Suikoden VI

by Lady-Solita

IS 478. On the Southern Continent in the country of Nagarea, the isolated civilization has begun a steady downward spiral of corruption and darkness. For Daunte, his main concerns are survival and the wellbeing of his little brother. But as the Tenkai Star, he is destined to lead the 108 Stars of Destiny into battle against the forces tearing his country apart.

1. Chapter One: Part One

Suikoden VI

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The Suikoden series is the property of Konami. I just own the original characters in this fanfic. Yeah, the title of this fanfic isn't original, nor is the idea. But since Konami seems to have no interest in continuing the series, I decided write about what I would do if I were put in charge of Suikoden VI. The result is this story.

At various times during the course of this story, I'm going to have reader polls, and based upon the results of the polls will impact certain events and characters in the fanfic. There's one up right now about whom you would like to be the Chiyu Star to be in this fanfic. This Star will be introduced in a later chapter, and based upon how the poll goes will determine who the Star will be. I'm doing this because I want this fanfic to be one that everyone can enjoy, and so that people can have a say about how certain things will go in the fanfic.

In any case, I hope you enjoy! And make sure to vote in the reader polls!

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"In the beginning, there was "darkness." Then, the "darkness" shed a "tear." From that "tear," the brothers Sword and Shield were born. Shield claimed it could defend against any attack. Sword claimed it could slice through anything. The brothers began a legendary battle. At the end, both Sword and Shield shattered. Sword became the sky, Shield became the earth, and the sparks from the battle became the stars. As for the jewels that adorn Sword and Shield, they fell to the ground and became the True Runes—the runes that all other runes were born from."

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On the Southern Continent and to the southwest of the Queendom of Falena lay the isolated Theocracy of Nagarea. Deeply and devotedly religious, giving praise and worship to the deity of war, Nagar, this was a country that has had minimal contact with the outside world since the Great Earthquake of 376, over one hundred years prior, damaged the land route between Falena and Nagarea.

But the populous was content. Believing themselves divine and superior to the rest of the world, they lived for their worship of Nagar and were devote believers.

But…then everything changed. And suddenly, not even the "divine" followers of Nagar were safe from the wrath of this violent god.

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Chapter One: Part One

Along the southeastern coast of Nagarea, in a rocky region appropriately named the Rocky Plains, lay an abandoned mine that was one hundred meters deep. Though it was abandoned over twenty years prior, less than a decade ago the mine was reopened…but it wasn't for commercial use. Instead, it was opened to be used as a labor camp for criminals.

Criminals who happened to be children.

This mine had been nicknamed the "Dark Chasm" because of how little sunlight could penetrate the massive shaft, and because of the absolutely horrifying living and working conditions the children endured. Children between the ages of eight and seventeen are routinely sentenced to manual labor in this mineshaft because in the eyes of the Theocracy they are sinful, demonic monsters who have sinned against Nagar. In the eyes of the Theocracy, the hard labor is but a mercy they grant these children so they can work for forgiveness from their god and cleanse their souls of evil.

Most of the children in the Dark Chasm never committed a crime in their lives. And none of the children were evil. But in accordance with the religious law of "Original Sin", they were tried and sentenced for a crime they did not commit, but are equally punished for the crime if their family member committed it.

Most of the rooms had been built inside the mineshaft and so they were airless, windowless, dusty, and incredibly dark. Most of them were lit with multiple torches, but it still was not enough to give adequate light. Hundreds of bedrooms were available for the children, but they were small and in many cases they contained three-to-four children within them. Of course, the children never saw their rooms until it was time for bed, so the size was the least of their concerns.

The morning meal had just completed. The bread was rock hard, and the porridge was gray and had tasted like warm clay. The children—all three hundred and twenty of them—were herded out of the giant dining hall and towards the Chapel for their morning prayers. Despite the different ages, genders, and races, the children were similar in appearance. Their prison attire consisted of a tanned long-sleeved shirt, matching pants, and worn shoes that were falling apart on many children's feet. The children were not allowed to grow out their hair so their hairstyles were very short or completely shaven. They were all filthy, malnourished, and walked in unison with their heads hung low.

Guards dressed in silver robes and hoods covering their faces were armed with whips and batons. They walked alongside the children and barked out orders for them to hurry along, and they struck at the children with these same weapons if they did not move fast enough.

The chapel was not as filthy as the rest of the mine, but as it was located underground inside the mineshaft it was naturally dark. A dark, massive statue of Nagar stared down at them from the dais in the front of the room, and the deity wore a fierce expression. It was as though He was looking at the children with disapproval…and condemnation.

There were not enough pews inside the chapel to house all the children. Most were lucky enough to grab seats and have a moment to relax before their day of work started. Once all the pews filled up though, the remaining children were forced to stand in the back. Many were weary from lack of sleep and from the poor quality of their food and tried to lean against the walls for support, but the guards wrenched them away and struck them and they were forced to lean on each other.

In the twelfth row of pews, sitting fourth from the aisle was a seventeen year old boy. He was dressed the same as the other children, and his dark silver hair was just as short. His head was ducked and his dark eyes were looking at his hands clasped in his lap.

His name was Daunte, and he was filled with anxiety. But it had nothing to do with his lack of sleep, the terrible food, or the horrific fate of being a prisoner of the mine. He was used to all of that. No…his worry came from something much bigger.

"Attention!" the shout came, startling all of the children. "Before we begin the Morning Prayer, you will all greet your new Matron!"

Daunte looked up. Upon the dais beneath the statue of their god, he saw the two Clerics that lived in the Dark Chasm. Unlike the guards they wore clean white robes reflecting the Order of the Theocracy, but it was easy to see by the round shape of the hoods covering their heads and their faces that they were low in rank in the Religious Order. It was unsurprising, as no cleric with enough political clout would be voluntarily designated at the Dark Chasm of all places. As per the rules of the Nagarean religion, chapels designated for the condemned were overseen by a Matron, whom the Clerics also answered to. These two Clerics always answered to the previous Matron, and would undoubtedly answer to the new one as well, whoever she was.

Then Daunte saw movement on the left side of the dais, and two more people climbed atop it. He could tell by the sizes of the both of them that one was a man and the other was a woman.

The man terrified Daunte just by his sheer presence. He wore Nagarean whites like the Clerics, and Daunte could tell by the emblems on the man's broad chest and the pointed shape of the man's hood that he was a cleric as well—most likely a Sheikh. A Sheikh was much like a Matron in that they served as an overseer, but they oversaw provinces in Nagarea and not just one chapel. This man was a tall man, easily 200 centimeters or more tall. His shoulders were thick and broad, and even with his whites on Daunte could see that his body was pure muscle. This wasn't somebody who had their rank handed to them—he obviously earned it through hard work.

But it was his eyes—the man's eyes scared Daunte the most. With his hood, the man's face was mostly obscured, but the man's brown eyes were glaring…and hate-filled. He looked like he sincerely hated every child in the room, and his hands were clenched into fists at his sides, as though he wanted to strike down all of them.

Daunte wondered briefly if that man was their new Matron, but he knew such an idea was ludicrous as only a woman could be their Matron. With that mild reassurance, Daunte looked at the woman. She stood front and center of the dais. Like the man she was wearing Nagarean whites, but by the horns on her hood and the emblems she had on her chest she had a much higher rank than the man. Very high for someone who would have just a Matron's title. Her body seemed shapeless under her whites, and it was impossible to see her face. All Daunte could see was her blue eyes, and her knitted blonde eye brows. But unlike the man, she didn't look upon them with disgust or hate. Her eyes looked half-lidded.

Maybe…Maybe she would not be as bad as the others had been?

She closed her eyes. The hood covering her mouth quivered slightly, and from the silence of the room they could hear her take a deep and then let it out slowly. For a long moment afterwards there was nothing but silence.

Then she opened her eyes. "The air in here is foul."

Daunte's heart began to race. Did she really say that? Was she acknowledging their terrible living conditions? Maybe everything would get better after all!

"It stinks," the Matron continued, her tone turning sharp. "It's been polluted by the smell of evil."

And with that one sentence, Daunte's hopes abruptly deflated.

"I have never seen so much sin and evil in my entire life," the Matron said, her blue eyes glaring at all of them. "Look at yourselves. You are foul creatures, criminals whose very existence shame our holiest citizens, the Cabinet of High Clerics, and shame our almighty God Nagar Himself!

"Do you not feel shame? Or guilt over the crimes you all have committed? I know of course why so many of you are here. It's because of Article Thirteen of our Holy Decree: the law of Original Sin. Do you understand what this means? You carry inside of yourselves the sickness of evil. It's an infection of your souls and bodies that affects your entire families. By the words of our Doctrine, the sickness of Original Sin will inevitably come out and the evil inside of you will consume you and cause you to commit evil.

"This is a sickness that ALL of you have!" the Matron bellowed out. "It came out in your fathers, your mothers, or any of your relatives, and they committed crimes against this country and against Nagar! But it is YOUR sickness! By the law of Original Sin, this makes you just as responsible for the crimes of your evil family members as they are themselves! Because if they can steal, commit murder, or commit blasphemy and treason, you can and you WILL do the same! Everyone in your family will do the same! It is our duty as faithful of the Nagarist Order to extinguish such foul evil from this world, and to quell your sickness from spreading!"

