After they shake hands, Wilter looks away before clearing his throat to speak.
"Before we continue, please cover yourself. There is a lady among us, and I think it's inappropriate."
Benjamine looks at Freyja whose face is as red as a tomato before looking down on his nakedness.
"Hmph. That would be a good start. You wouldn't happen to have something I could wear by any chance?"
The other members look at each other and it seems no one has a spare set of clothes. Greigore breaks the silence before offering Benjamine a cloak.
"It's not much-- but will-- protect you."
Benjamine smiles as he puts on the cloak and covers his nakedness before responding.
"Thank you very much, Greigore is it?"
He nods his head in response. Wilter clears his throat to get everyone's attention.
"Now that he is clothed, we should continue our exploration of this dungeon. Unfortunately, we didn't bring any spare weapons. Will you be able to defend yourself?"
Benjamine chuckles a bit before responding.
"You don't have to worry. I like to think I'm ok with using magic to defend myself. If things get dangerous, I will run and hide."
Wilter looks at Benjamine confused but accepts his answer before leaving the entrance to the chamber. Shadow suddenly starts laughing, causing Benjamine to flinch and get angry.
"You really need to stop doing that in these circumstances, Shadow. It's getting very annoying."
"Please forgive me on this one but, I'll run and hide if things get dangerous. Was just too much for me to handle. How long are you going to hide who you are from them? They've already said they don't worship the gods."
"If I were to show them who I really am, do you think they'd fear me or let me join them? When the time is right, I will reveal my true self to them."
"Very well, Benjamine. I will leave the timing of that to you. Look on the bright side. An old friend of yours has made his way to the last floor of the dungeon. Your make up slump will disappear when you see him."
Benjamine shakes his head as Shadow's voice fades away. Freyja looks at Benjamine, intrigue fills her eyes as they hold their gazes. Henry shoves his head between them, breaking the intense gaze. He looks down at Henry and sees a pouting face with narrow eyes looking at him. Henry speaks.
"I have no idea what your intentions are with lady Freyja, but I'm warning you, if you try and make a move on her, I will personally fight you."
He turns around and rushes towards her side, a smile replaces the pout. Benjamine is speechless as he tries to understand what just happened and if he heard correctly. He starts smiling and shaking his head before thinking to himself.
"He reminds me a bit of Danker, with his size and character."
The smile soon fades to a frown as he remembers what happened to Danker. Greigore looks at him but says nothing. The group eventually reach the stairway to the seventy-first floor. Wilter looks at everyone and sees faces of confidence on the other members.
"Be prepared to face more powerful monsters as we go deeper. We must be close to the end."
Everyone gives a loud cheer, but Benjamine remains silent as they proceed to the next level. When they reach the next floor, Benjamine speaks to Shadow.
"Hey Shadow! What did you mean earlier about an old friend at the last level of the dungeon?"
"I won't reveal his identity, but I will say he comes from the divine realm and has his entire army from level eighty of this dungeon."
After Shadow's words, Benjamine is struck by an idea.
"Would it be possible to scare the monsters, so they go to the lower level? Then we won't have to deal with the soldiers of this friend."
Shadow is silent for a while before responding.
"I really like that idea. It will save us a lot of trouble."
Benjamine closes his eyes and focuses on spreading Shadow's essence over the entire party as they move through the seventy-first floor. As they push on, all the monsters start running away towards the next level. The party stand ready, but no monsters attack them, this causes confusion, but they continue exploring. Freyja sneaks a look to Benjamine with a raised eyebrow, and he just shrugs his shoulders. Their exploration continues to the lower levels, but they have encountered no monsters since floor seventy, causing Wilter to get impatient.
"What the hell is going on here? We are already on the seventy-fifth floor and have not encountered any monsters. This is frustrating."
"Shouldn't we be happy about that Wilter? It just means we're not exhausting our supplies."
"Be quiet Freyja. You know very well that this is unheard of. Every dungeon has monsters on every level, so why is this one different?"
