As soon as they ascend the flight of stairs, the group finds themselves in a large, circular room. In the center sits an enormous cage, filled with zombie-like beasts that strongly resemble large bears.
"Okay. This is... no good," Aldo comments, his usual cheerful tone gone.
"They look tough, but I'm betting they're slow. Classic zombie rules, you know? They're shamblers, not runners," says Regis.
"That's a common trope, but it really depends on the lore," Helena replies instantly. "You're thinking of Romero-style zombies. But what if they're more like Rage Virus infected? Then speed is their main weapon."
Everyone turns to stare at the sweet-looking girl, who just dropped a surprisingly deep cut of zombie knowledge. She shrinks a little under their gaze and protests, "What? A girl can't be a fan of classic horror?
"She's got a point," says Gabriel. "Yeah, I like zombie movies too. But let's focus on getting out of here. We can talk more about it later."
"Guys, there's something in the middle of them. I think it's another one of those devices where we have to put our mana," Carlos observes.
"Damn it, another one?" Amanda comments. "We already have two people without mana because of these things."
"Just a thought... but shouldn't we try to recover some mana before jumping into another fight?" says Helena.
"Look who's found their voice today," Aldo teases, aiming a grin only at Helena. He flushes when he realizes everyone else is watching him and quickly backpedals, "Which is good! A good thing! You know, being strategic..."
"Helena's right—we could all use the rest. But our supplies are low, and we can't count on finding food here. Pushing forward now is the safer bet," says Regina.
"Okay... I think Regina's argument makes sense," Amanda says hesitantly. "But what does everyone else think? Do we risk resting, or do we push on?"
For a tense moment, the only response is an exchange of looks, a silent conversation passing between the exhausted youths. It's Sarah who breaks the silence, her voice cutting through the tension. "This shouldn't be a vote, Amanda," she says firmly, her fist clenching at her side. "You're the leader. Make the call. We're with you, whatever it is." She glances at the others, and a chorus of determined nods ripples through the group in silent agreement.
A wave of dizziness washed over Amanda. Their faith in her, meant to be a comfort, felt more like a crushing weight. This was a decision that could get them all killed. "Thanks, guys, I... I appreciate it," she stammered, her voice thin. "But I still need to know what you think. I can't... I can't just decide this on my own." Arthur's words from the floor below echoed in her mind. They weren't a comfort; they were a curse that made every choice feel like a potential death sentence.
"She's right," Gabriel says simply, meeting Amanda's eyes. "The choice is yours. We've got your back."
Amanda took a deep, shaky breath, her heart still hammering against her ribs. She saw the expectant faces looking to her, waiting. She had to act. She had to be the leader they needed her to be, even if she felt like a terrified kid. Pushing her own fear down, she found her voice. "Okay then," she shouted, the words coming out stronger and steadier than she felt. "You all know what to do. Let's finish these monsters and get out of here!"
Approaching the cage, the group notices a magical lock at a point facing the staircase they came from. After analyzing it for a moment, Gabriel says: "Guys, it looks like the same type of mechanism as the elevators."
"Seriously?! We have to dump two people's mana on this floor?" Luca complains.
"Things will get harder and harder as we go up, considering there will be more of these devices along the way," Regina comments.
"It's very likely that's the idea behind these mechanisms: to weaken the group before the final battle," says Regis, using his geek knowledge.
"In any case, we need to decide who will activate these two mechanisms and in what order. This is like a game of chess; we need to choose carefully which piece we will 'sacrifice', considering that whoever activates this mechanism will be left without mana to use their abilities," Regina says, looking at Amanda.
Amanda swallowed hard, the sound echoing in the sudden silence. My responsibility. My decision. The thought resonated in her mind, but it did nothing to quiet her heart as it hammered against her ribs, so loudly she was afraid the others could hear. She felt a tremor start in her hands.
"So, what's the plan, Amanda?" Gabriel's calm voice pulled her back to the present.
She took a deep breath, forcing air into her tight lungs.
"Kali, you take the cage lock. Alice, you're on the elevator," she said, her voice coming out far steadier than she'd expected. "Their abilities will impact our frontline the least right now. It's our best play."
A silent consensus passed through the group. Without a word of protest, Kali stepped forward to the cage gate. Her beautiful dark skin seemed to stand out against the room's cold stone, and her green eyes were wide, pupils like dark pools against the iris, the tension in her jaw visible.
