I hit the ground hard but roll with it, curling my body, chin tucked to avoid a neck snap.
The sole reason I haven't broken anything was because of a simple fact.
The direction was angled forward, not directly up. The momentum saves me from breaking anything too vital.
I land ahead of Kyros and Navi.
They catch up in a blur, Kyros sprinting, Navi with her hand on her scabbard.
No words are exchanged. We don't have time.
I glance back.
The machine isn't slowing.
Its limbs move like liquid. There's no stuttering, no delay. It moves smoother than most living things, its sleek tendrils flinging it forward like a monstrous spider. Typically, a machine would have some kind of halted movement when moving from point A to point B; it's only natural, given the nature of the machine, a 'lifeform' created by other lifeforms.
"Ahead, Kaito! There's a cave that leads into the next layer!" Kyros yells.
I snap my eyes forward.
There it is.
A dark opening carved into the base of a hill. A respite from this utter chaos. The cave is a few meters away, but if I keep this pace, I'll make it. Hopefully, the others will too.
Just a few more steps.
My heart races. Panic starts to fade—
Until I glance up.
A blue laser is trained right on the mouth of the cave. The beeping is rising again. Louder. Faster.
It's going to shoot the entrance.
It's trying to trap us.
I grit my teeth, forcing my legs to go faster. The light pulses brighter. My eyes clench from the speed of the wind clawing into the crevices of my eyeballs.
My legs explode with adrenaline. But unfortunately, it's too slow.
Desperation claws its way through my chest.
There has to be something, some way, any way—before the shot lands—
A spell. That'll be the only way we can get out of this situation. My mind snaps back to when Navi used a wind spell to cut down a tree. Aero-something. That's what she called it.
I've finally reached the cave entrance, my feet skidding, forcing my body to a halt. I whip around, my whole frame angled back toward the chaos.
I glance over my shoulder. She has enough distance between her and the machine. Enough to cast it.
"NAVI!!! CUT DOWN THOSE TREES WITH YOUR WIND SPELL!!"
I scream it, panting, saliva launching from my mouth with the force of each breath.
I'm not going to tell her to use it on the robot. If she hasn't tried, there must be a reason. Either she knows it won't work, or she doesn't want to find out.
She doesn't hesitate. Spinning on her heel, Navi cracks her index finger with her thumb. A single, confident motion. It's akin to a gunslinger cocking the back of their weapons hammer.
"Aeronis-2, Slice!!"
The incantation comes out like a blade. A white arc instantly forms where her finger points, the air converging at a single, precise point. Pressure builds, slowly charging up.
Then it fires.
A split-second blur. A gleam through the air. It tears toward the trees in a flash too fast for the eye to follow.
This is a gamble. Everything hinges on it. The trees need to fall in a specific angle to block or redirect the robot's aim. Ideally, collapse on it entirely.
Navi knows. She aims not at the trunks, but toward the upper-right, adjusting her angle to guide their fall.
If she misses, even by a bit… it's all over.
A single bead of sweat runs down my hand.
Kyros finally catches up. He skids next to me, eyes locked on the unfolding moment.
It happens in mere seconds, yet it stretches, drawn out by the tension. Each tick of time heavier than the last. The robot barrels forward, it's directive dead set on killing us.
Then—
A deep, splintering groan erupts from the forest. Five trees tremble and begin to tip.
They're right in front of the machine. However, the machine's less than a few feet from passing them.
"C'mon… c'mon…" I mutter, my fingers twitching like they're trying to roll invisible dice.
It's all timing. A million-to-one shot.
Or a gamble.
Then—
CRASH.
The trees fall. Hard. Five giants collapsing all at once. A thunderous, jarring quake ripples through the air. A cloud of dust and broken branches erupts from the impact site. A plume of smoke shrouds the clearing.
A single beam cuts through it. One last desperate blast. It tears through a nearby tree, exploding it into shards.
My legs feel like they're dissolving into the ground. The fatigue I've been pushing down finally rises to my brain.
I'm completely exhausted.
But I shake my head. I can't rest. Not yet. I'm still on my feet. That's all that matters.
"Alright, let's go, I'm not wasting any time here!"
Kyros nods beside me.
I start to turn—then stop.
Something's wrong.
Something extremely important is missing.
I look back. Navi is limping. Far from the cave. Too far.
My eyes snap down to her foot. I see it.
Blood.
A thick red trail streaking from her leg to the ground, glinting wetly in the light.
And then I spot it.
A jagged splinter of wood, wedged between her leg guard and her foot. It's impaled her completely. Deep. An unlucky hit in every sense of the word.
Behind her, the sound of gears turning starts up again.
Grinding. Whirring.
Then an alarm blares.
"[DAMAGE TO HULL TAKEN. INTEGRITY: 98%. RESUMING OPERATION.]"
I grit my teeth.
"C'mon, Navi. Hurry up."
But she's trying. Limping forward, dragging herself, her steps pathetic. The wound is too much. She won't make it.
I glance back toward the cave.
We could run. Escape right now. Me and Kyros. We'd make it.
Am I really about to risk my life for the person who marked me with a slave collar?