Henry jumps in to defend Freyja and starts arguing with Wilter. Benjamine and Greigore look at each other and sigh. Freyja, who is getting annoyed, clicks her fingers and their mouths are shut instantly before she slaps them.
"Do you two really think you are setting a good example of how a team works to Benjamine and Greigore? You're not! We are here for one thing only, and that is the complete exploration of this dungeon and its treasure. Now stop your bickering and let's get back to the job at hand. Idiots."
Wilter and Henry look at each other embarrassed before apologizing. Freyja pinches the bridge of her nose and let's out a sigh which makes Benjamine chuckle.
"Do you always have to deal with this?"
She looks at Benjamine, shakes her head and rolls her eyes without saying a word as the party continue deeper into the dungeon. Tartarus and his men await their arrival, eager to bring an end to the party before they can get their hands on the sword. One of his soldiers taps a metal plate when he hears movement, causing the others to take cover and ready an ambush for the approaching enemy.
Tartarus waits patiently for his soldiers to attack. He is brimming with confidence that his men will handle the exploration party, he has positioned thirty-five of his elite soldiers on each floor starting from level eighty, all of them armed with the best weapons and armour from the divine realm smiths. As the sound gets louder, a soldier squints his eyes trying to look for signs of the enemy, but what he sees sends a shiver down his spine and paralyzes him.
The other soldiers start panicking, then look towards the entrance of level eighty and see a massive hoard of undead monsters running towards them at incredible speed as if they're running from something. Before the soldiers can react, the undead monsters are on them and show no signs of stopping. Soldiers are getting gored, trampled on, knocked off their feet, and falling down the crevasses as they try to outrun the stampeding hoard of monsters. One soldier makes it to level eighty-one and shouts as he runs past the others.
"RUN FOR YOUR LIFE!!! IT'S A STAMPEDE!!!"
The soldiers on that level don't have time to process what he said before the hoard of monsters is on top of them. They scatter in all directions trying to avoid the monsters, but it is in vain as they are quickly consumed by the never-ending hoard. On the lowest level, Tartarus is starting to panic as he hears the sound of battle getting closer. The soldier who has been running for his life since level eighty, sees Tartarus and begins shouting.
"LORD TARTARUS!!! LORD TARTARUS!!! WE HAVE NO CHANCE OF SURVIVAL!!!"
Tartarus stops his momentum abruptly, causing the soldier to hold his stomach and fall on both knees.
"What is the matter soldier? Why were you running? Was the enemy that powerful."
He says this with a cold sweat running down his face. When the soldier has calmed down and can breathe again, he gives his report to Tartarus.
"Lord Tartarus, all your men have fallen in battle. It was not caused by the exploration party, instead we were suddenly overrun by a stampeding hoard of the undead monsters from the higher levels. It's like they were running from someone or something."
"How far has this hoard reached?"
"They had just entered level ninety-five as I arrived at the stairway to the next level. They will be on us very soon."
Tartarus gives a hearty laugh.
"HA. If that's the case, we will just have to send in the Hydras to stop the hoard. I really didn't want to use them, but we don't have a choice."
Tartarus summons the two Hydras, and orders them to protect the ninety-ninth level. Faster than a blank of an eye, the Hydras move up to the ninety-ninth level and come face to face with the hoard of monsters. All eight heads of each Hydra pull back and fire a blast of pure dark magic towards the approaching hoard and disintegrate them instantly, all that remains of the monsters is ash. The Hydras roar with triumph and Tartarus smiles, knowing what fate awaits the approaching adventurers.
"Let's see how long they can survive against my beasts."
Wilter and the rest of his party arrive at level eighty, what they see makes Henry vomit and Wilter cover his nose. The dismembered bodies and entrails of soldiers and monsters alike litter the entire floor of the dungeon in a red heugh. Freyja looks around in shock.
"What is going on? Why are there soldiers this far down in the dungeon?"
