Chase sat down ten or so meters in front of the campsite, only a foot away from the ledge he had just climbed up.
His beathing was heavy and exhausted, completely beaten by the task of climbing the split mountain.
But around him, everyone else with the sole exceptions of Hans, Jack, and Poppy showed any signs of exhaustion. Everyone knelt on the ground with their breathing being heavily dampened by the height at which they sat.
Chase turned his head around, his eyes widening as the magnificent sight of Seh Jenah burrowed behind its towering walls: Sat at the center of the view, completely encapsulating the entirety of the Eastern world of Vallmora that was all truly visible from this altitude.
"Unbelievable..." Rayan's panting voice spoke up in awe from behind his morbid steel helm.
"But how is this mountain hidden from sight though?" Poppy asked, tilting her head showing no indication of having even known about this location, even with the vast amount of information on the continent that she already knew.
Andrew shrugged.
"Couldn't tell you. I was just out exploring the forest one day as a kid, and that's when I discovered this place and marked it as my home away from home if you will."
Hans frowned behind the steel bars of his Panda helmet.
"It doesn't make sense." He eventually said, taking a seat on the large checkered blanket and opening a wooden crate that just so happened to be beside his new seat.
"Heh." He muttered with his head turned away from the rest of Unity.
"What are you doing?" Andrew suddenly asked, jogging over to Hans in a fit of desperation.
There was a moment of silence before Andrew let out a horrified scream.
"NO! NOT THE FOOD!" Andrew screamed as Hans grinned before instantly gulping down an entire stew meant for a number of people.
"Bro..." Equan looked completely distraught, just as Andrew.
"Do you know how long I had spent preparing that stew?!" Andrew yelled at Hans, as everyone figured that it was probably best to ignore whatever it is these two did for the time being.
Chase sat down in a comfortable position in front of the edge of the part of the mountain where the campsite resided.
His eyes fixated on Seh Jenah with a deep determination that ran so far into his blood, that he could feel his veins boil at the mental image of King Phillip...
Chase didn't even realize that his skin was beginning to heat up... And the hairs on his arm were beginning to smell of smoke...
"Chase." An unexpected voice spoke up beside him.
Chase lifted his left eyelid, as the bright light of the evening sun lit up Luke's face, who sat in a cross-legged position beside him, his eyes also locked onto the city of Seh Jenah.
Chase suddenly looked down at his own body.
His skin was tinged with purple veins... Sprouting and connecting like infested tree roots...
But the smoke rising from his own body was what made Chase realize what was happening.
"Stop." Luke suddenly demanded before Chase could calm himself.
"Huh?" Chase was bit by confusion, unsure as to why it was that Luke was allowing him the possibility of losing control when surrounded by so many friends.
"Relax... Just close your eyes and keep your posture still." Luke instructed, his crimson eyes still distant as he twisted and fidgeted with his metallic hand.
Chase actually decided to listen, a strange sense of trust sprouted from the likes of no where as he awaited Luke's next words with his eyes shut closed.
"You are overheating, correct?" Luke asked, dismissing the corruption entirely.
Chase frowned, but eventually nodded in annoyance.
"Good... That makes this easier." Luke supposedly shrugged with simplicity.
'How does that make this easier?' Chase thought, shaking his head in irritation.
Suddenly a boiling feeling began to form along his skin... It felt as if whirlpools of boiling water had formed along the skin of his arms and legs.
Chase grimaced, his teeth grinding against each other as he tried to keep his eyes shut.
"What do you see?" Luke asked, folding his arms as curiosity began to rise.
Chase tilted his head.
And then.
As if written to be... Chase began to see... But not with his eyes, or even soul sense... No...
Chase could see... Fire...
Multi-colored flames shrouded in hues of energy that Chase couldn't even comprehend, but beyond those frenzied flames...
A slow beating heart was standing within the fire... Ridden in thorns of a violent purple... Those of which twitched with irritation, curling back and withering before sprouting anew and growing outward, only to be ensnared in the flames that protected the heart...
"The flames..." Chase suddenly said as goosebumps began to form on his arms.
Luke raised an eyebrow, as Chase's eyes remained shut.
"The flames are trying to kill the corruption..." Chase gasped in amazement.
"Are they succeeding?" Luke asked, now biting his own nails in anticipation.
Chase watched for a few more moments, studying the time it took to kill a single limb of the corruption and the time it takes for another to grow.
"No... It seems to be a stalemate... A completely even battlefield for both challengers..." Chase thought aloud as a piece of the puzzle began to fall into place.
"Luke?" Chase suddenly spoke up, his eyelids starting to catch fire much to Luke's surprise.
"What is it?" The retired professor asked.
Chase scoffed, unable to keep his eyes closed any longer as his body instantly jolted with movements from each and every one of his muscles.
"I found it..."
"Found what?" Poppy suddenly asked, leaning over Luke and Chase's shoulders.
Chase flinched, and Luke frowned.
"I thought you were still mad at me?" Chase asked, unsure if he even wanted to talk to Poppy after having found such a big realization.
"Nah, I'm not that petty... I already thought about it quite a bit, but you did cross your fingers when you promised me... So like, what can I even do?" Poppy sighed, sitting in-between Luke and a stunned Chase.
"So! What is that you found?" She asked, tilting her head with curiousity.
Luke also raised an eyebrow.
But before Chase could answer... He hadn't even realized that the sun had set.
And suddenly...
The night sky radiated to life with infernal sparks of many colors...
The fireworks had begun.