My hand brushes the metal ring at my neck. The one that keeps me tethered. Controlled.
Do I owe anything to her? Someone who clipped my freedom before I even had a chance?
Cute or not. Kind or not. She still did wrong to me.
She collapses.
Her face says it all. Silent pain.
She shivers on the ground, reaching her arm forward as if that pitiful attempt at crawling is going to save her from her doom.
Damn it.
"Kyros, stay here," I bark.
He hesitates. "Please hurry, Kaito. The creature seems to be getting up."
I nod once. Then brace myself.
I just need a sudden burst of energy. Please body. Pump blood like never ever before. I need to soar past this obstacle. I'm going to save someone. Don't fail me.
My head hurts, and my legs are shaking from fatigue. My arms cramp from the impact I took earlier.
I breathe in deep. I can deal with the pain. It's not going to go away, but if I inhale and exhale, it becomes barely tolerable.
And barely is all I can get right now.
I move.
My back leg launches me forward like a bullet. My body surges. Arms pumping. Nerves firing. I run like everything depends on it.
Because it does.
The machine rises behind the smoke. It's not down. It seems almost twice as angry now, it's limbs flailing around like serpents desperate to murder me.
It sees me.
The single eye locks onto me, probably designating me as a priority target. Then, it begins it's run.
Navi is about eight meters from it. Four meters from me.
The robot's probably refraining from attacking Navi simply because it acknowledges that, at this point, she poses no threat whatsoever.
At my best speed, I cover one meter in just under three-tenths of a second. That's 1.12 seconds to reach her.
But it's faster than me.
It can do twice the distance in the same time.
I'm racing a machine.
Again.
Well, I'm too far gone to stop at this point. I can only carry on from here.
My legs pound the earth. My lungs beg for air. The world becomes white noise. My form is breaking, my hands are desperately swinging back and forth.
Just a few more seconds!
The machine inches closer, only two meters away from her at this point. It's alarms blare, as if warning me of her impending doom.
I grit my teeth, using every bit of me to force my legs to push further.
Finally, she's close.
I reach her, despite the odds, I reach her.
It's not over yet, however. There's still an obstacle to be overcome.
I now have to race back.
The girl is collapsed, weak, and shaky gasps are erupting from her mouth. Blood pools around her leg, the red shine burning brighter than the sun.
"Ka…"
That's all she manages to say.
I scoop her up. My left arm under her knees, right arm at her back.
She's not heavy.
Not enough to stop me.
Once again, I start my run. Now or never. If I falter for even a second, we're both dead.
In this world of magic and wonder, I'm still reduced to a panting mess, using my sheer strength and vitality in the end.
I guess I'm reverting back to my most basic instincts, as all humans eventually do when confronted with dire situations.
No matter what technology we attain, or magic in this case, we still revert to these basic senses. In a way, it's kind of eye-opening, seeing that the elders of our age were right.
When the phone stops working, how will we contact each other? When the gun gets jammed, how do we fight? Or, in this case, what do we do when magic isn't a solution? It's all a question that can be answered by a simple thing.
To revert back into those stupid creatures swinging clubs.
Its a crude but simple solution. Look at me, I'm carrying a girl who could probably cut me into thousands of pieces with magic, running away from a giant robot.
It's almost poetic in a way. The guy with no abilities whatsoever is the median between two worlds of fantasy.
My breath is ragged. My clothes stick to me like glue. Sweat clings to my skin like oil. The world spins.
But I don't stop.
My mind boils everything down into one line.
Carry Navi to safety.
Get to the cave.
Carry Navi.
Run.
Run.
Blood coats my arms now. From her leg. It slides down to my pants, hot and sticky.
For a moment, my eyes travel downcast.
The girl's facial expression is that of someone who was fading away. Her eyes slowly close as she grips my shirt. Tiny gasps come from her mouth.
Shit. I think it hit an artery.
Utilizing my shaking hand, I attempt to stabilize the piece of wood so no further damage is done.
The alarm behind me blares again. Louder. Sharper. Mechanical.
Beep. Beep. Beep.
Target locked.
Aiming.
Kyros stands at the mouth of the cave. Waiting. He's probably praying that we make it safe.
You won't have to wait much longer.
I see the entrance. Just a little farther.
But once again, reality does not follow my wishes. A final beep rings out. The piercing scream of the laser cuts through the air, striking the top of the cave.
"Shit!"
The cave trembles. The top begins to crack. Small rocks tumble. A cave-in is coming.
There is no time left. If I run any longer, I won't make it. Damn it, damn it.
There's only one choice left; if this fails, I will die.
I take one last breath.
Then leap.
My legs push off like springs, the last of my energy drained in a single jump. I curl in midair, holding Navi tight.
The cave erupts behind us like it had been holding its breath this whole time.
Stone collapses in a brutal wave, dust rushing in like a flood. The outside world disappears behind it, sealed off in one violent motion.
We hit the ground hard.
I skid across the rock floor, skin tearing open on my arms and elbows, but I keep holding onto Navi, keeping her from slamming into the ground with me.
Kyros is already at my side before I can even look up. Without a word, he pulls Navi gently from my arms and lays her down against a nearby rock. My arms slump at my sides, twitching from the strain.
