AN: Ahh, I miss writing these boys. Hope you enjoy reading~

Chapter 4:

Their choice to momentarily backtrack, with Drayce taking the lead, revealed another door that they had failed to note previously. And it led to a small, seemingly empty room. Its environment was similar to what they had encountered so far; overgrown with green clinging vines and flowering undergrowth and plant life.

Drayce glanced down at the map in his hands. "Well, this is the furthest south-west corner of the labyrinth."

Lynus stepped toward the centre of the room along with the others, only to become still suddenly. That trill of etheric energy raced down his spine once more. Just like he felt before. Yet, there was something else.

…Impatience?

A hand resting on the small of his back pulled Lynus from his thoughts. He instinctively leaned into the hand, knowing full well that it was his husband.

"You ok?" Axel asked, his voice soft.

"I felt that feeling again," Lynus explained, a slight frown marring his lips. "But…I didn't feel it here before."

Oracle paced over to stand next to Lynus, his head tilted to the side in question. "Care to give this divining for objects a try?"

Honestly, he was a little curious. He was willing to try anything to be of more use to his guild and family. Especially when there were so many new members for him to take care of.

"I can try. I assume it's something similar to how I search a person's aura for ailments?"

"Yes, similar." Oracle unfurled a hand from the sleeves of his coat and unexpectedly tapped his index finger against the purple marking upon his forehead. "Close your eyes and inspect your surroundings with your aura."

"Here." Axel slipped his hand along Lynus' back to rest against his side, tugging him closer toward him. "I'll keep you grounded."

It was greatly reassuring to have Axel's aura mingling within his own, allowing him to comfortably close his eyes.

In truth, he wasn't entirely sure of what to do. Searching a patient's aura was easy. Second nature to him now. He knew how to wade through their aura and search for signs and curiosities. Feel a person's life and presence.

He could feel Axel's strong, comforting presence. He could feel the life of his companions. He could visualise their auras. Know that they were healthy; no ailments or disturbances.

The instinct to inspect the auras of his companions was strong. Intuitive. Not focusing upon the presences of others, instead turning his attention toward their natural surroundings may prove difficult.

Still, he wanted to try.

He just needed to focus on that yearning he felt.

Ok, focus…

Lynus drew in a slow breath and paused.

He felt something…a tug on his consciousness. It wasn't unsimilar to the one he felt when he encountered an anomaly within a patient's aura. Yet, it was something he had not encountered before.

It…It almost felt as if there was a presence nearby. And it was what was tugging at him.

"I feel something…familiar," Lynus murmured as he opened his eyes. His gaze shifted to his right, toward the western wall. Nothing appeared unusual or unique by first glance, but motioned toward it with a wave of his hand. "Over here."

Everyone turned to look, cautiously scrutinising the area while Drayce stepped forward. "Let me have a look around."

Drayce knelt on the ground, carefully pushing aside the foliage and vines. As he rustled through the forest wall, everyone else kept a vigil of the area. They've let to meet any of the forest inhabitants, after all. And they knew from experience that they liked to strike when they were distracted.

After a few moments, Lynus began to wonder if his attempt to search for objects had failed and what he felt was just his imagination. However, not long after that thought filtered through his mind, Drayce made a small sound of interest.

"There's an old wooden chest here," he suddenly announced. He pushed himself to his feet and turned around to face everyone, a square object in his hands. "Though, it's in pretty good condition in spite of the environment."

"Was it just sitting amongst the brush?" Oracle questioned.

"Partly. It was hidden in a small alcove," Drayce idly answered, his focus fully on the box in his hands. He then placed his hand atop of it, seemingly ready to pull back the lid.

"Be careful when opening it," Roxbury couldn't help but caution.

Drayce simply nodded his head in return. He tightened his grip atop of the wooden chest, the lid seemingly resisting. Or simply stuck. But after a moment, he was able to pull the lid back, rusted hinges creaking quietly in protest.

He then smiled as he reached into the chest and pinched between his thumb and index finger was a small black object. "Hah, got one."

Lynus was honestly surprised as he stared at the small bat shaped pendent. "Ah, I managed to find one?"

