Once Adwin was tied up and sitting in a chair like Maryn and Earl, the three men started whispering to themselves in private. The three tied up to the chair could hear distinct sounds of the Forgelaws' voices, listening to words such as "dungeon" and "lost". Once the Forgelaws were done with their discussion, they removed the gag that would muffle the three's voices and placed a cloth into their mouths, forcing them unconscious. The Forgelaws then placed them into a bag and started carrying them all the way to the dungeon.
The Forgelaws had marks on all interesting locations over every realm in their map, whether it was the dungeon their next destination would be or the location of each town, village, or city. They'd carry a map with them wherever they want, studying the map as they were on a highly-elevated area to scope for things afar. The dungeon was a rather intriguing location for the Forgelaws considering each report of the dungeon only states a person never returned. The Forgelaws assumed treasure or an answer to some mystery lies there guarded by something difficult. Something powerful.
The Forgelaws carried the three all the way to a cave, knowing that it would be the entrance of the dungeon. They took their bags off and forced them inside the cave, glimpsing at a rocky slope that led to an illuminated area. Afterward, the Forgelaws removed the rope that bounded the three's hands and then pushed them down the slope, letting them slide down uncomfortably. The moment they started sliding, the Forgelaws barricaded the cave's entrance with large boulders.
"Have fun in your labyrinth," Axel said with an eerie smile before the boulders completed closed the entrance. "It was nice to see you one last time."
The three continually slid down until eventually, they fell into a pond of water, gazing at what was illuminated the area. They saw gears turning and circuitries that conducted electricity, effectively illuminating the area. The entire area had a golden hue, from the floors to the walls to the ceilings. There were blue-colored symbols of an ancient language they didn't understand that was slowly moving along the walls, roughly translating into some words such as "creation" and "importance".
"So much we don't know," Earl said with a cough as he stared in awe at the ancient technology. "Amazing."
Adwin walked up to a lever in front of what appeared to be a locked door. He pulled the lever, releasing all of his sheer strength until finally having the door open. They all walked in, seeing skeletons of what were children and adults.
"Those must've been the ones who had never returned," Maryn said. "Things must've been unfortunate."
Adwin thought of how the family of the people who died in the dungeon felt. Their families would have been in utter despair, enveloped in sadness as they never realized their last encounters with those they loved.
The three continually moved on, watching the gears on the walls turning at a fast rate. They walked in a triangle formation, with Earl being on the front, Adwin being on the right and Maryn on the left.
Soon, the three walked into a room that was locked in the second they entered. Two coffins were standing across from each other, being unexpectedly opened from sensors. Within the smoke that scattered outward revealed two sharp blade-wielding machines that viciously stared at the three with red laser dot eyes. The lasers targeted at them, making constant beep noises until a large beep turned into a beam that swiftly attacked them.
A small explosion covered the area, knocking the three backward. Earl and Adwin lied down on the ground as Maryn sprinted at one of the two and struck through the upper body with her blade; there was barely a scratch made. The machine grabbed the collar of Maryn's shirt, picked her up, and sent her flying backward, having her head hit a bar.
She stood on her own two feet again, dashed to the machine and rolled underneath its feet, being behind it. She noticed a red-colored part of the machine that appeared to be its weak spot; as she was attempting to slice her blade into the weak spot, she glanced at the other machine once it made beeping noises and flipped backward, seeing the laser beam hit the wall and cause a small blast. She then ran up to the first machine and cut the red weak spot, causing the machine to collapse onto the ground.
The door to the next room unlocked and then opened. Maryn helped Adwin stand as they watched Earl rising up on his own. The three cautiously walked into the next room, only to see a door just up ahead and a puzzle in front of it.
The door appeared to not be able to function like the other doors behind them did. They heard no sounds of gears turning. Inside the room were two heavy metallic boxes that seemed impossible to lift. They were set in different spots, having sparks around them emitting electrical charges.
The three studied the room for a couple of seconds until Adwin reached to a solution. "Our blades are metallic, therefore allowing electricity to flow through them to power the door." The three dropped their blades in different locations, allowing electricity to move from the metallic boxes to the door.
Then, gears were turning with large noises and the door functioned properly, being able to open and lead to the next room.
The next room had a large machine that looked identical to the two in one of the previous rooms. The only exception was it being much grander in size, and wielding two large blades. The machine's eyes glared at the three, aiming its large laser eyes at them. The laser beams blitzed at the ground as the three jumped out the way, noticing the blast was larger than the others they dealt with.