Daunte closed his eyes. This was nothing that he hadn't heard before. These words were the same as the words the previous Matron shouted at them, and what the other Clerics and the guards shouted to them on a daily basis. They were evil children. They may not have personally committed a crime, but somebody in their family did. So the "evil-doer" was punished by the Theocracy, but by the rule of Original Sin, entire families were just as responsible for said crime and they were punished accordingly as well.

"I hope you all understand the mercy the Order has bestowed upon you," the Matron continued. "And why all of you are here. Because Nagar understands that you are children, and you cannot help the evil inside of you. He understands that you don't want to be evil, and He certainly wants you all to be saved and to come back into His graces. But!" she shouted. "We of the Nagarist Order cannot simply give forgiveness! Especially forgiveness towards inherent evil! You have to prove that you want forgiveness! You have to fight to rid yourself of the evil inside of you! That is why you are here—to work! Work hard towards your forgiveness! Only then will Nagar accept you back and only then will our Holy Theocracy give you forgiveness and pardon your cleansed beings!

"Now pray! Get on your knees and pray to Nagar for forgiveness! Tell Nagar how sorry you are for forsaking Him—for forsaking this country! Pray for mercy on your evil selves!"

The children scrambled to their knees, clasped their hands in front of them, and bowed their heads in prayer. Daunte followed through with the motions, but his mind was blank. He could think of nothing to pray to Nagar for.

Praying for forgiveness, praying for mercy…he had done all of these things for the last three years, and he had received no such things. Instead of mercy, all he had were murky memories of his life before the Dark Chasm, dead parents, and…and…

A loud air horn rumbled through the air. The children finished their prayers and rose to their feet. It was time to work.

As he stood up, a hand grabbed his right one. Daunte looked to his right to see an ashen-faced boy his own age with blonde hair in a buzz cut and pale gray eyes. It was Roen, one of his best friends. "Good morning, Daunte. Did you sleep well?"

Daunte knew he could lie and say yes, be honest and say no, or just give an indifferent response. In the end he just merely shrugged.

"…Me too," Roen admitted as they slid towards the aisle. "I banged my head badly yesterday. The lump feels almost the size of my fist. Want to feel it?"

Before Daunte could respond, a shout reached them. "Daunte! Roen!"

A girl their age hurried over to them with surprising energy, followed by another teenage boy. She was smiling, though Daunte wondered how she could smile, and her ebony complexion seemed to glow even in the repugnant environment of the Chasm. Her auburn hair was very short, and if she grew it out it would probably be curly, and her dark eyes were kind but weary. Her name was Felicity, and she somehow always mustered the strength to stay moderately cheerful in the hellish environment of the Dark Chasm.

"How are you two today?" she asked them. "Did you see today's assignments? I'm working on the Upper Tier! I might actually get to see some sunlight today!"

"Upper Tier?" Roen asked. He laughed slightly. "I'm scheduled to work up there too! We might get lucky and be paired in the same work group!"

"You're lucky enough anyways." The other boy managed a smile. His hair was black but his eyes were blue, and he always had a friendly disposition. His name was Kass, and he was Daunte's roommate. "I've been scheduled to work at the Lower Tier, pushing the mining carts."

"It's hard work though," Roen said. "And with that kind of hard work you'll earn your forgiveness soon enough."

"So Daunte," Kass said, looking at the boy. "Where are you scheduled to work today?" His change of subject did not go unnoticed amongst the four of them.

The Dark Chasm technically had twelve levels, with the Upper Tier at the top (though not right at the top because the officials didn't want the children to escape), followed by Tiers One through Ten, and then the Lower Tier at the very bottom. Daunte knew he was scheduled to work on Tier Seven. But before he could reply, there was a sudden shout. "HEY!"

All four of them flinched as a guard rounded upon them. The guard already had his leather whip out. Daunte felt his shoulder blades ache with anticipation. "This isn't a social gathering, you heathens! Get moving and get to work! You!" the guard jabbed Daunte hard in the shoulder with the whip's grip. "Don't think we didn't notice!"

"N-Notice what?" Roen asked quietly.

"Was I speaking to you?!" the guard snapped. He swung the whip at Roen, and the side of it cracked against Roen's left arm. Roen hissed in pain, and hugged the appendage close to him. The blow hurt considerably, but the boy was far too use to the pain of it to scream from the blow. "Now you!" the guard rounded upon Daunte again. "Where is he?! He wasn't at breakfast and he sure as hell isn't here!"

"Who are you talking a—" Kass began, before he got a taste of the whip on his arm as well.

"Did you suddenly lose your voice?!" the guard yelled at Daunte. "Since when did you need your heathen friends to speak for you?!" the guard stepped close, glaring and snarling into Daunte's face. "I'm talking about your brother, boy. I haven't seen a hair of that little brat since yesterday morning! Where is he?! Are you hiding him?!"

Daunte stared at the man. His throat was tight, making it difficult to speak. But…but he didn't want his friends to be hurt anymore. And he certainly didn't want his brother to be hurt because of him.

So he swallowed thickly, and found his voice. "Arin…is sick."

The guard's eyes narrowed into slits. "Sick?!"

"S-Sick," Daunte repeated calmly. He fished around into his pocket and pulled out a note. "T-This is a note from Dr. Yulin. He—"

"I don't care about that rubbish!" the guard hollered in Daunte's face. "Your brother better get up and start working, or else—"

"What is the meaning of this?"

The guard jumped away from Daunte, and Daunte stiffened as the Matron approached them. The scary giant of a man followed behind her. "L-Lady Matron! Sheikh Sloan Faakhir!" the guard sputtered, addressing the Matron and the man respectively. "F-Forgive me shouting inside the Chapel, but these heathens are evading responsibility!"

"N-No we're not!" Felicity cried out, her smile fading and terror flooding her face.

"And this one!" the guard continued, pointing at Daunte. "His brother is lazy and hiding today!"

Daunte couldn't think. He could hold his tongue and suffer consequences he didn't deserve, or he could deny the accusations and possibly face a beating later. Neither one sounded pleasant, but he couldn't keep quiet about this. "Lady Matron!" he called out, bowing to the woman. "I-I apologize for Arin's absence, but he is sick! Very, very sick! Look, here!" he held out the note to her. "T-This is a note from Dr. Yulin! I had to take Arin to him last night because Arin stopped breathing! Dr. Yulin was able to stabilize him, but he's still unconscious! Dr. Yulin implicitly told me Arin cannot move or his condition will deteriorate again!"

"Oh no," Felicity breathed, pressing a hand to her throat.

"I-I can vouch for him," Kass added, stepping forward. "I share a room with Daunte and Arin, and Arin's breathing was so awful last night! Then all of a sudden he just stopped breathing, and we had to rush him to Dr. Yulin! When Dr. Yulin tended to him, Arin started coughing up black stuff! He's really sick, Lady Matron!"

The Matron said nothing, but she took Daunte's note. Everyone held their breath in silence as she unfolded it and read it.

After several moments of silence, the Matron looked up. "Before coming here I stopped by the infirmary and read several of Dr. Yulin's reports. This is his handwriting."

Daunte breathed out a sigh of relief. The Matron gave the guard a dark look. "Before you make such a ruckus on holy ground, at least take the time to investigate claims. Particularly when this child has a legitimate note."

"F-Forgive me, Lady Matron!" the guard sputtered, bowing deeply.

The Matron turned back to Daunte. "I accept Arin's excuse, but that doesn't change the fact that he is a sinner who must work off the evil inside of him."

Daunte stiffened, and his stomach twisted up. He didn't like hearing someone refer to his little brother as evil. Arin wasn't evil. He was just a poor nine year old child, who was trying to survive just like everybody else.

But Daunte knew he couldn't correct this woman without facing dire consequences.

"But you seem to be in adequate shape today," the Matron said, looking Daunte over. "So, as he is your blood relative and thus share in his evil, then you should have no problem working double today to make up for his absence."

"D-Double?!" Roen cried out.

The Matron looked at him. "Would you like to have a double workload too?"

"Lady Matron," Daunte said, drawing her attention back towards him. "I understand. I'll take on the double workload today to make up for Arin's absence."

"Good," the Matron said. "Then you shouldn't be wasting time here then socializing, should you?"

The four of them murmured their acknowledgments and hurried after the rest of the children out of the Chapel. Daunte knew he should dread the upcoming workday, but he was far too concerned about other matters.

It's okay. It's going to be okay. I need to work hard to make sure I stay alive. To make sure Arin stays alive.

---

The sun was shining that morning, but Tier Seven was still deep inside the Chasm and so Daunte knew he couldn't enjoy the sunlight. Particularly with his doubled workload.

Roen and Felicity had been lucky enough to be assigned to the same work group that day and took a lift up to the Upper Tier. Kass took another lift to the very bottom of the Chasm with other children to mind the mining carts, but he seemed cheerful and even waved to Daunte as the lift descended. "See you at dinner!"