"Looks like it," Drayce said with a grin as he held out the token so that everyone could lay their eyes on it. "This is a bat token, all right. It seems like you have the capability for Mana Detect, too, Lynus."

Oracle looked at him questioningly. "Mana detect?"

"Ah, it's a skill Celestians from Arcadia have. I'm not the best person to ask about this. You should ask Shashi if you want to know more," Dryace explained before he shrugged. "In any case, we have one token, just two more to go. We're off to a good start."

"Then we better move to find the other two corners," Axel instructed.

"Want me to hold onto the token?" Lynus asked.

Drayce happily handed the token over to him. "Here you go. Might be able to help you narrow in on the other two tokens. If not; it'll be safer in your bag."

"True." Lynus rested the token in the palm of his left hand as he trailed his fingertips of her right hand over the surprisingly well-crafted object. Pointy ears. White eyes. Outspread wings.

It was kinda cute. It was also well made. Someone had taken a lot of care and consideration in creating it.

Lynus placed it into a secure pocket of his bag as everyone moved together in a group once more. With Drayce in charge of the map, he led them in the general direction of the next corner of the labyrinth. And they moved in silence; Lindis and Axel keeping watch over Drayce so he could concentrate on the map while Roxbury and Oracle took to the rear, leaving Lynus safe and protected in the middle of the group.

With everyone around him on the lookout for monsters, it gave Lynus the opportunity to simply gaze at the nature around him. The stone pillars reminded him of the ruins of his own labyrinth back in High Lagaard. Yet, the ruins around him were of much better shape. And he couldn't help but wonder if the blue veins through the stonework were somehow responsible.

But if that was the case, then there had to be some kind of generator involved. Of course, he was no expert on such matters.

A slight movement from the corner of his eye pulled Lynus from his thoughts. The group had paused as the reached a t-section and allowed Drayce to mark on the map. Lynus instinctively turned to look to his left while he actively sought out the emotions of those around him. There were no feelings of alarm, which was greatly reassuring.

But his physical gaze caught sight of a shadow darting out of sight. Down the long right path and disappeared amongst the foliage.

The sudden appearance of the shadow startled Lynus enough to grasp at Axel's elbow out of habit.

Axel raised his head, somewhat startled as he turned to look over at him. "What's wrong?" he immediately asked.

"Oh, ah, I just saw a shadow," Lynus replied, quickly gaining the attention of his companions.

A slight wrinkle appeared upon Axel's brow. "Where?"

Lynus motioned toward the narrow path with a short wave of his hand. "Down there. It…didn't feel malicious, it just startled me."

"Let's hope it's not malicious," Drayce said as he slipped the map into the pocket of his jacket. "That appears to be the south west corner."

It was with great caution that their group moved forward, down the narrow path. It ended with a small enclave hidden within the natural undergrowth and an opening to the left. Of which led into a reasonable size clearing.

"Oh, hey, a couple of treasure chests," Drayce announced from the forefront of their party.

Oracle paused by the dragoon's side and eyed the treasure chests with curiosity. "They look as old as the labyrinth itself. I don't suppose the bat token would be in one of those?"

Drayce shook his head as he rolled up the map and placed it into the pocket of his coat. "Honestly, I don't think so. Too obvious."

"Of course." Oracle paced forward regardless, causing everyone else to trail cautiously behind him. "Won't hurt to take a peek regardless."

Oracle reached the chests in a matter of a few steps, and activated his etheric wings in order to get a better view of what may lie inside. And to quickly dash back should there be anything untoward and dangerously alive stored inside.

"Anything?" Roxbury questioned as Oracle settled back to the ground after inspecting the second chest, a half full blue bottle pinched carefully between his forefinger and thumb.

"Empty. Other than this bottle of suspicious liquid," he explained as, an expression curiosity settling across his features. "Maybe I can feed it to Agata as an experiment."

Lynus immediately winced and shook his head franticly. "I'd rather you not."

Oracle inspected the bottle for a moment before he casually threw it aside, into the dense foliage. "Probably for the best; he'd be infirmary, still flirting with everyone even while coughing up blood. Moving on; willing to try again?"

Lynus nodded his head.

"Don't push yourself," Roxbury requested, once again unable to prevent his protective concern from revealing itself.

