Darkness. Alan couldn't see it; he felt it, an all-encompassing void. He tried to move, but numbness held him, as though frozen in place. No matter how hard he struggled, he grasped only emptiness. Then, with a sudden snap, his eyes opened.
Disoriented, he blinked repeatedly, trying to clear his vision. As the blurriness subsided, he scanned his surroundings: a hallway filled with ruins made of rock and sand, shrouded in darkness. In the distance, strange torches on the walls cast an eerie, flickering light, breaking the oppressive gloom.
The torches on the walls emitted a light similar to fire, but their eerie stillness defied its natural flicker. Alan's gaze darted around, trying to absorb more of his strange surroundings. Suddenly, he noticed a flickering light, likely from a torch, growing closer. As the illumination approached his suspended body, he saw a petite old man and a young woman, both dressed in strange beige attire with pants no longer than their thighs and unusual overalls tightened with buttons.
Red bandanas were tied around their necks, and peculiar hats adorned their heads. The woman held the strange source of illumination, which looked bizarrely like a torch. Although it lacked a flame, its intense light forced Alan to close his eyes. After a moment, he fluttered them open again and saw the woman had noticed him. She displayed an expression of surprise and quickly muttered something to the old man, but Alan couldn't hear it—only numbness filled his ears.
The old man noticed Alan too, and they both set down their strange-looking knapsacks and began to approach him. Alan tried to move away, but his mind reflected only numbness each time he attempted to stir.
The woman approached Alan, holding the strange torch over his face. Alan's eyes fluttered, but as she moved the torch lower, a burning sensation began to overwhelm his numbness. He tried to struggle and move, but failed each time. The woman, unaware of Alan's internal battle, drew closer and looked directly into his eyes.
Alan looked back and what he saw intensified the burning sensation. Reflected in her serene blue eyes, Alan saw himself trapped in a white wall, petrified, devoid of any features. He appeared as a lifeless, mangled statue of himself. The grotesque reflection boiled over Alan's struggle as he suddenly snapped open his eyes.
His dizzy gaze and disoriented mind registered a pair of large bosoms, tightly covered in a white cloth that snugly outlined their nipples. They dangled just above Alan's face for a moment before they suddenly crushed against him. Alan gasped for air, almost biting them in his panic. As they moved up, Alan, breathing heavily, saw the owner of the bosoms: King Raider Artereia.
She startled slightly and nudged back, sitting above Alan on all fours. With a calm yet suggestive smile, she exclaimed, "Oh my… someone is a bit excited about their recovery."
Alan's eyes widened as he panted for breath, trying to make sense of the situation. Suddenly, whatever he was lying on shook violently, causing Artereia to stumble and smother his face with her ample bosom, suffocating him as he groaned and gasped for air. His vision obscured by Artereia's assets, Alan heard a familiar voice.
"Hey! Get away from him, you succubus!"
The voice belonged to Relecta, who rushed over and forcibly removed Artereia from Alan. She quickly nudged Artereia back and, in her jealousy, shoved Alan's face into her own bosom, only exacerbating his struggle for air. With evident jealousy and anger, Relecta yelled at Artereia,
"Keep your stupid breasts away from my darling! He's got his own pair right here!"
"Mummfff… mummfff… Bhaaaa!!! Relecta! Let me… GO!!!" Alan struggled to breathe, his voice muffled as his face was buried in Relecta's chest. He suddenly pulled himself free, gasping for air. Realizing her mistake, Relecta quickly helped him to sit on a nearby wooden pallet, her face flush with regret.
"Oh! Forgive me, darling… I got angry and didn't realize you couldn't breathe," she apologized, her tone filled with concern. She shot a glare of pure jealousy at Artereia, who simply rolled her eyes nonchalantly and brushed off Relecta's anger with an arrogant smirk before returning to her seat.
Alan watched as Artereia sat beside a man dressed in the same color armor and overalls, which eerily reminded Alan of Longisues. The man waved at Alan, and Alan recognized him as King Raider Leotrus.
