The sun blazed through the gaping hole, flooding the overgrown ruins with vivid light.
After watching Akwan dissolve into nothingness, desperation seized Telos. Feeling helpless, he raised his weapon in a frantic, anguished strike, hoping to change the outcome.
He aimed for her legs, drawing a slow, steady breath as his blade danced in tandem with hers. Meanwhile, the wanderers—dazed and desperate—searched the ruins for any means of escape. The Princess's overwhelming power forced them to consider fleeing as their only hope.
"Run!" Asahi shouted at the three.
As the others scattered, Sadiki sprinted toward the wanderers and caught sight of a jagged gap in the crumbling stone. From within, golden light poured out, washing their faces in a promise of hope.
"Asahi, Aletha, come on!" He said as part of the ruins collapsed. "I found an exit far from the princess. Now is our chance."
"But," Aletha added. "Akwan died."'
Sadiki's violet eyes shot open, disbelief and grief flooding his features. The reality of Akwan's loss hit him like a crushing wave, leaving the mighty warrior nearly broken, each breath ragged with sorrow.
Nevertheless, when Belial found out…
A massive wolf-like silhouette flashed with the darkness, howling and tearing The Ending Gallant's arms off. His green eyes flashed in the dark, a trail of luminance following each step.
The Princess stood still, letting the wolf scratch away. As reality warped behind it, she whispered to the beast, her magenta eyes sharp as daggers.
"The poor dark wolf." She said, "What a pity."
With a violent motion, the Princess flung the wolf at the wall. Fury distorted his features—rage and grief blazed through him, until only torn fur hinted at the creature he once was.
But instead of killing him, the Princess wickedly grinned, slowly pulling her dark violet blade out from her hip, the Soul Storage. With an extreme thirst for blood, she swiftly dashed to Belial. His green eyes widened, thinking that if he could redeem himself, he might meet Akwan,
Instead of thinking, Belial charged directly at the Princess, yelling with determination that echoed through the cavern. The wanderers, realizing his intent, leapt over the stream to intercept Sadiki, trying to prevent another death. As they moved, the Princess's violet blade streaked through the dark, hazy mist.
Telos jumped over the wanderers toward her. As her sword's tip neared their skin, her veil-covered eyes widened, and she dropped her own blade.
"A--"
Before the Princess could speak, Telos thrust his blade into thin air. Suddenly, both vanished, leaving behind a single black flower petal. Cries echoed as shock rippled through the group. The tension vanished, replaced by delicate white flowers with black patterns, which gleamed in the sunlight and mirrored the symbols on their faces.
Aletha closed her eyes and took a deep breath, whispering as she slammed her fist to the ground like a hammer.
"Telos… abandoned us."
Caught in the moment's urgency, Sadiki dashed over to check on Belial and quickly asked, focused on his well-being after the fight.
"Are you okay? Why did you?"
Shattered sobs and wrenching cries tore through the empty corridors, echoing the raw, heavy ache of their collective grief. Every wall seemed to absorb the magnitude of their heartbreak, amplifying the unbearable weight of loss.
"He's gone." He said. "I failed him."
"What do you mean?" Belial gritted his teeth and took one calm, relaxed breath. He perked his head out to the poking hole and shut his eyes.
"I made a contract with Akwan… one hundred years ago… and swore to protect him at all costs. It seems I have failed the contract… and now,"
Tears streamed from his emerald eyes, each one glittering with a heartbreak so fierce it carved deep hollows of sorrow within him, leaving him trembling and empty.
"He's gone… for good."
Sadiki crept toward Belial, sweeping aside smoldering debris until it tumbled into the delicate, crystal-clear streams. He lowered his cat ears in sympathy and gently patted Belial's head, murmuring…
"When Telos left, he made particles like Akwan. Maybe he wasn't slain, but teleported? It's just my guess—I don't think like a ruler."
Aletha shook her head, staggered, and pushed Asahi toward a stream.
"Sis, what was that for?"
Asahi and Aletha settled among the ruins and noticed something odd in the crevices—a strange "S" symbol carved into an ancient stone tablet. Asahi glanced at Aletha, then back to…
"That… that can't be possible," Asahi said, scratching his head. " That's the Adtraic symbol… from millennia ago. How is it that it did not vanish and yet…"
"Bro, look."
Ancient structures emerged from the swirling mist and shafts of sunlight, whispering of a long-lost era. A star blazed on a statue's brow, S-shaped marks carved deep into its stone cheeks. These were relics, alive with a power far beyond imitation.
"Is that me?" Aletha asked, flustered by all the historically accurate sculptures. "Are these… statues from our old OLD times?"
"It's… this statue. Deep in my mind, I recognize this old attire," Asahi said. "Our forms from years we can't remember."
"Yes, I have seen many of those similar statues scattered all around Gincad. It seemed you had some significant importance as if they were building kingdoms for you."
The wanderers fell silent. These belonged to the old world, yet they remembered watching that kingdom burn. Could the ruins of that lost world truly remain?
