It's dark. It's incredibly dark. Probably darker than anything I've ever seen. I'm a huge nightowl, and even then, all the time I spend up late at night could not possibly compare to just how dark it is in here. I know full well too that my eyes will never adjust to this darkness. There is no light down here whatsoever, so that makes sight pretty much impossible.
I need a light. I need to know what happened. Think… I'm a magic user, I should have some way of generating light. A huge lightning bolt, courtesy of Adad? Yeah, no. Far too much mana just for a flash of light. I also don't want to know just how loud it can get in an enclosed space like this. I might even cause the cave to collapse in on myself.
So lightning's a no go, then. What else? I remember Cesre generating fire in her hands. That laser of light was also probably her. She said that was due to her connection with the Archon of Fire, right? She said his name was Florian, right? I've never been too good with names…
So, I obviously have to try and form a connection with him now, don't I? I have ones with Kari and Adad already, so this hopefully shouldn't be too hard. What's he like, though? What sort of approach am I meant to take when praying to him? Kari appreciates drive and desire, and wants to be talked to like a friend, while Adad requires you to be a whole lot more forceful with her to get anything out of her. What should I do with Florian, then?
What do I know about Florian already? I don't think Lucidna ever mentioned anything about him, I know Cesre didn't. I also asked Lucidna what Archons I'd have affinities with, and she never mentioned Florian… am I even able to use any of his spells in the first place?
No, Azariah doesn't care about any of that, remember? Azariah will try and try and try to get whatever connection she wants, no matter how incompatible she is with it! Florian! Lend me your power to give me a light! Imagine mana forming a fireball in my hand, but nothing happens. Adad's forceful approach doesn't appear to be working with Florian.
What could I possibly do then? Try and think back to anything you've heard about the Archon of Fire, no matter how insignificant. This country worships the Archons like Gods, and I know for a fact he has his own cult like Kari and Beira, so there must be something, anything for me to go off of.
Remember… remember… Florian, Florian… Archon of Fire… Fire… Ah! Right! One of Jody's songs from whenever I go to Kari's cult in the mornings! I remember in that song, Kari and Florian were heading down south to put down some sort of bloody rebellion against the Earth God. A bunch of civilians wound up getting killed and Kari didn't get to do anything because by the time he figured out what had happened, Florian had already burned all the rebels to death.
I think… yeah, he mentioned that not being a song written by himself, but by Kari, passed down and translated throughout the years until now, eight centuries later. I think one of the lines was about Florian being a kind man, and a kind man's anger had the ability to burn down the world…
I also now remember a children's book I had read with Lucidna while I was learning to read. It was about a child fated to die by some unknown disease, and when Florian heard of it, he came over there himself, and changed the child's fate through force of will alone. I don't know how true that is, but Kari managed to fly to space, so I can't be too sure Florian never managed to do something like that.
So all I can remember about Florian is that every source describes him as a kind man. This probably isn't romanticized at all, because Beira often gets described as a jerk, even by her own followers, apparently. There's also him being able to change bad fates through his will. An extension of his anger? I also remember him being described as beautiful in a whole bunch of different sources, but I don't think that will help too much.
So if that's all the information I have to go off of, maybe it will help playing to Florian's compassionate side? He only really seems to get angry whenever someone else gets hurt or is in trouble. Florian, please help me. It's dark… I'm scared. Imagining the fire taking form in my hand, and… absolutely nothing.
Alright, back to the drawing board. What else is there? Slaughtering the rebels after they targeted civilians, and healing a child through will alone. Will… he got angry enough to slaughter them because they killed innocents. He hardened his will enough to do something like that… maybe will is the answer to form a connection with him?
Florian! I want a light! Give it to me! I focus on my hand and pour out the mana to form a fireball. I focus, and there's nothing. I keep focusing, harder this time. Still nothing. I keep telling myself that there's a fire in my hand. I imagine the heat on my hand, desperately trying to tell myself that it's actually there. Come on! I demand that you form!
And just like that, I actually feel the heat of fire on my hand, and I can see that ball of fire levitating over my hand. It's creating a light that allows me to see everything in this cave. OK, it appears that strength of will is how you work with the Archon of Fire.
