Chapter 1

A few hours later

Bethany's mind slowly stirred from the fog of unconsciousness. She felt something…running down her throat? She took a faint breath, before drinking some more of what Bethany now recognized as the bitter taste of Monster. Her left eye faintly opened, and all she could recognize of the form that now held her was the blonde hair on his head. "D-Dimitri?" Bethany said, her voice little more than a whisper.

"Hey, you, you're finally awake." Bethany recognized that the voice that spoke back to her wasn't Dimitri's, and she knew it from somewhere, but the woman couldn't quite place it. As the Monster's effects continued to heal her body, Bethany made out the softly smiling form of Abundy above her. "Sorry, I couldn't resist the Skyrim joke," Anundy chuckled. "How do you feel?"

"Like shit," Bethany said, before launching into a coughing fit.

"No offense, but you look like shit too," Abundy said, "I'm just glad that you're ok. Where's everyone else?"

"They all left." Bethany's mind remembered the moments that led up to her state. Everyone escaping from the Dungeon. Areku, Tambo, and Fishy standing aside. Betraying her. Her battle with PH. The burning pain of magic across her skin. Her eye…Bethany's hand slowly reached up towards her right eye socket.

Abundy frowned. Elaboration on that answer would have to wait. "…I'm sorry, Bethany. Monster is a powerful thing, but it's not perfect. I don't think your eye can be healed." Abundy pulled out a silver sword, using the flat of the blade as a makeshift mirror. The area surrounding where her right eye had been was scared, blistered. Bethany pushed the sword away. She didn't want to see herself like this.

"Do you feel good enough to walk?" Abundy asked, holding out a Monster, "This is my last one, but you need it more than me." Bethany took the bitter drink, chugging it down. Bethany reached her arm forward, Abundy wrapping it around his shoulder as he helped the blonde woman to her feet.

"How are you alive?" Bethany asked as she pulled away from Abundy. She took a wobbly first step, Abundy handing her a healing staff for support. Then a more steady second. By her third the healing Monsters had done their work, allowing Bethany to walk normally, though her tired muscles appreciated the staff's support.

"It wasn't easy fighting my way through the Dungeon," Anundy answered, "My body probably has more Pepsi and Monster than blood in it. But I helped test that Dungeon, remember? I probably know it better than anyone, save Mangs himself. Speaking of Mangs, I found Faolin's corpse near the entrance, and Dsnoon was killed by Casino Bot, but I didn't see Mangs's or anyone else's. Where did everyone else go?"

"After we all left the Dungeon, I confronted that blonde son of a bitch for leaving Dimitri to die." Bethany spat the words out with venom. "The rest of them stood aside and let us fight. But…I wasn't strong enough. They must think I'm dead."

Abundy nodded, processing what Bethany just told him. "What do you plan to do now, Bethany?"

"I'm going to kill PH," Bethany replied without a moment's hesitation. The anger, the conviction in her voice scared Abundy. This woman would move Heaven, Earth, and Hell itself to see her revenge through. Only death could stop a person with that conviction, but considering the condition Abundy found Bethany in, he wasn't even sure if that could stop her. "I'm going to find that French Asshole, shove that stupid Rescue Staff up his ass. I'm going to avenge Dimitri."

"And what after that?" Abundy asked.

This question pierced Bethany's resolve, giving her pause. So focused on her revenge, Bethany honestly hadn't thought of what would happen after. The blonde thought. And thought. And thought. Yet, she couldn't come up with anything. "I…don't know."

"I appreciate your honestly, at least," Abundy said, "Now come on." Abundy turned to the woods. "Mangs had a cabin in the woods we were staying at while the Dungeon was being made. It should still have plenty of supplies. You need rest, and the Pepsi in my system is beginning to wear off and I feel like I could pass out." Abundy's shoulders sagged, finally letting the weight of all the fighting he'd been through bear down on him. The strong, stable figure that Bethany had seen up to this point gave way to the true, more fragile Abundy.

"Not yet," Bethany said, turning to the Dungeon, "There's something I need to get down there."

"You want to go back?" Abundy said with an exasperated sigh, "You're in no condition to fight, and I'm not much better at this point, to be honest. There still might be some enemies lurking down there."

"I won't take long," Bethany assured, "In and out."

"Fine," Abundy said, realizing this was a fight he wouldn't win, "Let's just get going." The pair set off at a quick walk, the pair both too tired to do much faster. If things turned to the worst, they'd probably need the energy to run. The walk to the dungeon was quiet, the only noise the echoing of foot and staff on the stone floor of the Dungeon. It took about a minute of walking at their pace to reach the true beginning of the Dungeon. The area was strewn with bodies of imposters and other grunts, a small single-file pathway cutting a path through.

