From the furthest edge of the chamber, a smell unlike any other emerges. Upon further inspection, Naja discovers that the stone wall is hollow. Just behind a crumbled bookshelf, she pushes the wood and stone aside, revealing a set of downward stairs.
[Naja] Boss, I found stairs!
[Sakyo] You sure it's safe to go down there?
[Garm] Why not let the snake go first? I am sure she will be a useful sacrifice... I mean lookout.
[Sakyo] (He definitely meant sacrifice.) Nevermind, let's keep moving.
They proceed to the next floor. Kaya takes the worn book, still struggling to read the faded texts.
As they continue down to the next floor, the steps give way to scorched earth. The temperature shifts as they enter the chamber. It's warmer than above. The walls that once displayed ancient runes and markings are now blackened with dust and soot.
Burned benches and fallen shelves cover the ground. A single anvil lies in the center of the room, broken clean in half with rusted tools surrounding it. Garm crouches to the tools, sneezing once the dust picks up.
[Garm] It would appear this place was once a forge. All I smell is ash and blood.
Naja walks around, sticking her head inside a brick firebox.
[Naja] Whoever used this place must have not been very good at their job. Marrow wood, brim-coal, and... (sniff sniff)... bone resin?
She quickly takes her head out, wiping her face and holding her nose.
[Naja] Gross, who would forge with that kind of mix? The fire would be far too unstable.
Garm turns his attention to the walls. Pushing away a few layers of soot reveals deep marks in the stone. Not the same cracks that came with age. There ones are more precise, deeper than any other.
[Garm] Fascinating, it looks like they tested weapons right here as well.
[Sakyo] Looks like blade marks. You think they would test them with combat in here?
[Garm] Unlikely, these marks are too precise, and some attacks were clearly aimed at the same spots.
[Sakyo] Well, they must've made some pretty powerful weapons here if they were testing them against stone.
[Kaya] Hey, I found another page of the book!
[Sakyo] What's it say?
[Kaya] Give me a sec... "Log 35: The shard refuses our commands and twists our tools... So many pieces crumbled." Oh my gods, whoever wrote this has sh*tty handwriting. "They left, pride shattered as everything else failed, but I will not stop. I won't rest until I forge the seventh..." There's that word again. I still don't know what it means.
[Garm] Not to worry, you are doing more than enough in your state.
[Sakyo] I guess whatever they were trying to make is what made all those marks in the walls.
[Kaya] Yeah, looks like they finished some pretty strong weapon here.
[Garm] Can we keep moving? I do not know how much longer my nose can take the smell here.
Meanwhile, Naja was already halfway across the forge, scanning the floors. Eventually, she stops at a collapsed tool rack and a pile of metal. She immediately takes note of a few splinters of wood stuck in the floor.
Upon further inspection, she finds a select few plates that shift when she pushes them. As she goes to lift the plates, they crumble down a sloped stone tunnel.
[Naja] Found it!
[Sakyo] Good work.
Sakyo pets Naja's head, a light blush crossing her face at the unfamiliar experience.
[Garm] It is too small for all of us to fit. We will have to go one at a time.
[Kaya] Just be careful, this tunnel looks like it could fall apart any second.
Crack
[Sakyo] You just had to say that.
The floor crumbles beneath them. Everyone's weight in one spot being too much for the aged plates to bare. In just one moment, they were all sliding deeper into the darkness of the dungeon until they finally land with a muted thud on obsidian floor.
[Kaya] You could've warned me it was a slide.
[Naja] You could have eaten a lighter meal before coming here.
[Kaya] What's the hell's that supposed to mean?!
[Naja] I am merely saying the floor did not crumble under my weight alone.
[Kaya] Are you saying that was my fault?! Cause I'm not the one who brought a pack of useless junk with us!
[Naja] Well, all of that extra fat you carry must have come from somewhere. Though it is obviously not your chest.
[Kaya] Like you're one to talk!
[Sakyo] That's enough, ladies. Break it up.
[Garm] Indeed, this is no time to fight amongst ourselves.
They break up the fight before anyone gets hurt. Garm and Kaya stay to survey the chamber while Sakyo takes Naja to explore deeper.
