Tia's eyes widened in alarm as she realized what Zal was planning. "Wait—Mr. Zal, you can't be serious! That thing's a death trap!" she exclaimed, her voice filled with panic. "It's too dangerous!"
Zal, still looking up into the dark void above, barely glanced back. "Running won't help. We'll probably end up even deeper in this place, further from the exit."
Before Tia could respond, the Zephyrbane reappeared, descending rapidly and spitting a sonic wind blast directly at Zal. He dodged just in time, the blast obliterating the section of the staircase and wall where he'd been standing moments earlier. Dust and rubble exploded into the air.
Zal stared at the destruction in shock. "Umpf—! Sweet mother of… That was close. I don't know whether I can withstand that."
Ellen's voice chimed in immediately. "No. Its power can tear apart even automaton joints. I advise you both to take cover."
But Zal shook his head, determination in his eyes. "Ellen, trust me on this one."
Ignoring Ellen's continued warnings, Zal bolted up the spiraling staircase, narrowly avoiding another series of sonic wind blasts. His agile movements kept him just ahead of the creature's attacks, but he knew he couldn't keep dodging forever. As he dashed, he muttered to himself, "I need an opening..."
The Zephyrbane swooped down, its massive snout widening, preparing another blast aimed directly at Zal's face. In that critical moment, Tia hurled her spear with pinpoint precision from across the staircase. The weapon struck the beast's back with a sharp thud, embedding itself in its scales.
"Hey, over here!" she yelled, her voice echoing off the stone walls. The creature screeched in fury, its focus turning from Zal to Tia as it flapped wildly, the spear still lodged in its back.
Zal smirked and called out, "Nice one, Tia! Your timing is impeccable!"
As the Zephyrbane roared and rushed toward Tia, she quickly dashed behind a wall for cover, her hands trembling. Meanwhile, Zal seized the moment and leapt, grabbing onto the shaft of the spear that protruded from the serpent's back. His body dangled as the serpent reacted violently, twisting and writhing like a wild animal desperate to throw off its uninvited passenger.
The creature dived downward in a frenzy, raking itself against the stone walls to dislodge Zal. Each impact sent shudders through his body as debris rained down, but he held on with an iron grip, his metal fingers clenching around the spear hilt.
With a strained laugh, Zal muttered to himself, "Oof, calm down, gecko. Heh-heh, guess it wasn't expecting my company..."
Zal struggled to hang on as the serpent dived, smashing itself against the stone walls to dislodge him. The impact rattled Zal, sending sparks flying as the creature's sharp scales scraped against his metal skin. Still, he held firm, determined not to fall.
Ellen's voice crackled again. "Probability of you falling is over 60%, Zal."
"Then I'll use the other 40% to make it!" Zal shouted back through gritted teeth. With sheer determination, he pulled himself further up the Zephyrbane's back, forcing his way toward its head despite its furious attempts to throw him off.
From her vantage point on the stairs, Tia watched in awe and horror, her heart racing. Zal's movements were almost a blur against the chaos, and the thought of what he was trying to do filled her with dread.
Zal's voice cut through her panic. "Tia, get ready to jump!"
"What?!" Tia shouted back, eyes wide with disbelief.
"I'm bringing it closer to you! You need to jump!"
"You're insane!" she screamed. Her legs trembled as she glanced over the edge of the broken wall. "What if I miss and fall?!"
"Trust me!" Zal yelled, straining to keep his grip as the Zephyrbane twisted violently.
Tia's breath quickened, her fear almost paralyzing her, but she knew there was no time to hesitate. With one final, shaky breath, she mustered all the courage she had left. Tia dashed toward the ledge, propelling herself high into the air with a leap of faith, her arms stretched out as far as they could reach.
Zal swung his body, grasping for her as she soared toward him. His hand caught hers just in time, pulling her up to him as the combined weight of the two caused the Zephyrbane to falter mid-flight. Its screech rang out in pain and confusion as it hurtled upwards at a blinding speed, desperate to shake them off.
Zal grinned down at Tia, who clung tightly to his arm. "Told you it would work. We've got a free ride out of here."
Tia glanced down in horror at the rapidly vanishing stairs beneath them. "If you call this 'free,' I think I'd rather walk!"
