We return to the large central chamber, only to see that it, too, has brightened somewhat. Though, rather than the light coming from the sun or from some crack in the ceiling or flooring, or even a new crystal puzzle like the last, it’s the monolith that’s glowing. Not as brightly as it is in the Etheric space, but still bright enough to illuminate the chamber like a floodlight.
Numerous glyphs now appear on the obsidian slab, and I realize something profound. The monolith isn’t just a decoration. It’s a portal, and all of the work we’ve done to this point has broken the binding seals placed on it and caused it to unlock and activate. I relay the information to my companions. Chloe clings to my arm, worried about the very likely possibility of an incredibly powerful monster emerging from within. Meanwhile, Nicholas simply looks around dispassionately, taking in every piece of information, including the information I’m not even recognizing as such.
He turns to us— at our still-touching hands specifically— with a look of slight disapproval, Undeterred by his glare, however, Chloe and I do continue to hold one another’s hands, though at a more appropriate distance. He relents, but not without a small shake of his head.
“I suppose we head inside?” I ask.
“Not yet. Now would be the time to make sure we are fully prepared for battle. We should make sure we’ve regenerated our [Ether] and [Health] to the fullest extent, and are mentally prepared for combat as well.”
In other words, we’ve had our hurry up, and now it’s time to wait.
Two hours of nothing passes, and if not for Chloe and I keeping ourselves distracted from the situation at hand, I think I’d start spiraling from the combination of the ambience and the anticipation. More than anything, I think it’s the lack of sound or music that’s the most frightening. In games, it sets the mood to such an extent, whether it’s designed to be a powerful rock track that pumps you up or a chilling, discordant melody that is meant to keep you constantly on edge. But this— complete silence, save for our breaths and my racing heart— might just be the most ominous of them all.
Finally— not a moment too soon, my [Ether] ticks up over the seven thousand mark. Chloe’s been helping supplement my own far-too-low regeneration rate with [Sacrificial Transference], the new ability we gained when [Angelic Bond] was powered up. We’ve underutilized it thus far, but now is the perfect time to employ it, right before the final battle. I hope. It certainly feels like it’s the final battle.
I place my hand on the monolith, causing various inscriptions to begin to rattle and shake. The various insignia begin spinning around, taking the shape of a massive circle near the bottom of the structure’s obverse face. More such spirals form, creating the illusion of depth on the surface. Except, it’s not an illusion at all. When I place my hand in the center of the circular portal, it slips through, as though passing across the surface of water. Chloe does the same thing, to the same outcome.
We all turn to one another. Nicholas nods. We return the gesture, and then slowly, very slowly, weapons in hand, spells at the ready, Nicholas with some spare munitions stored on his person outside his [Inventory], pass through the portal and into the unknown.
The space looks like we’re walking through someone’s pencil sketch of what a doorway might look like. The entire space is pure black, and yet, we can see through it just fine. The only thing that’s not black is a white outline of a stairway that seems to go on without end.
We climb, step by step. I try to float above them, but I can’t lift off the ground. And Chloe’s flight proves no more effective than mine. So all we can do is walk. Walk, and walk, and walk some more. Walk for minutes, walk for hours. Maybe days have passed. Probably not, but the staircase seems unending in both directions. Even my eyes can no longer see where we came from, and there’s no sign we’re closer to wherever it is we’re heading.
That is, until, on the twenty-thousandth step. Someone youthful, with short brown hair and a cold, impassive smile emerges, flickering into existence out of seemingly nowhere. They bow slightly, though I can tell that they are incredibly powerful despite their youthful appearance.
“Greetings,” they say. Neither their features nor their voice gives any indication of gender, and from the way they dress, in a professional-looking unisex suit, I’d say that’s by design. “The Lady of the Tower is expecting you.”
“Expecting… us?” Chloe asks.
The strange person looks at us, observing our features with clinical interest. As though they’ve been trained as a killer and are already analyzing us for potential weaknesses.
“The one who solved the various puzzles laid out before you and activated the Eclipse Tower, calling her to this world.”
“Calling her?” Chloe asks again.
“It will make more sense when we arrive. Please, let us be on our way.”
Despite the added company, the tension hasn’t abated in the slightest. This new person has flatly rejected any attempts by Chloe to make conversation, and doesn’t seem interested in us at all. Instead, they walk with nonchalance, every step poised, not a single unnecessary breath or muscle movement.
A part of me wants to know how much further we have to go. Supposedly we’ll end up… somewhere, eventually? Right?
But now I genuinely am frightened for when we’ll arrive. Though for a different reason. Before, it was just the worry and emptiness that comes with finishing a long, arduous task and not being sure what happens next. Now, though? I don’t want to know who this so-called ‘Lady of the Tower’ is. Whoever could command a powerful person like this must command power far greater than any of us are prepared to deal with.
