DUNGEON FILE 013:
EDEN GUARANTEED
The Dungeon was a place of death—endless, cruel, and merciless. This was the first thing I learned the moment I woke up dead.
And yet, like a fool, I believed I could survive it.
An abyss stretched before me, infinite and hungry, swallowing every sound and thought. There is no air to draw into lungs, no heartbeat to measure time. There is no warmth, no cold. The blood and pain dissapeared, and only my weakened spirit inhabiting the imitation of a body remained.
The boundaries of a body cease to matter, and what remains is untethered, unfeeling, and undefined.
I had fought so hard, but the effort seemed small now, inconsequential against the silence. My fingers helplessly fumble for the familiar feeling of her sword's hilt at my side before falling still.
The rest of my body follows suit, limply surrendering as the last warmth of my body dissipated as well. The world around had faded completely, and I was consumed by an icy fall into this abyss between life and death.
But just as the despair of it all threatened to swallow me whole, there came a sensation—gentle yet forceful.
Was I not alone?
Hello, hello? Who is here with me now, even as I died so pathetically?
The faintest winds of the void seemed to hum a poem:
冷风染尽旧宫墙,
(The cold wind dyed the old palace wall,)
幽影伴我长夜长.
(A shadow accompanies me through
the long night.)
青冥逐梦无归路,
(The boundless Heavens chase after dreams,
with no path to return,)
孤舟浮水泣望乡.
(A lonely boat floats on the water
and weeps for home.)
I want to sink into the sound of this wind, to fall asleep forever between its whispers.
But just as soon as I closed my eyes, I felt the coolness of silk brushing against her, the scent of something delicate, like jasmine on a spring breeze, wrapping around like a comforting embrace.
A breathless gasp tore from my lips as a… a soft, warm, hand cups her chin and lifts her face.
What? What… is this?!
At first, it's merely a silhouette—a figure floating in the abyss, draped in a flowing black and purple robe that seems to absorb the light. Slowly, she came into sight: A crown of silver, pearl, and beads adorned the woman's head, threads gleaming like the moonlight.
Dark glimmering feathers curled around the edges of the crown, all covering her hair which flowed like a dark river. Silky and smooth, it cascaded around her shoulders in waves from a high updo.
She was beautiful in the way a predator is beautiful—dangerous, enthralling, wrong. Slowly, her strange pull wrapped around my chest, suffocating me, suffusing the air with something ancient and terrible and something I should probably question, but somehow I couldn't bring herself to.
The intensity of her gaze…
It feels like being devoured.
The woman led her upward, or perhaps outward—I can't really tell.
All I could feel was the feeling of being lifted, drawn from the dark as gently as a feather carried on a breeze until settling upright and floating in the void.
I managed to stumble back, my legs failing to carry me in… whatever this place was, but the strange woman's gaze never wavered.
The woman reached for me again with a slow, deliberate motion—her fingers outstretched and revealed the blood-red nails sharp as claws and a variety of intricate silver rings.
Her hand landed on mine, soft, cold, and possessive.
"Come," she said, the word a soft command.
"I… Ah, hello there…—"
"Come." Her voice was like ice, but now there was a thread of something darker in it. Impatience.
The command wrapped around me like chains, and before I could protest, my feet began to move drawn to the stranger against my own will across the empty void.
It felt heavy, as if I were walking through a cloud of that thick [Essence] mist.
Considering Im supposed to be dead, is [Essence] what the space between life and death is made of? Maybe I shouldn't think about that.
The stranger watched me embarrassingly struggle to move properly, then began to walk, her black robes flowing around her like shadows as she leads me through a descending staircase that had appeared from the darkness.
"This way," she murmured, and began leading the noblewoman down the path.
I felt terrified, but I felt the stranger wasn't trying to be terrifying. Her touch was much softer than any mans, more caring, far too soft for something so harrowingly terrible. That was what threw me off.
"Who... who are you?" I was finally able to at least get some words out of my mouth. It felt strange—vulnerable, almost—to break the silence between us.
The stranger answered with… more coldness than I expected of her beautiful appearance
"Jiang Fēi," she answered, her voice a soft murmur. She tilted her head just slightly, as if considering something. "I have no need to introduce myself beyond that. I do not walk with anyone for long, and if you do not already know me, you must not need to."
"M…My name is Lady Ayauhcihuatl Tallón of the Land of Obsidian."
"Pleasure to make your acquaintance, Lady Tallón."
"Do you always do this?" My voice was hoarse. I didn't expect another answer, seeing how coldly the stranger responded, so the question felt meaningless as soon as it left my lips.
I clarified anyways. "Take people's hands and lead them into the unknown like this?"
The corner of Jiang Fēi's lips quirked into a small smile.
"No," she finally answered. "Not all."
…Well, that wasn't the answer I had expected at all, and it left more questions than answers.
Should I even be asking her questions at all?! But what if she gets annoyed and decides to suddenly throw me back to life, and I'm stuck with the knights again?
