The maintenance shaft sloped downward into a narrow corridor of rusted pipes and dripping valves.
Water pooled around their boots.
Moss clung to broken tiles.
The air smelled of wet metal and something older—stagnant, ancient, forgotten.
Titanborn's heavy steps echoed too loudly.
Blinkstep flinched at every sound.
Mindwright adjusted his fogged glasses in shaky motions.
Arc walked at the front, puppet held close, steps silent despite the soaked floor.
No one spoke for a long time.
Because no one wanted to say what they were all thinking.
Elias could be anywhere down here.
A Flicker of Light
A faint glow pulsed ahead—dim, blue, flickering in and out like a heartbeat.
Mindwright squinted.
"That's… mana-lighting. Old installations. This tunnel's ancient."
Blinkstep ran a hand through his drenched hair.
"Feels haunted."
Titanborn snorted. "Don't say haunted. Haunted means ghosts."
Blinkstep swallowed.
"You'd rather say Elias?"
Titanborn shut up.
Arc kept walking.
But the prisoner-hush of the tunnel weighed on him differently.
His puppet tugged lightly on its strings.
"He's… listening."
Arc whispered back, "I know."
Mindwright stiffened.
"Excuse me?"
Arc didn't look at him.
"He's somewhere ahead."
Blinkstep nearly tripped.
"WHAT?! Where ahead?!"
Arc raised the knife Elias left.
"The blade angle is pointing that way."
Titanborn blinked.
"That makes NO sense, Arc."
Mindwright held up a hand.
"No… wait."
He studied the knife carefully.
Rainwater clung to one side.
The angle of the residual droplets matched the direction of airflow in the tunnel.
"…He angled the knife so the residue would guide Arc," Mindwright whispered, stunned.
Blinkstep stared.
"He used RAIN PATTERNS to send a message?!"
Arc kept walking.
"He knows I notice details."
Titanborn scoffed.
"Yeah? What happens when the detail is him slitting your throat?"
Arc didn't answer.
Because he remembered Elias's words:
"You're not strong enough yet."
He knew what they meant.
Elias wasn't done with him.
Not even close.
Footsteps
Suddenly—
a faint echo rippled through the tunnel.
Soft.
Measured.
Unmistakable.
Footsteps.
Blinkstep froze.
Mindwright held his breath.
Titanborn raised his fists.
Arc didn't turn around.
"…It's him."
But the footsteps didn't come from ahead.
They came from behind them.
Titanborn spun.
"There's nothing there—!"
The footsteps grew louder.
Blinkstep backed up until he hit Titanborn's shoulder.
"Don't like this. Don't like this one bit."
Mindwright whispered, "He isn't approaching at a normal pace—he's pacing. He's studying our reactions."
Arc faced forward again.
"He wants me to choose."
Titanborn's brows knotted.
"Choose WHAT?"
Arc whispered:
"To continue forward…
or turn back to face him now."
Blinkstep's breathing hitched.
"No. No. Absolutely not. Vote says forward."
Mindwright shook his head.
"He's forcing a psychological split. If we turn back, he'll read our fear responses. If we keep going, he'll observe endurance, focus, and decision-making under pressure."
Titanborn muttered, "He's treating us like lab rats."
Arc's puppet whispered:
"No. Treating us like prey."
The footsteps stopped.
Complete silence.
A silence so sharp it made the pipes hum.
Titanborn inhaled slowly.
"He made his point. Let's move."
But as they turned—
THUD.
A metal grate ahead slammed shut.
Blinkstep screamed.
"NOPE. NOPE. NOPE. HE SAW US MOVING BEFORE WE MOVED."
Mindwright backed up.
"He predicted our route."
Titanborn pounded on the grate.
"This thing is reinforced!"
Arc stared at the closed path.
"Then the only way is back."
Blinkstep grabbed his collar.
"ARC. LOOK AT ME. WE. ARE. NOT. GOING. BACK."
Arc lifted his puppet between them.
The puppet's wooden lips cracked wider.
"He is waiting."
Titanborn and Mindwright turned slowly.
The tunnel behind them was dark.
Pitch black.
Except—
Two faint reflections shone in the darkness.
Eyes.
Not glowing.
Not supernatural.
Just calm.
Sharp.
Human.
Elias stepped out of the shadows.
Knife pulled loosely at his side.
Rain dripping off his hood.
Blinkstep nearly fainted.
Mindwright's knees buckled.
Titanborn clenched his fists, ready to die trying.
Arc stood completely still.
Elias walked forward slowly.
No rush.
No threat.
Just steady steps echoing through the tunnel.
He stopped ten feet away.
The dripping pipes fell silent.
Even the water on the ground felt still.
Elias tilted his head at Arc, studying him the same way someone looks at a puzzle just starting to take shape.
Then he spoke:
"You chose forward."
Arc swallowed.
"Because you wanted me to."
Elias's expression didn't change.
"Good."
Titanborn tightened his stance.
"Why the hell are you doing this?!"
Elias didn't look at him.
He only looked at Arc.
"Strength isn't your problem."
Arc's pulse hammered.
Elias continued:
"It's hesitation."
Arc's puppet trembled.
Elias stepped closer—slow, deliberate.
Mindwright's breath froze.
Blinkstep's vision blurred.
Titanborn tensed to strike.
But Arc stood frozen in place.
Elias leaned slightly forward.
Voice low.
Calm.
Deadly honest.
"If you don't kill it… it kills you."
Arc blinked.
"…Kill what?"
Elias stepped back.
"You'll understand."
He turned away—
walking back into the dark.
Blinkstep whispered, "He's leaving? Just like that?"
Mindwright shook, adrenaline overwhelming his system.
Titanborn exhaled hard. "He didn't even LOOK at us."
Arc watched as Elias faded into the shadows, footsteps growing quieter.
But before he disappeared entirely—
Elias spoke one last time.
A whisper echoing like a warning written into the bones of the tunnel:
"Get stronger, Arc."
And then he was gone.
And the grate ahead unlocked with a violent clang.
Arc inhaled.
"He opened the path."
The puppet giggled:
"He wants the game to continue."