Benjamine observes the scene while Greigore stands guard. Benjamine sees a glint from armour and moves towards it to get a better look. On closer inspection, he notices a crest on the armour and his expression suddenly changes. Greigore and Freyja notice his expression of rage and bloodlust.
"What-- is the-- matter-- Benjamine?"
He looks up and sees Greigore and Freyja standing in front of him. When he has calmed himself, he responds, but his voice is cracking as he tries to control his rage.
"These soldiers-- are from the divine realm. This crest-- belongs to the god in charge of prisons, Tartarus, who commands about seven-hundred men."
Everyone's face goes pale as they hear the name Tartarus. Wilter shakes his head before responding out of fear and unbelief.
"You're lying. What business would a god have to be guarding a dungeon with his personal soldiers? It just doesn't make sense, and how do you know that crest belongs to Tartarus?"
Benjamine has a dark expression on his face before replying in a voice that is devoid of emotion.
"I have no obligation to explain it to you. You either believe me, or you're wrong."
Wilter feels his stomach drop as he holds eye contact with Benjamine and quickly looks away.
"Fine then. I hope for our sakes you're wrong."
The next eighteen levels have a similar scene to each other. Bodies hanging from the walls missing their lower half's, entrails sticking and hanging outside their bodies. Freyja cannot believe the carnage as they make their way through the bodies.
"I don't want to imagine what would've happened if we had to fight these soldiers. In a way, the monsters running to the lower floors saved us definite losses."
Shadow speaks to Benjamine in a sarcastic tone.
"Happy I gave you a warning?"
"Yes Shadow. I'm so grateful I heeded your warning. I would never have noticed another presence without your master-level senses."
Benjamine responds with his own sarcastic response. Shadow falls silent and doesn't reply, but his expression is full of irritation. As they reach the end of floor ninety-eight, Benjamine stops them before they go further. Wilter, annoyed with him speaks up.
"What the hell do you think you're doing stopping us from heading to the next floor?"
"There are two very powerful monsters down there, the kind you have likely never seen in the flesh. They are far stronger than any monster you've faced, you will need my help if you want to face them."
"Seriously!? A stranger we only just met, who struggled to even remember his name suddenly wants to tell my party that we will need his help to defeat the monsters on the next floor? Get out of here with your bullshit. There is no creature alive today that stands a chance against my party."
Benjamine, seething with anger at Wilter's stupidity, decides to let the argument go and walks to the back. Wilter unconsciously let's a thought slip out of his mouth which angers Benjamine even more.
"I thought so you lowlife."
The other members are at a loss for words feeling Benjamine's angered aura which is slowly breaking through his concealment spell. Feeling uneasy, the party move to floor ninety-nine. The further they go, the stronger the feeling of uneasiness gets, but Wilter is paying it no mind as he proudly heads lower. When they arrive on the ninety-ninth floor, there is no evidence of a battle taking place. There are no bodies, not even a blood pool as they proceed. Benjamine falls in next to Greigore and whispers to him.
"When I shout now, I want you to jump to the front and cast the strongest barrier you can. It is the only way to save that idiots life and the other two."
Greigore nods his head in agreement as they continue. Wilter orders the party to draw their weapons and be ready for an ambush. A thick cover of mist engulfs the party leaving them unable to see far ahead. Sounds that can only be described as bone chilling are carried with the mist, causing everyone except Benjamine and Greigore to freeze. Benjamine turns his ear towards the front and hears the slight crackle of power like an attack being powered up.
"GREIGORE!!! NOW!!!"
Without hesitating, Greigore jumps to the front of the group and cast his most powerful spell.
"Great Barrier Fortress!"
He casts it just in time as a beam of dark magic collides with his shield, causing uncontrolled shaking of the ground and rocks falling from above. Greigore is steadfast with his defence, not showing any sign of collapsing as the other members duck in behind him. Wilter shouts at the top of his lungs trying to be heard.
"WHAT KIND OF MAGIC IS THIS!? I'VE NEVER FELT ANYTHING LIKE IT!"
Benjamine is as cool as a cucumber as he speaks.