"There won't be dinnertime for you," a guard rasped, shoving hard at Daunte's shoulder. "You're not allowed to stop working until we tell you to!"

Daunte didn't argue, and gathered his tools. He was directed deep into Tier Seven's tunnel, where four other children of various ages and sizes were already digging with shovels and pick axes. Daunte faced the wall to his left and slid on his tattered work gloves. He reached for his pick axe, but his fingers trembled very slightly around the handle and he had a difficult time gripping it. He steadied his breathing and squeezed his palms around the handle in order to pick it up.

"Get to work!" the same guard as before shouted, cracking the whip sharply against Daunte's upper back. The shock of the blow caused Daunte to drop the pick axe, but he quickly picked it back up and began hammering at the wall with it. The guard was satisfied and left him alone, only to turn his attention on a boy who couldn't have been older than ten years old. "Stop moving so slow!"

Daunte looked at the other children in the tunnel. Nobody spoke or made a sound, and all of them kept their heads ducked. A feeling of madness overtook Daunte briefly as he gazed at the guard's turned back, and he almost turned the pick axe on the guard. He could try and fight the man and then steal his weapons, and go and get Arin—

"Keep digging!" the guard shouted to them as he stalked towards the mouth of the tunnel. "And if I see anyone slacking off, I'll send you down to the bottom of the Chasm! And not in one of the lifts!" he laughed at his own humorless joke and was out of sight.

Even without the guard there, the children worked in silence and didn't ease up on their digging. Daunte almost cursed his missed opportunity, but he knew he had to think rationally. That was just one sadistic guard. He could probably get the better of the man, but he certainly wouldn't be able to get the better of the rest of the guards.

And the Sheikh—the giant man who had been with the Matron. If that man got his hands on Daunte, Daunte knew that he would be dead in an instant. Then nobody would be able to help Arin.

It's okay, Daunte. Just keep your head down and work. You need to keep working in order to keep Arin. In order to keep yourself alive.

It was still mind-numbing, tedious work. Daunte did not moved from his spot for the entire day, digging and digging at the hole he'd made in the wall. The children around him were no different, similarly digging into the walls. Outside the tunnel in the Chasm, the other hundreds of children were also doing similar manual labor. Endless digging, unloading and reloading mining carts, manually pulling lifts of supplies and rocks to the tiers above. Daunte lost track of time as he repeated the same motions with his increasingly sore arms and tired body. But he didn't stop working. He couldn't stop working.

It was impossible to tell the time, but many hours had surely passed when the moderate silence was interrupted by a hideous scream, followed by many other screams from outside the tunnel inside the mouth of the Chasm itself. Daunte paused briefly in his work, as did the children around him, but the guard resurfaced with his whip ready. "Get back to work, all of you!"

Daunte felt nauseas as the screams multiplied and grew higher in volume. He bit down on his lower lips and squeezed his eyes shut, stabbing into the wall with his pick axe with faster strokes. Something terrible had surely happened. But with the horrific conditions of the mineshaft, he knew it was inevitable that something bad would happen.

Please let them be all right! He didn't know if that was a simple wish or a prayer.

Very gradually, the screams dissipated and the Chasm was filled with silence once more. The silence alleviated Daunte's stress very slightly, but not enough to keep him from wondering what had happened. He kept his focus on digging, and watching the shadows on the walls. At the start of the morning the shadows had been small due to the presence of light. But they grew larger and larger and the light grew dimmer and dimmer, signifying the passage of time. When lit torches were brought into the tunnel, Daunte knew that it was nearly the end of the work day.

Sure enough, the guard shouted, "All right you heathens! Hurry up and get out of there!"

Daunte was moving automatically, and gathered his tools with the rest of the children. As he turned to head out though, he was jabbed in the shoulder hard with a baton. "Oh, no you don't. You're working double today, remember heathen? Get your worthless ass back in there!"

Daunte almost glared at the guard, but he knew it wasn't worth losing a few teeth over. So he did what he was told and turned back around to head back to his work spot.

But as he turned, that was when he heard the chatter from other children.

"—so awful!"

"The mining cart really derailed?!"

"Byron said it rolled over at least ten kids!"

Daunte closed his eyes and shuddered. A derailing mine cart. It was no wonder considering the fact that the people in charge didn't properly take care of the place, but it was still so shocking…and horrifying. And ten kids had been hit by the runaway cart! With the already deplorable conditions of the Chasm, there was no way so many children would receive proper medical attention.

Particularly since Dr. Yulin was the only doctor in the Dark Chasm.

His breathing was ragged as he reached his spot. He yanked his gloves back on and grabbed his shovel this time. He didn't bother digging; he started stabbing into the wall in rapid succession. He was filled with anger at everything going on and there wasn't anything he could do about it. He felt helpless, and he didn't want to be. He wanted to feel right in his own skin. He wanted Arin to be healthy again.

He wanted to get the hell out of the Dark Chasm.

Daunte slammed the shovel into the wall and his stomach dropped as he heard an ominous 'crunch' sound. The dirt wall suddenly gave way, revealing a hole that was as high as Daunte's waist. Daunte was so startled by the sudden hole that he lost his already fragile grip on the shovel and it flew into the hole. Daunte himself almost fell into the hole but he managed to steady himself by planting his hands on either side of the hole. He struggled to catch his breath as he gaped at the strange thing he created.

And inside the hole, he heard his shovel impact onto the ground. The sound of it was…strange. It didn't sound like the shovel hit dirt. The sound was much sharper—like it had hit stone.

Daunte quickly looked up the tunnel to see if the guards were nearby. He saw their shadows moving around the mouth of the tunnel, which indicated to him that they were standing guard for him but not watching him at all. He let out a short breath and looked back into the hole. It was impossible to see inside, but—but it was strange. The air inside the hole smelled musty. Not like the smell of rot, but almost like a room that had been sealed off.

Wait—a room?!

Daunte watched the tunnel carefully to make sure the guards weren't coming down it and grabbed a torch. He held it in both hands and tried to will his hands to keep it steady so he wouldn't drop it. His heart was pounding and he swallowed thickly. This was the first time in all his time in the Dark Chasm that he ever discovered something like this. A hidden room inside the mineshaft, undiscovered even when it'd been open for commercial use. He held the torch steady and carefully stuck it inside the hole. Even with the sudden light source, he couldn't see inside the room. But—But it was strange. He thought he saw the light reflecting on a glistening surface. A shiny surface that was dark blue, almost purple.

"Hey, heathen!" Daunte was startled by the shout, and almost dropped the torch. "I don't hear you working! Do you want to be in there all night?!"

Daunte quickly reset the torch in its holder and grabbed his pick axe. He dug into the wall beside the hole and kept his head low. Please don't see the hole, please don't see the hole! He didn't know why he wanted to hide the hole, and he was certain that he would receive another assigned area the following morning and probably wouldn't ever see this hole again. But he had the feeling that this discovery shouldn't be shared. He needed to keep it to himself.

Luckily for Daunte, the guard didn't come all the way down the tunnel. He paused when he saw Daunte working, shouted some more insults at the teenager, and went back the way he came.

Daunte created a lot of noise to mask the fact that he had stopped digging to oversee his find once more. If he told the Matron about the hole, and the room he had discovered, then perhaps the Matron would count that as his penance and let Daunte and Arin go. But even as he thought of this possibility, he had his doubts. He had seen it before, where children were let go after having worked off their "sins", but they did not release the whole families. Daunte remembered less than two years prior where a boy was let go, but his two sisters were not. And for all his begging and pleading the Matron refused to let his sisters go and he was dragged out of the Chasm while the sisters were forced to work.

And one of the sisters…not long afterwards she had died from exhaustion. Daunte had a horrible feeling that even if they deemed him as having successfully worked off his "sin", that they probably wouldn't send Arin out with him.

There's more to it than that. I found this hole and this room for a reason. I can't risk them separating Arin and me. I'm sure this will come in handy for me.

Daunte was lucky that the hole wasn't so wide so that he could hide it properly. He smoothed the dirt around the digging area as much as he could so that the wall looked undisturbed. Then he carefully tried to reconstruct the dirt that had been in front of the hole before. He was only partially successful, but the dirt kept collapsing into his lap. As a last resort, he grabbed a crate nearby and placed it in front of the hole. It only covered the hole partially, but with the light dim enough as it was he was sure nobody would be able to see the hole unless they were looking for it.

He didn't know what he would do with this find, but he knew it wasn't wise to make it public. All he needed was a little time to think about it and what he would do.

It's not like I have much else to ponder over anyways.

---

By the time Daunte was finally relieved of his work, he estimated that he had been working for at least thirteen hours. It was deep in the night and hard to see, but Daunte got a brief glimpse of the sky inside the Chasm and saw a dark sky full of stars. It was amazing how something so simple could lift his spirits so greatly.

The dining hall was closed, but Daunte was far too tired to eat dinner. His eyes were half-lidded as he turned to the guard escorting him. "M…May I visit the infirmary?"

