The pale glow of the light ball hovering atop his palm was the only source of light in the endless corridors as they made haste so as not to lose their silent guide. The Dragon perched on his shoulder observed their surroundings with a focused gaze, its eyes reflecting the many corridors.
The path meandered through winding passages, with the downward slope as its only constant. His orb cast long shadows on the walls, making the journey both mesmerizing and eerie. The occasional gusts of wind, which carried faint whispers through the abandoned tunnels, only added to that feeling. As they ventured deeper, the remnants of the mine's past became apparent.
Amongst the discarded mining equipment, they even stumbled upon crates and storage chambers tucked away in forgotten corners. To his surprise, these containers still held remnants of the mine's past prosperity—precious ore extracted long ago, now left behind as a silent testament to a sudden departure.
The gleam of the harvested minerals caught Zeke's eye, casting a muted shimmer in the ambient light. It spoke of wealth abandoned, the tangible echoes of a prosperous mining venture abruptly cut short. His eyes momentarily flashed with a greedy light — this was an unexpected harvest.
Zeke kept his eyes on their surroundings, not missing even the slightest crevice. He grew more confident about their destination as the path became rougher and narrower with every step. Soon, they had to walk in a single file, with less than a hand's width to either side.
Fortunately, the passage eventually unfolded, leading into a vast open space, causing Zeke to slow his steps. He raised his light as to get his bearings. His [Light ball] illuminated the cavern, revealing more Elementals moving about. With caution, they approached the mysterious spectacle.
In the heart of the cavern, Zeke noticed something peculiar—a convergence of shadows that seemed to intertwine. The Elemental leading them joined the others, becoming part of this strange dance. Zeke exchanged a knowing glance with the Dragon; it seemed their suspicions matched.
"This must be it," he said as he slowly approached the place where all the shadow Elementals gathered. The living silhouettes didn't part for him, but neither did they block his path. He easily passed through, their bodies far less corporeal than they looked.
However, after just a few steps, he felt a tingle going down his spine. Zeke came to a halt, trying to figure out where this sensation was coming from. Then, an Elemental moved out of his way, and he caught a glimpse of what lay ahead.
Zeke saw a veritable ocean of blackness, a tide of dark smoke filling half the cavern from the ceiling downward. It was the very material he had been searching for. Here it was, right before him and in such vast quantities that he couldn't exhaust it in a lifetime. If only he would be able to take it.
After thoroughly sizing up the cavern and its occupants, Zeke stepped back, rejoining his group.
"What now?" the Dragon asked.
Zeke knew that the Dragon had seen everything through their shared connection. Therefore, he found it strange that the wise old reptile would ask for his opinion. "Shouldn't I be the one asking? You have far more experience with Elementals than me."
To his surprise, the Dragon shook his head. "I am not very proficient with these sorts of things."
"What things?"
"Planning," the Dragon admitted with a hint of awkwardness. "How often do you think I had to rely on strategies during my lifetime? Don't forget, whelp, that overpowering strength is the birthright of my species."
Zeke hadn't considered that, but the words rang true. Apparently, even something as convenient as absolute power could become a burden in certain situations. He nodded his head and began thinking about their best course of action. However, he had to give up soon after. With the amount of information he had right now, neither he nor Akasha could make an accurate plan.
"You two," he said to Gravitas and Vulcanos. "I want you to grab all the raw ore you can find and bring it out of the mine."
Gravitas nodded and started to leave, but Vulcanos was a bit more hesitant. His gaze didn't leave the swarm of shadow Elementals. "Are you sure you will be fine on your own, master?"
Zeke was touched by the level of concern he heard in the Chimeroi's voice. For such a giant, Vulcanos had quite a gentle side to him. However, Zeke didn't have anything to fear from the Elementals… at least for now. "Don't worry, big guy. These things will not bother us unless we either attack them first or try to take the black liquid."
Somewhat reluctantly, Vulcanos left, following after Gravitas, who hadn't hesitated. Zeke then turned to the Dragon, who was the only one left. "What are you going to do?"
The Dragon wavered — a very uncommon sight. However, Zeke knew the reason for it. Generally, only one thing could make the reptile hesitate: Its pride was getting in the way of what it wanted to ask.
Fortunately for the Dragon, Zeke had resolved himself to make up for ignoring it for so long. "Do you want me to remake your body? You must be running out, and I bet it would be far nicer to fly outside than stay in this cramped place."
After a moment's pause, the Dragon nodded, murmuring something about investigating the area. The moment its new body took shape, it flew out of the cavern at a breakneck pace, leaving Zeke alone with the Elementals.
Chuckling, Zeke turned back to the source of the liquid metal, his face gradually losing all levity. "Now, What am I going to do about you?"
***
Three days passed like that.
Gravitas and Vulcanos carried anything of value out of the mine while Zeke observed the Elementals. He knew far too little about their species to make a detailed plan, and even the Dragon wasn't of much use in that regard. It might have been cognizant of their species, but it didn't have the kind of detailed knowledge required to make an airtight battle plan.
