Darvin stroked Gholt's head gently while Onel held Bryan on his lap, having nothing else to do but wait for the outcome. Except this procedure has taken longer than expected.

"Are they going to be okay?" Gholt lifted his eyes from the floor to Darvin.

"In all honesty, I think all we can do is hope they make it." Darvin put his arm around Gholt's shoulders. 

Bryan looked up at Onel. "Granpy?"

Onel looked down at him. "Yes, Bryan?"

"Why you be mean to daddy and uncie?" Bryan fiddled with his little fingers. 

Onel hesitated by the question, his shoulders slumped and his brows narrowed from the memory of that moment. The moment his heart went cold and cruel as he stabbed his son with his sharp words instead of healing with kindness and love, the kindness and love that he promised to give since Fearian's birth. 

"Well," Onel sighed sadly. "sometimes when you are scared or worried and don't want any trouble you... Become angry and tired. So you push away that trouble and worry without knowing you are angry and tired, so..." Onel trailed off to search for more words to express.

"I didn't mean... To be mean to your daddy and uncie, I just... Wanted to rest from all the trouble we had. But being mean made it all... Worse." Onel sighed again. 

"What does worse mean?" Bryan asked.

"It means bad, very bad," Onel answered.

"So you be mean and bad thing will happen?" Bryan asked again. 

"Yes." Onel nodded. "I learned not to be mean to your dad and uncle ever again, so bad things won't happen and so I wouldn't hurt people's feelings," Onel explained as he drew a gentle smile.

Bryan sat silent for a moment before he took his grandfather's hand and hugged it with a small smile. However, before Onel could respond in any way, the floor beneath them quaked slightly. 

"What was that?" Gholt hugged Darvin immediately. 

"An earthquake, but at this hour?" Onel said.

Another quake happened, and it was slightly stronger than before. And Bryan started to whine.

"Something's not right." Kyvan stood up from his seat. 

"Find the source!" One of the guards ordered and the others complied.

Onel and the others watched as the guards ran through the hallway outside their room, readying their spears and their iron boots thudding against the floor. Then Onel realised something.

"Fearian," Onel whispered his name, then turned his head at Darvin.

"Darvin, hold Bryan." Onel stood up and gave Darvin the child.

"Wait where are you going?" Darvin asked as he complied. 

"Since the procedure has taken long and there is an earthquake then there is definitely something very wrong," Onel stepped back urgently. "Kyvan, I need you to come with me."

"But Onel you're hurt too--"

"I don't give a damn about my pain! I need to go down there and see what's wrong cause my son is in there!"

Kyvan hesitated suddenly, darting his eyes from Onel to Darvin. 

Well, he changed quickly Kyvan thought to himself. 

Onel then walked to the doorway. "Keep the children safe with you until I return." 

"O-Okay, I will." Darvin sat there as he hugged the children tighter. 

Onel began to stride through the hallway along with Kyvan while the remaining guards scattered around in random directions, too busy to notice the two men who got out of the room they were supposed to be safe in. 

"Kyvan, do you know which way is to the deep dungeons?" Onel's eyes wandered around the hallway and his breath has slightly quickened, and his heart began to race.

"I can lead you there," Kyvan spoke without hesitation and with surprise that still hung into him from Onel's sudden change.

After a long, quick stride through turns and doorways, they finally arrived at the stairs. And they carefully but quickly ran down the steps as Kyvan lifted a palm with a small blue moon, levitating to give light through the darkness.

After a few minutes, they have finally arrived at the gates, only for their strides to slow down and come to a halt at a bizarre yet heart panicking sight. 

There stood the giant ancient gate, blocked by multiple thick wooden vines of a tree, slithering and tightening themselves around the door and even crawling through the gaps of the wooden planks. 

What made it more worrying was the fact that the vines were reddish, and loud screams were emitting from the other side of the room.

"Deyar Nytalie..." The words for one of The Father's aid slipped from Kyvan's lips.

"No..." Onel rushed to the vines and tried to yank them away, but they didn't budge to his strength. "H-Hold on!" He cried as he pulled even harder, but the vines slithered faster and tightened even more. 

The gate was now completely covered with a giant pile of tangled wood, wrapped around each other without budging from Onel's desperate pulls.

"No... No no no no!" Onel pulled and pulled as hard as he can. But the vines never moved.

"Stay back Onel," Kyvan called.

Onel turned around with shivering shoulders and raining tears, despair and sorrow were clawing at his heart. Kyvan summoned his Harcrian axe as he approached the gate, and he raised it to gather his energy. 

As soon as Onel stepped back, Kyvan made his swing and chopped one of the vines with a loud grunt. But before he could land another blow, the cut vine regrew from its wound quickly and slithered faster. 

"There's no use, we can't cut them off and they're only getting  stronger," Kyvan said. 

"But we have to do something! A-Anything! They're in trouble!" 

"I know that--"

The pile of wood pounded once like a heartbeat, which caught the two men's attention. Then it pounded again, only to realise that someone was trying to push the gate open from the inside with a loud yell. 

"Ermph!" It was the hunter that yelled. And the gate pounded again, but the vines still didn't break or snap to the heavy push.

"Help! Somebody help us!" It was Shaun who called. 

"What's the point of calling for help if we're in the damn underground?!" The hunter cried. 

"Well somebody will definitely feel the quake caused by that giant beast! So there should be people coming here any moment now!" Shaun screamed back.

"Shaun! Can you hear us!?" Onel called.

"Onel!? Is that you!?" Shaun cried back.

"What's happening there?! Are you okay!?" Kyvan asked.

A roar vibrated throughout the chamber and a heavy smash followed. Onel's heart dropped quickly to the floor as he heard the roar.

"W-W-What was that!?" Onel panicked.

"We've got no time! Can you open the gate from the outside!?" Shaun cried.

"We tried but there's no use! The roots are getting stronger the more we pull!" Kyvan answered.

"Can you chop them off!?" Red cried.

"We tried that too! But they grow back fast and they get stronger!" Kyvan added.

"God damn it! There has to be a way out!" Red yelled.

Before any of the men could speak, a scream emitted from the chamber. And an even bigger hit landed, violently shaking the place and causing some small rocks to fall and dust to fly from the ceiling and walls.

"FEARIAN!" Onel couldn't stand there but rushed to the gate and violently tried to yank them, tears raining heavily than ever.

Then, out of nowhere, as if Onel's heart had been answered, the tight vines began to glow green and the wood faded from crimson to an organic brown.

Kyvan and Onel stared in awe as the vines unfolded themselves and slithered away from the gate. After a moment, footsteps were heard approaching them from behind as the gate was cleared from the roots.

The two men turned around to see who arrived at them, and to their surprise, it was a man, with sandy furless skin and curly dark hair, and a green noble coat and chocolate leather boots.

The man walked towards the gate with his arms held in the air, green auras swirled between his dark gloved fingers.

"I hope we're not late, gentlemen," the man said, determined.