"Dr. Yulin is performing surgery right now so there's no use trying to fake a sickness," the guard responded harshly. "But if you're visiting your worthless brother don't take too long. It's almost time for curfew."

"I-I understand." Daunte bowed and hurried in the direction of the infirmary. The guard didn't follow him, and he was glad to be by himself. As he neared the infirmary though, his footsteps slowed as a familiar sound reached him.

Crying. Lot and lots of crying.

Daunte hesitantly entered the infirmary and froze in his tracks. The infirmary was too small and ill-equipped for the large population of the Dark Chasm, and never was it more apparent than this moment. Every bed was filled with an injured child, no doubt from the accident earlier that day. All of the children were wrapped with surgical gauze, though some of the gauze was soaked with blood. Several children had splints on their arms from broken bones. One or two had gauze wrapped all the way around their heads, indicating broken jaws. There were many bruised and cut faces. All of the children were groaning and crying, some were sobbing loudly and others didn't have the strength to whimper.

Daunte looked at each of the faces, and he felt horrible for the sudden relief he felt. I don't see Kass. So Kass didn't get injured.

Daunte walked down the row of beds until he found Arin. Arin was the only child who was silent, but that didn't give Daunte any reassurance. The boy looked so small inside the bed. His black hair starkly contrasted his translucent complexion. His mouth was white and there were dark bags under his eyes. His breathing looked shallow and heavy, and with each short puff of breath the boy took, it was accompanied by a deep wheeze.

Daunte knelt down beside his little brother and reached under the blanket for Arin's hand. His hand felt cold and clammy. "Hey," he said softly. "Arin, can you hear me?"

Arin didn't respond. His eyes remained closed and he continued to struggle to breathe even in his sleep. "T-That's okay, you don't need to talk. Just stay here and concentrate on getting better, Arin. I'm working hard enough for the both of us. Just you wait, we'll be out of here in no time."

The words felt like a bitter sting in Daunte's throat. He leaned down and gave Arin and quick hug. The boy felt thin and unnatural in his arms. "Everything will be okay. I'm here for you, and I won't let you die. A-And I just know that Mom and Dad won't let you leave either."

"Daunte."

Daunte opened his eyes. He sucked in a sharp breath as he looked around. He knew he was imagining things, but that voice had been so real to him. It'd been so long since he had seen her that he'd forgotten her face, but Daunte knew her voice. The voice of his mother.

"Daunte, you mustn't let yourself be discouraged. Believe in the Nagarean Faith. The true Nagarean Faith, not the Faith twisted up by the High Clerics."

He remembered her hands. They were so soft and delicate. Even when her fingers brushed over the text of an aging Scripture it looked so beautiful when her fingers stroked the pages. And he remembered leaning into her lap as she traced her fingers over the text on the pages.

"Here it is—'for the sickness of evil in Man originates in the blood. And the evil of Man is spread through blood, and the origin of sin is passed through the blood'. You see Daunte, this is where the idea of Original Sin comes from. It's not an actual doctrine in the Scriptures, but more or less a teaching within a single paragraph on a single page.

"But look here what follows—'The evil itself is Man itself, for Man is naturally sinful. This is why Nagar is a God of War—because he fights to rid the evil within Man. But all of those who come into his grace, though naturally evil themselves, are saved and awakened because they are aware of the evil within and fight to expunge the evil within themselves and the evil within the world'. Do you see how the Clerics have twisted the idea of Original Sin? It's not that we have betrayed Nagar—the sin is that we are naturally sinful people. This whole idea of Original Sin is nothing more than to keep all of us in line. They just misconstrue wha the Scriptures say in order to beat everyone into submission."

That was what made being in the Dark Chasm so difficult for Daunte. Because he believed in his mother and he believed what she had said. Original Sin was a farce, but people honestly believed it and so they were forced to work off their "sin" in order to appease the High Clerics.

But it was so hard to keep working when Daunte knew they were working around a giant lie.

He let Arin go and settled the child back into his bed. As he stood up something caught his eye and he paused. At the far back of the infirmary where there was no light, he saw a large object wrapped and tied up in a white sheet on top of an examination table. He stared at the object for several long moments before realizing dawned on him and he covered his mouth.

It was a dead body.

Daunte quickly looked at the injured children around him and looked back at the wrapped up body. It wasn't the first time he saw a dead body, but it was still unsettling for him. He knew that with all of the injured children to tend to, that proper disposal of the body was the least of Dr. Yulin's concerns. Particularly since he was still performing surgery on an injured child.

But Daunte was horrified to see the body in there with so many injured children. He closed his eyes and looked away. What a horrible fate for that poor child. Sentenced under some crazy law and worked tirelessly over a Decree that had been misinterpreted in their Scriptures. It was awful; truly awful.

"—really unbelievable!" Daunte stiffened as he heard someone speaking outside the infirmary. Their nonchalant tone made Daunte think they were a guard. "But the Clerics believe it, so here we are!"

"But just imagine!" another guard gushed. "A real True Rune! If Nagarea held the power of a True Rune, we could begin our pilgrimages again!"

Daunte's brow furrowed. True Rune?

"I'd like to wield it for myself," the first responded. Daunte flinched as the infirmary door slammed open. "To think that—HEY!" the same guard spotted Daunte and hurried over to him. "What do you think you're doing being out so late?!"

"I-I'm visiting my brother," Daunte told him, indicating Arin on the bed.

"Well, visiting hours are over!" the guard snapped. He grabbed Daunte by the arm and dragged him towards the door. "It's almost time for curfew!"

"Speaking of which, I need to report something to the Matron," the second guard said around a yawn.

"What do you need to report?" the first asked and Daunte couldn't help but feel dread. Please please PLEASE not about the hole I found!

"Oh, some of those traitors on the Third Tier were talking too much today," the second guard casually said. "I wanted to suggest to the Matron that maybe we ought to cut out some of their tongues in order to defer these heathens from talking during work."

Daunte saw red, and for a moment almost attacked the second guard. But the first guard said, "I wouldn't approach the Matron so soon after her arrival about what she should and shouldn't be doing here. That woman is pretty intimidating up close."

"…I guess you're right. And you're right, it's probably not a good idea to tell her how she should be doing her job." He shuddered. "Especially with Sloan Faakhir of all people here."

"H-He's leaving tomorrow though," the first said. "And thank Nagar for that! Did you hear that he had one of his own subordinates scourged fifty times for talking back to him? That man has a crazy short temper!"

"That's just a rumor! But…yeah. I don't want to risk crossing him." The second guard waved a hand. "I'm going to bed. Can you see to it that this heathen gets to where he needs to be?"

"I was going to do that anyway. Come on." the guard jabbed Daunte in the shoulder. "Hurry up and get out of here."

Daunte spared one final glance at Arin before allowing the guard to direct him towards the rooms for the children. It's all right. Everything will be all right. I'll get out of here and I'll get Arin out of here. And I'll get Kass, Roen, and Felicity out of here too. Someday…someday this place will be destroyed and everyone who did this horrible things to us will pay for what they've done!

"It must be nice to have the room all to yourself now," the guard said suddenly. He laughed shortly. "Seems rather convenient that your little brother got sick and the other heathen died within just a couple of days of each other, doesn't it?"

Daunte's heart skipped a beat, and his body grew cold. He quickly turned to face the guard, unable to catch his breath. No…no, no, no!

"Oh, didn't you hear?" the guard asked him casually. "There was an accident with the mining carts this afternoon. Your roommate Kass was crushed when his cart derailed. A fitting end for a blasphemous traitor like him."

Daunte couldn't muster a response. Tears quickly stung his eyes and he began hyperventilating. No…not Kass! Not Kass! Kass can't be dead! I just spoke to him this morning! How can he just die?! It doesn't make any sense!

But he remembered the dead body he saw wrapped up in the infirmary. He'd been terrified to approach it, but…but that body had been Kass?!

"Don't get used to having a room to yourself," the guard continued, completely indifferent to the emotional anguish Daunte was visibly going through. "There's never a shortage of you heathen children who need to be cleansed. Now get going." He shoved at Daunte again. "You're almost past curfew, and you know what happens to evil creatures like you who are out after curfew."

Daunte didn't know how he got back to his room. He didn't remember the trek, and he couldn't see through his tears. He didn't want to believe it—that Kass was dead and he was never going to see his closest friend again. But…but when he entered the room, he saw the beds. Daunte's cot was on the left side of the room, neatly made. Arin's was in the center of the room, just a little neater because the boy hadn't really slept in the bed the night before.

Then he saw Kass's bed. It had already been stripped bare of blankets and pillow, leaving just an empty rotted mattress. They didn't have much of anything to begin with, but that entire side of the room was empty. Anything that had indicated that Kass had slept there was gone.

Daunte didn't hear the door slam and lock behind him. His eyes didn't leave Kass's bed as he slowly walked over to his own. He didn't bother getting into his flimsy pajamas. He just sat down on the bed and pressed his back into the wall. He drew his knees up to his chin and hugged his legs to his chest. After a moment, he let the breath out he'd been holding, and a couple of teardrops rolled down his cheeks.