Alan returned the gesture with a nod and a smile. As he looked around, he realized he was sitting in a moving cart made of wood. When he looked to the front, he was shocked to discover a strange reptilian creature running on two legs, pulling the cart with its strong neck and featherless wings.
The creature looked like a giant mashup of a chicken and a lizard, towering even from a distance. It was controlled by a man dressed as a holy guard, who commanded the creature with a belt fastened around its neck and spine. Alan's eyes widened in shock, and Relecta, noticing his surprise, followed his gaze.
"Beautiful, right? But equally terrifying," she said, her voice filled with awe. "They told me it's called a Lacerpull. These creatures inhabit these floors. They're very ferocious and powerful, but if subdued with the proper technique and fed a special potion made from the Trectora herb, they can be domesticated. Fascinating, right, boss?"
Alan listened intently to Relecta's explanation, then turned to look at her. He noticed that her height had reduced, and her body seemed a bit weaker compared to the plumpness she had when she first gained her adult form. She was no longer in the torn robe of Father Zeneth; now, she wore a loose beige overall, likely made for a giant man. It covered her entire body, hanging down to her knees, concealing her curves with dignity. Her pants were similarly loose and comfortable. Alan was a bit surprised, seeing Relecta for the first time in something that hid her voluptuous body so modestly.
Realizing the cause of Relecta's altered appearance—the leaves he had given her—Alan extended his hand towards her. He gently grazed and held her cheek, speaking in a weak, low voice that surprised even himself. "So, I guess the leaves took some toll on you as well, huh?"
Relecta held Alan's hand, pressing her cheek against it and kissing it gently before replying with a playful tease, "Like you're one to talk." She pulled away and retrieved an obsidian mirror from a nearby knapsack, presenting it to Alan.
"Take a look," she prompted.
Alan glanced at his reflection, feeling a brief moment of calm. However, worry quickly rose within him when he blinked and cleared his view. His once serene blue eyes now appeared dead and sunken, surrounded by giant dark circles. His once full cheeks had withered into flat stretches of flesh tightly hugging his cheekbones. His lips, now dry and devoid of color, mirrored the arid sensation spreading inside his mouth as the numbness began to fade, replaced by a tingling pain. Alan noticed he was wearing a set of white overalls and pants similar to those of Longiseus.
Looking at his withered state, Alan remarked with a mix of surprise and disappointment, "Damn it, it took much more out of me than I imagined. I look almost o—"
"Beautiful man! You look beautiful!" Lyco's usual teasing voice interrupted before Alan could finish his worrisome comment.
Alan put down the mirror and turned to see Lyco and Poduria, along with King Raiders Bretren and Orioros, sitting in a cart similar to his own. Lyco waved, and Poduria smiled, both now wearing renewed attire similar to their old ones. As the driver maneuvered their cart closer, Lyco quickly jumped into Alan's cart, putting a hand on Alan's withered shoulder and almost making him stumble.
Relecta swiftly supported Alan as Lyco withdrew his hand and helped Poduria transfer over.
Standing in front of Alan, Lyco and Poduria plastered on large, very fake smiles to hide their true emotions. Alan began to anticipate their reaction, but before he could speak, Lyco interjected, "Nah, man, seriously, I love what you did to yourself. Absolutely beautiful."
"Haha, Lyco, I know you're just teasing me, but I'll have you know, 'it hurts,'" Alan replied, matching Lyco's tone but hinting at his real pain. Unfazed, Lyco nodded in fake agreement, replying quickly, "Sure, buddy. Sure it does hurt, and you know what? You deserve it, after defiling such a magnificent beauty at the first chance you got!"
Lyco pointed dramatically towards Relecta, who chuckled at the exchange. Alan, weirded out and confused by Lyco's accusation, responded, "Defiling? Man, we just got married!"
"Yeah!!!! We know!!! And without us!!!! You lustful mongrel!!!" Lyco continued his teasing, further embarrassing Alan in front of the king raiders. Even the driver of the cart chuckled at their banter. Burning with embarrassment, Alan quickly covered Lyco's mouth before he could utter any more words. He whispered to him in a low voice, "Okay, fine, I get it. You can punish me however you want for that, but for now, I request you cease all this!!!"
