The Magepunks delved deeper into the massive cave system that was littered with mushrooms, having to halt their advance every now and then for a particularly harrowing creature.
Luckily, they had yet to run into a high-level Pestilent One.
Though each and every battle Kale and Farren fought were deadly to Sine and Ash.
'It's kinda demoralizing.'
But Sine hasn't missed the chance to observe Kale and the way he fought. The way the flow of battle- no, the way he is the flow of battle.
Sine could see through it.
Every battle truly was remarkable, especially with the fast and lean monsters.
But Sine still couldn't shake the feeling of something watching them. The feeling that they were stepping into someone's territory.
'Am I hallucinating? That brings me to another topic, is the air here poisonous?'
From the beginning since Sine even saw the first mushroom, he had covered his face with the mask that hung around his neck provided by the Vanguard of Cystine.
Sine looked at the condition of the other people, mainly focusing on the well-being of Ash, but they didn't seem out of it at all.
'Maybe I was wrong...'
Still, Sine refused to pull down his mask.
As they continued through the massive cavern of interconnected-mossy pathways, Sine had really started to pick up the art of battle with his observation skills.
Watching someone especially as skilled as Kale was a huge boon to Sine, because of his platinum-eyes and the (Dreamless) ability.
Ash huffed next to him, and rubbed her eyes.
"I'm starting to get really fucking tired of this green hue."
Sine nodded in agreement, glancing at the tons of luminescent acid pouring down in the distance.
"Hey Kale, how much are we gonna exp-"
BOOM!
...
Sine's eyes widened.
Pastel and Remi were laying on the ground, a puddle of blood leaking from their detached torsos.
Sine's mouth was left agape.
Kale's left arm had gone flying, he clenched his teeth and swung the dark blade as swiftly as he could and with as much rhythm he could muster.
Sine's muscles tremored.
Farren and Kale had finally regrouped, but it was too late.
Or was it?
Sine had ditched the bag, The Pole already in his unyielding grip, and before the blur could kill Kale, he intercepted faster than a heartbeat.
His muscles popped and bones creaked against the mountainous-weight of the blow, but Sine withstood it.
And finally, Sine got a good look at it with his eyes.
Well, if it had any.
A white, circular mask with two eye-holes that seemed to have nothing inside. Sine looked, but all he could see was the darkness staring back at him. Feathers ran down the things torso, its wingspan nothing but long feathers, and legs that screamed agility.
And the feathers were so, so very sharp.
"Get yourself together!!!"
Sine screamed, using all of his expertise, all of his battle knowledge, and everything his body could offer to keep the thing at bay.
Kale had finally planted his foot on the ground, gaining stable footing. The dark blade shivered.
Sine dodged the quick cut the creature made, only leaving a slight cut on his chest. The Pole whipped around and hit its mask.
The creature stopped, and its empty gaze seemed to find Sine's.
His grip trembled, yet he held strong as Kale was finally revved up.
All of this happened in less than two seconds.
Ash and Ariet had barely even realized it was happening.
And yet, the creature turned into a blur as Kale's blade echoed and screamed. A flash of sparks and darkness danced all around them as Kale went against the strongest monster Sine has encountered yet.
Sine sighed, he held his ground for that long against the terrifying beast.
The Vanguard of Cystine was telling him, that the monster was a high-level Pestilent One. Though, there was a unique presence emanating from the creature.
It felt as if his armor was screaming at him to kill the thing.
Farren had joined the battle as well, Kale leading the creature into her hammers maw, and dealing significant damage to it.
The creature let out a stifled shriek as its feathers rippled, and a deadly dance began between the three Pestilent Ones.
**
Sine grit his teeth and sprinted towards Ash. The battle flowed all around them, so they couldn't stay there, especially as Nightmare Ones.
"Ash! Ariet! Follow me!"
Sine yelled amidst the loud bangs and clangs of the weapons. He glanced regrettably at the corpse of Pastel, his gaze lingering on Remi for even longer.
'...'
Sine dashed back from the way they came, he thought it too dangerous to continue exploring this place.
It felt as if the environment was coming alive, mushrooms bulged, vines trying to get in their way, and spores floating-
'...Spores?'
Sine's eyes widened.
The Pestilent creature let out a deafening screech that seemed to echo throughout the very Undergrowth.
Sine's consciousness seemed to fade for a moment, but he gripped harshly onto his wakefulness.
His eyes were filled with terror as he turned around.
'S-Shoot...'
The Pestilent creature was standing over the bodies of Kale and Farren, its chest heaving. The mask Sine decided to wear prevented pores from entering his body, keeping him mostly awake.
But he wouldn't be alive long enough to use that boon.
The Pestilent creature's gaze slowly met Sine's.
Sine looked down at Ash and Ariet who were laying on the ground, their chests still rising.
'What do I do!? What do I DO!?'
The thing took a menacing step towards him. Sine's mind started to race.
'Okay calm down, you have two options. Jump, or fight.'
Sine looked over the edge, crossroads spun all around like a web, and past that, was black.
He looked towards the menacing monster that had just taken out two Pestilent Ones.
'I don't- I don't know what to do.'
But ultimately, he made a choice.
To escape from this green hell. From the monster that had killed the strongest.
Sine picked Ariet and Ash up, dismissing The Pole from his grip.
The creature seemed to react to this, its features turning into a blur, but Sine was already over the edge.
"AHHHH!!!!"
Sine screamed as he plummeted through the Undergrowth, the green walkways turning into blurs as he flew past them, delving deeper and deeper into the darkness.
Creatures had swarmed the air behind him hearing his scream, ones that could fly, one with massive vines that hung on the walls. And the Pestilent One that had killed the cohort.
The roars echoed and shook the Undergrowth violently, all chasing after the weakest.
And yet, as he fell into the deeper darkness, the screams and shrieks seemed to halt, and the mass movement that seemed to encompass the entire green hell, ceased.
{The Undergrowth: Fourth Layer}
{The Undergrowth: Fifth Layer}
{The Undergrowth: Sixth Layer}
{...}
{The Myriads}