Kass had already been a Chasm resident when Daunte and Arin arrived three years prior. Kass had quickly become his friend and introduced him to Roen and Felicity, and had made Daunte's sentence a bit more bearable. The scope of his crime seemed almost laughable—this his mother and he had been homeless in the capital city of Mlkwt Alsmwat and she'd been caught stealing bread. Such a mundane crime, and yet his mother was executed and Kass himself was sentenced to the Dark Chasm. He went through all that pain and suffering and died a needless death.

He didn't deserve this. He never did anything wrong. Nagar, his mom didn't do anything wrong! How could anybody blame them for stealing when they had no money and were homeless? How could it just end for him, after everything he's been through?!

…How can this happen to any of us?

Daunte pressed his face into the tops of his knees, unable to muster the strength to sob. "Kass…"

---

Daunte skipped the morning meal the following day to check on Arin. His head ached from crying all night and for the lack of sleep, and he knew it was a bad idea to skip a meal after being denied dinner the previous night, but he shook it off and made himself alert. He had to do what was needed in order to keep himself alive. In order to keep Arin alive.

But Arin was still very sick. The child's body still felt cold and his breathing was still erratic. He didn't seem aware of the fact that Daunte was there, and didn't respond when Daunte came to his side. All around Arin were the same injured children from the mining cart accident, and they were faring no better this morning than they had last night. They were crying out in pain, and asking for their mothers. It was heartbreaking, and Daunte struggled to keep calm. The dead body that had been tucked in the quarantine area was gone—Kass was gone. He didn't get a chance to say goodbye to his friend. And Daunte knew what they did with the dead bodies of the children. If they were lucky they were dumped in a mass grave. Otherwise they were ditched to the elements of the Rocky Plains, where they decomposed in the sun or were devoured by carrion predators.

He tried not to think about it as he sat at Arin's bedside, but it was difficult to keep his mind clear.

"Please hang in there," Daunte told the little boy, squeezing his small limp hand in comfort. "I'll get you out of here. I'll find a way to get us out of here. Just please don't give up. D…" he stopped himself before he finished, but the request still echoed in Daunte's mind.

Don't die on me.

"Is that damned kid still slacking off in here?"

Daunte stiffened. Guards were coming in to the sick ward. But why? Dr. Yulin wasn't there! Dr. Yulin was still performing surgeries on the injured!

That's probably why they're coming in. Dr. Yulin doesn't let them in while he's around.

Daunte dove underneath Arin's bed, not wanting to deal with those bastards so early. By their footsteps he could tell it was just two of them, but he still didn't want to deal with them.

"Look at these heathens! Struck down by Nagar's divine justice! They obviously are still too tainted, or else Nagar wouldn't have allowed this to happen to them!"

"M…Mama." Daunte heard one child sob. It was a girl, and she couldn't have been older than ten. "I want my mama…"

"Mama! Mama!" one guard mocked her in a falsetto voice. "Your mama's dead, you little urchin! She can't save you from your punishment! Only Nagar can save you, but it's obvious that He shows you no favors!"

"Oh look, you've made her cry!" the other guard said. The little girl indeed started crying. "But you're calling for the wrong person! Nagar is the only name you should be calling for! The fact that you don't understand this proves you still have evil in your heart!"

"I want my mama!" the girl cried, but then she gurgled in pain. "M-My arm…"

Daunte bit down so hard on his knuckles that he drew blood. He hated the guards and everyone who worked in the Dark Chasm, but it took every ounce of his willpower to not spring up from underneath the bed and murder these two monsters.

They won't get away with this. I swear they won't!

"Oh, look who it is." The two had moved away from the girl and Daunte froze. They now stood at Arin's bedside. "The lazy heathen who refuses to get out of bed! Hey!" the hairs on the back of Daunte's neck stood on end as he felt the jolt of the bed from the guard poking at Arin with his baton. "Wake up! You need to get up and you need to work!"

The only reply Arin could muster was a weak wheeze. Daunte saw red and clenched his hands into fists. If they didn't go away…

"Hey," the guard said, his tone suddenly changing. "This kid really does look sick. I thought his heathen brother was making excuses, but—"

"Haaaauuck!"

Daunte jerked violently as Arin had a violent coughing fit. Both guards jumped back reflexively. "Augh!" the same guard shouted in disgust. "W-What is that stuff coming out of his mouth?!"

"So they weren't lying," the other said. There was a long pause of silence before he continued. "Well, if his condition remains like this, then he can't work for his forgiveness. That means he's useless to us, and they'll probably kill him."

Daunte stilled. Kill him?

"I'll send the report to the Matron today that he's not getting any better," the first guard said. "A-Although I'll wait until after the Sheikh leaves."

"The sooner the better," the other agreed. They began to move towards the door. "Doesn't that guy have any other expression besides glaring?"

"Oh, you don't want to know the things I've heard—"

The door slammed shut behind them. Daunte frantically crawled out from underneath the bed and tended to Arin. The boy was still unconscious but he had coughed up more of that black substance from his lungs. Daunte found some gauze and cleaned up Arin's face and his pillow. His fingers were shaking so hard that he briefly lost his grip on the gauze. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly, and tried to make himself calm down. But no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't stop the shaking.

"…they'll probably kill him."

Daunte shook his head and disposed of the gauze in a nearby trashcan. "That won't happen," he rasped. He leaned down and gave Arin a hug. "I won't let them kill you, Arin! I won't!"

He knew why he had kept that hole a secret. The room that the hole had revealed might possibly give them a way out of there.

---

Daunte met up with Roen and Felicity on the way to the Chapel for the Morning Prayer. Instinctively he looked for Kass as well before he had to remind himself that Kass was dead. It wasn't a pleasant reminder.

And judging by the expressions on Roen and Felicity's faces, Daunte knew that he didn't need to break the news to them. "You heard?"

Felicity nodded. Her eyes were bloodshot. "I haven't been able to stop crying since last night."

"This isn't fair," Roen hissed, clenching and unclenching his fists at his sides. "This shouldn't have happened to Kass! He worked so hard for his forgiveness, only to end up like that…"

Felicity surged forward and hugged Daunte around the shoulders. Daunte awkwardly accepted the embrace as she cried into his shoulder. He felt like crying all over again but the fear inside his gut far outweighed his grief.

They might kill Arin. I need to get him out of here!

"Hey!" the three of them flinched as a baton-wielding guard advanced upon them. "Hurry up and get inside the Chapel! It's the law to attend Morning Prayer every day!"

Daunte knew he had the choice to either hold his tongue or talk back to the guard. Ultimately he couldn't stop himself from saying, "Our friend is dead."

The guard didn't even stir. "What does that matter?! Hurry up and get inside the Chapel!" he grabbed Felicity by her arm and wrenched her away from Daunte.

"It's not necessary to be so rough!" Roen chimed in, raising his hands slightly. "We're going in for the prayers! W-We just needed a momen—UN!" he yelped as the guard swatted him on the shoulder with the baton.

"Are you telling me what to do, heathen?!" he shouted, his dark eyes glaring dangerously.

Daunte felt that he could either openly challenge the guard or obey orders. He grabbed both Roen and Felicity's hands. "W-We're sorry, sir. We'll be on our way." He pulled his friends into the Chapel before the guard could strike them again.

All of the pews were filled, so the trio had to stand in the back. On the dais Daunte saw the Matron and he saw Sloan again, but on the side he saw other officers that he hadn't seen yesterday. They most likely served directly under Sloan. Their hoods had slight points to them, though not as pronounced as Sloan's points, and their faces weren't covered. One of the men had a unique look to him that caught Daunte's attention. The man looked older than Sloan but yet his rank was noticeably lower. His face was a bit gaunt and his hair was already white, as could be seen by his long goatee. He surveyed the assembly with a blank expression on his face, but there was something peculiar about his demeanor. Daunte couldn't quite put his finger on it.

"I realize so many of you are saddened by the mining car incident that occurred yesterday," the Matron said suddenly, drawing Daunte's attention to her. "But you all need to remember that you are doing Nagar's work. And remember that you are traitors and sinners working to get back into His graces. Even if you die here, know that you are doing so in the service of Him. And you must not stop until you have been awarded your forgiveness. Now hurry and pray! Pray for forgiveness for your sins!"

This is a farce. This is a complete farce! But Daunte did as he was told and knelt down. Today though he was able to conjure a prayer, and it wasn't for forgiveness.

Please, please let Kass rest in peace. He didn't deserve to die like that, but I hope his spirit is in peace. And please…please allow me to get Arin out of here before they kill him!

They hustled out of the Chapel for the day's work. Felicity was back on the Upper Tier, and Roen had been assigned to Tier Three. Daunte knew that with Arin still incapacitated he would be given double the work for the day again, but since he hadn't been at the morning meal, he received his assignment for the day as he left the Chapel.

"…Tier Ten?" he asked softly.

"Do you have a problem with that?!" the guard snapped. "Or maybe you would rather push the mining carts today, like your dead heathen friend did?!"

Daunte quickly shook his head. "I-I'm fine." He met up with the other children working Tier Ten and followed them. But he couldn't stop the dread that filled his body.

