Chapter 17 - The Abyss
The next day on the 36th floor, Finn asked Ais and Bell to deliver to Ottar a couple vertical hole map with the caveat that they have confirmed the locations of only 5 holes. On the way back to the Finn camp, Ais mentioned that she slept well thanks to Bell, which made him happy. Upon their return, the teams continued their descent into the deep levels. The teams have also gotten used to staying 2000 feet from each other, and the communications were working well.
To their surprise, they found the Xenos waiting for them on the 38th floor. Apparently Fels had contacted them, and requested that they set a number of fire traps on the 38th level and 39th level. After showing them the traps, the Xenos told them that they will stay on those 2 floors to ensure other adventurers do not have an accident. They thanked the Xenos and continued on their way.
Back at the Hestia home, everyone had a nervous energy about them with no news about Bell and Ais. After Heptaestus arrived, she went to the forge with Welf to work on the armor. Mikoto and Lili then headed out to the magic user practice.
At the secret headquarters, Hermes, Takemikazuchi and Loki have been in contact with the two teams and were satisfied with progress. Asfi has also been planning for an emergency trip down to the dungeon and coordinating with the Ganesha familia. They also have been in touch with the Dian Hecht familia to prepare for possible injuries.
As the day continued, it has been substantially busier for the 2 teams with several colesseums and the standard type spartoi and obsidian soldier monsters. There still has not been any signs of violas, virgas or any non-traditional monsters.
The 2 teams had lunch after they reached the 50th floor, where monsters should not spawn. When they got to the labyrinth levels, there were not a single dragon to be seen. They did have to handle a few random encounters including a few scorpions and snake, but these levels were somewhat 'quiet'. The 58th level still looked similar to the way it was before, with walls, ground and ceiling of graphite as one big room. The 59th level still looked like a jungle, but there still has not been any signs of violas or virgas. Finally, they reached a level that they have never reached, the 60th floor.
When the Ottar/Gareth group entered the 60th level, they reported to the Finn team that it was significantly different. It was dark like the abyss. The room almost seemed to absorb any stray light. However, they continue to make their way through. About ten minutes later, the Finn team also entered the dark level. A key problem is that it will be difficult to use Aerial under these conditions.
As the Ottar/Gareth team got close to what seemed to be the entrance to the 61st floor, the Finn team heard an explosion...