Can she even do that?!
Can she do WORSE than that ??!
I bit back the hundred queries on my tongue, settling for one.
"I'm sure you can afford to tell me why you're interrupting my revival, then. Last I checked, I was currently being devoured by three evil knight ladies. Do you have something to do with why I'm conscious right now? I don't even remember anything between dying and waking up for my first death, so this is really weird for me…"
"…Interrupting? The only one between us who 'interrupted' anything here was you." I couldn't tell if Jiang Fēi's stare was more confused or annoyed at me.
"How could I have interrupted you? …I don't even know you!"
"…You called for my help."
"Your help?! As useful as help might have been, I certainly didn't ask you for it!"
"Nor would I have provided it!"Jiang Fēi's smile widened just slightly, though it was a smile clearly hiding some annoying. "I am a Queen. Here in the Dungeon, at least, I rule over the unbound."
"I... I'm not sure I understand. We have never met, so I don't see what any of this has to do with me…" I murmured, voice barely above a whisper.
"I'll put it this way." Suddenly, Jiang Fēi's grip around my hand tightened possesively. I flinched."As someone with power, I do not know what it is like to let go of something I hold dear..."
Something dear?!
My lips parted as if to speak, only to close once more. I found herself momentarily rendered speechless by Jiang Fēi's words. And though the coldness of her fingers and her stare made my skin crawl, there was something so strangely comforting about it.
Fuck. Maybe I'm being too weird about all this. Stay focused, Aya!
"The point is, I don't see what this doesn't have to do with you. By wielding my blade, that jian, you called for me first, strictly speaking. The attribute, 'Severing the Bonds of Waking': when your health went lower than '30%'… it summoned the strongest lingering spirits in the Dungeon to aid your battle. In this case, it summoned me against my will. Tch… Quite annoying."
"T-this is yours?!" I stammered. "Ah... It was sold to me by a shifty shopkeep in the Sunken Ravine [Sanctuary], I did not know—"
"It's alright," she said, patting my hand lightly. "A jian of the finest make, designed for me... and for me alone. It was one I was rather fond of. It was never meant to be sold. I wonder how it ended up on that seller's hands. And though it's quite annoying it ended up in the hands of such a weakling, perhaps it's for the best. I'd like to watch someone annoying like you lose their mind to folly and find your way to me…"
Huh?!
No wonder Niamh sold this sword for so cheap: activating the special attribute summons an insanely powerful ghost queen?!
"I could give it back if you'd like...! I'm sure there's plenty of weapons out there more suitable for someone of my level to wield," I winced.
"What makes you think this jian isn't suitable?"
"I-it's not that! I've never held a blade in my life. I only killed my first beast a few hours ago, and... well, I already died. This blade is far too magnificent for me. Truly, you should have it back..."
"Really, I have no need for it at the moment. I fear I've only been keeping it for sentimental value, anyways. Perhaps that is why it took me so long to realize it was even missing—Believe me, it is of far more use in even your hands."
"I... suppose so," I murmured, hand subconsciously tightening around the hilt. "I just... feel undeserving, honestly. I don't wish to cause you grief by keeping this when..."
"Don't misunderstand me! I'm not letting you keep it so you can be stronger; Didn't you just hear me say I want you to fail and become Unbound?"
"Folly? Unbound?" I squinted. "You keep saying those things, and I still don't understand what exactly they even are!"
"Do you even understand the name of your own weapon you've been wielding? Abyssion?"
I tilted my head nervously. In hindsight, it did feel a little silly to never even question more about the background of the weapon I was wielding..
I really just thought it was a random cool-sounding word.
"'Abyssion' is the process of losing one's mind," Jiang Fēi coldly elucidated. "Every moment of insanity, every trace of despair in your thoughts, tempts you closer to Folly: Those who follow the path of Folly become much more powerful and dangerous, but fall into Abyssion ever-faster. When you lose your mind completely, becoming nothing more than a beast of the dungeon afflicted by Folly… You become a beast known as an Unbound. They are under my domain, as I am the Queen of Abyssion!"
That sounds… Powerful. Wait, losing their minds completely?
"Unbound? That description kinda sounds like the three knights who attacked me earlier!"
"Yes, those were Unbounds," Jiang Fēi clarified with a nod. "Since you can't die in the Dungeon, that's the next closest thing."
"Are you one of them?" I asked.
"Do you think I am?"
"W-Well, noo…" I stammered. To be fair, she seemed much less insane than the girls from earlier."I'm just wondering how you claim to have power over beasts like that."
In my defense, I don't know how these things work! Maybe Unbounds are like a weird hive mind or something? No shame in asking, right?
"Oh. Haven't you noticed?" Jiang Fēi smiled as if she were reveling in my confusion. "I'm one of the four [Boss]es of the Dungeon. It's only natural when I've maxed out my Folly beyond the limits of anyone else that I'd have such powers over the element itself…"
W-what?