The heat isn't comfortable at all. It's like hovering your hand over a stove. I guess if I had to use this to see, I could, but I'd rather not. I know right away this is something I'm only going to use in desperate situations. Take in your surroundings quickly, and then get rid of this, Azariah.
Looking around, pretty much everything looks how I expected it to. The cave I'm in is still relatively intact, it's just that the hole I came in from collapsed. Alright, no need to panic yet. It's a rule that if you get lost like this, you should stay where you are so your friends or rescue personnel are able to find you easier. Therefore, I shouldn't move from here.
Inell shouldn't have any trouble digging me out of here anyway. I'm sure he's more than trong enough to get all of this rock out of the way relatively soon. I just need to stay patient. There's no way it would take him so long dehydration will start to set in, so I shouldn't have anything to worry about.
Alright, this fire is starting to make this cave really hot. Can't do that. Fires also use up oxygen, and I really don't want to die of suffocation because I thought I needed a night light. It's not like there's anything dangerous down here anyway. There's no need for me to see if I'm just going to wait here.
I put the fire out and the darkness returns. I sit on the floor, and begin waiting for Inell to dig me out of here.
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It's been hours. It has to have been hours. No, I've heard of people in situations like this getting their sense of time all messed up because they didn't have anything to go off of. Since I'm so used to stimulation, I'm probably just exaggerating. Thinking of it like that, it's probably been an hour, max.
Still though, an hour is a really long time for Inell to dig me out of here. What's going on up there? Did they forget about me? No, don't be stupid. I really don't need to let my thoughts get to me in this situation. I need to stay calm, so how is it I usually calm myself down when I'm stressed? Oh, right.
I put my right hand in my pants, in between my legs and start thinking about boobs. Hm, I wonder if there's anything relevant to the situation I could use as material? Some monsters sneaking up on me and having their way with me, no matter how hard I yell at them to stop? Yeah, that should be good.
Ah~ Just thinking about the possibility that could actually happen is exciting me to no end! I wonder if there are any sort of tentacle monsters in this world, that would be really hot. I wonder if I could find any in this cave? If that's the case I definitely have to come back here some time…
I'm about to finish when I hear clittering and clattering. Damn it, Inell! Wait like, 2 more minutes before you rescue me! That's all I need. I take my hands out of my pants and start rubbing them against the wall to dry them off. Oh how I hope I don't smell at all.
I then realize something's wrong. The noise I'm hearing isn't coming from the way I came in from. It's coming from behind me. Oh no. Well, this definitely took me right out of the mood.
Florian! Light! Now! I focus as hard as I can, and nothing happens. Florian! I strengthen my will further, and it winds up working. The fireball appears in my hand again and the cave is once again lit up. I don't see anything though.
I look around, but I still see nothing. I pay attention to the noise, I can tell where it's coming from, and it's getting louder. Whatever it is, it's not here yet. Adad. I order you, start letting me use your power.
I gather up the mana for a lightning strike. Nothing huge, but enough to kill most things with a direct hit, I think. I stand there waiting for whatever's coming at me. Paying more attention to the sound, though, I can tell it isn't one thing. I recognize this noise, it's the sound of a lot of insects running. It's far too loud for it to be that, though.
I can see the cave from where the noise is coming from start to get brighter. Adad, more power. I try to keep the mana I'm feeding the bolt of lightning in check, this is the last situation I want to run out of mana in. There's no way I'll allow myself to use my life force either. There's no way I'm going to be ruining this perfect, pitch black hair of mine.
I can hear screeching now. It's starting to get hotter in here, and it isn't entirely from my fire. Since whatever it is seems to be generating enough light to see, I get rid of the fire. The moment I see something come from around that corner it's getting blasted to the next world over, and whatever survives that, is getting a helping of a barrage of wind blades.
Suddenly a huge hoard of huge beetles the size of a human torso come from around that corner. Every last one of them is on fire and glowing bright. It's bright enough to light the entire cave system up like I'm up on the surface during noon.
My lightning strike is released, which results in an explosion far bigger than what should have happened with the energy put in, which knocks the wind right out of my lungs, and raises the temperature of the cave system about 10 degrees. It's around the 80s now, a good 15 or so degrees higher than my favored operating temperature.
