The darkness was supposed to last exactly ten seconds.

Malik was able to count without trouble because Dunya made it easy, or well, easier.

Every second, a soft "Hee" echoed beside him, her way of marking time in the absolute black.

And yes, only ’easier,’ thanks to the wind that rushed past his ears and his stomach that floated somewhere above his throat.

The Abyss pulled them down, desperate to devour its new meal.

’One. Two. Three.’

He couldn’t see his hand in front of his face.

This was an absolute black he never knew existed.

The temperature had dropped all at once as well, making him feel like he’d entered a different dimension entirely.

’Four. Five. Six.’

Sure enough, the Rukh in the air changed.

It became thicker and heavier, pressing against his skin, trying to get in.

His ears popped, reminding him of his mortal-inclined body. He would’ve thought himself to be diving in an ocean if he didn’t feel air crashing against his body and face.

’Seven. Eight.’

Dunya shifted closer.

Her body pressed against his side, her free hand reaching down to something—he couldn’t see it, but he felt it activate.

’Nine.’

Thin lines of Rukh carved through the darkness around them, slashing at that ’something.’

’Ten.’

He heard a loud boom, but thankfully it wasn’t a result of anything bad.

Because that was when, finally, the darkness vanished.

The first layer’s atmosphere hit...

"..."

It hit nothing; Dunya’s Holy Relic protected him.

Following that, even more Rukh carved through their... shield like whips, trying to shred it.

Thankfully, they hadn’t put anything close to a dent into it, completely failing to pierce through.

Meanwhile, Malik’s eyes widened, coming to an obvious realization. 𝑓𝘳𝑒𝑒𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝑚

’Without her, I’d have died right there.’

He hadn’t realized, hadn’t even considered.

The Abyss was a killer, and the first layer, supposedly the safest, had nearly taken him out before he even touched ground.

’Way to go, little sister.’

Now, it was no longer dark, swapped out for a green forest stretching near forever.

Its green canopies were so thick they looked like solid ground, just miles of interwoven branches.

Hills of grass rolled across the region. Jagged rocks jutted up here and there, while a wide river cut through the middle with water so clear that Malik could see the bottom.

In its depths were strange, big sharks with too many eyes.

And next to the river, standing tall against the darkness above, was a lighthouse made of stone, its light burning bright, pushing back the darkness creeping in from the edges.

It was beautiful.

Enough so that it stunned Malik for a long moment.

Eventually, however, he shook himself out of it.

He wasn’t here to sight-see.

So, he gestured north, above the lake where the river had widened.

It was a region of giant mushrooms, not small; these things were towers.

Their caps stretched wide enough to cover entire miles, while their stems were nearly as thick as the trunks of those Trees of Life in the East, glowing faintly blue, purple, and green.

’If they wanted to be hidden, that’d likely be the place.’

The shadows behind him nodded and glided above the water, their feet barely touching the surface.

Malik did the same, or well, Dunya did, her hand still in his, Death pushing them forward.

They landed on the ground in a crouch, their weapons ready.

No one met them in combat.

The unit relaxed their postures but not their scanning eyes.

Malik remained casual throughout, cultivating the image of a Sultan.

Though once they slowed down, he straightened his back and looked around as well.

"Kabir, activate the relic."

There was too much area to cover, even if they just searched the first layer.

They knew that already, and they weren’t dumb, so they planned for it.

"My Sultan."

Kabir knelt to the ground, his bulk folding downward, one knee pressing into the soft earth.

He unstrapped the rod from his back, an unusual-looking thing, three prongs twisted together with a dark crystal at the base.

Without hesitation, he spiked it deep into the ground.

Almost instantly, the rod pulsed, and a wave of Rukh exploded outward.

A ring of golden light that expanded in all directions, passing through the giant mushrooms without slowing.

The wave returned after a moment, clashing with the second wave that pulsed, the two twisting together.

Kabir’s eyes scanned the Holy Relic.

After three seconds, he pointed to the front.

"You were right, my Sultan! There’s a Rukh discrepancy—an isolation barrier of sorts—in that direction. I’m sure Lady Noor is being held there!"

Malik nodded and began to walk.

His unit fell into the shadows and followed.

The forest of giant mushrooms was strange.

Malik had seen strange before. Demons falling from the sky. Stacks of corpses lying in a cave. A Sapling of Death. His own face changing in real time to something else entirely.

But this was a different kind of strange; calling this a ’different dimension’ was putting it lightly.

Thanks to the size of the mushrooms, most of the light from above was blocked, leaving mostly the blue, purple, and green glow to paint everything.

Their Abyss was as beautiful as it was strange.

None of his own seemed affected.

Beside him, Dunya kept her eyes scanning.

She didn’t converse, nor did he, too busy searching the area.

They passed many seekers, groups of two or three, sometimes four.

All were relatively weak Class Ten or Eleven Magi, watched over by their shepherds.

They were fighting mushroom creatures, short and squat things with caps for heads and gills for mouths.

These... monsters moved slowly, swinging stubby arms, making wet squelching noises when they died.

Thankfully, the seekers didn’t notice Malik and Dunya, allowing them to pass through smoothly.

It didn’t take the squad long to reach their destination, a cave in a hill.

A cave that seemed like any other, with rock that was dark, wet, and covered in moss.

Not needing the order, the shadows entered first, and Malik waited.

Three, five, ten seconds passed until...

"It’s clear, my Sultan!"

He joined them inside.

The cave was relatively small, maybe a hundred yards across.

Looking up close, he could see that the walls were covered in scratch marks that could have been made by claws, chains, or fingernails.

But that hadn’t taken his attention for long.

In the back, chained to the wall, was a woman.