The very mont they stepped past the threshold of the secluded space, it was as the Primordial had promised: Blimpo's eyelids closed and his body imdiately went limp from a sudden lack of consciousness.
Before the elf could face-plant into the dirt, Emilio caught him, bringing him onto his back, now much easier that he had a functional right arm to use.
Alright…I don't like talking to this guy, but…I guess I have to, he thought.
Crossing the small bridge amidst the quiet garden, he approached the gold-fruit bearing tree, once more watching as the shadows beneath it shifted before revealing the six-ard, otherworldly being.
"Adam," Emilio called out, stopping before the figure.
The Primordial watched him, "It seems you found my hospitality satisfactory, and a new arm; that is agreeable. I did not wish to declaw you, child. It is beneficial to that you've acquired a replacent for your lost limb."
"Yeah, well…I'm ready to go now," he said.
"Indeed–I can tell; you've steeled your resolve. However, before I send you out, I must give you a warning," Adam told him, "This is not sothing to take lightly, either. Above all else I've told you, this is the immutable truth you must abide: absolutely do not cross paths with the Primordials. Should you find yourself in the presence of one, you will not escape. Is that understood?"
Sohow, hearing the genuine caution in the voice of sothing so transcendent itself as the Progenitor sent a shiver up his spine, though he already knew well just how frightening the Primordials were.
"I understand," he nodded.
"Good, then I will send you on your way," Adam said, "One more thing: If you find yourself needing assistance from those you're familiar with, find the "Curator of Souls"--they will be in the Oval Tower. Make haste, and make caution."
Assistance from those I'm familiar with…? What does that an…? He questioned.
Clasping all six of his hands together, Adam invoked a ripple through space, coalescing around the Dragonheart and the elf on his back before he found himself being transported through a montary void.
Waves of darkness brushed against his body like passing riptides, filling him with a sensation of weightlessness briefly before he blinked a single ti–
"Huh?"
It was disorientating, to say the least; in those brief few seconds, he went from standing in the isolated garden to now occupying an unfamiliar territory.
There was a pitch-black sky, or rather the absence of a sky that resulted in a void; a stone bridge existed before him, spanning so far he couldn't see th either end of it. It was suspended by ropes that stretched up into the void, indiscernible where exactly it was anchored.
"This is where we need to go, huh?" He muttered.
I can vaguely sense it from the knowledge that fruit gave –"Quandary Pass" is far past this bridge, he thought.
Before beginning to cross the ominous bridge, he repeated his earlier routine that proved successful: pinching Blimpo's nose to prevent airflow, snapping him awake in a hurry.
"Gah–! Damn, that's a helluva way to wake up…!" Blimpo said, jumping to his feet.
"Sorry, but it's the fastest way to get you up," he assured with a small smile.
There was no path back from the bridge they stood before; they were left atop a hill of silver grass with a sealed gate behind them. Nonetheless, there was no rit in going back anyway as Emilio knew this was the proper path.
Beginning to cross the lengthy bridge, each step they took resonated against the old stone, filling the vast territory with echoes of each step.
"Falling would certainly be terrible!" Blimpo remarked, peering down from the railings of the archaic bridge.
Below the suspended, stone bridge was only a void of darkness; no perceivable depth could be found and only quiet, but dreadful whispers echoed from its depths.
"Is your brain missing its common sense or sothing?" Emilio sighed, pulling the elven man away from the railings.
"Common sense mitigates creativity," Blimpo smiled.
"...There is too much to unpack with that statent," he replied, moving forward once again.
Finding out what awaited a fall from the colossal bridge is sothing that his innate curiosity did not lend itself to; he didn't need to be told what awaited a tumble downwards would be a descent into Hell, or perhaps worse.
The air was cold and thin, though not enough to make it a debilitating journey; subtle breezes passed by, causing the likely centuries, if not millenia, old bridge to shake sowhat.