Therefore, Zeke and Akasha had busied themselves with all kinds of experiments. At first, they had been afraid to push any boundaries, but they soon learned that the shadow Elementals didn't care about anything they did. Eventually, they even involved Gravitas and Vulcanos in their experiments to understand how their abilities affected the Elementals.
However, after those three days of continuous investigation, Zeke had learned everything he could. Now, there was no use delaying the inevitable any further. And as Gravitas and Vulcanos came to get him in the evening, he unveiled his plan.
"Are you sure it is wise to talk here, master?" Vulcanos asked, eyeing the Elementals nervously.
Zeke chuckled. "There is no need to worry about that. The Elementals have a very rudimentary level of intelligence — following only their base instincts. They do not have the capabilities to understand speech."
"…not too long ago, you humans used to say that about us as well," Gravitas whispered; however, Zeke still managed to hear her.
"If you have something to say, then you should speak up," he said sternly.
Gravitas flinched. It was evident that she had not meant for him to hear that. Even so, when she looked up, she found that Zeke's face didn't match the harsh tone of his reprimand. Instead, he looked at her encouragingly.
"I… I don't think it is wise to look down on an enemy, master," she said haltingly.
Zeke nodded gravely. "Of course not; that much is a given. However, I do not say those things because of ignorance but because I am confident in my assessment. Observe." Zeke levitated a pair of fist-sized rocks before grabbing the first one and throwing it against the wall near an Elemental.
With an ear-shattering clang, the pebble collided with the sheer rock cliff. The sound echoed through the caverns and tunnels for a while after. Nonetheless, none of the Elementals reacted in the slightest. Not even the one who had been right next to the impact site flinched.
"Are they deaf?" Vulcanos asked.
Without answering the question, Zeke propelled the second rock using his mind. This time, he aimed it at the surface of the Black liquid. The vapor-like substance parted for the projectile, making a whooshing sound as quiet as the buzzing of a mosquito's wings.
However, the moment the sound was heard, every single Elemental stopped in its tracks. All of them turned toward the floating sea of liquid. They stared at its rippling surface for a breathless moment. They resumed their enigmatic dance only when the last of the waves had subsided. A scant few scanned the area for danger instead of continuing their activities, but even they gave up after a moment.
"What did you learn?" Zeke asked curiously.
"They are weird," Vulcanos stated confidently.
Gravitas put a bit more thought into her answer. "It's hard to draw any conclusion from only this much," she said hesitantly. "They might not have even detected the disturbance through sound at all."
Zeke nodded. "You are right, but that wasn't the point I was trying to make."
Gravitas looked at him, her big blue eyes sparkling with interest. Zeke cleared his throat. It had been a while since he had acted as a teacher. He now realized how much he missed it.
"Even after many of them have seen me throw the first rock, none even suspected I had anything to do with the one that struck the lake's surface. From that, we can deduce that they are incapable of basic reasoning. Of course, I have double and triple-checked this hypothesis using different means."
Gravitas eyes lit up even further. It seemed she had just now understood the true purpose of his actions. Zeke had thrown the first rock using his hands while using [Telekinesis] on the second. This had been a conscious choice on his part. It was a single additional layer of abstraction, but it already proved to be too much for the Elementals to comprehend.
Zeke looked at her with a fond smile. He was very pleased with both her curiosity and her level of intellect. It was true that most Chimeroi weren't as intelligent as humans, but her comprehension abilities were clearly above average, even by human standards.
Meanwhile, Vulcanos scratched his head and looked between them in confusion. It was clear that he had not fully understood the subtleties of this experiment. However, Zeke didn't begrudge his ignorance. Not everyone had to be an academic, and the big guy had different strengths.
"Anyway," Zeke said. "We don't have all night, so I'll just say this: Every claim I make about the Elementals is something I have verified beforehand, not just an assumption. Is that clear?"
This time, not only Vulcanos but Gravitas nodded as well.
"Great," Zeke said, a genuine smile flashing across his face. "Then let me explain the plan to you." His face regained its earlier seriousness as he looked into both of their eyes in turn. "You know that we are here to take as much of the black liquid as possible, yes?"
Both nodded.
"And as soon as we do, the Elementals will attack us in full force?"
They both looked astonished upon hearing this — especially Gravitas. The tests had revealed that her ability to control gravity was next to useless against the shadow Elementals. This hadn't really surprised Zeke since they were practically weightless. However, the Chimeroi woman was horrified at this discovery.
"Impossible!" She said before she could stop herself. "Master, there are dozens of them. We are no match."
Vulcanos was a bit more composed, but he was also eyeing the Elementals with trepidation before looking back at Zeke with a defeated look on his face. It seemed his instincts were also telling him it was a hopeless fight.
Zeke shook his head with a severe expression. "You are wrong, Gravitas. There are hundreds of them, not merely dozens." He watched as her face morphed from worry to horror, and even Vulcanos now looked like he had taken a hefty bite out of a particularly sour lemon.
Zeke chuckled lightly, breaking the tension. He had watched them squirm for long enough, and anything more would just be cruel. "Don't worry. I am well aware that we are no match for them."
"Then what?" Gravitas asked, a bit of hope returning to her eyes.
"We don't actually have to fight them, do we?" Zeke asked enigmatically. "So, this is what I propose we do…"