Once Rion rested both himself and Ezra on the path Maria came darting towards them.
"I THOUGHT YOU GUYS WERE DEAD!" Maria whined between sobs as she embraced both Rion and Ezra.
"Sorry about that," Rion said.
"Yeah, that was on me," Ezra added.
She pulled away from them and wiped her tears. "You think the Riamo is dead?"
"Should be," Ezra said as he tucked his hammer onto his belt. "But let's get outta here before I'm proven wrong."
Rion nodded. "Agreed."
With that the three walked the rest of the narrow path until they were out from the chamber. Following this they continued on, going from cavern to cavern, following the markings until they found a nice spot to rest. It was well-lit, and there was a small pool of water at the back. There, they ate dinner and decided to sleep for the "night." They weren't sure if it was actually night, but after their long fight with the Riamo, they had never felt more tired.
When they woke up, they continued on their journey until they came upon a long cave. They saw more corpses strewn along the way, animals and monsters alike. It seemed the Riamo had truly cleared out the entire place, and all the creatures that hadn't been eaten were still hiding.
"Is this behavior normal for a Riamo?" Rion asked.
Ezra shook his head. "Nah. I don't know all that much about them, but it can't be."
Maria nodded. "I agree. That thing seemed... I dunno, crazed from the start. Like someone was playing a nasty tune for it to follow."
The trio shivered. The Riamo had been bad enough, but the thought that someone could've orchestrated it all was even more unnerving.
Ezra cleared his throat. "Well, we can't be worrying about things beyond our control. Chin up—we're almost at the exit." He smiled and pointed ahead.
Rion and Maria looked forward, and massive smiles spread across their faces. There, off in the distance, was a piercing white glow.
They began to run, laughing, cheering, nearly crying. The light grew closer and closer until they burst out into it...
Rion's breath caught. Maybe it was because he'd been stuck in the cave for the past three days. Maybe it was because he'd nearly died the day before and now appreciated sights like this that much more. Either way, he was awestruck as the vast valley spread out before them.
An expanse of dark green, brown, yellow, and red leaves stretched out before them in a glorious blend of color. Stone structures rose among the trees, edged and piercing up from the earth. At the bottom of the valley, Rion could see a settlement—Ezra's home, Hearan. It was a surprisingly large village, the structures built from stone and wood. Even from here, it looked homey despite the clear damage dealt by the magma Wyrm. Rion could even make out the entrance to the mines, the place where they'd face the creature. A pang of excitement spread through his chest.
Ezra exhaled, and Maria pulled her gaze away from the view to give him a pat on the back.
"You ready?"
Ezra turned to her and gave a weak smile.
"Yeah. Let's do this."
Rion smiled, then swooped Maria up like a princess.
"W-what are you doing!?" she shrieked.
"We gotta get there as quick as possible, right, Ezra? Can't keep your villiage waiting."
Ezra gave him a knowing grin.
"You're right, I'm already late enough."
He channeled force into his legs.
"Let's make it a race. Maria, countdown!" Rion said.
Marias eyes widened. "Huh!?"
With that, they leaped into action, hurtling down the valley, Maria's screams echoing all the way down.
(And thus, Lost Keep's adventure continues…)