"Just how long is this breeze?" He questioned.
"I was about to ask the sa thing–amazing, isn't it? Sobody had to build this," Blimpo remarked, happily marching on.
He exhaled, "'Amazing' wasn't what I was going for."
So ti had passed, yet he still found himself walking along the bridge with the other side not yet in sight, veiled by the shadows that naturally cascaded down. Silver torches were spread out along the path, providing an eerie light to it all.
As he led the way, moving with caution unlike the ever-curious elf, sothing caught his attention–it was subtle, but he was sure of it; the shadows that lingered along the edges of the bridge seed to contort.
"Blimpo, get back," he quietly said, issuing a warning to the tinkerer.
The elf looked confused for a second, but caught on, "Oh? I see."
It was hard to tell exactly what he was looking at, but the shadows themselves seed to co to life, breaking off into vaguely humanoid shapes. There were two of them; tall, lanky, and swaying as if just learning to walk.
"...What are these things?" He asked.
Blimpo adjusted his goggles, "I've heard about 'em from others here–"End Wanderers". That's what happens if you manage to die here in the After…You beco one of those, eternally wandering as a malevolent husk."
It wasn't much of a relief to find out they were humans, or at least forr mortals, but the young man already knew what he had to do, raising his chanical arm and pointing his palm towards one of the approaching End Wanderers.
"...Hhyuh…" The approaching shadow humanoid let out quiet noises.
More than malevolent, it seed simply engulfed in despair; a being completely swallowed in nothingness, acting more out of a primal instinct than sheer evil.
"Sorry, but I'm going to put you to rest now."
At the very least, it was an opportunity to test out the functionality of his new limb, finding it much easier to control his mana through it as the natural, blue glow from the engravings turned into a crimson shine. The shift in light ca from the elent he invoked, blasting a stream of condensed flas through the center of the wandering husk just as it raised its arm to attack him.
"Hot, hot," Blimpo raised his arms, feeling the height even from the back.
The beam of crimson fire pierced straight through the husk, dispersing its shadow-built form as it withered away soon after. It worked even better than envisioned, surprising the Dragonheart as he watched steam sway in front of his tal-forged hand.
I can control it much easier this way; even fire can be reeled in now. With that in mind…He thought.
Emilio's focus shifted to the other End Wanderer, who moved in an unorthodox way, not directly approaching him. It clung to the outskirts of the bridge, seeping into the shadows themselves as its eyes of erratic shadows watched him.
This ti, he prepared to prioritize the usage of fire magic in a much more condensed form, seeking to test the limits of his new control with his magic-focused right arm. As the End Wanderer slowly approached from its roundabout path, he held his arm at his side, condensing down the fiery mana that breathed out from his limb.
"Don't accidentally bring the bridge down, alright? That would be pretty bad!" Blimpo called out with a laugh.
He sighed out, "Of course I won't."
As he raised his hand again, pointing a finger towards the whimpering husk, the condensed flas manifested in a burst of flaming projectiles, moving rapidly like bullets as they shot towards the End Wanderer.
"--!"
An unexpected burst of speed ca from the once slow husk as it suddenly weaved past the fla bullets, rushing towards the Dragonheart as its rapid steps left no noise.
It's completely unorthodox! He realized.
As it got within close-quarters range, the instinctual response from himself was to draw his sword from its sheath, swinging it, though he found himself unleashing a slow, hardly-effective slash.
"Tch–!" He clicked his tongue.
The End Wanderer was elusive, able to contort its supernatural body as its torso caved in to avoid the edge of the sword.
After a failed swing, he stumbled forward, feeling foreign to swordsmanship itself despite knowing how much he had beco one-and-one with it amidst his journey. It was a frustrating setback, even if he had already suspected it to be the case.
It really is gone…My experience with swordplay…I have to start from zero again, huh? He thought, Fine by .
"You alright, 'Milio!?" Blimpo called out.
