- Oliver -

  "Are you—" the three heard a massive explosion before Oliver could finish speaking.

  Even many floors underground, the three could hear ahe vibrations of the explosion. Oliver quickly stood up, worried about what was happening. He tried to pce his head he bars to observe any movement in the upper part of the dungeon. However, he couldn't see beyond the gates.

  "What could be happening?" the boy asked.

  Katherine and Isabe quickly stood up as soon as the tremor passed. None of the three could rex anymore after feeling the impact of whatever had exploded.

  Mier, they felt another, even more violent tremor. This time, even ihe prison, cracks spread among the structures as if they were pieces of ice breaking.

  "Damn. This pce is going to colpse," Oliver said, now worried.

  "It's him," Katherine expined, beaming with happiness. "It's our rescue."

  "How do you know?" Isabe asked, ed about the explosions. "Couldn't it just be a flict between the Orks?"

  "Feel the Energy. We are floors apart, but it's possible to feel the pressure of the Energy being expelled," Katherine expined. As soon as she finished expining, the two began to pay attention to the strange sensation.

  After she’d spoken, Oliver noticed how unfortable the air was. It wasn't the prison's humidity. It felt like a film in the air, pressing and expanding—pushing against his body, preventing him from moving, and even making it hard to breathe.

  Oliver could feel that it was simir to what he did wheracted Energy from his Z Crystal to power the [Prometheus]. However, the amount of Energy he maniputed was like a thread, whereas this was an enormous tapestry.

  ‘What kind of monster is capable of doing something like this?’ Oliver wondered. ‘Especially when he's dozens of floors above us.’

  Finally, a few minutes after the explosions, they saw the first Orks—some with gray skin and others with green skin—running dowairs in despair. They could hear some shouting among themselves, perhaps discussing how they would escape all of this.

  Oliver watched with apprehension as the cells on the upper floors opened one by one. From within emerged different creatures, each more enigmatic tha. There were beings with iridest scales, additional limbs, and some with sharp ears—monsters he had never seen before; perhaps not even in the Academy's records was there information about them.

  In a pletely disanized mahe Orks formed ranks to force the creatures to keep moving. With crude gestures and guttural ands, they directed the heterogeneous group to climb the stairs leading to the dungeo.

  The boy watched everything from a distance, yet he could notice how the atmosphere was den with apprehension and fear. When one of the monsters seemed less willing to face the invaders, the Orks quickly decapitated it, making it an example for the others.

  ‘Soon, it will be our turn,’ the boy thought, even though there were still dozens of floors before they reached them.

  "They are sending the prisoo fight; those who resist are being killed," Oliver expihe two girls, leaning against the bars, tried to observe but couldn't see as far as he could.

  "We are on a floor far below them. Would they waste time trying to release us?" Isabe asked.

  "I think so, but not to release us. After all, we wouldn't fight against the 'invaders.' Maybe they'll try to erase the evidence?" Oliver ented.

  ‘Makes sense.’ Oliver heard Athena's soft voi his head.

  "We o defend ourselves when they get here," the boy ented.

  "It's been a while since we tried an escape," Katherine said.

  "After the first two, it didn't make seain," Isabe recalled.

  As soon as the three were captured and taken to the dungeon, the group khey o act quickly. The first escape attempt occurred shortly after their arrival. Katherine, with her ability, mao break the s. In the middle of the night, they tried to escape. Moving silently through the corridors of the ruins, the group attempted to reach the upper exit of the dungeon. However, upon approag the surface, they found themselves in the ter of the fortress. Fag that number of Orks was impossible, especially without their ons and armor.

  Encircled by Ork from every dire, the three were imprisoned once more.

  On the sed attempt, they decided to look for an alternative route. They explored the lower levels of the prison in search of arao the underground sewage systems that could lead them out of the fortress's domains without beied. However, they realized they were buried so deep within the p's entrails that there was no e to any drainage or mainteunnel.