The machine used its two large, unorthodox blades and attempted to slice through the three. Earl pulled out a bow and dashed to the back side of the machine, noticing a very small red area at the back of its head. He attempted to shoot an arrow at it, but the machine reacted speedily.
"There's a red glowing area at the back of its head!" Earl yelled as loud and fast as possible.
The machine attempted to use its large blades again and missed Adwin and Maryn as they dodged. The blades hit the ground, with large cracks opening. The two ran up the large blades as Adwin glanced at the laser eyes aiming at him. He sprinted as fast as he could, running up the blade and reaching the top of its head. He jumped down and precisely threw his blade at the red glowing spot at the back of its head, landing on the ground.
The machine collapsed onto the ground, seemingly shaking it. Cracks on the ground were around the machine as its laser eyes disappeared.
Adwin walked over to it and picked his blade up, following the two to the next room.
The next room had fifteen sword pedestals, fourteen of which were empty. The one that had a blade in it shined brightly, having a beacon of light above it. The hilt of the sword was golden and the blade which was barely seen was very shiny, being able to reflect the faces of the three.
A smooth voice then spoke. "This blade, one of the legendary fifteen, is a belonging to someone that has a huge power. The one that is able to remove the power of others," the voice started. "Its name is the Light Greatsword. Its power is seemingly endless, with an endless amount of energy flowing in it that grants the user immense strength."
A quick pause was taken until the smooth voice spoke once more. "Take it."
As Adwin laid his hand on the handle of the blade, he asked the rough voice, "Who are you?"
The voice answered. "I am, well, the dungeon itself. People simply refer to me as, 'the dungeon'. But, I do have a name. It is the Ancient Sanctum. I have been keeping watch of the fifteen blades for centuries, waiting for each generation of the fifteen Wielders fulfill their task and later have the blades waiting here again for the next generation. There can only be fifteen in the world of Opeo at a time."
Adwin pulled the blade with all his might. He felt a strong amount of energy inside of him and continued pulling as much as possible. The blade slowly moved upward and after a moment, it was in Adwin's right hand.
The shiny blade reflected Adwin's face and body as the golden handle gleamed light. The sword felt a little light, but it felt powerful to hold. Adwin sliced through the nothingness of the air as a test, feeling each strike be the power of the world. He then placed the blade in his scabbard on his back, dropping the previous blade he had.
Two rapiers formed on the ground in front of Earl and Maryn. "You two haven't arrived for nothing," the voice spoke. They both picked up the rapiers, noticing how light yet immensely strengthening it felt, and sheathed it into their scabbards.
"Adwin, Maryn," the voice spoke, "you two are ready. You will be gifted another Opeo Ability, which can recharge instantaneously."
"Another Opeo Ability," Maryn whispered to herself. "Wow."
Adwin glimpsed at Maryn and talked to her. "I recall Alan telling me you were able to sense what my Opeo Ability was. Is that what yours is?"
"Yes," she responded.
Adwin wore a confused expression on his face. "Do you know what Draven Whitmore's Opeo Ability is?"
Maryn took a moment to think and finally answered. "It's likely I need more practice--however, I do take thoughts of how barbaric it was for guards to follow him in his assassination against the king. The king was a nice person, so it's unreasonable for them to plot such a thing against him. So, perhaps, mind control?"
Adwin observed the floor for a moment and thought of how that sounded. Mind control was one of the only logical things of why others would follow Draven Whitmore into killing the late, kind king.
The voice started once again. "Maryn's sensing ability has grown at its strongest point after going through this test of strength. That, and your removal of other's abilities, Adwin."
The voice took a pause and spoke. "Adwin, your second ability will be summoning a forcefield around you and those you wish to protect. Maryn, your second ability will be bending the will of the ground beneath you to do your bidding."
"What exactly does that mean?" Maryn asked.
"Through your hand, you may bring up an earthquake if you have the amount of energy to do so. That is an example. Another one may be to summon a pillar in front of you to deflect, say, arrows from a bow. Maybe you may even summon ground from underneath a foe and bound their feet. Whatever you may wish to do," the voice answered.
"Sounds great," Maryn said in excitement.
Once the three were ready to leave, the voice spoke once more. "Bring peace to the world of Opeo."
The three nodded and approached the entrance of the dungeon, leaving the location and returning to the outside of Opeozure.