"Of course we will!!!" Poduria jumped in, gently tapping Relecta's bust with her wand, making her squeal in embarrassment. She continued, "This one has already been punished. We had her spill all the deets of your romantic love story!!!"
Poduria joined in teasing Alan, matching Lyco's dramatic flair. She closely embraced Relecta, suggestively close, and looked into her eyes passionately. Mimicking Alan, Poduria acted out the scene Relecta might have described to them, saying, "Oh, my love, I would love to have a bunch of babies with you… muahh muahh muahh!!" Poduria attempted to mimic Alan's voice, making funny expressions and even landing some air pecks on Relecta's cheek, further teasing and embarrassing Alan.
Flaring up with blush and shyness, Alan retorted, "Hey!!! That is not how it happened!!!! Th—"
"How do we know that??!!" Lyco interrupted, extracting himself from Alan's grip and joining Poduria in teasing. As Poduria let go of Relecta, both she and Lyco stood with disappointed and angered expressions, crossing their arms. Lyco expressed their disappointment, saying, "We were not there, because someone couldn't keep his hands off the girl, 'he thought of as a kid.'" Lyco emphasized the last part with air quotes and mimicked Alan's voice.
Alan finally giving up, took a big sigh as he began to apologize and take control of the situation. "Okay…okay..I admit and I apologize. I will tell you all everything once I get better. So now please, answer me normally… where are we?"
"Well, you better!!!" Lyco replied to Alan's apology. Gradually shifting his tone to normal, he continued from the middle of the cart, "Well… look around you…" As Alan listened to Lyco's request, he scanned the surroundings and found themselves traveling through a cave-like structure completely covered and made of obsidian.
The menacing atmosphere was heightened by lava flowing through the walls of the cave like veins, with steam vents puffing out hot air at intervals. Alan looked ahead and noticed a narrow stream of lava at a distance, carving its way through the obsidian ground. The ground was riddled with craters, geysers, and large and small prints of talons, presumably belonging to other Lacerpulls.
Ahead of them, Alan counted three more carts, totaling five in all. Turning back to Lyco, who had taken a seat in the cart along with Relecta and Poduria, Alan noticed their expressions had shifted to seriousness, prompting him to brace himself for what lay ahead. Confused, Alan also took a seat as he voiced his observations, "Menacing terrain, even suffocating, and seeing all this, I can only assume we are beyond floor 40, be—"
"Floor 47th…" Lyco interjected, his tone firm as he gazed at Alan with stern eyes. He continued, "So, Alan, tell me, what do you remember?"
Alan, puzzled by the sudden inquiry and the shift in his friends' behavior, hesitated before responding, "Not sure, most of it is vague right now. If I recall, I remember most of it until our battle with…Augustus…" As Alan began to recollect the events leading up to his blackout, his tone turned stern and grim.
He looked at Relecta, who nodded slightly at him. Returning his gaze to Lyco, Alan continued, "I remember most of the battle, but after I shattered Augustus's rapier and was blown away, memories from that point are all hazy and dark. But why are you asking this? Is something wrong?"
"You were unconscious, Alan, for seven days," Lyco revealed in a serious tone, attempting to impress upon Alan the gravity of the situation. Alan, surprised but upon seeing his withered state, could comprehend the reason for his prolonged unconsciousness. To the revelation, Alan maintained a stern tone, trying to mix reassurance with it as he replied, "Yeah, I can understand. I mean, that herb has its side effects, and I might have overused it, so it's not much of a surprise to me."
"But no potions, no herbs worked on you. What happened to you?? We were all scared. Your breathing, your heartbeat, all remained shallow for at least three days," Poduria raised her voice, adding to the already concerned conversation.
