"Still not anyone yet…"
"Oh, calm down would you." Dax sat beside me, holding a water bottle out, "They'll get here eventually, you just got to give them time."
Rejecting the water, I stared concernedly at the door. This one seemed permanent, unlike the previous floors where the door would disappear behind us.
"You know I can't help it." I let out a sigh for the umpteenth time, "If they end up dying… isn't it my fault?"
"Hardly." Dax deadpan, "They knew exactly what they were getting into. It'll be their fault if they die. You gave them everything they needed to get here, and if they don't… we carry on with our lives. It's not like any of us have that deep of sentimental bonds with each other."
"Still as cynical as ever..." I murmur to myself.
"I keep forgetting that you've met me…" Dax heard what I said, "But look, because I'm so cynical, I'm not incompetent… getting us to this floor without a problem."
"I know I have no right to judge, but…"
"It goes against your views of the world." Dax finishes for me.
Nodding sadly, Dax pats me on the shoulder. Sitting in silence, I come to when the door opens.
Leaping from the boulder I sat upon, I rushed up to the two who came from the door, Samuel and Nancy.
"God, that boss was a bit of a bast*rd." Samuel limps forward, clutching his ribs.
Upon seeing me, both Samuel's and Nancy's eyes lit up, rushing up to greet me.
"Should've known you two would make it here first." Nancy reaches me first.
"Now… about that magical bath…" Samuel eventually caught up, huffing profusely but with a smile on his face.
"Follow me." I guide them.
They catch sight of Dax and nod to him.
Walking straight through the hedge that led to the pool, Samuel and Nancy unquestionably followed me through, their eyes growing wide.
Having already explained the properties of the water to them back when we were on the preparatory floor, the two jumped in instantly. Swimming around with a pleased expression on their faces, I ask them about their adventure to get here.
"We should get out of the pool if we're to answer that." Samuel turns to Nancy, his eyes droopy, "It's a bit too nice in here."
"Agreed."
"Well, everything up to that boss floor was pretty easy…" I guide them over to get food and water, letting them indulge in what I presume are delicacies, "We got a few scratches here and there, but it wasn't anything we couldn't handle. However, the boss… well he was a bit of a bast*rd, as I said before."
"We managed to get the jump on him thanks to you." Nancy smile brightly, "But even then, we couldn't land the killing blow."
"So, then we engaged in a grueling battle…" Samuel rubs his forehead, clearly finding that entire fight obnoxious.
"And while Samuel was taking the brunt of the boss's attacks, it suddenly switched targets, focusing me after I peppered it." Nancy hinted at the bow she held.
"I was then forced to jump out in front of Nancy and take a blow that left me limping and with a few ribs broken." Samuel adds.
"But his sacrifice was not in vain as I managed to land the killing blow shortly after." Nancy smiles lovingly at Samuel.
Noticing the look, I can't help but ask, "Are the two of you married?"
"Was it not obvious?" Samuel shakes his head before turning and giving Nancy a sadistic smirk, "Mabey we should engage in a few more public displays of affection then."
"Oh, shut up would you…" Nancy harrumphed, but the tips of her ears grew red.
Coddling Nancy, Samuel looks at me, "Why do you ask?"
"I just find it a bit bizarre…" I can't help but find their PDA cute, "How come the two of you were set next to one another but I wasn't set near anyone who'd I consider family?"
"I'd love to tell you…" Samuel shrugs, "But I'm just like you… completely lost. Just consider it the whims of the tower."
"I suppose." I find it a bit interesting that Samuel had said something like Dax, and then I remember an important question I had, "If you don't mind me asking, what are your talents?"
"We don't mind at all." Nancy smile sweetly, "My talent is Archery."
"Mine is Guardsman..." Samuel states, "Though I'm not really sure how guardsman is considered a talent… isn't it more of a profession?"
"Mine is Eternal Life." I thought it only right to repay their trust, "And much like yours Samuel… it's less of a talent and more of something else."
A silence then befalls us, but Nancy speaks out, "Well, no use dwelling on it now is there? We won't get any answer after all."
"I suppose you're right."
Just as we happen to finish our conversation, Dax runs hurriedly through the hedge with a bloodied body held on his shoulder. From the very little I could see of the body before it was chucked into the pool, it looked as though said person's arm was broken and mangled. With a pool of blood exploding to the surface, it was not long after that the thrown person emerged.
"Thanks Dax…" Jeremey, the one thrown in, cough hectically, "I definitely would've died if it weren't for you."
"Think nothing of it."
Jeremy then looks down at his arm in wonder, "Oh hey, would you look at that… it ain't broken no more. This water really is magical…"
Jeremy, with stars in his eyes, only looked away when his heavy-breathing partner, Isaac, burst through the hedge.
"Dam* Dax, you run fast. I would've lost myself if it weren't for Jeremy's loud voice."
"You're welcome…" Jeremy says shamelessly.
Not liking his demeanor after having nearly died, Isaac decides to punish him by jumping directly on top of him. The two of them resurface, laughing hysterically. The two then proceed to laze in the pool before being forced out by the bone-chilling stare that Dax gave them.
He really is quite protective of the pool.
Asking them about their story, I decided to excuse myself just to ensure that there weren't more injured parties looking for a pick-up. There were still three more groups to wait on after all.
