"You can't hear anything from out here," Nayra said, turning away from the gateway with a worried expression.
"It's been twenty minutes and it still hasn't opened," she continued, her voice strained.
"We can only hope," Aaron concluded, looking first at the doorway and then at Vanessa, who had fortunately recovered and was now resting.
"We can always kill time by talking," Leo proposed, trying to lighten the mood.
"Yes, why not," Aaron replied with a nod.
"Nayra, would you like to?" continued Aaron.
"All right," replied Nayra, although her tone betrayed a certain reluctance.
"Aaron, how come you joined the academy?" asked Nayra, curious.
Aaron thought about it for a few seconds before answering, his eyes lost in thought.
"I come from a very complex family. My mother, my father, my three brothers are all protectors. In a way, I was led down this path. From an early age I studied, I trained, I suffered everything to get into this academy. My father was always very hard on me because, according to him, I was not as special as my other brothers and so I had to work harder. My mother was always on a mission with my brothers and was never there for me. Then, when I was 8 years old, I unlocked my Oneness and finally saw my father's eyes light up. The training intensified, the days got heavier and heavier, and five months ago, I ran away, took the exam and am here, with you."
"Boy, that must have been tough," said Nayra, with a tone of sincere compassion.
"Yeah, well, I'm better now. I finally realized that my dream was to be a protector, in the end it's something I love," Aaron concluded with a smile.
"You, Leo? How come you're here?" asked Nayra, looking at him curiously.
Leo smiled, looking upward as if reliving memories.
"I was taken to an orphanage because my parents could not even pay for food. There I lived many years of pure joy. But when they found out that I was born with a uniqueness, I was sold to the highest bidder and, like you, Aaron, I was trained hard. The gentleman who bought me was a man of war, a commander he told me, he taught me how to fight hand-to-hand, how to use magic and how to use my uniqueness as much as possible. He was a sweet man, he had become like a father, but he was old and after three years he left me. He left a will that said he would share his possessions with me as well, but his children took everything and left me on the street penniless. It was there that I heard about the academy. Fortunately there was only a short time left to register for the exam, then you know the rest of the story."
"Geez, guys," said Nayra, shaking her head.
"Now it's your turn," Leo continued, encouraging.
"Ah, that's it, I..." hesitated Nayra.
"Come on! After this adventure we became best friends, you can confide in each other," Aaron said in a loving tone.
A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.
"All right," replied Nayra, in a reluctant tone. "When I was five years old, I lived in a small town that was attacked by the creatures. Because it was far from the cities, no protector came to save us. That day I lost all my family and friends. This..." he raised his uniform slightly to show his right side.
"This is the memory given to me by the creatures." Nayra had a scar that went from side to side of her hip.
"I lived ten years or so in the forests, hunting and eating creatures, the small ones. Over time I became good and strong. One day a man saw me and took me to the city. I took the exam and well, here I am."
"Gosh, it's not a competition but, if it was, you would have won," Aaron said with a laugh.
"All of our pasts are very difficult, we all lost someone, but now we are a family and we will fight for each other," Leo concluded with determination.
At Leo's exact words, the black door slowly opened. A figure lying in the center of the room could be glimpsed.
"Mark!" the three shouted as they ran through the doors.
"What is this racket? I'm trying to rest!" said Mark crinkling his eyes.
"Mark!"
"Mark!"
"Mark!" said the three shaking him vigorously.
"Ah... huh? What are you guys doing here!" said Mark pulling himself up out of the air.
"Are you okay?" asked Leo worriedly.
"Yes, yes, I'm fine."
An earthquake shook the structure, a new door was opening but the old one was closing.
"Vanessa is still out there!" said Nayra.
No one had time to move that Mark, with a single step, appeared in front of Vanessa, took her in his arms and, again in a single second, reappeared where he stood before.
"What the heck?" was about to ask Aaron.
Leo and Nayra looked at him wide-eyed.
"There's no time now, I'll explain everything later. We have to get out of here now," Mark said, tying Vanessa to Nayra's back as he had done before.
"The dragon is still alive, Mark," Leo said.
"It might only be a problem if it finds us," Mark concluded, before opening the newly created doors.
The four rushed through the doors, ready to face whatever awaited them on the other side, united and determined to protect each other.
-Break-
"We're almost there," said the dean, glimpsing the end of that deep hole.
Once we landed.
"As far as we've come down, I think we're on the 15th floor," said Professor Belinda.
"These..." said Professor Brak, leaning toward the rocks.
"What's going on?" asked the dean.
"These are the students' bracelets," he said, taking them in his hand.
"Now it explains why they couldn't make it back," concluded Professor Draker.
The professors began mapping the whole floor, and after more than an hour they regrouped in the protected area where Mark and Vanessa had stopped.
"The boss area has not been approached by any of the boys," Professor Draker said.
"I saw hundreds of red-tipped Orcs that were killed in some fight, I didn't quite understand. Some were burned, some were killed by precise cuts, and some were -- had been crushed," said Professor Belinda.
"By a dragon?" asked Professor Yla.
"Yes," replied Belinda.
"That would explain the scratches and burns I saw in the different tunnels," she continued.
"Dragons are creatures born to hunt, they will chase those boys until the end of time," Professor Marn interrupted.
"We definitely need to help them," the dean continued.
"Something doesn't add up. I checked all the areas and found no trace of the students or the dragon. Also, the boss has not even been approached," Professor Marn continued.
"There are secret passages in the dungeon that can sometimes lead to a new floor, even if you ignore the bosses completely," Professor Belinda said.
"You are the most experienced in fighting in a dungeon, what do you think?" asked the dean.
"I think the boys were clever and found a shortcut. We need to reach them on the 14th floor, as soon as possible!" concluded Belinda.
"Well, let's go to the boss," concluded the dean.
The professors quickly headed to the boss's room.
The room was a dark, damp cave. At the far end was a throne, on top of which sat a D-rank Red Armored Orc, nothing the professors, almost all of whom were at the Champion rank, could not defeat. In fact, it took them exactly eight seconds and a single spell to end the life of that poor being.
They opened the doors and entered the 14th floor.