I know I'm keeping a lot of you on the tightrope with the story. I swear, I'm not trying to! I'm updating quickly, you see? I'm making you happy!

Here are the reviews, then we can get to the chapter. There's a nice little flashback in the story this time!

CommanderHawke667: I appreciate the lack of awkward questions. ^^ It makes things easier for me when I don't have to answer such queries that might ruin the story for readers. For instance, when I was reading the sixth Harry Potter book a couple years ago, my friend walks up, takes one look, and then says, "This guy dies."
Naturally, I promptly hurled the book at her head.
Now, since I would like to avoid repeating such incidences, I will no longer answer questions about the future of the fanfiction. ^^ That goes for EVERYBODY.

MissFiyeraba: Thanks so much! I'm glad you like it. ^^ And as for what she will do, well, you're about to find out.

Aww, only two?

Now, the chapter, since you guys are probably about to tackle me just to get it.


I shivered once, partly out of just reaction to seeing these things, and also partly because I knew that if I didn't come up with some brilliant plan to destroy that jewel that was giving Vayle power, the bet was lost, and there was no chance of ever winning—or of seeing Artix ever again.

I had to come up with some unexpected, amazing, unpredictable, and mind-boggling strategy that would catch Vayle off-guard so I could demolish the cracked pink crystal. That was the bottom line, and while I had little to no idea exactly how I was going to accomplish that, there had to be a way.

There's ALWAYS a way! I thought desperately as I ducked a calculated hit from one of the monsters. I still had no idea what they were… and that scared me. I had no idea what their abilities were, or even how they were made. I didn't know their origins, and I didn't know how well they could withstand my attacks. Hell, I didn't even know what element did the most damage against them! I felt like a Gorillaphant in Lim's workshop, being so full of such delicate machinery and experiments.

A solid blow to the left side of my ribcage brought my head back down to earth, and I was sent sprawling on the ground, at the mercy of another of the monsters. If this thing doesn't kill me, sheer numbers will. Right as this current creature lifted its arm (tentacle? I couldn't tell, and didn't want to wonder about it), I sent a beam of light straight through its sternum. Monster gore blew back on me as it exploded, and I tried not to hurl as I scrambled to my feet. Ordinarily, I would probably be panting lightly. However, much to my dismay, that creature had probably cracked my ribs, making it extraordinarily painful to breathe.

Well, that's going to slow me down…

I didn't bother internally (or externally, for that matter) ranting about it. During a battle, there was very little (if any) why, how, or what. There was almost exclusively is, and that makes it difficult to focus on anything else aside from what was occurring under your nose.

Or, I thought dryly as I reached for a spell that would cause a series of light rays to erupt in all directions from my position, From behind you as well. I flinched as a swing from one of the strange arms came within mere inches of my brow, then was caught off guard as a quick jab from a second creature gave me a broken nose before the other arm—another of those tentacle things that creeped me out—slid around my neck in a chokehold. A trickle of warm blood ran down from my nose and onto my lip. I tasted the metallic tang of the blood in my mouth as I pulled my lips back, gritting my teeth. I could do little more than struggle to breathe at the moment as it lifted me up in the air a foot or two, enough that I couldn't come close to touching the ground with the tips of my toes. In my frustratingly pointless attempts to free myself, I accidentally dropped my staff. It clattered to the ground, but I didn't hear it, tied up as I was (almost literally) in the monster's grip.

"Fucking—bastards!" I choked out, still endeavoring to claw out my captor's arm unsuccessfully with my nails.

"In a way, they are," said Vayle coldly. The bitch perched neatly on one of the countless boulders strewn around, almost carelessly. "They are simply bits and pieces of different monsters put together in the laboratory at the university. I can call them up at will."

Only thanks to your lifeline, that jewel.

I began to gasp like a fish out of water as black spots began to swim in front of my gaze, and my scrabbling at the thing's slimy arm with my fingernails gained a new desperation.

"Bitch," I barely managed to force out as my head began to swim and the world tipped dangerously. I could faintly feel blows other monsters were getting in on my body. They felt like heavy impacts, but the pain of the hits had yet to reach my brain. My mouth opened and closed, but no air was getting in.