…Did… D-Did I hear that right? I accidentally summoned a Dungeon [Boss] just by dying in the stupidest way possible ?!!
"Oh!" I blurted out in shock. Suddenly, I felt quite stupid for seeing her as a beautiful woman to admire instead of fear.
A part of me still wants to fear AND admire her. Anyways.
"I'm so sorry, Miss Jiang Fēi! I didn't mean to bother you from doing your [Boss] things! I promise, I'll take super good care of your sword and never bother you again!"
Jiang Fēi smiled and broke into a fit of unnerving laughter at that statement.
"No, on the contrary, do your best to die! Suffer as much as you'd like! Because so long as you wield that sword, I'll be waiting on the other side…"
Part of me knows she definitely means she wants me to go insane so she can gain more power.
Another part of me takes that as meaning she wants to see ME in this void after every time I die…
"Miss Jiang Fēi, are you saying every time I die, you'll make time to visit me personally?" I blurted out the question before I could stop myself.
The ice-cold [Boss]'s laughter stopped abruptly as she stared back vacantly, as if I had caught her in some sort of act.
"Well, that wasn't quite what I said," She muttered, turning her head hastily to the side. "Hmph. Fine. Perhaps it is a small amount of personal interest. Honestly, my power allows me to wander the void after death with ease, but… I've never gotten to interact with another soul here. Forgive me for being intrigued."
"Then I see. I can't promise I'll try to die often, but at least I'll have one thing to look forward to in the void." I nodded, heart lighter than it had been a moment before. A small smile tugged at the corners of my mouth.
The inky sea of black [Essence] mist suddenly churned around us, the fog roiling like a tempestuous ocean.
The fogs began to thin as if swept away, receding into a blindingly white light rapidly spiraling towards the point where I stood.
"You're being pulled back. Your body must nearly be restored," Jiang Fēi spoke, her voice cold and emotionless.
"I didn't think I'd be caught by death like this so violently and so soon," I murmured, barely audible. "But to have had a conversation with someone pleasant here... I'm not sure I mind as much."
Jiang Fēi's gaze… almost softened as she looked down at me, a strange warmth in her eyes, like a distant star in the endless void.
Then, without warning, she reached down to grab my hand once more, the touch as cold as frost. A sudden look of determination flashed in her eyes, and a word left her lips in a cold hiss.
"Run."
"Pardon?"
"We can run from the light a little longer. Hurry."
Then, without giving me even a single second to question, Jiang Fēi darted forward – pulling me along with her into a sprint against the fading void.
The darkness closed around us like an impenetrable wall, trying to engulf every step behind where we ran.
I found herself being tugged forward, stumbling through the thick mist, unable to keep up with the speed of the encroaching void. My heart thumped wildly against my ribcage, the world around us literally collapsing into the blinding light merely steps behind.
As the light closed in, its brilliant glow threatening to swallow, Jiang Fēi suddenly bent down and literally swept me off her feet into her arms. The moment my legs slung over her elbows, Jiang Fēi picked up the pace, and I felt strangely, sickeningly weightless in her grasp.
I could only gasp, heart leaping into my throat from the unexpected action.
"Wh—Where are we... going?!" I managed to ask between labored breaths, voice trembling with a mix of fear and exhilaration.
"Does it matter?" Jiang Fēi smiled. "I am only trying to hold on to you, even if it only lasts a little while."
"Wait!" I gasped, her voice a desperate whisper. "How... how can I find you again in the Dungeon? After I'm revived?"
Jiang Fēi's stride didn't slow at my question, her steps still unhesitating. But there was a moment of pause, a brief flicker in her cold gaze.
"You don't," she stated simply. "It's best that you don't. The eighth layer I inhabit is no place for someone sensible, especially not someone as weak as you, and… You don't find me. Because I am a cruel person, and pretending otherwise has only been my selfishness. Because the places I go will destroy you, tear you apart, shatter you, send you to a fate worse than death. Because I am not someone worth seeking."
The light behind us was now encroaching rapidly, the brightness almost blinding. But I refused to look behind, I couldn't, my eyes were only fixed on Jiang Fēi's cold, lovely face.
"But I—"
I began to protest, voice trembling, but Jiang Fēi cut me off, her words like a sharp blade.
" Don't," Jiang Fēi commanded. "Ayauhcihuatl… There are things far worse than death."
As the light closed in, its brilliance enveloping us, the ghost queen began to vanish from my sight. The solid grip of her arms became indistinct from the thick ocean of [Essence].
I looked only at my own arms, the final thing I could see in the darkness, which became almost ephemeral, a golden silhouette of shining dust amongst the light.
As the last traces of our physical forms vanished, the gold shimmering dust hung in the air for a small moment. Within moments, the gold had receded, and we were gone, essence completely returned to the bowels of the cursed Dungeon.
Once again, I woke up.
.
.
.
——
"You have a most exquisite spirit, Ayauhcihuatl. How tiresome it must be, fighting against fate, but I find it endlessly captivating."