, forcing himself to yank his sword out of his foe's shell, and he watched as Naomi and Hanae both dashed towards him.
The fortress bellowed a warcry and smashed her hammer into the beetle, shattering its shell completely, leaving it defenseless as Hanae thrust her katana cleanly through its body.
Unfortunately, when the monster died, the flames went with it, leaving the five explorers enshrouded in darkness, the only light in the atrium coming from above the Procne. Hanae yipped under her breath as her vision went black, and she took a stumbling step backward, narrowly keeping her balance as she pulled her katana out of the beetle. She returned her blade to its scabbard, not bothering to try and clean it, and carefully walked around, bumping her feet against the shards of beetle shell and holding her hands out so she wouldn't bump into the wall.
"Skylar? Skylar, where are you?" She whispered worriedly, her fur standing on end as she fumbled against the grimy stone. Her ears twitched when she heard a near-inaudible moan, and she quickly took a few more steps along the walls, dropping to her knees when she felt fabric under her pawpads. She reached over, gasping when her palm grazed the swordsman's wounded arm. "No..."
"You find him, Hanae?" She heard Naomi say, and she nodded rapidly, only remembering a few seconds later that the fortress wouldn't be able to see her. The knight continued as Hanae wiped her hand on her dress, the scent of blood overpowering her other senses. "Can't see a thing in here! Damien, Sahra, one of you go get a torch or something, got it!?"
"Naomi, don't yell, in case there are more monsters. Just follow my voice," The beastwoman spoke up, slipping one of her arms behind Skylar's back and the other underneath his knees, digging her feet into the floor as she picked the swordsman up. She grunted from the strain, already starting to pant as she looked around the room, and she walked towards the traces of sunlight across the room. After a few paces, she felt her load lighten considerably, punctuated by the telltale clanking of heavy armor.
"Why is it Skylar that's always getting his ass hurt the most often, anyway?" Naomi remarked crabbily. "And we haven't even started exploring this place for real yet... sheesh! Damned beetle!"
"I've... never had a bird... fall on me," Skylar wheezed, and Hanae sighed in relief at her friend's words, moving one arm upward to support his neck better. He rolled his head to the side, a weak smile on his face. "Thanks, you two."
Hanae didn't reply, her ears flattening tiredly against her hair, even as a torch-bearing Damien ran up to the three of them, the burning bandages flaking embers onto the dirty stone tiles. As she and Naomi lowered the swordsman to the floor, letting the doctor do his work, the beastwoman glanced around the atrium, searching for any more monsters in case of an ambush. She only found an dark, dank, empty room instead.
Somehow, that was what frightened her the most.