Maitara and Azalith walked side by side through the winding caverns, the sound of distant battle echoing faintly from deeper within the dungeon.
"Sorry to ask this so suddenly…" Maitara said softly, breaking the silence. "You're not in your true self, are you?"
Azalith stopped in his tracks, his skull head tilting slightly. "What do you mean, Lady Maitara?"
Instead of answering, Maitara stepped closer and gently placed her hand over his chest. Her eyes widened slightly as she felt it – deep inside his hollow form, something was beating like a ticking clock, wrapped tightly around his very essence.
"Spirit Chains…" she whispered, pulling her hand back. "Why do you have spirit chains binding your heart?"
"Spirit chains?" Azalith sounded confused. "My apologies, I do not know what you are saying."
"It is a forbidden spell," Maitara explained seriously. "It blocks your full potential. It acts like a cage… and if you ever try to exceed its limit, it will explode. You would die instantly."
"What?" Azalith stiffened.
"Here… let me show you."
Maitara extended her other arm, closing her eyes as she focused her mind. Ancient words flowed from her lips like a chant.
"Gannurim Exodus!"
A violent surge of purple light shot from her palm and sank directly into Azalith's chest. His familiar green death aura instantly clashed with the purple energy, swirling violently before the green was completely overtaken.
CRACK! BOOM!
Inside his soul, the invisible chains binding his power shattered into dust.
Azalith's eyes flew open wide. He gasped, clutching his chest as a sensation he hadn't felt in centuries washed over him – freedom. Power. Limitless strength rushing back into his veins like a flood.
"What is this?!" he exclaimed, his voice deeper and more resonant than before. "What is this feeling?! I feel… so much stronger! Stronger than I ever remember!"
Maitara just smiled as a blinding flash of purple light exploded outward, engulfing the entire cave and turning night into day.
When the light finally faded, Azalith looked down at himself. His tattered dark robes had transformed, shifting into magnificent armor and cloth of deep black and vibrant purple. The sickly green glow around him was gone, replaced by a majestic, roaring purple aura of pure Chaos.
"What… what did you do?" Azalith stared at his hands, feeling the new power coursing through them.
"I simply removed the chains and the bomb in your heart that limited you," Maitara said calmly. "I destroyed the old seal and replaced it with a new one. I also imbued it with my own Chaos Magic."
She looked him in the eye, her expression proud.
"Now you are free. Release your power… and finally become you." Maitara stated.
Azalith's skeletal form trembled as silver tears streamed down his skull cheeks, pooling on the cave floor below. Without warning, he dropped to both knees, bowing his head so low his forehead touched the stone.
"Tha– Thank you, Lady Maitara… No… My Lady Maitara," he said, his voice thick with emotion. "From this moment on, I am your loyal servant."
Maitara hurried forward and gently placed a hand on his shoulder. "Now, now – stand up. I only did what felt right. And honestly? I'm going to need you to rely on me too – we're partners now, not master and servant."
Azalith rose slowly, straightening his new purple and black robes as he met her eyes. "Yes, my lady… though I will always be grateful for what you've done."
Maitara's expression grew serious as she looked ahead down the cave tunnel. "That White Lord – he was probably the one who put those spirit chains on you. Maybe he was afraid your full power would rival his own."
Azalith shook his head firmly. "I don't believe that, my lady. No amount of power could ever match the White Lord's – at least, that's what we were always told."
"We'll find out the truth soon enough," Maitara said, starting to walk forward again. "I have so many questions I want to ask you about him, but first things first – let's get out of these caves. Our friends are still fighting, and they're going to need all the help we can give them."
Azalith's purple aura flared with determination as he fell into step beside her. "Yes ma'am! Lead the way – and whatever enemies stand in our path… they will learn the true power of Chaos."
BACK AT THE ORDEAL GAMES
Abe's hand tightened around Akmenos' head as he lifted him high off the ground, the crowd roaring their approval. With a powerful heave, he threw him across the arena – Akmenos crashed into the ice floor with a dull thud, sliding to a stop near the barrier.
"YOU WANT ME TO END THIS LOWER LIFE FORM'S LIFE?!!!" Abe roared, slamming his spiked fists together as ice shards flew.
The crowd erupted in cheers, thousands of voices shouting in agreement – even some who'd rooted for Akmenos now chanted for the finish.
Akmenos groaned, his eyes fluttering open as consciousness slowly seeped back in. Every muscle screamed in pain, but as he tried to push himself up, his hand brushed against something heavy in his belt pouch.
He fumbled with the leather flap and pulled out a small, dark glass bottle – it was beer, cold to the touch and still full. He stared at it, confused – he'd made sure to leave everything behind before entering the arena.
