MTLNOVEL Chapter 284: Finding The Pattern
They'd been flying down the corridors for the past five minutes, and four of those minutes had been accompanied by the familiar groaning sound of stone against stone.
Unfortunately, this wasn't the corridors getting sealed off, but the sound of the ceiling slowly grinding closer and closer to the floor.
"How long do we have?" Thorn asked, eyeing the ceiling as he laid on his back on the platform.
He quite liked being chauffeured around on a flying platform that wasn't his cape. His cape used up his stored blood.
That was one thing he envied Ren and Lilith for. Their power source was rather infinite. Lilith produced enough for both of them. But he and Elias had to get blood from what they killed.
He also knew Ren was getting closer to Rank 5 of his Soulbinding while he was only halfway to Rank 4 in Bloodbinding.
"More than a day, less than a week." Ren answered. "Maybe three days before the ceiling is so close to the floor that we can't stand straight."
"Fuck." Thorn swore. "How are we supposed to get out of here in three days when we don't even have any idea if the maze will hide the trail again?"
Ren said nothing. That was the same question that was on his mind.
That was when the sound of the grinding ceiling stopped. That was how the ceiling was working. It'll descend, take a break for a few more minutes and descend more.
"Left." Zuzu pointed and Lilith guided the platform to the left corridor.
The platform drifted into a new courtyard, and they barely had time to take in their surroundings before the four stone doorways around the smaller courtyard ground shut with a loud groan. The grinding echoed through the space like a judge slamming a gavel.
"Another trap." Elias muttered, stepping forward with his sword already drawn. There was a soft woosh as he activated the bloodbinding in his sword, fire spreading over the blade.
"Of course it is." Thorn sighed. "What a diligent worker. The Deep's really putting in overtime."
Zuzu, who had been kneeling at the edge of the platform in order to dip her fingers into the water, moved to the middle. There was always something to fight in a corridor but this one was… quiet.
Her brow furrowed as she stared at the water. "Wait a minute. I don't think this is water. Not fully. It's... thick."
"Thick?" Thorn frowned. "Can water be thick?"
As if in answer, the water began to churn.
"Here we go." Ren muttered. He stepped to the front of the platform, eyes narrowing as ripples swirled beneath them.
The liquid surged upward, forming a wave that split into sharp tendrils like spears made of solid water. Without waiting, Ren stomped his foot, triggering a blast of Push resonance.
The force rippled outward in an arc, shattering the first wave of liquid spears midair.
"Back up! Everyone behind me!" Ren shouted.
Lilith adjusted the platform, pulling the others back. Ren stood at the edge, arms raised, ready to deflect.
Arrows of water launched again, faster now. Ren's Push swept out in rhythmic bursts, the blasts of air deflecting, dispersing, and holding the attacks at bay.
From the pool, shapes began to rise. Not just the water spears, but monsters. Humanoid and winged, they'd been built entirely from the liquid around them. They shrieked as they took flight.
"Targets in the air!" Elias shouted, swinging his sword upward. The flames struck one of the creatures, but the thing reformed from steam a moment later, only partially slowed.
"Too cool! Needs more heat!" Elias growled.
Zuzu summoned slicing rings of compressed water, flinging them like spinning blades. They sliced through the nearest water creature, which burst in a spray before reforming again.
"Nothing's staying down!" Thorn shouted, slashing at one of the creatures with his curved sword. It split apart but reformed almost instantly.
"Lilith! Trap the main body!" Ren shouted. "All this water is part of one creature! We have to contain it!"
Lilith's eyes narrowed as she knelt at the rear of the platform, summoning more soul energy from within her.
Light flared around her hands, then shot out in thin strands that twisted around the courtyard. A box began to form. It expanded, forming on the floor of the courtyard, lifting the entire pool of sentient water.
Then, like a 3d video, the edges erupted to form a box, trapping the water inside. Whips of energy surged from the box, grabbing the flying creatures and yanking them into the box to join the main body.
"Elias, how hot can you make that sword?" Ren asked.
Elias glanced down at his blade. "Give me ten minutes. It'll be so hot it'll glow white by then."
The flame on the sword flared bright as Elias knelt, focusing. The blade vibrated with heat, the flame slowly turning from orange to blue, and eventually, white.
Above them, the soft grinding sound started again.
"That's not good." Zuzu said quietly.
"We're slowly running out of time." Ren muttered. He began pacing on the platform, eyes locked on the sealed cube where the water twisted violently, seeking escape.
His mind spun as he worked through this problem.
This wasn't random. The maze itself wasn't sentient. The Deep wasn't particularly smart. Not like a human would be. Instead, it was like a machine. It built pressure, created traps, and can even reset if needed.
Patterns. There were always patterns. All he needed to do was find it.
His eyes narrowed as he found something.
He turned sharply. "Every time we followed Zuzu's guidance towards the way out to the heart, we ended up in a courtyard. Always."
Zuzu blinked. "Yeah. That's true."
"The courtyards are checkpoints. The Deep made them to stop us, slow us down. If we keep hitting courtyards, then, that means we're going the right way!"
"But I can't sense the trail right now." Zuzu said. "Not when there's no water for me to use with the courtyard sealed."
"You don't need to." Ren said. "When the water flows in after this thing dies, check again. Instead of looking for the trail to the heart, look for a current heading toward another courtyard."
"As long as we keep following the courtyards, we'll get to the way out. If we go on a speedrun, we should be done before time is up. The Deep might try to trick us and block off the courtyards, but the flow of water will betray it."
Zuzu nodded slowly. "I can do that."
"Ready!" Elias called out.
His sword burned like a star, the air around him wavering from the heat.
Ren gestured toward the cube. "Burn it. Now."
Elias strode forward and drove the sword straight through the box, with Lilith making it light enough for his sword to punch through.
The reaction was instant.
The water screeched like a living thing, steam pouring out in waves as the sword's heat tore through it.
The liquid writhed, bubbled, then evaporated into mist. The sound was deafening, like a banshee's last scream.
In seconds, it was gone.
The cube dissolved, and silence followed.
Then, with a groan, the courtyard doors slid open. A rush of new water flowed in, filling the courtyard until it was knee high.
"Snakes?" Thorn asked, glancing around from where he sat on the platform, sword raised.
"None yet." Zuzu said, already kneeling. She pressed her fingers into the water and closed her eyes.
Everyone stood still, weapons ready.
She finally opened her eyes. "There. That door. The water bends slightly when it flows that way. The next courtyard's past it. I'm sure."
"Good." Ren nodded with a grin. "Let's do this."