With much effort and bruised bodies, the group reached an enclosed cavern that seemed to have no exit.
Donovan paled for a moment at the realization that they were now trapped once again, but before he could speak, the floor began to slowly rise beneath them.
"What's going on?"
Oliver looked down and watched as the creatures tried to climb the pillar of earth that continued to rise.
"…We're safe"
The earth pillar passed through a gap in the roof, and they came to another cave with no apparent entrance.
As the pillar stopped, the ground shook and the more tired of them struggled not to fall.
"Where are we?" asked Donovan, looking around with curiosity.
"Our base" Elisabeth replied with pride in her voice.
The group looked around and studied the supposedly secure base.
Since the beginning they had walked without stopping because of the monsters, and since the beginning of the cycle they had to move even faster to avoid the hordes of monsters.
"But how...?"
Donovan couldn't understand how they had found a place like this.
"Well... we actually created it. Well, Gavyn did it"
Donovan looked in the direction of Kalen, still calling himself Gavyn, and didn't get a good look at him.
"Blerghhh!"
Kalen vomited on the floor as he knelt, his entire body sweating profusely.
Mixed in with his vomit were several bloodstains, reflecting his state of health.
Next to him, Talika kept a hand on his back and a worried look on her face, unable to help him.
When Kalen finished vomiting, he turned around and sat on the ground, his arms resting on his back.
"Get me some water..."
Talika nodded and ran to get him something to drink. Meanwhile, Donovan and Oliver were approaching him.
"You guys... you're alive. How is that possible?"
Kalen looked at Donovan and could see how much had changed in the time since they had been separated.
The young man who had previously preferred to remain silent was now completely emaciated physically, but mentally he seemed fine.
"There was some kind of lake of a thick liquid that helped us survive the fall..."
Oliver gave a quick summary of what had happened to them, and Donovan listened in silence. After hearing the whole story, he looked at Kalen.
"Then why are you like this?"
At that moment Talika arrived with a glass of dirt filled with water and Kalen drank it all without stopping.
The moment he touched the orb, the core of elemental energy began to form in his body. The process was tedious and painful, and although it was relatively quick, it left Kalen incapacitated for a few days.
After that, he had to adjust to the elemental power he suddenly had at his disposal.
Most of the elementals in the cave were blue, a few were green, and the largest elemental was the only brown one.
Their colors signaled the type of element they possessed, with blue being water, green being wind, and brown being earth.
And since most elementals were blue, the elemental power that stood out the most in their elemental core was water, followed by wind.
So far, the power of so many minor elementals was too much, but it was enough for Kalen's body to handle. However, the power of the main elemental was too much for him to bear, and it was slowly eating away at his body from within.
Somehow, the elder elemental still seemed to be conscious inside Kalen, as it was the one who created the base and the pillar as an elevator.
Kalen could not use the power of the earth directly, it was only a vessel for the elder elemental, who seemed to contain its power to keep Kalen's body from exploding.
Still, it didn't seem to be enough, as Kalen's condition worsened with each passing day. Especially when he used his elemental powers to excess, as he had just done.
After all, his elemental core was not natural, but artificial. Which affected Kalen's affinity to it.
The fact that Kalen had traces of elemental energy in his body, thanks to his deceased parents, made it possible for him to have the elemental core in his body... barely.
Had it been anyone else, they would surely have died at the time of the Core's creation.
Kalen knew that the core was not permanent, but would last until he completed his test, according to the elder elemental. And after days of internal suffering, Kalen wanted nothing more than to finish quickly and expel the core from his body.
After all the explanations, Donovan was silent for a few seconds before speaking.
"What do we do now?"
Kalen looked at him boredly, as if asking something obvious.
"Rest for now... and then do what we came here to do in the first place. Pass our tests and get out of this damn hole"
A sarcastic and somewhat sad smile appeared on Oliver's face.
"Come on, let's get that wound tended to"
Oliver took Donovan to heal his arm and Elisabeth walked over to Kalen and Talika who was standing next to him.
"Are you okay?"
Kalen looked at her and sighed.
"I'll be better after I rest, what about them?"
Kalen looked over at the group of women helping to bandage the wounds of the woman who had been bitten on the leg.
"They're tired... and frankly, better than I expected"
Kalen smiled mockingly.
"Were you expecting someone?"
Elisabeth knew from Kalen's question that he was hinting at something regarding her test. She wouldn't deny that she was relieved that they were still alive... but the group simply wasn't large enough to complete her test.
Adding them all up, there were 8 people... that was 2 short of the 10 people Elisabeth needed.
"Not at all. It's a miracle they're alive, it's not like they have anyone to protect them"
Between Donovan, Alina and the other two young women, they barely managed to survive. Elisabeth, Oliver, and Talika had relied on Kalen to survive, so they hadn't had it as bad as she had.
Elisabeth saw Kalen's sleepy eyes and didn't stay any longer.
"I'll let you rest...we need your strength now more than ever"
Kalen nodded.
"Now that we are all together again... remember that"
Elisabeth gave Kalen a solemn look and walked back to the group of women who were still healing the other young woman.
When Elisabeth was gone, Talika looked at Kalen worriedly.
"D-do you need anything?"
Kalen looked at the young woman and sighed inwardly.
"Just rest... thank you"
Talika shook her head quickly.
"T-that's the least I can do to repay you for everything you've given me"
While Kalen made sure to keep everyone safe, he focused most of his attention on Talika. Not for nothing was it his test to keep her safe.
The young woman had certainly been pleased with what Kalen had done for her early on, but it was all due to a misunderstanding on her part.
If Kalen did not have this test, he would not have protected her as he did. Surely Talika could have died on the second day when they first encountered the monster.
A monster they never met again.
Kalen did not know the relationship between the monster and the creatures of the abyss, he did not know if they had a symbiotic relationship or if the monster went through the tunnels and destroyed them.
But none of that mattered to Kalen, he had just over 10 days until the 30-day deadline expired, and so far, he didn't even know who Rodhlann Danneir was...let alone find the supposed golden firefly.
Kalen did not know the fate of the others in the cave...but they might not be alive. Rodhlann Danneir might have been among them, long dead.
Would that count toward the completion of his test?
Kalen had no idea, but the best thing to do for now was to rest and prepare for the next day.
***
Zayne opened his eyes abruptly and stood up, slowly straightening his back as his bones thundered.
The young man looked around, his blue eyes studying the place. After absorbing all of the crystal's energy, he fell unconscious, unable to resist.
Realizing that his group was some distance away, Zayne stood up, leaning on his bone sword, and approached them.
The young men who had been defending Zayne's body for a few days saw that he was finally awake and went to greet him.
"Are you all, right?" asked Jordan Miller, one of the young men who had survived.
Zayne looked at him and nodded.
"Yeah... perfect" he said as he opened and closed his fist several times.
Behind him, Jaume Che looked at Zayne with an indifferent expression.
"Is something wrong?"
Jaume Che opened his eyes slightly.
"No... nothing"
"Good"
Zayne turned and looked at the crystal, which was now completely dull and lifeless. He took a deep breath and felt the ground shake slightly.
Something was coming towards them, something big. But instead of worrying, Zayne smiled, looking down the tunnel with a small smile.
"Haaa, let's get this over with once and for all"