"The bodies should thin out once you get farther away from the door," Abundy said, "do you remember where whatever you want is?" He drew his blade. "I don't want to be down here any longer than I have to be."

Bethany didn't answer, simply making her way through the piles of corpses that Abundy had slain. It didn't take her long to find Dimitri's body. His face was still contorted in pain, the man's eyes frozen with the feelings of pain, anguish, and regret in them forever. The gash across Dimitri's chest having soaked his once-blue garments red, with the exception of a small patch of cloth at the end of his shirt. Bethany knelt down beside him. Gently, Bethany closed his eyes, before wrapping her arms around Dimitri.

Then, she let it all out. Bethany never had time to properly mourn Dimitri in the Dungeon, and after she got out, Bethany had been so consumed with revenge on PH she didn't even think about it. But now, seeing Dimitri's broken body, there was nothing stopping her from crying. Sobs racked her body, Bethany disregarding the pain the act caused her still-healing chest. Abundy stood vigilant beside her, keeping watch for any threats still lingering. He knew that every moment they stayed down there just increased the odds they'd be found by something that much more. Hell, the noise Bethany made as she cried would probably attract anything. But Abundy couldn't interrupt this. She needed to grieve, and it was all he could do to make sure she was safe.

Bethany didn't know how long she lay weeping over Dimitri's body. It could have been as quick as she promised Abundy it would be. It could have been a day. Eventually, though, no more tears would flow. Choking down the last of her sobs, Bethany wiped her one good eye. The time of tears was over. She took a small knife from Dimitri's belt, cutting the last of the unstained cloth away and wrapping it around what remained of her right eye. She unclasped the cloak from his shoulder, putting it over her own.

"One more thing," Bethany said, "One more thing, and then I'm ready to put this place behind me." Abundy knew there was no dissuading her from this, sighing as he just prayed whatever it was she wanted was close. Luckily for Abundy, it was. Dimitri's silver lance lay on the ground, undisturbed from where Bethany had dropped it in all the confusion. She picked up the weapon, surprised by its weight. 'Dimitri must be…must have been,' Bethany corrected herself, 'So strong to use it so effortlessly.' Bethany dropped the Mend staff she had been using for support, leaning on Dimitri's lance instead. She turned to Abundy. "I'm ready."

The pair entered Mangs's cabin, the final rays of the sun's light just having set behind them. The entrance gave way to a small living room on their left, fireplace already stocked with wood. A kitchen and dining table sat to their right, and the small hallway in front of them split into two bedrooms with a bathroom in between them. The day's events had taken their toll on the two, and they wordlessly split off to the opposite rooms, falling into a deep, deep slumber.

The next morning

Bethany awoke to the smell of something cooking. Her sore muscles protested, but she sat up and opened her left eye.

The blonde panicked for a moment. Her right eye? Where was it?! Why wouldn't her right eye open?!

Then Bethany remembered. It was gone. Dimitri was gone.

That would take some time to get used to.

Bethany refocused her attention to the food she could smell being cooked. If she strained her ears, she could even hear the sound of bacon sizzling on a pan. Bethany got out of bed, still I'm the clothes she had worn all day yesterday. She felt disgusting in the dirty articles, but that would have to wait until her growling stomach had been dealt with.

As Bethany entered the kitchen, she saw Abundy with a pan of bacon and eggs on the stove. "Perfect timing," the blonde man said, "the first batch of eggs and bacon just finished." He scooped the food onto a plate, handing it to Bethany. She dug into the food greedily, having skipped dinner last night in favor of going straight to bed. Bethany finished the food before Abundy could even cook his own, washing the plate down with a glass of milk.

"So," Bethany said over the sizzle of the pan, "What's your plan, Abundy?"

The swordmaster didn't respond. The bacon continued to sizzle on the pan. Somewhere in another room, a clock tick, ticked its way long, filling the silence along with the bacon. Eventually the bacon finished, Abundy scooping the food off on his plate, but he continuing to stare down at it rather than join Bethany at the table.

Tick.

Tick.

Tick.

Tick.

"I'll help you," Abundy said, turning to face Bethany. His voice had conviction, not as strong as Bethany's, but a conviction all his own. "The others may disagree, but PH deserves to die for what he did to Dimitri. I'll help you get revenge on PH, but before then, we need to recoup our strength."

"And I need to get stronger," Bethany added, "I'm going to take up the lance in honor of Dimitri. With his Silver Lance-" she slammed the butt of the weapon on the floor to emphasize her point "-I will kill PH."

"In that case," Abundy said, "Our training starts after breakfast." He sat a small yellow coin on the table. An actual, physical coin. "This is the last of Karl's crypto gains. This should be able to support us for a while, thankfully. Long enough for me to get you into fighting shape."

"Just finish your breakfast," Bethany said, her voice steeled. "We have some training to do."