I slowly get up from the ground. Everything hurts, and I'm struggling to catch my breath. It's hot now too, which isn't good for me at all. I can still hear the beetles coming my way. The temperature is also gradually rising, warning me of their incoming presence. Azariah! Stand, damn it!
My lungs hurt too much to start walking again, much less start running. We'll do the next best thing then I pour the mana out from around me, and the air around me up. If I can't walk, I'll just fly!
I begin to fly away from the hoard of beetles charging at me. I can still hear their screeching and I can still feel the heat from behind me, so I know I haven't managed to shake them yet. I have to do all sorts of evasive maneuvers to fly through this damn cave, and even with all of that, I still can't get away from these damn beetles!
If only this cave was a bit wider! I could fly at full speed then and leave these stupid bugs in the dust! Damn it, how do I lose them? I'm really starting to notice the mana all the flying is losing, so I try my best to switch back to running. I manage to do it without falling over, but I lose ground and the air around me only gets hotter.
Damn it, they're only getting closer. I was going faster when I was flying, but I can't afford to be spending my mana like that. How am I supposed to get away though?!
I keep running through the twisting caves, and the heat doesn't die down. I'm actually starting to sweat, and pant… Oh, if I wasn't running for my life I definitely would have collapsed from exhaustion by now. I don't usually work out all that much, and this damned heat isn't making it any easier for me…
I can't keep running, I have to find a way to end this now. It has to be now, or else I'm going to get burnt to death.
Florian? No, fire isn't going to help in this situation.
Kari? I don't want to risk swirling those flames back on me. Knowing me, if I so much as make it hotter in here, I'll collapse on the spot.
That just leaves Adad. How do I get out of this situation with lightning? Attacking those fire beetles with it risks another massive explosion. That could cause everything to cave in, but it would also raise the heat. Raising the heat would be a death sentence.
Wait! Cave in! Aha! I got it! I plant my feet in the ground and stop running. I turn around and see the hoard of those fire beetles rushing towards me. I can feel the air around me getting up to around 90 degrees. Far higher than I'm normally capable of dealing with. The thought that I won't have enough time to cast this spell before the heat consumes my mental functions dawns on me.
No matter what, I have to get rid of this heat. Adad! No time to lose! I'm sweating like a truck. It's definitely above 100 degrees at this point, probably pushing 110. I bit down on my lip so hard it bleeds to keep focused. I can't afford to black out here.
Adad! Power! I need it! Give it to me! Give it to me! No pleasantries. Only what's absolutely needed. I charge up the mana as the air around me only gets hotter. Damn it, make it stop!
I feel like I'm about to throw up. I feel like the world is swirling around me, making me dizzy. I'm actually about to overheat. How hot is it now? 120? Definitely above that. Even normal people wouldn't be able to survive in this heat for long, that I'm sure of. I'm also sure I can't charge this for any longer. Not because I'm pulling out all my mana, but because if I expose myself to this heat for any longer, I will definitely have a heat stroke.
"Lightning!" I scream at the top of my lungs.
I fire the lightning bolt at the ceiling of the cave. Please for the love of God, work. I don't want to die here. Not like this. Not down here. Not somewhere this swelteringly hot!
The lightning creates a flash of light and a loud boom. It crashes right against the ceiling and it explodes. Sure enough, the ceiling crumbles down between me and those fire beetles. Miraculously, it collapses in such a way that I come out unharmed and there's no way for the beetles to get past the rubble.
It's one hell of a miracle, but I can't bring myself to feel any sort of relief from it. They keep trying to force their way through, but they aren't making any process so I'm not scared at all. That isn't the reason I can't celebrate though.
The reason I can't celebrate is because it's still hot. It's so hot. I collapse onto the ground. I desperately try to pry my clothes off to cool down any at all. The sweat makes every movement to get them off absolutely grating, though.
Eventually the beetles leave and scurry off in another direction. This causes the air around me to cool down a bit, but I still have no doubt it's over 120. Humans are not meant to operate under these temperatures, much less me.
It feels like it takes hours, but I finally pry all my overclothes off of my body. It isn't enough, so my bra and panties come off as well. The sweat building up around my armpits, crotch and under my boobs is absolutely revolting.