"Yeah, I apologize for all the trouble I caused, and I'm not surprised at the ineffectiveness of potions because the side effects of the herb I used would only subside with nutritional intake in heavy quantities. My body will need a lot of energy if I want it to return to normal soon," Alan replied again in a reassuring tone, adding a tinge of apology in between. Lyco and the others took a sigh of relief. Lyco, returning to his stern demeanor, put forward another question, "Okay... then tell me if I am correct, but you do not remember anything related to Armis's transformation?"
Alan's eyes widened a bit, not in surprise, but as Lyco mentioned Armis's transformation, bits of the scene flashed in front of Alan's eyes. The agony and writhing of Armis, and then the bizarre transformation. Alan remembered seeing it all with his blurry gaze before he passed out. But apart from the strangeness, Alan couldn't pinpoint any reason that would put his friends in such a grim tone. Curious about knowing the reason, Alan decided to feign ignorance to Lyco's question and agreed with his observation, "No... but again, why do you ask?"
After contemplating Alan's answer for some moments, Lyco gazed at him as if trying to pierce through Alan's soul to discern the truth in his heart. Suddenly, Lyco shifted his demeanor to relief with a sigh.
"No… nothing," he said, "I was just checking on your memory. You missed nothing much. It's just after you and Armis defeated Augustus and Armis gained his arms back along with an evolved sick armor, before these guys arrived."
Lyco brushed off his shift of demeanor, redirecting Alan's attention towards the members of the Crimson Army present in their cart. Artereia, still pouting over Relecta's disrespect, ignored Lyco's mention of them. However, Leotrus, with a smile, leaned closer to Alan's face. With his blindfolded eyes gazing directly into Alan's, he greeted him with a big, creepy smile.
"Hello," Leotrus said. "I hope we won't be requiring to introduce ourselves?"
Alan, feeling a bit creeped out by him and too weak to retort, simply accepted his strange greeting with a forced smile.
"No, certainly not, Master Leotrus, and Master Artereia."
"Good," Leotrus said, toning down his wide smile as he backed away from Alan's face. In a commanding yet soft voice, he continued Lyco's explanation.
"When we arrived with Commander Longisues, we saw you had already finished that monster and were in pretty bad shape. With no potions, herbs, or even clothes, I tell you, even a day's delay on our part would have proven lethal for you lot."
"Yeah, and we are very grateful to you for bringing our belongings for us," Poduria expressed gratitude to Master Leotrus, as a realization that dawned on Alan just then. They had left their belongings on a lower floor while chasing Augustus, a very foolish and potentially deadly mistake on their part.
"No need. I mean, we did enter the castle fifteen days ago, and it was a miracle it all survived there without being stolen. Then again, we had to speed up our pace when we met some of the victims of that monster, and—"
"And how much destruction do you people leave in your wake??!! It was like you brought destruction everywhere you went. What kind of raiders are you?" Artereia interjected, her expression filled with anger as she reminded Alan and his friends of their mishap adventures, even exaggerating about them.
"I mean, technically, it wasn't just us. Half of it was caused by Augustus, s—"
"Really?? That is your excuse?" Lyco began to retort Artereia's exaggeration, but her arrogant remark and sharp glare halted him mid-sentence.
Sensing the tension in the air, Alan looked around and blurted out the first question that came to his mind.
"So…where is Armis?? And I don't see Aurelia either. Are they not with us or what?"
"No, they are ahead in the first cart," Poduria replied promptly, gesturing towards one of the carts marching ahead, the only two carts covered with white veils of cloth. Alan found it peculiar and followed up with another question.
"Really? In the covered ones? But why?"
"Well, in the first one are Master Longiseus, Master Roartad, and Father Zeneth. They are discussing something about a new order given by the Almighty Pope. As for the other one... I would only say, 'why?'... indeed," Lyco's cryptic explanation puzzled Alan as he glanced at the covered cart where Armis and Aurelia were traveling, trying to discern the reason why they were separated from the group.
Suddenly, a suggestive scream of a female emanated from their cart. Before Alan could process what was happening, Relecta's startling outburst drew his attention back to her.
"ARMIS IS WEIRD NOW!"