Ethan clenched his jaw, forcing down the chaotic energy surging through his body. His eyes swept the depths of the crumbling palace.
Through the roar of collapsing stone and the shriek of tearing runes, he finally spotted it—a massive, gaping hole yawning open at the far end of the wall.
"There."
He didn't hesitate. Spinning his axe to his side, he used the recoil from the last clash to launch himself backward, out of the battle's center, and shot toward the void.
Behind him, the armored brute let out a furious roar and gave chase. The scythe came down again and again, each swing unleashing black shockwaves that slammed into the floor just behind Ethan, shaking the corridor with every impact.
Ethan sprinted through the narrowing passage, the pressure of the giant's aura clawing at his back. Then the corridor changed—dimly lit, impossibly long, and sloping downward.
And stranger still—
It wasn't just a tunnel. It was a slide.
