She was caught in a torrent of ash like now. The wind shredded, and each cut was like a chill creeping into her. The cold tried to dull her body, but her mind was clear. It was familiar, it was terrifying, but she knew she was still alive. However, the phantom pain in her body was a reminder of what was to come if she was not able to overcome this situation.

The gale was unforeseen, the waves of crashing ashes disorienting and impairing, but the way out was not indiscernible. The expedition log might not have explicit instructions on how to escape their current predicament, but as long as she knew the design of the Dungeon, coming up with a plan of entry should not be too difficult. Dungeons sought intruders, after all.

The majority of Dungeons had more straight forward means of entry. It was an oddity for a Dungeon to hide behind a wall of gale and ash. Their cores needed intruders, to consume them so that their hatred could be satiated and their reach expanded. Dungeons were remnants of ancient catastrophes, their undying hatred given life. Their instinct should only be to kill. Yet here, it was as if the Dungeon was protecting itself. It was almost human. However, even if the Dungeon had a mind for self-preservation, there were rules it had to follow. Just like a mark, the dungeon core contained the potential for massive power but also had its own restriction. For Dungeons, there had to be a means of reaching their core.

The Tree of Ashen Falls was located in the center of a wall of crashing winds. The tunnel the Aodh marked ones used was not part of it. If it were then there was no need to slay monsters to call upon the gale; the tunnel would simply lead to the Dungeon. This meant that there was a way to navigate the tornado. The difficulty lied in how. It was not a knowledge Rana had and there was no time to observe and experiment. The only way was to evaluate the information she had and determine a course of action. That was enough.

The entrance could not be blocked. The path to the core had to be open. This was consistent with every Dungeon throughout the land and there were no excepts, not even examples of their cores cheating the System. Dungeon cores could not wall off their entrance just because it was breakable by a marked one with a [STR] above 600, or have it submerged in an ocean, or even cause an avalanche to the final room after a raid party defeated their guardian. If the rules were clear and the System did not forbid the gale wall, there was only one explanation. The tornado was the entrance.

Rana and Alpheia continued to tumble in the air. It was difficult to hold onto the moon-kin, who was already having difficulty steadying herself with someone to carry. The ash burned and had a negative status effect. Rana was less concerned as the debuff was considered a physical one so her zombified state was immune to it. She was glad the burn damage was negligible and was only there as a function of it. If the damage had been higher, her weakened fire resistance could result in her death.

[Status Effect]

Ash Fall (from Ash Burn)

— suffer fire element damage equal to 1% of maximum health each second

— reduce [SKL] and [VIT] by 10% for the duration of the debuff

— gain another stack of debuff for each completed Ash Burn (trigger)

The System notified her of the damage taken and the Ash Burn stacks being inflicted upon her. Her Imaginary Seeker Talent gave her a glimpse of the relevant information within the Codex, and although she was immune to the triggered debuff, her companion was not. She remembered looking into Alpheia’s Status and saw that the moon-kin had an innately high fire and air element resistance. It must’ve been due to her mana. However, that was not enough. The moon-kin was resistant to the Ash Fall debuff, but nonetheless it only delayed the inevitable. The damage Alpheia would suffer was based on her maximum health and it would not stop until they left the wind.

“This torrent of wind is the entrance,” Rana yelled. She did not know whether Alpheia heard her, but she had to hurry. “The whirlwind does not rotate only in one direction! It collides and crushes everything within that is not on the correct path. You’ll have to trust me to discern its pathway, and to do so you will have to let yourself be consumed by it!”

She heard Alpheia click her tongue, and something that sounded like moon-kin cursing, but her companion stopped her furiously flapping wings.

“I’m going to bite into you,” she continued. She waited for slight nod of the moon-kin before doing so. It was like syrup, and if not for their predicament she wasn't sure if she would be able to stop. “Start generating mana, let it run wild if you can. The blood-connection should make sure I’ll be somewhat resistant to it.”

The two began to tumble, crashing into invisible walls and seared by the wild ashes. It was chilling, each toss and turn was like being sliced by ice. However, she gritted her teeth and stayed focused. Her fiendish companion was also suffering, but it was up to Rana to get them to safety fast. Even if they were to make it, if either if their health falls below a certain threshold, she could not guarantee that they would survive the landing, let alone an ensuing fight.

The gale was rotating, the currents twisted and collided with each other. There was no rhyme or rhythm, but was it truly without order? She might not be able to see it, but somehow her body recognized something akin to a pattern while being tossed around. It wasn’t enough. She was so close. She could feel it. She had to do it once again.

Rana generated mana within the joints of her fingers, constructing the failed runic-pattern of the blue lance that ended many lives. Some due to their own mistakes, but many by her own hands. She raised her left hand, contained the mana within and triggered the fuse, breaking the Spell and unleashing the energy, severing her five fingers into many parts. Her fingers scattered into the wind and she focused her mind onto them. It was chaos, but then it formed into order. She saw the pattern.

“I found it! Go forward and follow my directions.” Rana said. She embraced the moon-kin tightly as Alpheia picked up her speed, both of them eager to escape. She used her weight and leaned towards the sides to adjust their flight path. She then plucked one of her companion’s plume, leading to a small yelp. “We’re close. Ignite the plume on my mark.”

“You could’ve warned me!”

“Now!”

The plume was released, left behind for but a fraction of a second. The mana within cackled and a fire burned. The energy was released, creating a propulsion that blasted them out of the gale wall. The explosion was loud and burned. Smoke rose from their skin as the two tumbled into the ground, crashing. Her mind threatened to shut down as she struggled to push herself up from the dirt. She glanced to the side, the moon-kin further away but doing the same. It seemed like they made it out of the entrance safely.

Tick. There was a sound. Tick. It was closer than the wind. The dust settled and there it was.

The Tree of Ashen Falls stood tall. It was a tower of vines intertwining into a base that overshadowed even mountains. It pierced the sky, the top unseen except for the rivers of ash that fell from beyond the clouds. They were not exploring a Dungeon, they were raiding a fortress that could only be conquered by scaling to the top.

Then, the defenders descended.