Tier Ten…they were the ones who operated the pulley lifts.

---

Daunte could see from his position that it was going to be a sunny day. But the air felt thick and humid, even so early in the morning. He knew that it was a sign that there was going to be rainfall in the upcoming days, but he also knew that it meant the working conditions today would be unpleasant.

"All right, heathens!" the guard on Tier Ten snapped at them. "You're going to dig, and the heathens below will fill the platform with rocks! When I determine that it's sufficiently filled, then you'll raise the platform to Tier Five! Now hurry up and get to work!"

Directly below Tier Ten was the Lower Tier, where the fearful children reluctantly pushed the mining carts. Daunte spared a glance down at the Lower Tier and saw the damage to one of the rails from where the mining cart derailed. He thought he also saw blood on the pile of rocks along one wall, but he didn't want to think about it.

He also didn't want to think about the fact that he would have to lift the platform with the pulley. He ducked his head and began digging with his pick axe. Above him he heard the buzzing noise of the lift from the Upper Tier descending. He spared a glance over his shoulder and saw the Matron in the lift, along with Sloan and the bearded officer Daunte had seen in the Chapel. It appeared they were heading down to the Lower Tier, most likely to examine the damage from the mining cart.

"Heathen!" Daunte winced as a baton struck his left shoulder blade. "Why are you digging with your pick axe, huh?! Where's your shovel?!"

Daunte nursed his aching shoulder blade and looked at the other children. Everyone else around him was using their shovels, and all of their heads were ducked so they wouldn't have to look at him. Daunte glanced back into his work bag. He knew where his shovel was. It was inside the hidden room on Tier Seven. But there was no way he could tell the guard that.

So instead he spoke a half-truth. "I don't know."

"You don't know?!" the guard bellowed out. He slammed his baton back into his waist band and drew out his whip. "What do you mean you don't know?!"

The whip struck Daunte on the arm twice before he grabbed it and held it steady. "I don't know," he repeated himself, allowing the anger inside of him to surface.

The guard paused, as though shocked by Daunte's defiance. After a moment, he yanked his whip loose from Daunte's grip. "All you heathens keep digging! Boy, you're going to lift the platform by yourself!"

Daunte's mouth hung open and he clicked it shut. By himself? He had to operate the pulley by himself? He looked down at his hands, covered by the gloves. There was no way he would be able to manage such a task.

"Well, hurry up!" the guard shoved him towards the waiting rope. "It's about half-full now, so you should have no problem lifting it up!"

Daunte stared at the guard. "S…Sir," he stammered. "I don't know if I—"

"Are you shirking your responsibilities?!" the guard cracked the whip against the small of Daunte's back. "You lazy, dirty heathen!"

"I c-can't!" Daunte pleaded. He held his hands up. "M-My grip isn't—"

The guard got toe-to-toe with him and snarled into his face, "If you don't lift that platform right now, your little brother will die. Do you want his blood on yours hands, heathen?!"

Daunte didn't need to be told twice. He hurried over and grasped the rope for the pulley. Below he could see that the platform was indeed half-full, but it was half-full of large rocks. The Matron was speaking to a guard in the Lower Tier, and gesturing to the damaged rail.

"Platform, coming up!" the guard shouted up to Tier Five. Daunte planted his feet and tried to angle his body in the proper position to be able to lift the platform without injuring himself. But his breathing was ragged from his rising panic.

If I don't do this, then he's going to kill Arin. But if I do this…

He shook his head and began pulling on the rope. He surprised himself by managing to lift it up by several centimeters, but he felt the immediate strain in his arms from the weight. It was very heavy, surely weighing as much as two people. But he tried not to think about it as he continued pulling the rope.

"Faster, faster!" the guard snapped at him. "We need that platform up at Tier Five now!"

Daunte kept his focus on the platform in front of him, watching it rise into view. He watched it rise higher and higher, past Tier Ten to Tier Nine. Past Tier Nine to Tier Eight. To Tier Seven. To Tier Six—

Daunte felt the trembling in his fingers and he quickly looked at his fingers in horror. Oh no…NO!

He lost his grip on the rope.

Daunte hollered as the platform rapidly fell back towards the Lower Tier. More shrieks rose from the guards and from the children as the platform fell past Tiers Seven and Eight. Daunte tried to get his grip on the rope again, but the rope kept sliding through his gloved palms. He felt the immediate burn of the rope but that didn't matter to him. He tried to focus his grip to stop the platform before it crushed the people below.

But right before his eyes, the platform flew past him at unending speed.

"LOOK OUT!" someone yelled.

Daunte heard the shrieks below and the frantic sound of scrambling. The end of the rope slipped through his hands and the whiplash caused him to fly backwards. He landed flat on his back and the ominous "CRASH" filled the air. He saw stars, but he knew that was the least of his worries.

The ropes had eaten right through Daunte's flimsy gloves and had burned his palms, but Daunte wasn't thinking about that. He was trembling from head to toe, unable to keep his breathing even as he crawled over to the edge and fearfully looked over the side. The guard didn't yell at him or discipline him. The man was pale-faced and looking over the edge as well. Below them, the platform was broken into many splintered pieces. Even a few of the rocks that had been lifted had shattered upon impact.

Thankfully, nobody appeared to be injured from the platform's collapse. Not the guards and not the children. Sloan Faakhir and the older gentleman serving as his second-in-command helped the Matron to her feet. The Matron also looked uninjured and she surprisingly looked unfazed. She brushed out her white ropes as though nothing was out of the ordinary.

But then she raised her eyes and looked straight up at them. "Who's responsible for this?"

"He is!" Daunte was grabbed by his collar and dragged by the guard. They walked the length of Tier Ten, the children adverting their eyes and the other guards glared. They walked until they reached the Lower Tier, and the guard threw Daunte to the dirt in front of the Matron. Daunte felt his shins scrape from the rocks, but he barely noticed the pain. "This boy is responsible!"

"What exactly happened?" the Matron said. Despite having to jump out of the way of a falling platform, her hood was still securely in place. Daunte could still see nothing of her face besides her blue, and they regarded him coldly.

"This lazy heathen is nothing but trouble!" the guard snapped, shoving at Daunte roughly. "He didn't have the correct tools for today, so I told him to raise the platform! And since you were down here, Lady Matron, it's far too obvious he did this on purpose!"

"I-I didn't!" Daunte pleaded. He looked at the Matron, and he looked at Sloan, but he was frightened by the giant man's glare and focused back on the Matron. "It was an accident! I swear it was an accident!"

The Matron regarded him with her unfeeling gaze for a long moment of silence. Then she suddenly looked at the guard. "You had this one boy raise a platform by himself?"

The guard stiffened behind Daunte. "I…uh…"

"Are you an idiot?" the Matron demanded sardonically. "What made you think such a thing was a good idea? I'm amazed he was able to raise the platform so high by himself! But why would you think I would sanction such a risky punishment for one boy?"

"L-Lady Matron," the guard sputtered. He bowed deeply. "F-Forgive me…"

"Seize him," the Matron announced.

The guard cried out as his associates nonchalantly grabbed his arms. "L-Lady Matron!"

"It's far too obvious that you're not qualified for your current position of authority," the Matron told him. "It's bad enough that I have to deal with the inconvenience of a derailing mine cart on my very first day of work. Now on my second day my own life is suddenly at risk? I have no need for idiots like you serving under me. You are dismissed, soldier."

The guard's face turned even paler. "D…Dismissed?! But I—"

"You have precisely one hour to remove yourself from the Chasm. If you don't, I will have you arrested and sent to the capital. Do I make myself clear?"

"I—"

"Do I make myself clear?" her tone sent chills down Daunte's spine.

"Y…Yes, Lady Matron." The guard ducked his head.

"Get this idiot out of my sight," the Matron said, waving a dismissive hand. "It's positively amazing that I actually have to tell something that it's a bad idea to have one lone child lift such a large platform all by himself. I would think that such a thing would be obvious."

The dismissed guard was pulled away from the Lower Tier by his associates. Daunte watched him until he disappeared from sight, surprised by what had just occurred. She…she knew it wasn't my fault?

A shadow fell over him. "Now, as for you."

Daunte flinched and looked up at the Matron again. "You may have been following an idiotic order, but there is no changing the fact that you nearly dropped a platform on me."

"I-I didn't mean it," Daunte pleaded. He started pulling his gloves off to show the Matron his hands when she continued. "Your brother is in the infirmary, correct? Don't you care about what may happen to him? You weren't properly prepared today and you almost kill me. Me. Do you not understand the scope of your situation, boy?"

"I do!" Daunte insisted. He bowed his head. "I do, I understand. Please forgive me! Please…" Please don't kill my brother, he added silently.

"Saying that you're sorry isn't enough," the Matron told him coldly. "You'll need to be punished, boy. And you know what the punishment for such mistakes are, don't you?"

A hard lump formed in Daunte's throat. He knew. Any act of violence against a guard, whether intentional or now, resulted in twenty lashes from a bullwhip. But this was a Matron and even a Sheikh, so he knew his punishment would be far worse than that. He slowly rose to his feet, resigned to his fate. "I-I understand, Lady Matron."

