Belial led them through the dense undergrowth, their movements careful, deliberate. The forest had begun to settle into an eerie silence, the distant sounds of monstrous battles fading into the background.
Ahead, a lake stretched out like a black mirror, reflecting the pale glow of ether-infused plants along its shore. The surface was still, undisturbed—too still. But after hours of running, fighting, and barely surviving, the group didn't question it.
For a moment he thought that he forgot something important, but that dint matter for now,
They needed water.
Belial crouched first, dipping his hands into the lake, bringing the cool liquid to his lips. It was refreshing, clear, untouched by whatever corruption tainted the land. The others followed his lead, cautiously drinking, their eyes never straying too far from the shadows beyond the treeline.
For a few moments, there was a sense of calm—a fleeting illusion of peace.
Then, the water moved.
A ripple—small, almost unnoticeable—drifted across the surface.
Belial tensed.
Then another ripple.
And another.
Xin was the first to stop drinking, his eyes narrowing. "Something's in there."
Belial lifted his head, His body going rigid.
Then he saw it.
Two figures, barely visible beneath the surface, circling each other like phantoms in the abyss.
The lake was their battleground.
A fight was unfolding right beneath their feet.
And the creatures were too fast.
Their movements blurred, dark shapes twisting and snapping at each other with inhuman speed. It was impossible to track them, impossible to tell where one ended and the other began.
Then—one of them stopped.
A long, serpentine head broke the surface, its body still mostly submerged. It had no eyes, just a mouth lined with needle-like fangs, its jaw split too wide, gaping in an unnatural grin.
Belial barely had time to react.
Pain.
Excruciating pain.
A sudden, violent pull yanked him forward. He gasped, his body jerking violently, an agonizing pressure crushing his arm.
Then—the pain sharpened.
Something had latched onto him.
It was biting down.
The world blurred as Belial's mind caught up with the reality of what had happened.
One of the creatures had struck faster than he could perceive, its razor-lined maw closing around his forearm, puncturing straight through his armor like it was paper.
For a split second, there was nothing but searing pain.
Then, it bit harder.
A wet, sickening crunch filled the air.
Belial's vision swam. His arm screamed in protest, nerves igniting like wildfire as the jagged fangs dug deeper, deeper—crushing bone, shredding flesh.
A guttural, instinctive snarl tore from his throat.
He ripped his arm free.
The creature's jagged teeth dragged through his flesh as he tore himself away, leaving behind a trail of his own blood.
Before the monster could react, a deafening explosion erupted inside its mouth.
Its head whipped back violently, a wet, gurgling shriek spilling from its ruined throat.
A moment later, the Dharma Wheel slashed through the water, its blade embedding into the creature's single, glassy eye.
It convulsed, writhing as ether crackled along its body.
But Belial didn't see the rest.
His vision was swimming, the pain a blinding inferno.
Then he was off the ground.
Raven had grabbed him, hoisting him over his shoulder in one swift motion.
"RUN!"
The group bolted.
The forest seemed smaller, tighter as they tore through the undergrowth, branches whipping against their skin.
Behind them, something massive rose from the lake.
A sound—inhuman, furious, wet with rage—echoed into the night.
The thing in the water wasn't dead.
It was coming.
Belial's vision darkened as he fought against the pain, his breathing ragged, uneven.
"Don't pass out on me," Raven growled.
Xin was at his side, his hands already glowing with ether, pressing against Belial's mangled arm. A sharp, searing heat spread from his fingertips—healing magic, trying to force the torn flesh to mend.
But it wasn't enough.
The damage was too deep.
The creature had nearly ripped his arm off.
Belial gritted his teeth, his body shuddering. His vision wavered.
Then, he muttered.
Soft. Almost amused.
*Ah… I forgot about that hungry pet.
His mind barely processed it.
The cave was cold, but not in a way that brought comfort. It was the kind of chill that seeped beneath the skin, curling around the bones, a reminder that they were still within hostile territory. Outside, the forest was eerily silent, the carnage of the night settling into an uneasy stillness.
They hid in the crevice in the wall like insects.
Xin knelt beside Belial, his hands hovering over the wound, ether thrumming between his fingers. Healing was slow, slower than it should have been. His ether flickered, uncertain, strained by exhaustion and doubt.
The wound was bad—ripped flesh, torn muscle, exposed bone. It could have killed him. It would have killed any normal person.
But Belial wasn't normal.
Xin could see it as he worked—ether flowed unnaturally around him, although there's wasn't muchunstable, wild, raw. He had poured too much power into his arm before it was torn away, overloading it with unfiltered ether
And then he detonated it.
A trick, Belial had once mentioned, that he picked up from Cole. A last-resort gambit.
Xin's fingers trembled as he pressed against the wound, forcing the ether to weave flesh back together, to reconstruct what had been lost.
"Idiot," Xin muttered under his breath.
He felt Belial's gaze on him, unwavering.
"You're worried?"
Xin didn't respond immediately.
Of course, he was worried. How could he not be? They had come here thinking they were prepared, thinking they could handle whatever lay beyond the Black Gate. But what had they truly gained so far?
In Oasis, Belial was already living on a death sentence, and now?
Now, they were both walking that fine edge.
A horrid theater of survival, and they were the players forced to perform until their bodies gave out.
What are we even doing?
Xin swallowed hard, his fingers tightening over Belial's shoulder. His breath was shaky, his mind running in circles.
The truth was, Xin had wanted to come here for Belial's sake. He told himself he would help Belial escape his inevitable fate, that he would protect him from the horrors of this world.
But the truth was uglier than that.
He had a selfish reason, too.
This was the only lead Kingpin left behind. The Black Gate was his trail, the only clue to his existence, his movements.
If Xin truly wanted to find him, this was the only way.
But now, that goal felt insignificant compared to what they were facing. For what? A name? A whisper? A ghost?
Had he dragged both of them into something worse than death?
Xin clenched his jaw, watching the last of the wound knit together, though the pain wouldn't fade so easily. He could see the way Belial's ether fluctuated, still running rampant, still too unstable.
This man was a person that stood by him through and through with his chaotic life. Belial risked his life for him time and time again, he felt a connection with Belial forged only with life or death Situations.
The type that cannot be able to express with just words.
"Hey, Bel," Xin spoke softly, his voice uncharacteristically uncertain. "Do you think this was a good idea?...Coming here and all?"
The words hung in the air like a noose.
But Belial didn't hesitate.
A grin tugged at his lips, sharp and confident, despite everything.
"Yes, it was."
Xin stared at him, bewildered.
Belial's arm had just been ripped off. His body had been mutilated, his survival hanging by a thread. And yet, he still had the audacity to grin like he was some kind of idiot in a death game.
"And You guys will walk out of here...alive," Belial added.
His voice was steady, certain.
Xin exhaled, shaking his head.
It was insane—this optimism, this reckless defiance in the face of what they were up against.
Or maybe…
Maybe Belial was just having fun.
That thought made something unsettle in Xin's stomach.
Still, he said nothing. Just took a deep breath, finishing the last of his healing. He had done all he could.
Belial flexed his fingers, testing the reconstructed flesh. It wasn't perfect, but it would hold.
Then—
A golden light spilled into the cave slightly.
The sun had risen.
Xin and Raven instantly tensed, shifting further back into the shadows.
Belial exhaled, rubbing his temple. "Guess we're stuck here till nightfall."
None of them argued.
Outside, the world was deadly once more.
And for now, they could only wait.