Her hand trembled slightly as she laid it on the spherical lock. Taking a steadying breath, she poured her mana into it. The sphere flared with a sickly greenish light and began to spin, emitting a low hum. With a series of heavy, metallic clunks, the locks disengaged. The entire cage then descended, vanishing into the floor with a deafening shriek of metal grinding on stone.
The sound jolted the sleeping monsters awake. One by one, massive heads lifted, turning toward the group. Kali stood frozen, the color draining from her face as the bear closest to where the cage had been now stared directly at her. Even from the ground, its massive head was level with her shoulders. It didn't move, it didn't make a sound. It simply stared, its gaze cold and expressionless, a predator assessing its prey.
The silence shattered as the monster bellowed, lunging to its feet in a blur of motion. Its enormous front paw scythed through the air toward Kali, who could only flinch back in terror. But a human wall slammed into place beside her—Carlos, his arm straining as he parried the colossal blow. "Get back," he grunted, one arm holding the monster at bay, the other protectively pulling Kali behind him. "You did your part. Now, leave the rest to us." Blushing, Kali gave him a grateful nod and scrambled to the rear of the group.
The fight, when it came, was a brutal but efficient affair. Where there had been chaos before, there was now a deadly synchrony. Sarah's wind would throw a bear off balance, leaving it open for Gabriel's punishing fists. Regis would lunge forward, his sword erupting in flame, drawing a beast's panicked attention and leaving it wide open for Luca to strike from the shadows. Their teamwork had clearly evolved. The monsters fell quickly, one after another, but each victory drained their already dwindling reserves. By the time the last beast fell, the true cost of the battle was clear. Carlos's shield arm was trembling, not from a single powerful blow, but from deep-set fatigue. Gabriel, the group's other bulwark, was bent over, gasping for air. The fight hadn't been difficult because of the enemy's strength, but because of their own growing weakness.
"Everyone, status report?" Amanda asks as soon as the fight ends. "I need to know how everyone is doing, as we should still have more battles ahead."
"We can handle a little more. But I think I'm going to sleep for three whole days after this," Gabriel replies, heavily out of breath.
"Well, I guess it's my turn now," Alice comments, her voice barely a sigh.
She approaches the spherical mechanism, her small frame looking almost fragile in the vast room. She places her hand on the sphere, and a visible jolt runs through her as the device leeches her mana away. For a moment, her long blonde hair floats around her head as if she were underwater, crackling with faint static before falling limp. As soon as she pulls her now-trembling hand away, a platform begins its slow, grinding descent from the ceiling, revealing the path to the next floor.
The platform shuddered to a halt, opening onto a new floor. Unlike the last chamber, this one felt... empty. The air was stale, thick with the dust of ages. In the center of the room stood a lone, humanoid figure. At first glance, it looked like little more than a forgotten training dummy, crudely carved from dark wood with articulated limbs. It stood between them and a stone altar at the far end of the room. It was only as their eyes adjusted and swept past the impassive dummy that they saw the real problem. The feeling of stillness shattered. On the altar sat two of those spherical mechanisms. A quick, panicked scan of the room revealed four more, one tucked into each corner. Six of them.
"Seriously? Six of them now?!" Sarah exclaims, her voice sharp with disbelief.
"It is what it is," Gabriel says with a weary sigh, signaling to Amanda. "Let's just get this over with."
Amanda catches his signal — a weary but expectant gaze that clearly says, 'Your move.' She takes a sharp breath to steady herself and then lays out the plan, her voice gaining firmness.
"Alright, here's the plan," she announces. "Renata, Dandara, Aldo, Roger—you're on the corners. Sarah, Carlos, you take the two on the altar. That makes our assault team as Wagner, Regis, Gabriel, and Mara. Helena," she adds, her gaze finding the healer, "your only job is to keep them standing. Let's move."
After a silent exchange of determined nods, the four moved to their assigned positions. Renata, Dandara, Aldo, and Roger each stood before one of the corner mechanisms. They shared a final look, a silent agreement to act in unison. Simultaneously, they placed their hands upon the spheres.