"I'll be ok," Lynus promised, taking a moment to grant the fortress a reassuring smile before he allowed himself to be nestled against Axel's side and he closed his eyes.

His second attempt was far easier than the first. He had a better idea what to search for. And Drayce was right in saying that the token, even in his bag, was able to help him identify that spiritual signature.

"Anything here, Lynus?" Axel asked quietly.

"Hm," Lynus murmured as he turned toward the opening they had just moved through and into a quiet, shaded corner a few feet away. "Over there."

Without any hesitation, Drayce moved forward where indicated. And like before, lowered himself to balance on a knee as he searched through the foliage once more. He rustled around, searching as everyone else kept vigil. Finally, Drayce made a sound of triumphant similar to that he had made before.

"And token number two," he announced as he turned to face them, a small black object in the palm of his hand. "One more to go."

"Let's hope the other token will be easy to discover, too," Oracle stated as Drayce handed the token over to Lynus for safe keeping.

Emboldened with their success so far, they fell into formation and retraced their steps. And with him once again settled in the middle of the party, Lynus turned his attention to their two tokens. It was the same as the first. It was very much a relief to know that they were indeed on the right path. And if everything went well, they would find the last token in the northeast corner. Of course, they couldn't get ahead of themselves. They were still in a labyrinth. And they still had yet to meet any of the maze's inhabitants.

"Wait," Lindis suddenly urged as he lurched forward, purposely placing himself in front of Drayce and with his hand on his weapon.

Drayce looked at the highlander in surprise. "What's wrong?"

Lindis remained tense, his gaze focused forward. "I can hear something."

His words immediately caused everyone to on the defensive and fall silent. Axel rested a hand on Lynus' back as his other reached for his own weapon. Lynus slipped the two tokens he had been studying back into his bag and pressed it against his side, silently preparing himself to either step back to allow a battle to commence, or step forward due to someone receiving an injury.

"Monsters," Axel murmured as he slowly removed his axe from his back and dropped it defensively in front of him.

Lindis nodded his head as he idly revealed his spear. "They're remaining in the shadows for now."

"Likely sizing us up."

"We're also likely to be the first humans these halls had seen for centuries."

A loud rustling caused the two warriors to fall silent and for the others of their party to ease themselves into battle-ready positions; Roxbury moved forward with his shield while Drayce stepped back, taking the rear with Oracle. With Drayce moving to stand by Lynus' left and Oracle to his right in protective stances, Axel eased forward, more than ready and willing to use his axe at whatever threat lies in those rustling bushes.

They didn't have to wait for very long for the origin of the rustling to reveal itself. A creature, about the size of Chi-hung, burst through the vegetation and onto the path before them. It paid little attention to the twigs, branches and leaves that rained down from it's hostile entry. It's intent was instead focused entirely on them, specifically the two armed warriors at the forefront.

The fur of the creature was two differing tones of purple. The staunched, muscular body was light purple with darker purple stripes. While it's mane, somewhat similar to that of a lion. Its eyes were small and narrow, a stark green in colour.

It had a snout similar to that of a bat, yet its mouth appeared to be permanently pulled back into a fearsome growl. Glistening white teeth and protruding fangs indicated that it was not only aggressive, it was domineeringly so.

It was unlikely to be an ambushed predator, however. Far too hasty and aggressive for that. So, it was safe to assume that it was also territorial.

"That's one ugly bastard," Axel commented, his top lip curled back in an expression of disgust. "Let's make this quick."

There was only one monster that appeared aggressive. If there were others, they were likely to be scavengers, waiting for any possible remains to fight over. Of course, they were sure to be sorely disappointed about the outcome of this battle.

Never the one to wait for a potential threat to turn dangerous, Axel fearlessly stepped forward, swinging his axe behind him and over his head. The monster took his stance as a challenge and snarled violently, revealing sets of yellow, jagged teeth to accompany the tusks.

As the monster lurched forward, head down low and tusks gleaming, Axel stepped forward with his right foot planted firmly in front of him. And with one fluid, effortless swing, he brought the axe down directly onto the monster's skull. The very centre of its forehead.

