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[i][b]Primitive[/b][/i]
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As soon as Yalen and Jocasta cleared the passage, the stone gateway slammed shut behind them. The further the two of them ventured into the ruins, the less the sun’s light was able to penetrate the suffocating darkness within. They had come far enough now that it was no longer possible to see even a single inch in front of them without a light source. In case there was something down here that reacted negatively to magic use, they elected to make use of a torch that was kindly provided to them by Escarra’s rangers. It wasn’t much, but it allowed them to proceed further without tripping over themselves for the time being. The hall was rather plain, decorated only by evenly spaced rows of torches that lined the walls on both sides.

The normally playful couple was distressingly quiet as they advanced through the one way corridor. They were both listening for the faintest of sounds, anticipating that at any moment some monster or devious trap was about to be sprung on them. Not once had they ever explored a ruin without running into a hazard of some kind. With how well guarded ancient treasures often were, it was as if their ancestors expected to be resurrected someday.

Yalen was so focused on watching the walls and ceiling that he failed to notice the danger laying right under his feet. It was a single brick, looking a bit too new and set a little too low compared to the rest of the floor. When he crossed over the pressure plate, an audible click echoed through the giant hallway that sent their hearts racing into panic mode. One by one the sconces burst into flames, while ancient mechanisms exposed gaps in the brickwork that contained giant metal tubes…?

[color=ffdead]”Yalen, get down!”[/color] Jocasta grabbed her lover’s sleeve and dragged him to the floor before diving out of her wheelchair. A second later, a horizontal line of obsidian darts whizzed over their heads. 

Yalen tossed his torch away and readied the Scepter of Ahn-Shune for the struggle. [color=fd5e53]”UNITE!”[/color] He cried out, combining his strength with Jocasta’s so that he could tap into her immense power. As he summoned his command magic he realized that elsewhere, Desmond’s strength was beginning to fade. The time limit was approaching.

More needles flew through the air, from the front, from behind, from everywhere at once. Jocasta blasted them all away with a wave of kinetic force, but the traps kept firing with seemingly limitless ammunition. At the same time, the area was gradually filling up with a strange mist that formed dense, slightly yellowish clouds that creeped towards the tethered with ill intent. Anything it seemed to touch fizzled and cracked as if the rock was being doused by acid. It likely WAS acid based on the smell.

She wouldn’t be able to do much more than this without leaving a gap in her defenses. Yalen understood it was up to him to pick up the slack. With the tethered evenly splitting their RAS he was, for the moment, at the level of a prodigy. He used his borrowed power to create a small bubble of safety around them, transmuting the acid into its constituent elements which were far less lethal. Jocasta grabbed him by the hand and lifted the two of them off the ground along with her wheelchair. In the grip of a Skyborn, Yalen felt like he was floating on a cloud, and the queer sensation sent a shiver through his body. They rocketed through the hallway like a musket ball, threats being disintegrated or turned aside by their combined efforts. Yalen winced as one of the deflected darts whizzed past his face, leaving a small cut on his cheek that burned like a papercut. It was difficult to keep his eyes open at the speed they were going, but he could make out the shape of a glowing arrow at the end of the passageway. Whether it led them to the exit or deeper into this madness mattered little. Anywhere was better than here!