"Lady Matron, allow me."

Daunte stiffened as the Sheikh stepped forward. It was the first time Daunte heard his voice. It was a guttural, almost inhuman sound void of emotions. Seeing Sloan's hated filled eyes lock with Daunte's eyes filled him with dread. He opened his mouth to plead for mercy, but no sound came out.

"Do as you will, Sloan," the Matron said neutrally, stepping aside.

Sloan suddenly advanced on Daunte. The boy took only one step back before Sloan's giant fist connected with his left cheek. He saw stars again and went flying. He flew backwards by about two meters before he hit the dirt, sliding across the rocky ground. Blood filled his nose and mouth and trickled out of both orifices. He even felt the upper teeth on his left side come loose as Sloan advanced on him again. His footprints sounded heavily upon the ground, rattling in Daunte's ears.

Sloan grabbed him by his collar and lifted him up. Daunte blinked through the haze in his vision and saw Sloan draw his fist back for another blow. Maybe—maybe the first blow had given him a concussion. It was strange. Daunte could've sworn he saw a brief glow of white light emulating from Sloan's fist.

Then that fist struck Daunte in the temple, and his world went dark.

---

Daunte felt pain reverberating throughout his body as he regained consciousness. He didn't remember what had happened after Sloan's first two punches, but judging by the pain he was feeling Sloan hadn't stopped with those two punches. He groaned quietly, and opened his eyes. His vision rattled violently and he felt nauseas. He squeezed his eyes shut and tried to will himself to not throw up.

A shadow fell over his body, and a hand touched his shoulder gently. "Lie still. Don't make any unnecessary movements."

Daunte's nerves calmed considerably with this voice. He opened his eyes slower this time and blinked to adjust to the light of the infirmary. Dr. Yulin was leaning over him, his golden eyes warm and reassuring. The light reflected off his bald head, but not in a blinding way, and his black eyebrows were knitted. The man always wore an expression of deep stress, and even as he looked at Daunte comfortingly Daunte saw a subtle sadness behind his eyes.

Dr. Yulin may have been an employee of the Dark Chasm, but he was probably the only employee who genuinely cared about the children there. Daunte felt safe when he was around the doctor, even though the man virtually had no power in the Chasm.

"You were beaten savagely by the Sheikh," Dr. Yulin told Daunte softly. He pulled away and turned to a side table. "There was madness in the man's demeanor, and his strength was unnatural."

Daunte closed his eyes, not wanting to remember the terror he'd felt, and found his voice. "I-I thought he would…kill me."

"I do not wish to scare you, but the Sheikh did indeed not let up on you even after you lost consciousness," Dr. Yulin said. He held a bottle in his hands and poured the contents into a cup. "He only stopped when his second-in-command intervened."

Daunte vaguely remembered the older gentlemen who had been with Sloan and the Matron and he slowly opened his eyes again. "H-He saved me?"

"In a way," Dr. Yulin said. "The second-in-command—Adalgiso, I believe his name was—stepped forward and reminded the Sheikh that they needed to depart this place and complete an assignment given to them by the High Clerics. So the Sheikh and his group departed soon after, and they brought you to me."

Daunte felt relief wash over his body. So Sloan really was gone, and he wouldn't finish Daunte off. But that still left the Matron. "Doctor."

"Yes?"

"The Matron. She…will I still be punished for the accident? And Arin…will he—"

"I overheard the Matron say that the beating you received from the Sheikh was "punishment enough"," Dr. Yulin told him. "However, I cannot predict if she will change her mind at a later time. But she recognizes that you weren't entirely at fault and you shouldn't have been lifting a platform by yourself when your hands are in such a condition. But don't worry about that now. Just lie still and relax."

Daunte stared at the ceiling. "Doctor, y-you volunteered to work here didn't you?"

"Yes, I did." Dr. Yulin placed his hand behind Daunte's head and helped him to sit up slightly. "I'd heard stories about the deplorable living conditions here, so I volunteered my services to give as much help to you children as I could. However, the conditions here were far worse than I ever imagined. Here." He held the cup to Daunte's mouth. "Drink this."

Daunte drank the potion. Within seconds the pain in his body alleviated somewhat and didn't feel so sore anymore. But he could tell he wasn't fully healed, but he knew that wasn't Dr. Yulin's fault and more to do with the fact that the doctor had limited supplies. "T…Thank you."

"You don't need to thank me, Daunte." He turned back to his table. "I'm just doing my job as a doctor."

Daunte noticed for the first time that the infirmary was less occupied than it had been that morning. Only four children remained from the mining cart accident, and he saw that he was beside Arin's bed. "A-Are the other children all right?"

"I did what I could to fix them up. Unfortunately it's not enough to completely heal them. I really wish I had my Water Rune, but they removed it from me before I started my work here." He shook his head sadly. "It would certainly come in handy at this moment."

Hearing the word 'rune' reminded Daunte of what he had heard yesterday. "Doctor?"

"What is it, Daunte?"

"What's a True Rune?"

Dr. Yulin paused, and looked over his shoulder at Daunte. "I'm sorry?"

"A True Rune," Daunte said. "I-I know what runes are, but what's a True Rune?"

Dr. Yulin slowly turned back around to face him. "Where did you hear about the True Rune?"

"I overheard some of the guards talking about it last night."

"…I see," Dr. Yulin said at length. He rubbed a hand over his. "This…what I'm going to tell will probably upset you, but—"

"Please tell me. I want to know."

Dr. Yulin folded his hands in his lap. He had a look of distress on his face. "A True Rune is very different from a standard rune. True Runes, simply put, are woven into the fabric of our world. They're an entity beyond magic or the supernatural. They are sentient and they possess a power unparalleled to anything in the world. Anyone who possesses a True Rune will yield that power and become greater than a human being—immortal and impervious to disease. I-I have heard that True Rune users are still capable of dying, but I have never seen a True Rune myself. Everything that I know I've only heard second-hand." He shrugged. "I've heard that only 27 True Runes exist in the entire world, so it's not likely I'll ever see one."

Daunte was amazed by the story. He could barely fathom that such items existed, but he remembered the enthusiasm in the soldiers and it made him more curious. "D…Do the soldiers hear want to find a True Rune?"

"They believe they're going to find one here, in the Dark Chasm."

Daunte stilled. A cold feeling formed in the pit of his stomach and he stared at Dr. Yulin. "W…Wha…"

"A few years ago, the High Clerics at the Grand Citadel found an ancient tablet, written in the forgotten Sindarian language." Dr. Yulin's tone had lowered and softened. "They managed to find a translator for the tablet, and…" he shook his head. "I never saw the tablet. But rumors from the capital indicated that the tablet gave the coordinates for a buried True Rune. This mine coincidentally was right on top of those coordinates."

A hard lump formed in Daunte's throat. What Dr. Yulin seemed to imply was horrible, and Daunte didn't want to think it was true. He swallowed thickly and forced his voice to work. "I-I…but I though the mine—they reopened it for a children's prison. To f-force us to do manual labor to earn forgiveness from Nagar. Right?"

The sorrow in Dr. Yulin's face was unbearable, and Daunte had to look away. But he couldn't escape the doctor's voice. "I'm sorry, Daunte. I'm truly, truly sorry. This should've never happened to you children. The sad truth of it is that…the High Clerics aren't interested in your penance. All they want is the True Rune—which, for all we know, might not even be here. But so long as the True Rune remains missing, they work all of you children to death until they find it."

It was horrible, so much worse than he ever expected. He opened his eyes, unable to stop the tear drops from leaking out, and looked towards Arin's bed. His little brother still looked so pale, and his breathing was so shallow.

"So…this is why we have to go through all this?" he said darkly, his eyes still on Arin. "Arin's sick, Kass died, and so many others—" he turned back around to face Dr. Yulin, though the sudden motion caused his vision to blur. "All because of a Rune?! They're starving us and killing us, and it's all for some stupid Rune that might not even be here?!"

"Daunte, keep your voice down," Dr. Yulin implored. "If the guards hear you—"

"Why us?!" Daunte demanded. "Why are they using us to find the Rune?! Why don't they come down here themselves and dig for the damn thing?! Why use children for this?!"

"Daunte, please calm down." Dr. Yulin put his hands on Daunte's shoulders and eased him back down. "Shh, don't carry on like this. You'll exhaust yourself and you won't have any energy for your recovery."

Daunte's chest was heaving with his sharp breaths. He closed his eyes. "Why did they do this to us?"

"Because the Theocracy wants to possess the power of the True Rune," Dr. Yulin said. "However, a True Rune cannot simply be affixed to an arm or forehead. From what I've heard, True Runes choose the person who will possess them. The High Clerics ultimately want to lessen the chances of the True Rune choosing someone they don't want it to choose, and that's why they have children like you looking for the Rune. They believe that a True Rune wouldn't ever choose a child, and for this reason they are using child labor here."

