Valanddun Part 4

Lakyus hesitated for a moment, unsure of how to proceed, but Silas stepped forward and took charge.

"We couldn't carry everything with us, so I used a special ability to store everything in a safe place," he said calmly.

Thalias expression softened slightly, but she still looked skeptical. "And where is this safe place?" she asked.

"It's in a secret location that only I know," Silas replied smoothly. "Don't worry, everything is secure and we can retrieve it at any time."

Zephyr looked at Silas with a mixture of frustration and suspicion. "What kind of ability did you use?" he asked.

"It's a new ability I awakened recently," Silas replied vaguely. "I'll explain more later, but right now we need to focus on finding the final chamber."

Zephyr narrowed his eyes at Silas, still not satisfied with his answer. "I don't like secrets, Silas," he said sternly. "Especially when it involves our mission."

"I understand that, Zephyr," Silas replied calmly. "But sometimes there are things that need to be kept secret for everyone's safety."

"Like what?" Zephyr demanded.

Lakyus stepped forward, placing a hand on Zephyr's shoulder. "Let's focus on our mission for now," she said firmly. "We can discuss this further once we're out of the dungeon."

Zephyr glared at Silas for a moment longer before reluctantly nodding in agreement. The group continued on their journey, with tension still lingering in the air.

As they made their way through the dungeon, the tension between the Inheritors remained palpable. Thalia and Zephyr were still clearly upset with Silas and Lakyus, and the trust that had once existed among the group had been severely damaged.

Silas knew that he had made a mistake in not being more transparent with them, but he also knew that he had to protect his identity and the existence of Celeste at all costs.

The final chamber was unlike any they had seen before. It was a vast, open space filled with ancient carvings and strange artifacts. In the center of the room was a pedestal, and on top of the pedestal was a sword.

Thalia walked up to the pedestal and examined the sword closely. "This must be what we've been looking for," she said.

Zephyr nodded in agreement. "But how do we retrieve it?" he asked.

Silas stepped forward, a determined look on his face. "I'll retrieve it," he said. "Just give me a moment."

Silas closed his eyes and focused all of his energy on the sword, like Celeste taught him.

He could feel the power emanating from it, and he knew that it would be dangerous to touch it directly. But he also knew that he had the ability to retrieve it safely.

He extended his hand and opened his palm, and a portal similar to the one he had used before appeared.

He walked towards the sword, and as he approached it, the sword began to levitate towards the portal in his hand.

Once the sword was safely stored away, the portal disappeared, leaving no trace of its existence.

Thalia and Zephyr looked at Silas in awe, clearly dumbfounded by his ability. Silas smiled faintly, knowing that he still had a lot of work to do to regain their trust.

As they made their way out of the dungeon, everyone remained silent, lost in their own thoughts, tension in the air.

"Before we split the treasure, there's something that we need to discuss," Silas said, his tone serious.

Thalia and Zephyr looked at him expectantly, wondering what he was going to say.

"I know that we all worked together to obtain this treasure," Silas continued. "But there's something that you need to understand. I believe Lakyus has the most right to claim it, in exchange for the many times she saved us."

Thalia and Zephyr looked at each other, clearly taken aback by Silas's words.

"Are you serious?" Thalia asked, her voice rising in anger. "After everything we went through to obtain this treasure, you're just going to hand it over to her?"

"I understand that it may be difficult to accept," Silas said calmly. "But it's the right thing to do. She was instrumental in our success, and we owe her our lives."

Zephyr looked at Silas, his expression darkening. "And what about us?" he demanded. "We risked our lives to obtain this treasure, Burt and Rolf died, and now you want to give it away!?"

"I'm not suggesting that we give it away." Silas said quickly.

Thalia and Zephyr looked at each other, both clearly unhappy with Silas's proposal.

As the argument between Thalia, Zephyr, and Silas continued to escalate, Silas suddenly interrupted them by taking out an abundance of gold coins from his palm. The sight of so much wealth was enough to silence the others momentarily.

Silas began to count out the coins and divided them equally between Thalia, Zephyr, and himself. "This is all the wealth I could carry," he said calmly. "I suggest we split it evenly and be on our way."

Zephyr scoffed. "You expect us to believe that this is all the treasure we found in this entire dungeon? Don't insult our intelligence, Silas."

Silas sighed, understanding their skepticism. "I know it may be hard to believe, but it's the truth. The artifacts we found are gone."

Thalia and Zephyr exchanged a hesitant look, clearly still conflicted. But eventually, they begrudgingly accepted Silas's proposal and divided the coins equally between themselves.

The tension between them slowly dissipated. They may have lost some of their trust in each other, but they had succeeded in their mission and obtained enough wealth to last them a lifetime.

'Celeste, am I a bad person?'

Silas closed his eyes and focused his thoughts on Celeste. He could feel her presence in the back of his mind, a comforting presence that he had grown accustomed to.

Celeste's voice echoed in Silas's mind,

<No one is inherently good or bad, Silas. It's our actions that define us. You may have made mistakes in the dungeon, but you have also done good things. It's up to you to decide what kind of person you want to be moving forward>

Silas nodded, taking in Celeste's words. He knew that she was right, but it was difficult for him to let go of the guilt and doubts that lingered within him.

'I'll try to be better," Silas thought.

<That's all anyone can ask of themselves, Silas>

Silas smiled, feeling a sense of comfort from Celeste's words.

'Thank you, Celeste'

<You're welcome, Silas.>'

Silas walked up to Thalia and handed her the sketchbook he had found on Burt, and Rolf's necklace with the charm.

"I trust you can find their families and give them some closure?" Silas said slowly.

Thalia looked at Silas, surprised by his gesture. She took the sketchbook and the necklace from him and examined them closely.

"I...I don't know what to say," she said softly. "Thank you, Silas. This means a lot to me."

Silas nodded, a small smile on his face. "I know how important it is to honor the memory of those we've lost," he said. "I hope that these items can bring some closure to their families."

Thalia looked at Silas for a moment longer before nodding in agreement. "I'll make sure to take care of this," she said. "And thank you, Silas. You may have made some pretty big mistakes, but you're also capable of kindness."

"Thank you, Thalia," he said his voice filled with false sincerity.

As Zephyr approached Silas and Lakyus, he took a deep breath and spoke. "I've decided that it's best if we part ways," he said. "We appreciate your help, but we can't continue working together."

Silas looked at Zephyr with a mixture of surprise, "I understand," he said softly. "I didn't expect to stay together after this dungeon."

Silas looked at Thalia, "You were a valuable member of our team." He said

Thalia nodded, "And thank you for saving me, Silas." She whispered

And with that, Thalia and Zephyr walked away, leaving Silas and Lakyus behind.

As Thalia and Zephyr walked away, Silas watched them go, his face remaining neutral. Lakyus looked at him with concern, sensing that something was bothering him.

Finally, after the other two had disappeared from view, Silas let out a deep sigh and his expression turned serious. "Thank goodness they're gone," he muttered under his breath.

Lakyus raised an eyebrow in surprise, "Silas, I thought you said they were valuable members of our team."

Silas shook his head, "I know I said that, but let's be honest. Zephyr was difficult to work with, always questioning decisions and slowing us down. And Thalia, while she may have been helpful in the end, was a liability. We wouldn't have even been in that mess if it weren't for her carelessness."

Lakyus nodded, "I see your point. But still, we shouldn't speak ill of them now that they're gone. And we did knock them unconscious."

Silas nodded in agreement, "You're right, Lakyus. It's just a relief to finally be away from them both."

...