Then a small smile crossed his face. Of course – only Hythesion would sneak a drink into a death match.
Slowly, painfully, Akmenos pushed himself to his feet. Abe turned, his scaled face twisted in surprise. "Oh? You're still standing?"
Akmenos wiped blood from his mouth and lifted the bottle high, grinning despite the agony coursing through him. "Man… what a match we're having. Battles like these deserve a drink, right?"
Abe stared at him, completely baffled. "What are you talking about? We're in the middle of a fight!"
"Cheers, mate!" Akmenos called out to the crowd – and to Abe – before tilting the bottle back and drinking deep. In one long, steady pull, he emptied every last drop.
As the bottle hit the ice floor and shattered, a warm flush spread through Akmenos' body. The pain in his muscles faded, his vision cleared, and energy he didn't know he had surged through his veins. His eyes glowed bright gold, and a wild, confident grin spread across his face.
Abe's scales bristled with anger as he watched Akmenos toss the empty bottle aside. "What the heck were you doing?! You're supposed to take this seriously!"
Akmenos burst out laughing – loud, wild, and full of energy. "Hahahaha!"
Then just as suddenly, the laughter cut off. His expression shifted completely – from carefree to stone-cold serious, his eyes burning gold as he stared at Abe with unwavering focus.
"This is serious."
Abe immediately dropped into his tightest defensive stance, ice beginning to crawl up his arms as he braced himself. But before he could even finish preparing, Akmenos was gone – vanished from sight in the blink of an eye.
WHOOSH
He reappeared directly behind Abe, his leg drawn back in a devastating roundhouse kick that slammed into the dragonborn's spine before he could turn to block. The impact sent Abe stumbling forward, his breath exploding from his lungs.
"What just happened?!" Abe gasped, spinning around to face him. "You're faster than before – way faster!"
Akmenos didn't respond. He simply vanished again, reappearing in front of Abe with his fist already flying. The punch connected square with Abe's jaw – a solid, bone-shaking blow that sent him crashing into the arena wall, leaving cracks spiderwebbing across the stone.
The crowd that had been cheering moments ago fell completely silent. Even Arkar sat frozen in his seat, his mouth hanging open in shock.
Hythesion leaned forward, his eyes wide with recognition. "So fast! The same speed I saw him back in Thullford… Is this the true power of the drunken master?"
Akmenos stood calm and still in the center of the arena, his breathing steady despite the flurry of movement. Gold light still flickered in his eyes, and a faint smile touched his lips as he watched Abe push himself up from the rubble – for the first time, the Ice Dragonborn looked truly worried.
Abe pushed himself to his feet, shaking stone dust from his scales as he glared at the spot where Akmenos had been standing. "And you're stronger too…"
He looked up – and his blood ran cold. Akmenos was already moving, gliding silently to his left side like a ghost.
"Hmmm… This is getting boring," Akmenos said casually, as if they were just talking instead of fighting for their lives.
Abe roared and threw a wild punch – but Akmenos vanished the instant his fist moved, leaving only empty air. The blow slammed into the arena wall instead, shattering stone and sending ice shards everywhere.
Before the dust could settle, Akmenos reappeared directly in front of him. He reached out and grabbed Abe by the edge of his ice armor, his fingers digging in like iron claws. With effortless strength, he lifted the massive dragonborn off his feet and hurled him across the arena – Abe crashed into the far wall with a deafening CRUNCH.
Abe struggled to sit up, his vision spinning – then he saw a shadow blocking out the sun. Akmenos was high in the air, his leg drawn back for a crushing downward kick aimed straight at his face.
With every last bit of speed he had left, Abe rolled to the side – the kick missed his head by inches, but the force of it slammed into the ice floor below, sending a shockwave that threw Abe another ten feet away.
He skidded to a stop, gasping for breath as he looked up at Akmenos – who was already standing calmly, waiting for him to get up. The gold light in his eyes never faded.
The crowd was still dead silent – no cheers, no boos, just awe. Even the White Order officials in their box seats were leaning forward, their faces pale with disbelief.
Abe slammed both fists into the ice floor, shattering it beneath him as he forced himself upright. With a primal roar of rage, he charged straight at Akmenos, his fist drawn back for a blow that would level a building.
But Akmenos barely moved – just shifted his shoulder a hair's breadth to the side, letting the punch sail past him. In the same fluid motion, he threw his own punch – clean, precise, and hitting Abe square in the jaw. The impact snapped his head back, sending him crashing into the wall once more.
Blood trickled from Abe's lips as he pushed himself up again, his eyes blazing with fury. He didn't slow down – he sprinted forward, ice swirling around his hands as it formed into a massive, double-bladed axe that glinted with deadly sharpness. He swung it in a wide arc, aiming to split Akmenos in two.