After his words faded, Asahi, Aletha, and the others departed, burdened with the task of explaining Akwan's mysterious disappearance to those who remained.
"They couldn't possibly die," Aletha burst out, her voice ragged. "They're too powerful..."
It would seem Aletha was speaking about their parents.
Sadiki, hastily replied, his eyes staring deep into their souls.
"There will always be a power beyond another one."
As they exited the archway that had led to the underground city, he grabbed Belial and followed up on his words.
"The Ending's creatures have a resonance with this place, so… yes, we should follow Sadiki."
Asahi and Aletha fell silent, thinking of Akwan and his potential input.
" A potential threat rests deeper in The Soil. It could be monsters or something far dangerous like dragons." He said, clearing his throat. "I suggest we return to the surface before any other dangers set in."
After a long, weighted silence, the wanderers pressed their pale fingers against the ancient stone, gazing up at the ink-black sky. A surge of power coursed through them, and a blinding flash swept away their vision.
. . .
A colorless void consumed the siblings' vision. Their eyes glowed white, reflecting emptiness, with eight flowers swaying in the abyss. Surrounded by white emptiness and fragile blooms, the wanderers were left only with distant memories.
As Aletha stood still, staring into the flowers, Asahi faintly muttered.
"The Last Flowers of the Old World."
The wanderers edged nearer to the eight strange flowers, their colors shifting in the void. Without warning, one blossom dimmed, its petals curling into blackness and crumbling onto the glowing ground below.
Before anything could be said, the wanderers gasped in shock, and the white void collapsed back into itself, to reality.
Their vision shifted to a bumpy green hill, where Sadiki and Belial approached.
They were close to the outskirts of the village, far from the distant ruins.
Birdsong filled their ears as the emerald plains swept over the land, erasing the ruins until it seemed they had never existed at all.
A gentle breeze played through their hair, sunlight dancing on the hills and cliffs.
Sadiki pushed the wanderers out of their trance and asked.
"What did you two do? We're already in Milmoor."
Asahi and Aletha checked their maps and saw they were in the north.
Asahi slowly replied.
"I don't know… I think we have…" He turned over to the village.. "Teleported."
As the wanderers tried to find answers, Belial scratched his head and nodded.
"After you two touched statues, a flash of light consumed our vision, and shortly after, we appeared here. Scratching that thought aside, are you two okay?"
They had endured pain that scorched the soul. The tragedies of Akwan and Telos, former pillars of hope, left them on the edge of shattering. One more loss, and their hearts would splinter beyond repair, plunging them into unfathomable despair.
A dizzying wave of anguish threatened to drown them. Each thought spun in a storm of fear, heartbreak clutching their chests, their wounds raw and gasping for hope.
The wanderers blinked, and their sights were replaced by an image of a white, glittering bridge far above the clouds.
The vision vanished as quickly as it came. A realization dawned.
"That bridge belonged to us."
Still questioning what happened to The Princess, Akwan, and Telos, they approached the village outskirts and returned to Drimi and the others.
Asahi and Aletha thought that in a world full of Rulers, among the thousands of them, they would be praised.
But that was far from the case.
. . .
Meanwhile,
The misty, tranquil heights of the grassy summits whispered in his ears.
The flock of crows soared downward to the lowest part of the lush peak, dodging the many serpents and the buried fossils deep within the rich, damp soil of the nation. Their yells echoed over the dry crevices, burying themselves deep within the small, clear rainstorms that had hovered over the tall, lush hills.
The city, far within his reach, rested at the lower shores of the nation and had stuck out like a tiny insect. At a glance, Telos tipped his head up and saw a clear view of the enormous Dragon encircling the misty peak.
Below, the mountain range sprawled, thick forests and hills forming a breathtaking tapestry.
Bright ponds and waterfalls cascaded to the ocean, feeding life to the villages nestled among the mountains.
Telos ventured farther from the mountain, pushing through tangled bushes as he pressed onward.
"It would seem that I have been teleported to..." Telos muttered as the sound of birds echoed over the mountains. "Linuxinia. The Nation of Joy."
As he descended, jagged precipices jutted from the damp earth, shaping the wild landscape before him.
Now, he was far from the wanderers. With the sinister forces of The Ending's Princess prowling the land, danger threatened to erupt at any moment.
"Until the wanderers come here, I shall set camp and dwell within the lush landscapes of Linuxinia," Telos said, brushing dirt off his arm. "I am far from their reach."
From his vantage, green mountains rose into hills under the blue sky. Telos raced through blue vines, spotting the glittering sea and puffy clouds atop the peaks.
Telos sighed, falling silent as he gazed at the tiny speck far below. Even the clouds drifted beneath him, sending wisps of mist curling upward.
"If they ever reach here, I must inform them of The Truth," Telos said as he clenched his fists, departing the lush peak. "It's not their journey anymore that has started."
Staring into the ocean, Telos uttered.
"It's our journey."