  To make matters worse, with each escape they attempted, their punishments became even harsher and the tortures longer, causing the three to fear making atempt and ending up being executed.

  "This is our ce. Either we try something, or we'll end up being killed by the Orks," Oliver said with the bit of hope that remained.

  The two girls agreed. Even though it was risky, this was finally the ce to free themselves from that hell.

  "I'll break the s. You two hold the door," Katherine said.

  She quickly used one of the sharpest stones in the cell to lightly cut her hand, allowio obtain a bit of blood. Without her sword, the best thing she could do was to envelop her hands with blood as if it were a red knife.

  The girl used the neon to strike the s of the shackles she wore while Oliver and Isabe stood guard at the entrance.

  "I hear them approag; they're already on the upper floors," Oliver ented.

  He could see new humanoid monsters, simir to the Goblins on GL581, beio the prisorance.

  ‘Are they making these monsters? Maybe domestig them?’ he thought before seeing the number of Orks desding the floors increase.

  "Faster, they're arriving any moment now," Oliver ented worriedly.

  Isabe, who was beside him, finally ran to pick up one of the loose stones ihe cell upon seeing some Orks approag the bars.

  The only remaining sound was Katheririking her makeshift knife against the s to free herself.

  Suddenly, the stillness was broken by the metalligling of keys being ied into the lock. Each click echoed like a harbinger of immi danger.

  Oliver felt his heart race. With a quient, he positioned himself behind the heavy iron door, pressing against it in an attempt to prevent it from being opened. His muscles protested, weakened by the loss of one arm and the long days of captivity. The physical strength battle was unfair; oher side, the Ork pushed with determination, clueless of the ued resistance.

  The creaking of the hinges and the bined effort made the silent battle even more tense. Sweat dripped down Oliver's forehead as he struggled against the monster. Every sed ted, and exhaustion was beginning to take its toll.

  But despite the weakness ing him, a fme of determination shone in his eyes. He couldn't allow the door to open, not now, not without fighting to his st ounce of strength. Gathering ce, Oliver pressed with all he had, knowing that their fate could depend on that crucial moment.

  "They are here!" the boy used the st air in his lungs to shout.

  They could hear the Orks throwing their shoulders against the heavy door, trying to force it open. With each powerful impact, Oliver ushed back a bit more, his muscles trembling with the effort of keeping the barrier closed. Gradually, a small gap began to form, and through it, a grotesque and muscur Ork haehick firying to reach the boy.

  "Huark!" gruhe creature, its yellow eye peering through the opening.

  Fortunately, Isabe was already prepared. Without hesitation, she raised the stone she had found on the cell floor and brought it down with all her might onto the hand. A sharp crack was followed by a thunderous scream of pain and fury. The Ork quickly withdrew his hand.

  However, it wasn't the end of their battle. Even away from the bars, Oliver and Isabe could hear the sound of more Orks approag through the corridors. The heavy footsteps and threatening grunts annouhat a horde was ing, and time was running out.

  They seemed to be talking among themselves, deg what they were going to do.

  ‘Go away. Give up,’ Oliver hoped.

  Oliver could hear the king of the handcuffs breaking as Katherine celebrated. “Got it!”

  Katherine ran to her friends; now, without the s hindering her movements, she could fight, even if Oliver and Isabe couldn't support her.

  Again, the Orks started pushing against the door. However, as quickly as they began to ford pound on it, all movements ceased, and the opped.

  The group waited for some sound; however, nothing happened for several seds. Then they heard two people walking, going from cell to cell, opening the doors.

  "Katherine!"

  The group heard the shouts of the people walking outside. The three exged gnces for a moment before deg to open the door. As soon as the girl poked her head out of the cell, she could see two people.

  A tall man with dark hair wearing golden armor and a younger girl with a scar below her eye and a short, modern haircut, dressed in red armor.

  As soon as she saw the man, she had no doubts.

  "John!" she shouted, drawing the attention of the twers.

  GCLopes