He turns back to me, pointing at me.
"Kaito… your arms…"
That's when it hits.
A spike of pain stabs directly through my brain, white-hot and merciless. I don't even scream — it's like my body's in too much shock to react.
I look down.
The skin on my forearms is flayed in patches, loose and torn, hanging off like wet paper. Beneath it, raw flesh pulses, dark and pink, twisted into spirals from the friction. In places, I can see fat bubbling up from the muscle. There's even one spot where the white of bone flashes out like a cruel punchline.
It's… horrifying.
All of that from just one impact, trying to shield her from hitting the stone.
It hurts like hell. I feel like vomiting.
I slap myself lightly. No time for that. I don't get to feel sorry right now.
"Don't worry about me," I gasp, barely able to get the words out. My chest heaves. My body's screaming to shut down, but I'm not giving it permission. I'm running on pure instinct right now.
Another rumble rolls through the rubble behind us, soft and rhythmic. Almost… hypnotic.
I glance back.
The robot. It's trying to dig through. But with how much collapsed, it's not getting in here anytime soon.
"It'll hold," I mutter, turning back toward Navi. "I'm sure of it."
The cracks in the ceiling above let in enough light to see by. Not great, but enough.
Kyros is crouched by her leg, already peeling away the leg guard and tearing off a strip of his own cloak with his claws. His movements are careful, precise. Practiced.
"Is she good?" I ask, but the answer's already written on his movements.
He shakes his head, still working. He's focused like never before, a fact that I take note of.
Navi lets out a grunt of pain as he inspects the wound. She's trying not to make any noise, but her face betrays her. Her whole body's tensed like a coiled spring.
I finally look at the wound properly.
A splinter — no, more like a whole damn stake, is embedded in her leg. The skin around it's gone dark, swollen purple and red. Blood trails down her calf, soaking into the stone beneath her.
"Kyros…" I start slowly, watching the way his claws hover. "Is it safe to pull it out?"
"If it were, I would've done it already," he replies without looking at me. "But my hands—" he lifts them slightly.
"—I cannot grip it without slipping."
Right. His claws are too sharp, too inflexible. He can bend them, but not to the same degree a human can.
The wood's angled awkwardly too — any wrong move and it could tear more muscle on the way out.
I hesitate. I know what I'm about to ask. And I know what it means if I mess it up.
He has the knowledge. I have the hands. If we can work in tandem, this whole situation's going to be a thing of the past.
Still…
"Do you think I can?"
Kyros is quiet for a moment. Then, with a slow nod, he finally says, "You may. But please be careful. Make sure to stabilize it. One wrong move and the bleeding could worsen. It seems that that it has hit an artery."
I nod and scoot forward, sitting on my knees next to Navi's side.
The closer I get, the worse it looks. The swelling's intense. The skin is hot. I can already feel her body trembling, a fever might come soon.
I glance at her face, and immediately look away, gagging.
Even now, it's hard to face her. I hate that fact. I'm traumatized by looking at her face whenever she's in pain.
"Sorry, Navi," I murmur, my gaze travelling to the wound."This is gonna hurt."
No response, just the twitch in her brow, the clenched jaw.
I rip the edge of my sleeve, twist it up, and press it against her mouth.
"Bite down."
She barely opens her mouth. Weak. Shaking. I gently force it in.
I take a breath.
My hand wraps around the splinter, and I immediately regret it, a dozen tiny shards stab into my palm, but I don't let go. I lock my grip, stabilizing the wood. If anything, this helps my grip.
The resistance is awful.
The sound it makes when I pull, it's wet. Thick. A slow, grinding suction, like breaking crackers inside mud.
She grunts, her eyes watering. She quickly turns her head away.
I keep pulling.
My other hand's bracing her leg to keep it still. I can feel every tremor through her muscles. She grips my shoulder. Weakly, but it's enough to let me know she's still here. Still feeling it.
"Almost…" I mutter.
The splinter's longer than I thought. It's not coming out easy. It must've scraped past bone, sunk deep into the muscle.
Blood's running down my arm now. Her blood mixing with mine.
"Come on," I growl through my teeth.
One last pull.
A sudden gush of blood spills out as the wood finally tears free. The noise she makes is raw, full of pain, almost primal.
Kyros is ready, pressing the cloth down hard, wrapping and sealing, applying pressure with surprising gentleness.
I look down at the thing in my hand.
The splinter is nearly a foot long.
I stare at it in disbelief.
"Goddamn," I whisper.
It should've gone clean through her leg. It's a miracle it didn't.
Tossing it aside, I groan in pain. My arms are starting really to take a toll on me. The world begins dancing, and becomes numb.
My head's swaying from right to left, attempting to stabilize
I'm dizzy, I'm out of breathe. Mother of all headaches.
Shit, everything's catching up to me.
I sit backwards, attempting to fix my pain, yet it only gets worse. I clench my head, gazing at the scene in front of me. Kyros, tightening the wrap around Navi's leg, stopping the blood pressure.
A gust of wind hits my face. It feels like I'm soaring.
Oh that's right, my head's falling down.
The world goes dark.