Thin, glowing lines of energy shot out from the devices, weaving a web in the air that converged on the altar. For a tense second, a shimmering dome of light flared into existence around it, then wavered and dissipated with a soft hum.
"What was that?" Amanda asked, startled.
"A defensive ward," Regina answered, her eyes narrowed in concentration. "A powerful one. I felt its energy spike just before it collapsed."
"Yes! Called it! That was totally a pre-boss barrier!" Regis exclaimed. "Good call activating these first, Amanda!"
"Definitely," Regina confirmed, her gaze still sweeping the room. "A ward that strong... let's just say I'm glad we didn't have to find out what it does firsthand."
"Uh... guys? I think it's moving..." Sarah says, pointing to the humanoid figure that, until now, had been motionless in the center of the room. A chill runs down her spine.
"Of course it is," Regis mutters, a flicker of excitement mixed with dread in his eyes. "We deactivated the wards, so we triggered its aggro. It's the classic room guardian."
"Everyone, on me! Focus up! This looks like the real deal," Amanda says, preparing to battle.
The guardian's head snapped towards them, two points of vivid red light igniting where its eyes should be. Before the wooden figure could even take a step, Wagner exploded into motion—a blur of speed aiming to end the fight before it even began. But the instant his fist made contact with the wood, a violent torrent of electricity erupted from the guardian's body. Wagner screamed as the shock seized him, his muscles locking up instantly. His own forward momentum, suddenly a rampaging, uncontrolled force, carried him past the motionless guardian. He slammed into the far wall and crumpled to the floor in a heap.
For a stunned second, no one moved. Then, the creature calmly created a crackling spear of lightning in its hand and charged.
"Watch out! It's using lightning, same as Dandara! Everyone, stay sharp!" Amanda shouts.
"Hey, let's be fair now," Dandara retorts, and despite the paleness of her face, a defiant grin touches her lips. "It manipulates lightning way better than I do. The show-off."
"Not the point! Don't lose focus! Move in!" Amanda yells, intending to motivate the others.
Carlos thrusts his earth-magic shield forward to intercept the spear. The lightning-wreathed weapon meets the solid rock, but instead of shattering, the raw electricity simply flows through the shield. Carlos cries out as the charge surges into him, his muscles locking as he's forced to his knees. Seizing the momentary opening, Regis leaps over the kneeling Carlos and launches a flaming strike at the opponent, who defends using a water barrier. The defense is so precise that it not only blocks the fire attack but sends Regis flying back from the sheer impact.
The fight devolved into a frustrating stalemate. Their attacks glanced off the guardian's wooden form or were parried with casual ease. The creature was an unbreakable wall.
"Wait a minute," Amanda says between ragged breaths, falling back a few steps. "It's not advancing on us. It's just... defending."
"...It's protecting something," Regina finishes the thought aloud, her eyes snapping to the altar. "The last two mechanisms. They're the real target."
"Change of plans!" Amanda shouted, her voice cutting through the sounds of battle. "We need to create a diversion! Everyone who can still fight, engage the guardian and draw its attention! Sarah, Carlos—the second you see an opening, you run for those spheres! Go now!"
The diversion team slammed into the guardian, a flurry of desperate attacks meant to occupy its attention. Seeing their chance, Sarah and Carlos sprinted for the altar. They were almost there when they hit it—an invisible wall of force that threw them back, tumbling across the stone floor.
"Guys, we have a problem!" Sarah yells, scrambling to her feet.
"Another one?!" Amanda snaps.
"So... there's another barrier," Sarah replies, with a nervous laugh.
"That barrier isn't part of the room," Regina warns, her eyes locked on the wooden figure. "It's coming from the guardian itself."
Viktor's eyes didn't show confusion, but a dawning, tactical horror. His gaze flicked from the guardian to the now-dull spheres in the corners. "Its power source," he stated, his voice low and grim. "It has to be drawing from the spheres."
"Yes," Regina confirmed, her own voice filled with dread. "And worse. It's not just drawing generic power... it's using the abilities we fed them."
"We're so screwed!" Regis shouts.
"It's a good thing we held Helena's power in reserve," Viktor says, his voice low and tactical. "If it had her healing ability, this would be impossible."
The realization hit the group like a physical blow. A wave of despair washed over them as they understood: they were fighting their own friends' powers, amplified and turned against them. For a moment, their attacks faltered as hope began to drain away.
