Into the Abyss

"You think all there is to the world is the land on which you stand, the ocean on which you sail, and the air on which you look up to? I say to you now, do not discount the underworld. Because it is there where great riches can be found. And great darkness."

-Lecture Series 54, Edeorn Synestra, Paladin S-Class

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Somewhere deep underground

15 Aramar 11 AE

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Many slave miners were immediately tagged after the Gale disappeared from where he stood in the square. Still, the settlement was huge. It should take the Gale several minutes, if not hours to tag them all.

Yvaine wondered at the magnitude of this Teck's influence. Yekob never allowed all the slave miners at once to participate in a contest before. Teck must be really influential, or rich, to be able to demand such a contest from the entire settlement.

They ran to the same perimeter border where Erik stood guard. Erik was nice. But they didn't dare risk it. Erik was after all still a soldier of the Empire. Yekob's order of not allowing anyone to pass through was paramount.

"Hey, Erik," Cray casually hollered as they approached.

"Don't even think about it, boys!" Erik's tone and battle stance told them everything; legs spread apart for a good foundation, spear pointed threateningly in their direction. Yvaine knew Erik was no ordinary guard. All the settlement guards weren't.

"Hey, hey, easy now," Cray laughed nervously. "Careful where you point that thing. We were only hiding."

"I really like you two. But orders are orders," Erik's once-friendly voice was unrecognizable in this tone. His blank glare told them he will not hesitate to kill them if they tried to go through. "Don't go beyond that line."

Only then did Yvaine notice a line carved on the ground some three meters in front of Erik. Cray was just one step away from trespassing.

Erik was standing at the mouth of one of the many tunnels that led down to the mines. On either side of him were the rock walls that bordered the large underground cavern where the settlement sat. Anyone wanting to go down the mines would have to pass through Erik and the other guards on all the other tunnels.

"What?" Cray cried in disbelief. "The perimeter is still some eight meters behind you," he insisted. "These weren't Yekob's orders."

"His orders were to gut everyone who 'tried' to pass through. My area, my rules," Erik replied. "Don't say I didn't warn you. My area starts from that line. Trespass at your own risk."

Yvaine knew Erik meant every word.

"Fine," Cray raised both his hands in defeat and turned to face the settlement, moving a good two meters away from the line. Yvaine remained in place, pondering on their options. The Gale would be here soon and it would then be a close quarter game of tag.

"Let's just hope the time ends before the Gale decides on this spot," Cray said to particularly nobody. "Wait, how long is this Reaping anyway? Yekob didn't mention anything like that."

Yvaine just shrugged at Cray in response. She wondered the same thing. Almost twenty minutes has passed since they ran from the square so she concluded that the 30 seconds the Gale mentioned before was just to give the slave miners a running start.

"He's here," Erik said simply.

Yvaine felt it before she saw it and reacted accordingly. Her body acted on its own and she leaned to fall on her back. Time seemed to slow down as she saw the Gale's hand extend out of nowhere, narrowly missing her chest. Momentum carried the Gale forward and beyond, safely out of Yvaine's circle as she easily twisted her body to protect her back from slamming on the ground. Her hand caught support and she effortlessly righted herself up.

The Gale flipped, landed, and bound again, trying to tag Yvaine one more time. Her senses attuned to her surroundings. Time did seem to stop. Cray looked stupid with his wide surprised eyes and gaping mouth. Erik also just stood still but his eyes otherwise moved normally. The decision to not cross the guard was a wise one, indeed. Erik was fast. Perhaps as fast as the Gale.

But Yvaine was faster. Sensing the Gale's reach, she easily swerved out of range. The Gale continued his attacks. Yvaine continued to dance out of the way.

To normal people, Yvaine and the Gale were just blurs in the air. She knew Cray couldn't follow them. It was fortunate that the Gale decided to try and tag her first. She wouldn't want Cray lashed. She also wouldn't want to be out of this place without Cray. So she bid her time, stalling the Gale, keeping him occupied, while at the same time staying out of Erik's area.