"Like I told you, this no ordinary monster you are facing. It is a monster that was supposed to be extinct in a massive battle ages ago."
Freyja and Henry look at him, surprise and shock fill their eyes before Henry asks.
"Are you talking about the battle where a human fought the gods with his allies almost defeating them?"
"I think so."
Henry starts trying to remember a book he read that spoke of the many battles that took place. His eyes widen in disbelief and panic. He looks straight at Benjamine before asking.
"Is it a… Hydra?"
He nods his head instead of responding. Henry quickly relays the information to Wilter just as the attack stops and the mist clears. Greigore is breathing heavily from defending the party. When the mist has cleared, two towering shadows are seen approaching in the distance, with movement like that of a worm. Benjamine narrows his eyes and grits his teeth as the shadows come into focus revealing two towering Hydras floating through the air. Their long scaley necks connect to a body the size of a whale and scaley dragon-like heads with rows of sharp teeth and dark, lifeless eyes that show no emotion.
A perfect instrument of destruction. Greigore, Wilter, and Freyja remain standing while Henry falls to his knees in utter shock and hopelessness, already giving up the fight. All sixteen heads of the Hydras look down at the party, their chests gather dark magical energy as they prepare to attack again. Wilter and Freyja take the opportunity to attack one of them but, their efforts prove futile as they are hit by the second Hydras tale and sent crashing into the side walls. Blood flows from their mouths as they come crashing to the ground unconscious. Henry passes out from the severe shock only leaving Benjamine and Greigore standing. Greigore looks at Benjamine before speaking.
"You-- strong warrior. But hide truth from us. Please-- show me-- your-- true power."
Benjamine is hit by a memory of an ally who acted just like Greigore, strong, courageous, and not easy to fool. He smirks before placing his hand on Greigore's shoulder.
"Very well. I will show you a fraction of my power, but you must promise not to tell the others because I will tell them myself whenthe timeis right."
Greigore smiles and grunts, activating his shield again. Benjamine approaches both Hydras and disables a portion of his concealment spell, causing Greigore to almost vomit and the Hydra to get concerned. Benjamine looks at the Hydras, a maniacal smile crosses his face.
"It's been a while since I last fought Hydras, I wonder if they're still as weak?"
Faster than the eye can see, Benjamine sprints towards the first Hydra gathering energy in his hand. The Hydra tries to attack him, but it is too slow and Benjamine takes the opportunity to get under the beast and spear head his way through it, destroying its source which causes it to explode. The blood and guts of the Hydra are sprayed all over the place, Benjamine lands on the ground covered in blood with a wry smile on his face.
"That felt amazing. I can feel the adrenaline and blood flowing through my veins. This takes me back, the fear, the excitement, the anger, the tension, and the bloodlust. A time when the gods feared me."
Greigore can't believe what just happened, all he can do is just watch as a blood soaked Benjamine faces off against the last Hydra. His face is filled with excitement.
"Just-- who-- is this-- warrior?"
The remaining Hydra attacks Benjamine, but he dodges the attack, jumping high into the air before using speed enhancement and a spell that shines brighter than the sun.
"Piercing Arrow."
He travels towards the Hydra at incredible speed, the Hydra fires off a giant beam of energy that shakes the ground yet again. Benjamine faces the attack head-on, colliding with it in midair. The two forces duke it out in a battle of magic power, but Benjamine increases his power output and cuts through the Hydras attack. When he gets closer to the monster, Benjamine increases his output even more slicing the Hydra clean in half and destroying its essence. Silence fills the dungeon floor as the aftermath of the battle is revealed when the dust settles. Greigore looks around hoping to see Benjamine, then a shout of victory fills the floor.
"YESSSSSS!!!"
Greigore looks in the direction of the shout and sees Benjamine walking towards him. His face is hidden under a thick film of blood and pieces of Hydra still stuck to his skin, but Greigore sees a battle crazed smile on his face through all the blood.
"Benjamine-- who-- are-- you?"