Asphyxiation is a horrible feeling. Your mouth is moving, you're still in basic control of your limbs, but your lungs are burning, and air is cut off even though you can feel it in your mouth. It's like placing a piece of bread before a man who's been starving for a week and then telling him that he can put it in his mouth, chew it up, even, but he can't swallow it, and he has to spit it out.

"Can't… face… me… y…yourself?" I managed to whisper out as I gave up trying to kick at anything. Even a simple movement like that now sent my vision spiraling, and gave me a feeling of nausea. I wasn't sure now I could do much else aside from hang there even if I had wanted to.

Screw that, I did want to. But there wasn't much of anything I could do about it, in any case. My hands slipped off the limb that was still wrapped in a chokehold (no pun intended) around my neck, still twitching occasionally. I knew enough to know that, without air, a human was able to survive without too many adverse effects for nearly two minutes. It might have been close to two minutes by now, but to my oxygen-deprived brain, it felt like much, much longer than that.

Is this it…?

No. No, it couldn't be.

Is this death? I wondered as I began to drift… it felt like everything was wrapped in cotton. No… couldn't be. Warlic… he had mentioned a hooded figure with a scythe. Death.


"Warlic, have you ever been to the Underworld?" a young woman with glowing blue eyes and a freshly-carved wooden staff shot at her silver-haired mentor. A grin was firmly fixed on her features as she sat in the bright green grass, saying whatever happened to be on her mind. She couldn't have been older than about sixteen.

"Death's realm?" the Blue Mage confirmed in amusement. "Magiya, we really should return to your studies—"

"I've worked enough for right now!" the girl, Magiya, dismissed eagerly as she awaited his answer with shining eyes. The man was clearly her role model, or more likely a father figure of sorts. "C'mon, Warlic, tell me!"

"Very well," he chuckled, smiling slightly. This girl was certainly the most... enthusiastic pupil he'd had in quite some time. "Let me see… yes, to answer your question, I have been there. The Underworld, frequently referred to as Death's Realm by many and most learned magicians, witches, sorcerers, and Mages." Here, the mentoring side of his personality made its appearance, and he continued to teach while at the same time satisfying his student's curiosity.

"You were there? What was it like? Was it really hot? Who did you see there? Did you recognize anybody? What did Death look like?"

"Three at a time, Magiya," Warlic warned with a smile. "As I said, yes, I was there. It was like… a darker version, I suppose, of the world you know now. It was dull, and nothing was solid. We all float there. There were many people there, yes, including Death."

"What was Death like? And what do you mean you all float?" the young lady demanded shamelessly.

"I mean we all float there," repeated Warlic slightly testily. "Pay attention. Death was… just a hooded figure. There was no good way to describe him. He was always there, like something you can see at the edge of your vision, but you're not really sure you saw him. But when he wanted you to see him, there was no way you could miss him. He carried around a huge scythe; the blade alone was nearly as long as you are tall," he added, and Magiya's eyes gleamed in joy. She loved learning. "Wherever he went, there was always this… aura, I suppose, of hopelessness and sadness that always followed him. He thrives in that kind of situation."

"How do you know that? Did he tell you? Are you two friends?"

"No, we are not friends, merely acquaintances," he corrected calmly. He was surprisingly tolerant of her abrupt and curious nature. "And it was something I learned from observation, something you should try sometime," he said gently, ruffling her wavy brown hair in an unusually affectionate gesture. Magiya grinned widely ducking her head slightly. "Now, I think it's time we returned to your studies, don't you?"

"This had better all pay off," she chirped cheerfully, pushing her bangs out of her face. "When I'm done, I want to be as powerful as you are, Warlic!"

"We'll see," he chuckled.


So, tiny flashback. Things resume in full force next chapter. I just thought some of you might appreciate seeing a little glimpse into Magiya's past, and the explanation for the thoughts she had about Death.

Another thing, Warlic did say something in Dragonfable (around the Storm War, I believe) about being to death's realm, and how they all floated there. Maybe I'll try to find a screenshot or something of it.

Anyway, advice. If you get stuck, find weird songs. Get the lyrics in your head, and try to find a situation that would fit them (love songs are best). Think: When you first read the lyrics, exactly what sort of situation do you think of? Build on that.

One of the best songs I've found for that is Kiss It All Better, by the band He is We. It's such a sad love song/story, and I've seen so many oneshots and drabbles based on it. ^^

Good luck, and hope you enjoyed. Thanks for reading.