Rushing to his aid, the elven man pulled out a small, single-barreled rune cannon that shot out a pellet empowered by fire magic, though the End Wanderer simply parted the shadows of its torso to evade the bullet.
He nodded, "I've got this. Just stick back and make sure nothing cos at from behind."
"Eh? Alright then," Blimpo agreed.
It was a test for himself; he wanted to see firsthand just how far his proficiency with the sword had fallen since forsaking his original arm to the Progenitor. This ti, he took the initiative, dashing in as he swiftly closed in on the elusive, dark husk, attempting to execute a spinning slash from mory before–
"Gah!"
–He nearly tripped over completely as if his body was unaware of how to perform such a move, leading him right into the path of the End Wanderer as it morphed one of its arms into an extending spear.
At the last second, he managed to spin to the side, avoiding being pierced by the shadow's stretched-out limb.
It's not just my arm…It's like none of my body rembers the techniques I've learned! He realized.
It was infuriating, as though all of the ti and effort he had spent had simply vanished from himself, though it was the very deal he agreed to. Reality was reality; that much he couldn't deny, all he could do now was accept it.
…I'll start from square one, then. By the ti I escape the After, I'll be back to being able to use this sword properly, he resolved.
As he crouched down, gripping the handle of his blade, he infused his body with a burst of magical reinforcent and [Draconic Might]--resulting in a brief "supercharge". A spring of his legs allowed him to burst forward, passing through the shadow figure's arm whips.
There was no possible way to miss now as he was face-to-face with the lingering shadow, dragging his steel through it.
"Hyah!"
–Nothing.
The blade simply sunk through the body of darkness, touching nothing and only slipping through it without any feasible damage.
Shit…Of course a simple physical attack wouldn't work! He realized.
Before it could retaliate, he flipped back, at the sa ti summoning a burst of flas around the length of his blade.
One more, he thought.
The bulk of his reinforcent was focused on his legs, allowing him to dash like a bullet, causing a small rumble to echo throughout the old bridge before he appeared in front of the End Wanderer with his flaming sword.
With a flick of his blade, he swept through the figure's shadowy body, bisecting it and dispersing it with the potency of his flas.
[Level Up!]
[Level Thirty-One Achieved]
It was the first ti in a while he had received a level-up notification, though it was a relief as he was reminded of the strengths he still maintained, feeling the new level implent itself through a small increase of strength and mana.
"Woah! You took care of that handily," Blimpo said, walking back over.
He slid his blade back into the sheath before looking at his tallic arm again then looking up, "They weren't exactly dangerous, but I guess…just kind of unsettling. Those were people–I an, what happens to them now?"
"Doesn't matter now does it? What's done is done, I'd say," Blimpo told him, "Sounds cruel when I say it like that, doesn't it?"
"Yeah, it kind of does," he replied.
"I just an…Well, we can't undo it, so why waste energy lingering on it? They might have been unfortunate souls, but I doubt you did them anything but a favor taking them out like that. You heard those cries, didn't you?" Blimpo asked, "Didn't sound like a pleasant existence to ."
It was sothing that engraved itself into his mory; those unsettling cries and groans of the End Wanderers; they truly didn't sound like malicious creatures, but instead perpetually suffering. With that in mind, it lightened the burden of so sharply putting them down.
"Guess you're right. I'm just not feeling my best lately, huh?" He remarked, rubbing his own head as he began walking the length of the archaic bridge again.
"The After does that to you. Take it from : the best thing you can do is always walk forward, keep flapping your lips, and act like all the darkness around you doesn't exist," Blimpo advised with a smile that now seed as a façade, "--Otherwise, this place'll eat you right up. Then you'll end up like those you just cut down."
Without a word, he continued on down the dark-gray bridge with his elven companion at his side.
He's right in a way. It doesn't matter who or what gets in my way–what's down here is already dead. If they're going to stand in the way of my life, I'll cut them down, he resolved.
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