"Mara, we need your power to stop it from using the barriers!" Amanda yells, her voice cutting through the despair.
"Understood. Wagner, I need a lift!" says Mara, her expression hardening with resolve.
"On my way!" Wagner shouts, already moving.
As Wagner closed in with Mara, he suddenly veered away, circling the guardian at a wary distance.
"What's wrong?" asks Mara.
"We have to be careful. It zapped me last time I made contact," Wagner replies.
"Okay, everyone. I need a distraction!" Mara yells.
"Viktor, with me!" Amanda shouts, already sprinting. She veers left while the captain goes right, their combined assault forcing the guardian to focus on its two new, aggressive threats.
"Now!" Wagner yells, accelerating into a full-speed tackle. He slams into the guardian's side, allowing Mara to latch onto its wooden body and immediately begin draining its energy. A moment later, Regina's voice cuts through the chaos.
"The barrier is down! Go!"
"Sarah, Carlos—it's on you!" Amanda shouts.
The pair doesn't hesitate, sprinting with everything they have left towards the altar. They slam their hands on the final two spheres. They feel their mana being ripped away as, with a deafening groan, a portal of swirling stone tears itself open in the floor. At the same instant, the entire room begins to shudder violently, the ceiling groaning as cracks spread across the stone.
"That has to be the exit! Let's move!" Regina screams.
It was a desperate scramble for the portal. With Amanda and a handful of others running interference, Wagner became a blur, ferrying the students to safety one by one. But Mara's grip on the guardian wasn't absolute. With a deafening roar, a shockwave of raw energy erupted from the creature's body. The blast threw Mara clear across the room, while simultaneously knocking Amanda and the returning Wagner off their feet.
Amanda's head hit the floor, hard. The world swam, her vision tunneling as warm blood trickled into her eye. Through the haze, she saw Regina lurch towards her, snatching the divine potion from Amanda's own belt. "Wagner, get Amanda out of here!" Regina screamed, her eyes never leaving the monster. "We'll buy you time!" A shimmering barrier erupted around the guardian, only to crack and shatter under a single, brutal blow. Regina threw up another, this one thicker, multi-layered. It held for a second longer before splintering into a million shards of light.
Just as the guardian prepared to strike again, Mara, already forcing herself back to her feet, lunged and latched onto it once more, her draining power slowing its rampage. At the same moment, Wagner reached the dazed Amanda. Now, with the creature's strength being actively sapped, its blows only dented Regina's renewed barriers instead of shattering them outright. A fragile, desperate stalemate had been reached.
The fragile stalemate shattered. The guardian unleashed another shockwave of raw energy, a pulse that sent them all flying.
Amanda, gasping on the floor, looked up just in time to see it. An earth spear, jagged and cruel, erupted from the ground beneath Mara, impaling her and lifting her into the air. A wet, tearing sound cut through the chaos, and then Mara was gone.
Wagner scrambled towards Regina, but a whip of lightning lashed out from the guardian. It struck Regina mid-torso, lifting her off her feet and slamming her against a far wall of the crumbling ruin. She hit the stone with a sickening thud and did not move. The residual energy threw Wagner back, sizzling through the air.
He was on his feet again in an instant, his eyes wild with terror, seeing only Amanda left. In a final, desperate act, he scooped her up in a clumsy, powerful grip and sprinted for the portal. Behind them, the air whistled as the guardian launched a volley of impossibly sharp wind blades.
They tumbled through the portal together in a heap of tangled limbs. Amanda landed hard, the world a dizzying blur. Something else landed beside her with a soft, heavy thud. She pushed herself up, her vision clearing just enough to see it. It was Wagner's head. His eyes were still open, wide with shock.
The portal behind them crumbled into dust, its disappearance leaving only the sound of the survivors' raw, terrified cries echoing in the new, quiet clearing. Gabriel was leaning against a tree, his entire body trembling with exhaustion, but he pushed himself upright, his face a grim mask of duty. Viktor, clutching a deep gash on his arm, began moving among the crying students, his commander's voice strained but steady as he tried to bring order to the chaos. Their own pain was immense, but their training—their duty—forced them to move, to act.
But Amanda didn't move.
On her knees, where she had landed, she cried in silence, a single, horrifying image burned forever into her mind.