I slowly stand up. I need to get away from here, anywhere where it's cooler. My breath feels suffocating. Huge patches of my skin are starting to itch. My mouth feels dry. I need water. Now. I need it so much, I'm honestly considering drinking my own sweat. Whether that will help, I don't know, but I also don't care.
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"Hm… well, I'm not entirely sure how to feel about that." I know that voice.
I find myself again, completely naked and submerged in pitch black water. The sky is once again covered in the light of galaxies, and that robed figure is once again standing right in front of me on her raft. I try to bring up any sort of emotion, and I feel none. Not even any sort of fear at not knowing when I would have had to black out to get here.
"Well no, that's a lie. I definitely did not enjoy that at all."
You're going to have to be a whole lot clearer than that, I'm not sure exactly what you're referring to.
"Is it because you're that adverse to heat? Or is it because you don't want to die down in a cave? Is it both? It's mostly because of the heat, though, right?"
I try to open my mouth to answer her question, but still nothing comes out. I'm not entirely sure what she was expecting to happen.
"Oh, right, yes, you still can not speak. I heard your voice here the last time, so I think I must have misremembered, and assumed you could speak. Sorry. If I could let you speak, I would, but it's not me that's causing your muteness here. It's just the nature of this place."
OK, I'll keep all of that in mind as soon as I wake up. It does sound super important. I wonder what I'll be able to figure out.
"Well, I had called you here to ask you those questions, but I guess it's mostly pointless. I guess my curiosity brought you here before your lust did, but that wasn't really what I meant, so declaring I won our bet right here and now would just feel like cheating. We'll keep going along with it then. See you next time, Azariah."
I slowly wake up. It's so dark in here that I can't even tell that I opened my eyes, but I'm honestly kind of grateful for that. The fact that it's pitch black means that those dreaded fire beetles aren't anywhere near me. What's even better is that the air is back down to a manageable temperature for me.
Aah! I never want to go out in weather over 80 degrees again! Spring is actually nearly over at this point, so summer's coming around. Once that happens I'm never going outside. I might even give up going to Kari's cult during the summers. I'll have to ask Lucidna if there's any way I could live in the Figment Library. Anything to not go out in the heat again.
I feel around me. I'm laying down naked on a stone floor. Man, does this bring back memories. I feel around for my clothes, and sure enough, I had them all bundled up next to me. I stand up and pick them off of the ground. Gee, I even took my shoes off, I don't remember doing that. I also have no idea where they are either.
Whatever, I have more important things to worry about. I am thirsty, and not in the usual way. I seriously feel as if I don't get water soon, I'll die of dehydration. I'll worry about that dream from the entity again too as soon as I secure a source of water. Everything is second to water.
I grab onto all of my clothes with one hand, and force fire to form into my other. I'm probably running on about 30% mana right now, if I had to guess but I need some sort of way to see.
It takes several attempts to restart a fire. I keep it to the bare minimum intensity for me to see. This is to conserve mana, sure, but mostly because I just can't deal with any sort of heat right now. Never again, maybe. I guess it would suck not being able to go to the beach, but I don't want any reminders of what just happened.
I start to walk around barefoot. I can't see my shoes, I must have left them behind. I also have no idea which direction I came from. I'll just pick a direction to walk and take a right turn whenever there's a fork in the road. That should hopefully keep myself from getting lost. The main thing I need to worry about is finding a source of water quickly. If I take too long, I will die from dehydration. It will probably take me a while to find a source, so I need to move quickly.
Well, I thought that it would take me a while. As soon as I turn the first corner, I can see a whole underground pond of clear water. The first thing I do is jump into it, and start sucking down as much water as I can. I should really be boiling all this first, but I'm far too thirsty to worry about disease right now.
It begins to dawn on me just how lucky I've been. That collapse I caused went just how I needed it to, and I managed to find water so soon. I'm literally skinny dipping and drinking the most delicious drink I've ever had right now! I'm actually crying tears of joy right now…
For the first time in either of my lives, I feel actually grateful to be alive. Even at the start of my second chance, I felt less grateful that I was alive, and more grateful that I didn't completely die in that stupidly embarassing way.
Alright, I have my goal set. I'm going to get out of this stupid cave alive! Right now, I want nothing more than to keep my life, so I'll fight tooth and nail to see the sky again. I refuse to let today be the last time I've ever really flown through the sky.