The world is dark and cold. Sound, sight, smell; it is all covered in a dark haze that drowns and smothers his perceptions. What is this? Where is he? He is floating and yet, falling. What is happening? Then, he tries to breathe. One, two, three. Then, it clicks.
"—!"
Bell opens his eyes, only for his vision to be fogged and blurred. Something causes his eyes to sting as he trashes about. He opens his mouth, only to be met with the taste of salt mixed with the texture of water.
Air, he needs air!
Persevering through the prevalent stinging of his eyes, he looks around to try and regain a sense of direction. Up, where exactly is 'up'? He spins around, nearly completely a three hundred and sixty-degree circumference before he spots what he's looking for. Forming half cups with his hands, he jettisons himself towards his salvation. He can feel it, the air in his lungs withering away with each passing second. Darkness begins to etch from the corner of his eyes, but he refuses to give in.
Push, push!
Finally, he breaks the water's surface and emerges. He croaks a gasp, and he attempts to pitifully tread water. Where… where is this?
The jagged rocks that compose the walls around him look so familiar. This—this was the dungeon.
Bell dragged himself up onto the shore. He looks back to see the pool he emerged from. There is a waterfall at its center, spewing out water to sustain the pool—its source. Jagged rocks are sprinkled about the pool, but only a few manage to break through the water's edge and emerge from its depths. Bell's eyes trail up the waterfall until his own neck stops him. He looks up to see the antithesis of a chasm. A crude, spiraling labyrinth of rock and gems. The way the minerals line the wall gives it a sinister suggestion, like looking into the maw of a gaping monstrosity.
Ah, yes. This was the dungeon.
Bell looks back down at himself to see that his armor was still on him and relatively intact. Not only that, but his Hestia knife is also curiously holstered at his hip. He looks around once again, this time; in search of his friends and companions. But they are nowhere in sight. There was no indication that they were ever with him. No footprints, scratch marks, or bits of torn armor or cloth.
"Wha—what happened?" Bell mutters aloud.
This… this wasn't the same floor he was on when he died—
"Don't remember?"
The voice! It rang out in Bell's mind once again.
"Hmm, it seems that our recollection is still a one-way street on my end. Let's see if I can fix that real quick?"
"What?"
That was the only word Bell could formulate. Everything—everything that had happened was just too much for the boy. There was so much to process it felt nearly impossible. Suddenly, a sharp pain pierces into Bell's skull. He clutches his temples and grits his teeth.
"—! Oh shit, sorry! Probably should have warned you before I started poking around in your head. Well, granted, it's our head."
The pain increased even greater, to the point where Bell's groans began to seep through his clenched teeth.
"Alright, alright! Sorry! Okay, this should do the trick…"
Just as quickly as the pain came, it suddenly ceased. Bell loosened his jaw and opened his eyes. They widened as a sudden rush of euphoria and clarity came over him.
He remembers.
Images of Luvis as he staggered towards the expedition party. His body was bloody, and everything from the elbow down on his arm had all been lost. Bell's mind then flashes forward to Moss Huge as it attacked the party and managed to gravely wound Chigusa. Then, he is suddenly underwater, Bell seemingly pursuing the monster that had attacked his party and killed most of Luvis'. They are still engaged in combat with one another, the Moss Huge holding Bell by his leg as they trade blows. However, it decided to let him go, letting the current take him over the edge of the Great Fall.
"That do it?"
Bell could only respond with labored breaths as he attempted to recompose himself.
"What… what was that…?"
"My memories. Of the time that I was in your body."
"My… my body?"
"When you died, someone had to take over, or your familia members would have been doomed."
"Then, I really did die…"
"Yes… yes you did."
"But then, how did I—"
"—!"
Before the two could exchange any more dialogue, Bell was ambushed from above. A sharp sting rushed over his left arm as he felt the warm, familiar liquid that was his blood run down his arm.
Reflexes kick in as Bell heeded the warnings. But the threat was just so fast! Having no time to dodge, Bell brought his bracers in front of his face to tank the blow. It did, but it sent his body skitting back as a result.
"Twelve o'clock, more of them!"
Bell looked up to see a swarm of monsters bursting forward towards him.
Iguazus.
Eina had mentioned them to him when the pair were studying together. They resembled hummingbirds in their shape; however, they were far larger, and their beaks were fitted onto them like a rapier. They would dart at their prey, stabbing and piercing as they went.
He dove to the side, a few of the birds narrowly missing their mark before Bell completed his maneuver. He tucked himself behind a crystal, barely evading a barrage that moved like a blur in his vision. But in just a few blows of the Iguazus, the crystal began cracking and chipping away at the seams.
"What do I do? Come on! Think fast!" Bell chastised himself as he began weighing his options.
He looked towards the water.
"No," the voice said gravely. "You already got lucky in avoiding the monsters that lurk below its depths."
"What then, what then?!" Bell cried out in his psyche.
"Bell…"
The voice. Again, it spoke in that soft tone. It was so strangely comforting to Bell, like a parent reassuring their child. It was soft like a mother but stern like a father.
"Breathe, Bell," the voice said. "Focus. Not on the monsters, not on the dungeon. Focus on your party, focus on the promise—focus on the dream."
The promise he made with them. The dream he had of them. That's right. They would all return from the dungeon's depths. They would grow stronger together. If Ais was in his position, then surely she would not falter so easily!
Bell closed his eyes as his hand began to trace the hilt of his Hakugen knife. He took a deep breath before unsheathing the blade in its entirety.
"Good. Now, chase that dream."
The crystal crumbled as Bell stood up, poising his blade towards the swarm.
"Bring it on!" he cried out.
He slashed ferociously at the birds, piercing through the tips of their beaks and slicing through their bodies. They crumbled into dust as they fell. Nevertheless, the swarm continues their assault, but so too does the boy. Belting out his battle cry, he wildly hacks through even more of them, skillfully timing his offensive front to dodge to the side.
Chase it, chase it!
Adrenaline courses through his nerves. He doesn't even notice that a few Iguazus had gotten their knicks in on his face. But they are merely cuts, nothing fatal, meaningless to the boy as he continues to press his attack.
"Faster, move faster!" Bell cries to his body.
He can feel it. The more he slashes, the fewer there are. He is close to victory. Bell looks up to see one last Iguazu flying towards him with the same killing intent as its brethren. Flipping around his knife, Bell points Hakugen's edge towards it. The bird moves too fast, and it is unable to stop itself as it flies onto the knife. It doesn't even react to its own assisted suicide as it crumbles to dust in the air.
With his breaths ragged and his body beyond exhaustion, Bell struggles to keep himself upright. He nearly stumbles and trips on his own foot.
It's over. He did it!
He resheathes Hakugen and looks at his hand. Much to his surprise, it wasn't trembling like he thought it would be. Instead, it is steady and level. He smiles.
"Thank you," he whispers.
The voice in his mind doesn't respond for a few moments.
"Isaac," he finally says.
"Huh?"
"My name. I didn't properly introduce myself."
"Isaac," Bell repeats. "Thank you, Isaac."
Isaac responds with a quiet hum.
Suddenly, the sound of clapping echoes around Bell. He turns to the right, seeing a mermaid perched on a rock no less than ten meters away from him. She had a disarming smile upon her face, not dissimilar to a child's. She clapped with such flamboyant glee that Bell felt himself staring.
"A mermaid?" Bell asks aloud.
"Hmph. Seems you have a fan." Isaac says jokingly.
"Guess so…" Bell mutters.