The skeletons that were relentlessly facing off against Harkus, slowly inflicting him with wounds, suddenly froze in place. Then, slowly but surely, one by one, the bones that made up their bodies began to fall to the ground with a hollow clatter. As the last bones hit the ground, the skeletons that had savagely attacked, became nothing but a pile of bones.

  Harkus would have seen it as something to be joyful about, but he didn’t celebrate, his attention was drawn elsewhere, fixed on Eric.

  While he was occupied with his own battle, he still had enough leeway to catch an occasional glance. He also made an effort to have such leeway, as he considered Eric to be a novice that dove headfirst into the deep end.

  Eric stood there motionless; his leg twisting, slowly grinding the bones to dust. As he slowly began to fix himself, the rest of the skeletal angel’s body began to crumble. However, unlike the normal skeletons, the giant one didn’t become a pile of bones, at least it didn’t remain as one for long.

  After becoming a pile of bones, it immediately began to burn with a white holy fire that pushed back any hint of darkness. It was so bright that the light traveled various tunnels, uninterrupted.

  Eric’s face was stoic but there was a clear hint of uncontrollable rage within it, though it was already mostly dissipated by the time the holy fire began to burn bright. All that remained was his tense and exhausted body. He began to tremble as even the act of standing still was a strain on his already exhausted body.

  As the holy fire flickered and crackled before him, and slowly coming to, any other influences that weren’t entirely him having vanished, Eric’s gaze drifted downward to his right arm. Slowly, he lifted it, inspecting the skin with an unfocused gaze.

  What he found were now intricate, blackened lines burned deep into his skin. Magic circles, seared into him like a brand, an odd combination of incredibly realistic tattoos and actual burn marks. In a way, the marking on his right arm were both. His fingers twitched involuntarily; a spasm caused by the strain.

  With a faltering step forward, Eric found that all the strength had left his body, and his legs buckled beneath him. The strength that had surged through him moments before was gone—completely drained. Not even the faintest trace of mana, that could allow him to draw if only a bit more strength, remained anywhere in his body.

  He had used everything he had, poured all his energy into those final moments, and now there was nothing left. His body was hollow, every muscle weak and unresponsive.

  Before he could collapse, Harkus was there. The minotaur’s massive arm wrapped around Eric’s abdomen, lifting him effortlessly off the ground. Harkus held him as if he were a child, face down and with his arms and legs dangling. There were no words exchanged, no questions asked. Harkus simply began to walk, his heavy footsteps the only sound in the empty tunnels.

  ----------

  Neris raised her head with a start, the mark she had left on the one that had left her so devastated and injured had vanished.

  “Did it… die?” she asked herself, the mere possibility shocking her to her very core. “No matter how much strength I poured into my attacks, I didn’t leave a single scratch on it. Who could have done it? Kralva and his guards? No. Not unless they were able to somehow use an artifact that escaped the System’s notice.”

  Her gaze fell on the broken shaft in her hands. Its temperature was slowly growing colder and the parts that were destroyed were reforming out of pure ice. “If a weapon crafted by a sage ended up like this… just what could have been used to cause so much damage?”

  Lifting her gaze toward the passageway before her, she was now more sure than ever that she had made the right decision to stay back and observe the trial, at least as much as she could from where she was.

  “I just need to hold on a little bit more,” she said, looking at the injuries that covered her arms, the scene vivid in her memory.

  While she fought the skeletal angel, its eyes suddenly glowed with a holy intensity. Rings of holy power surrounded her arms at various points. They were as thin as string, only visible by the holy power itself. Then the rings shrunk, trying to cut her limbs off. The angel would’ve succeeded if she had stayed for even a second longer, but instead, Neris retreated, and the angel didn’t pursue.

  ----------

  Eric made a fist and tapped Harkus on the side, signaling that he was ready to be let down. “I’m fine now, you can put me down,” he said, without lifting his head, his body still limb but voluntarily so. As his feet touched the ground, Eric stretched as if he had merely been asleep. “That was nice,” he added with an awkward grin.

  Harkus chuckled. “While I’m curious about what that was back there,” he began, “I won’t ask. We all have our secrets.” He gave Eric a gentle but solid pat on the back. “But I believe congratulations are in order. Seems like you managed to discover something about how to strengthen yourself. And on this endless path of advancement, that can only be good.”

  Good because I have no idea what that was either, Eric thought, feeling a strange mix of exhaustion and curiosity. That was worse than when I met the outer god. Was it because it lasted longer? Was the threat higher? And what was that? Eric, on previous occasions, felt anger and experiences that weren’t his own, but was never able to distinguish them, but this time he was. Something was being invaded, an attempt to take and gnaw at.

  If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  “Thanks, but… what was that? The big skeleton, I mean,” Eric asked, releasing his thoughts and shifting his body slightly as he tried to ignore a growing sense of discomfort.

  Harkus nodded thoughtfully. “Well, let’s see. It had holy energy and it at one point had wings,” Harkus said, clearly implying that the answer was simple.

  “An angel? Those are real?!” Eric asked, raising his eyebrows in amusement and forgetting about the discomfort almost immediately.

  “Of course,” Harkus said matter-of-factly. “They’re rare, mostly avoid leaving there own universe but they exist.”

  An obvious question popped into Eric’s mind. “What about demons?” he asked, already anticipating the answer.