The room stretches wider than any before it. The air felt thick, heavier than before. Kaya barely stays standing as the atmosphere makes it even harder for her to breathe. Garm quickly takes notice of her deteriorating condition.
[Garm] You should not push yourself. If this is too much for you, I can take you back outside.
[Kaya] I'm fine, just a little tired. All I need is some rest and I'll be good to go.
Without a second thought, Garm picks her up on his back. Kaya can only blush in embarrassment as he carries her effortlessly.
[Kaya] Wha- Hey! W-what're you doing?
[Garm] I believe this would be more effective than making you walk anymore.
[Kaya] But... I'm not too heavy, right?
[Garm] No, if anything, you are quite light.
[Kaya] I see, thanks.
She can't hold back the small smile that escapes as she wraps her arms around Garm's broad shoulders.
Meanwhile, Naja won't stop venting about Kaya to Sakyo.
[Naja] Why does my brother's mate have to be so infuriating? I was merely stating an obvious fact, and she gets mad for no reason.
[Sakyo] Naja, you might not get it, but you were definitely at fault back there.
[Naja] How? The floor clearly only collapsed because of her sudden addition of weight.
[Sakyo] Maybe, but this place is who knows how old. The floor could've collapsed at any moment. It wasn't nice to put all the blame on her like you did.
[Naja] But-
[Sakyo] No buts. You hurt her feelings, and you need to apologize.
[Naja] I understand.
Naja hangs her head down, realizing how her actions might have come of as rude. Seeing this, Sakyo gently pets her head once more. She jolts to attention before awkwardly settling down, easing into his touch.
[Sakyo] I know you're used to only looking out for yourself, but you have to remember that you're a part of us now. We watch each other's backs here, got it?
[Naja] Yes Boss, but what about our fronts or sides?
[Sakyo] (Wow, she's just as bad at understanding expressions as Garm is.) I mean we look out for each other. It's ok to make mistakes, but you have to apologize when you're rude.
[Garm] Master, we have found another page of the book!
Their attention is instantly grabbed by Garm's sudden exclamation. They move closer, Naja keeping her distance from Kaya by staying closer to Sakyo's side.
[Kaya] "Log 42: I used the last of our fragment. I thought it was another failure, but I was wrong. This one is more than the other six..." Damnit, that stupid word again. I don't know what it says.
[Sakyo] Focus.
[Kaya] Right, sorry. Where was I? Here, ahem "... I fear it may be too late. News of the king's death has already reached every corner of the land. I have finished his weapon, but at what cost?"
A somber air fills the room after that last line.
[Sakyo] Poor guy. He worked so hard only to fall just short at the end.
[Garm] And whatever weapon he made is most likely what lies at the end of this dungeon.
[Naja] Then we had better find the way there.
[Sakyo] It's just a guess, but maybe the end of this place is behind those suspiciously large doors over there.
Sakyo points to where he and Naja were just exploring a minute ago.
[Naja] How did I possibly miss that?!
At the far reaches of the chamber loomed two massive doors of polished black stone. Their surfaces glistened like obsidian marked with ten symbols, intricate and sharp.
Garm walks over, tracing the lowest symbol with his fingertip.
[Garm] Are these... crests?
[Kaya] Looks like it, but I've never seen them before. Maybe they're some kind of secret family sigils or something.
[Garm] Whatever they are, they appear to be arranged in a hierarchy.
[Sakyo] What makes you say that?
[Garm] The designs, they become more elaborate the further up they go, and the one at the top was clearly given the most care and detail.
The one crest atop the doors is the largest of them all. A detailed crown wrapped around a skeletal hand, gripping onto a black sun. Sakyo finds himself drawn to it, almost as if it were calling to him.
[Sakyo] They're kind of... beautiful.
He reaches out to the door without thinking, placing his hand in the center. The moment his palm touched the stone, the chamber exhaled.
One after another, the crests begin to glow with a violet hue. Shadows begin stretching out from underneath the doors.
[Sakyo] Everyone, get back!
They all jump away, but it's too late. Their own shadows don't follow, and are instead absorbed into the ones reaching our from the door.
From their own silhouettes, four dark figures rise, peeling themselves free from the ground below. Mirror images of themselves. Twisted, darker, and pulsing with malicious mockery.