It was overwhelming for Daunte. The last three years he'd worked himself to the bone, not because he wanted penance but because he just wanted to get out of the Dark Chasm with Arin. But this…this new information was monstrous. It wasn't out of some warped, misguided theology that they were all being worked to death. No, the Theocracy was using them to go on a wild goose chase for something that might not even be there.

And since all they care about is finding this damn True Rune, and not our penance…I'm never going to get out of here, am I? None of us are.

Daunte stiffened. It was at that moment he remembered the find he'd made just yesterday. The hollow dark hole leading into a room of sorts. He'd barely seen the walls of the room, but they'd glistened…blue-purple. It didn't look like any of the rooms in the Dark Chasm.

Does that room lead to the True Rune?!

Daunte looked at Dr. Yulin. "Doctor…you said that the True Rune keeps a person healthy, right?"

"In a way, yes," Dr. Yulin said. "So long as the user holds a True Rune they can't get sick or even age. But they can still die."

"Okay." Daunte quickly sat up, though the motion made him dizzy.

"Daunte, what are you doing?" Dr. Yulin grabbed his shoulders. "I may have given you a healing potion, but you still need to rest!"

"I need to work," Daunte told him. "If I don't work, they're going to kill Arin. I-I'll be all right, Doctor. This isn't the first time I've been beaten up."

Dr. Yulin slowly shook his head. "Daunte, I won't let them kill Arin. I'll shield the boy with my own body if I must. But I cannot approve of you returning to work so quickly after such a brutal beating. I'll speak with the Matron, so—"

Daunte grabbed the doctor by his wrists and raised his hands from his shoulders. "Doctor. Thank you for taking care of me and for taking care of Arin. But I must do this. My concern first and foremost is to keep Arin alive. In order to do that, I have to duck my head and work. But I'll get us out of this. I just need to go to work."

Dr. Yulin sighed, and gently pulled his hands free. "You're such a strong boy, Daunte. I don't know if you realize this, but you've inspired a lot of children around here."

"W-What?" Daunte said, gaping at him. "Inspired? Me?"

"They look up to you and have tried to emulate you. Your love and care for your brother hasn't gone unnoticed, Daunte. The guards use it against you, but after I discharged the children this morning many talked about you. They remembered you coming in here last night and this morning to talk to Arin and comfort him. Even though they didn't receive your comfort, they were reassured by the comfort you gave to your brother. Your personality and these small gestures you have made have given the children a lot of comfort and hope themselves."

It felt surreal that many children suffering in the Chasm saw him as an inspiration. Daunte certainly never went out of his way to inspire anyone except for Arin. But maybe…maybe the children saw the care he gave Arin and that fulfilled something inside of them that they needed? It seemed so strange.

"If you insist on returning to work, I won't stop you," Dr. Yulin said. "But please be careful. I doubt they will assign you to lift any more platforms, but still be careful."

"I will, Doctor." Daunte's legs felt unsteady, but he carefully walked around his bed to Arin's bed. He leaned down and kissed his brother on the forehead. "Don't worry," he whispered to the sleeping child. "I'm going to get you something that will make you healthy again."

Arin didn't respond to his words, but saying them out loud was helpful enough to Daunte. He knew what he needed to do now.

If there's the possibility of a True Rune here, I need to find it first. Hopefully I'm still the only one who knows where that room is.

---

It was painful for Daunte to not visit Arin the following morning, but he knew how important it was that he tell Roen and Felicity what he had learned last night. He was still bruised and sore from yesterday, but he didn't hurt nearly as badly as before. As Daunte entered the dining hall, he was surprised to find himself face-to-face with over a dozen children grabbing at his arms and waist.

"Are you all right?"

"The scary man beat you unconscious!"

"I thought you had died!"

"Did you see Arin? You saw Arin, didn't you?"

Daunte couldn't help but gape at them. He remembered Dr. Yulin's words from last night, but even knowing what he had said didn't prepare him for this. With all the horrible stuff that constantly went on around then, Daunte was moved that the children really did look up to him.

But he also felt guilty because he didn't feel like he did anything to warrant such inspiration.

"Stop chatting, heathens!" a guard shouted, whip ready in hand. "Hurry up and eat!" he took a quick rap at Daunte and struck him on the arm. Daunte was stunned by the completely unnecessary blow, and he wondered if the guards were angry at him for their brethren's dismissal yesterday.

During the morning meal the trio huddled close together and Daunte spoke in a soft tone so no one else could hear them.

When Daunte finished, Felicity's eyes were glistening. "I-I'm going to be sick," she said quietly. She covered her mouth. "I-I…"

"So…we're not here for our penance," Roen said softly. He looked down at his hands. "We're only here because the High Clerics want the True Rune…"

"That's what Dr. Yulin said," Daunte said bitterly. "They're not interested in us atoning for some sin. They're going to work us to death to find that damned Rune."

Felicity dropped her hand away from her mouth and shook her. "I…I'm so angry that I can feel the energy sucking right out of me. What has been the point of all this?"

"But Daunte," Roen hissed, leaning across the table. "Y-You said you found a room, right? Do you think the True Rune is in there?"

Daunte nodded. "I'm hoping it is."

"T-Then we can give it to the Matron!" Excitement filled Roen's face. "If she has the True Rune, then there's no point in keeping the Dark Chasm open, right? S-So if you tell her about the room you found, we can all be out of here by nightfall!"

Daunte wasn't so hopeful about that, but Felicity chimed in before he could. "If we tell the Matron about the room, what's to stop her from going in there and taking all the credit for herself?"

"I don't think she would do that," Roen said.

"Why not?" Felicity's tone turned sharper. "Our being here is already under false pretenses! Who else besides us knows that we're really here to find a True Rune? As far as the other children and even the rest of the country is concerned, we're working off our sin! So what difference would it make for them to find the True Rune? Why stop the manual labor if it's forcing the rest of the country into compliance?!"

"Felicity, I don't believe that will happen. Daunte." Roen looked at him. "Are you going to tell the Matron about this?"

"No," Daunte said. "I want to find that True Rune before anyone else does."

"But what can we do with it?" Felicity asked. "There's no rune master here at the Dark Chasm to attach it to your arm!"

"I don't think Daunte wants the True Rune," Roen said. He leaned across the table. "You want to give it to Arin, don't you?"

"Arin?!" Felicity looked at Daunte. "You're going to attach the True Rune to Arin?!"

Daunte didn't respond. The horn sounded for the end of the morning meal. Daunte quickly ate his stale bread, and his stomach twisted slightly from the lack of food he'd been having for the last couple days, and stood up. "I've been assigned to Tier Seven again. I'm going to wait until tonight to find the Rune."

It was a very simple plan. It was just one room after all. The guards didn't supervise him fully when he worked double, so all he needed to do was ask for a lantern and enter the room. If the True Rune was in there, he would grab it and bring it to Arin. Even if the Clerics thought that a True Rune wouldn't choose a child, Daunte felt it was worth the risk.

I'll get the True Rune and give it to Arin. That should make him healthy again, and then we can finally get out of here.

The thought alone caused a rare smile to rise to Daunte's mouth.

---

Unsurprisingly, Daunte was the primary focus of the guards that day. To his shock his hole really was undisturbed, and nobody had seemed to notice the crate in front of it. He worked in the same general area though, ducking his head and digging while the guards randomly struck at him with their batons and whips. He was yelled at for working too slow, working too fast, for having a missing shovel—there was never a shortage of excuses for them to strike him.

But Daunte didn't pay attention. He just kept working and ignored the blows and the taunts. He focused his mind on the task that he would undergo that very night.

Just a few more hours. Just a few more hours.

Finally, the shout came to end the work day. The other children collected their tools and left and Daunte approached a guard. "Excuse m—"

"Get back to work!" the guard shouted, shoving at him.

"I-I understand," Daunte said, bowing his head. "I was just wondering if I could have a lantern back there tonight."

"A lantern?!" the guard snarled. "You have torches back there!"

"I-I understand. B-But I thought it would be easier if I used a lantern instead. Lanterns are easier to dispose of than torches, right?"

The guard scoffed, but he grabbed a lantern off a nearby hook. "Here it is, now get back to work!" he threw it to the ground in front of Daunte. One of the windows broke on one side, but the flame somehow remained lit. "And you better believe you'll be answering for breaking it!" the guard added.

Daunte didn't argue. He grabbed it off the ground and ran back into the tunnel. He set the lantern aside and pushed the crate aside. He looked down the tunnel and saw the guard's shadow was very close by, so he began digging again in a random section of the wall. He was so tired by this point, but he knew this would probably be his last chance. He had to find that True Rune before anybody else did!

He watched the tunnel carefully to make sure the guard wasn't paying attention. The shadow had disappeared off the wall. Then he turned his attention to the hole and began picking at the sides of it. Little by little it grew larger but he didn't want to make it too big. Just large enough so that he could slide on through and get inside.

I'll find that True Rune. Just wait Arin, I'll find that Rune!

It was then that Daunte swung at the area around the hole again. Only this time the pick axe missed the wall and instead went straight inside the hole. The momentum pulled Daunte in and before he could scream he plunged into darkness.

---

TBC. Feel free to vote in the poll!