  “They also—”

  “Wait,” Eric cut in quickly, “don’t answer that. I’m pretty sure I saw some on the streets.” Eric said, sure of his observations. “Does us seeing an angel mean that we’re in their universe?” he asked.

  Harkus shook his head with a laugh. “Boy, you haven’t seen a single real demon. I can assure you of that. You most likely saw their descendants, diluted versions of their kind. And before you get any wild ideas in your head, understand this—when it comes to actual demons and angels, living breathing ones at least. Their power is not something that can be understood, at least that’s what all the tales say,” Harkus explained, his tone suddenly turning serious.

  Eric frowned. “Tales? So, you’ve never seen one of either?” he asked.

  “No, not in the flesh. Nobody has for millions of years.” Harkus said, admitting to his lack of concrete knowledge on the subject. “That’s not to say that they haven’t been here, just that they aren’t as noticeable as before, they’re subtle now. Not like in the old stories,” Harkus explained.

  “Interesting…” Eric said, taking the information in, mulling over what it meant and storing it for later. “Did something happen or was it a passage of time sort of thing?”

  “The tales of their frequent visits are before the System itself,” Harkus explained. “To be honest with you, not many people know about what’s real or not when it comes to the first universes and the forces that inhabit them. And that includes me with everything I’m telling you.”

  “You haven’t answered my other question though,” Eric said, taking in everything Harkus had mentioned so far.

  “What question?” Harkus asked.

  “Are we in the angel’s universe?” Eric repeated.

  “Who knows,” Harkus said with a shrug. “But I doubt it,” he added, gesturing broadly at his surroundings. Stone walls that provide an eerie light and tunnels in which skeletons roamed. “None of this seems very holy to me.”

  Satisfied with the answer for now, Eric gave an accepting nod. The pair continued on their walk through the labyrinth. At times looping back around through the same tunnels and at times finding more skeletons, though they weren’t accompanied by another angel skeleton and once they fell, they stayed down.

  As they walked, Eric’s mind raced with various topics. Angels and demons are real. I have to investigate more about that. He remembered what he saw upon arriving. I thought the wing in the mural was about the minotaur legend and that kid that flew to the sun, but it appears that it might have actually been an angel that was depicted. And, I think I have found a way to know where we’re going.

  Narrowing his eyes and concentrating as best as he could, he could tell, certain passages had dimmer or stronger light. Then there were also the immediately dark passageways that now that Eric noticed the difference in the light, screamed “shortcut,” or something similar.

  The question is, which one is the way out? Eric asked himself. There are angel skeletons here, could light mean holy? A path to salvation maybe… But they angels are dead, maybe the meaning is messed up.

  Eric communicated his discoveries and thoughts to Harkus, who quickly confirmed his findings. Harkus hit his forehead, a small self-admonishment for not having noticed something so simple and clear.

  “So?” Eric asked, hoping to not have to be the one to make the choice.

  Harkus turned to him, his eyes full of determination, but his words were anything but decisive. “I don’t know,” he said, crushing Eric’s hope. “What do you want to do?”

  Letting out a small sigh, Eric spoke, an answer already in mind, even if it wasn’t the safest option. “We’ve already advanced some way into the dark tunnels without meaning to. Let’s see where this leads.”

  “We could die if we’re wrong, you know?” Harkus said, raising an eyebrow.

  “We could die if we’re right,” Eric answered, nonchalantly.

  Harkus let out a hearty laugh, clearly approving of the response. “That’s the spirit,” he shouted, padding him on the back. Together, they pressed on into the labyrinth, deeper into the darkness.

  ----------

  A figure stood in the darkness, stirred awake from the sudden absence of a presence that had become familiar. Did one of them die? A faint smile crept across his lips, not one of malice, but more of amusement. Too bad, I actually liked the distraction. He chuckled softly to himself, the sound echoing eerily against the stone walls of the large chamber. I wonder what did them in. My kin? Others? Time?

  His thoughts lingered on that word. Time... How long have I been here?

  The darkness seemed to press in as he tried to recall. His memories were hard to access, nothing magical or nefarious prevented him from doing so, he just hadn’t done it in a long time. He blinked, trying to grasp at something solid, like his location. Where is here?

  And then, it came to him. Right. The labyrinth. The realization was distant, almost as though he were recalling something from a dream. But no, this was real. He was still here. Why am I still here?

  The faint pulse of power trickled through him, so subtle it was almost unnoticeable. But it didn’t last long, as the room was illuminated in an intricate assortment of magic circles, sigils and ancient runes. In an instant that small trickle of energy vanished.

  Pretty sure the war is over... He couldn’t remember the details anymore—what war, who fought, what had been at stake. But the battles, the bloodshed, the constant push and pull of survival... those memories lingered like shadows in his mind, causing him to smile with fondness.

  Why am I still here? The thought returned, gnawing at him. There was a purpose, wasn’t there? Something unfinished. Something left behind. But whatever it was had long been buried beneath layers of dust and forgotten time. His gaze drifted to the stone walls, to the familiar patterns carved into them. They had meaning once, but that meaning eluded him now.

  His eyes narrowed, focusing on the distant sounds of footsteps, faint but unmistakable. Someone else was here. Intruders? he asked himself. Suddenly he remembered, I’m a prisoner. Maybe… liberators.

  Another chuckle escaped his lips, and for the first time in what felt like eons, a spark of excitement flickered in his chest. Maybe it won’t be so dull after all.