Before they could relax, the air around them buzzed with a new menace. Dozens of smaller, vicious-looking Zephyrbane cubs emerged from the darkness below, their beady eyes locked on their mother and the two trespassers clinging to her back. Despite their size, they moved with deadly speed, their sharp talons gleaming.
"M-Mr. Zal, we've got company!"
"Oh boy. Looks like the cubs don't want someone to hitch a ride on their momma."
Tia immediately began chanting under her breath, her voice steady despite the fear coursing through her veins. With a flick of her wrist, she unleashed a blazing fireball from her left hand, hitting one of the cubs dead-on. The creature screeched as it was incinerated mid-flight, its charred remains spiraling into the depths below.
"It works! Looks like the bestiary was right about their fire weakness," she muttered.
"Nice work," Zal called out, but as he looked around at the still-growing swarm of cubs, his tone became more serious. "But we're not out of this yet."
"I'll cast another!"
"Do it. We'll need something big and fast to get them off our tails…"
Tia began chanting again, preparing another spell, while Ellen's voice chimed in, detecting a weapon in Zal's system.
"Zal, I just finished scanning your body. There's a blaster weapon within your arms. It seems to generate plasma, likely fire-based."
"A plasma blaster?" Zal mused, dodging another cub. "How convenient! Guess it's time to test it out."
He raised his free arm, aiming at one of the approaching cubs. The surface of his palm slid back, revealing a glowing energy port. For a moment, nothing happened.
"Huh, why isn't it working?" Zal muttered.
"Allow me," Ellen's voice buzzed. "Taking control."
In a split second, Zal's arm jerked to life, the energy port glowing brightly before unleashing a burst of plasma that tore through the nearest cub. With precision, Ellen continued to fire, eliminating the chasing monsters one by one. Sparks lit up the air as the deadly plasma shots streaked through the dark.
As the last of the cubs fell, Tia, panting from her own barrage of fireballs, stared in amazement. "What in the world was that?!" she gasped.
Zal, still catching his breath, looked at his arm and shrugged. "I'm asking myself the same thing. But hey, no more chasers."
"Thank you, Ellen," Zal added, still clinging to the Zephyrbane as it began to ascend even faster. The spiraling staircase was now far beneath them. It would have taken weeks to reach the top by foot, but now they were speeding toward the upper layer of the dungeon.
The Zephyrbane, clearly growing desperate, roared again, trying to throw them off. "Hang on!" Zal shouted to Tia.
Finally, with a deafening crash, the creature smashed through the ceiling of the spiraling staircase. The debris rained down as the serpent flew higher, but with one last wild screech, it hurled both Zal and Tia from its talons. Zal hit the ground first, using his body to cushion Tia from the worst of the fall. Dust and dirt flew around them as they crashed into the earth.
"Augh... Mr. Zal, are you okay?" Tia asked breathlessly, pushing herself off of him.
"I'm fine," Zal grunted, sitting up and shaking off the impact. "Backpack's probably trashed, though."
Ellen's voice buzzed with a hint of amusement. "Oh, verily. I can sense the impact really well."
As Tia looked around, her eyes widened in awe. "Ahh! We made it. This is it. The upper layer! We're close to the surface now."
But Zal wasn't so sure. His eyes drifted back to the Zephyrbane as it circled above them. "I wouldn't celebrate just yet," he muttered. The creature, wounded but still powerful, landed with a heavy thud nearby, its eyes gleaming with fury. "This creature doesn't seem like letting us go just like that after all we did to it."
The ground trembled as the serpent roared again, louder than before. Tia covered her ears, trembling.
"Can you fight, Tia?" Zal looked at the spear that was still stuck in the Zephyrbane's back.
"To be honest, M-Mr. Zal... I'm scared. I really want to run as fast as possible from that thing. There's no way I can defeat it!"
"Then go ahead. I'll deal with this!"
Tia shook her head, still trembling. "No. I won't leave you. Not after everything. I'll be living my life full of guilt if I run now, abandoning you to fight it on your own. I'll stay. I'll back you up!"
Zal smiled. "Well, ain't that just sweet of you. You've said your word. Now, let's finish this!"
The two braced themselves for the final battle against the relentless ruler of the middle layer.