It’s right as we close in on fifty thousand steps— six hours of constant walking— that we reach our destination. The sky is finally brightening, changing from a sea of endless black to a vivid array of vibrant colors. Up ahead in the distance, at the top of the nigh-endless staircase, is a set of elaborate double doors. A set of elaborate archways stands over the final few hundred steps, and with the ornate filigreed golden gate surrounding the doorway, it really gives the view that we’re ascending the literal stairway to heaven.
The door opens, revealing a sea of clouds. In the center is a young blonde woman seated casually on a throne of red and gold, with innumerable thorny vines curling and wrapping around it. She looks incredibly bored, fiddling with her nails, looking up at the sky, and otherwise not paying any attention to the four of us. But in the glimpses I get of her, one thing stands out above all else: her eyes. Her glowing, vivid, amethyst eyes, the unnatural depth of that color that I’ve never heard of in humans. That, and her colossal power suggest that she’s not human, despite looking like one on the surface.
My hand trembles, moving toward Filia, right up until a cough and a surge of power freeze me in my tracks.
“Come now,” the woman says. “You’ve summoned me all the way here across time and space, and your first reaction is to try to attack me? Can we not have a conversation like civilized adults?”
She lurches forward, revealing yet another facet of her terrifying presence. The vines wrapping around the throne aren’t just decoration pieces. They— against all rational understanding— appear to be part of this woman, protruding off her back and all around her. As she moves, the vines at her back slide around, trailing her as they’re… absorbed into her humanoid body?
I shiver as her body twists in unnatural ways. Whoever, or whatever
this woman is, it’s definitely not human anymore. The person who escorted us up here is unflappable, remaining dispassionate even in the face of this display of body horror. Just what are these two beings?The brown haired person— who doesn’t seem to be either male or female— bows slightly at the blonde humanoid. And then, in an act which is somehow even more bizarre to me, the blonde leans in and gives her… attendant? Servant? I don’t know their relationship, and I’m not sure I need or want to know, but the two of them share quite the passionate kiss.
“Ahem,” Nicholas says. “If you would please dispense from the inappropriate displays of affection. And also, who are you?”
The blonde looks at Nicholas and shakes her head. “You know, where I come from, it is rude to demand someone’s name without first offering their own.”
“Major Nicholas Richardson, Executive Officer and second-in-command of the United States Army 45th Infantry Brigade. I ask again, who are you, and what are you doing here?”
“United States?” The woman shakes her head. “I don’t recognize that. Is that a country? A political confederation? I’m sorry, I’m not familiar with the term.”
Nicholas looks absolutely furious at the woman; I can’t blame him for his reaction. After the events of the other day, her words unintentionally slighted him to an overwhelming degree. He grabs his quarterstaff out of his [Inventory], pointing it directly at the woman.
I freeze, not knowing what will happen beyond being dead certain that Nicholas isn’t a match for this woman in the slightest. Even with all of our enhancement Skills active, the three of us working perfectly together, and me employing [Seraphina Overlimit], I’m not confident that we can fight off the woman before us. The absolute last thing I want to do is unnecessarily antagonize her if we can at all avoid it!
Fortunately— or maybe not— she doesn’t seem offended by the display of aggression from the major. She shakes her head slightly, contorting her right index finger into some sort of twisted vine which reaches out for the weapon. With a flick of her wrist, the vine wraps around Nicholas’s quarterstaff, nearly knocking it out of his hand as he stumbles backward.
“We can fight in a bit, if you are so inclined.” She turns to me. “Now then, I should introduce myself. My name is Lysette. And this is my lovely disciple and partner, Mirae.”
“Greetings to you both,” Mirae says.
“Seraphina,” I say. “And this is Chloe. My best friend and partner.” My hand slips into hers, though, for Nicholas’ sake more than anything, we don’t repeat Lysette’s and Mirae’s earlier display.
“Seraphina and Chloe…” Lysette looks at us. “Yes, you two remind me a lot of Mirae and myself. So, tell me, why have you summoned me here?”
“I’m sorry,” I say. “We were clearing a dungeon in our world and hadn’t intended to summon the two of you here. At least, not consciously. I think it was some mechanism of the dungeon itself that drew you into this space.”
Chloe nods in approval. Nicholas, still shaken from the earlier tiff, stands at full attention and offers his name and most deferential ‘Yes, Ma’am’.
Mirae and Lysette look at one another, exchanging the sort of glances that Chloe and I often do when telepathically communicating with each other. From the subtle facial expressions the two of them are making, I can sense that they’re in some sort of deep discussion. About what, I can’t say. But I hope it’s not about their plans to kill us. She’s not expressing any murderous intent just yet, and I pray to the goddesses that that much does not change.
“Seraphina, Chloe, Nicholas, please, come with me,” Lysette says. “There’s somewhere I’d like us to go.” She turns around
“Where is that?” Nicholas asks.
“You will see when you get there,” Mirae says. “Now please, let us not keep my goddess waiting here any longer.”