And it was good fortune that I happened to return at that time because the next party happened to appear. They weren't injured like Jeremey, but I could see a few rough cuts and heavy bruising here and there.
"Edwin… mind helping us out a bit." Tyson calls out to me, his smile resembling the one Samuel had given me.
"Of course." Giving the two of them however much support they asked for, Olivia thanks me.
"We had such a time with the boss." Olivia whined, beginning to recount her story as we walked to the magic pool.
Listening to her incessant rambling as she described every little detail, I deposit the two of them off at the pool. Dax was planning to leave to fill the spot I just vacated, but I made sure to follow him.
"You can stay with them you know…"
"I feel if I do, I'll just get a migraine." I hint to the still-rambling Olivia.
"Fair."
Back on the boulder, we sat there for quite a bit of time before a heavily bloodied duo stumbled out of the door. Alarmed by their appearances, both Marvin and I prepared to help them but stopped ourselves when we heard them boisterously laughing.
"Told you they'd fall for it." Todd elbowed Ren.
"OW! DON'T HIT ME THERE!" Ren wallops him over the head, "I'm still injured!"
"Oh yeah," Todd painfully gripped his head, still smiling, "I forgot."
"So…" We finally make our way over, "Are the two of you good?"
"Yup, never better." Todd's smile grows.
"Then why are you absolutely covered in blood?" Dax asks, blinking slowly.
"You see, I'm a bit of a trickster." Todd explains righteously, "So, I just HAD to pull something like this."
"Why'd you go along with-it Ren?"
Shrugging, Ren answered, "I didn't want to be left out."
Deadpanning, Dax guides them to the magic pool.
Sitting atop the boulder, I wait for quite a bit of time for the last group. Dax even had the time to come back and there was still no sign of the party appearing.
"You should eat." Dax held out a sandwich.
"Not hungry." I gruffly say.
I really wasn't. For some reason, no matter how much time passed, it never really felt like I was hungry or thirsty.
"Well, suit yourself." Dax chows down on the sandwich.
Even after having finished, the party still didn't appear. Even after everyone else joined us atop the boulder, the party still didn't appear. The previous joyous attitude was replaced with a somber one as everyone knew deep in their heart that the last party wouldn't be showing up. Yet even though we knew that we still sat there, hoping and praying for the last party to make it.
"Well," Dax hops down from the boulder, "Let's hold a funeral for them… It's the least we could do."
Even I, who still wanted to believe the party was alive, nodded my head.
Back at the pool, Dax pulls out his knife and starts to carve out the names. For a long time, we just stood there, watching Dax toil away until he backed up.
Lowering his head, Dax spoke in a melancholy tone, "May Odin and Penny rest peacefully."
No one else dared to say a word, wanting to preserve the serenity that their informal graves now offered. And then, as if water trickled from a stream, the different parties started to flow away, wishing to go further into the tower.
"But why?" I asked after escaping from the poolside.
"Don't you feel it too?" Samuel looks to the sky, his expression a little lost, "The tower… it calls for us to climb it."
Even though I wished to not understand a lick of what he was talking about, I knew deep in my heart that he was right. There was a small part of me that begged me and screamed at me to climb the tower. And as much as I wanted to dismiss that call, it was so enticing that I found myself unable. And Jeremy, who'd been heavily injured, also said the same thing. It didn't matter if one was injured during the climb, the tower still called so fervently.
And so, I watched as they all climbed the stairs, heading to what was most possibly their deaths. Even with the tips that I'd given them, I felt like it wasn't enough.
Feeling a hand on my shoulder, I turn and stare Dax in the eyes.
"Originally, I was planning to stay on this floor, urging people to head up… but I want to give you the closure that you need." I twist my head, "I'll go with you and fight that giant rat monster on floor twenty."
With my eyes nearly popping out of my head in surprise, Dax starts to laugh, "Even if I want to deny it, I have the same kind of calling that everyone else has. I am not immune. And with your tips, I'm no longer that scared of climbing."
"You're scared?"
"Horrified!" Dax gave me the 'are you serious' look, "I hate the unknown just as much as the next person, but with you by my side, the fear's now unfounded."
"I'm glad." I give a self-degrading smile, knowing I was useless when it actually came to fighting.
As if knowing what I was thinking, Dax proposed, "If we kill that boss on floor twenty, then I'll train you on the next restorative floor."
"Really?" Tears stung my eyes.
"Yes, now let's go." Dax hikes up the stairs.
Rushing up after him, we burst into the next floor and start to clear away the moss, allowing us to quickly kill the mob monsters. With relative ease, we make it all the way to the boss floor. Devising a plan just before we went in to determine the best approach, Dax eventually stopped me.
"I got this."
"You got this?" I can't help but be worried.
"Yeah, I got this."
Letting his confidence run over me, the two of us go to face the giant rat monster or boss #2 after what everyone else had explained to me. Dropped down into the water, I keep my eyes peeled, not even blinking, as I wait for the monster. And sure enough, the giant rat monster just suddenly appeared without any warning. One second it wasn't there and the next it was.
Stomping its way over to us, Dax finally gets a good look at what the monster looks like.
"Holy sh*t, it's ugly as h*ll!"