The Gale seemed to grow frustrated at his misses. Yvaine could see the sweat begin to build around the Gale's eyes on the only open area in his mask. She also began hearing his frustrated growls every time his hands grasped thin air where Yvaine should have been.

Yvaine marveled at her own speed. She wasn't winded. Every near-miss exhilarated her. Every move she made seemed calculated. She easily predicted the Gale's movements and adjusted her evades accordingly, careful not to fall into any missteps. It was like a game of chess. A really fast game of chess. And Yvaine enjoyed it.

The Gale finally realized he was getting nowhere with Yvaine and decided to try another tactic. Yvaine immediately saw the shift in his footing. The Gale feinted at Yvaine, leading her to leap away from the perimeter. Away from Erik. Away from Cray.

As she expected, the Gale now lunged for Cray. Cray could not see it coming. They were just moving so fast for his eyes.

When the Gale's outstretched hand was about a foot away from Cray's chest, something pushed him out of the way. Yvaine had tackled him just in time. Out of the Gale's reach. Into Erik's area.

A part of Yvaine prayed her suspicions of Erik were unfounded. But her prayers were unanswered. She pushed Cray to the side and Erik's spear barely missed Cray's head. She likewise got out of the way. She and Cray were now literally behind enemy lines.

She barely noticed the Gale and she was almost tagged from behind. When she successfully avoided it, Erik's spear flashed before her eyes and she ducked, almost impaled in the shoulder. The next thing she knew, the Gale was diving for Cray. Yvaine extended her foot and tripped the Gale off balance. He fell to his side just inches before his hand could touch Cray. Then she left the ground and tackled Cray again to spare him from Erik's spear.

The Gale and Erik seemed to have rehearsed their movements regarding each other. Erik's spear never got anywhere dangerously close to the Gale. And the Gale never bothered Erik.

The dance of four, or three, went on for a good minute. Cray just blundered along for the ride. Yvaine moved to keep both herself and Cray out of Erik's spear and the Gale's chalked hands. The Gale tried to tag either Cray or Yvaine or both. Erik tried to impale either Cray or Yvaine or both.

She attempted several times to get back to the safety outside of Erik's area, but she was at her wit's end. Every attempt was thwarted by either the Gale's waiting hands or Erik's striking spear.

Yvaine finally began to feel the strands of weariness. Her movements were no longer as polished. Her legs were beginning to shake. Erik's spear was getting dangerously closer and closer to hitting its mark with every thrust. The Gale's hands were now mere inches from her just before she got out of the way.

Finally, it happened. The Gale's hand was a hairsbreadth from Cray's back when Yvaine pushed him out of the way one last time. But the Gale's hand was already too close to its mark for both Yvaine and Cray to avoid being tagged.

Yvaine's dread happened as she felt the Gale's palm push against her right shoulder, throwing her off balance and making her fall to her back. She was tagged. At the same time, she saw, from the corner of her eye, Erik's spear tear through Cray's left shoulder. Her world dulled back to normal as her senses slowed down.

Fortunately, the spear only hit muscle. Cray yelled. Not in pain. But in anger.

"All this speed crap is nothing if you can't move!" Cray pushed himself against Erik's spear, impaling himself more until the tip burst from behind his shoulder. In return, he was able to grasp a stunned Erik by the forearm.

Cray's grip on Erik's arm was iron. Then a right hook hit Erik squarely on the jaw and the guard immediately slumped to the ground, unconscious. "I liked you too," he said to the unconscious guard.

The Gale did not bother dashing. He just casually walked towards the big boy. Having successfully tagged Yvaine, Cray would be easy. Yvaine's eyes couldn't help but tear up in frustration.

"Out of the way!" a deep voice called out of nowhere. Yvaine was too tired to register who it was from. The next she heard was a loud bang and then the ground gave way. Yvaine fell helplessly into the resulting abyss. She saw an unconscious Erik, Cray, and the Gale fall along with her. Another man, in armor, also fell along with them just before she blacked out.