The way down to level seven was different from the way up to the higher levels. The architecture changed, becoming less structured and more natural, as if the dungeon itself were a living thing that grew instead of being built.

The walls glowed with a faint bioluminescence that made everything look sickly green. And the air was thick with moisture, which made it difficult to breathe.

Elias led his group, and his corrupted party members drove the captured adventurers like cattle. Marina walked along in chains, and every step made her body scream in protest.

Denna had trouble keeping her balance behind her because weeks of being locked up had taken away her legendary strength. Ryn was barely awake because the magical suppression had worn her out so much that she was about to pass out.

And then Kael came along. The ranger hadn't said anything since they started moving.

It looked like weeks of torture had broken his usual defiant spirit. Elias's people had stopped paying attention to him because they thought he was as defeated as the others. That was their first mistake.

Kael's eyes were bloodshot and had bruises around them, but they were alert and calculating. He had been counting steps, remembering the layout, and waiting for a chance.

His hands were tied, but his legs weren't. More importantly, his mind was still sharp, even after everything Elias had done to him.

They came to a narrow passage where they had to walk in a line, with the captured adventurers in the middle and Elias's party on either side. Kael understood that this was it. The only chance he had to do something so that Greg can come much faster.

Kael suddenly threw himself back as the group entered the passage, slamming his full weight into the scarred-faced woman who had been leading them. She was surprised and stumbled, and in that moment of confusion, Kael kicked out with both legs.

He stepped on a support beam, which was one of the old stone pillars that held up this part of the dungeon. Greg's tools had taught him how to find weak spots in buildings and how to fix or maintain things. Now he used that information in the opposite way.

The pillar broke.

The scarred woman yelled, "What the fuck?!" but it was too late. The ceiling started to creak, and small pieces of stone fell like deadly rain.

"Run!" Kael yelled at the other prisoners. "Get back!"

As the ceiling fell down, tons of old stone crashed down and blocked the way completely. Marina and the others scrambled backward.

The noise was so loud that it sounded like thunder echoing through the level. After the dust settled, Elias's group was split. The captured adventurers and two of his party members were on one side of the collapse, and Elias and the rest were on the other.

"You're a fucking stupid bastard!" The woman with scars grabbed Kael by the throat and threw him against the wall. "You just signed your death warrant!"

Kael gasped. "Heh... it's fucking worth it," and blood dripped from his mouth. "Even if it slows you down a little."

Elias's voice rang out from the other side of the collapse, but the stone between them made it sound strange. "Kill the prisoners if they try anything! I'll take care of the ranger myself after we get this done!"

But it would take time to clear the collapse, and that was time that Greg's group could use to catch up. Kael knew this expedition would probably only go one way for him, but he was willing to give up his life if it meant his friends had even a small chance of being saved.

The woman with the scars held on tighter. "You're going to pay for this."

"Already have," Kael said, and he managed to smile even though he was in pain. "For weeks. I'll give your boss credit for being creative, but he did make one mistake."

"What is that?"

"He never hurt my spirit, and that means I can still fight back."

Kael used all of his strength to slam his head forward in a brutal headbutt. Her nose crunched, and she let him go without thinking.

Kael didn't waste any time but ran as fast as possible. His hands were tied, which made it hard to keep his balance, but his determination kept him going.

"After him!" the woman with scars yelled, blood running down her face.

...

Level six was like hell on Earth. As soon as they stepped down the stairs, they were hit by a wave of monsters that were nothing like the ones on the upper levels.

Demons with skin like molten rock, things that broke the rules of nature, and things that moved because of pure evil. Elias had complete control over the monsters, all of which were focused on killing Greg's group.

"Formation!" Greg yelled, activating and pulling out many tools simultaneously. His pitchfork made a wall of compressed air that pushed back the first wave, giving them a few seconds to get ready.

Seraphine's hands moved in strange ways. "Ice Magic: Fortress of Ice!" The ground shook, and walls of solid ice rose up, forming a protective box around the group. The monsters hit it hard, but their claws and teeth couldn't get through the magically strengthened ice.

"That won't last forever," Seraphine said, already out of breath from the work. "There are too many of them."

Greg said, "Then we don't stay in one place." "Bork, hammer. Make a way for us."

"Felix, protect our sides. Mira, could you please identify the quickest route to the next level?

"We're getting through them without fighting!"

Bork smiled even though things were awful. "Now you're talking, Boss!" He puts on his headset and then lifts his modified sledgehammer to bring it down with a loud bang. The shockwave was so strong that it sent monsters flying, making a temporary hole in their ranks.

"To the door! Now!" Greg asked them to go, and they ran through the door.

What came next was a planned mess. Greg used every tool he had, switching between them so quickly that his hands blurred. He used a rake to create walls, a hoe to break up the ground and trip the monsters chasing him, and a sickle that generated cutting winds to keep enemies at bay.

Felix fought with the strength of someone who knew they couldn't back down. His rake turned into a storm of defensive blows that kept Seraphine safe while she worked her magic. Mira went through solid objects and appeared behind monsters to confuse them, giving the group a few extra seconds.

And Seraphine, who was pushed to her absolute limit, showed why she was the Brotherhood's magical genius. During the fight, her ice magic changed to deal with each new threat.

Platforms emerged beneath their feet when the ground became shaky. Walls went up to direct monster attacks into kill zones. Ice spears pinned without killing, because Greg's philosophy said they would disable but not destroy.

But there were a lot of them. Three more monsters showed up for every one they got past. The controlled horde was never-ending, and getting better at working together as Elias's dark will focused on stopping them.

"We're not going to make it this way!" Felix yelled, just barely getting away from a demon's claws.

Greg's hand went to his belt, where he had made a weapon. He told himself, "No... Not yet."

"I need to use it as a real last resort..." He had to struggle with all his strength to avoid drawing it, as he recognized how hard his family was working and how much they were being pushed.

He yelled, "Mira! The stairs! Where are they?!"

"Two hundred meters ahead!" Mira's voice came back. "But there's a giant structure in the way!"

"It's so big, Master-forger-darling!"

"Then we go through it!" Greg made up his decision. "Seraphine! Use everything and release one big attack to clear the way!"

"I'll try using every ounce of mana I have...!"

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