The impact stopped the monster dead in its tracks, its skulls quite obviously split the axe made contact. Web-like cracks spread out from beneath where the creature's head touched the stony ground, revealing just some of the strength Axel had at his disposal.

Lynus couldn't help but smile as the rest of their party stood in stunned amazement.

"That was quick," Drayce commented, breaking the silence.

Axel grimaced as he worked his axe out of the monster's skull and pulled out a sturdy piece of cloth from his back pocket. "Well, that will either warn other monsters, or piss them off," he commented nonchalantly as he began to clean the head of his weapon.

Lindis stared down at the defeated monster, ensuring that it was indeed dead before he turned his attention to their lush surroundings. "The other monsters appeared to have been frightened off. For now."

Lynus gazed at the highlander, noting that his calm demeanour was intune with how he felt internally. In some ways, he reminded him of Axel; confident in his abilities with great trust in those of his companions. He did not hunger for battle, but was ready to face any threat should one arise.

He definitely had the aura of a skilled veteran.

"Well, with that out of the way; let's continue," Oracle urged as he walked past the deceased monster, unconcerned with his hands folded into the sleeves of his robe once more.

Wordlessly, the others of their party moved to follow where they, too, paid little attention to the slayed beast. Well, they were all veteran explorers. It most certainly was not the first time they encountered such a sight.

Though, Lynus had to admit that he became far more cautious and vigilant of their surroundings. Ever since they had discovered the second token, he had sensed that feeling of yearning and impatience following them. Him specifically.

It was especially strong after they had retraced their steps and moved beyond the magical shield.

"I must be getting paranoid," Lynus murmured aloud as they moved quietly down the long, narrow corridor. "I just feel that there's someone else here."

"No, I've been seeing it, too," Oracle unexpectedly revealed, his voice as nonchalant as ever. His admission, however, still prompted Lynus to feel both relieved and surprised.

Drayce paused to look between the two of them. "Seeing what?"

"An astral shadow figure."

Drayce perked up. "Oh, you mean something like a wraith?"

But Oracle shook his head. "Not quite. It's been seen in the areas where we've discovered the past two tokens. After we find the last, I assume that the figure will dissipate, also." He then pointed in the direction they had been facing, where a set of doors could be seen in the distance. "It's leading us to that door."

Axel turned to look down the path, a hint of suspicious caution in his aura. "Should we follow?"

Drayce took a moment to study the map. "It does lead to the final corner of this floor."

They truly had no other choice. Whether the shadowy figure was leading them to the next token or to a trap, there was only one way to find out. Lynus hadn't sensed any malice from the figure. Thinking about it, it was likely the figure that Lynus had narrowed in on, not the token themselves.

He was far better at reading emotions and auras, after all.

A few moments later, they reached the set of doors. The structure and pattern were just like those they had encountered before. And they slid open, making the noise of stone moving against stone.

Drayce was the first to step inside, instinctively pausing just a step beyond the threshold to inspect their surroundings. "Another treasure chest."

Oracle manifested his wings and glided forward, toward the single treasure chest as everyone else gathered in the centre of the room. "Hm. Hopes there is something far more enticing inside."

"Are you all right with one last attempt?" Roxbury asked Lynus.

"It might not be necessary," Oracle interrupted before Lynus had a chance to response. Everyone immediately turned their attention back to the brown-haired zodiac, surprised and curious. "I found a ring, along with the bat-token in the treasure chest," he explained as he floated toward them, landing on the ground next to Drayce upon reaching them.

"That's suspicious. Is it real?"

"Looks and feels like the rest." Oracle presented his hand in Lynus' direction. "How about you?"

Lynus retrieved both the ring and bat token. He felt a spark of energy from the ring, indicating a magical quality to it. A familiar quality. But he set it aside, instead focusing his attention and intent on the small, black, bat-shaped object.

He needn't focus too hard. Its properties, etheric and emotional intent, were just like those of the two previous tokens. He had been in the presence of the tokens long enough to sense truth from forgery.

"It has the same energy as the others."

"Alright," Drayce grinned as a rush of relief washed over the entire party. "We got the all tokens. Let's head back to that seal and see what we've got."

"We better hurry," Lindis urged as he tilted his head back to gaze up at the sky through the canopy high above. "It'll be dark in a few hours."