Dark.
Everything was dark.
Ruvian had plunged into a vast hollow beneath the amphitheater; a buried cavern choked with shattered stone and twisted metal, where thin streams of water wound through the wreckage like restless veins.
'Damn it… four minutes left. I need to get back up there.'
Driving his right arm upward, he forced the rubble off his body, stone grinding and sliding away in heavy fragments. Then, rising to his feet, Ruvian lifted his gaze toward the distant opening far above.
He had fallen deeper than he thought.
But then, a maniacal laugh rolled through the darkness… low, jagged, steeped in malice. It echoed off the broken cavern walls, stretching far longer than it should have.
Then the source of it spoke.
"Wow, I'm impressed you're still standing after all that. I was certain I'd crushed you for good with that kick. And yet here you are."
He slightly paused, followed by a faint, mocking chuckle.