CLANG!
Akmenos reached out and caught the axe blade with his bare hand, stopping it cold.
Abe stared at him, his scaled face twisted in pure disbelief. "Impossible… that's solid ice – sharp enough to cut through steel!"
Akmenos just looked at him calmly, then wrapped his fingers around the axe handle and pulled hard. Abe stumbled forward, losing his balance – and Akmenos drove his foot into Abe's stomach with devastating force. Blood sprayed from Abe's mouth as he doubled over, dropping to one knee.
Before he could recover, Akmenos delivered a second kick – this one to the side of his head, sending him flying across the arena to slam into the opposite wall. He slid down to the ground, his ice axe shattering into a thousand pieces as it hit the floor.
Abe clawed at the ground, every muscle screaming as he forced himself upright. Through blurred vision, he watched Akmenos sway slightly in the center of the arena – the telltale wiggle of someone well and truly drunk.
He became like this after drinking that bottle… Abe thought, a spark of hope flaring in his chest. He let out a rough laugh. "Hahaha! So you're this strong only when you're drunk? Then I'll just beat you senseless until you sober up!"
Akmenos didn't answer – just gave him a lazy smile and settled into a loose fighting stance, ready to charge again.
But this time, Abe was prepared. He closed his eyes and began to chant, his voice echoing across the now-freezing arena:
"Adee'os, Akami, Anleslie, August, Tina… All the gods of Winter and Ice – lend me your strength!"
The air grew instantly frigid. Snowflakes began to fall from the clear sky, swirling around Abe in a violent white vortex. Thick plates of ice covered his body like armor, sharp spikes erupting from his back and shoulders. His left eye remained gold, but his right eye blazed with brilliant ice-blue light – the color of absolute zero.
Akmenos didn't wait – he sprinted forward, but with every step closer to Abe, his movements slowed. The cold was seeping into his bones, thickening his blood and dragging at his limbs.
Abe's grin widened as he raised both fists to the sky. "RECEIVE THE PUNISHMENT OF THE 5 GODS OF COLD – AVRANTIS!"
He slammed his fists into the ground, and a blizzard exploded outward – not just snow, but millions of razor-sharp ice shards that tore through the air like bullets. The impact sent Akmenos flying backward, his body slamming into the arena wall with enough force to crack stone. His head struck hard against the rock, and the gold light in his eyes faded instantly – the alcohol's effects burned off by the shock and cold.
As Akmenos pushed himself up, shivering and dizzy, he looked at Abe – and what he saw made his blood run cold. Standing before him wasn't just the Ice Dragonborn he'd been fighting. It was a being of pure winter power – tall, imposing, with wings of solid ice spreading from his back. To Akmenos, he looked like an Ice God made flesh.
BACK AT THE CAVE
Maitara wiped sweat from her brow as they trudged deeper into the caverns, the path stretching endlessly ahead. "We've been walking for so long… do you know the way out?"
"Of course, my lady," Azalith replied, his new purple aura casting a soft glow on the cave walls. "At the end of this tunnel lies a staircase leading to the next level. We'll need to climb through ten such floors before we reach the dungeon entrance and make our way to the surface."
Maitara's legs gave out from under her as she dropped to her knees, letting out a groan. "WHAT?! That's way too tiring – I don't think I have the energy for all that climbing!"
"We don't have much choice, I'm afraid," Azalith said gently, offering her a hand to help her up. "My colleague Nakano Ichika isn't here – if he were, he could have teleported us out with ease."
Maitara took his hand and pulled herself to her feet, her eyes wide with curiosity. "Nakano Ichika? The swordsman we saw earlier? What do you mean he can teleport?"
"Beyond his incredible skill with blades, he possesses the rare ability to manipulate space and matter," Azalith explained as they started walking again. "He can bend the fabric of reality itself to move anywhere he desires"
"Then we need to find him!" Maitara said firmly, picking up her pace. "Do you have any idea where he might be?"
"This cave is protected by ancient magical wards – they block all forms of magical communication and detection," Azalith noted. "But thanks to the power you've awakened in me, I can sense his aura now…"
He closed his eyes, his purple energy flaring brighter as he focused. After a long moment, he opened them again, nodding.
"I've found him. He's a few floors below us – and he's with one of your friends."
"Then we need to move faster!" Maitara said, already hurrying forward.
But as she walked, a thought nagged at the back of her mind – Ancient wards that block all magical communication and detection? Then how did Hythesion and I talk using mind speak earlier? She shook her head slightly. No time to worry about that now – I have to focus on finding our friends and getting out of here.